Birds and climate to be discussed in Lakeville

Audubon Minnesota, Conservation Minnesota, and Lakeville Friends of the Environment will present the Audubon Bird Impact Study and discuss future impacts on Minnesota birds 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27, at the Lakeville Heritage Library, 20085 Heritage Drive.



Based on a recent bird impact study released by Audubon Minnesota last fall, 166 bird species commonly found in Minnesota are at great risk. Audubon’s scientists analyzed more than 30 years of historical North American climate data and tens of thousands of historical bird records from the U.S. Geological Survey’s North American Breeding Bird Survey as well as utilized information from the Audubon Christmas Bird Count to understand the links between where birds live and the climatic conditions that support them. Understanding these links allow researchers to project where birds are likely to be able to live and thrive in the future.

How many of our current bird species will be here in 20 years? What new species might move into the state from the south? Researchers predict changes are certain. We’ll lose species, boreal nesters in particular, as they follow their breeding climate north. Bird species now found to our south will enter Minnesota for the same reason.

This is one of those topics easily dismissed as far in the future. Not true. Birds are at risk more and more each day. A story in The New York Times today (Friday, Oct. 23) predicts that when the carbon dioxide content of our atmosphere returns to 400 parts per million this winter, it will never again be less. It will only climb. Seasonal change based on summer vegetation causes the measurement to vary slightly; it dropped a few weeks ago from over 400 to just under. It was at 398.48 on the 23rd.

Bird lovers fear annual Australian back yard count will detail species' decline

BirdLife Australia’s state of Australia’s birds report in July found magpie, kookaburra, lorikeet and willie wagtail numbers are declining.



Gazing at large numbers of birds darting overhead may not be ideal for people with Hitchcockian fears but the steady emptying of Australian skies of some species is getting twitchers a little, well, twitchy.

The annual Aussie back yard bird count swooped into action in Melbourne’s Federation Square on Tuesday morning with the expectation that some worrying declines in some of Australia’s most common birds will be confirmed.

BirdLife Australia’s state of Australia’s birds report, released in July, found that well-known species such as the magpie, kookaburra, lorikeet and willie wagtailwere dropping in numbers across large parts of the country.

The backyard count, which encourages people to step out of their house for 20 minutes to count birds, is a less rigorous exercise. Last year’s effort included reports of penguins in the Murray river, after all.

But the count is expected to highlight the level of concern over Australia’s birds that recently prompted a federal government plan to save some of the most threatened of our feathered friends, including the helmeted honeyeater and the night parrot.

The concrete-slathered Federation Square may not be a birders’ paradise but even here a total of seven species were spotted in 20 minutes, including – of course – the rock dove, or pigeon.

The highlight was probably two bright flashes identified as lorikeets by the experts at BirdLife Australia as handlers fed two celebrity birds – Min Min the one-eyed barn owl and Kevy the nankeen kestrel – perched on gloves. Children happily scribbled colours into outlines of hawks and eagles on paper.

Migratory birds make journey from Alaska to Adelaide for summer vacation

Thousands of birds have begun arriving at the salt marshes, mangroves and mudflats along Adelaide's northern coast as part of their annual migration.
About 27,000 birds call the area home each summer with many making the journey from as far away as northern Asia and Alaska.



The South Australian Government bought the 60-kilometre stretch from the Barker Inlet to Port Parham, some 2,300 hectares, in August last year to turn into a bird sanctuary.

Proclaimed as the Adelaide International Bird Sanctuary, the Government has committed to invest $1.7 million to the project.

Birdlife Australia has been monitoring the shorebird population in the Gulf St Vincent for the past eight years to identify how best to protect the environment to ensure the 200 species continue to make the journey every year.

Research and conservation officer Chris Purnell said there had been a staggering decrease in shorebird numbers over the past 45 years.

Many of the birds travel more than 11,000 kilometres to reach the South Australian coast, along the East Asian Australasian Flyway, and depend on the area to fatten up for the long journey back to their breeding grounds.

