From: Paul J. Baicich [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, October 06, 2010 4:07 PM
To: Paul J. Baicich
Cc: Wayne Petersen
Subject: Birding Community E-bulletin - October 2010
THE BIRDING COMMUNITY E-BULLETIN
October 2010
This Birding Community E-bulletin is being distributed to active and
concerned birders, those dedicated to the joys of birding and the protection
of birds and their habitats.
This issue is sponsored by NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC and the wonderful bird and
birding books they make available:
www.shopng.com/birdbooks
NationalGeographicLogo4.jpg
You can access an archive of past E-bulletins on the website of the National
Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA):
www.refugenet.org/birding/birding5.html
RARITY FOCUS
On 5 September, Larry Manfredi found a calling Cuban Pewee at Long Pine Key
in Everglades National Park, Miami-Dade County, Florida. Larry reported that
the bird had a distinctive call, which is what immediately drew his
attention to it. Although the bird initially flew away, it was soon
relocated nearby, close to the area's nature trail.
This species is a resident in the northern Bahamas and in Cuba. If you are
unfamiliar with the species, for more information you might check the
National Geographic Guide (fifth edition, page 294-295).
This bird represents the third fully documented record for the U.S. The
previous two records were both from Boca Raton, Florida, in the early spring
of 1995 and the fall of 1999, respectively. There are also two previous
one-day sightings, one from Key Largo in 2001 and another report from many
years ago at the Dry Tortugas, neither of which were fully documented.
Fortunately, this individual bird was seen or heard through 27 September,
most often near gate 3 by the Long Pine Key nature trail. To the delight of
many visitors from near and far, the Cuban Pewee was readily found in the
mornings, when it was most likely to be heard calling. By mid-morning it
would usually be perched by the gate 3 area of the nature trail.
For photos and audio notes by Larry Manfredi, see here:
www.southfloridabirding.com/html/recent_rarities..htm
LEAD ISSUE SETBACK
Last month we reported on a multi-organizational attempt to get the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ban the use of lead in lead
bullets, shot, and fishing sinkers because of the pernicious impact that
lead has on wildlife:
www.refugenet.org/birding/SepSBC10.html#TOC09
The EPA's original approach was to consider polling the public for its
reaction to the petition, a process which could have taken a couple months.
Ultimately, however, the EPA dismissed the petition, claiming that the
circumstances fell outside its jurisdiction under the Toxic Substances
Control Act of 1976. Under this act, the EPA may regulate "chemical
substances" under certain circumstances, but Congress had excluded any
article the sale of which is subject to the tax imposed by section 4181 of
the Internal Revenue Code. Still, section 4181 actually taxes firearms,
shells, and cartridges, not bullets.
Apparently, the EPA is still considering how to handle the issue of lead
fishing sinkers.
Appropriately, and especially with regard to fishing, The Wildlife Society
and the American Fisheries Society have long recognized the toxicity of
lead. Additionally, non-toxic shot has been required for all waterfowl
hunting under federal and state law since 1991.
The organizations behind the petition are regrouping, and you can find
further details here:
www.independent.com/news/2010/sep/28/epa-wont-bite-bullet/
IBA NEWS: MORE ON THE MBCC CONNECTION
In mid-September, the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission met to decide
on how best to invest Migratory Bird Conservation Fund dollars for
conservation. Duck Stamp monies currently account for a large proportion of
the MBCF.
A dozen investments were made on Refuge lands; some small, some large, some
simply good, and some very impressive. For full details on the actions of
the MBCC, including a listing of the sites and acreage, see here:
http://vocuspr.vocus.com/vocuspr30/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=fws
<http://vocuspr.vocus.com/vocuspr30/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=fws&Entity=
PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=111757&XSL=PressRelease&Cache=True>
&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=111757&XSL=PressRelease&Cache=True
The funds used to acquire 12,473 acres totaled over $21 million.
Unknown to many people is the fact that at least nine of the 12 actions were
for properties that have already ranked as Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in
the U.S.!
For additional information about worldwide IBA programs, and those across
the U.S., check the National Audubon Society's Important Bird Area program
web site at:
www.audubon.org/bird/iba/
IMBD: OCTOBER IN THE CARIBBEAN
This month, Caribbean conservation leaders, researchers, and nature
enthusiasts will join forces to promote public awareness surrounding the
incredible phenomenon of fall migration. This celebration, lead by the
Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds (SCSCB), will be
the third time that International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD) activities have
coalesced in the Caribbean. The SCSCB, the largest organization devoted to
wildlife conservation in the Caribbean, will coordinate month-long
Caribbean-wide activities, most of which will take place on Saturday, 9
October. Many of the island celebrations will have a "Welcome Home
Migrants" theme.
