I SAW a bird's nest scrunched in between a school and the fire escape steps. In it were two eggs and a mother bird, who fled as soon as she saw me approaching.
Weeks later, I returned to check on the eggs. Once again, the mother fled as I climbed the stairs. As I looked into the nest, I saw a baby bird. It looked to be at least two weeks old. It had quite a bit of fuzz, and its wing was open. He was cleaning himself. He was approximately 15 centimeters long. I touched him on the back very swiftly with one finger. But as I got home and I told my parents they said that I must've killed it. I've been feeling so guilty--too guilty to check on it.
Is it really a myth that the mother will know and then will abandon it?
THE TALLEST BIRD in North America is alarmingly short in number this year.
As a result, wildlife officials would like the public to report sightings as the flock migrates north.
Endangered whooping crane numbers dipped for the first time since
2001. This winter killed 21 birds, more than during any winter on
record, further straining the last wild flock's population. Experts say a poor, dry South Texas habitat is to blame. Low 2008
rainfall resulted in saltier bays and fewer blue crabs, the bird's
primary food source.
Last fall, the flock grew to 270 birds. Deaths this winter, and 34
birds that failed to return to Texas last season, dwindled the flock by
20 percent during the last year.
Whoopers spend summers in Canada and winters in Aransas National Wildlife Refuge near Rockport. Migrating cranes usually depart the Texas coast in late March and early April.
To report sightings of the flock and to
help wildlife experts track the birds, call 1-800-792-1112. Enter "9"
to exit voice mail, then enter extension "4644."
You also may e-mail Lee Ann Linam, a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologist, at leeann.linam@tpwd.state.tx.us.
WASHINGTON, DC--Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today released the first ever comprehensive report on bird populations in the United States, showing that nearly a third of the nation’s 800 bird species are endangered, threatened or in significant decline due to habitat loss, invasive species, and other threats.
At the same time, the report highlights examples, including many species of waterfowl, where habitat restoration and conservation have reversed previous declines, offering hope that it is not too late to take action to save declining populations.
“Just as they were when Rachel Carson published Silent Spring nearly 50 years ago, birds today are a bellwether of the health of land, water and ecosystems,” Salazar said. “From shorebirds in New England to warblers in Michigan to songbirds in Hawaii, we are seeing disturbing downward population trends that should set off environmental alarm bells. We must work together now to ensure we never hear the deafening silence in our forests, fields and backyards that Rachel Carson warned us about.”
The report, The U.S. State of the Birds, synthesizes data from three long-running bird censuses conducted by thousands of citizen scientists and professional biologists.
In particular, it calls attention to the crisis in Hawaii, where more birds are in danger of extinction than anywhere else in the United States. In addition, the report indicates a 40 percent decline in grassland birds over the past 40 years, a 30 percent decline in birds of aridlands, and high concern for many coastal shorebirds. Furthermore, 39 percent of species dependent on U.S. oceans have declined.
However, the report also reveals convincing evidence that birds can respond quickly and positively to conservation action. The data show dramatic increases in many wetland birds such as pelicans, herons, egrets, osprey, and ducks, a testament to numerous cooperative conservation partnerships that have resulted in protection, enhancement and management of more than 30 million wetland acres.
“These results emphasize that investment in wetlands conservation has paid huge dividends,” said Kenneth Rosenberg, director of Conservation Science at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. “Now we need to invest similarly in other neglected habitats where birds are undergoing the steepest declines.”
“Habitats such as those in Hawaii are on the verge of losing entire suites of unique bird species,” said Dr. David Pashley, American Bird Conservancy’s Vice President for Conservation Programs. “In addition to habitat loss, birds also face many other man-made threats such as pesticides, predation by cats, and collisions with windows, towers and buildings. By solving these challenges we can preserve a growing economic engine – the popular pastime of birdwatching that involves millions of Americans – and improve our quality of life.”
“While some bird species are holding their own, many once common species are declining sharply in population. Habitat availability and quality is the key to healthy, thriving bird populations,” said Dave Mehlman of The Nature Conservancy.
Surveys conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey, including the annual Breeding Bird Survey, combined with data gathered through volunteer citizen science program such as the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count, show once abundant birds such as the northern bobwhite and marbled murrelet are declining significantly. The possibility of extinction also remains a cold reality for many endangered birds.
