Ornithology

[caption id="attachment_8835" align="alignleft" width="548"] Archeopteryx bavarica[/caption] Recent surveys indicate that only about 40% of American adults believe that evolution is a scientific fact. According to the latest survey of the PEW Research Center,"Roughly six-in-ten U.S. adults (62%) say humans have evolved over time, according to data from Pew Research Center’s…

Birds have been banded since ancient times. In one recorded instance a besieged Roman garrison was sent a swallow with three threads around its toes, indicating that help would arrive in three days. By the late 16th century many species of birds were being tagged in some way. Some Chinese…

The Red-tailed Hawk (and the Cooper’s and Sharp-shinned) were once called  “Chicken Hawks” and the Red-shouldered the “Hen Hawk.” Undoubtedly they took a few chickens, but only rarely. Like most stories of wild predators taking domestic animals, their impact is usually exaggerated. There’s one story about a farmer letting loose…

OK, first thing, let me get this off my chest. It’s CANADA Geese, not CANADIAN Geese. I hear that misnomer a lot and it bothers me almost as much as hearing people say “birds and animals.” Depending on the source there are six to eleven species of Canada Goose, the…

[caption id="attachment_9886" align="alignleft" width="419"] Northern (red-shafted) Flicker[/caption] All individual organisms that scientists have named have scientific names, given by international committees by agreement. Scientific names, Latin or Greek based, are useful internationally. Common names can be confusing across different languages. But it gets even more complex. What is a species?…

  From the National Audubon Society, but edited for this blog:  From December 14 through January 5 thousands of volunteers throughout the Americas take part in a birding adventure. For over one hundred years, families and students, birders and scientists, armed with binoculars, bird guides and checklists have gone out…

Seems like every time there is an unusual event, conspiracy theorists and their ilk come up with farfetched explanations. Science generally operates on the principle that the simplest explanation is generally the right one. There is no need to invoke ideas like changes in the earth’s magnetic field, toxic gases,…