Posts
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| Northern Harrier / Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS |
- This week some controversy arose when a scientist captured and killed a male Moustached Kingfisher, which lives in a remote area of the Solomon Islands. The scientist later explained his rationale for collection in an essay for Audubon.
- Wisconsin is compiling its next breeding bird atlas via eBird; in the first year over 200 species were confirmed as breeders.
- A study used eBird data to learn whether amateur naturalists could improve their observation skills through participation in citizen science projects. The paper was published in PLoS ONE.
- An endangered California Condor was shot and killed in Arizona.
- Burrowing Owls carry fleas that are known plague vectors but the fleas on the owls (and the owls themselves) are plague-free.
- Sea level rise poses a major threat to the breeding grounds of many seabirds, albatrosses in particular.
- The City Birder: Best Public Transportation Birds
- Not Exactly Rocket Science: Caffeine Makes For Busy Bees, Not Productive Ones
- Extinction Countdown: Nextinction: Ralph Steadman Goes Gonzo for Endangered Birds
- BugBlog: Therididae: Cobweb weavers
- 10,000 Birds: Some thoughts on scientific collecting
- ABA Blog: Speaking a Common Language
- Bird Ecology Study Group: Crested Goshawk’s other diet
- Mark Avery: Looking up
- The coming winter is likely to be warmer than average in the northern US and wetter than average in the southern and western US.
- An Emerald Ash Borer was recently found in Bergen County, New Jersey; the species had previously been found elsewhere in the state.
- Velvet ants may look cute but have powerful defenses against predators.
- Mycorrhizal fungi on milkweeds can affect the health of Monarch caterpillars that feed on milkweed plants.
- The worst known extinction was linked to volcanic activity and carbon dioxide levels.