“Citizen science plays a critical role in monitoring and understanding the threats to these birds and their habitats, and only citizen involvement can help address them,” said National Audubon Society’s Bird Conservation Director, Greg Butcher. “Conservation action can only make a real difference when concerned people support the kind of vital habitat restoration and protection measures this report explores.”
Birds are beautiful, as well as economically important and a priceless part of America's natural heritage. Birds are also highly sensitive to environmental pollution and climate change, making them critical indicators of the health of the environment on which we all depend.
The United States is home to a tremendous diversity of native birds, with more than 800 species inhabiting terrestrial, coastal, and ocean habitats, including Hawaii. Among these species, 67 are Federally-listed as endangered or threatened. In addition, more than 184 species are designated as species of conservation concern due to a small distribution, high-level of threats, or declining populations.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service coordinated creation of the new report as part of the U.S. North American Bird Conservation Initiative, which includes partners from American Bird Conservancy, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Klamath Bird Observatory, National Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Geological Survey. The report is available at www.stateofthebirds.org.
AS A NESTWATCHER, you already understand the importance of monitoring the birds to uncover changes in their numbers and distribution. The annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is a quick, easy, four-day snapshot of how the birds are faring in winter across all of North America. The 12th edition of the GBBC takes place February 13 through 16 and we invite you to add your observations to this ever-growing database of observations via the GBBC website. Explore reports coming in from across the continent, take the GBBC survey, even upload images for the photo contest. Just by participating in the GBBC you’ll be entered into a drawing for great prizes donated by the National Audubon Society, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Wild Birds Unlimited, and Droll Yankees. Join the Great Backyard Bird Count this year and Count for Fun, Count for the Future!
SOME wonderful events happen every now and then...it's what keeps us delighted with life. It could be a square dance or a sea food dinner, a concert or a national gathering of folks who love birds.
Last Fall, Tom Patrick (WindStar Wildlife Institute President) and I had a wonderful experience when we went to Cornell University to wallow ( and I do mean wallow) at a conference at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. That beautiful place, in Ithaca, NY, is the Mecca of every person who ever had a warm feeling about birds. We learned about urban birds. Neither of us live in an urban area...in fact, we both live in very rural areas. But there was a lot to learn and the speakers were gracious and informative. We were delighted to tour the fabled "Sapsucker Woods."
One afternoon Tom and I were privileged to take a "behind the scenes" tour of the Cornell Lab of Natural Sounds. Greg Budney, whom I had met at the Hog Island Audubon Ornithology Camp, arranged for Tom and I to tour the largest collection of bird recordings that exists. Greg Budney told me at Hog Island that his goal was to record every bird on the planet. This guy travels around with parabolic microphones and has accomplished about half of what he set out to do. He is a young and talented man. I don't have any doubt that he will succeed in his goal.
Next month I will be traveling to Jeckyll Island, GA to a conference entitled, "Bird Conservation Though Education." (Sadly, Tom Patrick has other commitments.) The Conference is being held at the Jeckyll Island Club Hotel and is being hosted by the Council for Environmental Education (CEE), Flying Wild and the Bird Education Network. Tom has asked that I post daily experiences on the WindStar American Wildlife Blog...and I'll be happy to do that.
I thought I might give everyone an outline of what's happening. I do have to mention that I am just a little bit excited about this conference! I'll leave Baltimore (BWI) at 10:25 AM on Sunday morning Feb. 22. I'll arrive in Jacksonville, FL at 12:40 PM. Simple, quick flight. Here's where the conference attendees get together. Jeckyll Island is an hour north of the Jacksonville airport and a shuttle is required.
So here is my plan: IF I can manage to get the first shuttle to Jeckyll Island...check in at the Jeckyll Island Club Hotel and race over to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center...quarter mile jog... I'll get some sea turtle thrills. Then I'll head back to the Jeckyll Island Club Hotel for food...from one of the four restaurants in the hotel then head to the conference room for an "ice cream social."
Every morning there is a bird walk and every evening there is an owl prowl......I plan to do all of them. Monday's schedule is all meetings and conferences. Tuesday I have a canoe trip planed into the Okefenokee Swamp. The schedule is filled with presentations by bird experts--Kenn Kaufman and his wife, Kim, Don and Lillian Stokes and many, many others.
