This week in birds - #28

The week's news of birds and the environment:

It's been good weather for ducks here this week! This Blue-winged Teal pair would have felt right at home in my yard for much of the week, as we received more than ten inches of rain over a period of three days.

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In spite of the rain that we have received this week, the USDA still considers us to be in a drought. This week they declared the largest drought disaster area ever. It includes most of the southern tier of states and the Mid-West. Here is their map showing the drought areas in red, with the gray indicating contiguous areas that are affected to a lesser degree.

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Urban noise can stress sparrows to the extent that it can make them less attentive and successful as parents.

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Chemical companies that make pesticides can be pretty cavalier about their products killing the good guys along with the bad, but a California man waged a determined campaign to make Ortho recognize that Monarch butterfly caterpillars are not "bad" and do not need to be killed. Ortho is changing its advertising to reflect this startling (to them) revelation. Never underestimate the power of a really persistent individual!

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Some 700 hectares of an old-growth forest have been discovered in the mountains of Angola. Moreover, the area has been found to be very rich in bird life, including several species that are threatened or endangered. 

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The Black-capped Petrel, a rare seabird, may soon receive protection under the Endangered Species Act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is currently studying the status of the bird to determine if it needs protection. 

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At the end of June, the previous 12-month period in the United States had been the warmest ever recorded. Also, the first six months of this year set records for the warmest months in our history.

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Federal agents are rounding up and gassing Canada Geese in the area of John F. Kennedy Airport in New York in order to protect aircraft from collisions with the big birds. But there may be a less lethal way to protect aircraft. A new study shows that geese react quicker and get out of the way of aircraft with lights on. That would seem to suggest a very simple solution.

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The Natural Resources Defense Council's publication onearth, has an article this week by a firefighter who is fighting the wildfires in Colorado, something that he has done in years past as well. He argues that global climate change is exacerbating the situation and that we can probably expect more and even worse fires in the future.

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Tourists who insist on walking right up to King Penguins, interacting with them and taking their pictures, are stressing the birds. Officials are recommending that the tourists only be able to view the birds through binoculars.  

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The blog, life on six legs, tells about photographing butterflies with a 30-year-old lens. My lens isn't quite thirty years old, but I did manage to use it to photograph some butterflies today.

A Tiger Swallowtail butterfly feeds on a duranta bloom.

A rather battered (probably by the weather) Giant Swallowtail feeds on the same bush. This duranta shrub was very popular with butterflies today. It was literally alive with them.

As for birds in the yard this week, I don't have much news because I haven't been able to spend much time observing. I have noted that there seems to be a lot of hummingbird activity, but haven't been able to tell exactly how many birds I have. I know there are at least two because I've seen them chasing each other around. Weather permitting, I hope to be able to spend more time in the yard with the birds next week.

Happy weekend!