Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Note to my readers
To those of you who may have noticed my recent blog silence and wondered about it, the truth is that I have been quite sick. A bacterial infection has flattened me and made it impossible for me to do much of anything, including blogging. I hope to be feeling better soon and back to my normal activities. Meantime, thank you for your patience.
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Saturday, October 19, 2013
This week in birds - #87
A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:
The White-throated Sparrow breeds in the far north of the continent, in most of Canada east of the Rockies and south of the tundra and in the northern United States from Minnesota east to New England. It winters mostly in the southern and eastern United States. Its population is stable and, in fact, it is one of our most common sparrow species. Also one of the most beloved.
*~*~*~*
Now that the government shutdown has ended, the national parks and national wildlife reserves are open once again, much to the relief of the many of us who enjoy visiting them. This is also a relief to the communities around the parks and reserves which depend on them as revenue producers. It is estimated that the parks lost $450,000 per day in collection fees during the shutdown and communities lost approximately $76 million per day in lost tourist dollars. Overall, the completely unnecessary shutdown cost the country some $24 billion.
*~*~*~*
Moose are dying off across North America and it is unclear why. The populations of the big animal everywhere seem to be in decline. Scientists investigating the die-off suspect that a combination of causes mostly related to climate change is the major culprit. Moose are cold-weather animals and a warming climate stresses them.
*~*~*~*
The migration of the Whooping Cranes has begun. Eight hand-raised juvenile cranes from the Wisconsin/Florida flock are following their ultralight "foster parent" as it leads them on their first flight south. Meanwhile, the one last truly wild flock of the big birds, the Canada/Texas flock, has started its flight south to the Texas Gulf Coast near Rockport. Citizens across Texas are invited to watch for the birds and to report to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department if they sight any of them.
*~*~*~*
Volunteers are collecting dead birds from around buildings in Washington, D.C. in an effort to determine which buildings produce the most collisions and deaths.
*~*~*~*
It appears that birds having two wings was an evolutionary improvement. It seems that their ancestors originally had four wings.
*~*~*~*
It's not entirely unusual for birds on migration to get misdirected and wind up in some strange places. They are referred to as vagrants. Recently, a vagrant Calliope Hummingbird, a western species, turned up in Cape May Point, New Jersey. The bird was last seen headed east again which was definitely the wrong way. It can only be hoped that it will redirect itself south.
*~*~*~*
Coyotes seem to be becoming more common around Princeton, New Jersey, and there had been talk of doing a cull, but officials have now decided that the issue needs further study. They will collect data on the animals and institute public education to inform the citizenry on how to deal with them before making a decision on how to proceed further.
*~*~*~*
In Switzerland, customs officials announced the arrest of a man caught smuggling the eggs of protected parrots in his underwear. The man allegedly traveled the globe trading in rare and protected species.
*~*~*~*
In other egg news, the century-old egg of a critically endangered bird, the Jerdon's Courser, has been located in a dusty museum drawer in Scotland. It is hoped that DNA can be extracted from the egg to shed more light on the rare nocturnal bird that is only known to live in a tiny scrub forest in southeastern India.
*~*~*~*
The recorded playback of birdsongs, a technique used by some birders to attract birds, has been found to be stressful and harmful for the birds because it causes them to expend unnecessary energy in responding to the songs and searching for the interloper.
*~*~*~*
It's official. Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law a bill that will ban lead shot from the guns of hunters in California. Lead shot has been implicated in the deaths of many birds that feed on carrion, including the very endangered California Condor. California thus becomes the first state to institute such a ban.
*~*~*~*
Collisions between birds and airplanes can be deadly for both the birds and the human passengers and they happen too frequently. In an effort to prevent such collisions, authorities cull thousands of birds each year, but there may be a better way. Integrated avian radar systems are used in some parts of the world to warn pilots of birds in the air, and they seem to work extremely well. If implemented here, they could save lives of the birds and the human fliers.
