Arizona’s bald eagles expand breeding sites in 2017

Sept. 12, 2017 Arizona Game and Fish Department     Arizona’s bald eagles expand breeding sites in 2017     PHOENIX — Arizona’s bald eagle population continues to soar as the number of breeding areas expanded statewide and a record 82 young hatched during the 2017 breeding season, according to an annual Arizona Game and Fish Department survey.   While the number of hatchlings rose from the previous high of 79 in 2016, the number of young that actually fledged dipped slightly to 63 birds that made the important milestone of their first flight. In Arizona, at least 95 eggs were laid, which was slightly less than the 97 laid in 2016, and a record 85 breeding areas were identified, including two new areas.   “We continue to see phenomenal growth of Arizona’s bald eagle population,” said Kenneth Jacobson, AZGFD bald eagle management coordinator. “An increase in breeding areas and increasing numbers of hatchlings is a testament to the resiliency of these magnificent animals and our ongoing efforts to help recover bald eagles in Arizona.”   Arizona’s bald eagle populations have flourished since 1978, when 11 pairs were counted within the state and the species was listed as endangered. Today there are an estimated 67 adult breeding pairs.   Bald eagles in Arizona were removed from the federal Endangered Species Act in 2011. The department’s conservation efforts contributed to the species recovery. Nationally, the birds remain protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.   The impressive growth of the population is attributed to the continued efforts of the Southwestern Bald Eagle Management Committee – a coalition of AZGFD and 25 other government agencies, private organizations and Native American tribes – and its years of cooperative conservation efforts, including extensive monitoring by the nationally-awarded Bald Eagle Nestwatch Program.   The breeding season for bald eagles in Arizona runs from December through June, although eagle pairs at higher elevations nest later than those in the rest of the state.   Continued support from the committee, State Wildlife Grants and the Heritage Fund (Arizona Lottery ticket sales), will help ensure that Arizona’s bald eagles continue to thrive.   For more information on bald eagles in Arizona, visit www.azgfd.gov (click on “wildlife”) or www.swbemc.org.​​​​​​​     Did you know? The Arizona Game and Fish Department receives NO Arizona general fund tax dollars. We hold the state’s wildlife in trust for the public without a dime from Arizona taxpayers.

The Arizona Game and Fish Department prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, religion, or disability in its programs and activities. If anyone believes that they have been discriminated against in any of the AZGFD’s programs or activities, including its employment practices, the individual may file a complaint alleging discrimination directly with the Director’s Office, 5000 W. Carefree Highway, Phoenix, AZ 85086-5000, (602) 942-3000, or with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Attn: Civil Rights Coordinator for Public Access, 5275 Leesburg Pike, MS:WSFR, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803. Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation or this document in an alternative format by contacting the Director’s Office as listed above.       Arizona Game & Fish Dept. · 5000 W. Carefree Hwy, Phoenix, AZ 85086 (602) 942-3000 · www.azgfd.gov

Why the ostrich is the only living animal with four kneecaps

ZOOLOGGER

1 September 2017

Zoologger is our weekly column highlighting extraordinary animals – and occasionally other organisms – from around the world

By Michael Marshall

Species: Struthio camelus

Habitat: most of Africa, especially the reasonably flat bits

Some people just achieve too much. For instance, Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson is also a qualified airline pilot, a skilled fencer and a published novelist – which is frankly galling.

Ostriches are the Bruce Dickinsons of the bird world. Not only are they the largest living bird species, they also lay the largest eggs of any bird alive and hold a Guinness World Record to that effect. And they can run faster.

However, what you may not know is that they are quite possibly the only animal to have two kneecaps in each leg. This we’ve known since at least 1864, but why it should be so has remained a mystery ever since.

Funny bones

To find out, Sophie Regnault and her colleagues at the Royal Veterinary College in London, examined a single dead ostrich donated to the college. They alternately bent and straightened the ostrich’s knees, and used an imaging technique called biplanar fluoroscopy to track how the bones moved. Then they built a simple model to understand how the kneecaps affected the leverage of the muscles controlling the knee.

“The upper kneecap looks similar to the single bone in ourselves and other animals,” says Regnault. However, “the lower one is very closely attached to the lower leg bone… a bit like the point of your elbow.”

Typically, kneecaps improve the leverage of the knee extensor muscles, so they don’t need to produce as much force to straighten the knee. “It’s a bit like putting the door handle further from the hinge,” says Regnault. “It requires less force to open the door.”

Continued  

High-flying ducks cross Himalayas

September 5, 2017

A high-flying duck species reaches altitudes of up to 6,800 metres (22,000 feet) to cross the Himalayas, new research shows.

Ruddy shelducks are known to breed north of the Himalayan mountain range, but spend their winters at sea level south of the Tibetan Plateau.

They need to fly over the Himalayas in the spring to get back to their breeding grounds, a huge challenge that sees them cross terrain higher than 4,000 metres, where oxygen levels are halved.

Scientists from the University of Exeter used satellite tracking to discover that they fly through valleys in the mountain range - avoiding massive peaks like Mount Everest.

