Populations of 20 Common Birds Declining »
Posted by: TechnologyExpert 1 year, 2 months agoThe populations of 20 common American birds--from the fence-sitting meadowlark to the whippoorwill with its haunting call--are half what they were 40 years ago, according to an analysis released Thursday. Suburban sprawl, climate change and other invasive species are largely to blame, said the study's author.
Read Full Story at breitbart.com
Join the Discussion 
+ Add Comment
Comments So Far: 70
-
-
0%
tiredofnonsense1 year, 2 months ago
"Last month a different group of researchers reported that seven species had dramatically declined because of West Nile virus. The species harmed by West Nile are different from those listed in the new studyâ;;except for the little chickadee, hard-hit on both lists."
My first thought on seeing the headline
While these common birds are in decline, others are taking their place or even elbowing them aside. The wild turkey, once in deep trouble, is growing at a rate of 14 percent a year. The double-crested cormorant, pushed nearly to extinction by DDT, is growing at a rate of 8 percent a year and populations of the pesky Canada goose increase by 7 percent yearly.
Reply -
50%
HannibalBarca1 year, 2 months ago
tiredofnonsense:Used to be that Canada geese would fly south, stopping and eating in our area (Alberta,Canada)then when it got cold continue south.But in the last 10 years more and more are staying here over the winter, many do continue but weather changes are also affecting everty thing.Never saw a hummingbird in our area but in the last 5 years over 30. The world is changing
Reply
-
-
-
-
0%
eddie1071 year, 2 months ago
There is a red squirrel that lives by my house, she comes and eats peanuts from my hand. She will sit and hold my finger sometimes as she eats. All of the red squirrels by me are gentle and polite, the grey squirrels, are hostile. Even though the grey squirrels are quite a bit smeller than the red squirrels, they will run them off in a heart beat.
There is a colony of black squirrels that have begun in a place called Round Lake IL, where grey sqirrels become the opposite of albino, and begun to breed. They are much more aggressive than even the normal grey squirrels, and have pretty much eliminated all of the other squirrel populations.
Reply
-
-
-
-
-
0%
eddie1071 year, 2 months ago
I am sorry, but he is right. Our population explosion has guaranteed that most species will die within the next hundred years. The rate of extinction right now has only been matched one time in earths history, and that was when the dinosaurs died.
What happens when hunger and disease is stopped? This is what happens when bacteria finds a food source. It breeds and grows untill the food source is gone, then the bacteria die.
Think about the world as one big apple, or a blue-berry. You cant see the disease crawling all over the skin, but we are there. Tiny microscopic germs crawling all over the face of the earth. We are the disease.
Reply
-
-
0%
UBCONFUSE1 year, 2 months ago
We no longer deserve the beautiful planet good gave us.
The extinction of a species has been going on since life took hold on Earth. More species are extinct than alive now. Earth is not static and neither are the species which live here. Humans would go extinct except for their brains and ability to control climate in confined spaces.( Note,I did not say humans can control Earth).Human population is out of control, but death due to starvation, disease, war and mass murder help out somewhat. (Rwanda/Darfur,WWI and WWII, POL Pot, Stalin, Mao)
Animals do not have the luxury of thinking, if they did they would kill humans.
Now the birds. I have set aside 30 acres for wildlife. No humans allowed, except me. No pesticides, no herbicides, no interference. Quail are being eaten by Hawks and I have not seen quail in 12 months. Bluejays being destroyed by crows.
Meadowlarks killed by Marsh hawks. On 14 acres of grass, the hawks and owls eat everything that moves. Law says, no to kill raptors.
Reply -
-
-
38%
OldRusty1 year, 2 months ago
With all the millions spent on political adds, just a fraction of that money could save, generations of wildlife, for all to enjoy.It is our prioritys to stuff,things.power,.not for good,ends.,How many never heard the bob-white whistle of a quail. or saw the bright yellow breast of a meadow lark?Why, Why?