Photo by Bill Hubick, courtesy of ABC
The pretty little White-throated Sparrow is the Bird of the Week as designated by American Bird Conservancy. This is a bird which I always look forward to having as a visitor in my backyard during the winter. It doesn't always happen, but when they do come, they are a delight to observe and hear.The White-throated Sparrow breeds in the far north of the continent, in most of Canada east of the Rockies and south of the tundra and in the northern United States from Minnesota east to New England. It winters mostly in the southern and eastern United States. Its population is stable and, in fact, it is one of our most common sparrow species. Also one of the most beloved.
*~*~*~*
Now that the government shutdown has ended, the national parks and national wildlife reserves are open once again, much to the relief of the many of us who enjoy visiting them. This is also a relief to the communities around the parks and reserves which depend on them as revenue producers. It is estimated that the parks lost $450,000 per day in collection fees during the shutdown and communities lost approximately $76 million per day in lost tourist dollars. Overall, the completely unnecessary shutdown cost the country some $24 billion.
*~*~*~*
Moose are dying off across North America and it is unclear why. The populations of the big animal everywhere seem to be in decline. Scientists investigating the die-off suspect that a combination of causes mostly related to climate change is the major culprit. Moose are cold-weather animals and a warming climate stresses them.
*~*~*~*
The migration of the Whooping Cranes has begun. Eight hand-raised juvenile cranes from the Wisconsin/Florida flock are following their ultralight "foster parent" as it leads them on their first flight south. Meanwhile, the one last truly wild flock of the big birds, the Canada/Texas flock, has started its flight south to the Texas Gulf Coast near Rockport. Citizens across Texas are invited to watch for the birds and to report to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department if they sight any of them.
*~*~*~*
Volunteers are collecting dead birds from around buildings in Washington, D.C. in an effort to determine which buildings produce the most collisions and deaths.
*~*~*~*
It appears that birds having two wings was an evolutionary improvement. It seems that their ancestors originally had four wings.
*~*~*~*
It's not entirely unusual for birds on migration to get misdirected and wind up in some strange places. They are referred to as vagrants. Recently, a vagrant Calliope Hummingbird, a western species, turned up in Cape May Point, New Jersey. The bird was last seen headed east again which was definitely the wrong way. It can only be hoped that it will redirect itself south.
*~*~*~*
Coyotes seem to be becoming more common around Princeton, New Jersey, and there had been talk of doing a cull, but officials have now decided that the issue needs further study. They will collect data on the animals and institute public education to inform the citizenry on how to deal with them before making a decision on how to proceed further.
*~*~*~*
In Switzerland, customs officials announced the arrest of a man caught smuggling the eggs of protected parrots in his underwear. The man allegedly traveled the globe trading in rare and protected species.
*~*~*~*
In other egg news, the century-old egg of a critically endangered bird, the Jerdon's Courser, has been located in a dusty museum drawer in Scotland. It is hoped that DNA can be extracted from the egg to shed more light on the rare nocturnal bird that is only known to live in a tiny scrub forest in southeastern India.
*~*~*~*
The recorded playback of birdsongs, a technique used by some birders to attract birds, has been found to be stressful and harmful for the birds because it causes them to expend unnecessary energy in responding to the songs and searching for the interloper.
*~*~*~*
It's official. Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law a bill that will ban lead shot from the guns of hunters in California. Lead shot has been implicated in the deaths of many birds that feed on carrion, including the very endangered California Condor. California thus becomes the first state to institute such a ban.
*~*~*~*
Collisions between birds and airplanes can be deadly for both the birds and the human passengers and they happen too frequently. In an effort to prevent such collisions, authorities cull thousands of birds each year, but there may be a better way. Integrated avian radar systems are used in some parts of the world to warn pilots of birds in the air, and they seem to work extremely well. If implemented here, they could save lives of the birds and the human fliers.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Saturday, October 12, 2013
This week in birds - #86
A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:
This chicken-like bird is a resident of a shrinking range along the Pacific Coast of Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia. They live in small and raucous flocks of four to ten birds. The main threat to their continued existence is hunting pressure. The local people consider them a good food source. They are also threatened by the ever-encroaching clearing of land for agriculture in the area.
*~*~*~*
It's springtime in Antarctica, a time when scientists hurry to take advantage of the marginally more pleasant weather to do important research, but because of the shutdown of the government, it looks like American scientists will not be joining the scientific community there in time for the big spring research push. In fact, there are fears that the entire year's research season may have to be cancelled.
