Why the Emu has been killed?  

Probably ignorant red-necks

OWINGS, Md. (WUSA) --- The emu on the loose in Calvert County may have been shot dead this morning. Bobby Nutwell was hunting for geese on a private field by Chaneyville Road. Nutwell the bird ran toward the road. He says the bird looked like it would cause a traffic problem. "My cousin said, 'There he is, going across the field! So I said, 'ten four' I said, I'm going to him. And said I got him," he says. Nutwell remembers seeing the bird at least twice before. Calvert County Sheriff Bob Evans says there was a lost emu report from Anne Arundel County, but authorities have not identified the owner. "We can't see any violations that the man did. [It was] just a judgement call on his part. He's a legal hunter," says Evans. An emu has been on the loose in southern Maryland since November...

I'm NOT showing the pic!!! 

By Don Torino

My phone calls and e-mails start to get heavy this time of year, and they usually begin like this: “Help! There is a hawk eating my birds at the feeder in my backyard - how do I stop it?�

My usual answer is, “That is why they call them bird feeders.�

Although some of my colleagues think that I am being mean by saying that to folks, it is true.  By setting up backyard bird feeders, we have also created a different kind of feeder for birds of prey.  Hawks, such as red-tails, Cooper’s, and sharp-shinned have adapted well to our backyards when there is food present.  As winter goes on and natural food sources dwindle, birds become more concentrated at feeders.  Just as birds such as nuthatches, chickadees - and let’s not forget squirrels - come for your bird seed, so do birds of prey.  The only problem is that their food may be that beautiful cardinal or that furry little squirrel that the whole family loves.

I received a phone call not too long ago from a woman who was very upset and crying.  She told me that she and her four year old daughter were terribly upset because a hawk took a cardinal in the backyard, which was her child’s favorite bird.  Although psychology is not one of my talents, I felt like her daughter was reacting more to her mother’s over-reaction then to the actual event.  I suggested that this might be a good time to teach her daughter about the balance of nature and the circle of life.  Needless to say, I was not much help that day.
 
Dave Hall, Bergen County Audubon Society director of field work, says he has seen an increase in Cooper’s hawks hunting in backyards over the past 10-12 years.  They have become very common in winter and then are gone from the backyards by the summer.
 
So how can you tell if there is a hawk using your bird feeder?  The first sign could be feathers on the ground, but don’t rule out the neighborhood cat.  If the food in your feeder seems to be untouched or birds in your yard seem to be frozen or stiff, that is a sign that there is a hawk somewhere in the area.  The birds may stay stationary in a tree or shrub for hours, not moving or even flinching for as long as the hawk is nearby.

When I first noticed this behavior, I was looking out of my window at a downy woodpecker that seemed to frozen to a branch.  After watching it for more that an hour, I walked outside to get a closer look.  That’s when I noticed a sharp-shinned hawk perched on the other side of the tree about two feet away from the woodpecker.  The hawk looked right past the woodpecker, but had that little bird moved even a feather, the hawk would have had lunch in the blink of an eye.
 
I have also been in my backyard when a hawk was present and looked into my shrubs and have been eye to eye with little birds huddling to hide from the predator above.  They would rather take their chances with me than fly away and get nabbed.

Now, I’m not without feelings myself.  As much as I am in awe of raptors in action, I can’t say I totally love it when a sharpie swoops in and snatches a chickadee from my yard like a Chicken McNugget.  To even the playing field there are things that you should do if you are feeding birds:

1. Place bird feeders within 10 feet of dense shrubs and evergreens that birds can use to hide.
2. Provide cover, such as a brush piles using old Christmas trees and branches.
3. Place bird feeders in places that are hard for hawks to get to, such as under awnings or large baffles.

Being able to see birds of prey up close and personal in one’s own backyard should be considered a privilege.  It is an amazing thing to watch.  You don’t have to wait for the next PBS special to see nature in its truest form.  Just look out your window!


Wild New Jersey

http://www.youtube.com/andyburtonworcester
Ringing of the Worcester chics in 2009. No babies in 2010. Bobbin is the female chick from the 2009 clutch. She stayed on and will now raise her own chicks in the nest she was born in. Strange huh? Bobbin's mom has not been seen since March of 2010.

Hiding again

Bedraggled Bobbin in the rain 8.45 this morning, camera a bit misty but hopefully not a return of the earlier problems....Dave

Didn't cook him, but the big bird was found shot dead yesterday   That was all I heard on the news this morning (overshadowed by the mail igniting in Annapolis).

Oh no, how awful.

[So sorry, poor Hal! RIP!]

!!! Some tragic news about Hal.
January 04, 2011 - Hamilton - Sheraton Hotel
CPF Postmaster Reports:

The 2010 season was a huge success with respect to very little mortality having been recorded of the young fledglings that were produced at our southern Ontario urban nest sites, we are all holding our breath at this time of year, as this is the time when we get many reports of downed and injured raptors. While most of the reports and occurrences are not peregrine related, we usually experience and get half a dozen reports of first year juvenile peregrines running into trouble in other parts of the land while on their migration.

Sadly, the most recent report (and the first that we have had for the new 2011 year), came yesterday, Jan 4th from OMNR, looking for confirmation and identity of an adult banded peregrine having been severely injured with broken wing that was picked up in the Bowenville area on Saturday January 1st - (new years day).

