What Are Bird Species?

Dr. Roger Lederer
[caption id="attachment_10333" align="alignleft" width="523"] A Swoose[/caption] The most basic definition of a species is a group of biological individuals who can interbreed. Using DNA, and morphological and behavioral studies, birds are placed into categories based upon the closeness of their relationships. Carl Linnaeus was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist,…
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Snakes and Birds

Dr. Roger Lederer
[caption id="attachment_10317" align="alignleft" width="365"] Mrs Ornithologist with Gopher Snake[/caption] My wife visited her two horses at the stable where they are kept and found two large gopher snakes in the rafters of the barn. One had a nestling House Sparrow in its jaws. The snakes were transported away and released…
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Farm Birds Disappearing

Dr. Roger Lederer
[caption id="attachment_10302" align="alignleft" width="459"] House Sparrow[/caption] Since 1977, House Sparrow populations have declined by 67 percent in Great Britain. Once a very common bird, the mystery of their disappearance has apparently been solved: a lack of insects. Disappearance of habitats, pesticides, and the conversion of gardens into parkin spaces have…
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Earth Day

Dr. Roger Lederer
[caption id="attachment_10296" align="alignleft" width="549"] Kirtland's Warbler[/caption] Last week was the 48th anniversary of Earth Day. I attended the first Environmental Teach-In in 1970 at the University of Michigan, a month before the first Earth Day on April 22nd. I saw Gaylord Nelson and Gordon Lightfoot there and attended lectures at even…
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Do Birds Mate for Life?

Dr. Roger Lederer
I often hear that birds mate for life. It's much more complicated. Yes, some birds like waterfowl and seabirds and eagles tend to have long term pair bonds and they may actually stay together for life. This "marriage" certainly makes life easier as it minimizes annual courtship, nesting, and territorial…
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Birds Lost at Sea

Dr. Roger Lederer
[caption id="attachment_10220" align="alignleft" width="676"] Fieldfare[/caption] As I write this, I am at sea about 600 miles east of the Caribbean. Very few birds are in the middle of the ocean here except for the occasional shearwater. But yesterday we had some unusual avian visitors. First I saw a white egret…
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The Bone Breaker

Dr. Roger Lederer
Until 2016, Canada did not have a national birds. You would think it would be the loon as the dollar coin which pictures this bird is known as the "loonie." And the look was popular in a poll to pick the national bird. However, after some discussion. the Gray Jay…
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