*~*~*~*
In another potentially disastrous effect of the shutdown, the ability of the National Weather Service, a program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to track and forecast the weather and warn of coming storms will be severely compromised the longer the debacle continues.
*~*~*~*
You may be familiar with birding "Big Years," in which a birder tries to see and list as many birds as he can in a year's time. Did you know that avid fans of butterflies also do Big Years? A man in New Jersey has just recorded his 101st species of butterfly for the year in that state.
*~*~*~*
New Caledonian Crows are fascinating and very intelligent birds. It has long been known that they use tools to get food, but it turns out that they select an appropriate tool and orient it correctly to extract the food. No guesswork involved.
*~*~*~*
The emerald ash borer, an insect that is devastating to ash trees, has apparently invaded Colorado. Although the ash is not a native tree there, it is widely used in both public and private landscapes.
*~*~*~*
Why on earth would a bird need two tails? Well, perhaps for display or perhaps the second tail aided in flying in some way. At least that is the speculation of some scientists about the discovery of a fossil of a dinosaur-era bird from the Cretaceous Period that did, in fact, sport two tails.
*~*~*~*
Many purveyors of "news," such as Fox News, have reported that global warming has slowed down, that it has "paused." This story continues to be repeated by less than rigorous journalists. It is wholly false. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently issued its report which makes that abundantly clear and the projections for the future become more dire every year that we fail to do anything to reverse the trend. So far, projections by the Panel have been right on track. Unfortunately.
*~*~*~*
Research has shown that many songbirds search for sources of food in the morning but do their main feeding near the end of the day. This is a strategy that helps them to avoid hawks which typically hunt earlier in the day. I have actually observed this in my own yard. Many birds wait until the late afternoon to visit the feeders.
*~*~*~*
"Dead as a Dodo" is a catchphrase for something that is thoroughly, irrevocably dead. It refers to the large flightless pigeon that went extinct in the 17th century because it had no defenses against hungry humans. But a researcher has discovered that the bird may actually have survived several decades longer than had previously been believed. Doesn't really change anything though. It is still dead as a Dodo.
*~*~*~*
It seems that the Barnacle Goose has had a very good year. The bird's population has tripled in the Gulf of Finland.
*~*~*~*
Bumblebees are among my favorite backyard critters, and they have a very interesting life cycle. The blogger at "Native Plants and Wildlife Gardens" writes about that cycle this week.
*~*~*~*
Swifts are prodigious fliers, but this boggles the imagination. Three Alpine Swifts in southwest Africa apparently flew continuously for 200 days. They ate, slept, did everything that a swift's life requires on the wing.
*~*~*~*
Around the backyard:
And speaking of swifts, it has been several days since I have seen or heard any Chimney Swifts over my backyard. I'm thinking they have headed south. In some years, they have hung around until about the first of November, but evidently not this year.
The White-winged Doves have abandoned my yard. I'm not exactly crying about that, but it's interesting how this works. Periodically, they will completely disappear from the yard for weeks at a time. This often happens in autumn, but they will be back in force once winter comes. I still see one or two occasionally flying over the yard, but they don't stop to feed any more.
Most of the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have moved on now. The cold front that we got last weekend seemed to hurry them along. There are still some passing through every day or so, all adult females or juveniles. I haven't seen any adult males for a while. But the ones that I see now are strictly "here today, gone tomorrow." Now my backyard is controlled by two Rufous Hummingbirds. Are they the same ones that have spent the last two winters here? I've no way of knowing, but they seem to be here to stay.
Suddenly, my yard is completely overrun during the middle of the day by House Sparrows. There must be a hundred or more of the birds that ravage my birdseed and sit in the shrubs and chatter noisily all day long. They finally disappear in the late afternoon, headed to a nighttime roost somewhere. I always have some sparrows in my yard, but this amounts to a plague. I need to find some way to discourage them.
I hope that you are not being "plagued" and that all of your birding experiences are happy ones.
Photo by David Wiedenfeld, courtesy of ABC.
