The Shy Bird.

Bird News Items

1. Let’s begin with an Audubon article about the joy this author found in birding: It was the birds that got Melissa Hafting through. When Hafting—an ecologist, photographer, and lifelong birder—watched both of her parents pass away from illness in just over a year’s time, she struggled under the weight of her grief. But turning to the avian world helped her to keep moving forward. “After I lost my parents, I would go outside and not be able to see any beauty. The skies were darker, the world felt colder,” she writes in her recent book, Dare to Bird. “But when a bird appeared, it helped me to see there was still some light.” The book, published in June, shares Hafting’s perspective on how birds can lift us up—and what we owe them in return. (via Audubon)

2. What, you might ask, was associated with the sudden, fiery end of the Cretaceous period: There are thousands of species of birds living on Earth today–anywhere from around 10,000 to as many as 18,000, depending on how you define “species.” The fossil record suggests that almost all of this feathered, flying diversity emerged in the aftermath of the last major extinction 66 million years ago, when an asteroid rocked the planet and drove the non-avian dinosaurs extinct. Only a few birds–chicken, ostrich, and duck-like creatures–made it across the extinction line, giving rise to the dizzying array of modern birds: From songbirds to corvids to parrots. (via Popular Science)

By Hap Ellis, Semipalmated Sandpiper - Cape Porpoise Harbor, ME.

3. Can this be?: A committee of lawmakers, conservationists and farmers met for the first time Thursday to study ways to manage Wisconsin’s growing population of sandhill cranes. The eastern population of sandhill cranes, which includes Wisconsin, has rebounded after nearly being hunted to extinction in the late 1800s. The most recent count last fall observed more than 110,000 birds, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. As the population expands, cranes have caused crop losses on some Wisconsin farms. That prompted Republican lawmakers to put a bill forward in 2021 that would allow hunting of sandhill cranes, but the bill failed to advance in the Legislature. Rep. Paul Tittl, R-Manitowoc, introduced the proposal in the Assembly and serves as chair of the study committee. (via WPR)

4. The feeder, the Blue Jay and a life lesson: During daily breaks from the world’s many dramas, I encountered another: The blue jay in my backyard is a ladies’ man. Each day, he swoops onto the bird feeder and fills up on seeds and nuts. He’s the only jay deft enough to stick the landing, so the resulting bounty makes him a good provider — an attractive mating advantage for birds known for monogamy and pairing for life. He plays the part well, dutifully ferrying food from my place to his home in a tree across the street. Then I noticed him paying regular calls to the row of oaks a few doors down, his mouth full and his feathers a preened electric blue. (via The Washington Post)

5. Protecting New Caledonia’s Kagu: In the early hours of the morning, a powerful cry echoes through the rainforest in Farino, in southern New Caledonia. What sounds like a dog barking is actually the song of the cagou. The shy bird, with grey plumage and a distinctive crest, is difficult to see through the trees. The striking bird is an important cultural symbol in the French Pacific territory, decorating postage stamps and banknotes. When it feels under attack, the cagou stands up straight and its crest shoots in the air as it approaches an opponent and growls. Yet the cagou, which is endemic to New Caledonia, faces a series of threats to its survival. (via The Guardian)

6. Burrowing owls considered for endangered or threatened status in California?: Western burrowing owls are diminutive, adorable and goofy — and conservation organizations have renewed calls for the state to protect them before it’s too late. Now, more than 20 years since a formal request was made, California wildlife officials appear to be listening. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife this week recommended that state wildlife policymakers consider a petition to list the owls as endangered or threatened. Aggressive and impactful reporting on climate change, the environment, health and science. It’s the first of several steps the native underground nesters need to clear to earn protection under the state Endangered Species Act. It doesn’t mean it’s warranted, but that it could be warranted. So while the species’ fate is in no way settled, the groups pushing for the designation are hopeful. (via The Los Angeles Times)

By Hap Ellis, Great Shearwater - Off Kennebunkport, Gulf of Maine.

7. Birding blossoms amongst the younger generation in Ontario: A new generation of birders is embracing the hobby and making it their own. Birding,  bird watching, is the observation of birds in nature. Many participants also capture photographs or sound recordings of their sightings, and keep track of the species they've seen throughout their lives. In Sudbury, Ont., a Facebook group is providing a platform for birders of all ages and backgrounds to share their sightings, plan meetups and get new information about all things ornithological. About 1,600 people have joined the group, which covers the Sudbury and Manitoulin Island areas. (via CBC)

8. “…a global epicenter for birding”? None other than Chicago some (in Chicago) say: Chicago seems to have a festival for just about everything, from Blues Fest to Donut Fest to Open House Chicago’s annual celebration of the city’s architecture. Now add birds to that list. The inaugural Urban Birding Festival is set for Sept. 14-15, with registration opening Saturday.  The event is designed to highlight the hundreds of species found in the city — from peregrine falcons in the Loop to migratory warblers along the lakefront to year-round occupants of Chicago’s parks and backyards — and all the work being done to create habitat for them. The schedule is packed with dozens of field trips, presentations, workshops and socializing events — almost all in Chicago, but also dipping into Cook County Forest Preserves —  planned with both experienced birders and newcomers in mind. Many sessions are free and plenty of others cost just $10. (via WTTW News)

By Hap Ellis, Atlantic Puffin - Eastern Egg Rock, Gulf of Maine.