Reply-
100%
WCFIELDS1 year, 2 months ago
How about all the billions wasted on religion? My X-wife gives nearly $1000 a month to her church. Crazy. Generates just more Religion.
Reply -
100%
eddie1071 year, 2 months ago
Someone came into my shop just last week, and they have a dragster I was wrapping. They told me that they live on a 50 acre farm in Virginia. I asked them if they could ever hear any whippoorwills. And they told me that they had never heard one since they had been there.
2 of my favorite memories as a child, were of nights listening to the whippoorwill calls while sitting with someone in my family who are now also gone forever.
Reply
-
-
85%
theido1 year, 2 months ago
The birds were probably hanging out at a real sports game, all got bored and left.
Reply -
63%
MikeReardon1 year, 2 months ago
No mention of the effects world wide bird flu that has to have had some impact. Also nothing about the decline in bee population. The shifting in new birds coming into the Bay Area is dramatic. Crows and Canadian Geese are here in Foster City year round. I never saw a crow in San Francisco until 10 years ago. The west Nile is only lightly here but that may change as they are adding large marsh areas on the San Francisco Bay.
Reply-
0%
MikeReardon1 year, 2 months ago
I saw something that looked like a Towee in Redwood City by the DMV. Any bird people out there want to shout out what in new in their city this is as good place as any.
Reply
-
-
0%
Aidenag1 year, 2 months ago
We have been seeing way less Robins in the North end of Seattle the last few years. use to be VERY common. would have literally dozens in my yard. Now, lucky to see a single breeding pair a few times a week.
Pretty much all the birds here are in decline. Expect "Steller Jays", for some reason they are doing very well and showing up in larger numbers in my yard. And pretty much only my yard, rest of nieghborhood is barren of them. Think something on my property is attracting them..
Reply -
0%
HMMace1 year, 2 months ago
Well- in the face of defeAt, he resigns..Now--why won't Jefferson resign?? Why won't Pelosi act?? "People in glass houses can not throw stones".. We must purge ourselves of these crooked politicians---NEVER RE ELECT ANY POLITICIAN--EVER..
Reply -
100%
0gramstransfat1 year, 2 months ago
I don't know it for sure, but it seems to me that the amount of toxins in the air from the materials and products that are produced could have this effect on birds. Compared to humans, they have tiny lungs which probably can't handle all of these particles in the air. The awareness is there, let's see what people do with the information. Everything that lives on this planet has a part to play in the way it operates. It seems malicious that humans desecrate the planet and its inhabitants, defending the destruction every step of the way.
Reply -
-
89%
Gotitright1 year, 2 months ago
What is that sound I hear?......"People are bad, animals are good. Mommy shouldn't have slept with daddy and made so many of us. Now we are all going to die in the desert with rising oceans and without any animals to hug. Wait, even if we did that would only leave them imprinted with human contact! Nothing is good anymore. I need something to protest. Where is the next gathering?"
Whah! Whah!
Reply-
-
50%
eddie1071 year, 2 months ago
Wow, you certainly have a grasp on things!
Its nice that at least you can look at the face of death and be so bored. I sort of agree, why give a crap? Lets just get it over with! Lets find every keystone creature we can and systematically destroy it! Its gonna happen anyway, so wouldn't it be exciting to be the last creatures to walk the face of the earth?
When all governmental policy breaks down, just think how exciting it will be then! There is no God anymore so why would anyone give a crap about killing anyone or everyone. How fun would that be?!
You can bet if it comes to that, I will be leading the pack, and laughing my @$$ off at everyone of you dying pieces of $#!*, and helping you right along the way.
Now doesn't that make you happy to be such a wonderful contribution to life on this planet?
Reply
-
-
-
-
100%
tiredofnonsense1 year, 2 months ago
An Item not mentioned, due to global climate change (Natural and man made) the birds are changing habitat. This may have had some change in the counts as the scientists look for the populations in the same place, not in new northern locations.
Reply -
83%
netgreg1 year, 2 months ago
Only an unbalanced mind would joke about the eliminatin of a species. Your wrong if you don't think that everyone plays a part in all life on earth. Make a difference when you know you can.