The American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week this week is the Rufous-headed Chachalaca. One look at its image will show you how it got its name.This chicken-like bird is a resident of a shrinking range along the Pacific Coast of Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia. They live in small and raucous flocks of four to ten birds. The main threat to their continued existence is hunting pressure. The local people consider them a good food source. They are also threatened by the ever-encroaching clearing of land for agriculture in the area.
*~*~*~*
It's springtime in Antarctica, a time when scientists hurry to take advantage of the marginally more pleasant weather to do important research, but because of the shutdown of the government, it looks like American scientists will not be joining the scientific community there in time for the big spring research push. In fact, there are fears that the entire year's research season may have to be cancelled.
*~*~*~*
In another potentially disastrous effect of the shutdown, the ability of the National Weather Service, a program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to track and forecast the weather and warn of coming storms will be severely compromised the longer the debacle continues.
*~*~*~*
You may be familiar with birding "Big Years," in which a birder tries to see and list as many birds as he can in a year's time. Did you know that avid fans of butterflies also do Big Years? A man in New Jersey has just recorded his 101st species of butterfly for the year in that state.
*~*~*~*
New Caledonian Crows are fascinating and very intelligent birds. It has long been known that they use tools to get food, but it turns out that they select an appropriate tool and orient it correctly to extract the food. No guesswork involved.
*~*~*~*
The emerald ash borer, an insect that is devastating to ash trees, has apparently invaded Colorado. Although the ash is not a native tree there, it is widely used in both public and private landscapes.
*~*~*~*
Why on earth would a bird need two tails? Well, perhaps for display or perhaps the second tail aided in flying in some way. At least that is the speculation of some scientists about the discovery of a fossil of a dinosaur-era bird from the Cretaceous Period that did, in fact, sport two tails.
*~*~*~*
Many purveyors of "news," such as Fox News, have reported that global warming has slowed down, that it has "paused." This story continues to be repeated by less than rigorous journalists. It is wholly false. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently issued its report which makes that abundantly clear and the projections for the future become more dire every year that we fail to do anything to reverse the trend. So far, projections by the Panel have been right on track. Unfortunately.
*~*~*~*
Research has shown that many songbirds search for sources of food in the morning but do their main feeding near the end of the day. This is a strategy that helps them to avoid hawks which typically hunt earlier in the day. I have actually observed this in my own yard. Many birds wait until the late afternoon to visit the feeders.
*~*~*~*
"Dead as a Dodo" is a catchphrase for something that is thoroughly, irrevocably dead. It refers to the large flightless pigeon that went extinct in the 17th century because it had no defenses against hungry humans. But a researcher has discovered that the bird may actually have survived several decades longer than had previously been believed. Doesn't really change anything though. It is still dead as a Dodo.
*~*~*~*
It seems that the Barnacle Goose has had a very good year. The bird's population has tripled in the Gulf of Finland.
*~*~*~*
Bumblebees are among my favorite backyard critters, and they have a very interesting life cycle. The blogger at "Native Plants and Wildlife Gardens" writes about that cycle this week.
*~*~*~*
Swifts are prodigious fliers, but this boggles the imagination. Three Alpine Swifts in southwest Africa apparently flew continuously for 200 days. They ate, slept, did everything that a swift's life requires on the wing.
*~*~*~*
Around the backyard:
And speaking of swifts, it has been several days since I have seen or heard any Chimney Swifts over my backyard. I'm thinking they have headed south. In some years, they have hung around until about the first of November, but evidently not this year.
The White-winged Doves have abandoned my yard. I'm not exactly crying about that, but it's interesting how this works. Periodically, they will completely disappear from the yard for weeks at a time. This often happens in autumn, but they will be back in force once winter comes. I still see one or two occasionally flying over the yard, but they don't stop to feed any more.
Most of the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have moved on now. The cold front that we got last weekend seemed to hurry them along. There are still some passing through every day or so, all adult females or juveniles. I haven't seen any adult males for a while. But the ones that I see now are strictly "here today, gone tomorrow." Now my backyard is controlled by two Rufous Hummingbirds. Are they the same ones that have spent the last two winters here? I've no way of knowing, but they seem to be here to stay.
