Monday, June 22, 2026

birds

Case StudiesEnvironmental Science

Will climate change bring cultural change?

Sometimes science isn’t enough to protect a species. Sometimes, culture is necessary. People are likely to care most about protecting species they find culturally important. But are these culturally important species the most threatened due to climate change? A case study from Costa Rica offers some insights into this question.

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Case StudiesEcosystemsEnvironmental Science

Let the games begin! Having fun and playing games can improve the lives of people and wildlife.

With environmental conditions deteriorating across the globe, there’s no time to stop and play games. Except for when the solutions to these problems can be found by playing games. Find out how researchers, conservationists, and farmers in France all played a game to improve land management in a wet grassland.

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CitiesEcosystemsEnvironmental ScienceHuman Exposure and Public Health

Rich bird, poor bird: urban street trees support native birds across a socioeconomic gradient

If you’ve jumped on the bird-watching bandwagon to pass time during the pandemic or tuned in to #BlackBirdersWeek, you might have a new-found awareness of the birds outside your window or in your local park. What you may not have noticed is that urban birding experiences can differ greatly among neighborhoods.

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Case StudiesEnvironmental Science

The missing ingredient in the conservation cake is…culture

Even with all the science in the world, conservation plans still can fall short. What conservation plans sometimes fail to consider is the cultural importance of a species to groups of people.

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Animal behaviorCitiesEnvironmental Science

Collision course: bird strikes caused by building lights at night

Each year, billions of birds die from colliding with building windows. What characteristics of buildings make some more prone to collisions than others? A team of researchers set out to shed some light on the answer

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Environmental Science

The use of albatrosses as a conservation tool

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing poses an imminent threat to biodiversity in our oceans. Notoriously difficult to track, fishing vessels are able to elude traditional tracking measures. Authors H. Weimerskirch et. al. introduce the concept of the “ocean sentinel”, where sea birds that are naturally attracted to fishing vessels are equipped with bio-loggers. Data from these loggers help locate where, when, and how frequently IUU is occuring.

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CitiesHuman Exposure and Public Health

A Walk in the Park is Better with Birds

Green spaces in cities do wonders for our health, but what types of green spaces are best? A recent study found that people tend to experience greater happiness in parks with a high diversity of bird species. This helps inform city planners that when designing parks, trying to maximize bird life should be a high priority.

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EcosystemsEnvironmental Science

Macadamia Farmers Going Nuts Over Birds and Bats

Removing natural vegetation around farms may keep crop predators such as monkeys off farms, but it also can keep away beneficial species of birds and bats that eat common insect pests. Do the services provided by birds and bats outweigh the disservices from monkeys? Researchers ventured into macadamia orchards to try and crack open the answer.

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Environmental Science

Listen for a Change: Bioacoustics in Restored Habitat Combats the Bird Decline

Excerpt: A recent study has revealed that 3 billion birds have disappeared since 1970 in North America. Restoring habitat can help reverse this loss, and technology in listening for birds can be a vital tool to see if this approach to restoring bird habitat is working.

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Ecosystems

Taking care of carrion

Vultures often serve as a symbol of death in popular movies and TV shows. However, they serve a vital role in keeping systems of life functioning healthily. Their lives are threatened by human actions, and a recent study gave some insight into how we can better conserve these important animals.

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