tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-137640212024-03-07T13:44:16.805-05:00DendroicaJohn B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comBlogger3405125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-84740096863417920592021-05-07T10:00:00.001-04:002021-05-07T10:16:11.660-04:00Loose Feathers #800<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYtilqxE_Qcc__qMf39985IJWN3W3tAOtjlj5F68s6SxbaCOr9MeYFeJ6Fzy9N_BIpUNKcXrBzmOTUvlsKNDt8PecD1VJuJ__5P8dRMC-52g_TDaGC9cB-YTb_wqEYswq-_ue/s800/wcsp_51158095599_a945bdabfa_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="800" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYtilqxE_Qcc__qMf39985IJWN3W3tAOtjlj5F68s6SxbaCOr9MeYFeJ6Fzy9N_BIpUNKcXrBzmOTUvlsKNDt8PecD1VJuJ__5P8dRMC-52g_TDaGC9cB-YTb_wqEYswq-_ue/w400-h285/wcsp_51158095599_a945bdabfa_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>White-crowned Sparrow / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/51158095599/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Tomorrow is NJ Audubon's <a href="https://worldseriesofbirding.org/">World Series of Birding</a>, a big day tournament to raise money for conservation. Like last year, this year's tournament is following <a href="https://worldseriesofbirding.org/uploads/2021_WSB_Rules_of_Competition.pdf">special rules due to the pandemic</a> (pdf). As in the past, I will be part of the Middlesex Merlins; here is a link to <a href="https://www.worldseriesofbirding.org/teampage.asp?fundid=1615">our team page</a> for fundraising. </li><li>Tomorrow is also <a href="https://www.worldmigratorybirdday.org/">World Migratory Bird Day</a> and eBird's <a href="https://ebird.org/globalbigday">Global Big Day</a>, and eBird is offering <a href="https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/news/enjoy-free-access-to-birds-of-the-world-this-global-big-day-weekend">free access</a> to its <a href="https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/home">Birds of the World</a> encyclopedia for the weekend.<br /></li><li>A rare Broad-billed Hummingbird made it <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/environment/ct-rare-hummingbird-labagh-woods-chicago-tt-20210505-5pigb5i26bcenoo4wud36exs5i-story.html">all the way to Chicago</a>.</li><li>Like coffee farms, cocoa farms can support wintering migratory birds <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/scientists-make-sweet-discovery-west-african-cocoa-farm">if natural habitat is preserved nearby</a>. <br /></li><li>Scientists have fitted 10 Little Blue Penguins with tracking devices to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-28/penguin-fitbits/100098082">map their foraging routes and methods</a>.</li><li>Researchers found a link between how much food male Hoopoes bring their mates and <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-05-male-hoopoes-extra-nourishment-eggs.html">how well the females paint their eggs</a>.</li><li>A British study found that migratory birds <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-05-pollution-night-affects-migratory-birds.html">called more often</a> when flying over brightly-lit urban areas.</li><li>The Bornean subspecies of the Rajah Scops-Owl was documented in the wild <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-05-bornean-rajah-scops-owl-rediscovered.html">for the first time since 1892</a>. The sighting came during a survey of the bird populations around Mount Kinabalu.</li><li>A California Condor chick <a href="https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-travel-environment-and-nature-california-condors-157667b246a2a571dfb64b6b42b3d483">hatched</a> in Pinnacles National Park last month. If it survives, it should fledge sometime in the fall. Meanwhile, one homeowner had an <a href="https://twitter.com/SeanaLyn/status/1389745331085070343">overabundance of condors</a> this week.</li><li>The <i>rufa</i> subspecies of Red Knot is still in danger of extinction, and the major limiting factor on its population is still <a href="https://www.njspotlight.com/2021/05/larry-niles-25-years-fighting-save-red-knot-extinction-delaware-bay-horseshoe-crabs-over-harvest-depletion-vaccine-bleeding/">a lack of horseshoe crab eggs at migratory stopover sites</a>. While commercial fishing has been restricted, horseshoe crab blood is still being used to test pharmaceutical products.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>BirdCast: <a href="https://birdcast.info/news/caribbean-cruisers-visible-migration-along-the-atlantic-coast-of-florida/">Caribbean Cruisers: visible migration along the Atlantic Coast of Florida</a></li><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="https://www.10000birds.com/birds-on-utility-poles-the-electrocution-solution.htm">Birds on Utility Poles - The Electrocution Solution</a> </li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/05/01/eared-grebe-an-unusual-feeding-behavior/">Eared Grebe – An Unusual Feeding Behavior</a></li><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-may-2021/">Field Guide to May 2021</a> <br /></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/05/05/gene-flow-is-an-integral-part-of-speciation-in-beringian-birds/">Gene flow is an integral part of speciation in Beringian birds</a></li><li>Laura's Birding Blog: <a href="https://blog.lauraerickson.com/2021/05/gee-whiz-sad-loss.html">Gee Whiz: A Sad Loss</a> </li><li>The Meadowlands Nature Blog: <a href="https://meadowblog.net/2021/05/don-torinos-life-in-the-meadowlands-a-reminder-to-plant-milkeed-in-every-yard-2/">Don Torino’s Life in the Meadowlands: A Reminder to Plant Milkeed in Every Yard!</a></li><li>Arachnofiles: <a href="https://medium.com/arachnofiles/arachnews-april-2x-2021-9b7e19f39c64">Arachnews: May 3, 2021. Back from the dead</a> </li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/05/02/return-to-the-prairie/">Return to the Prairie</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/05/01/great-blue-heron-in-flight-photos/">Great Blue Heron In Flight Photos</a></li><li>Ohio Birds and Biodiversity: <a href="https://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/2021/05/ladys-slippers-in-spring-forest.html">Lady's-slippers in a spring forest</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Periodical cicadas like Brood X <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/05/cicada-brood-x-bacteria-chaos/618808/">depend on beneficial bacteria</a> that help them produce amino acids, and fragmentation of the bacteria threatens their long-term survival.</li><li>Here is a list of locations in New Jersey <a href="https://www.nj.com/news/2021/05/nj-cicada-map-2021-will-your-town-get-swarmed-by-the-brood-x-cicadas.html">where Brood X has historically emerged</a>. </li><li>Sightings this year should be reported to <a href="https://www.cicadamania.com/">Cicada Mania</a> (as well as other community science sites like <a href="http://www.inaturalist.org/">iNaturalist</a>) to update the range maps.</li><li>Camera traps are documenting the animals <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/05/a-colombian-national-park-reveals-its-natural-secrets-through-camera-traps/">using El Tuparro National Natural Park</a> in Colombia.</li><li>Even though administrations have changed, the Interior Department <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-fights-new-deadline-for-rare-plant-protections-in-nevada/2021/05/03/4f3aaf4a-ac60-11eb-82c1-896aca955bb9_story.html">is still delaying a decision</a> on whether to list Tiehm's Buckwheat, a plant in the way of a lithium mine, as an endangered species.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>California is beginning steps to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/23/california-fracking-ban-oil-extraction">wind down oil production</a>, starting with a ban on new fracking permits by 2024 and an end to all oil drilling by 2045.</li><li>The emissions goals set by wealthy nations would result in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/04/rich-nations-climate-targets-will-mean-global-heating-of-24c-study">a global temperature rise of 2.4°C</a> by 2100, which is significantly above the goal set by the Paris agreement.</li><li>The Biden administration is cancelling the portions of border wall <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/pentagon-stops-all-border-wall-construction-projects-paid-military-funds-n1266012">paid for by the defense budget</a>, but it has not announced what will happen with the parts paid for through the regular DHS budget.</li><li>A section of <a href="https://myrgv.com/local-news/2021/05/06/feds-hire-experts-to-examine-private-border-wall/">privately funded wall</a> is still in litigation regarding its effects on the National Butterfly Center and whether it violates the boundary water treaty with Mexico.<br /></li><li>The Gulf Stream is <a href="https://www.theweathernetwork.com/ca/news/article/the-gulf-stream-is-migrating-closer-to-canada-and-scientists-are-concerned">migrating closer to Atlantic Canada</a> and blocking the colder Labrador Current. The change explains rapid warming in northeastern North America and has implications for fisheries.</li><li>The Biden administration has pledged to <a href="https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/biden-harris-administration-outlines-america-beautiful-initiative">protect 30% of U.S. land by 2030</a>, but <a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2021-05-06/biden-administration-announces-plans-to-triple-protected">the details are still unclear</a>. Meeting the goal would probably require cooperation from private landowners.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-39872494636459600092021-04-30T09:00:00.179-04:002021-04-30T21:36:18.649-04:00Loose Feathers #799<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWNbdFJoCkwgDTHruJMmVdzSwVYDeCBGSUavvCm6PKqf96ZDyoEGsDFqZBRwy_pbYpppiz8h4natHbE4hEMNbV83-0YByjvbvX_Lq0hf07xg53Gq94AwujO95YZ47xQSNyYPcI/s853/grhe_50482211998_c37c7bf56d_o.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="853" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWNbdFJoCkwgDTHruJMmVdzSwVYDeCBGSUavvCm6PKqf96ZDyoEGsDFqZBRwy_pbYpppiz8h4natHbE4hEMNbV83-0YByjvbvX_Lq0hf07xg53Gq94AwujO95YZ47xQSNyYPcI/w400-h308/grhe_50482211998_c37c7bf56d_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Green Heron / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/50482211998/">Jerry Herman/USFWS volunteer</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Scientists are beginning to understand more about <a href="https://www.audubon.org/magazine/spring-2021/a-new-golden-age-observation-revealing-wonders">nocturnal bird migration</a> thanks to technogical advances in weather radar and audio monitoring. Among other things, this has allowed scientists to <a href="https://birdcast.info/">predict peak migration nights in advance</a>.<br /></li><li>Chaco Eagles are endangered, young adults <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/04/researchers-take-up-the-cause-of-the-mysterious-and-maligned-chaco-eagle/">struggle to reach adulthood</a> because of a variety of threats related to infrastructure, including drowning and electrocution.<br /></li><li>The discovery of an Anna's Hummingbird nest in a tree felled for TransMountain pipeline construction has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/28/canada-hummingbird-halt-construction-pipeline">stopped work on the pipeline</a> for the next few months.</li><li>German scientists combed through Instagram posts to find the most popular birds, and <a href="https://www.popsci.com/story/animals/instagram-most-popular-bird/">frogmouths came out on top</a>.</li><li>Here is a summary of a recent panel on <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/toward-inclusivity-in-birding-forum-discusses-renaming-eponymous-birds/">changing English bird names</a> to remove eponyms. <br /></li><li>Artificial intelligence that can <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/artificial-intelligence-develops-an-ear-for-birdsong1/">identify bird songs</a> is making it possible to monitor birds remotely and sort through audio recordings more quickly.<br /></li><li>Aside from the threat of invasive species, Swift Parrots are declining partly because they <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-endangered-swift-parrots-favor-sons.html">produce more male than female chicks</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Ibycter: <a href="http://ibycter.com/finding-and-photographing-spiders-for-the-city-nature-challenge-a-post-for-nova-scotia/">Finding and photographing spiders for the City Nature Challenge (A post for Nova Scotia)</a></li><li>Linda Murdock Photography: <a href="http://gustaviatex.com/blog/2021/4/27/great-blue-herons-at-texas-city-dike">Great Blue Herons at Texas City Dike</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/04/28/where-did-all-these-penguins-come-from/">Where did all these penguins come from?</a> </li><li>Corvid Research: <a href="https://corvidresearch.blog/2021/04/27/are-ravens-smarter-than-a___/">Are ravens smarter than a___? </a></li><li>The Prairie Ecologist: <a href="https://prairieecologist.com/2021/04/26/the-darker-side-of-tree-planting-in-the-great-plains/">The Darker Side of Tree Planting in the Great Plains</a> </li><li>Sibley Guides: <a href="https://www.sibleyguides.com/2021/04/new-illustrations-of-cave-swallow-subspecies/">New illustrations of Cave Swallow subspecies</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/04/24/dreaming-of-mountain-bluebirds/">Dreaming Of Mountain Bluebirds</a> </li><li>Dartford Waffler: <a href="http://dartfordwaffler.co.uk/nesting-white-storks-british-birding/">Nesting White Storks</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation<br /></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Brood X periodical cicadas are <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2021/04/27/cicada-forecast-dc-early-may/">set to emerge in the next few weeks</a> this spring after 17 years underground. Unfortunately the Brood X population on Long Island <a href="https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/will-nyc-see-the-billions-of-cicadas-emerging-in-brood-x/3016530/">is disappearing</a>. Here is <a href="https://cicadas.uconn.edu/">more information</a> about the cicadas.<br /></li><li>Mangroves help protect the southern end of Vietnam <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/04/at-vietnams-southern-tip-mangroves-defend-the-land-from-the-encroaching-sea/">from sea-level rise</a>, and a conservation project is trying restore parts that were lost to aquaculture or defoliation. </li><li>Native American legislators in Montana want the Biden administration to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-native-american-lawmakers-federal-montana.html">restore bison</a> to Glacier National Park and the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. </li><li>Bobcats are <a href="https://patch.com/new-jersey/barnegat-manahawkin/s/hjcqe/bobcat-population-still-small-rise-new-jersey">expanding their numbers</a> in New Jersey, with a current population estimate of 106.</li><li>Orcas are struggling to survive in Puget Sound because of a lack of salmon, but many other marine species <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/ghost-shrimp-humpbacks-tiny-plankton-see-puget-sound-surge-with-springtime-life/">are thriving because of conservation work</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Scientists found a <a href="https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2021-04-26/ddt-waste-barrels-off-la-coast-shock-california-scientists">massive dumping ground for DDT</a> in the San Pedro Basin off the coast of California. The discarded pesticide still affects dolphins and sea lions in the area.</li><li>Activists are skeptical of "net-zero" pledges by the United States, Canada, Norway, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar since the pledges <a href="https://www.climatechangenews.com/2021/04/26/saudi-us-net-zero-oil-producer-initiative-lands-scepticism/">do not include stopping fossil fuel extraction</a>.</li><li>Another obstacle to addressing climate change is that there is a huge gap — as much as 5.5 gigatons of CO2 — <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/04/26/greenhouse-accounting-problem/">between the emissions countries report and what climate scientists measure</a>. Any effective plan to address climate change is going to need to be based on accurate numbers.<br /></li><li>Biden's "American Jobs Plan" includes a provision to <a href="https://prospect.org/environment/can-biden-infrastructure-plan-save-the-superfund-program/">increase funding for Superfund</a>, which has been underfunded foor decades and has trouble completing cleanups as a result.<br /></li><li>Governments around the world are <a href="https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/environmental-protest-is-being-criminalized-around-world">raising the criminal penalties for climate protests</a>.</li><li>The US Senate used the Congressional Review Act to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/28/climate/climate-change-methane.html">reinstate</a> the Obama administration's limits on methane emissions.</li><li>A refinery in the US Virgin Islands has <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/04/24/virgin-islands-refinery-limetree/">repeatedly released sulphuric gases</a> that sickened residents. <br /></li><li>The Supreme Court heard arguments over whether PennEast <a href="https://www.nj.com/hunterdon/2021/04/controversial-1-billion-penneast-pipeline-case-heard-by-us-supreme-court.html">can seize state protected lands</a> for its proposed pipeline. Unfortunately the Biden administration supports the fossil fuel company.</li><li>The proposed construction of a BJ's in Staten Island would <a href="https://www.silive.com/news/2021/04/scientist-another-sandy-would-be-devastating-after-bjs-development-destroys-graniteville-wetlands.html">destroy a wetland</a> that helped protect the neighborhood from Sandy's floodwaters.</li><li>The cherry trees that line the Tidal Basin in DC are <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/digest/washingtons-famed-tidal-basin-and-cherry-trees-face-rising-waters">threatened by sea-level rise</a>, which has started breaching the basin's sea walls. There is currently a competition for plans to remedy the problem.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-89313601598227596022021-04-23T09:00:00.192-04:002021-04-23T09:11:29.755-04:00Loose Feathers #798<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnV53pJ_Zy8gnuF2ZScHfzXaUyKmJpv1YONy56xiXmy8UzD0mxjQyipQaxDSZjqavhyZCh5yV2Nt_4rJcRwenKPcX8WhSt4efMZlzq-KRTxrEyZHA1aPL-_D40mw7VLLZBYPYn/s2804/cliffwood_brant_P2750737.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="2804" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnV53pJ_Zy8gnuF2ZScHfzXaUyKmJpv1YONy56xiXmy8UzD0mxjQyipQaxDSZjqavhyZCh5yV2Nt_4rJcRwenKPcX8WhSt4efMZlzq-KRTxrEyZHA1aPL-_D40mw7VLLZBYPYn/w400-h160/cliffwood_brant_P2750737.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Brant / my photo</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Bright reds and yellows are supposed to be a sign of breeding fitness, but some male tanagers are able to appear <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/21/science/birds-tanagers-mating-color.html">more colorful than they really are</a> because of their feather structure. <br /></li><li>An Italian luncheon broken up for violating coronavirus regulations <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/20/world/europe/italy-lunch-songbirds.html">also had protected songbirds on its menu</a>.</li><li>At the time of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, there were questions about whether rescued and rehabilitated birds would survive. At least one rescued Brown Pelican has been <a href="https://www.livescience.com/deepwater-horizon-pelican-returns-home.html">photographed in its old breeding grounds</a> in Louisiana, 11 years after the spill.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Natural Newstead: <a href="https://geoffpark.wordpress.com/2021/04/22/musk-ducks-at-tullaroop/">Musk Ducks at Tullaroop</a></li><li>Elev. 401: <a href="https://mkjohns.wordpress.com/2021/04/22/woodpecker-at-work/">Woodpecker at work</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/04/21/did-sexual-selection-drive-the-evolution-of-gallopheasants/">Did sexual selection drive the evolution of Gallopheasants?</a> </li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/04/19/spring-swainsons-hawk-in-sage/">Spring Swainson’s Hawk In Sage</a> </li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/04/18/claytonia-co/">Claytonia & Co.</a></li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/04/23/western-grebe-weed-ceremony/">Western Grebe Weed Ceremony</a> </li><li>Laura's Birding Blog: <a href="https://blog.lauraerickson.com/2021/04/earth-day-2021.html">Earth Day 2021</a><br /></li></ul><p>Earth Day</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Individual actions are often overemphasized for addressing environmental problems, but one thing people can do is <a href="https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2021/04/19/were-in-a-climate-emergency-and-a-biodiversity-crisis-what-we-plant-and-how-we-alter-landscapes-matters.html">resist the urge to create manicured lawns</a> and let native plants grow instead.</li><li>The biggest issue on this and recent Earth Days is what to do about climate change. Here is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/climate-change-global-warming-faq.html">an explainer on the climate crisis</a>.</li><li><i>Grist</i> suggests how Earth Day can remain relevant despite <a href="https://grist.org/ask-umbra-series/why-does-earth-day-feel-so-exhausting/">the cynical greenwashing that comes with it</a>.</li><li>Monmouth County used Earth Day as the occasion to <a href="https://www.littoralsociety.org/blog/april-22nd-2021">open a fish ladder</a> that will allow migratory fish to spawn further upstream in the Wreck Pond watershed.<br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Florida Reef Gecko is the <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/04/the-u-s-reptile-most-at-risk-from-rising-seas-is-one-you-likely-havent-heard-of/">most endangered native reptile</a> in the US primarily due to sea-level rise but invasive species are also a factor.</li><li>Narwhal tusks, like tree rings, <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/climate-desk-wildlife-what-the-narwhal-can-tell-us-about-the-climate-crisis">record information about a narwhal's diet</a> over its lifetime. A study of ten tusks found that narwhals are consuming an increasing amount of mercury and that they are feeding more in the open ocean than around sea ice.</li><li>Brood X periodical cicadas will emerge for a month of so this spring for the first time in 17 years. The emergence will be an opportunity to <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/birds-may-hold-clues-bizarre-life-cycle-brood-x-cicadas">learn how they interact with bird populations</a>. Amateur naturalists are encouraged to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/19/brood-x-cicadas-eastern-us-emerge">document the emergence</a> through the <a href="https://cicadasafari.org/">Cicada Safari</a> app.<br /></li><li>If wolves are to resettle the eastern US, they will have to expand their range through the Midwest, but <a href="https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/outdoors/2021/04/17/wisconsin-dnr-led-committees-recommend-kill-goal-update-wolf-plan/7254615002/">states like Wisconsin are already killing hundreds of wolves</a>. That hunt is not nearly as egregious as <a href="https://localnews8.com/news/local-news/2021/04/21/conservationists-object-to-end-run-on-wolves/">the extermination plan in Idaho</a>.</li><li>Despite the efforts of the Department of Homeland Security, jaguars are still being seen <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/in-depth/news/local/arizona-environment/2021/04/15/recent-sightings-studies-give-experts-hope-for-jaguar-recovery/7020280002/">on both sides of the border</a> for now. <br /></li><li>A <i>Vibrio</i> bacteria outbreak is <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/local/land-environment/2021/04/08/undetermined-bacteria-killing-menhaden-fish-raritan-bay-navesink/7128659002/">killing hundreds of menhaden</a> around Raritan Bay this spring.<br /></li></ul><p> Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>This week Biden promised to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-pledges-halve-its-emissions-by-2030-renewed-climate-fight-2021-04-22/">cut US greenhouse gas emissions</a> in half by 2030. There are two problems with this goal. One is that this pledge is based on emission levels from 2005 while most other countries <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/04/22/climate/new-climate-pledge.html">base their pledges on the levels from 1990</a>, which has more scientific support. The second is that any pledge is <a href="https://theweek.com/articles/978894/shadow-over-bidens-climate-summit-america-cant-trusted">likely to be undone by future administrations</a> since the Republican Party opposes any climate action, and even many Democrats owe their offices to support from fossil fuel companies.</li><li>There are also questions about <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/world/north-america/2021/04/america-s-race-net-zero">whether Biden's climate plan is ambitious enough</a> to meet the scale of the climate crisis, given the lack of carbon pricing and the minimal funding for decarbonizing transportation in the American Jobs Plan.</li><li>Decarbonization is also unlikely when the country is still building <a href="https://prospect.org/environment/will-biden-cancel-minnesotas-line-3-oil-pipeline/">new fossil fuel infrastructure like Enbridge's Line 3</a>. </li><li>Halving carbon emissions by 2030 will require <a href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063730653">eliminating energy generated from coal</a>, which currently accounts for 19% of US emissions.