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| Western Tanager / Photo by Tom Koerner/USFWS |
Birds and birding news
- This week the American Ornithological Society published its 60th checklist supplement, which includes proposals accepted in the past year. See the ABA Blog for how the changes affect birding in the ABA Area.
- The Arctic is changing to become more like the Atlantic, which is potentially a problem for Arctic breeding birds like the Dovekie.
- Surveys conducted before and after Hurricanes Irma and Maria found significant changes in Puerto Rico's bird life. The biggest change was the disappearance of birds that are dependent on fruit.
- At least one or two Bahama Nuhatches survived Hurricane Matthew, but it is unclear if that will be enough for the species to survive.
- Superstorm Sandy created nesting habitat for Piping Plovers on Long Island.
- Scientists are collecting Great Indian Bustard eggs for a captive breeding program.
- Restored pine woodlands benefit birds in the Ozark Plateau.
- Songbirds in California died because of a pesticide applied to street trees.
- A fossil discovered near the Black Sea suggests that Europe was once home to an ostrich-like bird.
- A rainy summer is killing seabird chicks in the Farne Islands.
- Australian fairy-wrens appear to enter torpor during winter nights to save energy.
Science and nature blogging
- Vermont Center for Ecostudies: A Field Guide to July 2019
- Laura's Birding Blog: Feeding Jelly to Birds
- Avian Hybrids: Introducing another hybrid bird species: the Salvin’s Prion
- On The Wing Photography: American Avocet Chicks Have Hatched At Bear River MBR
- Snapshots of Nature: Summer Solstice
- Shorebird Science: How To Count Arctic Shorebirds
- 10,000 Birds: Welcome to Bird Renaming Week
- mocosocoBirds: Henslow’s Sparrow, Somerset County – June 23, 2019
Biodiversity and conservation
- At least 6 of the 411 North Atlantic Right Whales have died in the last month — a death rate that puts their population at risk.
- Meanwhile, at least 167 dead Gray Whales have washed ashore along the Pacific coast of North America this year. The cause is undetermined, but many of the whales seem malnourished.
- A recent study found that neonicotinoids spread from farm fields to nearby milkweed patches.
- Monarchs reared indoors lose the ability to navigate.
- A new study calculated that urban gardens could support about a third of the eastern Monarch population.
- Southeastern grasslands used to be maintained by fire and bison but now cover a fraction of their former territory.
Climate change and environmental politics
- The Trump administration revived plans for a copper mine in northern Minnesota. The proposal had been rejected under the Obama administration over concerns about how mining would affect the Boundary Waters.
- Coal is declining as an energy source, but new natural gas plants are still being built.
- Countries in Southeast Asia adopted a resolution to reduce plastic waste.
- A federal court blocked the Cadiz pipeline project.
- This week was the 50th anniversary of the last time that the Cuyahoga River caught fire. That fire and others like it prompted the passage of environmental laws and the creation of the EPA.
