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Mallard (my photo) |
Birds and birding news
- The male White Bellbird has the loudest recorded bird vocalization at 125 decibels, louder than a Screaming Piha.
- A study of Yellowhammer song found that the initial part of its song has a lot of individual variation while the ending distinguishes its dialect.
- The interior population of Least Terns is being removed from the Endangered Species List since the number of breeding colonies has grown from 48 to 480 since the population was listed in 1985. Least Terns in California are still listed.
- Western Gulls take advantage of the availability of fast food on California's coast, and a project is testing whether that dietary change is altering the soil chemistry of the Channel Islands where the gulls nest.
- Migratory birds are arriving earlier but not keeping pace with earlier leaf-out and flowering dates.
- Likewise, birds that seem to benefit from climate change today may struggle in the future as change becomes more extreme.
- Major museum collections have far more specimens of male than female birds. For more thoughts on that study, see this Twitter thread from a museum curator.
- Elbow and wrist motion account for how birds with different wing shapes can use similar flight styles like gliding or hovering.
- This year's survey of Gunnison Sage-Grouse leks found only 429 males, compared to 1,129 in 2015, which suggests that the total population has dropped from 4,000 to 1,800.
- Scientists are tracking Long-billed Curlews that nest in Montana to learn more about their migratory movements.
- A reporter discusses his first trip birding with DC Audubon, part of a trend of younger people getting into birdwatching.
- A vagrant Yellow-browed Warbler was front-page news in British Columbia.
Science and nature blogging
Biodiversity and conservation
Climate change and environmental politics