Wednesday, my schedule says that I'm kayaking around St. Simon's Island in the morning and comferences later. We will do some roll-playing...sharing ideas about bird education. In case I get called upon, I have some of my favorite "Take your breath away" bird education ideas ready . There is a "Seafood boil" planned for Wednesday night.
I'll be be representing Calvert County Division of Natural Resources......and , of course, WindStar Wildlife Institute. If you have questions or suggestions, click on "Comments" at the end of this article.
Jack Lewnes WindStar National Master Naturalist Port Republic, MD
RECENTLY I read a short article in “Birds and Blooms” magazine that explored the reasons why people feed birds. Of course, there was some variation from one person to another, but the general consensus seemed to be twofold: both to assist the birds through the winter and to attract them to the yard.
I suppose that my purpose in putting out food probably falls into those general categories, but the real truth is that I just love seeing the birds. Since I offer seed year around, I can’t truly say that I’m only trying to “help them through the winter.” In addition, although I really enjoy having the birds close to my home, that certainly isn’t my only opportunity to see them since I’m perfectly willing to venture pretty far afield to track down some particular species.
I think that I enjoy watching birds because they are so beautiful and so full of life. Probably some portion of my admiration is rooted in envy. How wonderful it must be to stretch your wings and fly up in the sky, to become free of the earth in a single moment. What is it like to have so much energy squeezed into a tiny body that you could withstand the coldest nights? How can a tiny ball of fluff, like a chickadee, be so intensely alive?
James Matthew Barrie wrote that we are given memories that we might have roses in December. Perhaps we are given bluebirds in January in Minnesota so that we might make it until spring.
I loved seeing the bluebird and I wished him a safe winter. Seeing the bluebird brought a song featuring bluebirds to my mind. There are a lot of songs featuring this beautiful creature. Although the song that occurred to me was a huge hit during World War II, “There’ll Be Bluebirds Over The White Cliffs of Dover” was a fantasy.
There are no bluebirds in Dover. Dover is in the county of Kent in England and bluebirds are indigenous only to North America.
“There'll be bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover. Tomorrow, just you wait and see. There'll be love and laughter and peace ever after, Tomorrow, when the world is free. The shepherd will tend his sheep, The valley will bloom again, And Jimmy will go to sleep, In his own little room again. There'll be bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover. Tomorrow, just you wait and see. There'll be love and laughter and peace ever after, Tomorrow, when the world is free.”
I've always known that a bluebird is a symbol of happiness--even when it is not there.
WHEN I was a boy, I was told that if I put salt on a bird’s tail, I could catch it. I tried. I never could get salt on the tail of any bird other than chicken. I had to catch the chicken first in order to salt its tail, so it didn’t do much to prove the method worked.
Eventually, someone told me that if I could get close enough to put salt on a bird’s tail, I wouldn’t need the salt. I would be close enough to catch it. It was just another story that parents told kids for some reason like the tale I heard that said that eating the crust of the Wonder Bread (it built strong bodies 12 different ways) would make hair curly.
I wasn’t that crazy to have curly hair and I ate the crust anyway, but this was a way to get kids to eat something they didn’t want to eat. I’d dismissed the salt legend until one day, I saw Sylvester the Cat putting salt on Tweety’s tail so that he couldn’t fly away in a cartoon. Then I heard the Mamas and the Papas singing, “This little bird, she can fly away. No salt on her tail. No cage to make her stay.”
Inspired by the two communications, I captured a pigeon. It was a beautiful gray bird with the look of a racer. I salted the pigeon’s tail liberally. I set it free. It flew like the wind. I concluded that salting a bird’s tail is something that works only in cartoon and song.
Al Batt Storyteller/Newspaper columnist Hartland, MN
THE SIGHTS and sounds of wind turbines don't seem to bother farmland birds, according to research published in the Journal of Applied Ecology. Scientists studied the effects of two wind farms in eastern England on 3,000 birds of 23 species, and found that only pheasants seemed to be disgruntled enough to move farther away from the turbines. (Incidentally, if we had a band, we'd call ourselves The Disgruntled Pheasants.) "This is the first evidence suggesting that the present and future location of large numbers of wind turbines on European farmland is unlikely to have detrimental effects on farmland birds," says coauthor Mark Whittingham. "This should be welcome news for nature conservationists, wind energy companies, and policymakers." However, the study did not focus on whether birds were killed by flying into turbines, which is a main concern of conservationists. --Daily Grist
It's Not Too Early To Think About Making Food For Your Bird Feeders
By Aubrey Vaughn AUTUMN and winter are the perfect seasons for drawing birds to your yard by providing an appetizing and necessary food supply.
