1. Let’ start with the Washington Post’s article on how eBird helps us understand declining bird populations: I’m on a Zoom call with a team of researchers from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, their gridded video feeds a sort of Hollywood Squares of bird nerds, and we’re discussing the decline and fall of North America’s bird population — a staggering loss of 3 billion breeding adults, or nearly 30 percent of the population, in just a half century — when all of a sudden Gus Axelson picks up his binoculars and peers out the window. “Gus,” I ask, “are you birding right now?” Axelson, the Cornell Lab’s editorial director, hastily apologizes, but I tell him to go ahead and bird. I have a job, but birders like Axelson have a calling, and no one can predict when nature will call. (via The Washington Post)
Visit eBird.org if you are unfamiliar with the site and the app.
2. Yikes! Not in the Galapagos? Charles Darwin described it as the most desolate of the Galápagos Islands, an almost extraterrestrial outpost crawling with giant tortoises and marine iguanas found nowhere else in the world, where smoke curled out of volcanic craters and lava flowed black. It was here, just after dusk one evening in early 2021, that the 53-year-old airport employee was surprised by a noise: the whir of a small airplane touching down unannounced on the runway. Panicked, he jumped on his motorbike and rushed to the police station. But by the time the authorities reached the scene, the Cessna Conquest II had been abandoned. From the outset, authorities suspected drug traffickers. The mystery offers a glimpse into the growing criminal threat to the Galápagos Islands, the beloved UNESCO World Heritage site that’s being pulled into the booming drug trade consuming much of Latin America. (via The Washington Post)
3. On honey hunting with honeyguides in East Africa – “it’s rare and getting rarer”: Foraging for wild honey is a tricky business. Bee nests are hard to find, and their inhabitants swarm and sting to defend themselves. But in a rare and millennia-old collaboration, honey hunters in Africa get help finding bees’ nests from a small brown bird called the greater honeyguide. The honeyguide leads the honey hunter to a nest, typically hidden in the branches or hollows of a tree, and then the honey hunter uses smoke or tools to subdue the bees and scoop out the honey. As a reward, the avian guide gets the beeswax, a staple of its diet. (via National Geographic)
4. A short piece on the Dovekie fallout from recent storms, this time in The Palmetto State: Unless you’re at the zoo, you shouldn’t see a penguin in South Carolina. You shouldn’t see what looks like a miniature version of them either. Recent storms are causing otherwise. They’re pushing pudgy black-and-white little auks, or dovekies, south when typically their winter migration doesn’t take them further than the New Jersey coastline. The Myrtle Beach Wildlife Rescue Center rescued at least six last week, according to a Facebook post. They’re native to islands around the Arctic and the Bering Sea. The 7.5-to-9.1-inch birds can also be found in Greenland, Iceland and northern Russia. (via Yahoo! News)
5. From Delhi, the magic of Fall migration and some “persistent challenges”: Winter in Delhi heralds the arrival of birds. As the temperature drops, the skies above the city come alive with the fluttering wings of migratory birds, transforming Delhi into a haven for bird enthusiasts and nature lovers. One of the most anticipated guests is the majestic Siberian Crane. With its striking white plumage and elegant stature, this marvel travels thousands of kilometres to escape the harsh Siberian winters, finding solace in the serene wetlands of Delhi. These graceful creatures bring a touch of the Arctic to the urban landscape, captivating onlookers with their mesmerising flights and harmonious calls. (via The Voice of Delhi Patriot)
6. Concerning - Bird flu found in elephant seals and fur seals on the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia: The Animal and Plant Health Agency in the UK has confirmed that High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI), otherwise known as bird flu, has been detected in elephant seals and fur seals on the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia. Researchers first suspected this strain of bird flu was in the region in 2023 after the deaths of several large sea birds known as brown skuas, with subsequent testing of dead mammals including elephant and fur seals, finding that they had also been infected with avian influenza. Scientists are concerned by this discovery because bird flu may threaten the unique biodiversity of birds in Antarctica if it continues to spread. (via Cosmos Magazine)
7. “Birdiest Small City in America” is …an island (and it might not be where you think): Imagine an island where birds of all colors, shapes and sizes fill the skies – and the trees and the beaches and the surf. Actually, there’s no need to imagine it, because just such an island exists right off Alabama’s Gulf Coast, and it is a sanctuary for both birds and people. Dauphin Island, a 6-square-mile barrier island 30 miles south of Mobile, is home to 1,800 permanent residents and thousands of annual visitors who come there to enjoy world-class fishing, pristine beaches, first-rate environmental education opportunities and an almost-extinct old-school beach town charm. It’s also an important part of the state’s ecosystem. (via Alabama News Center)
8. Concerning news from Scotland: Some of Scotland’s most famous bird species, including grouse and kestrels, are among those declining as a result of climate change, a new report has found. The study, by public body NatureScot, charted the populations of Scotland’s terrestrial breeding birds between 1994 and 2022. It found significant changes to the numbers and species of birds living in the country’s urban, woodland, upland and farmland habitats, in large part due to hotter and wetter weather related to the climate crisis. Some species have increased their populations due to warmer summers, attracting those which would not traditionally travel to Scotland. (via The Guardian)