Suddenly, my yard is completely overrun during the middle of the day by House Sparrows. There must be a hundred or more of the birds that ravage my birdseed and sit in the shrubs and chatter noisily all day long. They finally disappear in the late afternoon, headed to a nighttime roost somewhere. I always have some sparrows in my yard, but this amounts to a plague. I need to find some way to discourage them.
I hope that you are not being "plagued" and that all of your birding experiences are happy ones.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Monday, October 7, 2013
A Pileated sighting
I rarely, as in almost never, see Pileated Woodpeckers in my yard or even around my yard any more. Several years ago, before all the houses were built in the area and when there were still plenty of dead trees standing in the woods behind our house, I used to see more of them. But now there are houses everywhere and fewer trees and all of the dead trees have been removed. And the Pileateds seldom visit any more.
I still hear them calling occasionally in the neighborhood, particularly in the direction of Spring Creek to the south. Usually they are quite some distance away but those voices do resonate!
Today, while I was sitting in my backyard, I heard one of the big woodpeckers - biggest in North America, assuming the Ivory-billed really is extinct - calling down toward the creek. A few minutes passed, and then I heard him a lot closer. A few more minutes passed, and my peripheral vision picked up a large bird flying into the old magnolia tree in my backyard. I turned to look. The bird was mostly hidden by the leathery leaves of the tree, but there was no doubt - it was the Pileated!
If there had been any doubt, it would have been removed a moment later when the bird loudly announced his presence.
There must have been something of interest in the tree, because he spent several minutes - maybe ten - going up and down the trunk and poking at the bark. Then, he flew again, this time to one of my neighbor's big pine trees. Wonderful bird! Having him in my yard even for a few minutes made my day.
Incidentally, the mispronunciation of this bird's name by people who should know better always bugs me, and it seems to be becoming more common, so I guess I can prepare to be permanently bugged. The correct pronunciation (following the standard rules of English pronunciation) is "pile-e-ated" - long "i" in the first syllable. You can look it up. But very often you will hear it pronounced "pill-e-ated." Well, as Mrs. Rubinstein taught me long, long ago, that is just wrong! I'm sure the bird would be offended to hear its name mispronounced, so don't be guilty of it.
I still hear them calling occasionally in the neighborhood, particularly in the direction of Spring Creek to the south. Usually they are quite some distance away but those voices do resonate!
Today, while I was sitting in my backyard, I heard one of the big woodpeckers - biggest in North America, assuming the Ivory-billed really is extinct - calling down toward the creek. A few minutes passed, and then I heard him a lot closer. A few more minutes passed, and my peripheral vision picked up a large bird flying into the old magnolia tree in my backyard. I turned to look. The bird was mostly hidden by the leathery leaves of the tree, but there was no doubt - it was the Pileated!
If there had been any doubt, it would have been removed a moment later when the bird loudly announced his presence.
There must have been something of interest in the tree, because he spent several minutes - maybe ten - going up and down the trunk and poking at the bark. Then, he flew again, this time to one of my neighbor's big pine trees. Wonderful bird! Having him in my yard even for a few minutes made my day.
Incidentally, the mispronunciation of this bird's name by people who should know better always bugs me, and it seems to be becoming more common, so I guess I can prepare to be permanently bugged. The correct pronunciation (following the standard rules of English pronunciation) is "pile-e-ated" - long "i" in the first syllable. You can look it up. But very often you will hear it pronounced "pill-e-ated." Well, as Mrs. Rubinstein taught me long, long ago, that is just wrong! I'm sure the bird would be offended to hear its name mispronounced, so don't be guilty of it.
Sunday, October 6, 2013
This week in birds - #85
A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:
The beautiful Audubon's Oriole has been designated Bird of the Week by the American Bird Conservancy. This colorful member of the blackbird family is primarily a bird of Mexico but does range into the Rio Grande Valley area of South Texas. A denizen of the many wildlife refuges along the river there, it is one of the many birds that birders from all over flock to the area to see.
