Bird Feathers #3

The third in a series of occassional rundowns of what’s happening in the world of birds, birding and bird blogging.

• Dozens of birds killed, hundreds of thousands threatened by spill | The black oil spreading for miles from the Golden Gate is staining one of the richest wildlife regions on the Pacific Coast and threatening hundreds of thousands of birds as well as marine mammals and fish that feed around San Francisco Bay.
•  Worst breeding season for Britain’s migratory birds | The unusual weather conditions across Britain have taken their toll on the country’s resident and migratory bird populations – of 25 bird species monitored, seven had their worst breeding season ever.
• Bird watcher gets stuck in the mud | A 73-year-old man was stuck in the mud when his bird-watching trip went wrong.
• No one to be charged over shooting of rare bird on Queen’s estate | No one will be charged after the alleged shooting of two protected birds of prey on one of Queen Elizabeth II’s country estates where Prince Harry had been shooting, prosecutors said Tuesday.

A Bird Habitat Conservation Plan That Developers Support

Speaking at the Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland, President Bush unveiled several new programs aimed at helping preserve the habitats of migratory birds.

Bush proposed to improve 200,000 acres of remaining bird habitat at existing wildlife refuges and to upgrade bird habitats in national parks.

A second initiative calls for a program of conservation easements. Under this program landowners agree not to develop their properties in return for a charitable deduction for the fair market value of the land.

A third program is called recovery credit trading. Under this plan landowners are given incentives to set aside or improve land for the benefit of migratory birds. These credits can be traded or sold on the open market.

While most environmental groups appear to back the president’s recovery credit trading plan, many developers see a silver lining. Real estate developers will be able to purchase these recovery credits from private landowners permitting them the opportunity to go ahead with projects that might otherwise be prohibited or delayed due to federal environmental regulations.

 

Until now there has been no single, comprehensive resource on the status of North America’s most threatened birds and what people can do to help protect them.

Birder’s Conservation Handbook is the only book of its kind, written specifically to help birders and researchers understand the threats while providing actions to protect birds and their habitats.

Find out more about this book | Birder’s Conservation Handbook

 

Happy birding!

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