Loose Feathers #792

Bufflehead / USFWS Photo

Birds and birding news

• Whooping Cranes avoid stopover sites near wind farms, so approval for new wind farms should take that into account when selecting sites.
• Bird watchers in California are urged to take down and clean their bird feeders to stop an outbreak of salmonellosis. The feeders should stay down for at least a month.
  
• Wing tags are often used to make individual banded birds easier to observe, but in the case of Cape Vultures, wing tags make it harder for them to fly.
• Tropical forest bird populations in Tanzania are declining as the climate warms. Many tropical birds disperse only short distances after leaving the nest, which makes it harder for them to move to places with an ideal climate.
  
• Researchers found the genetic basis for plumage variations in White Wagtails.
• A study of 23 bird species found that species with cooperative breeding live longer than other birds.
• An Irish photographer recorded a starling murmuration.
• Used PPE needs to be disposed properly so that birds and other wildlife do not get entangled in it. The pandemic has revived the use of single-use plastics, which activists had tried to phase out.
• A threatened Red-backed Button-quail recently showed up in an Australian coastal town, which is a sign of the bird's recent population boom.
• From April 1 to May 31, lights will be turned off on major buildings in Philadelphia's Center City to protect migrating birds, which can be disoriented by artificial light. The Bird Safe Philly initiative was spurred by an incident last fall when 1,000 to 1,500 birds struck buildings on a single night.
  

Science and nature blogging

• Avian Hybrids: Why the “Red-breasted Meidum Goose” is probably not an extinct species 
• Dakota Birder: South Dakota Species Highlight: Chestnut-collared Longspur
• FINCH RESEARCH NETWORK: Winter Finch Forecast Update: The Return Begins
  
• earthstar: When Coots attack
• Linda Murdock Photography: Smith Oaks Rookery at High Island - 2021
• Be Your Own Birder: The Most Versatile Birdseed  
• awkward botany: When Acorn Masts, Rodents, and Lyme Disease Collide
• Backyard and Beyond: Sparrow Fight
• Outside My Window: We Get Pretty By Wearing Out 
• Balloon Juice: Raptor Trapping and Banding 
• On The Wing Photography: Marsh Wren Nesting Season Begins In March
• Isabelle M. Vea: Insects found on dinosaur feathers are not that kind of parasites
• New Jersey Audubon: Cape May Springwatch: March 1-10, 2021  
• Feathered Photography: Mealworms – Are They Safe As Bird Food?
  

Biodiversity and conservation

• Brood X periodical cicadas will emerge en masse this spring for the first time since 2004. Unlike annual cicadas, which emerge every summer, periodical cicada broods emerge in massive numbers every 13 or 17 years. This brood is centered in the Mid-Atlantic, with another population in the Midwest.
  
• The pause in ecotourism due to COVID-19 and government budget cuts have hurt conservation efforts. Some preserves have been forced to close, while governments have opened protected areas to resource extraction.
• As a narwhal's tusk grows, it creates a record of the conditions in which the narwhal lived.
• Marine protected areas that still allow fishing and fossil fuel extraction do not protect much more biodiversity than unprotected sites.
  
• The Red Wolf is again on the brink of extinction as the number of wolves in the wild has crashed from 130 to 10 in the past decade. 
• A Gray Wolf with a GPS tracking collar from the Bow Valley pack in Banff National Park was shot and killed in Montana. The wolf had been tracked for about a year and was almost three years old. 
• Only a few remnants of Ireland's ancient temperate rainforest remain intact. The forest fragments support a rich diversity of mosses and liverworts but are missing the megafauna that used to live there.
  
• Entomologists found a new species of firefly in Singapore.
• Bangladesh is home to half of the carnivore species on the Indian subcontinent, but many are overlooked or understudied.
  
• Invasive zebra mussels are found in many pet stores, which serve as a potential point of new introductions.
• At least 403 manatees have died in the first two months this year, which is triple the normal rate.
• A new study calls for protecting Japan's remaining older grasslands as a basis for restoring new grasslands.
• Pennsylvania is home to a large herd of reintroduced elk.
  

Climate change and environmental politics

• Switching to electric vehicles is necessary to reduce carbon emissions, but mining the rare metals needed for batteries presents its own set of environmental risks. The seabed is a potential target for mining.
  
• Michael Regan was finally confirmed as EPA administrator. He will have a lot of clean-up to do. Deb Haaland is still waiting for a confirmation vote. Her vote should come on Monday.
  
• The Extinction Rebellion movement is popular in Europe but has been slow to gain support in the US, possibly because activists are putting their energy elsewhere.
  
• A oil company wants to drill in Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida even though it could harm a sensitive and unique ecosystem.
• The Biden administration revoked a legal opinion that formed the Trump administration's basis for modifying the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Interior Department will reverse the regulatory changes in the near future.
• The proposed large-scale wind farm off the coast of Martha's Vineyard should be approved soon as the Biden administration looks to increase offshore wind energy.
• Environmental groups are asking the Biden administration to remove 70 miles of border wall segments to restore natural areas and cultural sites.