Neil's New Video from Scotland - Peregrins

Long thought extinct, Carolina Parakeet rediscovered in Honduras

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg63q3w3_0cv7p4vgw

FOR RELEASE: April 1, 2009 Media contacts: Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Hubin Tubbs Office: 607-255-2000 E-Mail: hubin.tubbs@cornell.edu The Nature Conservancy: Karen Forestel Office: 703-841-5300 E-mail: kforestel@tnc.org Long thought extinct, Carolina Parakeet rediscovered in Honduras Captive bird and radio tagged individual shows a non-migratory population survives in vast forested areas ITHACA, NY. -- Long believed to be extinct,--the Carolina Parakeet, North America's only member of the parrot family -- has been discovered in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve in the Mosquitia region of northeastern Honduras. photo by John Heldee A photo of a Carolina Parakeet researchers named "Coqueta" now living in captivity in Honduras. A little fewer than 100 years after the last confirmed sighting of the species in the United States, a research team today announced that a small non-migratory population survives in vast areas of neotropical forest in Honduras. A full report is due to be Published in the journal Science in the April issue. The findings include multiple sightings of the long thought to be extinct parakeet as well as preliminary data collected from an male bird tracked through radio telemetry. The evidence was gathered during an intensive year-long search in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve (RPBR) involving more than 50 experts and field biologists working together as part of the Parakeet Conservation Partnership, led by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology at Cornell University and The Nature Conservancy. The Parakeet Conservation Partnership was founded over one year ago but kept quiet while more information was gathered. A similar partnership was formed when Cornell researchers took up the search for the Ivory Billed Woodpecker. "These types of partnerships have a track record of proven results," said Dr. John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. photo by John Heldee Decares examines a study skin of a Carolina Parakeet from 1882. "The bird we currently have in captivity, the individuals we have seen in the wild and the male we are tracking through telemetry are absolutely the Carolina Parakeet" said Hubin Tubbs, the Science article's lead author. "We know from historical data that the Carolina Parakeet was migratory to this general region. There must have been individuals that did not migrate and they have formed a small but viable non-migratory population all this time." While parrots are not known as long distance migrators, the Carolina Parakeet did historically migrate north through the Eastern United States as far as Pennsylvania and up the Mississippi, and Missouri Rivers to the Platte and regularly to Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Nebraska. DNA analysis from feathers taken from the birds in Honduras was compared to that extracted from study skin specimens from the University of Connecticut, The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. Both an initial limited mtDNA haplotype comparison and a more detailed mtDNA cytochrome b, NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 and 3, and D-loop sequence confirmed the living species are indeed Carolina Parakeets. "What we find is a match," said Juan Decares the co-author of the forthcoming article in Science. "There was slight genetic variation consistent with what we would expect to see in an isolated sub-population in 100 years. Comparing the DNA of multiple living specimens indicates that the population has very limited genetic variation and may have arose from as few as eight birds." photo by John Heldee A researcher tracks the daily movement of the carolina parakeet flock. "A non-migratory population forming from migratory birds is not as strange as it may seem,' says co-author Juan Decares. "The Canada Goose re-introduced across North America is essentially non-migratory in much of its range. While Canada Geese used to migrate though the United States to breed in Canada, there are year-round populations in many parts of the country and they are breeding further south than they did historically. It should not be thought of as uncommon for birds to lose their migratory ability." The Recovery Plan "Amazingly, America may have another chance to protect the future of this spectacular bird." The excited researchers believe there is still a chance for recovery in North America using captive bred, re-introduced individuals similar to what was done with the peregrine falcon in the 1970s. An exotic species, the Monk Parakeet, has thrived where they have escaped in locales such as New York City, Chicago, Cincinnati, coastal Rhode Island and Connecticut, and southwestern Washington. There is estimated to be a feral population of 100,000 in Florida alone. "There is still suitable habitat available," said Tubbs. While the establishment of new non-migratory populations in southern climates may be possible, reintroduction across the full former range of the bird may prove more difficult. "The Carolina Parakeet was once found as far north as Ohio," says Decares. "Clearly with the harsh winter climate of Ohio we would have to have a migratory population. Birds released in colder climates would simply die when winter comes as we believe they have lost the migratory instinct. Studies done by German researchers have shown that Crossbreeding experiments with blackcaps from a nonmigratory population (of the Cape Verde Islands) and a migratory population (from southern Germany) demonstrated that the urge to migrate as well as orientation behavior can be transmitted rapidly into a nonmigratory bird population and thus has a substantial genetic basis. "Because there are no living Carolina Parakeets with that migratory genetic information we cannot simply breed it into them," says Decares. The only member of the parrot family in North America, the Carolina Parakeet is known through lore as a bird of beauty and indomitable spirit. The birds numbers shrank after large amounts of forest were cleared for agriculture. At the same time, it was also hunted for feathers for the millinery trade. The birds that remained were ruthlessly hunted by farmers who believed they would damage their crops. Flocks became rare by the 1880s and the last Carolina Parakeet died in captivity at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1918. While there continued to be possible sightings through the 1920s and early 1930s the species was officially declared extinct in 1939 by the American Ornithologists Union. *** The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a nonprofit membership institution with the mission to interpret and conserve the Earth's biological diversity though research, education, and citizen science focused on birds. From its headquarters at the Imogene Powers Johnson Center for Birds and Biodiversity in Ithaca, N.Y., the Lab leads international efforts in bird monitoring and conservation, and fosters the ability of enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels to make a difference. The Nature Conservancy is a nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy has been responsible for protecting more than 15 million acres in the United States and more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific.