9. What could possibly go wrong?: "Invasive alien birds" sounds like the strapline to a scary Hollywood blockbuster but for the people of coastal Kenya it is not a matter of fiction. The authorities there are so worried about the nuisance created by Indian house crows that they have begun the process of culling a million of them. They have not targeted humans, as in the Alfred Hitchock horror film The Birds, but these ones have for decades caused widespread disruption, by preying on wildlife, raiding tourist areas and attacking poultry farms. Poison is now being used in the towns of Watamu and Malindi to kill the first tranche of the ruthless sub-species. This ambitious poisoning campaign is aimed at halting the crows’ advance towards the capital, Nairobi. The birds, known on the coast as "kunguru" or "kurabu", originated from India and other parts of Asia, often spreading elsewhere by travelling on trading ships. (via BBC)

10. Rare Bird Alert for New England: A large water bird usually found in Central and South America and Florida recently made its way to Maine—and birders have been flocking for a chance to see the unusual visitor. Last week, wildlife enthusiasts were surprised to find an anhinga resting on a log in Somerville, a small town in the south-central part of the state about 70 miles northeast of Portland. Anhingas are conspicuous birds with long, slender necks and turkey-like tails. Though their feathers are not waterproof, they spend much of their time swimming and stabbing fish with their pointy bills. When they resurface, they clamber onto sun-bathed logs, rocks and other places, spread their wings and let the warmth dry their plumage. (via Smithsonian Magazine)

11. A timely piece on “post-breeding dispersal” since it is that time of the year: With the breeding season over for most bird species, young birds that have fledged their nests are striking out on their own. Where will they go? Many of them will seek nesting territories of their own, away from their birthplaces — probably the reason why many birds engage in a kind of wanderlust at this time of year. It’s not migration, which is a regular, seasonal trek to a specific destination. Rather, this phenomenon is called “post-breeding dispersal,” when young, first-year birds and some adults that have finished breeding seem to aimlessly wander around. It occurs among nonmigratory as well as migratory species, which may roam around before finally heading south for the winter. (via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

12. Here is a Vox piece on the importance of vultures in India (which we had highlighted last week): As a young man in the 1990s, walking to school in New Delhi, Anant Sudarshan would watch the vultures perched along telephone wires, waiting for the discards of nearby leather tanning factories. So when the birds started to disappear, he couldn’t help but notice. What Sudarshan, who now researches environmental policy and economics at the University of Warwick in the UK, did not realize at the time but would help discover decades later, was that the extinction of India’s vultures had far-reaching consequences for the humans who lived alongside the birds. In just a few years, the species’s disappearance contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of his fellow citizens. Together with Eyal Frank, an environmental economist at the University of Chicago, Sudarshan used his adolescent experience as inspiration for a new study being published in the American Economic Review. (via Vox)

By Hap Ellis, Black Guillemot, (in heavy fog) - Eastern Egg Rock, Gulf of Maine.

13. Here is a good WSJ Review of Kenn Kauffman’s new book: As the man behind a series of well-regarded field guides, Mr. Kaufman has got the formidable credentials that justify his attempt to take up Audubon’s brush. But he emerges as, perhaps, the biggest critic of his own attempts to emulate the master: “It had been an absurd idea, doomed to failure from the start.” The author concludes that revisiting Audubon’s style is about more than mastering a series of techniques. As Mr. Kaufman comes to realize, “I had missed what it was all about. Audubon’s compositions came from an inner vision, not from some calculated formula of design principles.” (via The Wall Street Journal)

14. And one other book review: the Hawaiian crow, the California condor and the peregrine falcon - pushed to the brink and the Herculean effort to pull them back: Wildlife biologist Sophie Osborn has spent a career working with birds that have been a feather’s breadth from extinction in the US. Her new book, Feather Trails: A journey of discovery among endangered birds, focuses on the Hawaiian crow, the California condor and the peregrine falcon (also found globally). We have pushed them to the brink, and Osborn describes in painstaking detail the Herculean work to pull them back. (via New Scientist)

15. Finally, who can relate to this author’s frustration with Facebook birding?: We are all different in the way we learn. For example, I've never learned much from simply reading a book. I must repeatedly experience something, copy out notes and test myself to make something stick in my addled brain. Others can pick things up by scanning a piece of text. I need to understand the why and how: I couldn't drive a car until someone explained how an engine worked. It's the same with birds. Just labelling a species won't do, nor will reading the annotations in a field guide. One method of 'learning' which I can't fathom is through bird identification groups on Facebook. I'm part of one with more than 20,000 members, and that's just for the UK. I believe in welcoming anyone interested in our wonderful hobby. Everyone who wants to know more about the natural world should be applauded, their questions answered helpfully and politely. After all, there was a time when all of us saw our first Dunnock. (via BirdGuides)

---

Bird Videos of the Week

Video by Deep Look, “What Makes Owls So Quiet and So Deadly?”

Cornell Live Bird Cam - Hellgate Ospreys.

Cornell Live Bird Cam - Pileated Woodpeckers.

---