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| Osprey with spotted sea trout / Photo by Mike Weimer (USFWS) |
- Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the publication of Silent Spring by Rachel Carson — a book that linked the use of synthetic pesticides to the disappearance of many formerly common birds and sparked the modern environmental movement in the process. There are numerous tributes and reactions across the web. Here are a few: Silent Spring after 50 years (RRBO), Listening to nature (Smithsonian), 50 years on: Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring” (Why Evolution Is True), Rachel Carson Didn’t Kill Millions of Africans (Slate), How ‘Silent Spring’ Ignited the Environmental Movement (NYT Magazine), and How Rachel Carson Spurred Chemical Concerns by Highlighting Uncertainty (NYT Dot Earth).
- Scientists in British Columbia attached geolocator backpacks to birds from two subspecies of Swainson's Thrush to track their migratory movements. One subspecies traveled south along the West Coast to Central America, while the other flew southeast to the Gulf Coast and on to Colombia.
- Mongabay.com interviews Pablo Garcia Borboroglu, the President of the Global Penguin Society, on the conservation challenges facing the 18 extant species of penguins. More than half of all penguin species are threatened with extinction, with climate change and overfishing playing prominent roles.
- Researchers found that Eurasian Jays use flexible strategies in storing food and raiding other jays' food caches; social status and proximity of other jays factor into which strategy is used.
- A study of Caribbean bullfinches found that different species used different genetic paths to similarly-shaped bills.
- Spotted Antbirds on Barro Colorado Island in Panama forage almost exclusively around marching columns of army ants, unlike their mainland counterparts that mix foraging near army ants with finding food on their own. The change in behavior seems to be linked to the recent disappearance of Ocellated Antbirds from the island.
- Dredge spoils from Rincon Channel, which serves the port of Corpus Christi in Texas, are being used to increase nesting habitat for terns and Black Skimmers.
- A Golden Eagle that had been fitted with a satellite transmitter for research purposes was killed by a trap in Scotland.
- Malabar Pied Hornbill is one of the many bird species that can be seen on Sri Lanka.
- The Smaller Majority: Our top predator
- Why Evolution Is True: A marine mystery solved (and a bit about birds)
- 10,000 Birds: Kettling Broad-winged Hawks
- The Birders Report: To International Bird Rescue “Every Bird Matters”
- March of the Fossil Penguins: Killer Bobble-Headed Penguins!
- Myrmecos: A Cretaceous Haidomyrmex as the first trap-jaw ant?
- Painting rooftops white can lower the urban heat island affect, but it can also reduce rainfall, which may be a significant disadvantage in some areas.
- A genetic study of urban coyotes in Chicago found complete monogamy, which is unusual among animals adapted to cities.
- The National Park Service is testing 96 employees who worked at Yosemite National Park for hantavirus infections. One historian noted the irony of a hantavirus outbreak happening at a national park that was originally envisioned as a place of healing.
- The IUCN is creating a green list of fully protected species and ecosystems to complement its red list and promote conservation success stories.
- Washington's decision to kill one of its wolf packs has ignited significant opposition.
- A priest is under investigation for ivory smuggling in the Philippines. His role was brought to light by an article on the global ivory trade that appeared in National Geographic recently. Religious images (in the Philippines and elsewhere) remain a major market for smuggled ivory.
- Salt marshes sequester large amounts of carbon, but rising sea levels threaten their continued existence.
