birds
grrlscientist | May 19, 2009tags: Rimatara Lorikeet, Kuhl's Lory, Vini kuhlii, 'Ura, conservation, endangered species, Fiji, streaming video
This informative video discusses the conservation of one of my research birds, the Rimatara (Kuhl's) Lory, Vini kuhlii, known by the natives as the 'Ura. Not only is this bird's story interesting, but it also exemplifies the complications and challenges of conserving any endangered species. This is part two of a three-part series [8:00]
If you wish to read more about this bird, I've written a few essays about this program and its progress over the years; The Return of the…
grrlscientist | May 18, 2009tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
Lear's Macaw, Anodorhynchus leari: a great example of a conservation success story.
Image: Andy and Gill Swash, World Wildlife Images.
Birds in Science
A record number of bird species are now listed as threatened with extinction, a global assessment has revealed. The IUCN Red List evaluation considered 1,227, or 12%, of all known bird species to be at risk, with 192 species described as Critically Endangered. The main threats affecting bird numbers continued to be agriculture, logging and invasive species, the…
grrlscientist | May 18, 2009tags: mystery bird, bird ID quiz, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Greater Sand-Plover, Charadrius leschenaultii, photographed near Jacksonville, Florida. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Roger Clark, 14 May 2009 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | May 18, 2009tags: Rimatara Lorikeet, Kuhl's Lory, Vini kuhlii, 'Ura, conservation, endangered species, Fiji, streaming video
This informative video discusses the conservation of one of my research birds, the Rimatara (Kuhl's) Lory, Vini kuhlii, known by the natives as the 'Ura. Not only is this bird's story interesting, but it also exemplifies the complications and challenges of conserving any endangered species. This is part one of a three-part series [8:00]
If you wish to read more about this bird, I've written a few essays about this program and its progress over the years; The Return of the…
grrlscientist | May 17, 2009tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books
"How does one distinguish a truly civilized nation from an aggregation of
barbarians? That is easy. A civilized country produces much good bird
literature."
--Edgar Kincaid
The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and…
grrlscientist | May 17, 2009tags: White Ibis, Eudocimus albus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] White Ibis, Eudocimus albus, photographed the San Bernard Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 12 February 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with tsn-pz camera eyepiece 1/350s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Do you notice the hole in this bird's beak? If so, do you know if this hole will ever be grown over?
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | May 16, 2009tags: American Pipit, Anthus rubescens, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] American Pipit, Anthus rubescens, photographed in Minnehaha County, near Wall lake, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 10 November 2008 [larger view]
Photo taken with a Canon 40D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | May 15, 2009tags: Great Egret, Casmerodius albus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Great Egret, Casmerodius albus, photographed on High Island, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 29 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with tsn-pz camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
This is a big, lanky, long-legged bird with a pointed bill and a…
grrlscientist | May 14, 2009tags: Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 2 January 2006 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2006:01:02 15:42:48
Exposure Time: 1/159
F-Number: 10.00
ISO: 200
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
Start at the reeeaaarrr--among the blackish birds of North…
grrlscientist | May 14, 2009tags: TEDTalks, Joshua Klein, birds, crows, ornithology, animal behavior, streaming video
In this video, Hacker and writer Joshua Klein talks about his fascination with crows. (Notice the gleam of intelligence in their little black eyes?) After a long amateur study of corvid behavior, he's come up with an elegant machine that may form a new bond between animal and human. (2008) [9:47]
grrlscientist | May 13, 2009tags: Northern Parula, Parula americana, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Northern Parula, Parula americana, photographed at Quintana and Beach, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 20 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with tsn-pz camera eyepiece 1/1250s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
It's easy to be distracted by color in a bird as…
laelaps | May 13, 2009
A group of herring gulls (Larus argentatus) tries to avoid an incoming wave. Photographed at Spring Lake, New Jersey.
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grrlscientist | May 12, 2009tags: White-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] White-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 23 December 2007 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2007:12:23 09:04:20
Exposure Time: 1/350
F-Number: 10.00
ISO: 400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
Quick: what's the most abundant…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2009tags: Blue House Sparrow, Passer domesticus, birds, blue feather color, plumage color, refraction
Blue-colored Male House Sparrow, Passer domesticus,
photographed in Sydney, Australia, April 2009.
Image: Richard Shears, Daily Mail [larger view].
Some of you might remember the remarkable photographs of the blue-colored male house sparrow, Passer domesticus, that was photographed in a garden in Sydney, Australia a couple weeks ago. I posted the images I had, along with my speculations, but was unable to go further than that. However, I tracked down the photographer and he has very kindly…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2009tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
Australia's Superb Parrot, Polytelis swainsonii, is listed as a vulnerable species.
Image: Julian Robinson (Canberra ornithologists group) [larger view].
Birds in Science and Technology
"In the past, people thought birds were stupid," laments the aptly named scientist Christopher Bird. But in fact, some of our feathered friends are far cleverer than we might think. And one group in particular -- the corvids -- has astonished scientists with extraordinary feats of memory, an ability to employ complex social reasoning…
grrlscientist | May 11, 2009tags: Green-winged Teal, Anas carolinensis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Green-winged Teal, Anas carolinensis, photographed at San Bernard Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 8 April 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with tsn-pz camera eyepiece 1/350s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
I can't see the toes to know whether they're webbed…
grrlscientist | May 10, 2009tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books
"How does one distinguish a truly civilized nation from an aggregation of
barbarians? That is easy. A civilized country produces much good bird
literature."
--Edgar Kincaid
The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and…
grrlscientist | May 10, 2009tags: Lesser Goldfinch, Carduelis psaltria, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Lesser Goldfinch, Carduelis psaltria, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 15 May 2008 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2008:05:15 08:07:26
Exposure Time: 1/45
F-Number: 5.60
ISO: 500
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
Now comes a teeny, short-tailed, yellowish bird from Arizona. The short tail…
grrlscientist | May 9, 2009tags: Loggerhead Shrike, Lanius ludovicianus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Loggerhead Shrike, Lanius ludovicianus, photographed at Paul Rushing Park, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 28 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with tsn-pz camera eyepiece 1/350s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
There's really nothing else that looks like a…
grrlscientist | May 8, 2009tags: Wilson's Snipe, Gallinago delicata, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Wilson's Snipe, Gallinago delicata, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 16 March 2005 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2005:03:16 10:19:09
Exposure Time: 1/60
F-Number: 16.00
ISO: 200
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, author of Aimophila Adventures and Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
"Start at the rear," indeed! As if this beautiful and humorous image left us any…