<br /></li><li>There are <a href="https://grist.org/climate-tipping-points-amazon-greenland-boreal-forest/">seven potential climate tipping points</a> that could cause irreversible changes.</li><li>NOAA is updating <a href="https://climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-and-1991-2020-us-climate-normals">what a "normal" temperature means</a> to keep pace with climate change. In most of the US, the "normal" temperature has gotten hotter over the past several decades.</li><li>The EPA announced a new plan to dredge dioxins and other toxic chemicals <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2021/04/14/epa-passaic-river-cleanup-plan-cancer-causing-waste/7225780002/">from a nine-mile stretch of the Passaic River</a>.</li><li>New Jersey's <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2021/04/21/nj-air-continues-to-receive-failing-grades/7316493002/">air pollution is rebounding</a> after a drop due to restrictions on travel during the pandemic.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-11503429863876302912021-04-16T09:00:00.172-04:002021-04-16T09:00:00.595-04:00Loose Feathers #797<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkx5BMUcbDmdfddn-Hh4rzhrwArQ7gUxndqKxk6SQD7SD2LZRF971cp0hdfBVrhxC8GLoTM6dOO_VE_WhA9oNP7E_Xm7Tg5kT3OZ5hyphenhyphenBNe7lfU9ym-1NeYlasS9ZvQtg1bTU8/s799/baea_39752849442_1251b7f294_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="584" data-original-width="799" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkx5BMUcbDmdfddn-Hh4rzhrwArQ7gUxndqKxk6SQD7SD2LZRF971cp0hdfBVrhxC8GLoTM6dOO_VE_WhA9oNP7E_Xm7Tg5kT3OZ5hyphenhyphenBNe7lfU9ym-1NeYlasS9ZvQtg1bTU8/w400-h293/baea_39752849442_1251b7f294_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bald Eagle / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/39752849442/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Shorebird Stewards received a grant to help protect beaches for breeding horseshoe crabs <a href="https://www.njspotlight.com/2021/04/red-knot-horseshoe-crab-grant-87000-protect-jersey-bayshore-annual-count/">and the shorebirds like Red Knots that depend on them</a>. <br /></li><li>Audubon has some suggested exercises for <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/a-birders-workout-guide-preventing-warbler-neck">avoiding warbler neck</a>. </li><li>Diclofenac was banned in India and elsewhere for pushing vultures close to extinction, but now it is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/11/rare-european-vultures-being-poisoned-by-livestock-drug">killing vultures in Europe</a> after it was approved for use in Italy and Spain.</li><li>Murres are <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/hunting-murres-newfoundland-1.5951370">still hunted</a> for food in parts of Newfoundland and Labrador. <br /></li><li>Here are some recommendations for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/15/travel/birding-america.html">places to watch spring migration</a> around the US.</li><li>Data entered into eBird helps Fish and Wildlife Service biologists <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-ebird-eagle.html">track Bald Eagle populations</a>.</li><li>Blackcaps are increasingly <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-bird-feeders-reversed-blackcaps-migration.html">spending the winter in Britain and Ireland</a>, and many of those wintering birds migrate northwest from mainland Europe.</li><li>Philadelphia has become the latest US city to join the Lights Out initiative <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/10/us/bird-migration-lights-out.html">to protect birds during nocturnal migration</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Nature of Cities: <a href="https://www.thenatureofcities.com/2021/04/09/is-cali-the-city-with-the-most-birds-in-the-world/">Is Cali the City with the Most Birds in the World?</a> <br /></li><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="https://www.10000birds.com/a-survey-of-us-birders.htm">A Survey of U.S. Birders</a> <br /></li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2021/04/14/weeds-of-boise-awkward-botany-headquarters/">Weeds of Boise: Awkward Botany Headquarters</a></li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/04/15/pelican-surprise/">Pelican Surprise</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/04/10/the-evolution-of-the-genomic-landscape-in-silvereyes-does-not-follow-theoretical-predictions/">The evolution of the genomic landscape in Silvereyes does not follow theoretical predictions</a> <br /></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/04/11/red-naped-sapsucker-photos/">Red-naped Sapsucker Photos</a> </li><li>New Jersey Audubon: <a href="https://njaudubon.org/cape-may-springwatch-late-march-early-april-update/">Cape May Springwatch: Late March / Early April update</a></li><li>Urban Hawks: <a href="https://www.urbanhawks.com/end-of-a-25-year-run">End Of A 25 Year Run?</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A new study finds that about 3% of the world's habitats remain intact, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/15/just-3-of-worlds-ecosystems-remain-intact-study-suggests">mainly in the tropics and boreal forests</a>. and many in areas managed by indigenous peoples. Even protected areas are missing key species.</li><li>The pandemic <a href="https://therevelator.org/pandemic-ocean-conservation/">disrupted</a> the normal regulation and monitoring of fisheries and reduced the ecotourism that helps fund protected areas. <br /></li><li>The new Valle de Oro NWR will become one of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/14/albuquerque-new-mexico-green-spaces-mountain-view">the few urban wildlife refuges</a>.</li><li>Common Foxglove plants introduced to the Americas <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-rapid-evolution-foxgloves-pollinated-hummingbirds.html">evolved longer corolla tubes</a> to match the long bills of hummingbirds.</li><li>Butterflies like the Gray Hairstreak play a significant role <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/04/butterflies-provide-extraordinary-help-pollinating-cotton-fields">pollinating cotton crops</a>. <br /></li><li>Now is the time to find and destroy <a href="https://patch.com/new-jersey/newbrunswick/s/hid90/see-spotted-lantern-fly-eggs-nj-here-how-destroy-them">Spotted Lanternfly egg masses</a> before they hatch.</li><li>Early spring flowers have some <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2018/04/13/plants-have-adapted-strange-techniques-help-sex/487872002/">unusual strategies for reproduction</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A new study finds that the overuse of DDT has had <a href="https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2021-04-14/toxic-legacy-of-ddt-can-harm-granddaughters-of-women-exposed">consequences over multiple generations</a>, as the granddaughters of women exposed to DDT are more likely to have an array of medical conditions associated with the pesticide.</li><li>DDT has also been in the news in California after a survey discovered <a href="https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2021/04/12/overwhelming-scientists-confirm-massive-ddt-dumping-ground-ocean-floor-between-long-beach-catalina-island/">hundreds of thousands of barrels</a> dumped off the coast of Long Beach.</li><li>Conservationists are trying to find ways to <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/in-depth/news/local/arizona-environment/2021/04/15/arizona-mexico-border-calls-removing-wall-and-repairing-environmental-impacts/4589493001/">reduce the damage from border wall construction</a>, potentially removing some barriers like the one blocking the San Pedro River. Tracking studies show animal movements being stopped by the wall in both the US and Mexico.<br /></li><li>Theoretically all new cars sold in the US could be <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/15/all-new-us-vehicles-electric-2035-study">electric by 2035</a>.</li><li>Abandoned, unplugged <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/04/15/waves-of-abandonment/">oil and gas wells</a> emit greenhouse gases and threaten local groundwater, but it is difficult to get companies to take responsibility for fixing them.</li><li>The American Jobs Plan can be more sustainable <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/opinion/infrastructure-biden-nature.html">by following these suggestions</a>, which include keeping new development within the existing footprint of the built environment and adding things like wildlife corridors and bird-safe glass to new or repaired infrastructure.</li><li>Republican governors are already working to prevent any progress on climate change with delay tactics <a href="https://grist.org/politics/alec-biden-climate-republicans/">coordinated by the American Legislative Exchange Council</a>.</li><li>Pledges of "net-zero" emissions from fossil fuel companies <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/04/15/oil-industry-net-zero-pledges-delay-climate-action-study/">are another delay tactic</a>.</li><li>Since greenhouse gases persist in the atmosphere, it <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/981333730/carbon-emissions-could-plummet-the-atmosphere-will-lag-behind">could take several decades</a> to see improvements from cutting emissions.</li><li>The Southwest is likely to face a <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/drought-western-united-states-modern-history/">severe drought</a> this year after a record-setting fire season last year.</li><li>Microplastics can remain airborne long enough to be <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/12/airborne-plastic-pollution-spiralling-around-the-globe-study-finds">blown around the globe</a>, even into the remotest areas.</li><li>A new agreement seeks to reduce the <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/8/22373524/cryptocurrency-climate-accord-bitcoin-carbon-footprint">massive carbon footprint</a> of cryptocurrencies. <br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-20386746086028123922021-04-09T09:00:00.119-04:002021-04-09T09:00:00.237-04:00Loose Feathers #796<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgxmFmvga0BC3s77qjUacYssG8rFpTsZ0ZU2zOD_ssx93KYJ6nqwI_sFWDSa_ckaML1Ajh2sNX2J5iLr2WdZ64LZ0QdXzGuaq0y76sviK9N-X9-3_ta_zYvw_xvxxesZAbHf2h/s800/bwte_42881480701_bfd2d2a402_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="800" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgxmFmvga0BC3s77qjUacYssG8rFpTsZ0ZU2zOD_ssx93KYJ6nqwI_sFWDSa_ckaML1Ajh2sNX2J5iLr2WdZ64LZ0QdXzGuaq0y76sviK9N-X9-3_ta_zYvw_xvxxesZAbHf2h/w400-h276/bwte_42881480701_bfd2d2a402_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Blue-winged Teal / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmidwest/42881480701/">Jim Hudgins/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Swift Parrots are endangered <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/04/australias-pivot-to-plantations-may-be-too-slow-for-nearly-extinct-parrots/">by deforestation</a>, and new rules to protect their habitat may not be enough to save them. <br /></li><li>Here is an interview with the head of the USFWS <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/getting-know-jerome-ford-governments-top-bird-official">migratory bird program</a>.</li><li>Piping Plovers are faring better on beaches in New England <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-regional-habitat-differences-threatened-piping.html">than in the Mid-Atlantic and South</a>, which is probably linked to their selection of nest sites.</li><li>Chicago added the stretch of beach preferred by its Piping Plovers <a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/04/07/montrose-beach-natural-area-will-expand-to-protect-piping-plover-nesting-grounds-park-district-says/">to an adjacent natural area</a>.<br /></li><li>Radar can be used to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-weather-radar-ecological-lessen-hazards.html">predict nights with heavy flights</a> and encourage people to take actions like turning off lights to protect migratory birds.</li><li>A Spanish energy company was accused of causing <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-04-energy-giant-sued-spain-power.html">unnecessary electrocutions of raptors</a> by not insulating its wires correctly.</li><li>Salmonella has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/04/health/bird-feeders-salmonella-cdc.html">spread via bird feeders</a> in at least 8 states; take down and wash feeders if you see sick or dead birds around them.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/04/03/a-genomic-perspective-on-the-classic-hybrid-zone-between-baltimore-and-bullocks-oriole/">A genomic perspective on the classic hybrid zone between Baltimore and Bullock’s Oriole</a></li><li>In Defense of Plants: <a href="https://www.indefenseofplants.com/blog/2019/4/29/twinspurs-and-their-pollinators">Twinspurs & Their Pollinators</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/04/04/spotting-a-short-eared-owl-in-the-distance/">Spotting A Short-eared Owl In The Distance</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Some writers see the Brood X cicada emergence as a metaphor for <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/04/pandemic-cicadas/618506/">ending a year of social distancing</a>. Entering sightings <a href="https://entomologytoday.org/2021/04/08/cicadas-picture-app-map-arrival-brood-x-citizen-science/">into the Cicada Safari app</a> can help scientists track the emergence.</li><li>Using imidacloprid to kill hemlock woolly adelgids may <a href="https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/effort-to-save-eastern-hemlocks-might-be-impacting-salamanders">harm the salamanders</a> that depend on hemlock forests in Appalachia.</li><li>The Asian Small-clawed Otter has become endangered because too many individuals are being <a href="https://therevelator.org/species-snapshot-small-clawed-otter/">captured for the pet trade</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Mauna Loa Observatory recorded carbon dioxide in the atmosphere <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2021/04/05/atmospheric-co2-concentration-record/">at more than 420 parts per million</a> for the first time ever. The new record means that the Earth is halfway to doubling pre-industrial carbon levels, which would cause a global temperature rise between 2.3 and 4.5°C.<br /></li><li>Politicians have largely avoided the subject of how to manage the <a href="https://grist.org/climate/retreat-from-coastlines-politicians-dont-want-to-talk-about-it/">retreat from the coastlines</a> made necessary by sea level rise, and some places are still developing vulnerable coastal real estate. </li><li>Because the national monument designation was stripped from most of Bears Ears early in the Trump administration, the site has had a boom in visitation <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/04/08/bears-ears-haaland/">without the resources to manage it</a>. <br /></li><li>Hurricane Zeta nearly wrecked Transocean Deepwater Asgard, a drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, which would have caused <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/04/05/hurricane-zeta-deepwater-horizon-asgard-transocean/">a spill larger than the Deepwater Horizon disaster</a>. <br /></li><li>Japan has set a more ambitious goal under the Paris treaty of a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-climate-emissions-idUSKBN2BV0LV">40% cut in carbon emissions by 2030</a> and being carbon neutral by 2050. <br /></li><li>One third of Antarctica's ice shelves could collapse <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/08/third-of-antarctic-ice-shelves-will-collapse-amid-4c-global-heating">if there is 4°C of warming</a>.<br /></li><li>Beach Sweeps coordinated by Clean Ocean Action have been <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/local/land-environment/2021/04/08/ppe-pollution-common-nj-beaches-but-plastic-largest-problem/7125671002/">finding lots of discarded PPE</a> in addition to the trash that they normally collect. Plastic makes up 72% of trash collected during cleanups.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-61808130777472801012021-04-02T09:00:00.158-04:002021-04-02T09:00:00.548-04:00Loose Feathers #795<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndkSDvCyNh8Qolqv_H5veZhpOB_84Dg0HXhDpy_7vsmRdmRoGZh27LhQr9P1dGBx5ucjMDGlc2AHn2w6RxW4Efhv9f36L9Qg-8wOar69g8Fkp-HJMsdjkQi5pbIjsYE-9nigk/s799/grsg_51080207861_f4d7c22034_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="799" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgndkSDvCyNh8Qolqv_H5veZhpOB_84Dg0HXhDpy_7vsmRdmRoGZh27LhQr9P1dGBx5ucjMDGlc2AHn2w6RxW4Efhv9f36L9Qg-8wOar69g8Fkp-HJMsdjkQi5pbIjsYE-9nigk/w400-h310/grsg_51080207861_f4d7c22034_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Greater Sage-Grouse / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/51080207861/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>According to an analysis of CBC data, warerfowl are <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/ducks-are-moving-north-winters-warm">wintering farther north</a> as winters become warmer, so that some duck species appear to be declining when their populations are stable or increasing.</li><li>A mass mortality event that killed 3 million Short-tailed Shearwaters in 2013 may be linked to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/25/lava-floating-rocks-and-the-blob-the-mystery-behind-the-deaths-of-millions-of-seabirds">an underwater volcanic eruption</a> since almost all of the necropsied shearwaters had eaten pumice. However the shearwaters may already have been starving before they encountered the volcano.<br /></li><li>Marbled Murrelets are more likely to nest in forests <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-home-murrelets-eavesdropping.html">where they hear other murrelets</a>.</li><li>The main threats to endangered Egyptian Vultures are in <a href="https://hawkwatch.org/blog/item/1232-endangered-vulture-mortality-highest-in-southeastern-europe-largely-from-human-causes">southeastern Europe and the Middle East</a> rather than Sub-Saharan Africa.</li><li>EBird has produced new status and trends graphics showing <a href="https://ebird.org/news/habitat-regional-charts-return-highlighting-habitat-associations-for-649-species-for-every-week-of-the-year">associations between birds and habitat types</a>. One interesting thing is that some species are closely associated with roads and nighttime lights in the winter.<br /></li><li>A man was caught <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/local/2021/03/30/nj-bound-guyanese-man-caught-smuggling-29-birds-inside-hair-rollers/4813921001/">smuggling 29 birds</a> into the US at JFK airport in New York.</li><li>A sick Bald Eagle rescued on Ocracoke Island had <a href="https://ocracokeobserver.com/2021/03/28/rescued-bald-eagle-had-lead-poisoning/">a serious case of lead poisoning</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-april-2021/">Field Guide to April 2021</a> <br /></li><li>Portland Birder: <a href="https://pdxbirder.com/2021/03/25/pnw-sparrow-id-infographic/">PNW Sparrow ID Infographic</a></li><li>Birds Korea Blog: <a href="http://www.birdskoreablog.org/?p=24304">A Tale of Two Larks: Horned Lark, January 17th, Taebaek</a></li><li>Avithera: <a href="http://avithera.blogspot.com/2021/03/flagged-red-necked-avocets.html">Flagged Red-necked Avocets</a> </li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/03/30/ant-sex/">Ant Sex</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/03/28/spring-turkey-vulture-and-a-view-from-the-road/">Spring Turkey Vulture And A View From The Road</a> </li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/03/27/why-do-robust-woodpecker-lineated-woodpecker-and-helmeted-woodpecker-look-alike/">Why do Robust Woodpecker, Lineated Woodpecker and Helmeted Woodpecker look alike?</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A new report named tropical forests like those in Brazil, Indonesia, Madagascar and Colombia as the most likely to host the <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/new-map-shows-where-the-80-of-species-we-dont-know-about-may-be-hiding/">80% of species that have not been described</a>.</li><li>Native oaks are the best trees <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/realestate/oak-trees-why-you-should-plant.html">for supporting wildlife</a>, from insects to birds to mammals, so people should plant more of them instead of ornamental trees.</li><li>Kelp forests are <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/satellite-imagery-shows-northern-california-kelp-forests-have-collapsed-180977214">collapsing</a> off the coast of California since they have been hit by a combination of marine heat waves and a boom in purple sea urchins that make it impossible for the forest to regenerate.<br /></li><li>Loss of forests <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/global-forest-loss-increases-in-2020-but-pandemics-impact-unclear/">continued at a high level</a> in 2020. The loss of 4.2 million hectares of primary tropical forests is especially concerning since it released 2.64 billion tons of carbon into the atmosphere.</li><li>Fireflies <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/new-assessment-shines-a-light-on-the-state-of-north-americas-fireflies/">are in decline</a>, and many species have been studied so little that their status is unknown. Major causes include light pollution, loss of habitat, and poor water quality.<br /></li><li>Grizzly Bears often appear on hiking trails because they prefer a gradient and pace <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-human-hiking-trails-custom-built.html">similar to those of humans</a>.</li><li>The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned BLM to <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/petition-asks-federal-officials-to-protect-rare-plants-habitat-from-nevada-mine-2021-03-29/">protect the last remaining habitat</a> for Tiehm’s Buckwheat from a proposed lithium mine.<br /></li><li>An interview with the person who runs the <a href="https://twitter.com/PicPedant">@PicPedant</a> account describes <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/heres-how-spot-faked-wildlife-photo-and-when-be-skeptical">how to spot fake or misleading wildlife images</a> (some of which may involve animal abuse).</li><li>Here are some tips on how to <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/philly-tips/how-to-kill-spotted-lanternflies-20210331.html">identify and kill</a> invasive Spotted Lanternflies.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Pledges of net-zero emissions <a href="https://therevelator.org/net-zero-skepticism/">may not be that effective</a> when calculating and offsetting emissions are voluntary and if there is not enough capacity to meet the demand for offsets. </li><li>Offset programs like the Trillion Trees initiative are also problematic when <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/study-sounds-latest-warning-of-rainforest-turning-into-savanna-as-climate-warms/">rainforests are turning into savannas</a> in response to climate change.</li><li>This year Kyoto had its <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2021/03/29/japan-kyoto-cherry-blossoms-record/">earliest peak cherry bloom</a> on record on March 26. Even though the previous record was set in 1409, the peak bloom date had been relatively stable until the past hundred years when they have steadily gotten earlier.</li><li>The oil industry has a long history of <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/03/29/fossil-fuel-industry-legacy-white-supremacy">supporting white supremacy</a>, from segregating workplaces to racist violence. The discriminatory models from the US were then replicated in other countries.</li><li>The Biden administration is planning a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/03/29/biden-wind-power/">major expansion of offshore wind energy</a> along the Atlantic Coast.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-85685490104355522772021-03-26T09:00:00.194-04:002021-03-26T09:53:32.835-04:00Loose Feathers #794<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqSm4aFEJQVwGm0VlcPFkRLZk5acC7WiGpZ-18vTGF_NMkJDsTU-oBRm1kCqiphLUXl-ywOZTPkZiVsnhbjdhFx9IFpPaVgWLlLKGl7yJy3RPvCijNb39mTDmGWWuqVI4Dq_JK/s1000/sosp_P2730983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqSm4aFEJQVwGm0VlcPFkRLZk5acC7WiGpZ-18vTGF_NMkJDsTU-oBRm1kCqiphLUXl-ywOZTPkZiVsnhbjdhFx9IFpPaVgWLlLKGl7yJy3RPvCijNb39mTDmGWWuqVI4Dq_JK/w400-h300/sosp_P2730983.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Song Sparrow / by me</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A Ring-billed Gull in Cleveland turned out to be the <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/oldest-ring-billed-gull-record-discovered-cleveland-birder">oldest Ring-billed Gull ever recorded</a> after a partial band number was determined from photographs. It was 28 years old and had been banded at Tommy Thompson Park in Toronto.<br /></li><li>A new species of mihirung, <i>Dromornis stirtoni</i>, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-giant-fossil-flightless-bird-enormous.html">was found in Australia</a>. The new species is the largest member of the extinct family Dromornithidae, which is related to modern waterfowl or gamebirds.</li><li>Atlantic Puffins are in decline because of a <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-lack-prey-puffin-chicks-starve.html">lack of prey</a>, which causes chicks to starve.</li><li>Ornithologists split two new species, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-species-already-endangered-screech-owls-amazon.html">the Xingu Screech-Owl and Alagoas Screech-Owl</a>, out of the Tawny-bellied Screech-Owl complex in Brazil. Both have small ranges and are threatened by fires and forest fragmentation.