After checking the band numbers and the birds history, the bird was easily identified as a bird named “Hal�. Hal was produced in 2001 at the Hamilton Sheraton Hotel nest site and has been active as a territorial adult in several area’s here in southern Ontario over the years including short territorial activity at the Burlington Lift Bridge nest site and at the St. Lawrence Cement - (now called Holcim) nest site in Mississauga Ontario.

While tragic as it is to see, at ten years old, Hal has in fact lived a long life for a peregrine in the wild, and was closing on his natural life expectancy given his age. The typical average live span of a peregrine in the wild is 9 to 12 years of age, with some living to 15 years of age.

First reports of Hal’s condition although limited and preliminary, does not sound very promising at all. We hope to get further information on Hal’s situation as it becomes available.

Hal was banded at approx. 25 days old on May 28th 2001 at he Hamilton Sheraton Hotel, weighing in at 654 grams. His parents were Madam X and Percy.

UPDATE!!

!!! Hal had to be put down!
January 05, 2011 - Hamilton - Sheraton Hotel
CPF Postmaster Reports:

We have received an update this afternoon on Hal’s situation and saddened to report that his injuries and overall condition were too severe, and he was euthanized late yesterday.

So sorry, poor Hal! RIP!

I closed my Browser and all worked well after. Pfft. I voted for both! 

http://www.providenceraptors.com/2011/01/06/clash-of-the-titans-falcon-vs-hawk-over-providence/

This was posted on our Fb page by Peter Green. Good catch of their local peregrines chasing a Coop out of the area. Peter's in Providence RI

Zoom jeanne

Not yet Bobbie, at least not on Cam. Waiting for the peeps out in the field to see if they see her.

Since last Thursday, 100 tons of sardines, croaker, and catfish have died near Paraná, Brazil. Paraná is in the southern part of the country and has some coastline along the Atlantic Ocean. The 100 ton count came from a survey conducted by the Federation of Fishermen’s Colony of Paraná, Paranaguá. It has been reported by this fishing association that 2,800 fisherman depend on fish caught in the area for their daily incomes.

At the moment it isn’t known exactly what caused such a catastrophe, but it has been speculated there is some environmental imbalance, or there has been a large chemical spill from a boat offshore. Of course, the fisherman are very concerned and have a right to be, but are there deeper issues at work that need to be investigated outside of commerce?

Bottom trawling has been documented as a fishing method there, and it is known to do severe damage to marine ecosystems. “And it’s clear that trawling causes more damage to marine ecosystems than any other kind of fishing. Now, as the threats of ocean acidification and melting sea ice are adding insult to injury, we have to reduce harm from trawling to have any hope of saving marine ecosystems,� said marine biologist Elliot Norse. (Source: Sciencedaily.com) Bottom trawling is so destructive that some nations have banned it, but others have still taken no action to protect marine habitats. In 2004, 1,000 scientists called for an end to bottom trawling.

Since it isn’t yet known what caused the die-off near Brazil, there is also a possibility it was caused by some event within the ocean itself. In 2002 a sudden loss of many fish near Kenya was due to a massive bloom of algae that contained a toxin. (Source: World Wildlife Fund) So it isn’t fair to assume the situation in Brazil could only be due to human impacts on marine habitats, but seafood sales are temporarily suspended in Paraná, due to the possibility the fish could be contaminated.


Healthy and Green living.

I don't know about you but I can only vote for 1. I tried voting for Janet's friend but it said I already did. Maybe alternate days for both??? Maybe sign up with a different email I guess will work.

The website states that you can vote for up to 10 ideas per day. You shouldn't have to alternate between the two or use a different email address for each one.

OK then, I see that on the bottom of my page, says you have 9 votes left but when I went to vote for Janet's, it already said thank you for your vote but I didn't vote yet. Maybe a glitch, I'll go back and retry. Thanks Shaky.

I don't know about you but I can only vote for 1. I tried voting for Janet's friend but it said I already did. Maybe alternate days for both??? Maybe sign up with a different email I guess will work.

THE disturbing number of attacks on animals has continued with a bush turkey stoned to death near Hastings Street at Noosa.

An elderly couple driving through Noosa Woods on New Year's Day rescued the juvenile bush turkey after a stone attack by four or five youths, who took off in their car.

But the stoning proved too much and the young bird died on the way to the Eumundi Wildlife Refuge.

RSPCA Sunshine Coast Inspector Julia Steley said the free-roaming bird had died from severe trauma.

“It had blood in the abdomen and a puncture to the small intestine,� Ms Steley said.

“But it also had reflux food in its nostril which indicates agony at the time of death.�

The couple who tried to save the injured bird told Wildlife Refuge carer Gill Brownhill they yelled out to the group of youths to stop their violent actions and they sped off in their car

It was reported the teenagers kept up the stoning until the bird had fallen down.

The RSPCA is looking for anyone else who may have witnessed the brutal attack.

The attack follows an incident last year when a koala and her joey were shot near Jimna. The mum died but baby Frodo was lucky to survive thanks to specialist care at the Australian Wildlife Hospital.

Ms Steley said the RSPCA was able to prosecute offenders under the Animal Care Protection Act.

“This is a cruelty offence,� Ms Steley said.

Anyone with information about those who committed the attack can contact the RSPCA on 1300 852 188.

Bush Baby Turkey