Monthly Archives: December 2006

Grenada Sells Off Dove Sanctuary To Resort Development

The Grenada Dove, an endangered bird with a global population of 180 birds, is seriously threatened as the government of Grenada is planning to sell off the Mount Hartman National Park to developers.

The national park, also known as ‘The Dove Sanctuary’, is home to about 20 pairs of the Grenada Dove, which is about 22% of the entire population.

The resort development is proposed by the Four Seasons group.

Read more about Grenada’s poor decision-making.

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Posted in Aside, Endangered | Leave a comment

Whooping Crane Population Thrives

There were less than 20 Whooping Cranes in 1941. Today, the U.S. population exceeds 500 birds.

The comeback of the Whooping Crane is due to a coordinated conservation effort. A recent survey counted 237 individuals over-wintering in the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.

The large birds reach a height of 5 feed and their wingspan can be up to 7 feet.

Read more about the comeback of the Whooping Crane.

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Posted in Aside, Endangered, North America | Leave a comment

Amsterdam Airport’s Lapwing Problem

Around Amsterdam’s airport, Schiphol, approximately 25,000 birds have settled and seem to be planning nesting activities. That is about 20 percent more than normal.

To drive the birds, mostly lapwings, off, authorities have placed dogs in the fields around the airport. Loudspeakers playing recordings of lapwings in distress have also been placed around the airport in an effort to drive the birds away. The lapwings have migrated from northern Europe and remain in the Netherlands this year due to unseasonably warm temperatures.

Landing and departing aircraft can suffer from damage if the birds fly into the windows or engines.

The grass in the fields around the airport will remain unmowed in an effort to make the birds feel less comfortable.

Source: Schiphol verjaagt kieviten

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Camera Placed By Dutch White-tailed Eagle Nest

Forest managers have placed a small camera by the White-tailed Eagle nest in the Oostvaardersplassen in Flevoland. The birds’ successful nest last year amazed park rangers and was great news for birdwatchers in the Netherlands.

The Oostvaardersplassen received a lot of visitors intent on seeing the birds. However, park rangers kept the location of the nest secret, to avoid disturbing the birds. Rangers themselves stayed clear of the nest and only learned several weeks after hatching that one chick survived to fledge.

Rangers placed a remote camera in the tree by the nest. Eagle pairs are known to use the same nest over many years but do not use the nest over the winter months, so the camera was placed without disturbing the birds. Images from the camera will be viewable from the visitor center at Oostvaardersplassen and via the internet.

Already the eagle pair has been seen making repairs and improvements to the nest. Last spring the couple, a young female and older male, raised one chick to adulthood. Remarkable was the fact that it was the female’s first nest. First nests rarely produce a successful offspring.

Source: Camera op zeearendnest

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Posted in Netherlands, Webcams | 1 Comment

Vulture Migrates In Cargo Class

An unhealthy vulture found in an Oak Park Illinois parking lot last month is heading south for the winter, on a commercial flight from Chicago to Tampa.

The Willowbrook Wildlife Center cared for the vulture until it was healthy again. The bird would be unlikely to survive the winter in Chicagoland so sending it to the usual winter hangout for vultures is the best solution.

Now, the center is caring for a Scarlett Tanager that survived a cat attack in October. Tanagers typically travel as far south as South America during the winter migration. The Tanager will remain in the center for the winter and be released in the spring. And a Great Blue Heron found injured in Lisle earlier this year will be driven south to Texas by a center volunteer.

Read more about these unusual wildlife rescues.

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Posted in Florida, Illinois, North America, Offbeat, Rehabilitation | Leave a comment

Dutch Study Feral Rose-Ringed Parakeets

Dutch bird researchers hope to learn more about how local groups of feral Rose-Ringed Parakeets survive the cold winters of the Netherlands. The parakeets have lived wild in the Netherlands since 1968.

The first wild birds were noticed in the Ockenburg area of the Hague in 1968. Today large populations of the birds live around big cities like Amsterdam and the Hague and outlying urban areas. We have seen them around Leiden as well.

Source: Landelijke telling van halsbandparkieten

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Posted in Invasive / Non-native, Netherlands | Leave a comment

Western Tanager Spotted Outside Normal Range – In Ohio

A female Western Tanager was spotted in Grandview Heights, Ohio last week. The bird’s normal range is in the western United States, particularly in the Rocky Mountains.

Prior to this year, confirmed sightings of the Western Tanager in Ohio were recorded once in the 1980’s and once in the 1990’s. This year there have been three verified sightings.

Read more about the Tanager’s visit to Ohio.

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Posted in Aside, North America, Rare / Vagrant | 1 Comment

BirdLife Opposes Proposed Bridge Between Germany & Denmark

A huge cable bridge has been proposed to link Fehmarn in Germany with Lolland in Denmark. The proposal, by the European Union along with Denmark and Germany, could threaten more than 90 million birds.

The German partner of BirdLife International opposes the proposed bridge as construction could have serious consequences for millions of migratory birds as well as sea life including seals and porpoises. The group has an online petition against the bridge which can be signed here.

Read more about the proposed bridge between Germany and Denmark.

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Posted in Aside, Europe | Leave a comment

House Sparrow Tops Dutch Garden Bird Count

Volunteers counted back yard birds throughout the Netherlands last weekend and the winner again this year is the House Sparrow.

The top three birds remained the same as last year: 1) House Sparrow; 2) Great Tit; and 3) Blackbird.

The one newcomer to this year’s list is the Wood Pigeon, replacing the Eurasian Tree Sparrow.

Source: Huismus weer meest gezien

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus indicus)
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus indicus) by Lip Kee, Creative Commons on Flickr

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Posted in Aside, Netherlands, Yard Birds | Leave a comment

More Birds Breeding In Dutch ‘Harderbos’

It was revealed that this year three new bird species have been breeding in the forest ‘Broekbos’, part of the larger Harderbos natural area in Flevoland, the Netherlands. At least 61 different species are known to raise chicks in the woods.

Of the 61 species of birds breeding in the Broekbos, twelve of them are rare or endangered, including Great Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus arundinaceus) and Bearded Reedling (Panurus biarmicus).

Forest management for the woods has made the environment more appealing for birds by increasing the amount of water in the area. Forest workers have also repaired the reedbed to make more enticing habitat. Because of efforts like this, the Bearded Reedling has increased from one breeding pair to five breeding pairs in three years.

The Broekbos has also been successful in appealing to migratory birds to use the area as a stopping off point during their trek. In October and November this year 375 Red-Crested Pochards were counted in the waters of Broekbos, which accounts for about 2% of the global population.

Natuurmonumenten has created four routes for visitors to walk through the Broekbos, ranging from 2.5 to 9.5 kilometers. Because the trails can be wet, it is recommended to wear waterproof shoes or boots. There is one bird hide along the routes.

Source: WEER MEER BROEDVOGELS IN HET HARDERBOS

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Posted in Netherlands | Leave a comment