</li><li>The Bald Eagle population in the Lower 48 states has quadrupled since 2009, with <a href="https://apnews.com/article/bald-eagle-population-soars-united-states-70982fdda4b8f12ce7736ea5df0b9122">316,700 individuals and 71,400 nesting pairs</a> as of 2019.</li><li>However, some Bald Eagles have been dying of a neurodegenerative disease caused by <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-bald-eagles.html">cyanobacteria growing on invasive <i>Hydrilla</i></a>. Herbicides used to control <i>Hydrilla</i> may contribute to the problem if they contain bromide.<br /></li><li>Three species were <a href="https://www.aba.org/three-species-added-to-the-aba-checklist/">added to the ABA Checklist</a> recently: Hooded Crane, Northern Giant-Petrel, and Mitred Parakeet.</li><li>Irregular water releases from upstream dams along the Mekong River <a href="https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/nature/volatile-mekong-threatens-birds-nests/">threaten birds that nest along the river</a>, especially ground-nesting birds.</li><li>The Iberá Seedeater <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-endangered-songbird-assumptions-evolution.html">does not interbreed</a> with closely related species even though they share most of their neighbors' genomes and live in the same area.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/03/23/a-massive-ferruginous-hawk-nest-including-a-chick/">A Massive Ferruginous Hawk Nest, Including A Chick</a></li><li>Shorebirder: <a href="https://www.shorebirder.com/2021/03/possible-sooty-x-red-fox-sparrow-in-ct.html">possible Sooty x Red Fox Sparrow in CT</a> </li><li>Linda Murdock Photography: <a href="http://gustaviatex.com/blog/2021/3/20/spoonbills-at-smith-oaks-rookery">Spoonbills at Smith Oaks Rookery - 2021</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/03/25/admixture-in-amazonia-reconstructing-the-evolutionary-history-of-the-pectoral-sparrow/">Admixture in Amazonia: Reconstructing the evolutionary history of the Pectoral Sparrow</a></li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/03/26/dog-park/">Dog Park</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>An update to the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/world-news-animals-elephants-forests-africa-d01e1b8a441743d0ff02d64a1e1a16f5">IUCN Red List classifies</a> the African Forest Elephant as critically endangered and the African Savanna Elephant as endangered. Both had previously been considered vulnerable in the previous update. The ivory trade is a major threat to both species.</li><li>Patagonia is one of the most important breeding grounds for Blue Whales, but the whales there have to <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/patagonias-blue-whales-besieged-by-hundreds-of-boats-study-finds/">dodge numerous boats</a> that tend the area's salmon industry. <br /></li><li>A survey in Hawaii found <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-threatened-species-sparkly-moths-hawaii.html">13 new moth species</a> as well as one that had been considered extinct.<br /></li><li>A <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/24/dolphins-east-river-new-york-video-twitter">pair of dolphins</a> was filmed swimming in the East River in New York City.</li><li>Every invasive tree in North America was <a href="https://entomologytoday.org/2021/03/18/planting-tree-choose-native-species-save-insects/">introduced as an ornamental</a> and many harm insects and the wildlife that depend on them.</li><li>The history of whaling restrictions shows how empathy can be a <a href="https://therevelator.org/history-commercial-whaling/">motivating force</a> for conservation even when it is seen as extreme or at odds with scientific standards.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Biden administration will <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/climate/trump-science-epa.html">investigate political interference</a> in the scientific research that supports regulations, especially at the EPA. <br /></li><li>Public lands protected as national monuments via the Antiquities Act may be <a href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063728359">threatened by the new Supreme Court majority</a>.</li><li>Making Black neighborhoods safer should include turning vacant lots <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/16/black-neighborhoods-parks-safety/">into parks and green spaces</a>.</li><li>Several companies are preparing to extract lithium from the heated brine <a href="https://www.latimes.com/environment/newsletter/2021-03-18/the-companies-racing-strike-white-gold-california-salton-sea-boiling-point">underneath the Salton Sea</a>.</li><li>Systemic changes are necessary to address the climate crisis, but wealthy people can make a difference by <a href="https://grist.org/culture/cutting-your-carbon-footprint-matters-a-lot-if-youre-rich/">reducing their own carbon footprints</a> because the richest 10% of households are responsible for about a third of global emissions and 1% of people are responsible for half of global air traffic emissions.</li><li>The American Petroleum Institute endorsed carbon pricing <a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-oil-and-gas-industry-climate-climate-change-724b59003e45755c145072d93f406f1e">for the first time</a>, perhaps to stave off stricter regulations.</li><li>The EPA blocked the expansion of an oil refinery in the US Virgin Islands <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-refinery-pollution/u-s-epa-blocks-virgin-islands-refinery-expansion-pending-environmental-justice-review-idUSKBN2BH2OP">because of its effects on nearby communities</a>.</li><li>Multiple states are working to <a href="https://drillednews.com/another-line-3-battleground-free-speech/">criminalize protests</a> against fossil fuel infrastructure, including changes misdemeanors into felonies for civil disobedience.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-13582307284434010502021-03-19T09:00:00.180-04:002021-03-19T09:00:05.087-04:00Loose Feathers #793<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_Sbu8vC79olnvwS8IHlmss4a3WwHO2NaRB977NG_wY9zOr5LK2HZPAEjIO0_jz6V5hPzPgFBJT4qlpN3i4BZ9bOhNmNMA2zOTZ6OKcs_-WSfwuo23MoG2MFffnpCVVjdi8RB/s799/wodu_50863137686_a69d68bd9e_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="799" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_Sbu8vC79olnvwS8IHlmss4a3WwHO2NaRB977NG_wY9zOr5LK2HZPAEjIO0_jz6V5hPzPgFBJT4qlpN3i4BZ9bOhNmNMA2zOTZ6OKcs_-WSfwuo23MoG2MFffnpCVVjdi8RB/w400-h305/wodu_50863137686_a69d68bd9e_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Wood Duck / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/50863137686/">T. Kersten/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Regent Honeyeaters are <a href="https://theconversation.com/only-the-lonely-an-endangered-bird-is-forgetting-its-song-as-the-species-dies-out-156950">losing their songs</a> as their population dwindles. Young songbirds learn their songs from mature birds, so with fewer older birds to learn from, young honeyeaters are singing simpler songs or learning songs of the wrong species. </li><li>A major threat to Harpy Eagles is that <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/dying-of-curiosity-why-people-shoot-harpy-eagles/">many are shot</a>, some because they are seen as a threat to livestock and others out of curiosity.</li><li>One writer found birdwatching as a way to cope <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/a-pandemic-cancer-diagnosis-and-year-list-no-other">with the pandemic and a cancer diagnosis</a>.<br /></li><li>Employees at Audubon are <a href="https://www.eenews.net//stories/1063727733">attempting to form a union</a>, and so far management does not appear receptive to the idea. Other environmental organizations have unionized recently.</li><li>A study connects the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/mar/16/scientists-unlock-secret-of-why-hummingbirds-hum">hum of a hummingbird's wings</a> to pressure changes created by its wing motion.</li><li>The European Court of Justice ruled that French hunters should <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56426707">stop glue-trapping birds</a>.</li><li>At a park in Calgary, wintering owls are being <a href="https://livewirecalgary.com/2021/03/12/weaselhead-owl-mania-shows-need-for-birding-best-practices-education-birders/">stressed by too many visitors</a>. As in other places, it raises issues of birding ethics.</li><li>A photographer filmed <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/video-of-ravens-playing-like-puppies-in-the-snow-goes-viral-1.5950767">ravens playing in the snow</a>.</li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Sibley Guides: <a href="https://www.sibleyguides.com/2021/03/variation-in-eastern-fox-sparrows/">Variation in eastern Fox Sparrows</a> <br /></li><li>Celery Farm and Beyond: <a href="https://www.celeryfarm.net/2021/03/my-column-rusty-blackbirds-need-our-help.html">My Column: Rusty Blackbirds Need Our Help</a></li><li>Chicago Ornithological Society: <a href="https://www.chicagobirder.org/blog/2021/3/16/dans-feathursday-feature-greater-white-fronted-goose">Dan's Feathursday Feature: Greater White-fronted Goose</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/03/17/spring-wild-turkey-tom-displays/">Spring Wild Turkey Tom Displays</a> </li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/03/13/convergent-evolution-of-immune-proteins-in-tits-chickadees-and-titmice/">Convergent evolution of immune proteins in tits, chickadees, and titmice</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>According to a new study using whaling records, Sperm Whales learned how to evade whalers and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/17/sperm-whales-in-19th-century-shared-ship-attack-information">communicated the information with each other</a>.</li><li>At this time of year, many amphibians <a href="https://whyy.org/articles/n-j-crossing-guards-protect-amphibians-making-deadly-trek-for-love/">need to cross roads</a> to find vernal pools for breeding, so volunteers try to keep them from getting crushed by cars.</li><li>Researchers identified parts of central Arizona and New Mexico that could <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-environment/2021/03/17/arizona-jaguar-habitat-may-be-larger-than-previously-thought/4675137001/">support up to 150 Jaguars</a>. The area is not currently designated as critical habitat because the species has only been recorded south of I-10.</li><li>A Sri Lankan tree species was considered extinct until one was discovered in 2019. Now that individual tree is <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/hope-blooms-for-an-extinct-sri-lankan-tree-that-reemerged-under-threat/">threatened by a road project</a>. Three of the five "extinct" plants on Sri Lanka's 2012 red list have since been rediscovered, but another 177 plant species are still threatened or possibly extinct.</li><li>Saint Patrick did not <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/kidspost/did-st-patrick-get-rid-of-the-snakes-in-ireland/2021/03/12/324458e4-7c97-11eb-a976-c028a4215c78_story.html">drive the snakes</a> out of Ireland. Instead they were eliminated in the last Ice Age and never made it back.</li><li>Sea-level rise is <a href="https://www.rutgers.edu/news/ghost-forests-expanding-along-northeast-us-coast">killing forests</a> along the Atlantic coast.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Biden administration is <a href="https://grist.org/climate/a-carbon-border-tax-could-clean-up-emissions-or-spark-a-trade-war/">considering a carbon tariff</a> on goods coming from countries that are not doing enough to reduce carbon emissions.</li><li>To be effective, the EPA needs to be restaffed and <a href="https://grist.org/politics/epa-joe-biden-environmental-law-enforcement-trump/">end arrangements</a> that allow states and industry to block enforcement.</li><li>Property owners in the Hamptons are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/17/wainscott-new-york-hamptons-offshore-windfarm">fighting an offshore wind farm</a> because the cable connecting it to a substation would pass through their town. Long Island is also the focus of a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/18/climate/chuck-schumer-fema-flood-insurance.html">fight over flood insurance</a>, which needs to be adjusted to account for sea-level rise.</li><li>Bottom trawling releases a gigaton of carbon <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/17/trawling-for-fish-releases-as-much-carbon-as-air-travel-report-finds-climate-crisis">from the seabed</a> each year, which is roughly equivalent to global aviation. The amount could be reduced by protecting more of the ocean.</li><li>North America was the only continent <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/covid-19-meets-climate-change.html">whose air quality declined in 2020</a> due to western wildfires.</li><li>One of the challenges in switching to carbon-free energy is obtaining necessary elements like lithium without causing additional environmental damage. One <a href="https://grist.org/climate/the-west-has-a-new-front-in-the-war-over-electric-cars/">proposed lithium mine</a> in Nevada would pollute local groundwater and disturb vulnerable species, while another would destroy 70% of a rare plant's range.</li><li>Biofuels should <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2021/02/ethanol-emissions-joe-biden-biofuels/">not be part of a carbon-free transportation system</a> because they are inefficient and stall the replacement of internal combustion with electric vehicles.</li><li>Researchers found <a href="https://www.njspotlight.com/2021/03/staggering-amount-of-microplastics-found-in-delaware-estuary-waterways/">microplastics in 53 waterways</a> that flow into the Delaware Estuary. Among the main contributors are plastic fibers from synthetic clothing.</li><li>Deb Haaland was finally confirmed and sworn in <a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-cabinet-cabinets-parks-native-americans-national-parks-3e68649e5901248207480dd8503b0246">as Interior secretary</a>. She is the first Native American cabinet secretary and supports the <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-ambitious-strategy-to-preserve-biodiversity/">30x30 plan for biodiversity conservation</a>.</li><li>The Keystone XL pipeline might be dead, but activists are still trying to stop <a href="https://therevelator.org/tara-houska-line3/">another cross-border pipeline</a> known as Line 3. <br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-89991709079642187422021-03-12T09:00:00.258-05:002021-03-12T09:00:03.889-05:00Loose Feathers #792<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUJGlDi6AKVxlg8bPm1X-35p07yuQAI1F-mumnD9SqJyA6bYDhdLteSz5vLVQ3PpjrOYK7pN_gezj3EYIf_McfKrYvwHbNlfYoexiNLD_0XHT8Y-8dgObTvXuMtgUBbk0DU04/s800/buff_50863248182_fd4c0d930e_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUJGlDi6AKVxlg8bPm1X-35p07yuQAI1F-mumnD9SqJyA6bYDhdLteSz5vLVQ3PpjrOYK7pN_gezj3EYIf_McfKrYvwHbNlfYoexiNLD_0XHT8Y-8dgObTvXuMtgUBbk0DU04/w400-h268/buff_50863248182_fd4c0d930e_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bufflehead / <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/50863248182/">USFWS Photo</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Whooping Cranes <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-whooping-cranes-turbines-stopover-sites.html">avoid stopover sites</a> near wind farms, so approval for new wind farms should take that into account when selecting sites.</li><li>Bird watchers in California are urged to <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/Songbirds-dying-Bay-Area-pine-siskin-CDFW-16012798.php">take down and clean their bird feeders</a> to stop an outbreak of salmonellosis. The feeders should stay down for at least a month.<br /></li><li>Wing tags are often used to make individual banded birds easier to observe, but in the case of Cape Vultures, wing tags make it <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-wing-tags-severely-impair-flight.html">harder for them to fly</a>.</li><li>Tropical forest bird populations in Tanzania are <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-climate-tropical-birds-population-growth.html">declining</a> as the climate warms. Many tropical birds disperse only short distances after leaving the nest, which makes it harder for them to move to places with an ideal climate.<br /></li><li>Researchers found the <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-genetic-underpinnings-plumage-eurasian-white.html">genetic basis</a> for plumage variations in White Wagtails.</li><li>A study of 23 bird species found that species with cooperative breeding <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-bird-parents-longer.html">live longer</a> than other birds.</li><li>An Irish photographer recorded <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/murmuration-of-starlings-how-our-stunning-front-page-photograph-was-taken-1.4501033">a starling murmuration</a>.</li><li>Used PPE needs to be disposed properly so that birds and other wildlife <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/gull-tangled-by-medical-mask-covid-1.5935398">do not get entangled in it</a>. The pandemic has revived the use of single-use plastics, which activists had tried to phase out.</li><li>A threatened Red-backed Button-quail recently <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-04/rare-bird-in-coffs-harbour/13215532">showed up in an Australian coastal town</a>, which is a sign of the bird's recent population boom.</li><li>From April 1 to May 31, <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/science/climate/philadelphia-birds-lights-out-audubon-20210311.html">lights will be turned off</a> on major buildings in Philadelphia's Center City to protect migrating birds, which can be disoriented by artificial light. The <a href="https://www.birdsafephilly.org/">Bird Safe Philly</a> initiative was spurred by an incident last fall when 1,000 to 1,500 birds struck buildings on a single night.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/03/07/why-the-red-breasted-meidum-goose-is-probably-not-an-extinct-species/">Why the “Red-breasted Meidum Goose” is probably not an extinct species</a> </li><li>Dakota Birder: <a href="https://www.sdakotabirds.com/blog/archives/2345">South Dakota Species Highlight: Chestnut-collared Longspur</a></li><li>FINCH RESEARCH NETWORK: <a href="https://finchnetwork.org/winter-finch-forecast-update-the-return-begins">Winter Finch Forecast Update: The Return Begins</a> <br /></li><li>earthstar: <a href="https://earthstar.blog/2021/03/09/when-coots-attack/">When Coots attack</a></li><li>Linda Murdock Photography: <a href="http://gustaviatex.com/blog/2021/3/10/smith-oaks-rookery-at-high-island-2021">Smith Oaks Rookery at High Island - 2021</a></li><li>Be Your Own Birder: <a href="http://www.beyourownbirder.com/2021/03/09/the-most-versatile-birdseed/">The Most Versatile Birdseed</a> </li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2021/03/10/when-acorn-masts-rodents-and-lyme-disease-collide/">When Acorn Masts, Rodents, and Lyme Disease Collide</a></li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/03/11/sparrow-fight/">Sparrow Fight</a></li><li>Outside My Window: <a href="https://www.birdsoutsidemywindow.org/2021/03/09/we-get-pretty-by-wearing-out/">We Get Pretty By Wearing Out</a> </li><li>Balloon Juice: <a href="https://www.balloon-juice.com/2021/03/08/on-the-road-albatrossity-raptor-trapping-and-banding/">Raptor Trapping and Banding</a> </li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/03/07/marsh-wren-nesting-season-begins-in-march/">Marsh Wren Nesting Season Begins In March</a></li><li>Isabelle M. Vea: <a href="https://isabellevea.wordpress.com/2021/03/05/insects-found-on-dinosaur-feathers-are-not-that-kind-of-parasites/">Insects found on dinosaur feathers are not that kind of parasites</a></li><li>New Jersey Audubon: <a href="https://njaudubon.org/cape-may-springwatch-march-1-10-2021/">Cape May Springwatch: March 1-10, 2021</a> </li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/03/12/mealworms-are-they-safe-as-bird-food/">Mealworms – Are They Safe As Bird Food?</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Brood X periodical cicadas <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/03/09/cicadas-broodx-environment/">will emerge en masse</a> this spring for the first time since 2004. Unlike annual cicadas, which emerge every summer, periodical cicada broods emerge in massive numbers every 13 or 17 years. This brood is centered in the Mid-Atlantic, with another population in the Midwest.<br /></li><li>The pause in ecotourism due to COVID-19 and government budget cuts <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/11/budget-cuts-and-collapse-in-tourism-revenue-pose-severe-threat-to-nature">have hurt conservation efforts</a>. Some preserves have been forced to close, while governments have opened protected areas to resource extraction.</li><li>As a narwhal's tusk grows, it <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-narwhal-tusk-reveals-conditions.html">creates a record</a> of the conditions in which the narwhal lived.</li><li>Marine protected areas that <a href="https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/in-the-push-for-marine-conservation-partially-protected-areas-are-a-red-herring/">still allow fishing and fossil fuel extraction</a> do not protect much more biodiversity than unprotected sites.<br /></li><li>The Red Wolf is again on the brink of extinction as the number of wolves in the wild has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/10/can-red-wolves-come-back-from-the-brink-of-extinction-again-aoe">crashed from 130 to 10 in the past decade</a>. </li><li>A Gray Wolf with a GPS tracking collar from the Bow Valley pack in Banff National Park <a href="https://www.rmotoday.com/banff/banff-research-wolf-shot-and-killed-in-montana-3533061">was shot and killed in Montana</a>. The wolf had been tracked for about a year and was almost three years old. </li><li>Only a few remnants of <a href="https://orionmagazine.org/article/in-the-ghost-wood/">Ireland's ancient temperate rainforest</a> remain intact. The forest fragments support a rich diversity of mosses and liverworts but are missing the megafauna that used to live there.<br /></li><li>Entomologists found a <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-species-firefly-singapore.html">new species of firefly</a> in Singapore.</li><li>Bangladesh is home to <a href="https://therevelator.org/carnivores-bangladesh/">half of the carnivore species</a> on the Indian subcontinent, but many are overlooked or understudied. <br /></li><li>Invasive zebra mussels are found <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-invasive-zebra-mussels-pet-nationwide.html">in many pet stores</a>, which serve as a potential point of new introductions.</li><li>At least <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-florida-manatee-deaths-surge-months.html">403 manatees have died</a> in the first two months this year, which is triple the normal rate.</li><li>A new study calls for <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/in-japan-scientists-look-to-the-past-to-save-the-future-of-grasslands/">protecting Japan's remaining older grasslands</a> as a basis for restoring new grasslands. </li><li>Pennsylvania is home to a large herd of <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/news/pennsylvania/elk-county-benezette-tourism-hunt-20210305.html">reintroduced elk</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Switching to electric vehicles is necessary to reduce carbon emissions, but mining the rare metals needed for batteries <a href="https://therevelator.org/ev-batteries-seabed-mining/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ev-batteries-seabed-mining">presents its own set of environmental risks</a>. The seabed is a potential target for mining.<br /></li><li>Michael Regan was finally <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/10/climate/michael-s-regan-epa-biden.html">confirmed as EPA administrator</a>. He will have a lot of clean-up to do. Deb Haaland is <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-haaland-senate/u-s-senate-majority-leader-schumer-moves-to-bring-haaland-nomination-to-final-vote-idUSKBN2B11UG">still waiting</a> for a confirmation vote. Her vote should come on Monday.<br /></li><li>The Extinction Rebellion movement is popular in Europe but has been <a href="https://grist.org/climate/extinction-rebellion-growth-united-states/">slow to gain support</a> in the US, possibly because activists are putting their energy elsewhere.<br /></li><li>A oil company wants to <a href="https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2021/03/review-oil-drilling-plans-big-cypress-could-lead-eis">drill in Big Cypress National Preserve</a> in Florida even though it could <a href="https://southerlymag.org/2021/03/09/bidens-pause-on-new-oil-and-gas-leases-may-not-apply-in-this-everglades-preserve/">harm a sensitive and unique ecosystem</a>.</li><li>The Biden administration <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/biden-administration-says-it-will-revoke-trump-rule-let-companies-kill-birds">revoked a legal opinion</a> that formed the Trump administration's basis for modifying the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Interior Department will reverse the regulatory changes in the near future.</li><li>The proposed large-scale wind farm off the coast of Martha's Vineyard <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/03/08/biden-climate-windfarm/">should be approved soon</a> as the Biden administration looks to increase offshore wind energy.</li><li>Environmental groups are asking the Biden administration to <a href="https://news.azpm.org/p/news-articles/2021/3/5/190671-borderlands-groups-submit-list-of-wall-sections-prioritized-for-removal/">remove 70 miles of border wall segments</a> to restore natural areas and cultural sites.