There’s a recent (Oct 2023) article in the journal Ornithological Applications entitled “Historical racial redlining and contemporary patterns of income inequality negatively affect birds, their habitat, and people in Los Angeles, California.” It’s rather complex but the basic idea is that well-to-do or even moderate-income neighborhoods have a greater diversity of birds than do low-income …
Data show that up to 65 million birds in the U.S. are killed by flying into powerlines, or perching on them and being electrocuted, each year. Worldwide, the mortality might be as high as 175 million birds. Some areas are installing powerlines with insulators so the birds do not make contact with power and putting …
A recent (June 16, 2023) article in the New York Times described the loss of trust in science, which is rather odd because during the pandemic the trust in science went up. What is science? It is the pursuit and application of knowledge and understanding of the natural and social world following a systematic methodology based …
Thirty-three leading science and conservation organizations have released the State of the Birds report for 2022 and the results are mainly grim. There are some not so well known birds on the list such as the Ashy Storm-Petrel and the Cassia Crossbill, but many are familiar species: Allen’s Hummingbird, Chimney Swift, Ruddy Turnstone, and Tricolored …
I often receive emails asking advice on caring for a sick, injured, or baby bird. I offer what advice I can and also suggest they contact their local wildlife rehabilitation center or wildlife official. There are a plethora of reasons birds get into these conditions but this email was unusual. The bird, a Dark-eyed Junco, was …
I have blogged about birds flying into buildings and windows before and the problem persists simply because there are more and more buildings and windows. It is especially severe during migration time in the northern hemisphere. Not only buildings and windows but power lines, towers, and wind turbines also pose dangers. Exacerbating the hazards from …
When I was responsible for my university’s vertebrate museum, federal and state wildlife officers would occasionally seek my expertise in identifying illegally gotten and confiscated animal parts, especially those from birds. There were brass knuckles with eagle claws on them, songbird-decorated table centerpieces, and vests made of feathers. Today, Etsy and Ebay sell real bird …
I received a comment from a subscriber the other day who asked me to publish a short article in my blog. The piece (if you want to read it) said, in a few short paragraphs, that birds are well adapted for flight with feathers, a light skeleton, and high metabolism, so birds must have been …
The Cretaceous, a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago, is the third and final portion of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. In the early Cretaceous, the continents were in very different positions than they are today. There was a major landmass, a supercontinent called Pangaea. By …
News Nation Now reported via YouTube a story about birds invading homes in southern California in April by flying down chimneys. One pair of homeowners estimated the flock at 800 birds – which they called starlings and blackbirds. Public comments on the video referred to Eurasian Starlings as invasive pests, as indeed they are, but …
