Fly three miles? I'll go by boat, thanks

A pair of turnstones, birds that fly thousands of miles across oceans, are taking the ferry to save themselves a three-mile commute.

They catch the 8.30am boat from Falmouth to St Mawes, where they are served a breakfast of breadcrumbs by the skipper. They land after 20 minutes then spend the day feeding, before catching the 4.15pm back across the River Fal.

The birds, known as Fred and Freda, have been hitching rides on the Cornish ferry every winter for the past six years. So fond are they of the skipper, John Brown, that if he is captaining another boat they will often fly off to find him.
(via)

Mystery as thousands of birds fall from sky

THOUSANDS of birds have fallen from the skies over Esperance (Australia)and no one knows why.
Is it an illness, toxins or a natural phenomenon? A string of autopsies in Perth have shed no light on the mystery.

All the residents of flood-devastated Esperance know is that their "dawn chorus" of singing birds is missing.

The main casualties are wattle birds, yellow-throated miners, new holland honeyeaters and singing honeyeaters, although some dead crows, hawks and pigeons have also been found.

Wildlife officers are baffled by the "catastrophic" event, which the Department of Environment and Conservation said began well before last week's freak storm.

On Monday, Esperance, 725km southeast of Perth, was declared a natural disaster zone.

District nature conservation co-ordinator Mike Fitzgerald said the first reports of birds dropping dead in people's yards came in three weeks ago. More than 500 deaths had since been notified. But the calls stopped suddenly last week, reportedly because no birds were left.

"It's very substantial. We estimate several thousand birds are dead, although we don't have a clear number because of the large areas of bushland," Mr Fitzgerald said.
(via)

Gun Club Hunts City Crows in Singapore -- By Official Request

Ripping apart garbage bags, rummaging through leftovers, scavenging cafés and food stands, crows have earned the enmity of sanitation- obsessed Singaporeans. The tiny Asian island nation is infamous for its strict rules to promote cleanliness, including a ban on most chewing gum in public places.

And when it comes to crows, neatness isn't the only concern, as dive-bombings have been known to leave Singaporeans smarting.

But the birds aren't the ones drawing blood.

In 2006, at the invitation of the government, volunteers from the Singapore Gun Club culled approximately 1,025 crows—down slightly from 2005's tally of 1,650. The club's highest annual tally was 14,370 in 2001.

Birdwatchers flock to see the crook-necked swan

Birdwatchers have been flocking to a nature reserve to catch a glimpse of an infamously deformed swan that has just arrived for the winter.

Despite having a badly bent neck, Crinkly, a three-year-old Bewick's swan, has just completed a mammoth 3,000 mile journey.

The swan's deformity makes flying difficult as the U-shaped bend in her neck makes her less aerodynamic when in the air.

Crinkly arrived at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) reserve at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, earlier this week.
(via)

A Tale of Two Cockies

A Story of Love, Compassion, Friendship & Loyalty
About eight years ago a wild Australian Sulphur Crested Cockatoo flew into a car and broke it's wing. The motorist took it to the Vet in Nerang, Queensland, who had to amputate the wing. We adoped her - for which we needed a National Parks and Wildlife permit - and kept her in a cage outside where she was often visited by wild Cockatoos.
(via)

Pigeon lovers set for the battle of Trafalgar

Pigeon lovers are set to take London Mayor Ken Livingstone to court to force him to let them continue feeding the birds he calls "flying rats" in the capital's Trafalgar Square.

The Save the Trafalgar Square Pigeons (STTSP) action group has been battling a campaign launched by Livingstone six years ago to rid the central London square of its pigeons, which he says are a nuisance and a health hazard.

The sale to the public of bird seed has been banned and hawks have been brought in to scare the pigeons away.

Monk parakeets spread in Chicago area

Once, Chicago's monk parakeets had just one tree in Hyde Park.

Today, they have spread. And spread. There are monk parakeet colonies in nearly 20 suburbs, according to Christopher Appelt, an assistant professor of biology at St. Xavier University who studies the birds. "They have pushed their way into the surrounding suburbs," said Appelt.

The following photo was taken in Alsip, Illinois, on December 6, 2006.
It was 8:30 am, temperature was 36 degrees. There were about a dozen of these gorgeous, vivid green birds at 116th and Springfield.

ABOUT THE MONK PARAKEET

Monk parakeets are 12-inch-long birds that are lime green in color. Here are some other facts:

• Home sweet home: The parakeets are the only parrots in the world who build complex nest structures from sticks and other materials and live in them all year.

• It's all relative: They are also the sole occupants of the genus Myiopsitta, so they have no close relatives — at least from the scientific point of view. That may change some day as scientists develop a better understanding of parrot genetics.

• Homeland: These small birds are native to South America where they can be found in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia.

• Moving around: In recent decades, they've been introduced through the pet trade to the United States and Europe.

Source: monkparakeet.com

‘World Cup 2010’ development threatens Barn Swallows

A proposed airport development in South Africa is threatening the winter roosting sites of three million Barn Swallows that journey there after spending breeding months in countries across Europe and other parts of the world.

The development is being proposed by the South African government, apparently to meet the demands of hosting World Cup 2010.

Art by Suzan Visser

Painting, 'Goedgemutste uilen'