Posts
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| Wilson's Phalarope / Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS |
- A recent study found that most Prothonotary Warblers spend in the winter in the same region of Colombia, which is at risk of deforestation. They also relied heavily on three migratory stopover sites in Central America.
- Six endangered Palila were released on Mauna Kea in the hope of rebuilding their wild population.
- Multiple Kakapos came down with aspergillosis last month and have been receiving treatment since then. While seven have died, nine have recovered and will be released.
- Heavy rains in the Midwest raised the levels of the Great Lakes, which is putting Piping Plover nests in danger of being washed out. Another nesting pair in Chicago could be in trouble if an annual music festival happens on the same beach.
- Piping Plovers in Maine are having a record breeding season.
- Vampire Finches drink the blood of Nazca Boobies in the dry season and share elements of their microbiomes with vampire bats to digest the blood.
- Other Darwin's finches lose some of their singing ability if their beaks are deformed.
- An interview with Jason Ward discusses the appeal of birding in cities. (A birding walk or two a week seems enough to have a therapeutic effect.)
- Seabirds are among the most endangered birds in the world, but at least some of them have seen improvements in recent years.
- A recent study questioned whether climate change is really changing the predation of shorebird nests in the Arctic.
- Yellow-naped Parrots lost an important part of their range to a forest fire.
- There is a debate among New York City birders about whether Pale Male is still alive.
- In other area raptor news, a Peregrine Falcon nest in Jersey City was sprayed by window washers and one chick has gone missing.
- 10,000 Birds: What is a Nonessential Experimental California Condor?
- Avian Hybrids: The genetic legacy of population decline and recovery in the Red-cockaded Woodpecker
- John Rakestraw: My Love/Hate Relationship with My 5MR
- The Birdist: Splits and Lumps in the ABA Podcast
- Backyard and Beyond: Pollinator Week: The Wrong Bee
- The Meadowlands Nature Blog: Don Torino’s Life in the Meadowlands: Why Native Plants?
- G. J. Gamble: The Greatest Bird On Earth
- awkward botany: The Flight of the Dandelion
- In Defense of Plants: The Cypress-Knee Sedge
- Here are some recommendations for recognizing signs of abuse in viral wildlife photos.
- DNA analysis confirmed that a strange whale found by an Inuit hunter is a hybrid of a narwhal and a beluga.
- Dissolved oxygen is declining in the world's oceans, which may affect what species can survive, especially in polar regions.
- Deforested areas tend to raise temperatures in the areas around them.
- At least 279 dolphins have died along the Gulf Coast this spring for reasons that are still unclear.
- Some store-bought bee hotels may actually harm bees if there are too many nesting holes or if they are not cleaned regularly.
- Bees have lined some artificial nests with plastics as part of their nesting materials.
- Loggerhead sea turtles in the Southeast have had a good nesting season so far.
- At least 571 plant species have gone extinct in the last 250 years. Here is why they go undocumented (or at least not publicized).
- Pitcher plants in Canadian forests have been documented eating salamanders.
- Two weeks ago I took part in a bioblitz at a local cemetery. Here is a write-up from the Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership (which co-sponsored the event) and another from a local newspaper.
- Images from spy satellites show that Himalayan glaciers have lost a quarter of their ice over the past four decades, and the rate of melting has doubled in the last decade.
- Trump officials at the EPA are undermining the science used to set air pollution regulations, which will have a direct effect on public health.
- Similar policy changes are already affecting air quality, which has worsened over the past two years.
- Pending legislation in California would reduce plastic waste by putting more of the responsibility on manufacturers.
- Thawing permafrost is causing massive erosion in Alaska.