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-54930340975456265082021-03-05T09:00:00.227-05:002021-03-05T09:00:01.578-05:00Loose Feathers #791<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLombYyHl7QiQRCURJ_BXZXfAMvhtcWPP5obBWM2zNtKMg-nfdUUFdQuu024zHrJO_aMB5N5G_admxbFyK2jlf5Wf05FGc0x5OTjqSXSjeTdE64gYyLt2i7pwogqM_E1eRjM4z/s800/cogr_50472090292_fc4f5abd88_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="698" data-original-width="800" height="349" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLombYyHl7QiQRCURJ_BXZXfAMvhtcWPP5obBWM2zNtKMg-nfdUUFdQuu024zHrJO_aMB5N5G_admxbFyK2jlf5Wf05FGc0x5OTjqSXSjeTdE64gYyLt2i7pwogqM_E1eRjM4z/w400-h349/cogr_50472090292_fc4f5abd88_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Common Grackle / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/50472090292/">Diana Cosby/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The capture and selling of wild birds for their song is <a href="https://therevelator.org/asian-songbird-crisis/">driving many Asian songbirds to extinction</a>.</li><li>Spring is a great time to start birding, and here are <a href="https://defector.com/a-bird-idiots-guide-to-birding/">some recommendations for getting started</a>. Here is another column <a href="https://theislandnow.com/opinions-100/earth-matters-becoming-a-birder/">on becoming a birder</a>.<br /></li><li>A new book considers biodiversity loss in terms of <a href="https://therevelator.org/earths-music-moore/">diminished sound</a>, especially bird songs. </li><li>Spotted Owls benefit from a mix of <a href="https://www.registerguard.com/story/opinion/columns/2021/02/27/guest-view-misguided-spotted-owl-shell-game/6819700002/">burned and old-growth habitats</a>, and that balance is disturbed when timber companies do salvage logging or thin old-growth forests. British Columbia has deferred logging <a href="https://thenarwhal.ca/logging-deferred-bc-valleys-spotted-owls/">where Canada's last Spotted Owls are nesting</a>.<br /></li><li>A wind energy company is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/01/california-condor-endangered-wind-turbines-breeding">funding the captive breeding program</a> for California Condors to replace any that are killed by its turbines.</li><li>A study using GPS trackers found that female Northern Gannets <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-female-gannets-extra-mile-chicks.html">traveled farther</a> than males in search of food for their chicks. Males and females also foraged in different places and at different times of day.</li><li>Two Bald Eagles <a href="https://patch.com/new-jersey/hillsborough/2nd-baby-bald-eagle-egg-hatches-duke-farms">have hatched at Duke Farms</a> in Somerset County, New Jersey.</li><li>Powerful Owls will roost <a href="https://theconversation.com/look-up-a-powerful-owl-could-be-sleeping-in-your-backyard-after-a-night-surveying-kilometres-of-territory-155479">in urban areas</a> but need more connection between habitats to stay there.</li><li>Activists in Texas are building <a href="https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2021/02/conservation-groups-promote-dark-skies-to-protect-migrating-birds/">a Lights Out program in Austin</a>. Turning out lights helps protect birds that migrate at night.</li><li>A Common Eider colony in Nunavut developed <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-arctic-sea-ducks-herd-immunity.html">herd immunity to avian cholera</a> after an outbreak in 2006.</li><li>A new book documents <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-55857380">life in an Emperor Penguin colony</a> with photos.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2021/03/03/to-fruit-or-not-to-fruit-the-story-of-mast-seeding/">To Fruit or Not to Fruit – The Story of Mast Seeding</a></li><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-march-2021/">Field Guide to March 2021</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/03/04/splitting-the-long-tailed-rosefinch-into-a-chinese-and-siberian-species/">Splitting the Long-tailed Rosefinch into a Chinese and a Siberian species</a> </li><li>Sibley Guides: <a href="https://www.sibleyguides.com/2021/03/distinguishing-the-subspecies-of-redwing/">Distinguishing the subspecies of Redwing</a></li><li>The Urban Nature Enthusiast: <a href="https://urbannature.blog/2021/03/04/snow-crows-2/">Snow Crows</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Hunters in Wisconsin <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/03/us/wisconsin-wolves-killings.html">killed at least 216 wolves</a> over three days last week. The hunt was the first since the Trump administration removed the Gray Wolf from the Endangered Species List.</li><li>Butterfly populations west of the Rockies have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/04/butterfly-numbers-plummeting-us-west-climate-crisis">declined by 1.6% each year</a> since 1977. According to the study, climate change was the primary cause.<br /></li><li>Another study reported that British moths have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/03/britain-moths-decline-by-third-50-years-study">declined by one third over the past 50 years</a>.</li><li>North Carolina Candid Critters, a citizen-science project using camera traps, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-citizen-science-captures-22m-wildlife.html">recorded 120,671 wildlife observations</a> of 30 mammal and 3 bird species over three years. </li><li>A study argues that <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-limiting-invasive-species-goal.html">limiting the spread of invasive species</a> is more important than trying to eradicate ones that are already established.</li><li>This <a href="https://twitter.com/S_Bassing/status/1367251223074672644">Twitter thread</a> shows a battle between a Golden Eagle, Great Horned Owl, Mule Deer, and Coyote that was captured on a trail camera in Washington.</li><li>Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs have been found in Great Britain <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/01/uk-scientists-confirm-arrival-of-brown-marmorated-stink-bugs">for the first time</a>.</li><li>Deforestation is increasing in Indonesia as it <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/03/papua-deforestation-highlights-eastward-shift-of-indonesia-forest-clearing/">moves east into the Papua region</a>, which had been largely untouched until recently.</li><li>Idaho is likely to <a href="https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/local-houndsmen-say-fish-and-game-has-declared-war-on-mountain-lions-with-plan-to/article_285a8ee9-a2a8-578c-9013-03862a55aac1.html">remove limits</a> on hunting mountain lions.</li><li>Neonicotinoids have been <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-03-insecticide-pollinators-deer-minnesota.html">found in deer</a> across Minnesota.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Drilling in Area 1002 of the Arctic NWR threatens to <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/features/why-drilling-the-arctic-refuge-will-release-a-double-dose-of-carbon">disrupt caribou migration and grazing patterns</a> that help keep carbon stored in the permafrost. </li><li>Carbon emissions must be cut in half by 2030, but pledges under the Paris agreement <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/26/climate/paris-agreement-emissions-targets.html">amount to less than 1% of emissions</a>.</li><li>The Biden administration is <a href="https://undark.org/2021/03/02/biden-weighs-social-cost-of-carbon/">recalculating the social cost of carbon</a>, which is the basis for cost-benefit analyses for climate-related regulations.<br /></li><li>An Indigenous land defender was sentenced to jail <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/dy8qek/indigenous-land-defender-gets-jail-time-after-performing-ceremony-near-trans-mountain-site">for protesting the Trans Mountain pipeline</a> in British Columbia.</li><li>The Sierra Club (like many other environmental organizations) is re-evaluating its history, <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/2021-2-march-april/feature/john-muir-native-america">particularly its exclusion of Native Americans</a>.</li><li>During Deb Haaland's confirmation hearing, Republican senators <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/04/republicans-used-oil-industry-backed-study-to-criticize-deb-haaland">used a debunked study</a> by the American Petroleum Institute to criticize her views on fossil fuel leases and climate change.</li><li>Last year's wildfires were strongly connected to climate change, <a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/blog/3066/the-climate-connections-of-a-record-fire-year-in-the-us-west/">as explained by NASA</a>. <br /></li><li>The Delaware River Basin Commission <a href="https://grist.org/politics/heres-why-this-new-fracking-ban-in-the-northeast-is-a-big-deal/">passed a ban on fracking</a> within the Delaware watershed over heavy opposition from fossil fuel companies. The commission is still deciding what to do about water withdrawals.</li><li>Electric vehicles are better for the environment than gas-powered vehicles, but how much better depends on factors like <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/02/climate/electric-vehicles-environment.html">how electricity is generated and the sources for raw materials</a>.</li><li>Fossil fuel groups like the American Gas Association are lobbying state governments to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/01/a-texas-city-had-a-bold-new-climate-plan-until-a-gas-company-got-involved">prevent cities like Austin from switching to renewable energy</a>.</li><li>The House of Representatives passed a new public lands conservation bill that would <a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-fires-bills-legislation-358cf2eec997ed2e8f4861aff978a053">create new wilderness areas and stop new mining around the Grand Canyon</a>, among other things. It is unclear if the bill will pass the Senate.</li><li>Environmental groups are asking the Biden administration to <a href="https://tucson.com/news/local/wildlife-rights-coalition-asks-biden-to-remove-miles-of-arizonas-border-wall/article_7e6b61de-838f-56a3-b74e-ff6057fc2ea6.html">remove sections of the border wall</a> that block wildlife migration routes or separate Indigenous cultural sites.<br /></li><li>There is a surprisingly high amount of microplastic in Raritan Bay and in the Raritan and Passaic Rivers; <a href="https://patch.com/new-jersey/newbrunswick/microplastics-found-raritan-river-mouth-raritan-bay">stormwater runoff</a> seems to be the main source.</li><li>Annapolis is suing two dozen fossil fuel companies because <a href="https://dcist.com/story/21/02/24/annapolis-battling-sea-level-rise-sues-26-oil-companies/">sea level rise is threatening the city</a>.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-72309224595219890322021-02-26T09:00:00.171-05:002021-02-26T10:52:55.740-05:00Loose Feathers #790<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5SalbKC2oDrOrcsAp3IPlIsSWZOStqoxItNCBnB9_cQEUEEbA3DsD4Tp6f1qDdZFx-L3ag_VC5ORileYPuTE_PrnTQoNGTCCEnEISiIR_TVzXN-zlpXy-SGzFQ-hqwm5X359b/s800/feha_16382060912_4ce0d70d45_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="800" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5SalbKC2oDrOrcsAp3IPlIsSWZOStqoxItNCBnB9_cQEUEEbA3DsD4Tp6f1qDdZFx-L3ag_VC5ORileYPuTE_PrnTQoNGTCCEnEISiIR_TVzXN-zlpXy-SGzFQ-hqwm5X359b/w400-h255/feha_16382060912_4ce0d70d45_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ferruginous Hawk / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/16382060912/">Rick Bohn/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A Black-browed Babbler <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/25/black-browed-babbler-found-in-borneo-180-years-after-last-sighting">was found</a> by local birders in Borneo for the first time since the 1840s.</li><li>John James Audubon <a href="https://www.audubon.org/magazine/spring-2021/what-do-we-do-about-john-james-audubon">left a complicated legacy</a> that includes enslaving people in addition to his better-known scientific and artistic achievements.</li><li>An unusual <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/26/strange-pale-penguin-rare-yellow-and-white-bird-discovered-among-king-penguins-in-atlantic">leucistic King Penguin</a> was found and photographed on South Georgia. The lack of melanin made it appear white and yellow.<br /></li><li>A storymap follows the migration of Hudsonian Godwits <a href="https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/1ebf7c221c654e6d8a06355501f40cb9">from Chile to Alaska and back</a>. </li><li>A new survey of critically endangered Bahama Orioles found their population is more likely to be <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-population-critically-endangered-bahama-oriole.html">several thousand</a> rather than the previous estimate of 300.</li><li>Male Superb Lyrebirds <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/26/male-lyrebirds-resort-to-artful-deception-in-the-pursuit-of-procreation">mimic the sounds of predators</a> to keep females from leaving during mating.<br /></li><li>A Northern Cardinal <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56189600">with bilateral gynandromorphism</a>, which causes a bird to appear as half-female and half-male, was photographed in Pennsylvania.</li><li>Flamingos at the Agios Mamas lagoon in Greece have <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-shot-poisoning-flamingos-greece-wildlife.html">died from ingesting lead ammunition</a>.</li><li>An ancient Egyptian painting at Meidum hints at <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-ancient-art-reveals-extinct-goose.html">a possible extinct goose species</a> that resembled the Red-breasted Goose.<br /></li><li>Winter is as good a time as any <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/winter-birding-better-cool-with-cold-ottawa-1.5898944">to start birding</a>.</li><li>An Iceland Gull made it <a href="https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2021/02/24/Iceland-gull-makes-rare-Florida-visit/5401614200340/">all the way to Florida</a> where it was discovered during a shorebird survey.</li><li>Gonzalo Cardona became the latest environmentalist to be assassinated <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/remembering-gonzalo-cardona-protector-yellow-eared-parrot">for his work protecting Yellow-eared Parrots in Colombia</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/02/24/genomic-study-unveils-the-true-identity-of-brewsters-and-lawrences-warbler/">Genomic study unveils the true identity of Brewster’s and Lawrence’s Warbler</a></li><li>The Meadowlands Nature Blog: <a href="https://meadowblog.net/2021/02/don-torinos-life-in-the-meadowlands-song-of-the-red-winged-blackbird/">Don Torino’s Life in the Meadowlands: Song of the Red-winged Blackbird</a> </li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/02/21/preening-male-belted-kingfisher/">Preening Male Belted Kingfisher</a></li><li>Ecography: <a href="http://www.ecography.org/blog/where-are-all-hummingbirds-data-fusion-can-tell-us">Where are all the hummingbirds? Data fusion can tell us</a></li><li>avesrares: <a href="https://avesrares.wordpress.com/2021/02/01/crossbill-call-types-in-the-western-palearctic-a-birders-perspective_copy/">Crossbill call types in the Palearctic – a birder’s perspective (Update eastern Palearctic call types, distribution areas and drivers of differentiation)</a> </li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/02/22/sharp-shinned-monday/">Sharp-shinned Monday</a> </li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/02/22/ferruginous-and-rough-legged-hawk-lift-off-photos/">Ferruginous And Rough-legged Hawk Lift Off Photos</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and climate change</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>At least 317 manatees <a href="https://www.peer.org/record-manatee-mortality-in-new-year/">died in the first two months of 2021</a>, a death toll way out of proportion with previous years. </li><li>A new group of nematodes were discovered <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/25/science/manatees-nematodes.html">living on the skin of manatees</a>. <br /></li><li>Extreme weather disasters are starting to <a href="https://therevelator.org/extreme-weather-wildlife/">take their toll on wildlife</a>. For example, Hurricane Harvey killed 80% of Attwater Prairie Chickens, and Hurricanes Matthew and Dorian may have killed the last Bahama Nuthatches.<br /></li><li>A small group of stranded Pilot Whales was <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-joy-whales-refloated-notorious-zealand.html">successfully refloated</a> in New Zealand.</li><li>The number of Monarchs wintering in Central Mexico <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/25/mexico-monarch-butterflies-winter-resting-grounds-down">fell by 26% this year</a>. <br /></li><li>A native Australian cellophane bee was recorded for the first time <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-rare-bee-years.html">since 1923</a>.</li><li>Eating food thrown out by humans may be <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-human-food-urban-coyotes.html">harming the health</a> of urban coyotes by altering their gut microbiome.</li><li>The deaths of North Atlantic Right Whales are being <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-human-caused-north-atlantic-whale-deaths.html">undercounted</a>.</li><li>Here are some suggestions for <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-few-fixes-could-cut-noise-pollution-that-hurts-ocean-animals/">reducing shipping noise</a> that harms whales and other marine creatures.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Because of warming, the North Atlantic circulation system is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/25/atlantic-ocean-circulation-at-weakest-in-a-millennium-say-scientists">at its weakest point in the last millennium</a>. Weaker circulation will lead to higher sea levels on the US east coast and worse weather in Europe.</li><li>Deb Haaland, the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/climate/deb-haaland-interior-secretary.html">nominee for Interior secretary</a>, should be a major improvement over her recent predecessors, especially the <a href="https://www.outsideonline.com/2327916/secretary-interior-ryan-zinke-scandal">scandal-plagued Ryan Zinke</a>. Here is <a href="https://grist.org/politics/deb-haaland-isnt-as-radical-as-some-republican-senators-think/">more on Haaland</a>.<br /></li><li><i>Defector</i> considers which sports teams will be <a href="https://defector.com/which-teams-will-be-the-first-lost-to-climate-change/">the first to relocate or fold</a> because of climate change.<br /></li><li>The Delaware River Basin Commission <a href="https://www.poconorecord.com/story/news/2021/02/25/delaware-river-basin-commission-votes-ban-fracking-watershed/4574117001/">banned fracking within the Delaware watershed</a>.</li><li>New Jersey subsidizes trash incineration as a form of renewable energy even though it <a href="https://www.vermontlaw.edu/news-and-events/newsroom/press-release/trash-incinerators-pollute-frontline-communities">spews toxic chemicals and air pollution</a>, with the worst harm falling on poor or nonwhite communities.</li><li>Federal funding will help New Jersey to <a href="https://www.nj.com/news/2021/02/feds-give-nj-1m-to-protect-south-jersey-wetlands.html">protect</a> more of the Great Egg Harbor estuary. <br /></li><li>Christian Cooper is using his temporary fame to argue <a href="https://dcist.com/story/21/02/19/christian-cooper-the-central-park-birder-accosted-by-a-white-woman-has-a-new-cause-d-c-statehood/">for DC statehood</a>.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-58606646680253351102021-02-19T09:00:00.143-05:002021-02-19T11:03:33.651-05:00Loose Feathers #789<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYW3jE-AQbUq9ZiB9XPtn5Rn91uBCc1APq1HsyJgWviaOzVrh0ssDB-RT7_Fr2tHrpa-piXHx3R6x9mDVAqk_wsaG9zZ_gVIaT8jUN2sB_dTelpXe8GJB9fC-VezSKwmyPtm1q/s800/grsg_50227128267_e8f6d50765_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="562" data-original-width="800" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYW3jE-AQbUq9ZiB9XPtn5Rn91uBCc1APq1HsyJgWviaOzVrh0ssDB-RT7_Fr2tHrpa-piXHx3R6x9mDVAqk_wsaG9zZ_gVIaT8jUN2sB_dTelpXe8GJB9fC-VezSKwmyPtm1q/w400-h281/grsg_50227128267_e8f6d50765_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Greater Sage-Grouse / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/50227128267/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A prominent birder was <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/an-allegation-sexual-assault-sends-shock-waves-through-birding-world">accused of rape</a> this week, and in response activists are pushing birding organizations to remove abusive members. Read the <a href="https://whitehottact.com/2021/02/14/a-trusted-public-figure-raped-me-while-we-were-birding/">original account</a>.</li><li>A new (extinct) <i>Cathartes</i> vulture has been <a href="https://www.4vultures.org/new-vulture-species-identified-from-fossils-in-cuba/">identified from fossils</a> found in Cuba.<br /></li><li>A Redwing, a thrush species native to Europe, <a href="https://wgme.com/news/local/the-rare-redwing-has-birders-flocking-to-portland">has been observed in Maine</a> for the past few weeks. This is one of several Redwings in the Northeast this winter.</li><li>Rare birds in Central Park continue to provoke controversy <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/nyregion/central-park-birders.html">over whether to publicize rare birds, especially owls</a>. Unfortunately media accounts tend emphasize the perspectives of some of the worst offenders; read the <a href="https://www.aba.org/aba-code-of-birding-ethics/">ABA Code of Birding Ethics</a> for better guidance.<br /></li><li>The most recent Red List update <a href="https://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/news/red-list-update-plight-condor">classifies Andean Condors as vulnerable</a>, with poisoning and habitat loss as key threats.</li><li>A study of Eurasian Reed Warblers found that the birds <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-birds-massive-magnetic-migratesome-world.html">have mental maps</a> that allow them to navigate by magnetic fields, even into areas that have not visited before.<br /></li><li>Individual Yellow Warblers prefer the same habitat and climate types <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-migratory-birds-track-climate-year.html">on both their breeding and wintering grounds</a>.</li><li>Birds are <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-wintering-bird-track-climate-faster.html">changing their wintering ranges</a> faster than their breeding ranges in response to climate change. <br /></li><li>Five British birders were fined for traveling to Devon to see <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/15/to-see-a-mockingbird-birdwatchers-fined-for-breaking-covid-rules">a vagrant Northern Mockingbird</a>.</li><li>Albatross deaths due to plastic are more common than thought, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-plastic-ocean-threatened-albatrosses-thought.html">especially in the southern hemisphere</a>.</li><li>A birder writes <a href="https://defector.com/a-suggestion-for-bird-feeding/">in praise of sunflower hearts</a>, which appeal to a variety of birds and leave less of a mess.</li><li>The pandemic <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/virus-outbreak-cancels-whooping-crane-count-texas-75837864">cancelled</a> the annual survey of Whooping Cranes in Texas this year.</li><li>A judge <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/judge-saves-sage-grouse-habitat-from-trump-mining-plans/">overturned a Trump administration policy</a> that stripped protections from Greater Sage-Grouse habitat. In other sage grouse news, their Wyoming population <a href="https://trib.com/business/energy/sage-grouse-numbers-stay-steady-in-wyoming-new-data-shows/article_c11bd43f-3516-5137-8a19-e489489220d0.html">was stable last year</a>.</li><li>There were <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/local/land-environment/2021/02/15/piping-plovers-threatened-shorebirds-numbers-decline-nj/6724939002/">103 breeding pairs</a> of Piping Plovers in New Jersey last year, which was a 10% reduction from the previous year.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Snapshots of Nature: <a href="https://snapshotofnature.blogspot.com/2021/02/great-backyard-bird-count-weekend.html">Great Backyard Bird Count, The Weekend</a></li><li>UC Weed Science: <a href="https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=29405">A Valentine's Day Blog Post: Weeds With Pretty Names (Re-Posted)</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/02/18/winter-american-coot-portraits/">Winter American Coot Portraits</a> </li><li>BugTracks: <a href="https://bugtracks.wordpress.com/2021/02/18/introducing-haplopeodes-loprestii/">Introducing <i>Haplopeodes loprestii</i></a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Fishing Cat is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/17/the-fight-to-save-worlds-elusive-fishing-cats-india-aoe">vulnerable to habitat loss</a>, but a new conservation project is raising awareness and working to protect them.</li><li>The discovery of <a href="https://undark.org/2021/02/10/the-enduring-mystery-of-critchfields-spruce/">an extinct spruce</a> in Louisiana suggests that there may be more extinct plants than scientists know about and that plants are more vulnerable to climate change then currently predicted.<br /></li><li>Research on the invasive Spotted Lanternfly <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-lanternfly-effort-invasive-pest.html">predicts a large potential range</a> and possible host plants.