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| Mallards / Photo by Jacob W. Frank/NPS |
- National Geographic, in partnership with Audubon, CLO, and BirdLife, is declaring 2018 the "Year of the Bird" to honor the 100th anniversary of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
- An economic analysis found that the benefits outweigh the costs of restricting ORV use on beaches like Cape Hatteras that provide habitat for nesting coastal birds.
- A breeding colony of endangered Band-rumped Storm-Petrels was discovered at 7,000 feet on Mauna Loa.
- The Southwestern Willow Flycatcher will remain on the Endangered Species List for now.
- The Bureau of Land Management will no longer prioritize fossil fuel development outside of sage grouse habitat, despite the guidelines created to keep the species from being listed as endangered.
- New Jersey's Peregrine Falcon breeding population remained stable in 2017, with 32 active nests producing 52 young. The core of the state's breeding population nests on artificial structures, while falcons nesting at natural sites have struggled.
- Sora migrate from early August to late October, with a peak in late September. (For some background on the study, see this Twitter thread.)
- A study confirmed that Bullfinches maintain their pair bonds over multiple years.
- A Long-eared Owl was treated and released in Manhattan last week after being found lying on its back.
- Planting wildflowers and protecting nests in areas with intensive agriculture can help some bird species recover from long-term declines.
- A genetic study explored how Yellow Warblers might adapt to climate change. (See the paper here.)
- A small bird delayed a flight from Detroit to Atlanta when it got trapped inside the cockpit.
- Birding New Jersey: The 2018 ABA Bird of the Year Stinks
- Anything Larus: Ivory Gull - Lake County Illinois
- Feathered Photography: The Little Things That Can Make Or Break Our Images
- Birding the day away !!: Wallcreeper ~ Alquezar, Spain - 28.12.17
- Natural Newstead: White-breasted Woodswallows #2
- Wanstead Birder: Top ten bird images from 2017
- The severe cold and intense snowstorm that affected the eastern US this week should not be taken as signs that climate change is not real, as cold snaps of this type could be related to changes in the Arctic.
- While this week was cold, New Jersey's cold snaps used to be colder. Past cold snaps in DC allowed residents to skate on the Potomac.
- A memo leaked late last year shows that the Interior Department is incorporating more political calculations into its decisions on endangered species.
- The Trump administration announced this week that it would expand oil drilling to almost all parts of the US coastlines, including in states where drilling faces strong local opposition.
- Even if we do manage to keep warming below 2°C, many climate change effects are likely to happen anyway because of the delay in action, though they will be less bad than they could be.
- The fungus that causes White Nose Syndrome in bats appears to be unable to withstand exposure to ultraviolet light, which opens the door to a possible treatment.
- New Jersey's DEP is moving ahead with plans to build a private marina on the south end of Liberty State Park.
- Former New Jersey governor Brendan Byrne, who died this week, considered preserving the Pinelands region his greatest legacy.
- A new state park has been proposed on the Brooklyn side of Jamaica Bay in New York.
- Finally, the US Fish and Wildlife Service has suggestions for what to do with natural Christmas trees at the end of the season.
