Loose Feathers #338

Migrating Smith's Longspur / Photo by Paul Roisen (USFWS)

News about birds and birding

• A study of ten bird species and eighteen on-shore wind farms in the U.K. found no major impact on bird populations from the operation of wind farms, though construction of the wind farms did affect some species. It should be noted that the study did not include the larger raptors that are known to be harmed by collisions with wind turbines.
• The American Bird Conservancy is protesting a regulatory change by the US Fish and Wildlife Service that would extend take permits for wind farms from 5 to 30 years.
• A new study finds that the iron-rich cells in pigeons' beaks are really macrophages and not nerve cells that might detect magnetic fields. This disproves one proposed mechanism for how birds navigate.
• Using geolocators, scientists have tracked four Golden-crowned Sparrows from their wintering grounds at Point Reyes National Seashore to their breeding grounds in coastal Alaska. The data will help inform management decisions.
• There are now over 100 breeding pairs of Bermuda Petrels, which had been considered extinct for several centuries.
• A study of mating patterns among Dunlin over multiple seasons found that female Dunlin enhanced their nesting success by picking a new mate rather than sticking with a mate from the previous year.
• Despite pounding their heads repeatedly against hard objects, woodpeckers do not get concussions because of their skull structure.

Nature blogging

• 10,000 Birds: White-breasted Nuthatch is four species, study says
• Birdchick: Consolidating My Birding Tools On My Bike
• The Birdist: Records Committees and Exotic Birds: Interview with Phil Davis
• Audubon Guides: Variations in Rough-legged Hawks
• Myrmecos: Pison the spider hunter
• Bug Girl: The GOP War on Caterpillars

Environment and biodiversity

• A motion-sensitive camera caught a Canada Lynx using a highway wildlife overpass to cross the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff National Park. Cameras have recorded over 200,000 wildlife crossings on overpasses and underpasses around the highway since 1996.
• The New York Botanical Garden is trying to reintroduce a genetically-modified form of the American Chestnut tree in the Bronx. This variety has a wheat gene to defeat a toxin released by chestnut blight. Meanwhile, another project is attempting to reintroduce blight-resistant hybrids of American Chestnuts in Appalachia.
• An op-ed piece argues for the importance of trees.
• Last month was the warmest March in U.S. history and had the second-most-extreme heat wave of any month in U.S. history. Twenty-five states set their own records, including New Jersey.
• New research bolsters evidence that the white-nose syndrome that is killing North American bats is caused by a fungus that originated in Europe.
• This week the Miami Blue Butterfly was formally listed under the Endangered Species Act. The species is currently confined to a few islands in the Florida Keys.
• The EPA denied a request to ban the herbicide 2,4-D.