Loose Feathers #570

Red Winged Blackbirds/ Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS

Birds and birding news

• Some shorebirds, such as Dunlin and Western Sandpipers, eat diatoms in the green slime that covers coastal mudflats to build up energy reserves during migration.
• A prehistoric bird fossil from the Cretaceous shows evidence of iridescent feathers (journal reference), which is the first time iridescence has been documented in a bird that old. 
• Scientists have found traces of oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the feathers and guts of Seaside Sparrows. 
• Noah Strycker's world big year record of 6,042 species has been broken by Dutch birder Arjan Dwarshuis, who so far has recorded over 6,100 species this year.
• Taking lots of photos is a good way to document bird sightings and work through tricky identifications.
• A birder argues that it is time to rename the Ring-necked Duck for its bill.
• The Cirl Bunting has staged a remarkable recovery in Great Britain. 
• Participants in an online poll chose the Gray Jay as Canada's national bird, but the choice has not been confirmed officially by the government.

Science and nature blogging

• Birding Dude: Jamaica Bay New York City 2016 Shorebird Season
• Extinction Countdown: New Technology Reveals Hundreds of Bird Species at Risk 
• The Rattling Crow: The bristle head crows
• Cool Green Science: The Largest Mammal That No Scientist Has Ever Seen in the Wild
• Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Blog: 2016 Winter Moth Survey
• Outside My Window: Fox Sparrows Are Passing Through
• View from the Cape: Reflecting on the 'Elusive' Dickcissel
• The Bruce Mactavish Newfoundland Birding Blog: 27 Years (to the hour) between HERMIT WARBLERS
• robertscribbler: For The Arctic Ocean Above 80 North, It’s Still Summer in November  
• 10,000 Birds: Finding Solace in Birds 
• Bug Eric: ID Tip: Ground Beetle or Darkling Beetle?

Environment and biodiversity

• While the emissions cuts called for in the Paris agreement are achievable and will slow climate change, they will not be enough to meet the agreement's goal of keeping warming below 2°C, much less 1.5°C.
• If Trump pulls the US out of the Paris agreement (and its larger framework), then China will likely take the lead on fighting climate change but with diminished chances for preventing catastrophic change.
• This October was the third-warmest October on record and continued a year of record warmth.
• Washington, DC, expects its heat emergencies to double by 2020.
• Since 2009, 53 million acres of natural grasslands in the U.S. have been converted to cropland, with consequences for the wildlife that depend on that habitat. 
• Scientists are experimenting with soil bacteria to suppress invasive cheatgrass, which fuels wildfires in western states. 
• Some ecologists are asking why coyotes, dingoes, and wolves are singled out for persecution.
• Like much of the northeast, New Jersey is in the midst of a persistent drought, with drinking water levels continuing to decline. Dry conditions have expanded into all but one of the state's counties. Raritan Headwaters has called on Christie and the DEP to declare a drought emergency.
• Fall foliage season is winding down in the northeastern U.S., but here is an explanation of why some trees drop their leaves. 
• The Billion Oyster Project is attempting to restore oyster beds around New York Harbor.