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California Peregrines Victims of Their Own Success?

10,000 Birds

This Peregrine close-up courtesy of Larry Jordan. The move, which seems limited to just California, is meant to protect endangered shorebirds which have become favorite meals of the raptors. News California Conservation endangered species Peregrine Falcon' Birders love cute shorebirds, but they also love amazing raptors.

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I and the Bird: What is a Vulture?

10,000 Birds

The smellier the better, particularly as, unusually for birds, many species can boast a robust sense of smell. In any case, our hang-ups with vultures clearly stem from our own issues rather than any inherently bizarre trait of the species themselves. Vultures famously feed on carrion. Dead things. New World Vultures.

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White-faced Ibis at Colusa National Wildlife Refuge

10,000 Birds

Pochards: Last Lifer of the Trip About the Author Larry Larry Jordan was introduced to birding after moving to northern California where he was overwhelmed by the local wildlife, forcing him to buy his first field guide just to be able to identify all the species visiting his yard. Forgotten Owls When Is A Tanager A Spindalis?

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Cavity Nesting Birds of North America and Their Babies!

10,000 Birds

Bufflehead ( Bucephala albeola ) Female at Cavity Entrance photos by Larry Jordan “Some 85 species of North American birds excavate nesting holes, use cavities resulting from decay (natural cavities), or use holes created by other species in dead or deteriorating trees. Talk about cute! www.youtube.com/watch?

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Duck Numbers And Duck Stamp Sales No Longer Correlate

10,000 Birds

This equates to a loss of US$126 million in gross revenue and from 42,500 to 80,900 fewer hectares of wetland and upland hectares protected. Although not covered in the paper in the Wildlife Society Bulletin, the authors have suggested elsewhere (at conferences) that a different species of duck stamp be developed, with different price levels.

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Leucistic Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis

10,000 Birds

I briefly entertained the idea that I had found a rare species never before seen in New York but quickly came to my senses and realized that I was dealing with a leucistic individual. What I am getting at here is that I have seen lots and lots of Ruddy Ducks at Jamaica Bay but never one that looked like this particular individual.

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What are the Costs of Changing Bird Names?

10,000 Birds

An op-ed in the Washington Post by Gabriel Foley and Jordan Rutter is a fine summary of the arguments, and there is a good background article at Birdwatching magazine. The species was named after John P. I suspect there is little opposition to changing the names of species with particularly sordid namesakes.

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