The Audubon's population is declining and it is of some concern to conservationists. Like so many other birds, it is a victim of habitat destruction by encroaching human development. Also, it is one of the prime victims of brood parasitism by its cousin, the Bronzed Cowbird. The best hope for the long-term survival of the species is the protection and restoration of native vegetation in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
*~*~*~*
The United Nations has published its latest report on climate change which confirms the near certainty of a human cause to the destructive phenomenon. BirdLife International is calling for an aggressive response to fight and reverse the ongoing trend because of the extreme danger which it poses for so many bird species. Although the deniers continue to pooh-pooh the whole idea of climate change, the findings and projections of the IPCC have proven to be quite accurate. Since they are projecting catastrophe for the future of the human race if it continues on its present course, perhaps we should pay attention to them.
*~*~*~*
A Canadian study looked at twenty-five different human causes of bird mortality and found that the most lethal one was humans' pets - specifically cats, both feral and owned cats that are allowed to roam outside. This confirms previous studies done in the United States and is further ammunition for the argument that we should keep our beloved felines inside and that we should find a humane solution to the problem of feral cats.
*~*~*~*
A court has withdrawn permission for the development of a giant wind farm on the Shetland Islands because of concern about the devastating effect it could have on the Whimbrel, a migratory shorebird endemic to the area. The government is appealing the ruling.
*~*~*~*
"The Rattling Crow" blogger wrote about how Canada Geese make their flock decision to fly.
*~*~*~*
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, before it was shut down by politics this week, announced its decision to list as "threatened" the rufa Red Knot, a species of small shorebird that is one of the longest-distance migrants (over 9,300 miles) in the animal kingdom. Conservation groups have long sought the protection of the Endangered Species Act for this highly imperiled bird.
*~*~*~*
The seemingly never-ending devastation at the Fukushima power plant in Japan continued this week. The latest headline in the tragedy was a spillage of radioactive water that was caused by human error.
*~*~*~*
I reported last week about migratory birds being burned by a solar power facility in California. This week more details have emerged about how the birds' deaths happened.
*~*~*~*
Melatonin is a substance that helps to regulate sleep cycles in humans as well as birds. As someone who has sometimes struggled with erratic sleep cycles, I fully appreciate its importance. It turns out that low light levels in urban areas may be affecting the birds in those areas in significant ways, causing changes such as earlier activity in the mornings and changed breeding patterns.
*~*~*~*
A recent paper on the genomic data of ants and bees reveals that the two species are much more closely related than had heretofore been believed.
*~*~*~*
An analysis of the fossilized feces of the extinct Giant Moa has revealed information about what the birds ate and where they likely ate it.
*~*~*~*
An oil spill on a lake in Wales has coated ducks in oil and endangered their lives. About 500 of the birds have so far been captured for cleaning.
*~*~*~*
National parks and wildlife refuges around the country have been shut down by the intransigence of certain members of Congress who simply refuse to accept the decisions made by the democratic process when they don't happen to agree with those decisions. There doesn't appear to be any end in sight, since these people really have no strategy for ending their action now that it must be clear to them that they will not have their demands met. They have already inconvenienced and irritated countless numbers of people around the country, including myself, who have had to change their vacation and sightseeing plans because of their actions. No trip to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge last week for me and it looks like our trip planned to Bosque del Apache NWF in New Mexico next month may be imperiled. How sad that some thirty to forty narcissistic members of Congress, who are determined to prevent millions of uninsured Americans from getting health insurance and health care, would be willing to cause such hardship and real suffering by many in order to achieve their political aims.
Picture by Greg Lavaty, courtesy of ABC.
The beautiful Audubon's Oriole has been designated Bird of the Week by the American Bird Conservancy. This colorful member of the blackbird family is primarily a bird of Mexico but does range into the Rio Grande Valley area of South Texas. A denizen of the many wildlife refuges along the river there, it is one of the many birds that birders from all over flock to the area to see.
