The Skua - A Unique Bird of Prey

I have never been able to go on a Antarctic trip so I have never seen a South Polar Skua. I was recently reading the book "Living on the Wind - Across the Hemisphere With Migratory Birds" by Scott Wiedensaul when I came across a reference to this bird. In this book Wiedensaul quotes Robert Cushman Murphy:

"Skuas have left, he said a more vivid impression in my memory than any other bird I have met. The skuas look and act like minature eagles. They fear nothing, never seek to avoid being conspicuous, and, by every token of behavior, they are lords of the far south. In effect, they are gulls that have turned hawks."

That descriptive statement "lords of the far south" caught my eye. As all good education does, it changed my perspective - I was not aware of the dominance of this bird in this ecosystem.






South Polar Skua (Stercorarius Maccormicki), Telephone Bay, Deception Island, Antarctica Photographic Print

Pitamitz, Sergio


12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted








South Polar Skua (Stercorarius Maccormicki), Telephone Bay, Deception Island, Antarctica Photographic Print

Pitamitz, Sergio


12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted




This seems like a memorable bird that would be interesting to see someday.








Sunrise Over Iceberg, Macrobertson Land, Mawson, Antarctica Photographic Print

Dixon, Grant


24 in. x 18 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed   Mounted



For More Information:

Skuas - Antarctic Wildlife

Bird Census Techniques

Between all the talk of adding wind turbines to the landscape and the potential impact of this type of activity on birds and a recent article in the local paper about a report on declining bird species, I have become interested in bird census techniques. It would seem we will need data in our ongoing efforts to protect and even save bird species all around the world so I decided to look into this topic and write about it today.

I did some research and found an excellent book on this subject - "Bird Census Techniques" (Second Edition) by Colin J. Bibby. The general thrust of this book is given in the preface:

"The first edition of this book was conceived as a tool to amalgamate text on the various bird counting methodologies and act as a handbook for ornithilogical research...This second edition is offered to professional and amateur researchers, volunteer conservationists, consultant ecologists, and anyone else who is planning to survey and monitor birds but who may lack the facilities to research and understand the bewildering range of modern survey methods."

The book succeeds mightily in achieving these goals. It contains a wealth of information on modern survey methods and has a long list of references should you need even more followup information.

 The book has chapters devoted to all of the techniques such as: 

• Territory Mapping,
• Line Transects,
• Point Counts and Point Transects,
• Catching and Marking,
• Distribution Studies, and
• Counting Individual Species

I thought the last chapter, entitled Description and Measurement of Bird Habitat was particularly interesting. The understanding of habitat preferences, in great detail, is one thing that will likely help conservationists protect and save bird and animal species. To that end bird count/habitat data is I am sure being collected, and will continue to be collected, using the techniques described in this book.

At the very end, Bibby discuss a radio telemetry project entitled "Radio-marked Woodcock feeding in woodlands and fields". The results of this study show that Woodcocks strongly prefer feeding in the midst of a certain type of vegetation (Dog's Mercury). They also prefer a certain soil pH (6.3) Both of these characteristics are most likely correlated to larger earthworm populations, which is their favorite food. Specific data like this can help people both find suitable habitat for endangered birds (e.g. the Important Bird Areas program), and also manage these habitats so as to optimize populations of these birds.

We will likely need more of the "volunteer conservationists" mentioned above in the book's preface, and this book is an excellent way to begin learning about bird census techniques. I highly recommend it if you are interested in this topic.

************









Winter Corn Limited Edition

Cox, Cyril

14 in. x 20 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed

Autumn Colors, New Hampshire

Photographic Print

Cowan, Jules

24 in. x 18 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Birdwatcher - The Life of Roger Tory Peterson

If you didn't know anything about the life of Roger Tory Peterson before you started reading Birdwatcher - The Life of Roger Tory Peterson by Elizabeth J. Rosenthal, you might be struck by the fact that very early on in the book, at the age of 17, he meets up with the famous bird artist Louis Agassiz Fuertes. After Fuertes tells him: "...and don't hesitate to send me your drawings from time to time", you might speculate that this laudatory attention, at such a young age and from someone he labeled "the great man", was a harbinger of great things to come. You would absolutely be right! Not only was Roger destined to be great in his career as a painter of birds, but he would meet an incredible array of people like Fuertes in his life.