I and the Bird

I and the Bird #138 is online at Wanderin' Weeta.

Skies, Clouds, and Trees in Black and White

This photo is from Manasquan Reservoir, last Saturday morning. The sky was clear with patches of clouds; later in the day, clouds would fill the sky, but at this point it was still sunny. What impressed me about this scene was the variety of cloud types and altitudes, in just this one small portion of the sky. The dead trees in the foreground were presumably killed when the reservoir was initially flooded. In the distance you can see the dam. I shot this with a polarizing lens and then applied black and white processing in GIMP.

In autumn, I normally like to emphasize color, especially for trees that have turned brilliant shades of yellow, orange, or red. We only get these colors for a few short weeks; during the rest of the year trees are either green or bare, so it seems good to take advantage of the colors while we have them. However, these brilliant colors can create interesting effects in black and white. This tree is a Pin Oak, and most of its leaves are at least tinged with dark red. (The color looks a bit like this tree.) In black and white, the contrast between the blue of the sky and the red of the leaves jumps out much more dramatically than it does in color. In this version, the blue sky appears dark while the red leaves appear light.

State of the World's Waterbirds

A new report from Wetlands International describes the current conservation status of waterbird species. The State of the World’s Waterbirds 2010 found that 47% of waterbird populations are decreasing, while 16% are increasing. One of the interesting (but unsurprising) findings is that the rates of change differ geographically.

The report shows how the status of waterbird populations is improving in regions where strong conservation legislation is implemented, such as North America and Europe.

However, the rate of decline of waterbird populations is increasing in all other regions without such instruments. The situation is especially alarming in Asia where 62% of waterbird populations are decreasing or even extinct.

“The combination of rapid economic growth and weak conservation efforts appears to be lethal”, said Ali Stattersfield – BirdLife’s Head of Science. “Waterbird populations are exposed to a wide range of threats, such as agricultural intensification, leading to the loss and degradation of marshes and lakes, as well as unsustainable hunting and the impacts of climate change”.

The status of long-distance migrant waterbirds is generally worse than of those remaining in regions with strong conservation measures. This highlights the importance of coordinated conservation measures across entire flyways from the breeding to the non-breeding grounds.

Among long-distance migrants like shorebirds, 70% of the populations are decreasing. Cranes are an exception, with stable or recovering populations thanks to active conservation efforts. You can read the full report (pdf) online.

Alaskan Birds with Beak Deformities

An unusually high number of birds with beak deformities have turned up around Alaska, according to the USGS. According to a statement issued by the agency, the birds most affected have been Black-capped Chickadees and Northwestern Crows.

In birds affected by what scientists have termed “avian keratin disorder,” the keratin layer of the beak becomes overgrown, resulting in noticeably elongated and often crossed beaks, sometimes accompanied by abnormal skin, legs, feet, claws and feathers. Biologists with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Alaska Science Center published their findings in this month’s issue of The Auk, a Quarterly Journal of Ornithology.

“The prevalence of these strange deformities is more than ten times what is normally expected in a wild bird population,” said research biologist Colleen Handel with the USGS, “We have seen effects not only on the birds’ survival rates, but also on their ability to reproduce and raise young. We are particularly concerned because we have not yet been able to determine the cause, despite testing for the most likely culprits.”

The disorder, which has increased dramatically over the past decade, affects 6.5 percent of adult Black-capped Chickadees in Alaska annually. Beak deformities in this species were first observed in the late 1990s and biologists have since documented more than 2,100 affected individuals. Increasing numbers of other species have also been observed with beak deformities throughout Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington. An estimated 17 percent of adult Northwestern Crows are affected by avian keratin disorder in coastal Alaska.

A variety of other Alaskan species have also been found with beak deformities, though not to the same extent as Black-capped Chickadees (pictured above) and Northwestern Crows (pictured right). An online gallery shows images of those two species, plus American Kestrel, Common Raven, White Pelican, Downy Woodpecker, Red-breasted Nuthatch, European Starling, Northern Flicker, Steller's Jay, Rough-legged Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-winged Blackbird, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Black-billed Magpie, Black-crowned Night Heron, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Clark's Nutcracker.

According to the USGS, beak deformities can have a variety of causes, so more research is needed. Possible candidates include pollution, poor nutrition, and diseases. Deformities have sometimes been traced to specific pollutants such as agricultural runoff.

To learn more, you can explore the USGS beak deformity website, which includes a section on how to help (if you live in Alaska or the Pacific Northwest) and links to articles the research team has published about the beak deformity problem. The two recent Auk papers are both downloadable at the last link.

Downy Woodpecker

This is a Downy Woodpecker that I saw and photographed at Manasquan Reservoir. There were a lot of Downy Woodpeckers along the trail on Saturday, and in fact a lot of woodpeckers overall. I think the only common New Jersey woodpecker species I failed to see at least once was Pileated.