Loose Feathers #475

Mallards / Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS

Birds and birding

• Conservation groups are calling for the California Spotted Owl to gain endangered species protections because the subspecies has undergone a 40% decline. Recent studies show that the owls have been hurt by logging in recently burned national forests.
• 122 species of birds in Colombian are threatened with extinction. Colombia has the most avian diversity of any country in the world and boasts many endemic species.
• The recent oil spill in the Sundarbans in Bangladesh is a threat to the endangered Masked Finfoot and numerous other birds. (via 10,000 Birds)
• Mistletoe is a parasitic plant that provides important food and habitat to birds and other animals.
• A survey of ABA members finds gender differences in approaches to birding. In my experience, the differences are more complex than this article suggests, but the most competitive birders tend to be male.
• The British Trust for Ornithology published their latest analysis of population trends among British birds.
• A wind company was convicted of killing eagles and other birds as a result of poor site selection.
• Tinamous have unusually bright eggs.
• Drought causes birds such as the Verdin to nest later.

Science and nature blogging

• 10,000 Birds: Here’s the new bird family tree. It’s amazing.
• Laelaps: Prehistoric Shorebirds Waded Alongside Their Dinosaur Cousins
• A More Human Nature: Your Parasite-Ridden Christmas Tree
• Extinction Countdown: Holiday Species Snapshot: Christmas Island Shrew
• Conserve Wildlife Blog: New Jersey Ospreys Banded for Scientific Study at All Time High
• Nature in the Ozarks: Green Marvel Moth (Acronicta fallax - 9281)
• Charismatic Minifauna: How Butterflies Get Their Shine
• Tetrapod Zoology: Passerines from the peripheries (part IV): Christmas edition… ROBINS!

Environment and biodiversity

• A European study shows that people and large carnivores can coexist.
• "Clean coal" is a marketing slogan that does not reflect how it is produced or its health and environmental consequences.
• The vast majority of moths are beneficial insects, and some are beautiful.
• New Jersey's Pinelands may become oak barrens as a result of climate change.
• Environmentalists in Pennsylvania are calling for the state to follow New York's lead and ban fracking.