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Category Archives: weather
Re-imaging the meaning of national defense
Writing for Resilience, Rob Brooks re-imagines a national defense grounded in Wendell Berry’s observation that “Earth is what we all have in common.” “We need to pay as much attention to conserving and restoring the connectivity of the natural infrastructure … Continue reading
Posted in academics, editorial, environment, history, life, skepticism and science, weather, wildlife, wind power
Tagged #Army Corps of Engineers, #CASSE, #Coast Guard, #disaster response, #DoD, #FEMA, #flyways, #National Guard, #natural infrastructure, #steady state economy, climate change, conservation, environment, joint ventures, nature, resilience, science, sea level rise
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Yes, we know that “the climate has always changed”…
… but that’s not the point. Here’s what that point really is. The concentration of global, atmospheric CO2 today exceeds 400 ppm. The last time that happened on Earth was something like 2–5 million years ago, in the Pliocene Epoch … Continue reading
Posted in academics, deforestation, editorial, Endangered Species Act, environment, evolution, history, IUCN, overpopulation, skepticism and science, weather
Tagged #climate justice, #climate proxy, #ClimateAlwaysChanges, #coastal, #famine, #greenhouse gases, #Homo habilis, #human migration, #IPCC, #land cover, #land use, #Pliocene, #ppm, #refugee, #sea level, climate, CO2, environment, nature, NOAA, population, science, sustainability
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Dear Americans, stop using China and India as climate change scapegoats — The Logic of Science
Reblogged from The Logic of Science. I spend a lot of time on this blog debunking bad arguments, and I have previously devoted a lot of effort to debunking bad arguments against man-made climate change. There is, however, one … Continue reading
Violent storms and violet skies on the Oklahoma prairie
Though it’s not easy to orchestrate given my other commitments, a singular joy of mine is to head west each June for a whirlwind investment of about 24 hours in conducting the Lookout, OK Breeding Bird Survey route. … Continue reading
Posted in birding, birding community e-bulletin, birds/nature, editorial, Endangered Species Act, environment, life, population monitoring, weather, wildlife, wind power
Tagged birding, Breeding Bird Survey, citizen science, Lookout, North American Breeding Bird Survey, Oklahoma, ornithology
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Remote sensing for wildlife detection
Post provided by Tracey Hollings In an age of rapid technological advances, ecologists need to keep abreast of how we can improve or reinvent the way we do things. Remote sensing technology and image analysis have been developing rapidly and … Continue reading
Vicarious early winter in Vermont
Snow squalls sweep across the mountains in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. ./ © K.P. McFarland Fear not, during these short days and long nights of December, we’re still finding plenty of life in the fading light. Once we pass … Continue reading
Posted in animal behavior, birding, birds/nature, environment, evolution, life, Links, migrants, weather, wildlife
Tagged climate, deer yard, diapause, environment, fir, irruption, kinglet, mourning cloak, science, snow, Vermont Center for Ecostudies, winter
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Why can’t humans affect the climate?
If you have insights on this please help me understand. As noted this week, discussions of anthropogenic climate change have peaked since President Trump’s decision to renege on US commitments to the Paris Climate Accord. One of the primary … Continue reading
2016 State of the Birds
It ain’t much better than the last one. Check out the press release for the 2016 State of the Birds Report to see the gains and losses in conservation, and consider options for the future. (Complete and well-organized overview here.) … Continue reading
Posted in birds/nature, Endangered Species Act, environment, IUCN, life, migrants, National Audubon Society, Partners in Flight, population monitoring, weather, wildlife
Tagged American Birding Association, biodiversity, BirdLife International, citizen science, conservation, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, eBird, migratory bird program, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, migratory connectivity, NABCI, ornithology, Playa Lakes Joint Venture, State of the Birds 2016, USFWS
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After 90 Percent Decline, Federal Protection Sought for Monarch Butterfly
Thanks to K. P. McFarland for this important post from 26 Aug. 2014. I have been following this story for years, but even I was surprised to learn that things had gotten so grave so quickly.