</li><li>The South Padre Island Convention Center has been <a href="https://apnews.com/article/cold-sea-turtles-rescued-texas-c3b19048c4dfed709889e78d4c268b01">home to over 3,500 sea turtles</a> that were rescued from unusually cold waters this week. The turtles will be released once the water warms sufficiently.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Catastrophic power outages in Texas this week were initially <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/16/texas-wind-turbines-frozen/">blamed on wind energy</a> (especially by politicians <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/how-much-the-oil-and-gas-industry-paid-texas-republican-1846288505">funded by fossil fuel companies</a>) but were really caused by years of <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-failures/">deregulation and climate change denial</a>. This and the outages in California last summer are signs that energy providers <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/18/business/energy-environment/california-texas-blackouts-utilities.html">need to adapt to weather extremes</a>. Scenes like this may become <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/austin-texas-ice-storm-climate-change-1129183/">the new normal</a>.<br /></li><li>The Biden administration restored a rule that climate change <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-climate-ceq/white-house-revokes-trump-order-limiting-climate-change-in-federal-reviews-idUSKBN2AI2BQ">should be included in environmental reviews</a>.</li><li>Construction on the border wall has stopped for now, but the Biden administration will need to decide <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/02/joe-biden-trump-border-wall/">what to do with the mess left behind</a>, from damaged landscapes and habitats to desecrated Indigenous sites to ongoing lawsuits. Democrats should make it a priority to repeal the section of the REAL ID Act that allows DHS to waive environmental and other laws.</li><li>US auto companies are finally committing to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/feb/17/ford-plans-for-all-cars-sold-in-europe-to-be-electric-by-2030">replacing gas-powered with electric vehicles</a> within the next two decades.</li><li>Carbon offsets <a href="https://globalecoguy.org/carbon-offsets-should-make-you-nervous-9995a00db0d6">may not be all that useful</a>, especially if they discourage real reductions in carbon emissions.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-57340594859146663112021-02-12T10:00:00.220-05:002021-02-12T10:00:07.778-05:00Loose Feathers #788<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvo9joWxI7ZT5KocedZ5KenXB3oubssDdZT95TEL7xud1sxRbo9rTSOZIpxmPMxh1yHh4WMrSOkCHEjtb8sD1TM_ENLKH4UkOG8hILAdhfDxOGBgKzQvdmlLpqEqM0n27pUqk2/s799/rwbl_47680225572_cd9df21942_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="799" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvo9joWxI7ZT5KocedZ5KenXB3oubssDdZT95TEL7xud1sxRbo9rTSOZIpxmPMxh1yHh4WMrSOkCHEjtb8sD1TM_ENLKH4UkOG8hILAdhfDxOGBgKzQvdmlLpqEqM0n27pUqk2/w400-h268/rwbl_47680225572_cd9df21942_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Red-winged Blackbird / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmidwest/47680225572/">Courtney Celley/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>This weekend is the annual <a href="https://www.birdcount.org/">Great Backyard Bird Count</a>. Everyone is invited to participate by watching birds for 15 minutes at home or elsewhere and then submitting their observations to eBird. See the link for details.<br /></li><li>The American Ornithological Society has released its <a href="https://americanornithology.org/nacc/current-prior-proposals/2021-proposals/">first set of checklist proposals for 2021</a>. You can read some analysis of them at the <a href="https://www.aba.org/2021-aos-classification-committee-proposals-part-1/">ABA website</a>.<br /></li><li>Designing cities with birds in mind can benefit <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90601980/why-cities-should-be-designed-for-birds">both birds and humans</a>.</li><li>Blakiston’s Fish-Owl is the world's largest owl and is <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2021/02/worlds-biggest-owl-is-endangered-but-its-not-too-late/">threatened by climate change and logging</a>.</li><li>Climate change is reducing the food supply <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/canada-jay-numbers-ontario-climate-change-1.5902929">for Canada Jays in southern Ontario</a>.<br /></li><li>Bolivia is investigating whether the recent <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-55980986">deaths of 35 Andean Condors</a> were a result of poisoning.</li><li><i>BirdWatching</i> has a list of ten bird species that are <a href="https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/news/species-profiles/10-bird-species-need-our-help-now/">highly endangered</a>.</li><li>Willow Tits in Britain <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/11/britains-endangered-willow-tit-needs-vast-area-to-thrive-research-finds">mainly live on brownfields</a>, and breeding pairs use territories of around 17 acres.<br /></li><li>The world's oldest known bird, a Laysan Albatross named Wisdom, <a href="https://medium.com/usfwspacificislands/worlds-oldest-known-banded-wild-bird-hatches-chick-at-midway-atoll-2708a0b3f2c0">hatched a chick on February 1</a> at Midway Atoll NWR. Wisdom was first banded in 1956 and is over 70 years old.</li><li>Starlings introduced to North America <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-starling-success-rapid.html">adapted quickly</a> to local climates with a boost from genetic variations.</li><li>A federal judge <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/federal-judge-overturns-trump-administrations-gutting-of-sage-grouse-protections-from-mining-2021-02-11/">struck down</a> the Trump administrations attempt to remove protections from vital sage-grouse habitat.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Pioneer Birding: <a href="http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/02/me-redwing-in-portland.html">ME - a REDWING in Portland!</a></li><li>Urban Hawks: <a href="https://www.urbanhawks.com/american-tree-sparrow-using-ebird">American Tree Sparrow Using eBird</a></li><li>The Meadowlands Nature Blog: <a href="https://meadowblog.net/2021/02/don-torinos-life-in-the-meadowlands-lost-birds-are-forever/">Don Torino’s Life in the Meadowlands: Lost Birds Are Forever</a> </li><li>Sibley Guides: <a href="https://www.sibleyguides.com/2021/02/variation-in-pine-siskins-and-the-so-called-green-morph/">Variation in Pine Siskins and the so-called "green morph"</a></li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2021/02/10/the-weeds-in-your-bird-seed/">The Weeds in Your Bird Seed</a></li><li>Dartford Waffler: <a href="http://dartfordwaffler.co.uk/herring-gull-from-russia-british-birding/">Herring Gull from Russia</a> </li><li>Laura's Birding Blog: <a href="https://blog.lauraerickson.com/2021/02/winter-feeding.html">Winter Feeding</a></li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2021/02/11/pine-siskins-attack/">When Pine Siskins Attack</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/02/07/unusually-low-genetic-diversity-in-the-red-billed-tropicbird/">Unusually low genetic diversity in the Red-billed Tropicbird</a></li><li>Balloon Juice: <a href="https://www.balloon-juice.com/2021/02/08/on-the-road-albatrossity-winter-in-flyover-country-4/">On The Road - Albatrossity - Winter in Flyover Country 4</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The extinctions of <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/02/study-reveals-how-species-once-extinct-in-the-wild-have-bounced-back/">at least 21 birds and 7 mammals</a> have been prevented since the Convention on Biological Diversity came into force in 1993.</li><li>Feeding stations can be an <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/02/fruit-eating-seed-pooping-animals-can-help-restore-degraded-forests/">efficient way to restore forests</a> if the food is laced with the seeds that the animals disperse elsewhere with their poop. </li><li>Saltmarshes are disappearing as the sea rises, and there needs to be a strategy for <a href="https://therevelator.org/wetlands-rising-seas-solutions/">letting them migrate inland</a>.<br /></li><li>A new set of projects is trying to figure out why sawfish are disappearing in some places <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/10/science/sawfish-extinction-conservation.html">while thriving in others</a>.<br /></li><li>In New Zealand, honey bees are the <a href="https://www.newsroom.co.nz/book-of-the-week-bees-are-rubbish">most numerous</a> form of livestock, with a population of around 40 billion, while their effects on native pollinators receive little attention.</li><li>Costa Rica includes <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2021/02/02/costa-rica-puts-mangrove-protections-at-heart-of-paris-climate-commitments">protecting coastal wetlands</a> as a core part of its response to climate change.</li><li>Common pipistrelle bats in Europe are <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-common-pipistrelle-turbines.html">attracted to wind turbines</a>, but so far the reason is unclear.</li><li>Damage or destruction of ecosystems <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/02/as-nature-declines-so-does-human-quality-of-life-study-finds/">worsens human quality of life</a> especially among the poorest people.<br /></li><li>Supawna Meadows NWR in New Jersey <a href="https://www.nj.com/salem/2021/02/nj-wildlife-refuge-could-grow-under-proposed-land-purchase.html">may be expanded</a> with an extra 182 acres of marsh.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Social media companies have gotten better at removing misinformation about COVID-19 and the 2020 election but need to apply the <a href="https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/twitter-thinks-ads-about-climate-change-are-bad-big-oil-n1256661">same standards to misinformation about climate change</a>.</li><li>The Biden administration will need to decide <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/what-comes-next-for-trump-s-border-wall">what to do about the border wall</a>. Recently the flood gates at the San Pedro River were found to be <a href="https://tucson.com/news/local/gates-were-welded-shut-on-border-wall-across-san-pedro-river-feds-fix-the-problem/article_baa09d5e-2a09-5b46-a74a-1b21f941144c.html">welded shut</a>.<br /></li><li>A Republican congressman from Idaho suggested <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/gop-congressman-pitches-34-billion-plan-to-breach-lower-snake-river-dams-in-new-vision-for-northwest/">breaching four dams</a> on the Lower Snake River as part of a program to restore salmon runs and boost ecotourism.</li><li>Younger activists are using the term <a href="https://grist.org/justice/intersectional-environmentalism-justice-language/">"intersectional environmentalism"</a> in place of "environental justice," but the practical differences are unclear.<br /></li><li>Water <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/10/rashida-tlaib-interview-environmental-justice-water-crisis">affordability and quality</a> is also a part of the environmental justice agenda.</li><li>A <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-disaster/india-glacier-avalanche-leaves-18-dead-more-than-200-missing-idUSKBN2A808I">glacier collapse</a> in India started a landslide that broke a dam and caused flash flooding. Over 200 people were missing in its aftermath. The incident raises questions about the <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-11/hydropower-dams-face-backlash-after-himalayan-flood-tragedy">safety and sustainability</a> of hydropower.<br /></li><li>The pandemic caused a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/climate/coal-climate-change.html">drop</a> in the demand for energy from coal, and that drop could be maintained if more coal plants are retired.<br /></li><li>Climate change is <a href="https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2020/07/02/crop-failure-rate-for-wild-rice-is-increasing-with-climate-change">reducing yields from wild rice</a> grown by the Ojibwe in Minnesota.</li><li>Half of a wetland in Staten Island is going to be <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/28/nyregion/wetlands-staten-island-bjs.html">paved over</a> for a shopping mall even though the wetland protected the nearby neighborhood from Sandy.</li><li>The Trillion Trees Act would <a href="https://grist.org/climate/republicans-want-to-plant-1-trillion-trees-and-then-log-them/">plant trees on public lands</a> to absorb carbon emissions. The downsides are that the plantations would probably be monocultures and would be logged regularly which would reduce the benefit of carbon sequestration.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-52670085563422093992021-02-05T09:00:00.125-05:002021-02-05T10:19:49.208-05:00Loose Feathers #787<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SULC37uoz_TVGqQ0LT9VtBD8T0X3MSkceS6Q3X71wYJkzOij8UYc45Qpjh_llX05_9BVZsg6FEfKh55vdAZ7__b4BToYAEKgjRa3ANLLY5ArOVTA8bdyFrKa0NR7qNFPo7WN/s800/baea_49841577528_f70c4507ed_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="588" data-original-width="800" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SULC37uoz_TVGqQ0LT9VtBD8T0X3MSkceS6Q3X71wYJkzOij8UYc45Qpjh_llX05_9BVZsg6FEfKh55vdAZ7__b4BToYAEKgjRa3ANLLY5ArOVTA8bdyFrKa0NR7qNFPo7WN/w400-h294/baea_49841577528_f70c4507ed_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bald Eagle / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/49841577528/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Neoptropical songbirds <a href="https://americanornithology.org/high-intensity-flight-feather-molt-migratory-warblers/">molt rapidly</a> prior to migration and replace multiple feather tracts simultaneously.</li><li>Animals that burrow <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/how-climate-change-pushes-even-hardiest-desert-birds-past-their-limit">fare better than birds</a> in hotter and drier conditions in the Mojave Desert. The study compared current populations to data collected by Joseph Grinnell and his assistants. Many desert birds will likely disappear as the climate warms.<br /></li><li>Birders are no more likely to find additional rarities where a rare bird has been reported <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-02-rare-birds-picnic-contrary-popular.html">than by looking in other area</a>, which suggests that the Patagonia Picnic Table Effect does not exist as a general rule.</li><li>Extermination of invasive rodents on Lord Howe Island is helping endemic species <a href="https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/news/rodent-eradication-gives-lord-howe-biodiversity-boom">like the Lord Howe Rail</a> bounce back. <br /></li><li>Here are rules for <a href="https://orionmagazine.org/article/9-rules-for-the-woke-birdwatcher/">antiracist birding</a>.</li><li>The Biden administration is <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/rollback-migratory-bird-protections-delayed-new-administration">delaying implementation</a> of a rule change meant to weaken the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The rule is one of many from the Trump administration that attack environmental laws.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-february-2021/">Field Guide to February 2021</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/02/04/the-magic-of-fairywren-hybrids/">The magic of Fairywren hybrids</a></li><li>Anything Larus: <a href="http://www.anythinglarus.com/2021/01/tips-for-learning-eastern-gulls.html">Tips For Learning Eastern Gulls</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/02/02/world-wetlands-day-2021/">World Wetlands Day 2021</a> </li><li>Avithera: <a href="http://avithera.blogspot.com/2021/02/pilotbird.html">Pilotbird</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A quarter of known bee species <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/a-quarter-of-known-bee-species-havent-been-seen-since-1990/">have not been seen since 1990</a> despite increasing interest in wild pollinators and citizen science efforts. Some families like the Melittidae have declined more than others. </li><li>One way to help pollinators (in this case wasps) is to <a href="https://www.pollinatorsnativeplants.com/plant-lists--posters.html">plant native plants</a>. <br /></li><li>The bee study adds to the evidence that many insect populations are crashing <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/01/death-by-1000-cuts-are-major-insect-losses-imperiling-life-on-earth/">as they face multiple threats</a>, including habitat loss, overuse of insecticides, and climate change.<br /></li><li>Half of the world's vertebrate species have been <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/blog/46145-50-of-all-vertebrates-observed">reported to iNaturalist</a>, including 90% of the world's birds. Fish and sharks have the lowest percentages.</li><li>A new baleen whale species discovered in the Gulf of Mexico has <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/02/fewer-than-100-of-these-giant-whales-make-up-a-newly-described-species/">a population under 100 individuals</a>.</li><li>Barnegat Light is getting <a href="http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/blog/2021/02/04/barnegat-light-habitat-restoration-gets-a-touch-up/">habitat restoration</a> work this winter.</li><li>Here is a piece on animals <a href="https://www.outdoorlife.com/story/hunting/wildlife-populations-thrive-in-cities/">that thrive in cities</a>. Among other things, urban coyotes prey on rodents and Canada Goose nests.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Construction may have stopped, but the <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/south-borderlands-after-months-of-border-wall-construction-a-look-at-the-damage-done">landscapes and habitats destroyed</a> by wall construction will never be repaired. <br /></li><li>New research using historical data suggests that the IPCC is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/02/sea-level-rise-could-be-worse-than-feared-warn-researchers">underestimating sea-level rise</a>.</li><li>Here is a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/02/climate/biden-epa.html">profile of Michael Regan</a>, the nominee to head the EPA.</li><li>Climate-related disasters are <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2021/03/why-call-recent-disasters-natural-when-they-really-are-not/">not really natural disasters</a> since humans helped cause or exacerbate them. This is also true of earthquakes caused by fracking.</li><li>The US Senate held <a href="https://grist.org/climate/senators-are-still-debating-whether-cutting-fossil-fuels-will-save-the-planet/">a hearing on climate change</a> this week and the only point of agreement was support for carbon capture.</li><li>Unfortunately carbon capture and storage is <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/the-only-carbon-capture-plant-in-the-u-s-just-closed-1846177778">difficult and expensive</a>. <br /></li><li>Here is an interview on race and climate change and <a href="https://atmos.earth/mary-heglar-climate-change-intersectionality/">what to do to makes things better</a>.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-47261666058599714712021-01-29T09:00:00.261-05:002021-01-29T09:00:06.616-05:00Loose Feathers #786<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiHRJEiD-xFAFuH9Ud2CRZxzS7ameQSB0sez_sAxXsFp1fwCm7550lderq37LJ0J3o-nM0ahvUTG82TGZ0MlNSqAjiM0qX4ZFvE_UCATk3JCDwo4M2JVtgrzuTq76KYuEK3H83/s800/rlha_50859981273_ed67f7ab61_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="590" data-original-width="800" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiHRJEiD-xFAFuH9Ud2CRZxzS7ameQSB0sez_sAxXsFp1fwCm7550lderq37LJ0J3o-nM0ahvUTG82TGZ0MlNSqAjiM0qX4ZFvE_UCATk3JCDwo4M2JVtgrzuTq76KYuEK3H83/w400-h295/rlha_50859981273_ed67f7ab61_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Rough-legged Hawk / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/50859981273/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Great Blue Herons in British Columbia have been <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/01/great-blue-herons-bald-eagle-prey-predator/617806/">nesting near Bald Eagles</a> to reduce nest predation. The herons may lose some chicks to the nearby eagle pair, but the eagles will chase other predators away.<br /></li><li>The COVID-19 pandemic kept visitors away from the Swedish island of Stora Karlso in 2020. The absence of visitors increased the numbers of eagles on the island, which <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/22/science/seabirds-covid-tourism.html">spooked the island's murres</a> enough that they had a poor breeding season.</li><li>Migratory birds on the West Coast are heavily dependent on wetland habitats <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/tens-millions-western-birds-depend-these-two-regions-during-migration">in California’s Central Valley and Mexico's Colorado River Delta</a>.</li><li>A new study assessed the "Patagonia Picnic Table Effect" and found that birders are <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/10713/">no more likely</a> to find other rare birds when they are chasing a reported rare bird nearby.</li><li>In some places, a cemetery may be <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/birding-in-cemeteries">the best place for birding</a>, but it can result in conflicts with mourners and other visitors.<br /></li><li>A study measured how willing robins are to <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.201615">accept non-egg objects</a> in their nests.</li><li>A new set of restrictions on the herring fishery should <a href="https://www.pressherald.com/2021/01/23/new-herring-rules-could-benefit-maine-puffins/">benefit Maine's Atlantic Puffins</a>.</li><li>The programs to protect migratory birds from Alberta's tailings ponds lack transparency <a href="https://thenarwhal.ca/alberta-oilsands-bird-monitoring-foi/">and may protect fewer birds than advertised</a>.<br /></li><li>Harpy Eagles may have <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-harpy-eagles-greater-threat-previously.html">smaller ranges</a> than current models estimate.</li><li>Park rangers found <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/28/more-than-700-pelicans-found-dead-in-senegal-world-heritage-site">750 dead pelicans</a> at a sanctuary in Senegal. The cause has not been determined.<br /></li><li>On Wednesday a Snowy Owl <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2021/01/snowy-owl-central-park.html">spent a day</a> in Central Park, the first to do so since 1890. For more pictures, <a href="https://www.urbanhawks.com/snowy-owl-in-central-park">see here</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2021/01/26/pied-billed-grebe-mystery-behavior/">Pied-billed Grebe Mystery Behavior</a></li><li>The Prairie Ecologist: <a href="https://prairieecologist.com/2021/01/26/milkweed-pollination-a-series-of-fortunate-events/">Milkweed Pollination: A Series of Fortunate Events</a> </li><li>Matthew R. Halley: <a href="https://matthewhalley.wordpress.com/2021/01/23/conodoguinet-cave-american-ornithologys-forgotten-sanctuary/">Conodoguinet Cave: American Ornithology’s Forgotten Sanctuary</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/01/24/male-american-kestrel-chest-plumage-variation/">Male American Kestrel Chest Plumage Variation</a></li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2021/01/27/winter-trees-and-shrubs-netleaf-hackberry/">Winter Trees and Shrubs: Netleaf Hackberry</a> </li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2021/01/23/a-genomic-continuum-from-feral-to-wild-red-junglefowl-in-singapore/">A genomic continuum from feral to wild Red Junglefowl in Singapore</a> </li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Many shark and ray populations have <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/27/climate/sharks-population-study.html">crashed over the past 50 years</a>, mainly due to overfishing and bycatch.</li><li>Swinhoe’s softshell turtle, the world's rarest turtle, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/science/giant-softshell-turtle-vietnam.html">may still escape extinction</a> since a female survives in captivity and more of the species may exist in the wild.</li><li>The Fish and Wildlife Service is failing to protect <a href="https://theintercept.com/2021/01/24/florida-panther-collier-engangered-species-act/">Florida panther habitat</a> from development even though habitat protection is necessary for the panther's survival. This is an example of a larger problem of the agency letting politics and money guide its decisions.</li><li>Here is a sample of species that <a href="https://therevelator.org/species-extinct-2020/">were declared extinct in 2020</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>This week Biden issued <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/27/fact-sheet-president-biden-takes-executive-actions-to-tackle-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad-create-jobs-and-restore-scientific-integrity-across-federal-government/">a batch of executive orders</a> concerning climate change and environmental policy, including <a href="https://grist.org/politics/biden-is-eliminating-fossil-fuel-subsidies-but-he-cant-end-them-all/">ending subsidies</a> and <a href="https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2021-01-27/biden-halts-new-oil-and-gas-leasing-on-federal-land">pausing new leases on public lands</a> for fossil fuels, replacing gas with electric power <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/joe-biden-is-throwing-the-weight-of-the-government-behi-1846133937">for federal government vehicles</a>, a commitment to the 30x30 conservation initiative, and making environmental justice a component of all environmental policy. Here is <a href="https://grist.org/climate/everything-that-happened-on-the-first-ever-climate-day-environmental-justice-national-security/">an analysis</a> by <i>Grist</i>. The program faces opposition <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/26/climate/biden-climate-change.html">even within his own party</a>, so how much can happen legislatively remains to be seen.