Hey birders! And welcome to Bird Blogger MT, your latest in bird news and activities!
Sorry I forgot about the fun fact thing last week, but now I know I will post a fun fact every Sunday from now on!
Exciting news! You can now comment on my posts by clicking on the post you want to comment on, and after a couple seconds at the bottom of the page there will be a box that says Enter Comment!
You probably haven't heard about this, but there's a fantastic app out called Merlin Bird ID. You give it your time of year, location, the main colors of the bird, and what it was doing at that current moment, and Cornell Merlin Bird ID does the rest! It's free, and for all Apple devices. It will tell you the bird you most likely saw, whether it is rare or common where you live, and it will give you a full background on it and what it sounds like as well. It's terrific and works extremely fast.
The situation in Galveston (info courtesy of Houston Audubon) is hard to explain due to outdated posts, but I did find out they have more than enough personnel to take care of the situation, although the timing and placement of the spill is very unfortunate. The oil is nearing the Bolivar Flats, which is home to tens of thousands of birds. More birds are down by the Texas coast this time of year more than any other. This leaves a huge potential for harm, but none has been done yet. The spilling has been stopped, but the cleanup has just begun. The oil being released is a thick, gooey, tarlike substance, and again, around 170,000 gallons have been spilled. But again, the situation is quite under control, and in this day in age we have more help for situations like these than ever before. In fact, there are thousands of people volunteering, but are being turned away because there are already plenty of trained personnel on hand. Good luck, Galveston!
Some more exciting news: an elite group of birders (Team Sapsucker) strait out of Cornell are conducting their annual Big Day birding activity son down in the southwest. 24 strait hours of birding, from the Arizona desert, to the California coast. Cornell is also trying to raise $400,000 towards conservation efforts. You can donate to Galveston at www.audubon.org and Cornell by subscribing to their e-mails and receiving the page extreme birding for an extremely good cause.
Ah, well. I guess it's that time. Time for our WEEKLY BIRD FUN FACT!!!
Bluebirds are one of the most spectacular colored birds you can see. They were plentiful, but are becoming near-endangered by Starling and Chickadee populations. The interesting thing, though, is there are actually nesting colonies that have been made for Bluebirds! they are checked every day for Starlings, Chickadees, and anything else that would take a Bluebird's rightful home. Also, did you know birds can have twins? Just last weekend, the first ever Bluebird twins were discovered! This happens when one egg hatches two birds.
Well, that's all this week, from Bird Blogger MT: your latest in bird news and activities!