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Faithful Loons and Human Lunacy

10,000 Birds

I strongly suspect that the rate of attrition on this Loon family is inversely proportionate to the abundance of ducklings in the bay. Because Loons’ coastal wintering habitats can be severely impacted by oil spills and other human activities, this information has important implications for wildlife managers.

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Here’s the new bird family tree. It’s amazing.

10,000 Birds

’s bird family tree in a new tab and follow along as you read. While these groups were once considered two orders (Caprimulgiformes and Apodiformes), recent work (summarized in Mayr 2010 ) shows that swifts and hummingbirds emerged from within the night birds. So do parrots, some songbirds, humans, and a few other mammals.

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The Dog Who Healed a Family

4 The Love Of Animals

I recently got a chance to read a charming new book called The Dog Who Healed a Family: And Other True Animal Stories That Warm the Heart & Touch the Soul. she continues, “Pure love is rare among humans, but that’s not a problem with an animal. “They are a bridge to the natural world.&#.

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Backyard Beneficiaries

10,000 Birds

There was an empty lot of land next to us until 2010 – I remember seeing a distraught Blue-black Grassquit sitting on the fence as the bulldozer cleared the land. Life here is experiencing a boon in the face of encroaching human activity, at least in my immediate vicinity. Birds have also benefitted.

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Birds of Belize & Birds of Costa Rica: A Field Guide Review Doubleheader

10,000 Birds

Checklist for Belize lists 622 species in 76 families, of which 104 are rare or accidental and four introduced. Checklist lists 955 species in 86 families, with 152 rare/accidental species, three extirpated species, five introduced species, and nine endemics). Fantasy is the key word here. Doing this work takes time!

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Birding Templehof

10,000 Birds

Sure, the old runways and service roads are still there but the areas between them are not mowed very often, some of the paved areas have been allowed to go completely wild, and nature, as always, finds its way back in as soon as humanity turns its back. It was one of the busiest airports in the 1930s, is home to a building 1.2

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EXPLORER: Fatal Insomnia

4 The Love Of Animals

We don’t usually post about shows that are about humans (even though we love humans too), so you are probably wondering why we are sharing about an upcoming Explorer! Well, they are studying a very unique animal in hopes of helping humans overcome insomnia. EXPLORER: FATAL INSOMNIA airs on Tuesday, April 27 at 10PM ET/PT.

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