Although many migrant bird species will be highlighted on different islands,
the Peregrine Falcon will serve as the flagship species throughout the
Caribbean for this year's IMBD celebration.
You can get many more details here:
www.scscb.org/programs/program-imbd-2010.htm
BOOK NOTES: MEGA-PHOTOGRAPHIC FIELD GUIDE
Birders will eagerly welcome THE STOKES FIELD GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF NORTH
AMERICA (Little Brown & Co, 2010). This comprehensive, all-inclusive new
field guide from Donald and Lillian Stokes is brimming with 3,400 stunning
photographs illustrating 854 species. This is unequivocally the most
spectacular compendium of North American bird identification photographs
ever assembled between two covers. With high-quality depictions of the
essential plumages of virtually every species and subspecies currently on
the American Birding Association (ABA) Checklist, this monumental new volume
offers birders some of the most up-to-date information on field
identification of North American birds currently available. The guide also
contains many innovative text and layout features, and an accompanying CD
with more than 600 sounds and songs of 150 common birds. Handsome,
comfortably sized at 5.5 x 8.5 inches, and affordable - at less than $25 -
this volume significantly resets the bar for North America field guides.
LATE NOTE: As we finished this month's E-bulletin, we received the
latest National Geographic entry in the world of books on birds and birding,
Les Beletsky's GLOBAL BIRDING. Its 320 pages invite the reader to pursue the
birds of all the continents. Adventures and exploration abound. We will
cover the volume more thoroughly with the November E-bulletin, but we will
also offer copies in our usual National Geographic-sponsored quiz this
month. (For details, see the quiz notice at end of this E-bulletin.)
SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS KILLED IN LONGLINE FISHERY
A Short-tailed Albatross was killed as a result of being caught on a
longline fishing hook from a cod boat in Alaskan waters last month. This is
believed to be the first recorded death of one of these Endangered birds by
a U.S. commercial fishing vessel since 1998.
The albatross which was killed in the Bering Sea wore a metal band
identifying it as a seven-and-a half-year-old bird from Torishima Island,
Japan, where the majority of the world's Short-tailed Albatrosses breed.
The species, whose population once numbered in the millions, was devastated
by commercial feather hunting at the turn of the last century. The birds
were thought to be extinct after 1939 when a volcano erupted on Torishima
Island, but a few young successfully survived at sea. The total population
of this Endangered seabird is thought to currently number about 3,000
individuals.
In 1990, a North Pacific Groundfish Observer Program was implemented on the
domestic fishing fleet in Alaska to provide independent information on a
variety of birds impacted by fishing, including Short-tailed Albatrosses.
Since the program's start, fisheries managers have developed mitigation
strategies that have reduced the number of all albatrosses (including
Laysan, Black-footed, and Short-tailed Albatrosses) killed by commercial
fishing boats from over 1,000 in 1993 to fewer than 150 in 2004. These
estimates are based only on the subset of boats with marine observers.
Additional mortality has probably occurred on unobserved fishing boats
throughout this species' range during this time period.
This month, the Northern Pacific Fishery Management Council will consider
reworking the observer program, a move that could significantly improve
observer data, extending coverage to the commercial halibut fleet and to
groundfish vessels less than sixty feet in length which are currently exempt
from the need to carry observers.
TIP OF THE MONTH: AN INTER-AMERICAN BOOK CONNECTION
Last month we suggested that you share a bird book with someone locally:
www.refugenet.org/birding/SepSBC10.html#TOC12
This month we suggest that you share a field guide with someone elsewhere in
the hemisphere.
One way to do this is to contribute a bird field guide to a locality
somewhere in Latin America or the Caribbean with a bird-oriented counterpart
through Birders' Exchange, a project of the American Birding Association.
After you return from a birding trip to Mexico, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Costa
Rica, Panama, Ecuador, or other location in Latin American or the Caribbean,
consider recycling your field guide to that country that you may not use
again. Birders' Exchange will then pass it along to a student, researcher,
or teacher from that country or location, or at least to someone who can
make good use of the guide. When you are ready to share a book, pack it up
and send it to:
Birders' Exchange
c/o ABA
4945 N 30th St, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, CO 80919
In the same spirit, a number of groups, including the Black Swamp Bird
Observatory, the Sonoran Joint Venture, and Environment for the Americas
have been cooperating to help put Kenn Kaufman's Spanish-language version of
his North America field guide - Guia de campo a las aves de Norteamerica -
into the hands of Spanish-speakers on both sides of the U.S./Mexican border.