Large Birds Catching Fish

This is a awesome slide show,,

thanks to Paul,, at KFalcon cam,,


http://www.miguellasa.com/photos/sspopup.mg?AlbumID=1001578

Aurora in Fight with another female

Gee, I sure hope Aurora is OK,,

here is the web link to the live cam

http://www.ag-wanderfalken.de/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=78

and here is Annette's album of the territorial fight in the next box,,

Hopefully both females are ok, and did not inflict serious damage on each other,,

(Aurora has the blue bands)

http://www.kodakgallery.de/ShareLanding.action?c=bozg71ut.3bjjywgbd&x=0&y=rh2rp4&localeid=de_DE

CPF Index of Falcon Cams

Here is the updated list,, of falcon cams,,

http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/links/Peregrinelinks.html

New Tiercel for Mariah??? (fingers crossed)

New Tiercel for Mariah???

Awesome pics,, thanks to Joyce,,

what a beautiful Tiercel he is,, we are trying to get a band ID on this guy,,,


http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=tq6stye.70aczjrq&x=0&y=fbvhee&localeid=en_US

LOL, Mariah made the news in Rochester

How, cool they did a TV and online news report about Mariah,, and the new Tiercel, who showed up on Saturday.

http://www.13wham.com/news/local/story/Kodak-Falcon-Confused-Wheres-Favorite-Nesting/TBD-9OrrhU2RGsGpnaHBbw.cspx

4 Peregrin Eyas, Getting Fed

This is just a good video, of 4 eyas being fed.

Video was shot,, June 6, 2007

Four peregrine falcon chicks feeding in their nest on top of the Mayo Clinic's Guggenheim Building in Rochester, MN

Mariah, has a new Suitor???

Here is a vid,, that Carol took,, of Mariah and the new banded Male,, who are both e-chupping ALOT!!

Mariah & the new banded Tiercel at Midtown Plaza - 3/22/09






http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIyFVnwJvys

And here is Jim's blog and more pics of this "new guy",,

http://marchlords.com/birdblog/2009/03/mariahs-neuveau-beau.html

I sure hope, these 2 pair off, and find one of the new scrapes. (there are 2)

Bird Cams Around the World

Bird Cams Around the World,,

GREAT BOARD!!!

http://www.hostingphpbb.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=939&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0&mforum=peregrinefalcon

Baby Boom for Bald Eagles in Central Illinois!

This is GREAT NEWS!!!

http://www.sj-r.com/features/x599205850/Bald-eagles-are-experiencing-a-baby-boom-in-central-Illinois

Peregrin Cam in Rome Italy

This is a good falconcam,, live feed with sound,,

Main site,,

http://www.birdcam.it/index.php


This pair,, is Aria and Venta,, they are in egg incubation mode.

http://www.birdcam.it/cam.php?camid=1&subpage=cam01.php

More Heartbreak in Rochester

Things continue to fall apart for Mariah in Rochester.

The Tiercel Tybropa-Cree, who was seen mating with "our Queen" about a week ago, and then went missing, has been found dead.

Hit by a car and found beside a busy road.

Just so sad,, I have cried a bucket of tears for Mariah, I doubt we will have EYAS from this beautiful Peregrine this year.

Update at Imprints,,,

http://rfalconcam.com/imprints/

Bummer in Rochester

My heart is breaking for Mariah and Kaver,,

Kaver has not returned,, and since Kodak forced the removal of
their nest box,, that they have raised Eyas in for 11 years,,
it doesn't look good for Mariah raising a clutch of kids this year.

Here is a slide show,, of Mariah,, trying to break through the
netting Kodak, put up, to keep her away from where her
scrape was.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=tq6stye.8b4hxlp2&x=0&y=2xhkln&localeid=en_US

This situation is similar to Pale Male and Lola,, in New York City,
the building removed their nest,, then after we all protested
re-installed the nest,, but now 5 years later,, Pale Male and Lola,
have not laid another clutch of eggs.

Lou's Wicked Raptor Shots

These are beautiful pics,,

http://tinyurl.com/dcepn3