"This is the first evidence of extreme high-altitude flight in a duck," said lead researcher Nicole Parr, of Centre for Ecology and Conservation on the University of Exeter's Penryn Campus in Cornwall.

"This species has probably evolved a range of adaptations to be able to cope with flying so high, where oxygen levels are half those at sea level. We don't yet know the nature of these adaptations.

"Our research also shows that the ruddy shelduck has a faster climb rate than the bar-headed goose - the only waterfowl known to fly even higher."

Dr Lucy Hawkes, the supervisor of the work at the University of Exeter, had previously tracked bar-headed geese to 7,290 metres altitude near Everest in 2014.

They were long thought to be the world's highest-flying bird based on flapping flight (some birds soar higher on thermals), but the new research suggests that the bar-headed geese may not be the only species flying at these high altitudes.

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Kaua’i Forests Fall Quiet

31 AUG 2017

EMILY HEBER

Introduced species and climate change are threatening Kaua’i’s native Honeycreepers with extinction; the once noisy forest is falling quiet.

When conjuring an image of Hawai’i, many people think of beautiful sandy beaches with tall palm trees overhead. But there is more to Hawai’i, and some of the islands’ habitats holds a starkly different reality. The lush fern forests with trees covered in moss are certainly beautiful, but much has changed since humans arrived, and over the past few decades the normal sounds of native birds have dissipated. Lisa Crampton coordinator of the Kaua’i Forest Bird Recovery Project comments:

We wouldn’t be able to have a conversation…It was a much, much noisier forest, but in the last 10-15 years, many of our species are in 70 to 90 percent declines — that’s how fast the populations are collapsing.

Kaua’i’s native forests were once home to a variety of endemic Hawaiian honeycreepers that made the forest come to life with the sounds of their songs, but the introduction of invasive species, now compounded with climate change and habitat loss, is altering Hawai’I’s soundscape. Predation by invasive feral cats and rats has diminished populations of many native Hawaiian species. Now, invasive mosquitoes too are increasing the risk of extinction by introducing avian diseases to these bird populations.

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Rare ibis discovered

September 1, 2017

Ven Rathavong / Khmer Times Share:    

Researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and Environment Ministry have found two pairs of critically endangered giant ibis in Mondulkiri’s Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary.

They are the first of the species found in the sanctuary for ten years.

“This finding confirms once again that Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary is a biodiversity hotspot and vital for conservation of globally threatened mammal and bird species,” WCS said yesterday.

The giant ibis (Thaumatibis gigantea) is Cambodia’s national bird, and exists only in Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

There are about 194 mature individuals in the global population, with about 99 percent living in Cambodia.

Research team leader Sot Vandoeun said his team spent almost fifteen days searching for the species in the area.

Old reports and previous research had confirmed the presence of the species, however they had no accurate population number.

Continued  

After the crash: how can we rebuild South Asia's vulture population?

31 Aug 2017

Conservationists from India and Nepal have come together to plan a transboundary, sustainable answer to the question: how can you improve the outlook of a bird family that has already suffered a population crash of 99%?

By Khima Nand Balodi

Asian vultures have undergone a catastrophic decline in recent decades, with populations crashing by as much as 99%. In India and Nepal, four of nine vulture species are Critically Endangered, largely as a result of poisoning by a drug commonly used to treat livestock, diclofenac.  Since 2006, diclofenac has been banned in these  countries for veterinary use, but it is still being purchased on the black market, and vultures are still struggling to rebound in the wake of their population crash. The Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP)  - an inititive co-created by BirdLife in 1985 - has funded projects in both Nepal, in 2010 and 2013, and India, in 2016, to improve the outlook for these overlooked species. In March this year, a CLP Learning Exchange brought a project team member from both countries together to share their knowledge.

Khima Nand Balodi, who led a project to assess the population status and threats facing vultures in Uttarakhand, India in 2016, visited Bhupal Nepali, who has worked to strengthen Vulture Safe Zones in Nawalparasi, and to enhance community-based conservation in western Nepal. Here, Khima shares his Learning Exchange experiences.

Continued  

Hand-reared godwits take flight from Welney as they fly south for the winter

Published: 13:35 Monday 04 September 2017 

A total of 26 black-tailed godwits, hand-reared at WWT Welney have spread their wings for warmer climes. The first-time adventurers were released from their aviary only eleven weeks ago and have already been sighted in various locations along the north Norfolk coast thanks to the sharp eyes of site staff and local birdwatchers. 

Two siblings have even been spotted together at RSPB Old Hall Marshes in Essex. 

Baby black-tailed godwits were headstarted by staff at WWT in Welney as part of a Project Godwit aimed at helping the endangered species. It is hoped they will eventually all join other black-tailed godwits as far away as Africa in the coming months. The eggs of the endangered birds were collected from the wild by RSPB and WWT staff and hatched and raised in captivity to boost their chances of reaching maturity. Dr Baz Hughes, head of conservation action at WWT, said: “All 26 birds have now dispersed from the Ouse Washes and sightings are starting to come in from the south of England.
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