Tag Archives: environment

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

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Coronavirus in Oklahoma: some data from the first week of April


As we have now left March 2020 in the rear-view mirror, I thought it might be a good idea to adjust my semi-weekly interpretation of national comparisons on #COVID-19 deaths and drill drown into some data from US states. Apropos … Continue reading

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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

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The state of global biodiversity β€” it’s worse than you probably think β€” ConservationBytes.com


Sobering synopsis here by CJA Bradshaw. For those of us who study natural history, such information confronts us every day. It can be easy to forget that we are a tiny minority of the billions of humans on this planet … Continue reading

Posted in bat conservation, birds/nature, deforestation, editorial, Endangered Species Act, environment, evolution, history, IUCN, nature deficit disorder, No Child Left Inside, overpopulation, paleontology, population estimates, population monitoring, skepticism and science, wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Your life is profoundly meaningful


It’s quite simple, really. The matter in our universe is comprised of the same elements throughout. Proportions differ and it might be mixed together differently here and there, but it’s the same stuff. Some of those mixes develop self-replication under … Continue reading

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One to watch: Nick Russo’s Ecology of Bird Movement and Dispersal


via Research Follow the link above to the Nick Russo’s website Ecology of Bird Movement and Dispersal. Interesting work and a lot more to come I’d wager!

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Kerri J. Smith – beaked whales


via Research I found another bright young scientist to amplify today. This is Kerri J. Smith, who is studying Sowerby’s beaked whale. No, I’d never heard of this species either. #TIL  

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The nightjars are returning! β€” A Feathered Reptile


The world needs to better appreciate the unique style of of Gretchen Newberry and her use of art in her #SciComm! This just in! The last of the migrants are on their way back, as evidenced by this announcement by … Continue reading

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You Share the Planet With #1: The Malay Peacock-pheasant


If you’re like most people – I mean literally most, as in >99% of the people who have ever lived – then this one you will file under TIL (today I learned). My Ornithology students are currently exploring the diversity … Continue reading

Posted in animal behavior, birding, birds/nature, deforestation, Endangered Species Act, environment, evolution, HBW Alive, Internet Bird Collection, IUCN, life, Links, National Audubon Society, population estimates, wildlife, You Share The Planet With | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Who saves the world? Girls.


Like, literally not-even-women-yet, GIRLS.   Re-blogged from: Students’ pro-climate strikes coming to the USA β€” Dear Kitty. Some blog And also me i am 10 years old:-) pic.twitter.com/Hucumibuff β€” Lillys Plastic Pickup (@lillyspickup) February 10, 2019 After high school students’ … Continue reading

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The concept of a β€œchemical-free lifestyle” is absurd β€” The Logic of Science


Chemophobia is alive and well. It is difficult to get on the internet without celebrities, friends, and family members bombarding you with concerns about chemicals in your food, hygiene products, vaccines, etc. Indeed, being anti-chemical seems to be extremely fashionable … Continue reading

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Do my social media milestones matter?


Well, no. Of course not. Still . . . My wife and I started this blog (formerly Eat More Cookies) way back in July 2006. We were about to complete our third year in Oklahoma, with family back home in … Continue reading

Posted in academics, editorial, environment, haiku, history, life, Links, overpopulation, professional development, skepticism and science, The Waterthrush Podcast | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Beach-nesting birds: assault from all sides


Their fortunes tied to the tides, many species of coastal birds nest directly on the beach. Here Nature seems to conspire against them in these places we so often associate with idyllic relaxation. On North America’s temperate Atlantic Coast, beaches … Continue reading

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The Wild Side newsletter – March 2018


The Wildlife Diversity Program of our Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation publishes a great little e-newsletter: The Wild Side. This month’s issue hearkens to the extraordinary ecosystem diversity our state packs into its relatively modest area: mixed-grass prairie, Ozark caves, … Continue reading

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We need next-gen nuclear power


A really important paper was just published in Science Advances by Elizabeth Anderson & colleagues. The team’s paper, Fragmentation of Andes-to-Amazon connectivity by hydropower dams, pretty much highlights what many pragmatic environmentalists have been stressing for years β€” so-called β€˜renewable’ … Continue reading

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Vicarious early winter in Vermont


Snow squalls sweep across the mountains in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. ./ Β© 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

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Some perspective on peak abundance of Passenger Pigeon


You’ve heard the story before, and it’s sobering: Once perhaps the most abundant vertebrate on the planet, a combination of unremitting exploitation and habitat loss reduced the Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) from billions to none in a few short decades … Continue reading

Posted in bird evolution, birds/nature, deforestation, editorial, Endangered Species Act, environment, history, IUCN, life, Links, National Audubon Society, Partners in Flight, population estimates, population monitoring, skepticism and science, wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

July 2017 iNaturalist Vermont Photo-Observation of the Month β€” Vermont Center for Ecostudies


Has a Painted Lady ever looked more ravishing?Β  If you haven’t discovered iNaturalist, it’s time. Painted Lady nectaring on coneflower. /Β© Bryan Pfeiffer Congratulations to Bryan Pfeiffer for winning the July 2017 iNaturalist Vermont photo-observation of the month contest. His … Continue reading

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Why can’t humans affect the climate?


If you have insights on this please help me understand.Β  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. Β  One of the primary … Continue reading

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