At least 863 birds have been killed from wetlands pollution or poisoning in India in about a month. In addition to almost 50 birds killed at Okhla Bird Sanctuary, birds in Assam, Gujarat, Uttaranchal and Delhi have been found dead from poisoning. Read the story Pollution killed 863 birds in a month across India in the Times of India.
Quite a fowl situation indeed. A retired nurse and insane-person frontwoman, Marian Morris, reportedly saved a chicken’s life by performing “mouth-to-beak” resuscitation on the bird.
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Early results from last weekend’s back yard bird count organized by the Belgian group Natuurweekend are in. The average number of birds counted in Flemish back yard feeders was 43.7, up from an average of 31 last year.
The higher number of birds counted this year does not necessarily mean that there are more birds in general in Flanders. A spokesperson for the group Natuurpunt noted that birds are more likely to be found at back yard feeders in times of extreme cold weather, which has been the case this winter.
This was the sixth year that the back yard bird count has taken place.
Last weekend 49 dead migratory birds were found at the Okhla Bird Sanctuary on the Yamuna River not far from Delhi, India. Forty of the birds were shovellers. The cause of death is not yet known; water contaminated with farm fertilizers is one possible culprit. Read Lalit Kumar’s story Mercury may have caused bird deaths in the Times of India.
“State biologists counted 244 eagles during an aerial survey of a 180-mile stretch of the river this month, compared with 117 eagles last year.” Read the story Bald eagle population rebounds in Lower Wisconsin River valley at ABC 7 Chicago.
Poultry companies are advised to keep their free-range chickens away from areas where waterfowl are known to congregate. The Animal Sciences Group of Wageningen University advises poultry concerns to make a strong statement among their ranks, or to even make strict controls.
Chickens without shelter or a fence to protect them are exposed to several risks. The birds can intermingle with wild birds, increasing the chance of illness.
Source: ‘Buitenlopende kippen liever niet in buurt watervogels’
A previously undiscovered area high in the Indonesian mountains has revealed dozens of species of birds, butterflies, frogs and plants previously unknown to science.
An international group of 25 scientists studied the area in December 2005. A species of honeyeater bird, with a bright orange wattle, was among the new species discovered.
The team also captured the first photographs of two other previously known species: the Berlepsch’s Six-Wired Bird of Paradise, and the Golden-fronted Bowerbird.
Sources:
“Lost world” found in Indonesian jungle
New Guinea “lost world” revealed
‘Lost world’ found in jungle
Last month’s oil spill off the coast of Estonia is now believed to threaten up to 35,000 birds, significantly more than the early estimates of 5,000 birds. As of today more than 3,000 dead birds have already been collected in the spill area. The cause of the leak is still under investigation; Estonian authorities admit that the ship which caused the spill may never be indentified. Read Elizabeth Davies’ story Estonian oil spill threatens 35,000 birds in The Independent.
Britain’s great ornithological mystery of recent years, the vanishing of the familiar house sparrow, may finally be solved. A postgraduate researcher in Leicester conducted a study of sparrow chicks and discovered that their food supply in their first few days of life is critical, and the recent scarcity of protein-rich insects in Britain may be contributing to the sparrow’s demise.
Read Michael McCarthy’s story Revealed: why the sparrows are dying out in The Independent.
A research team exposed Java Sparrows to English and Chinese translations of two well-known Japanese novels. The birds correctly identified the English recording 75 percent of the time.
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