birds

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Highway Camera Captures a Surprise, Squawking Cameo

Irritated-looking mynah bird makes a splash on video taken over New Zealand highway

(Newser) - Angry Birds: Down Under? A tropical bird with an attitude has inadvertently become an internet sensation after photobombing a highway traffic camera in New Zealand, and the New Zealand Transport Agency is having a bit of fun with it, reports NBC News . The footage without sound taken over a stretch...

Crows May Hold Grudges for Life
Crows Hold Grudges
for 17 Years
Oct 29, 2024 11:43 AM CDT

Crows Hold Grudges for 17 Years

Experiment finds one finally ended, but only after most of the birds were dead

(Newser) - Seattle resident Gene Carter spotted a murder of crows encroaching on a robin's nest one day, so he grabbed a rake and swung it at the black birds. For almost a year afterward, the crows would shriek at Carter through his house windows and "dive-bomb" him when he...

This Falcon May Nab Kills 10K Feet Up
This Falcon May Make
Kills 10K Feet Up
NEW STUDY
Oct 25, 2024 8:32 AM CDT

This Falcon May Make Kills 10K Feet Up

Peregrine falcon suspected to have taken out GPS-tracked grey plover at 9,455 feet

(Newser) - Peregrine falcons are incredible hunters, known to ambush prey at speed or drop down on them from above. In direct pursuit, the raptor can reach speeds of up to 69mph. In a hunting stoop or dive, it can reach speeds up to 200mph. It can also, apparently, hunt at 10,...

Tiny Dots on Chicago's High-Rise Windows Make a 'Huge Difference'

Avian advocates are working to stop birds from fatally smashing into the city's tall buildings

(Newser) - With a neon-green net in hand, Annette Prince briskly walks a downtown Chicago plaza at dawn, looking left and right as she goes. It's not long before she spots a tiny yellow bird sitting on the concrete. It doesn't fly away, and she quickly nets the bird, gently...

This Lake Just Saw Its Worst Botulism Outbreak

More than 94K birds have died at Tule Lake, with outbreak tied to climate change, per officials

(Newser) - California's Tule Lake has seen its fair share of disasters in recent years. In 2020, a botulism outbreak at the national wildlife refuge killed an estimated 60,000 birds. The following year, birds vanished as the lake, which has existed for hundreds of thousands of years, dried up for...

Research Suggests 1B Birds Die in US From Hitting Buildings

Fewer of the injured survive than previously thought, study finds

(Newser) - The mortality rate among birds that fly into windows could be much higher than thought, meaning the number killed in the US each year may top 1 billion, new research suggests. Previous assumptions were that most birds left stunned or injured after hitting a building recovered. But researchers looked into...

Family Gets Really Creative in Saving Orphaned Baby Bird

Meet Taquito, a Mississippi kite swaddled in warm tortilla until it could be brought to Texas rehab center

(Newser) - A group of Texans enjoying a summer barbecue stumbled upon a surprise guest, and came up with a surprising way to save it. Per a Facebook post , the Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center based in Amarillo said it got a call from the Adlong family earlier this month, reporting a...

NYC Deploys Drones to Look for Sharks, but Birds Are Mad

Shorebirds are fighting drones, and wildlife experts fear the stress it is causing them

(Newser) - A fleet of drones patrolling New York City's beaches for signs of sharks and struggling swimmers is drawing backlash from an aggressive group of seaside residents: local shorebirds. Since the drones began flying in May, flocks of birds have repeatedly swarmed the devices, forcing the police department and other...

To Save One Kind of Owl, Death to 450K Others

FWS plans to cull 450K barred owls so that the spotted owl can compete for habitat

(Newser) - To save the imperiled spotted owl from potential extinction, US wildlife officials are embracing a contentious plan to deploy trained shooters into dense West Coast forests to kill almost a half-million barred owls that are crowding out their smaller cousins. The US Fish and Wildlife Service strategy released Wednesday is...

Millions of Altered Mosquitoes Could Save Hawaii's Birds

Incompatible insect technique aims to limit disease-carrying insects on Maui

(Newser) - Ten million mosquitoes have been released over the Hawaiian island of Maui at a rate of 250,000 per week. Believe it or not, this isn't an effort to deter tourists, but rather one to save endangered birds. Many Hawaiian honeycreepers are disappearing due to avian malaria, a disease...