The Audubon's population is declining and it is of some concern to conservationists. Like so many other birds, it is a victim of habitat destruction by encroaching human development. Also, it is one of the prime victims of brood parasitism by its cousin, the Bronzed Cowbird. The best hope for the long-term survival of the species is the protection and restoration of native vegetation in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
*~*~*~*
The United Nations has published its latest report on climate change which confirms the near certainty of a human cause to the destructive phenomenon. BirdLife International is calling for an aggressive response to fight and reverse the ongoing trend because of the extreme danger which it poses for so many bird species. Although the deniers continue to pooh-pooh the whole idea of climate change, the findings and projections of the IPCC have proven to be quite accurate. Since they are projecting catastrophe for the future of the human race if it continues on its present course, perhaps we should pay attention to them.
*~*~*~*
A Canadian study looked at twenty-five different human causes of bird mortality and found that the most lethal one was humans' pets - specifically cats, both feral and owned cats that are allowed to roam outside. This confirms previous studies done in the United States and is further ammunition for the argument that we should keep our beloved felines inside and that we should find a humane solution to the problem of feral cats.
*~*~*~*
A court has withdrawn permission for the development of a giant wind farm on the Shetland Islands because of concern about the devastating effect it could have on the Whimbrel, a migratory shorebird endemic to the area. The government is appealing the ruling.
*~*~*~*
"The Rattling Crow" blogger wrote about how Canada Geese make their flock decision to fly.
*~*~*~*
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, before it was shut down by politics this week, announced its decision to list as "threatened" the rufa Red Knot, a species of small shorebird that is one of the longest-distance migrants (over 9,300 miles) in the animal kingdom. Conservation groups have long sought the protection of the Endangered Species Act for this highly imperiled bird.
*~*~*~*
The seemingly never-ending devastation at the Fukushima power plant in Japan continued this week. The latest headline in the tragedy was a spillage of radioactive water that was caused by human error.
*~*~*~*
I reported last week about migratory birds being burned by a solar power facility in California. This week more details have emerged about how the birds' deaths happened.
*~*~*~*
Melatonin is a substance that helps to regulate sleep cycles in humans as well as birds. As someone who has sometimes struggled with erratic sleep cycles, I fully appreciate its importance. It turns out that low light levels in urban areas may be affecting the birds in those areas in significant ways, causing changes such as earlier activity in the mornings and changed breeding patterns.
*~*~*~*
A recent paper on the genomic data of ants and bees reveals that the two species are much more closely related than had heretofore been believed.
*~*~*~*
An analysis of the fossilized feces of the extinct Giant Moa has revealed information about what the birds ate and where they likely ate it.
*~*~*~*
An oil spill on a lake in Wales has coated ducks in oil and endangered their lives. About 500 of the birds have so far been captured for cleaning.
*~*~*~*
National parks and wildlife refuges around the country have been shut down by the intransigence of certain members of Congress who simply refuse to accept the decisions made by the democratic process when they don't happen to agree with those decisions. There doesn't appear to be any end in sight, since these people really have no strategy for ending their action now that it must be clear to them that they will not have their demands met. They have already inconvenienced and irritated countless numbers of people around the country, including myself, who have had to change their vacation and sightseeing plans because of their actions. No trip to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge last week for me and it looks like our trip planned to Bosque del Apache NWF in New Mexico next month may be imperiled. How sad that some thirty to forty narcissistic members of Congress, who are determined to prevent millions of uninsured Americans from getting health insurance and health care, would be willing to cause such hardship and real suffering by many in order to achieve their political aims.
Friday, October 4, 2013
More Rufous pictures
I staked out the Cape honeysuckle plant this morning to try to get some more - and better - shots of the Rufous Hummingbird that has claimed the plant as his own. I'm still in search of that one great or even really good shot of the bird, but here's a bit of what I was able to capture today.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Rufous alert!
I had thought that I had one weeks ago but was never able to confirm it to my satisfaction. If it was a Rufous, it was probably just passing through.
But this one has been here for at least two days now and seems to be making himself at home. That twig where he is sitting is located just to the right of my Cape honeysuckle plant which is in glorious bloom at the moment, and it seems to be a favorite perch of his. From there, he can defend the honeysuckle from other hummers.
My challenge in coming days will be to try to get a better picture of the little critter. It won't be easy because he is almost constantly on the move in his battle with the several other hummingbirds visiting my yard at the moment.
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
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