This time of year, birds are hunting for reliable food sources to prepare for dropping temperatures and dwindling natural food supplies. Establishing a popular food stop benefits both parties ? you'll enjoy entertaining guests and have the satisfaction of seeing them comfortably through the winter months.
Your feathered guests need to eat from one third to three fourths their body weight every day to have the energy to look for food and keep warm in the cold weather. High-energy or 'heating' foods will not only draw a larger crowd, but provide them with the extra fat and nourishment they need to replenish their stores. The bird food recipes below (all from Bird Food Recipes, by Rhonda Massingham Hart; Storey Communications, 1995) appeal to a variety of birds and are great for fall and winter feeding.
Fat & Sassy 2 parts suet, lard,bacon drippings or saved kitchen fat 1 to 2 parts yellow cornmeal Dash of salt and sand 1 part fine cracked corn, mullet or hulled sunflower
Melt suet over low heat. Allow to cool and harden, then heat again. Stir in peanut butter and other ingredients, reserving some of the corn or seeds. Allow to cool somewhat and pour into molds or form into balls. Roll balls into loose corn or seed.
Hanging Heaven 3 parts suet 1 part cornmeal 1 part peanut butter 1 part brown sugar 1 part raisins, dried cherries, etc. 1 part mixed seed or broken nuts Sprinkling of sand 1 or more coconuts, split in half
Melt suet, allow to cool, then re-melt. Stir in other ingredients. Cook until the mixture is the consistency of porridge. If too thick, add small amounts of water or milk; if too thin, add flour. Pour into coconut halves. Hang coconut halves from tree limbs or eaves.
Scrap Pie This recipe is a great way to use up wholesome leftovers.
4 cups crumbs (bread, cookie, cake, doughnut, etc.) 4 cups kitchen scraps (noodles, meat scraps, fruit or vegetables, etc.), chopped 4 eggs 1/4 cup honey 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp fine sand 2 cups milk 2 tbsp shortening or melted bacon fat
Grease baking pan and layer bread crumbs and scraps. Beat eggs and mix with remaining ingredients. Pour over crumbs and scraps. Cover and chill for 1 to 3 hours, then bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. Cool and crumble to serve.
Finally, many birds scavenge roadways to find salt, minerals and sand for nutrients and the grit needed to digest their food. Offer this recipe as a safer alternative.
Crystalline Salt, Wood Ashes Mix salt and ashes with enough water to dissolve and pour over a large rock, stump or wood block. As the water evaporates, crystals form that attract mineral-hungry birds. (Be sure to keep the salt water away from areas that are planted with shrubs or near gardens ? salinating the soil can create problems for plant growth.) *These can be fireplace ashes as long as they do not contain residues from colored (especially red) or slick paper.
Good food is just the beginning of a successful backyard bird sanctuary. Check out the Bird Food Recipes e-book by Rhonda Massingham Hart to find tips for year-round feeding,
what kind of feeders to use and where to place them. Learn about
planting the right shrubs and trees for birds in Bird Feeders with Roots, and find tips for attracting birds in winter in Bringin' in the Birds, both by Terry Krautwurst from Mother Earth News.
This is your chance to share your favorite bird food recipes. Click on "Comments" and add your recipe:
WindStar Wildlife Institute Thomas D. Patrick Founder & President
10072 Vista Court
Myersville, MD 21773
Phone: (301) 293-3351 Email Windstar
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About Windstar
WindStar Wildlife Institute is a national non-profit conservation organization established in 1986. WindStar is a leader in "connecting people to nature through education." In 1999 the Board of Directors decided to move the headquarters to an award-winning, passive solar and earth sheltered structure, Terra Vista, near Myersville, MD. And, a new, four-acre demonstration wildlife habitat, containing all the elements and key components, was created for members and others to visit and to get ideas for their own properties. Each year new habitat components are added. The Institute is known for its award-winning environmental education and certification programs, web site, American Wildlife Blog and outstanding use of nature photography.