Reply -
80%
HMMace1 year, 2 months ago
So--now that two jew haters are fighting among themselves, we are going to pick a side??? Got to be the dumbest idea in the world...Why ?? For more kickbacks to our politicians???...WHy send our tax dollars to jew haters??..Our pliticians are just crooked, and greedy..and spend our money like water..We must --NEVER RE ELECT ANY POLITICIAN---EVER
Reply -
0%
HMMace1 year, 2 months ago
You say birds are in decline---what about the rise in the feral cat population?? See any connection there??
Reply -
90%
ningyo1 year, 2 months ago
since the dawn of this planet species have come and gone for all kinds of reasons--other species taking over..food changes..climate changes--the only tragedy is our humanvanity always thinking we either caused it or can do something about it--sometimes ..sure..a reason is somewhat clear--mostly though its the evolving nature of a planet that is far beyond our understanding and control--we're just spectators here like everyone else----and they believe they know whats going with the bees...that does seem to be a result of hive overbreeding--the natural hives dont do it--apparently the bred bee's become so big and carry so much pollen they either burst from strain or cant fly--20-25 % of hives naturally collapse so a new rate of 30 % is still not the end of the world--unless you're a liberal democrat--then its all bad..all bush..all the time
Reply-
100%
tkyrchncs1 year, 2 months ago
While the first line of your comment is true from a geological-time perspective, the fact remains that every known extinction in America since Europeans came here is directly attributable to human activities. The species changes, with the highly questionable exception of northward movements of warm-weather species, are also directly attributable to us.
Wild honey bees in this country are practically extinct due to the introduction of the varoa mite from Asia. The clover and sage in my yard used to attract AUDIBLE numbers of honey bees. This year you could easily have counted them. Tame hives are experiencing death rates much higher than you claim. This problem alone has already affected not just bee-keepers and honey production in this country, it has impacted agriculture in general. The potential economic loss is staggering and will affect our food supplies in terms of quantity, variety, and price.
Reply
-
-
50%
amazed1 year, 2 months ago
as someone pointed out earlier, while these formerly common species are becoming less common, others who were downright rare numbers are growing seemingly exponentially -- often to the detriment of the more common and often native species.
In southern Ct, about thirty years ago, a couple of parrakeets got loose in Black Rock -- a section of Bridgeport. To everyone's surprise, they survived in the wild. It was thought to be such a cool thing. Now, parrakeets are all over Southern CT. They have no natural predators so their numbers are getting huge. They are crowding out native species. In addition, their favorite place to build their huge nests are on powerlines -- but we actually passed a law restricting the UI from doing anything to eliminate them.
Reply-
100%
amazed1 year, 2 months ago
Several offshore islands that are state owned are either now off-limits to citizens are in the process of becoming off-limits in order to facilitate the nesting of non-native birds (apparently the parrakeets didn't teach anybody anything).
Ct also has white egrets, terns and bald eagles, and several other "rare" species that were unheard of when I was growing up.
Reply
-
-
67%
tryinghard1 year, 2 months ago
In the forests of Northern PA there are more robins this year than I can ever remember...Robins in the woods is an odd sight. Not sure what that means.
Unlike man, the beasts of the air will adapt. And, maybe that will be just desserts.
Reply -
Submitted By:
TechnologyExpert
I am Editor-in-Chief at Alice Hill's RealTechNews (http://www.realtechnews.com). I also have my own blog (Tech-Ex) at http://TechnologyExpert.Blogspot.com. Finally ...
Also submitted:
- 1.0 - Firefox 3, Norton Security Software Don't Mix Well
- 1.0 - Palin Attended 5 Colleges In 6 Years
- 1.0 - Ike strikes fear from Caribbean to Gulf Coast
- 1.0 - Medvedev: Russia must 'be reckoned with'
Related Articles:
Why not submit a story?
Also Propping This Article
Groups Watching This
No groups are watching this story. Why not share it with your group?