Here's how you can help: Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) has arranged to
purchase the book at the deep discounted price of $12.00. You can donate the
cost of a book (or books) and have a name plate inside the front cover
placed there recognizing you as the donor. BSBO will then ship the books to
the partner organization for their outreach programs. You can get more
details about how to participate here:
www.bsbo.org/kenn_kaufman.htm
SPRAGUE'S PIPIT: IN ESA LIMBO
In mid-September, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced the
results of a 12-month finding on a petition to list the Sprague's Pipit as
Endangered or Threatened and to designate critical habitat for the species
under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973. After its review, the USFWS
found that such a listing was warranted.
However, listing is "currently precluded by higher priority actions to amend
the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants." Thus, the
species has been added to an already long list of "candidate species."
Essentially, it's "take a number and get in line."
For the full USFWS announcement see here:
www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/pressrel/10-61.htm
A PRIMER ON HOW TO PREPARE BIRD SKINS
The Beaty Biodiversity Museum (University of British Columbia) has launched
an on-line series of instructions with lots of fine details on how to
prepare bird study skins. This series also includes links for videos, PDFs,
and related websites to provide additional information and techniques.
This museum site will provide helpful instructions for the staff of nature
centers, small museums, and bird observatories desiring to make their own
prepared skins (e.g., spread wings), either for their own use or for
outreach purposes.
Initiated by Ildiko Szabo, an Honorary Assistant Curator, the project also
reminds interested parties that it is essential that such centers or field
stations have appropriate permits, or else are covered under some other
existing permit, allowing them to possess wild bird parts covered by the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Parties interested in skinning birds need to have
these permits well before preparing any birds skins.
The bird prep site is up and running at:
www.beatymuseum.ubc.ca/projects.html
Later this fall, a forum will be added to the website site to enable people
to ask questions and engage in ongoing dialogue.
USEFUL FARM-BILL GUIDE
Among useful publications recently released is a new 72-page guidebook to
the 2008 Farm Bill and written primarily for land trusts and private
landowners. It's a cooperative project authored by Aimee Weldon and
coordinated among conservation NGOs, land trusts, the Intermountain West
Joint Venture, the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI), and
the Sustainable Ag Coalition. This publication can assist land trusts and
landowners to better utilize the technical assistance and significant pots
of money available from Farm Bill conservation programs. Bird
conservationists should pay heed to this approach.
You can find the full publication here:
www.defenders.org/resources/publications/programs_and_policy/habitat_conserv
ation/private_lands/living_lands/conserving_habitat_through_the_federal_farm
_bill.pdf
LOOKING FOR COLOR BANDED SHOREBIRDS
Also in the category of helpful guides, the September issue of WHSR (Western
Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve) News has a very useful and updated "birding
for banded shorebirds" piece on gaining an understanding of those color
bands that can sometimes be seen on migrating shorebirds anywhere in our
hemisphere. Under the Pan American Shorebird Program (PASP), researchers use
one (or two) specific flag color(s) to indicate the country where the bird
was banded. The placement, sequence, and color of the accompanying bands are
all described and explained in fine detail here:
www.whsrn.org/news/article/birding-banded-shorebirds-basics-updated
ONE RED KNOT'S RECORD-BREAKING FLIGHT
On the subject of hemispheric migrating shorebirds, we have an amazing story
to share this month. This spring, shorebird researchers analyzed the
year-long data recorded by the sunrise- and sunset-sensitive geolocators
that had been attached to migrating Red Knots in New Jersey in May 2009.
One of the recaptured knots had flown nearly 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers)
in six days, a record-breaking distance for a non-stop flight by a Red Knot.
It flew across the Amazon and the Atlantic Ocean between southern Brazil and
North Carolina, shattering the previous known Red Knot record by nearly 700
miles. In the previous summer, that same Red Knot flew non-stop for eight
days between Canada's Hudson Bay and the Caribbean, a distance of 3,167
miles (5,100 kilometers).