9. From Victoria, B.C., helping Anna’s hummingbirds survive cold snaps (and check this Christmas Bird count last month - 1,446 Anna’s hummingbirds were recorded, up from just 30 spotted in 1993): The tiniest of birds are struggling as the region plunges into a deep freeze, but there are ways you can help keep the hummingbirds humming. Ann Nightingale of the Rocky Point Bird Observatory said sugar-water feeders can be wrapped in Christmas lights or the tubes covered in socks with “pocket warmers” inside to keep the liquid from freezing. Feeders can also be brought in overnight, but should be back before the sun rises, as hummingbirds often awake in the early-morning darkness and need that shot of energy first thing, she said. (via Times Colonist)
10. Those Mute Swans many people swoon over? Not so nice: You may have heard of the myth that a swan could break your bones when provoked. Although this is extreme and very unlikely, swans are aggressive animals and have been known to terrorize. Swans are aggressive for several reasons, ranging from protecting their young and fighting for food, but sometimes it seems like they are aggressive for absolutely no reason. There are cases of swans tormenting entire communities, a behavior not very common in other species of bird. So why are swans so mean? (via GreenMatters)
11. Drought in Western Iowa means fewer birds during migration: Mary Jo Veskrna of Blair, Neb., enjoys taking her grandchildren, 2-year-old Henry and 4-year-old Olivia, to DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge. Just before the new year, they checked out the visitor’s center. "It's so kid friendly. I don't ever have to worry about them getting into trouble or breaking anything," Veskrna said. During their visits, they like seeing the creatures found in almost 8,400 acres full of trees, prairie and wetlands. But this time around, something was missing. “I really thought that the lake would be filled with birds because it's all open. It's not frozen," Veskrna said. "And in the past, the count usually depended on how much open water there was.” (via Iowa Public Radio)
12. More from East Africa: As global temperatures rise, animals—especially birds—have been decreasing in size. Many ecologists believe this trend may be a universal rule of climate change. It aligns with Bergmann's rule, first described in 1847, which states that animal and bird populations of larger size are generally found in colder environments. Larger bodies have a smaller surface-to-volume ratio, which helps animals conserve body heat and energy more efficiently. A new UCLA-led study in the Usambara Mountains of Tanzania, one of the world's tropical biodiversity hotspots, provides evidence that this trend is not absolute, finding that birds in the region increased in size by an average of 4.1% over the last 36 years as temperatures rose. (via Phys Org)
13. New research on birds and wind turbines, from an economist (!) at the University of Geneva, offers a more hopeful view for birds and turbines: Recent research provides a fresh perspective on the long-debated impact of wind turbines on bird populations, writes The Economist. Contrary to common fears among bird watchers and campaigners, the study suggests that wind turbines have little to no discernible effect on bird numbers in the United States. Economist Dr. Erik Katovich from the University of Geneva analyzed American data, including the Christmas Bird Count by the National Audubon Society. He correlated bird population data with the locations and construction dates of wind turbines across the U.S. from 2000 to 2020. His findings show no significant impact on bird populations, even among larger species like hawks, vultures, and eagles, which are often considered more vulnerable to turbine strikes. (via WARP News)
14. A $5,000 pair of binoculars from Swarovski no less (Merlin-driven): A new pair of AI-powered binoculars can turn even the most amateur birdwatchers into seasoned pros. The Australian optical instruments company, Swarovski — not to be confused with the crystal jeweler with the same name — unveiled a more than $5,000 pair of binoculars called the AX Visio at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The binoculars use AI image recognition technology and data from the Merlin Bird ID database to help you easily identify more than 9,000 birds and other wildlife at the click of a button. They rely on a built-in camera that allows the binoculars to identify still or moving images of birds, and you can immediately share the photos and videos you create by pairing the binoculars with a smartphone. (via Business Insider)
15. A paean to the Vesper Sparrow: This week’s featured creature is probably not commonly seen, even though it’s a fairly common winter resident in the Ada area. The vesper sparrow’s stealthiness is most likely due to its behavior in its preferred habitat. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology reports that vesper sparrows inhabit “short, sparse grass and scattered shrubs.” I recently spent a fair amount of time observing these birds, noting how they searched for food and fled from perceived threats. I intentionally moved closer and closer, and when pressed, the vesper sparrows would run on the ground between the grass stalks and resembled fleeing mice. If I got too close, they would take flight and perch in nearby shrubs or short trees where they could get a better look at me, a potential predator. (via The Ada News)
16. Finally, the Washington Post picks up on the studies tying birds to our mental health: Looking to improve your mental health? Pay attention to birds. Two studies published last year in Scientific Reports said that seeing or hearing birds could be good for our mental well-being. So give them a listen as you learn why they may help. Research has consistently shown that more contact and interaction with nature are associated with better body and brain health. Birds appear to be a specific source of these healing benefits. They are almost everywhere and provide a way to connect us to nature. And even if they are hidden in trees or in the underbrush, we can still revel in their songs. (via The Washington Post)
Bird Videos of the Week
By BBC, “Bird interrupts David Attenborough”.
Cornell Live Bird Cam - Argouti!
Cornell Live Bird Cam - Spot-crowned Barbets.