Posted in birds/nature, editorial, Endangered Species Act, environment, evolution, IUCN, life, Links, migrants, monarch butterfly, weather, wildlife
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Puffin Cams and other delights from the National Audubon Society
The latest Audubon newsletter features Green Heron nestlings, live feeds of nesting puffins on Seal Island, ME, and lots of other cool stuff. Check it out! Atlantic Puffin burrow-cam! (The Common Tern soundtrack sure brings back memories.) Here’s the … Continue reading
A Wandering Week in Newfoundland – Part 4 of 4: To The Wilds
The culmination of our week in Newfoundland, and our entire reason for being there, was the Davis/Murphy family reunion. Warmed and sated from my piping hot bowl of moose stew from the Gannet’s Nest in St. Brides, we headed inland … Continue reading
Posted in birding, birds/nature, environment, kids, life, Links, migrants, No Child Left Inside, weather, wildlife
Tagged Avalon Peninsula, birding, Blackpoll Warbler, boreal forest, Cornus canadensis, Davis-Murphy family reunion, fir, Newfoundland, Northern Waterthrush, Olive-sided Flycatcher, River Otter, Salmonier Nature Park, spruce, The Wilds at Salmonier River, Usnea
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A Wandering Week in Newfoundland – Part 3 of 4: The Fog Rolls In
For two days we had explored the eastern Avalon around St. John’s, in glorious sunshine punctuated by a profusion of blooming fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium) that provided vibrant color against the green and blue of forest and sea. Our host for … Continue reading
Posted in birding, birds/nature, environment, kids, life, Links, nature deficit disorder, No Child Left Inside, weather, wildlife
Tagged American Pipit, Argentia, Armstrong's Suites, Avalon Peninsula, balsam fir, Bird Rock, black spruce, Black-legged Kittiwake, Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve, cod tongue, Common Murre, moose print, moose stew, Newfoundland, Northern Gannett, Placentia, Savannah Sparrow, speckled alder, The Gannet's Nest, Thick-billed Murre, Three Sisters Pub, white spruce
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More talking birds on the radio
I might have to call these radio segments “Bird Calls”, because that’s what host Steve Daniels seems to want me to do. We were, however, able to cover a few different topics during my appearance this morning on 105.1 FM’s … Continue reading
Posted in birding, birds/nature, weather, wildlife
Tagged hummingbird, morning scramble, Stillwater 105.1, Triple-Play Sports Radio, Upland Sandpiper
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Shorebirding Stillwater
For years, I’ve been checking the Meridian Technology Center pond in Stillwater for migrating shorebirds. This pond occasionally has some nice ducks in the winter, and supports most of our local Canada Geese. It’s usually good for a Great Blue … Continue reading
Posted in animal behavior, birding, birds/nature, environment, migrants, weather, wildlife
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Hurricane Birds – the aftermath of Irene
Some years ago when I was a budding birder living near the Atlantic Coast, I learned of one of the craziest aspects of hard core birding: hurricane birding. Much like the surfers who get excited by impending storms, we birders … Continue reading
Posted in animal behavior, birding, birds/nature, environment, life, Links, migrants, pressure drop, weather, wildlife
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Chinquapin taking a break in the Bahamas
Tremendous story here chronicling the autumn migration of a Whimbrel from its breeding grounds in Arctic Canada, through then-Category 3 Hurricane Irene, and popping out on Eleuthera in the Bahamas, apparently none the worse for wear. Chinquapin has been a … Continue reading
Cornell Lab of Ornithology eNews, June 2011
Highlighted: efforts to begin captive breeding program for the endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper; voices of the White-rumped Sandpiper; more extreme birding milestones. Newsletter here.
Climate change disconnect
Richard Harris reports on analysis of polling data today at NPR news. The take-home message? American scientists are almost universally (97% of them) on board with the idea that human activities are behind rapid climatic changes right now, but only … Continue reading
Posted in biofuels, editorial, environment, skepticism and science, weather
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Drought pushing birds east?
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this one out. Here’s what’s happening weather-wise in the Southwest: Here’s the range map for Cassin’s Sparrow: Does it not make sense that birds trying to make a go of breeding season … Continue reading
Posted in animal behavior, bird evolution, birds/nature, editorial, environment, Links, migrants, weather, wildlife
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