</li><li>Revising the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2021/01/this-single-number-could-reshape-our-climate-future/">social cost of carbon</a> is one of the most important changes since it will help justify future regulations.</li><li>The executive orders also mandated a review of the status of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, <a href="https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2021/01/25/president-joe-bidens/">with the intention of restoring their original borders</a>.<br /></li><li>The January 6 insurrection had <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2021/01/timber-unity-capitol-riot/">connections to anti-environmental groups</a> like Timber Unity.</li><li>Biden stopped construction of the border wall, but much more is needed to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/28/border-wall-reverse-environmental-cultural-destruction">repair the damage</a>. </li><li>The fossil fuel industry routinely <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/01/27/oil-inflates-job-impact-biden-pause-drilling-federal-lands">overestimates the costs and job losses</a> due to climate policy, particularly with regard to winding down fossil fuel extraction.<br /></li><li>Recycling has environmental benefits — reducing carbon emissions and garbage sent to landfills — but the <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/01/recycling-wont-solve-climate-change/617851/">current system is not working well</a>. A bill in New York would make manufacturers to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/27/arts/design/recycling-packaging-new-york.html">pay for recycling</a>.</li><li>Glaciers in the Himalayas are <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/147840/snow-free-glaciers-in-winter">melting</a> this winter, even though melting has usually stopped by now. Temperatures at the Everest base camp were above freezing for eight days this month.</li><li>The melting at Everest is part of a global trend; the Earth has <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/25/ice-melt-quickens-greenland-glaciers/">lost 1.2 trillion tons of ice per year</a> over the past decade. The melting has kept pace with the worst-case scenarios for sea-level rise in the IPCC reports, and even those might be underestimated. <br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-6552266921280884632021-01-22T09:00:00.005-05:002021-01-22T09:00:02.833-05:00Loose Feathers #785<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_eF4nIWgFIkKDLpj0723DIwfQ1tqYJ4g_Snvk_f8qlp-cOtonUiTGOzYcJYzjPUDqtYg0FHt9Xt6z13GK5bbSXRyCO0QUt2q37mHnQ099ZFfKe9MjF4LuL7WJkC5L07vWFVG/s1200/sosp_P2710217.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_eF4nIWgFIkKDLpj0723DIwfQ1tqYJ4g_Snvk_f8qlp-cOtonUiTGOzYcJYzjPUDqtYg0FHt9Xt6z13GK5bbSXRyCO0QUt2q37mHnQ099ZFfKe9MjF4LuL7WJkC5L07vWFVG/w400-h300/sosp_P2710217.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Song Sparrow / my photo</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Whooping Cranes that breed in the boreal forest and winter in Texas <a href="https://www.statesman.com/story/sports/outdoors/2020/12/25/whooping-crane-numbers-steadily-increasing-texas-coast/4045918001/">have benefited from conservation work</a>.</li><li>A pigeon found in Australia was <a href="https://apnews.com/article/australia-joe-the-pigeon-faae5a66c336c8b2dc902b1ed4270345">wearing a fake leg band</a> that made it appear to be a racing pigeon from the US.</li><li>Gentoo Penguins <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-penguins-benefit-maritime-zone.html">benefit</a> from marine protected areas around their breeding colonies.</li><li>A vagrant Rufous Hummingbird was banded recently <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/john-kelly-hummingbird/2021/01/18/40f949ec-59a3-11eb-8bcf-3877871c819d_story.html">in Virginia</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/01/20/mallard-hen-on-slippery-ice/">Mallard Hen On Slippery Ice</a></li><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="http://www.10000birds.com/a-slackers-guide-to-bird-photography-part-two.htm">A Slacker's Guide to Bird Photography (Part Two)</a></li><li>Project SNOWstorm: <a href="https://www.projectsnowstorm.org/posts/a-whole-lotta-news/">A Whole Lotta News</a> </li><li>Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership: <a href="https://lowerraritanwatershed.org/2021/01/21/the-eagle-has-landed/">The Eagle Has Landed</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Two beetles have been <a href="https://entomologytoday.org/2021/01/19/two-insects-lead-fight-invasive-weed-parthenium-biological-control/">identified as biocontrols</a> for the invasive <i>Parthenium</i> weeds.</li><li>Gray whales on the US West Coast have <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-gray-whale-population-quarter-west.html">continued their precipitous decline</a>, falling from 27,000 migrating whales to 21,000 since 1996.</li><li>Jaguars are <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/01/big-cat-comeback-jaguars-prowl-argentinas-ibera-wetlands-after-70-years/">returning</a> to some parts of Argentina where they had been extirpated.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>This week Joe Biden was inaugurated as president, and the new administration will have <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/20/biden-climate-change-inauguration/">new environmental priorities</a>. Initial actions include <a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-climate-climate-change-paris-emmanuel-macron-2451e1abc0e486b3055b639878b5181c">rejoining</a> the Paris agreement, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/biden-border-wall-executive-order/2021/01/20/5f472456-5b32-11eb-aaad-93988621dd28_story.html">stopping border wall construction</a>, cancelling the permit <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/20/world/canada/keystone-trudeau-biden.html">for the Keystone XL pipeline</a>, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-drilling-interior/biden-administration-suspends-federal-oil-and-gas-permitting-idUSKBN29Q2N1">suspending new fossil fuel leases</a> in the <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/north-oil-in-an-underwhelming-lease-sale-major-oil-companies-steered-clear-of-alaskas-arctic-national-wildlife-refuge">Arctic NWR</a> and elsewhere, and instructing agencies to calculate the <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/how-do-we-define-the-cost-to-society-of-climate-pollution">social cost of carbon</a> and use that figure in cost-benefit analyses. Putting teeth back into the <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/biden-wields-his-pen-day-one-reverse-trumps-environmental-rollbacks">Endangered Species Act and Migratory Bird Treaty Act</a> ought to be on the agenda as well. Another set of orders on climate policy will be issued <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-climate/biden-readies-second-batch-of-climate-orders-for-next-week-memo-idUSKBN29Q2JZ">next week</a>.</li><li>The new administration is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/climate/biden-climate-change.html">staffed with climate experts</a>, both in a new White House climate office and in many of the Cabinet-level departments. </li><li>There may be <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2021/01/18/biden-climate-plan-carbon-emission-cuts-new-jobs-lots-questions/4176058001/">more public support</a> for climate action than there was under Obama.<br /></li><li>The new administration will have a difficult time <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/features/on-u-s-public-lands-can-biden-undo-what-trump-has-wrought">repairing the damage</a> from the Trump administration's approach to public lands policy. <br /></li><li>Climate scientists and activists want people to stop focusing on new heat records and start thinking of the current year as being <a href="https://grist.org/climate/2020-was-the-hottest-year-on-record-well-remember-it-as-one-of-the-centurys-coldest/">the coolest of the next century</a>.<br /></li><li>Western wildfires worsen <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/19/wildfires-air-pollution-western-us">air quality</a>, and particulate matter released by the fires harms people's health.</li><li>The EU may <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climate-change-eu-carbon/eu-sees-carbon-border-levy-as-matter-of-survival-for-industry-idUSKBN29N1R1">impose a carbon tax</a> on products from countries that are not reducing their carbon emissions. The point is to keep European companies from relocating to areas with fewer regulations.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-67623535323986505402021-01-15T09:00:00.161-05:002021-01-15T10:19:11.060-05:00Loose Feathers #784<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFJTO_8WtqOfWLH8fVbiFLPvLYAlfuvfhwCexnhcdK7ubjk6RBCNUBTxSPsaTVulAr-AKqWyluWhyphenhyphenEJULEyleKhu1WLuZ-uXKVIPN1PMd3_SH5IH080v7TQr2yESExCFYtIrxI/s800/baea_24028046510_60fed6730e_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="471" data-original-width="800" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFJTO_8WtqOfWLH8fVbiFLPvLYAlfuvfhwCexnhcdK7ubjk6RBCNUBTxSPsaTVulAr-AKqWyluWhyphenhyphenEJULEyleKhu1WLuZ-uXKVIPN1PMd3_SH5IH080v7TQr2yESExCFYtIrxI/w400-h235/baea_24028046510_60fed6730e_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bald Eagles / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/24028046510/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Trump administration is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/13/climate/trump-spotted-owl.html">removing protections</a> from 3.4 million acres of critical habitat for the Northern Spotted Owl. The move is to benefit the timber industry.<br /></li><li>A small group of King Penguins has established itself <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/mystery-worlds-loneliest-penguins/">on Martillo Island in Argentina</a>. Scientists are trying to figure out where they came from and whether the new colony will survive.</li><li>Emus will probably <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-flight-fright-future-emus-east.html">survive climate change</a>, but their eastern population is threatened by development and introduced predators.</li><li>Cleaning feeders helps keep winter finches <a href="https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/life/2021/01/09/pine-siskin-finch-salmonella-oregon-bird-feeders/6588912002/">from getting sick</a>.</li><li>Eastern Black Rails have been designated as threatened <a href="https://ccbbirds.org/2021/01/11/eastern-black-rail-elevated-to-threatened-status/">after a 25-year campaign to stop their decline</a>.</li><li>Sand dredged from the Intracoastal Waterway is being used to <a href="https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/308db7dec4d34d788705294da0f441f6">restore saltmarshes</a> to provide habitat for coastal birds like the Saltmarsh Sparrow.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="http://www.10000birds.com/a-slackers-guide-to-bird-photography-part-one.htm">A Slacker's Guide to Bird Photography (Part One)</a></li><li>Bug Eric: <a href="http://bugeric.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-mayfly-analogy.html">The Mayfly Analogy</a></li><li>Avithera: <a href="http://avithera.blogspot.com/2021/01/great-knots.html">Great Knots</a> </li><li>Geotripper's California Birds: <a href="https://geotripperbirds.blogspot.com/2021/01/wait-why-are-they-called-ruby-crowned.html">Wait, Why Are They Called "Ruby-crowned" Kinglets?</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>PNAS suggests <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/118/2/e2002547117">eight ways to help insects</a> as part of a <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/118/2#TheGlobalDeclineofInsectsintheAnthropoceneSpecialFeature">special issue</a> on <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-insects-light-pollution-invasive-species-99f9dc72a8d805b971ec6d8119b61191">global insect declines</a>.<br /></li><li>New tracking studies are revealing <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/01/12/magazine/animal-tracking-icarus.html">how and where animals migrate</a>. <br /></li><li>People with disabilities would like parks and nature preserves to <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/people-living-disabilities-want-broader-park-experience">make more of their trails accessible</a>.</li><li>The pandemic has boosted birding and other passive outdoor activities, <a href="https://brooklyneagle.com/articles/2021/01/07/a-wildlife-refuge-becomes-a-pandemic-refuge/">especially in urban parks</a>, but it has also led to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/hunting-pastime-spikes-during-pandemic-conservationists-are-glad-heres-why/2021/01/08/d0342dfa-3e5c-11eb-8bc0-ae155bee4aff_story.html">an increase in hunting</a>. <br /></li><li>Researchers found a genetic basis for <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-asian-butterfly-populations-mimicry-patterns.html">sexual dimorphism in Asian butterflies</a>.</li><li>Conservation groups are suing to stop the Trump administration from <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-environmentalists-beetle.html">reducing protections</a> for the American Burying Beetle.</li><li>Scientists are studying how insects <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-fast-decisions-insects.html">make fast decisions in flight</a>.</li><li>The world <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/01/california-sized-area-of-forest-lost-in-just-14-years/">lost 166,000 square miles</a> of tropical and subtropical forests from 2004-2017, mostly to make room for agriculture.</li><li>Brown tree snakes developed a new way to move that allows them <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/11/science/brown-tree-snake-climbing.html">to get around baffles</a> meant to protect Micronesian Starlings.</li><li>A photographer in Washington specializes in <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/slideshow/hazy-shade-winter">photos of animals in dark lighting</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>In 2020 the world's oceans set <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/13/climate-crisis-record-ocean-heat-in-2020-supercharged-extreme-weather">a new record high average temperature</a>, and the ocean heat contributed to the year's climate disasters. Meanwhile, temperatures overall were <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/01/14/climate/hottest-year-2020-global-map.html">statistically tied with 2016</a>, the hottest year on record. New Jersey had its <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/environment/2021/01/11/climate-change-nj-had-second-warmest-year-record-2020/6602634002/">second-hottest</a> year on record.<br /></li><li>Merrick Garland, the nominee for Attorney General, has <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/01/11/energy-202-what-merrick-garland-attorney-general-means-environment/">expertise in environmental law</a> gained from hearing cases in the DC Circuit related to the Clean Air Act and other environmental issues.<br /></li><li>Under the new administration <a href="https://therevelator.org/offshore-wind-growth/">offshore wind energy generation</a>, which has been stalled for years, might finally get underway. How offshore turbines will affect wildlife, from birds to whales, <a href="https://therevelator.org/offshore-wind-wildlife/">still requires more research</a>, but there may be ways to mitigate any harm.<br /></li><li>Climate activists want the Biden administration to address environmental justice, especially with <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climate-change-justice/campaigners-to-biden-environmental-justice-key-to-tackling-climate-change-idUSKBN29J281">helping poorer nations</a> to mitigate the damage from climate change.</li><li>Biden's incoming environmental staff will need to repair damage <a href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063721853">from rule changes to budget and staffing cuts</a>.<br /></li><li>Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, are major contributors <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/12/clothes-washing-linked-to-pervasive-plastic-pollution-in-the-arctic">to microplastic pollution in the Arctic</a>.</li><li>While some cities are trying to <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/what-would-it-take-to-run-a-city-on-100-percent-clean-energy/">switch to renewable energy</a>, the technology for full decarbonization is not quite ready.</li><li>Last week's riot at the US Capitol had its roots in <a href="https://www.hcn.org/articles/north-extremism-the-washington-d-c-siege-has-western-roots-and-consequences">anti-government movements in the West</a>, such as the takeover of Malheur NWR and the armed standoff at Bundy Ranch. Disinformation about the election <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2021/01/08/climate-deniers-morano-briggs-heartland-misinformation-trump-capitol">was boosted by climate change deniers</a> who used propaganda techniques developed by the fossil fuel and tobacco industries.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-25376461034314477642021-01-08T09:00:00.157-05:002021-01-08T10:43:39.164-05:00Loose Feathers #783<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEzu2nAt_dN-IOg-TcwNZZRV7TVKL-Sh6QTiDbrQJ84q-5M9yul-YQ4ZrB5ZD05MZLCnf3sQDI-DpnmkFvv39uwi2ICDSRzJg90mBd4QIX-K2lClzKvELLzoXHpa_DoYrpGlc9/s800/feha_50612964188_2cbd1dcfe9_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="561" data-original-width="800" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEzu2nAt_dN-IOg-TcwNZZRV7TVKL-Sh6QTiDbrQJ84q-5M9yul-YQ4ZrB5ZD05MZLCnf3sQDI-DpnmkFvv39uwi2ICDSRzJg90mBd4QIX-K2lClzKvELLzoXHpa_DoYrpGlc9/w400-h280/feha_50612964188_2cbd1dcfe9_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ferruginous Hawk / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/50612964188/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Trump administration finalized its rule to allow fossil fuel companies and others to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/05/climate/trump-migratory-bird-protections.html">kill migratory birds</a> without fines or prosecution. If this rule had been in place in 2010, there would have been no penalty for the birds killed in the Deepwater Horizon explosion. The regulatory change was made <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/trump-birds-drop-dead">despite widespread opposition</a>, including from within the Interior Department.<br /></li><li>A Painted Bunting has been attracting attention in Maryland <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/01/03/painted-bunting-great-falls-bird-watchers/">along the C&O Canal</a>. Among the birders was the <a href="https://www.washingtonian.com/2021/01/04/painted-bunting-swiss-ambassador-birder-jacques-pitteloud/">Swiss ambassador</a>.</li><li>A Little Stint that was <a href="https://www.postandcourier.com/news/little-stint-bird-from-sweden-lands-in-charleston-county-after-migrating-across-atlantic/article_6bb9e07e-4eae-11eb-a425-c32ba38abdb9.html">banded in Sweden</a> was discovered during a Christmas Bird Count in North Carolina.<br /></li><li>A study of Eurasian Eagle-Owl diets found <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-eurasian-eagle-owl-diet-reveals.html">a hidden population</a> of bush-crickets in Bulgaria.</li><li>Last year there were <a href="https://www.nj.gov/dep/newsrel/2021/21_0001.htm">220 Bald Eagle nests</a> in New Jersey that produced 307 eaglets. Thirty-six of the nests were new, and there were another 28 pairs that did not lay eggs.</li><li>Birders are asking Chicago to include the Piping Plover nesting site <a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/01/06/to-protect-chicagos-piping-plovers-group-wants-montrose-beach-nesting-ground-added-to-nature-preserve/">in the adjacent natural dunes area</a>.<br /></li><li>There are a number of <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-bread-home-ducks-science.html">foods better than bread</a> for feeding ducks (and other wild birds).</li><li>Avian influenza is <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/336-migratory-birds-reported-dead-in-himachals-pong-dam-wildlife-sanctuary-on-wednesday/article33515003.ece">killing thousands of birds</a> in India this winter.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>incidental naturalist: <a href="https://incidentalnaturalist.com/2021/01/06/enchanting-red-eft/">Enchanting Red Eft</a></li><li>Cape Sable Birding: <a href="https://capesablebirding.wordpress.com/2021/01/06/kibbled/">Kibbled</a></li><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-january-2021/">Field Guide to January 2021</a> </li><li>Be Your Own Birder: <a href="http://www.beyourownbirder.com/2021/01/04/discover-the-chinstrap-penguin/">Discover the Chinstrap Penguin</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2021/01/03/winter-herring-gulls-in-utah/">Winter Herring Gulls In Utah</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The sockeye salmon run on Lake Washington has been declining and is <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-lake-washington-sockeye-signature-seattle.html">in danger of disappearing</a>.</li><li>A new lock in Chicago is intended to keep Asian Carp <a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-01-lakes-invasive-fish.html">from entering the Great Lakes</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Trump administration issued a rule banning public health studies <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/05/trump-epa-pollution-rule-scientific-studies">that use anonymized data</a> for regulating pollution. This rule change has been promoted by businesses to avoid enforcement of pollution restrictions.</li><li>The administration <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/06/trump-arctic-national-wildlife-refuge-polar-bears/">auctioned drilling leases</a> in the Arctic NWR this week, and the main bidder was the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority because major energy corporations are having trouble financing drilling there.<br /></li><li>Here are some <a href="https://therevelator.org/midnight-regulations-trump/">other things</a> the administration has been up to in its waning days.</li><li>The riot at the US Capitol this week <a href="https://twitter.com/JenSorensen/status/1346987934365347842">reminded some</a> of the <a href="https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/2021/01/armed-occupation-of-malheur-refuge-was-dress-rehearsal-for-violent-takeover-of-nations-capitol-extremist-watchdogs-say.html">Malheur NWR occupation</a>, and how its participants faced few consequences. The police response was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/07/climate/capitol-riots-arrests-climate.html">noticeably lax</a> compared to the frequent mass arrests at <a href="https://www.startribune.com/51-arrested-near-fifth-precinct-hq-after-protesting-chauvin-release/572670582/">social justice</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/oct/27/north-dakota-access-pipeline-protest-arrests-pepper-spray">environmental</a> protests.<br /></li><li>National flood insurance rules will need to be <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/06/climate/flood-zone-building-restrictions.html">revised</a> to address the threats of sea-level rise and flooding from climate-driven storms.</li><li>Climate disasters <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/07/climate/2020-disaster-costs.html">caused $95 billion in damage</a> last year, which is the third-highest total from the past decade. </li><li>There is already enough carbon in the atmosphere <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-pollution-3f226aed9c58e36c69e7342b104d48bf">to raise temperatures by 2.3°C</a>, but immediate reduction in carbon emissions could slow down the warming trend.<br /></li><li>The beef industry in Brazil is not only harmful to the environment but also <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/06/brazilian-beef-farms-used-workers-kept-in-conditions-similar-to-slavery">a human-rights problem</a>.</li><li>Satellite data show the <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/147746/the-long-decline-of-arctic-sea-ice">decline of Arctic sea ice</a>.</li><li>Reducing plastic pollution requires <a href="https://therevelator.org/plastic-producer-responsibility/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=plastic-producer-responsibility">holding producers accountable</a> for the waste they create. <br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-27678541950038766032021-01-01T09:00:00.001-05:002021-01-01T09:00:03.135-05:00Loose Feathers #782<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifY9jXm4_N-RsjK3DwK153uasMC4OAQlZj2XW7eRJWCSv5r9dzykTaMVwxP5qguZszOLRV-aWHfG37GQe1Ty7DjEIuqMwbjRUrOZXCfAv6pmcnWDTI5TNW8UrUSqKclOF_6hcu/s800/baea_24215489702_6ae0f4b1c2_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="800" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifY9jXm4_N-RsjK3DwK153uasMC4OAQlZj2XW7eRJWCSv5r9dzykTaMVwxP5qguZszOLRV-aWHfG37GQe1Ty7DjEIuqMwbjRUrOZXCfAv6pmcnWDTI5TNW8UrUSqKclOF_6hcu/w400-h289/baea_24215489702_6ae0f4b1c2_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bald Eagles / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/24215489702/">Tom Koerner/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Some of the owls banded by Project SNOW are starting to <a href="https://www.projectsnowstorm.org/posts/a-yul-etide-visit/">return data</a> logged over the summer as they come back into transmission range. <br /></li><li>Controlling <a href="https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article247379964.html">invasive grasses</a> could help California's declining Greater Sage-Grouse population rebound.