Crows Appear to Be Able to Count Out Loud
Crows Appear to Be Able
to Count Out Loud
new study
May 27, 2024 7:42 AM CDT

Crows Appear to Be Able to Count Out Loud

New study observes what would be a first among animals, besides us humans

(Newser) - Scientists have long known that crows are smart. But a new study suggests they possess the ability to count out loud—a first for an animal species other than humans, reports Live Science . In fact, the crows appear to be pretty good at it, on par with human toddlers, per...

This Feather Is Worth 40 Times Its Weight in Gold

Feather from extinct huia sells for $28K, becoming most expensive feather ever sold

(Newser) - Someone just paid nearly $30,000 for ... a feather. Granted, it's a rare and pretty feather, but still one worth more than 40 times its weight in gold. The most expensive feather ever sold, it comes from the long-extinct huia, "the largest of New Zealand's wattlebird species,...

Vulnerable Eagles' Latest Hardship: Ukraine War
Migrating Eagles
Give Side-Eye to
War-Torn Ukraine
NEW STUDY
May 21, 2024 3:09 PM CDT

Migrating Eagles Give Side-Eye to War-Torn Ukraine

Study finds greater spotted eagles altered flight paths, curtailed rest stops in Ukraine in 2022

(Newser) - Russia's war in Ukraine has had a ripple effect across Europe, including for vulnerable migrating birds that are reportedly flying far out of their usual route to avoid areas of fighting. Researchers have found evidence of greater spotted eagles altering routes across Ukraine to avoid key areas of violence...

This Bird Takes Sibling Rivalry to Extremes

Nazca boobies literally kick smaller siblings out of the nest to die

(Newser) - Sibling rivalry can be pretty intense among humans but it rarely rises to the level seen in seabirds called Nazca boobies, NPR reports in a look at two extremes of avian sibling relationships.
  • Wake Forest University researcher David Anderson, who has studied Nazca boobies in the eastern Pacific for decades,
...

Tiny Bird Is First Non-Primate to Make Symbolic Gesture

Japanese tits seem to say 'after you' to partners

(Newser) - We humans think we know a lot. But when it comes to how animals communicate, we have a lot to learn, according to new research boasting the first known case of symbolic gesture in a non-primate. Many animals display body parts and some, including birds like magpies and ravens, make...

Magpie Who Bonded With Dog Is Seized
Magpie Who Bonded
With Dog Is Seized
Mar 28, 2024 12:24 PM CDT

Magpie Who Bonded With Dog Is Seized

Aussie caretakers fight to reunite social media stars Peggy and Molly

(Newser) - A magpie taken in as a chick stole the hearts of millions of people around the world who were warmed by the bird's unlikely friendship with its Aussie caretakers' bull terrier. But caretakers Juliette Wells and Reece Mortensen say their hearts have been torn apart in having to surrender...

'Hundreds' of Dead Seals Block Antarctic Explorer's Grave

Virus has taken a heavy toll on South Georgia's wildlife

(Newser) - Passengers who'd hoped to walk with penguins on a cruise around the Antarctic Peninsula and the island of South Georgia weren't allowed to go ashore, but they witnessed distressing scenes of animals that had been killed by a bird flu outbreak in the region. Passenger Astrid Saunders tells...

He Hit a Bird-Watching Mark Once Thought Unreachable

American Peter Kaestner is the first to document 10K different species

(Newser) - Peter Kaestner has seen 10,000 different bird species, which, if you're not familiar with birding, sounds pretty impressive. If, however, you are familiar with birding, it's far more than that. As in, it's unprecedented. Last month, the 70-year-old retired American diplomat became the first person to...

The Bellagio Turns Off Its Fountains for 'Exclusive Guest'

A rare yellow-billed loon has shown up on its lake

(Newser) - A visit from a rare, fine-feathered tourist has interrupted one of Las Vegas' prominent shows. The Bellagio said in a social media post Tuesday that it paused its fountains as it worked with state wildlife officials to rescue a yellow-billed loon that "found comfort on Las Vegas' own Lake...

After 8 Months, Cops Release This Suspicious Bird

Pigeon caught in May near port in Mumbai, India, had been suspected of spying for China

(Newser) - Indian police cleared a suspected Chinese spy pigeon after eight months' detention and released it into the wild Tuesday, reports the news agency Press Trust of India. The pigeon's ordeal began in May when it was captured near a port in Mumbai with two rings tied to its legs,...

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