In Book of Birds: Introduction to Ornithology , John Faaborg, renowned expert on avian ecology and conservation, brings a fresh and accessible sensibility to the study of ornithology. In this beautifully illustrated volume, Faaborg’s approachable writing style will engage students and birders alike while introducing them to the study of the evolution, taxonomy, anatomy, physiology, diversity, and behavior of birds.
So I like birds, and I like nonbinariness, so I was like, what if birb but nonbeanie? So this is a nonbinary wagtail. This nonbinary wagtail is living their best life. And they’re also a print now in my latest shóòppe updeight! Anywho. If you like ornithology and also enby pride and want an art print that combines these two things... hi
I often think that red-breasted nuthatches look a bit annoyed (or at least sassy) because of the eye stripe. You can also clearly see the large hind claw that helps them to go down tree trunks head first. #birds#birdsofmastodon#birding#WildCanada#ornithology
"One of them, 81-year-old ornithologist Dan Strickland, has removed his glove in the late-winter cold. He repeats a series of squeaks made by loudly kissing the back of his hand. Soon, several more jays arrive. In less than two minutes, the first wild bird perches on his hand." —Brian Payton for @hakaimagazine
U.S. ornithological society to rename dozens of birds — and stop naming them after people.
"There is power in a name, and some English bird names have associations with the past that continue to be exclusionary and harmful today,” the organization's president said.
A positive, healthy step. Science has a long history of often failing to apply the same scrutiny and control of confounders it properly expects for good research to many of its own assumptions and biases.
American Ornithological Society Will Change the English Names of Bird Species Named After People
"“There is power in a name, and some English bird names have associations with the past that continue to be exclusionary and harmful today. We need a much more inclusive and engaging scientific process that focuses attention on the unique features and beauty of the birds themselves,” said AOS President Colleen Handel, Ph.D., a research wildlife biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Alaska. “Everyone who loves and cares about birds should be able to enjoy and study them freely—and birds need our help now more than ever.”
Ornithologists have long grappled with historical and contemporary practices that contribute to the exclusion of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color, including how birds are named. For example, in 2020, the AOS renamed a small prairie songbird found on the Great Plains to “Thick-billed Longspur.” The bird’s original name—honoring John P. McCown, an amateur naturalist who later became a general in the Confederate Army during the U.S. Civil War—was perceived as a painful link to slavery and racism."
Get ready for a lot of new bird names as eponyms (birds named after assorted people) are phased out.
Some of my favorite words in English are bird names: whimbrel, curlew, kestrel, egret, ibis, wren, plover, dowitcher, godwit, phalarope, willet, ptarmigan.
The American Ornithological Society says it will give new English-language names to all American birds currently named after people, in an effort to make birding more welcoming for all communities and to focus attention on the birds rather than historical namesakes.
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Have you ever seen a bird that looks and sounds like Groucho Marx?
The Willow Ptarmigan is an #Arctic grouse that blends into its surroundings with its camouflaged coat. It showcases interesting behaviors, including being unbothered by #humans, sporting #red eyebrows during #breeding, and making expressive #sounds. They share similar traits with lesser prairie-#chickens in their #mating displays.
Roosters may have passed the self-recognition test.
Phys.org reports: "Prior research has suggested that very few animal species have the type of self-awareness known as self-recognition—where they see and understand that an image in a mirror is of themselves rather than another member of the same species."
Birding from my archives today, so here is a grey-breasted seedsnipe from the Andes of Chile (October 2014). Seedsnipe are odd little shorebirds that act and look more like quail than sandpipers or plovers and sort of look like a cross between a quail and a small pigeon. In Chile, they occupy a similar niche to ptarmigan in the Rocky Mountains. #birdsofmastodon#birding#ornithology#Chile
In the fall, ruffed grouse become a bit more conspicuous in western Canada. The broods of this year break up and go their separate ways, males start drumming and adults often forage on roadsides.
This is a female that was calmly perched on downed spruce tree. Females are smaller, lack the longer ruff of males and differ slightly in rump plumage (you have to be close). #WildCanada#birding#ornithology#birds#birdsofmastodon
Crows never cease to amaze. Their cognitive abilities are well-documented, but now we can tack one more cerebral skill onto their resume: statistical inference. Here’s more from ZME Science: https://flip.it/ITGyR1 #Science#Birds#Ornithology#Animals
Any birders care to identify this bird? One of several in the sea just of the beach at Portobello, Edinburgh, yesterday.
[Edit: it's now been identified - it's a red throated diver in winter plumage!]
My first thought was a juvenile gannet, but I don't think the beak is right. Maybe a juvenile diver? They were actually diving, so that might be a clue!
(Nor great photos, fully cropped, sorry - these were the best I could get!)