</li><li>This summer a pair of Red-shouldered Hawks <a href="https://wtop.com/dc/2020/12/the-story-of-dcs-hawk-family-is-now-a-book/">nested in a publicly-visible spot</a> along the Klingle Valley Trail in DC.</li><li>EBird suggests some <a href="https://ebird.org/news/new-years-resolution-2021-ebird">birding challenges</a> for 2021.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Freiday Bird Blog: <a href="https://freidaybird.blogspot.com/2020/12/twenty-four-ways-to-tell-sharp-shinned.html">Twenty-four Ways to tell Sharp-shinned Hawks and Cooper's Hawks Apart</a></li><li>Net Results: <a href="http://net-results.blogspot.com/2020/12/banded-black-crowned-night-heron.html">Banded Black-crowned Night-heron</a></li><li>mocosocoBirds: <a href="https://mocosocobirds.com/2020/12/30/the-85th-boonton-christmas-bird-count-report-2020/">The 85th Boonton Christmas Bird Count Report – 2020</a></li><li>daveblinder: <a href="https://daveblinder.wordpress.com/2020/12/27/85th-boonton-area-christmas-bird-count-boonton-twp-division/">85th Boonton Area Christmas Bird Count – Boonton Twp Division</a> <br /></li><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="http://www.10000birds.com/our-best-birds-of-2020.htm">Our Best Birds of 2020</a> </li><li>Avian Ecologist: <a href="http://avianecologist.com/2020/12/30/best-birds-2020/">Best Birds of 2020</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2020/12/31/2020-photographic-year-in-review/">2020 Photographic Year In Review</a> </li><li>Wanstead Birder: <a href="http://www.wansteadbirder.com/2020/12/2020-year-in-review.html">2020 - The year in review</a></li><li>Coffee & Conservation: <a href="http://www.coffeehabitat.com/2020/12/know-your-coffee-birds-red-siskin/">Know Your Coffee Birds: Red Siskin</a> </li><li>Dakota Birder: <a href="https://www.sdakotabirds.com/blog/archives/2296">A Big(gish?) South Dakota Year (262 species)</a></li><li>The life of an Irish birder: <a href="https://lifeofanirishbirder.blogspot.com/2020/12/the-siberian-chiffchaff-in-ireland.html">The Siberian Chiffchaff in Ireland</a></li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href=" https://matthewwills.com/2020/12/29/the-flying-zoo/">The Flying Zoo</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Some restaurants are following the example of cat cafes <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/exotic-animal-cafes-featuring-otters-lizards-and-owls-raise-alarms1/">but using wild animals instead</a>, which will exacerbate the wildlife trade and potentially drive some animals to extinction in the wild.</li><li>Mongabay proposes its list of the <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/photos-top-15-species-discoveries-from-2020/">top 15 species discoveries in 2020</a>.</li><li>The Guardian reviews some of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/30/moths-to-monkeys-503-new-species-identified-by-uk-scientists">503 species</a> named by British scientists in 2020.</li><li>Illegal deforestation is still on the rise in South America, and the harm <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/illegal-deforestation-rises-in-south-americas-indigenous-territories-parks/">falls primarily on Indigenous communities</a>.</li><li>A dead humpback whale <a href="https://www.nj.com/news/2020/12/dead-whale-washes-ashore-again-at-nj-state-park.html">washed ashore</a> at Barnegat Light State Park in New Jersey.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Trump administration is rushing to sell oil drilling leases in Arctic NWR, but so far there is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/30/climate/anwr-arctic-drilling-leases.html">little demand</a> from fossil fuel companies. So Alaska's state development corporation might buy the leases instead.</li><li>New international rules will make it harder for wealthy countries to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/29/new-rules-to-tackle-wild-west-of-plastic-waste-dumped-on-poorer-countries">dump their plastic waste</a> on developing countries.</li><li>Scientific American lists the <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-top-five-climate-stories-of-20201/">top climate stories</a> of 2020, when climate-fueled droughts, fires, and storms became increasingly visible.</li><li>The removal of four dams along the Klamath River would be <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20201110-the-largest-dam-removal-project-in-american-history">the largest dam removal</a> in American history and open 400 miles of migratory salmon habitat.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-77129022932059963422020-12-31T10:00:00.016-05:002020-12-31T10:00:01.814-05:00Birding highlights in 2020<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqXYWgs1LhHviQ-42EnB6mKNXhJE4mSF0BWKBhzTmDVjBhXhafFhEVaNK65OLADL84SWihSCOlnEkeBiBAqsE4WcVv8Wk8quUM9GAgeG2Sm7udyTpweYjYlfIygcc0mzJ2kyx/s1000/jp_blja_P2700531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqXYWgs1LhHviQ-42EnB6mKNXhJE4mSF0BWKBhzTmDVjBhXhafFhEVaNK65OLADL84SWihSCOlnEkeBiBAqsE4WcVv8Wk8quUM9GAgeG2Sm7udyTpweYjYlfIygcc0mzJ2kyx/w400-h300/jp_blja_P2700531.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Goodbye to 2020</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />It has been a while since I posted about my own birding on this blog as it has turned into more of a birding and environmental news blog. However, I've been meaning to revive that aspect of my blog, which is how it got started. Patch birding does not really provide enough material for daily posts since I tend to see the same birds over and over. So instead I'll borrow an idea from the <a href="https://www.brewsterslinnet.com/">brewster's linnet</a> blog and post periodic updates.</p><p>The COVID-19 pandemic has defined the year 2020. I have been fortunate not to lose anyone close to me, either family or acquaintances despite some scares. From a birding standpoint, it limited me to patch and local birding since longer trips would entail more risk of exposure. The pandemic also cancelled or altered events that I normally attend, like the birding days in East Brunswick. <br /></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglXlnh4K-S-4ul4b7Bo0Mr6FU1CCFYTb-cbMdeCNCyeTyUlQLsAKPgsGdhwg1ZjmumrymY0lINwEuFMUODTaTdsyE-fI6-bSOOuBBBnqC7c2rxoavosz5_kwE51SaIiAYZv82q/s550/220592321.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="550" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglXlnh4K-S-4ul4b7Bo0Mr6FU1CCFYTb-cbMdeCNCyeTyUlQLsAKPgsGdhwg1ZjmumrymY0lINwEuFMUODTaTdsyE-fI6-bSOOuBBBnqC7c2rxoavosz5_kwE51SaIiAYZv82q/w400-h291/220592321.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Harris's Sparrow in Piscataway</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />My only life bird this year was a Harris's Sparrow <a href="https://ebird.org/checklist/S66626081">at a friend's house</a> in Piscataway. Harris's Sparrow had long been on my "most wanted" list so it was exciting to see one finally. That sighting left Golden-crowned as the only <i>Zonotrichia</i> sparrow that I have not seen (at least among ones that occur regularly in the ABA Area). I also saw four other new birds for Middlesex County: Mourning Warbler <a href="https://ebird.org/nj/checklist/S69749008">on my patch</a> in May, Baird's and Pectoral Sandpiper <a href="https://ebird.org/checklist/S72711005">in Cranbury Township</a> in August, and Red Crossbill <a href="https://ebird.org/checklist/S76802315">in Old Bridge</a> at the end of November. All four were birds that I have rarely seen, in any location. A pair of Pileated Woodpeckers <a href="https://ebird.org/checklist/S78107640">on the Raritan Estuary CBC</a> were new for my patch (and the only ones for that CBC this year). A Nelson's Sparrow <a href="https://ebird.org/nj/checklist/S74121892">in September</a> was another surprising patch bird.<br /></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXh-05y62WOqcHzxaLTw5ibw4UefKFMhoxp5BFZtCfw9S5FBG5ZAa5d5e7xC9Hw3wtuH8DA1WJKfsgJFP_JJORL5cPiaGEqcomIikBuiKoEBgzxAF9xTjW1w9CKH9Eawh-a3A/s2000/232604401.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="2000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXh-05y62WOqcHzxaLTw5ibw4UefKFMhoxp5BFZtCfw9S5FBG5ZAa5d5e7xC9Hw3wtuH8DA1WJKfsgJFP_JJORL5cPiaGEqcomIikBuiKoEBgzxAF9xTjW1w9CKH9Eawh-a3A/w400-h240/232604401.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Turkey Vultures at Davidson's Mill Pond during the World Series of Birding</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The <a href="https://worldseriesofbirding.org/">World Series of Birding</a> was conducted under a new set of rules this year because of the pandemic. In the past, all team members were required to travel in one vehicle; this year team members could not travel together or even meet up. Normally the playing field is limited to New Jersey, but this year teams could participate in other states. My team, the Middlesex Merlins, had our best-ever result, with 148 species spread over two Middlesex Counties (one in New Jersey and the other in Massachusetts). This year's rules were branded as a "special edition," but I suspect the 2021 WSB may need to be conducted under the same rules. The pandemic shows few signs of letting up and vaccines will probably not be widely available soon enough to inoculate all participants.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_aUUvEfMZjIAOaggKiBgFfGzwmpIOXXoD6UnLX699J_gpzcnD6xOAKlMot2TUQMZ4A-BD4XxQBRUbF91S2-KRR55fP_UqepQZxPzyVA6Rlq9N-efCJwjW0-j1hqDIQ0NzgaKz/s1000/272241981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_aUUvEfMZjIAOaggKiBgFfGzwmpIOXXoD6UnLX699J_gpzcnD6xOAKlMot2TUQMZ4A-BD4XxQBRUbF91S2-KRR55fP_UqepQZxPzyVA6Rlq9N-efCJwjW0-j1hqDIQ0NzgaKz/w400-h300/272241981.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Purple Finches in Highland Park</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The most exciting birding event this year has been <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/this-winter-marks-incredible-superflight-hungry-winter-finches">the massive flight of winter finches</a> and other irruptive birds this fall. The first hint that it might be a good flight year came when I found a Red-breasted Nuthatch <a href="https://ebird.org/nj/checklist/S72903574">on my patch in August</a>, which I think is the earliest I've had one in fall migration. Later in the fall I saw and heard 11 at the Phillips Preserve in Old Bridge, which I think is the most I've ever encountered in one location. Pine Siskins and Purple Finches came through in large numbers in October and November, and I even saw a pair of Evening Grosbeaks <a href="https://ebird.org/nj/checklist/S75780166">on my patch</a>. The Red Crossbills mentioned above were the first I had seen in a decade. Most of the finches seem to have moved on, but I hope that at least a few will stay through the winter or pass through again in the spring.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdbk3ytU11boQW5K2NA0q23pdc6VpBh_wrYjOc4X_Keku5ZPoqPg1kKeuBurHdS906kW0SZlik-5EpFqqbu7S62u995Cu9Odq4zdDSQV2vUiUpuES7r4VhLyzlpx-1_oCeoxHL/s1000/276410541.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1000" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdbk3ytU11boQW5K2NA0q23pdc6VpBh_wrYjOc4X_Keku5ZPoqPg1kKeuBurHdS906kW0SZlik-5EpFqqbu7S62u995Cu9Odq4zdDSQV2vUiUpuES7r4VhLyzlpx-1_oCeoxHL/w400-h300/276410541.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Pine Siskin in Highland Park</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Life birds that I hope to see in the new year: Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Hudsonian Godwit, Northern Goshawk, Bohemian Waxwing, LeConte's Sparrow. County birds I hope to see: the above plus Black Tern, Dickcissel, Connecticut Warbler, Short-eared Owl, Yellow-throated Warbler, White-winged Crossbill. I have not had a nemesis bird for a while, but Hudsonian Godwit is a candidate, and there are also some candidates at the local level: White-winged Scoter, Brown Pelican, and Snowy Owl.</p><p>Most of all, though, I hope that things are back to normal by this time next year.<br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-14558210638882576222020-12-25T09:00:00.123-05:002020-12-25T17:15:58.610-05:00Loose Feathers #781<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIIk-By_s2t0zPi1aaoARNCY16eYNl9yO1l3dDE3X7ZftzZMVBHklq19xemvp_nuwhalIhM0iN-l9MfChZsz-iWCvMPR3n4kBJzDdoBHishCLJJRmi2O2JNZfkPuby-D_MY7ch/s800/wtsp_45555750621_373c1cafce_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIIk-By_s2t0zPi1aaoARNCY16eYNl9yO1l3dDE3X7ZftzZMVBHklq19xemvp_nuwhalIhM0iN-l9MfChZsz-iWCvMPR3n4kBJzDdoBHishCLJJRmi2O2JNZfkPuby-D_MY7ch/w400-h300/wtsp_45555750621_373c1cafce_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>White-throated Sparrow / my photo</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://www.audubon.org/conservation/join-christmas-bird-count">Christmas Bird Count</a> season is halfway over, but counts are still happening (under rules to prevent the spread of COVID-19.). You can find one <a href="https://audubon.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=ac275eeb01434cedb1c5dcd0fd3fc7b4">here</a>. Here are tips for <a href="https://ebird.org/news/ebirding-your-christmas-bird-count-updated">entering CBC observations into eBird</a>.<br /></li><li>A new study found that the pitch of bird songs <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-global-bird-song-frequency.html">depends on the body size</a> of a given species. Larger birds sing at lower pitches.</li><li>The Sunda Laughingthrush is <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/songbird-trade-in-indonesia-threatens-wild-sunda-laughingthrush/">threatened</a> by the illegal wildlife trade because it is desirable for collectors for its distinctive vocalizations.</li><li>A town in New Zealand is turning off streetlights to avoid confusing <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/22/new-zealand-village-turns-off-street-lights-to-stop-birds-crash-landing-on-to-roads">fledgling Westland Petrels</a>.</li><li>An iceberg drifting towards South Georgia Island could <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/12/21/giant-icebergs-penguins-south-georgia-island/">threaten colonies of King and Macaroni Penguins</a> if it gets stuck near the island.</li><li>Birds at wildlife rehab centers in Florida most often died of <a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/science/top-killers-of-florida-birds-trauma-on-land-starvation-at-sea/">traumatic injuries</a>, like cat predation or collisions with buildings.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Corvid Research: <a href="https://corvidresearch.blog/2020/12/21/do-you-see-what-i-see-subjective-consciousness-in-crows/">Do you see what I see: subjective consciousness in crows</a> <br /></li><li>Birdchick: <a href="http://www.birdchick.com/blog/2020/12/12/whats-the-best-bird-seed-mix-to-buy">Bird Seed Prices</a></li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2020/12/25/christmas-day-bird-photos-thru-the-years/">Christmas Day Bird Photos Thru The Years</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The earliest forms of mistletoe may have been carried into the treetops <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/24/science/mistletoe-trees-evolution.html">by prehistoric primates and marsupials</a> rather than songbirds, which only adapted to eating mistletoe later. </li><li>COVID-19 outbreaks on mink farms raise the potential for spread <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/12/minks-pandemic/617476/">among the wild mink population</a>.<br /></li><li>The Guardian has a review of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/22/2020-a-truly-unimaginable-year-for-biodiversity-aoe">year in conservation news</a>.</li><li>The Revelator also has a list of <a href="https://therevelator.org/top-environmental-commentaries-2020/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=top-environmental-commentaries-2020">top environmental stories</a> from 2020. <br /></li><li>Most animal species will <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-world-animal-species-habitat-agriculture.html">lose some habitat to agriculture</a> over the next several decades.</li><li>Indigenous tribes have been fighting to restore and maintain <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/we-are-same-salmon-story-suffering-and-perseverance">sockeye salmon runs</a> along the Snake River.</li><li>Deforestation remains <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/colombias-forests-lurch-between-deforestation-and-the-hope-for-a-sustainable-future/">a major threat to biodiversity</a> in Colombia despite agreements that should protect forests.</li><li>Bunchgrass prairies in Montana have become <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-capturing-years-climate-endangered-montana.html">warmer and drier</a> over the past several decades.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The bills Deb Haaland <a href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063721225">has sponsored</a> provide hints about what she might do as Interior secretary. Among other things, she wants to replace offensive place names and create new wilderness areas within existing national monuments.</li><li>Activists want the 30-by-30 plan, which Haaland supports, to include <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/21122020/biden-30-by-30-land-conservation-plan-environmental-justice/">more outdoor recreation opportunities in urban areas</a>.<br /></li><li>This year may be the <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/18/943219856/2020-may-be-the-hottest-year-on-record-heres-the-damage-it-did?t=1608552362408">hottest on record</a>, and so far there have been at least 16 major climate-driven disasters.</li><li>The combined COVID/omnibus bill included <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/21/climate/climate-change-stimulus.html">money for clean energy and a ban on HFCs</a>. (Whether the bill will be signed is currently unclear.)</li><li>A new report finds that the US could reach net-zero emissions by 2050, but it would require <a href="https://grist.org/climate/yes-the-u-s-can-go-carbon-neutral-by-2050-says-new-princeton-study/">aggressive changes by government and industry</a>.<br /></li><li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/23/biden-must-be-our-climate-president-he-can-start-by-ending-pipeline-projects">Stopping pipeline projects</a> could be a first step towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions.</li><li>Restoring <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/we-are-same-salmon-story-suffering-and-perseverance">salmon runs</a> would provide a benefit to Native tribes in the Northwest.</li><li>The Trump administration has been awarding contracts for border wall construction <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/texas-border-wall-contracts-land-trump-administration">even on land that the government does not own</a>.</li><li>While I have emphasized the conservation problems caused by the border wall, the biggest problem is the human cost: <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/12/record-deaths-migrants-arizona-desert/">at least 225 migrants have died</a> crossing the border this year.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-21118540668180250062020-12-18T09:00:00.159-05:002020-12-18T09:00:04.362-05:00Loose Feathers #780<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWfDV6SrN3Iw-VnXyhsJSo1fKHJZg9J0wg4yw6hn1fTH0rDh_Cwsp3djpf7WyfkO7M1fIjR4eY4ThPrGu7c7Kylu3qI2Ej-gAPivZqb4JeYiifvZwvXNBZJL2cX10cvDk7a79/s800/beki_49717217206_4f2d1357fd_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="800" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWfDV6SrN3Iw-VnXyhsJSo1fKHJZg9J0wg4yw6hn1fTH0rDh_Cwsp3djpf7WyfkO7M1fIjR4eY4ThPrGu7c7Kylu3qI2Ej-gAPivZqb4JeYiifvZwvXNBZJL2cX10cvDk7a79/w400-h241/beki_49717217206_4f2d1357fd_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Belted Kingfisher / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsmtnprairie/49717217206/">Scott Somershoe/USFWS</a></i></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Hornbills are threatened by the wildlife trade and also by <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/12/helmeted-hornbill-nests-endangered-poaching/617400/">a lack of natural nesting cavities</a> and the mature forests where they occur. </li><li>EBird has a new set of graphics showing <a href="https://ebird.org/canada/news/new-look-at-movements-and-distribution-patterns-of-807-bird-species-across-the-globe">the distribution and movements of 807 bird species</a>, including some tropical species that were thought to be sedentary.</li><li>The new European Breeding Bird Atlas documents how bird species are <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/an-atlas-reveals-climate-change-is-pushing-birds-further-north/">moving north</a> in response to climate change.<br /></li><li>Black Rails have declined due to the loss of habitat to sea-level rise and coastal development, but their new threatened status will give conservationists a chance to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-populations-threatened-black-rail-reboundbut.html">protect and restore marshland</a>.</li><li>This fall has had one of the <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/this-winter-marks-incredible-superflight-hungry-winter-finches">largest winter finch irruptions</a> in recent memory. Irruptions are driven by mast cycles in conifers and other trees.</li><li>Northern Spotted Owls qualify to be upgraded <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/12/14/spotted-owls-could-go-extinct-without-more-federal-protection-theyre-not-going-get-it-trump-officials-say/">from threatened to endangered</a>, but the federal government will not do it because other species have a higher priority.<br /></li><li>Barnacle Geese breeding at Svalbard have lost weight over the past several decades, but <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-skinnier-resilient-geese-high-arctic.html">their population remains stable</a>.</li><li>Starling murmurations are being <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/17/starlings-aerial-antics-behind-mystery-of-scots-power-outages">blamed for power outages</a> in Scotland.</li><li>Long-term drought is <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-waterbird-wetland-areas-declining-temporary.html">reducing wetland habitat</a> for waterbirds in Australia.</li><li>Chestnut-crowned Babblers reacted to climate change by <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-babbler-bird-falls-climate.html">nesting earlier and incubating less</a>, which reduces their chances for survival.</li><li>Snowy Owls are <a href="https://www.projectsnowstorm.org/posts/country-owls-city-owl/">on the move again</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Birdchick: <a href="http://www.birdchick.com/blog/2020/11/29/whats-the-best-wild-bird-food-to-buy">What's the Best Wild Bird Food to Buy?</a></li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2020/12/12/red-tailed-hawk-rough-legged-hawk-american-kestrels-and-bald-eagles-raptors-need-elevated-hunting-perches/">Red-tailed Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, American Kestrels And Bald Eagles – Raptors Need Elevated Hunting Perches</a></li><li>Avithera: <a href="http://avithera.blogspot.com/2020/12/eastern-reef-egret-fishing.html">Eastern Reef Egret fishing</a> </li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2020/12/16/winter-trees-and-shrubs-eastern-redbud/">Winter Trees and Shrubs: Eastern Redbud</a></li><li>Backyard and Beyond: <a href="https://matthewwills.com/2020/12/13/were-all-lichens/">So We’re All Lichens Now?</a> </li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2020/12/14/intermediate-color-morphs-of-the-common-buzzard-are-most-successful/">Intermediate color morphs of the Common Buzzard are most successful</a><br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The US Fish and Wildlife Service <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/15/climate/monarch-butterflies-endangered-species-list.html">rejected a petition</a> to list Monarchs as endangered even though they qualify.</li><li>An expedition into Bolivia's Zongo Valley found <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/a-bolivian-cloud-forest-reveals-a-bonanza-of-new-species/">20 new species</a> of plants and animals. The difficulty of access, for both humans and wildlife, protects the area's biodiversity.<br /></li><li>Plant diversity <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-diversity-germany-decline.html">has declined</a> in Germany according to a survey of over 2,000 species.</li><li>Invasive multicolored lady beetles are linked to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-invasive-harlequin-ladybird-severe-decline.html">declines in native lady beetle species</a>.</li><li>A new ginger species was <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-ginger-species-yunnan.html">found in Yunnan</a>.</li><li>A trail camera recorded a bobcat <a href="https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/rare-sighting-bobcat-bronx-river-sign-healthier-waterway">along the Bronx River</a>.