These are just some the fascinating results published last month in the
bulletin of the International Wader Study Group by a group of shorebird
researchers from the United States, Canada, Argentina, Britain, and
Australia. The lead author, Larry Niles, and his colleagues employed a
relatively new technique - sunrise- and sunset-sensitive geolocators
attached to the legs of Red Knots in New Jersey - to reveal details on the
annual migration of this species. Red Knots can winter as far south as
Tierra del Fuego, South America, and breed in the Arctic.
To see more on this amazing Red Knot, the geolocator technology applied, the
researchers doing the work, and a migration map and photos, visit:
www.whsrn.org/alertsupdates/alert/20100920
BACK TO THE GULF: OIL STILL COMING ASHORE
And just to remind you, as of 19 September, the BP Macondo 252 gusher was
finally capped and sealed, even though attendant issues remain.
Shortly after the "kill" announcement was made, oil was still coming ashore
in the shallow waters closest to the wetlands and beaches in Louisiana,
Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. This was according to reports from
federal teams using shovels and snorkeling gear to survey the coastline for
submerged oil.
Even with the oil away from shore and out of view, it remains ready to
impact fish and other marine creatures, just as it will be waiting to impact
wintering bay ducks, grebes, and loons, among other bird species due to
arrive on the Gulf coast for the winter.
We will continue to report on this important issue in future issues of the
E-bulletin.
LOSS OF A FINE ARTIST: ROBERT V. CLEM
It is with sadness this month that we note the passing of the very talented
bird artist, Robert Verity Clem. Bob Clem is perhaps best known for his
magnificent shorebird paintings that appear in THE SHOREBIRDS OF NORTH
AMERICA, edited by Gardner D. Stout and text by Peter Matthiessen and Ralph
S. Palmer (Viking Press, 1967).
Though not widely published, Bob Clem's bird paintings were exceptional in
their detail, accuracy, and the dramatic settings in which he often
portrayed his favorite subjects, especially raptors and shorebirds. There
are some art critics who feel his work belongs on a par with that of Louis
Agassiz Fuertes, Robert Bateman, and Lars Jonsson.
Bob passed away quietly on 17 September at his home in Chatham,
Massachusetts, at age 76.
THIS MONTH'S QUIZ FOR A NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BIRD BOOK
To celebrate National Geographic's connection with the E-bulletin, we have
some fine National Geographic books to distribute to E-bulletin readers.
Readers who choose to enter our quick-and-easy contest have the chance to
win one of these books. Each quiz question will either relate to one of our
news items for the previous month, or it will relate to some event or
experience that is due to occur during the current month.
For more on the excellent NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC books, see:
www.shopng.com/birdbooks
There will undoubtedly be multiple readers who answer our monthly question
correctly, so we will only be able to distribute five copies to readers
whose names are picked at random from all those submitting correct answers.
Because of shipping constraints, only folks residing in the U.S. or Canada
are eligible.
The prize this month will be GLOBAL BIRDING, a book that we touch on above
and that will the subject of a next month's review. We will have five copies
to distribute.
For more on this book, see here:
http://shop.nationalgeographic.com/ngs/browse/productDetail.jsp?productId=62
00640
Question for this month:
If you see a Red Knot next month with an orange flag on its leg, in what
country would it have been banded?
Please send us your answer (along with your ground mailing address) by 18
October to:
Question for last month: When the Bald Eagle was removed from the list of
Endangered Species under the Endangered Species Act, it was still protected
under two federal laws. The first is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. What is
the second?
The answer: The Bald Eagle Protection Act of 1940 or - as amended the Bald
and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Last month's winners were Laurel Barnhill (Swansea, SC), Debbie Beer
(Springfield, PA), Brian J. Byrnes (Audubon, PA), Kathi Davis (Springfield,
IL), and Roberta Roberts (Seattle, WA). Congratulations to these winners.
- - - - - - - - -
You can access past E-bulletins on the National Wildlife Refuge Association
(NWRA) website:
www.refugenet.org/birding/birding5.html
If you wish to distribute all or parts of any of the monthly Birding
Community E-bulletins, we simply request that you mention the source of any
material used. (Include a URL for the E-bulletin archives, if possible.)
If you have any friends or co-workers who want to get onto the monthly
E-bulletin mailing list, have them contact either:
Wayne R. Petersen, Director
Massachusetts Important Bird Areas (IBA) Program
Mass Audubon
718/259-2178
or
Paul J. Baicich
410/992-9736
We never lend or sell our E-bulletin recipient list. |