But Mr Purnell said conservationists faced an up-hill battle in protecting the environment, particularly from damage caused by four-wheel driving enthusiasts.

Groups unite to protect bird population

Members of 30 different organisations have banded together to lead the establishment of the Adelaide International Bird Sanctuary.

The group, which goes by the name The Collective, consists of representatives from the Kaurna community, local and state government and the tourism industry, as well as bird experts, university leaders, school students and members of the Vietnamese Famers Association.

The group is also discussing the possibility of establishing camping areas within the sanctuary for avid bird watchers.

Birds Fall in Love Too, Speed Dating Experiment Shows

Birds and humans are often remarkably similar when it comes to mate choice and falling in love, finds a new study that suggests nature maybe have a romantic side after all.



Successful relationships among birds, as well as humans, are not just about the strongest, fittest and best-looking among us, but instead rely upon pairings based on compatibility and attraction to others.

Malika Ihle of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology and colleagues wrote that “zebra finches choose mates on the basis of behavioral compatibility” and can’t stand being in a relationship that is “forced,” a/la an arranged marriage between a man and a woman.

Impressive Bird Flying Formations: Photos

For the study, Ihle and co-authors Bart Kempenaers and Wolfgang Forstmeier set up a speed-dating session for the little birds, allowing 20 females to choose freely between 20 males.

When the birds paired off, half were allowed “to go off into a life of wedded bliss,” the researchers said in a press release, while the other half experienced an intervention. Like overbearing Victorian parents, the scientists split up this second group of happy couples, and forcibly paired them with other “broken-hearted individuals.”

Bird couples, whether satisfied or somewhat disgruntled, were then left to breed in aviaries. The authors monitored what happened next.

An Educational Mixed Flock

I was upstate again this past weekend, collecting Desi from his week with his grandparents, and took a couple of hours early Sunday morning to visit my favorite Saugerties birding spot, the Great Vly. As is to be expected in late August there were many young birds around getting the hang of living life on their own. Green Herons, Eastern Kingbirds, Tree Swallows, Cedar Waxwings, and a host of other species were successful in breeding and there were a lot of birds around. But what really drew my attention was a particular patch of trees that had quite a few small passerines foraging.



There were Tufted Titmice and Black-capped Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatches and American Redstart. The birds were busy, intent on finding their forage, so they paid little attention to the giant biped with his tripod.

Then I caught a quick glimpse of a small bird, very white below, that didn’t look quite like the Warbling Vireos that were also occupying the space. I’m not sure what keyed me in to this bird, but something seemed different. I tried to get another look at it but it seemed to have disappeared further back into another tree. Oh well. The Warbling Vireos were still around and I enjoyed watching a fledgling begging and its parent ignoring it.

GET READY FOR GLOBAL SHOREBIRD COUNTING!

Clear your calendar for September 4-6! That’s when thousands of people worldwide will head out to a beach near them for Global Shorebird Counting. It’s part of World Shorebirds Day (celebrated annually Sep. 6), which raises awareness of the perils threatening shorebirds and the need to protect them and their habitats.
                 

I’ve always been intimidated by the idea of counting, so maybe this is a good way to start. (For sure, shorebirds are less likely to hide out in dense foliage, and probably also more stationary, save for the occasional patrolling raptor or off-leash dog.) Will I finally make it to one of the Jersey Shore’s birding meccas in search of Ruddy Turnstones, Red Knots, American Oystercatchers, and tons of plovers and peeps? If I do, I’ll register it here—hopefully you can do the same at your local shorebird hotspot!

The effort uses eBird to tally the numbers of shorebirds that people spot the world over. Interestingly, citizen science isn’t its primary goal. (Though researchers who mind eBird data will no doubt benefit from these data.) Rather, according to the organizers, “This program aims to give a picture of the power of field work, to help non-counters to improve their counting skills, and to increase the number of counters worldwide.”