</li><li>A new species of salamander <a href="https://www.wral.com/nc-has-a-new-species-meet-carolina-sandhills-salamander/19425261/">was found in North Carolina</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Biden announced several appointments to environmental positions this week, including nominees for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/17/climate/michael-regan-epa.html">EPA head</a> and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/12/17/deb-haaland-interior-secretary-biden/">interior secretary</a>. Deb Haaland, the interior nominee, is a proponent of the "Thirty by Thirty" initiative to <a href="https://indiancountrytoday.com/opinion/tribal-leaders-support-the-30-by-30-initiative-to-protect-30-percent-of-us-lands-and-waters-O3jqs7OsJ02e2F4I2-dFqg">protect 30% of US lands and waters by 2030</a>. Interior has <a href="https://prospect.org/day-one-agenda/biden-could-shut-down-oil-and-gas-leasing-on-federal-lands/">significant power</a> over federal lands and will be key to any climate change or conservation policies.</li><li>The Trump administration is trying to push through <a href="https://therevelator.org/trump-attacks-election/">as many last-minute changes as possible</a>.</li><li>That includes cutting <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/11/945194147/contractors-dynamite-mountains-bulldoze-desert-in-race-to-build-trumps-border-wa">through the mountains and canyons</a> along the border with Mexico. <br /></li><li>Exxon released a climate plan that does <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/exxon-thinks-youre-stupid-1845885801">not actually reduce emissions</a>. (See also this <a href="https://twitter.com/RosemaryMosco/status/1339588452229136385">Bird and Moon comic</a>.)<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-80700073943683848072020-12-11T09:00:00.248-05:002020-12-11T11:57:54.611-05:00Loose Feathers #779<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibcrSa6otINDIeW2mGui81iikTIQUxYs3E9IQk-wDtL4FPpypW6tOpYjcdZ1H6ylKgC_8jYMCCnqSxD23bE-k_MYRKVtAUmlh8ISB7SX_kEuR2ah4__y8wmUyvp73KLzfO9sNa/s800/ocwa_23225337184_107731bce0_c.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="800" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibcrSa6otINDIeW2mGui81iikTIQUxYs3E9IQk-wDtL4FPpypW6tOpYjcdZ1H6ylKgC_8jYMCCnqSxD23bE-k_MYRKVtAUmlh8ISB7SX_kEuR2ah4__y8wmUyvp73KLzfO9sNa/w400-h260/ocwa_23225337184_107731bce0_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Orange-crowned Warbler / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwspacific/23225337184/">Peter Pearsall/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The US Fish and Wildlife Service wants to downlist Red-cockaded Woodpeckers <a href="https://www.wabe.org/wildlife-officials-propose-downlisting-red-cockaded-woodpeckers/">from endangered to threatened</a>. While their population is increasing, they still need constant habitat management to maintain a stable population. </li><li>The growth of eBird has <a href="https://www.outsideonline.com/2419209/ebird-online-platform-app-birding">changed birding</a> by making information about birds and where to find them more accessible. <br /></li><li>A Rock Wren has been present in Maine <a href="https://www.pressherald.com/2020/12/06/wayward-bird-delivers-early-holiday-gift-for-maine-birders/">for the past two weeks</a>.</li><li>A European study found a link between quality of life <a href="https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/news/birdwatching/birds-increase-human-happiness-study-finds/">and local bird diversity</a>.</li><li>Prothonotary Warblers in Illinois <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-warmer-offspring-prothonotary-warblers.html">raise more chicks in warmer springs</a>.</li><li>The Forest Service claims that <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-owls-benefit-forest.html">post-wildfire logging</a> will benefit Spotted Owls even though other ecologists argue that it is better to allow burned forests to regenerate naturally.</li><li>While Spotted Owls have benefited to some extent from wildfires, <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/severe-wildfires-are-devastating-the-california-condor/">at least 11 California Condors</a> were killed and others injured by this year's wildfires.<br /></li><li>Here is an account of a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/09/birdwatch-the-merlin-my-best-ever-view-of-our-smallest-falcon">close encounter with a Merlin</a>.</li><li>Deposits of bird poop are helping scientists <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-bird-poop-lake-mud-machine.html">estimate historical population levels</a> of seabirds.</li><li>Lab reports show that the birds in the mass mortality event in New Mexico <a href="https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/NMDGF/bulletins/2afbc3e?reqfrom=share">were emaciated and had signs of organ failure</a>. <br /></li><li>The pandemic is changing how Christmas Bird Counts <a href="https://www.readingeagle.com/living/coronavirus-is-even-changing-the-annual-christmas-bird-count/article_e4d14250-33fa-11eb-a976-33b3936b23c4.html">are conducted</a>. Some counts are cancelled, while others have eliminated count roundups and other group activities.</li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>10,000 Birds: <a href="http://www.10000birds.com/splitsville.htm">Splitsville</a></li><li>The Meadowlands Nature Blog: <a href="https://meadowblog.net/2020/12/don-torinos-life-in-the-meadowlands-birding-in-the-rain/">Don Torino’s Life in the Meadowlands: Birding in the Rain</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2020/12/08/misconceptions-and-regressions-the-evolution-of-bird-brains/">Misconceptions and regressions: The evolution of bird brains</a> </li><li>Chicago Ornithological Society: <a href="https://www.chicagobirder.org/blog/2018/9/27/dans-feathursday-feature-white-breasted-nuthatch">Dan's Feathursday Feature: White-breasted Nuthatch</a> </li><li>On The Wing Photography: <a href="https://www.onthewingphotography.com/wings/2020/12/05/finding-two-uncommon-birds-in-one-week-rusty-blackbird-and-common-grackle/">Finding Two Uncommon Birds In One Week – Rusty Blackbird And Common Grackle</a></li><li>Appalachian Mountain Club: <a href="https://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/subtler-sounds-identifying-and-recording-winter-bird-calls">Subtler Sounds: Identifying and Recording Winter Bird Calls</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Scientists are setting up a citizen science project to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/07/science/native-bees-census.html">collect data on native bees</a> in North America. Interested observers can <a href="http://www.usnativebees.com/organization.html">learn more at the network's website</a>.</li><li>Protecting endangered species like forest elephants can <a href="https://therevelator.org/climate-change-forest-elephants/">contribute to fighting climate change</a>.</li><li>New research shows <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/02/magazine/tree-communication-mycorrhiza.html">how closely connected</a> trees are, which emphasizes the importance of mycorrhizal fungi to forest health.<br /></li><li>Hawaii is known among birders for its endemic birds; it is also home to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-remote-hawaiian-island-harbors-snails.html">many endemic land snails</a> that are threatened.</li><li>Colorado voters <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/2020-elections/2020/12/colorado-vote-reintroduce-gray-wolves-proposition-114-official-results/">passed</a> a proposition requiring the state government to create a plan to reintroduce wolves to the state. <br /></li><li>The latest update to the IUCN Red List shows <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/09/bison-recovering-but-31-other-species-now-extinct-finds-red-list">the European Bison on its way to recovery</a> but also extinctions of 31 other species.</li><li>Tristan da Cunha will become <a href="https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/news/conservation/tiny-tristan-da-cunha-protects-vast-ocean-area/">a marine protected area</a>.</li><li>Wildfires are <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03464-1">devastating Brazil's Pantanal</a>, and the government is doing little to stop them.</li><li>Arctic ground squirrels can recycle their own nutrients <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-arctic-ground-squirrels-recycle-nutrients.html">to survive cold winters</a>.</li><li>Stranded marine mammals in the US show signs of <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/11/are-industrial-chemicals-killing-rare-whales-and-familiar-dolphins/">poisoning by industrial pollutants</a>.</li><li>Only about 40% of the world's forests <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/only-40-of-worlds-forests-have-high-ecological-integrity-a-new-index-reveals/">are intact</a>, which shows that preserving a certain percentage of land is not enough if the habitat is degraded.</li><li>The wildlife trade of <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/brazils-blue-macaws-golden-lion-tamarins-back-in-traffickers-sights/">Hyacinth Macaws and Golden Lion Tamarins</a> has increased as their populations recovered through conservation work.</li><li>There will need to be fast work by the Biden administration for Gray Wolves <a href="https://therevelator.org/gray-wolf-biden-administration/">to continue their recovery</a>.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Arctic continued its shift <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/08/climate/arctic-climate-change.html">towards a warmer climate</a> in 2020. Warming there contributes to changes elsewhere, including severe weather.<br /></li><li>One of the insidious ways that conservatives attack environmental protections is by changing the economic assumptions that underlie the cost-benefit analysis that justifies rule-making. These assumptions are important but less visible to voters. Currently the Trump administration is trying to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/climate/trump-pollution-regulations.html">reduce the value</a> of pollution regulations to public health.</li><li>The Trump administration <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/12/07/trump-air-pollution/">refused to implement</a> stronger standards on soot, which leaves the rules fromm 2012 in place. Soot (or particulate matter) has harmful effects on respiratory health and has a disproportionate effect on low-income and minority neighborhoods.<br /></li><li>It will take a lot of work to <a href="https://therevelator.org/restoring-epa-biden/">restore the EPA's effectiveness</a>.</li><li>Sea-level rise <a href="https://www.nj.com/news/2020/12/barely-above-water.html">threatens New Jersey's affordable housing</a>, which is often built in flood-prone areas.</li><li>Audubon suggests five places where a Biden administration could <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/these-5-threatened-places-could-be-spared-under-biden">undo damage from the Trump administration</a>.</li><li>Australia's record-breaking heat would be <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/10/australias-record-spring-heat-one-in-500000-without-climate-change-analysis">nearly impossible without climate change</a>.</li><li>It appears that the Nature Conservancy has been selling carbon offsets for preserving forests <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2020-nature-conservancy-carbon-offsets-trees/">that were not actually under threat of being cut</a>. Some of the projects, like maintaining the forests on Hawk Mountain, are worth doing anyway but do little to reduce carbon emissions.</li><li>This year will be remembered for the pandemic, but it was also <a href="https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-wildfires-climate-change-floods-arctic-18b9a80f52d81adf64e36b55d73ab728">a year of climate disasters</a>, including a record-setting thirty named storms in the Atlantic and five of the six largest wildfires in California's history.</li><li>Peatlands store a massive amount of carbon, so converting them for other land use <a href="https://www.dailyclimate.org/peat-carbon-storage-climate-change-2649347784.html">would turn them into a carbon source</a>.</li><li>The Break Free From Plastic campaign named Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Nestlé as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/07/coca-cola-pepsi-and-nestle-named-top-plastic-polluters-for-third-year-in-a-row">contributing the largest amount of plastic waste</a> found in cleanups.</li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-9738178053950002052020-12-04T10:00:00.025-05:002020-12-04T13:01:02.743-05:00Loose Feathers #778<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYzEXlvmQyQk2RfFph-uW8qAk4GQUd84rn8NPD5r_3IOhXBDLTh79kLO2nZjmDMJ58jRf8hAWq56oaXKTnZHqV0ygJrtGEoXUSYK_xrfwOUSd1TxnsxERh_VoI0gIQQ2Bd3MN/s1024/evgr_50672996522_20b35d27b2_b.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYzEXlvmQyQk2RfFph-uW8qAk4GQUd84rn8NPD5r_3IOhXBDLTh79kLO2nZjmDMJ58jRf8hAWq56oaXKTnZHqV0ygJrtGEoXUSYK_xrfwOUSd1TxnsxERh_VoI0gIQQ2Bd3MN/w400-h300/evgr_50672996522_20b35d27b2_b.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Evening Grosbeak / Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwsnortheast/50672996522/">Keith Ramos/USFWS</a></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news<p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The new European Breeding Bird Atlas shows that European breeding birds <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/03/atlas-reveals-birds-pushed-further-north-amid-climate-crisis-aoe">have moved north</a> by an average 28km since the 1980s. Forest birds have generally expanded their ranges while the ranges of farmland birds contracted.</li><li>An ecologist argues that <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/11/the-promise-of-bird-friendly-cities-qa-with-author-timothy-beatley/">making cities more bird-friendly</a> would also make them better for people, as long as there is equal access to nature.<br /></li><li>Birds are able to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-birds-adjust-egg-laying-date.html">adjust their egg-laying date</a> to find optimal conditions to raise chicks.</li><li>USFWS finally listed Black Rails <a href="https://www.bayjournal.com/news/wildlife_habitat/usfws-adds-black-rails-to-threatened-list-some-say-too-late/article_13ed99b8-28d8-11eb-b0c4-0bb577e40458.html">as a threatened species</a>, but they are already gone from much of their range on the East Coast.</li><li>Wisdom, the 60-year-old Laysan Albatross, <a href="https://medium.com/usfwspacificislands/a-reason-for-hope-wisdom-worlds-oldest-known-banded-bird-returns-to-midway-atoll-d69faa9df3b8">returned</a> for another breeding season at Midway. The refuge is home to 70% of the world's Laysan Albatrosses and 40% of Black-footed Albatrosses.</li><li>Flightless birds are <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-12/uog-fbs120320.php">more vulnerable to extinction</a> but also more common than expected.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Vermont Center for Ecostudies: <a href="https://vtecostudies.org/blog/field-guide-to-december-2020/">Field Guide to December 2020</a> <br /></li><li>Feathered Photography: <a href="https://www.featheredphotography.com/blog/2020/12/03/mountain-chickadee-extracting-a-seed-from-a-cone/">Mountain Chickadee Extracting A Seed From A Cone</a></li><li>New Jersey Audubon: <a href="https://njaudubon.org/morning-flight-update-winter-finch-invasion/">MORNING FLIGHT UPDATE - Winter Finch Invasion</a></li><li>FINCH RESEARCH NETWORK: <a href="https://finchnetwork.org/an-obscure-report-from-the-middle-of-the-finch-irruption-of-2020">Flight Directions of Boreal Finches in the Irruption of 2020</a> </li><li>Urban Hawks: <a href="https://urbanhawks.blogs.com/urban_hawks/2020/11/postnytimespress.html">Barred Owl, Post NY Times Press</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2020/12/01/mixing-motmots-a-hybrid-between-rufous-and-amazonian-motmot-in-brazil/">Mixing Motmots: A hybrid between Rufous and Amazonian Motmot in Brazil</a> </li><li>awkward botany: <a href="https://awkwardbotany.com/2020/12/02/seed-shattering-lost-the-story-of-foxtail-millet/">Seed Shattering Lost: The Story of Foxtail Millet</a></li><li>corvidresearch: <a href="https://corvidresearch.blog/2020/12/02/crow-curiosities-can-crows-see-uv/">Crow curiosities: can crows see UV?</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The career of a former bird smuggler shows how loopholes in CITES allow wildlife trafficking to continue <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/27/world/europe/rare-birds-macaws-trafficking-brazil.html">under the guise of captive breeding</a>.</li><li>Audubon is calling for a <a href="https://www.audubon.org/news/forget-roses-give-white-house-native-plant-garden">native plant garden</a> on the White House grounds.</li><li>Australia's threatened native plants have <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-12-threatened-species-index-australia-staggering.html">declined by an average 70%</a> over the past two decades.</li><li>There will finally be a critical habitat designation <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/04/us-pitches-coral-protections-thousands-miles-climate-change-threat">for endangered corals</a>.</li><li>A chemical in tire dust accounts for 40-90% of the <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/tire-dust-is-killing-salmon/">coho salmon deaths</a> in Puget Sound.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Climate change is already <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/doctors-release-their-most-worrying-outlook-on-how-cl-1845794219">affecting human health</a> through heat waves, wildfires, droughts, and flooding. The pandemic has made it harder to ameliorate climate change because of it makes warming and cooling shelters more hazardous.</li><li>Addressing climate change will require <a href="https://earther.gizmodo.com/how-biden-can-ensure-every-federal-agency-is-fighting-c-1845701534?rev=1607018915194">work from every federal agency</a>. <br /></li><li>The Trump administration is trying to push through sales of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/03/climate/arctic-refuge-lease-sales.html">oil and gas leases in Arctic NWR</a> in early January before the Biden administration takes over. You can <a href="https://act.audubon.org/a/mail-letter-save-arctic-national-wildlife-refuge">write in opposition</a> to the proposal; comments must be received by mail by December 17.</li><li>It is also rushing through other approvals, like one for a flood control project <a href="https://www.eenews.net/stories/1063719727">the EPA vetoed in 2008</a>.</li><li>The incoming Biden administration will need to decide what to do with the parts of the border wall that are currently in progress. The contracts <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/12/02/biden-border-wall-trump/">have a termination clause</a> that allows the government to stop construction.</li><li>Here is a proposed <a href="https://therevelator.org/biden-restore-rollbacks/">environmental agenda</a> for the Biden administration.<br /></li><li>Drone imagery is showing how the <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/beautiful-yet-unnerving-photos-of-the-arctic-getting-greener/">Arctic is greening</a> in response to climate change.</li><li>Northeastern forests like the New Jersey Pinelands may become <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/20112020/warming-planet-northeastern-forests-wildfires">more vulnerable to wildfire</a> as temperatures rise.</li><li>Winters in the DC area have become <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/12/03/washington-warming-winters-snow/">warmer and shorter</a>, with fewer days below freezing.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13764021.post-71737807594626470692020-11-27T10:00:00.070-05:002020-11-27T10:21:35.322-05:00Loose Feathers #777<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihk598fYsLDQbVhwXApdh7zGdjKyA_zF8LV8CtcHxqVEnkkzRnXtl8RLrUvvBvhPG19Ng48Q0cjZ5Ngw-TfwpxGamG1Tx83UCqcP7uog2LOAA_Q8pPwV8-ps8Vpu_DdNZPefzz/s1340/sosp_P2690092.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1340" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihk598fYsLDQbVhwXApdh7zGdjKyA_zF8LV8CtcHxqVEnkkzRnXtl8RLrUvvBvhPG19Ng48Q0cjZ5Ngw-TfwpxGamG1Tx83UCqcP7uog2LOAA_Q8pPwV8-ps8Vpu_DdNZPefzz/w400-h299/sosp_P2690092.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Song Sparrow / my photo</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Birds and birding news</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Beach-nesting birds in North Carolina had <a href="https://www.starnewsonline.com/story/news/2020/11/26/audubon-north-carolina-2020-great-birds-nesting/6360449002/">a successful breeding season</a>.</li><li>A new study found that pollution reduction mandated by the Clean Air Act <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-11-air-billion-birds.html">saved 1.5 billion birds</a>. Ozone pollution in particular harms small migratory birds.</li><li>The phrase "lame duck" is used to refer to outgoing politicians but has an analogue <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2020/11/ornithology-of-lame-duck-president-trump.html">in the summer flightless period of waterfowl</a>.</li><li>A fossil from Madagascar shows the face of a bird from the Cretaceous <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2260763-tiny-toucan-like-bird-with-a-single-tooth-flew-during-the-dinosaur-era/">with a bill like a toucan</a>.</li><li>A new paper reports the genomes <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/hundreds-of-new-genomes-help-fill-the-bird-tree-of-life/2020/11/20/8554c870-2a99-11eb-9b14-ad872157ebc9_story.html">for 363 bird species</a>.</li><li>Herring Gulls have <a href="https://www.bayjournal.com/columns/on_the_wing/molting-pot-herring-gulls-change-with-their-challenges/article_07fa684c-28d4-11eb-acf9-1b531a779100.html">a varied appearance</a> based on their age and season and may represent multiple species.</li><li>Lesser Black-backed Gulls in urban areas remember <a href="https://www.greenprophet.com/2020/11/urban-gulls-adapt-to-when-we-lunch/">when local schools have their lunch hour</a> so that they can forage for leftovers.<br /></li></ul><p>Science and nature blogging</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Urban Hawks: <a href="https://urbanhawks.blogs.com/urban_hawks/2020/11/a-wild-barred-owl-is-not-a-celebrity.html">A Wild Barred Owl Is Not A Celebrity</a></li><li>Avian Hybrids: <a href="https://avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2020/11/25/the-genomics-of-local-adaptation-in-blue-tits/">The genomics of local adaptation in Blue Tits</a></li><li>Snapshots of Nature: <a href="https://snapshotofnature.blogspot.com/2020/11/ash-throated-flycatcher.html">Ash-Throated Flycatcher</a> </li><li>SzimiStyle Birding: <a href="https://szimistylebirding.wordpress.com/2020/11/21/how-do-i-ebird/">How do I eBird?</a> <br /></li></ul><p>Biodiversity and conservation</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Juan Fernandez Islands in Chile have a high number of endemic species, including 15 native birds, but their survival depends on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/11/a-chilean-archipelago-rivaling-the-galapagos-fends-off-invasive-species/">removing invasive species</a>. <br /></li><li>Footage from trail cameras shows <a href="https://www.thedrive.com/news/37792/cameras-show-utahs-i-80-wildlife-overpass-is-working-now-lets-build-more-of-them">wildlife using a wildlife overpass</a> in Utah. Wildlife overpasses are intended to reduce the number of animals hit by cars and connect fragmented habitats.</li><li>A new paper found that 14% of plant genera <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-19565-4">support 90% of moth and butterfly species</a>. See this <a href="https://twitter.com/DLNarango/status/1330979565695594497">Twitter thread</a> by the lead author.</li><li>Mauritius is <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-11-mauritius-culling-endangered-fruit.html">culling its endemic fruit bat</a> because of political pressure from the fruit industry. While growers blame bats, studies show that most of the crop loss is due to invasive birds.</li><li>Even small boats can <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-11-small-ships-pose-deadly-threat.html">harm North Atlantic Right Whales</a> in collisions.</li><li>A new report suggests ways to <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-11-late-species-extinction.html">protect 102 vulnerable species</a> in the Fraser River estuary in British Columbia.<br /></li></ul><p>Climate change and environmental politics</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The Army Corps of Engineers <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/climate/pebble-mine-permit-denied.html">denied a permit</a> for the proposed Pebble Mine, which was opposed by Indigenous groups and threatened vital salmon breeding grounds. The proposal had been dropped under the Obama administration but was revived by the Trump administration. </li><li>Drivers of small trucks have used devices to trick inspectors into finding <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/25/climate/diesel-trucks-air-pollution.html">lower pollution levels than the trucks actually produce</a>.</li><li>A Solway plant in West Deptford, New Jersey, leaked <a href="https://theintercept.com/2020/11/25/solvay-new-jersey-pfas-documents/">high levels of contaminants like PFAS</a>.</li><li>Off-road vehicles continue to destroy Pine Barrens wetlands because of <a href="https://www.njspotlight.com/2020/11/nj-pinelands-forests-dispute-off-road-driving-damage-pits-drivers-conservationists-damage-wildlife/">the lack of a comprehensive management plan</a>.<br /></li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><br /><hr />Posted on <a href="dendroica.blogspot.com">A DC Birding Blog</a> under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/us/" rel="license">Creative Commons 3.0 License</a>.</div>John B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00163297234733313179noreply@blogger.com