Nothing oozes status like a man with an endangered alligator lizard draped over his shoulder that he has bought illegally through a German reptile trade show. These are people not content with a pet bearded dragon or a pet corn snake. They want more. They want something no one else has, even if having it […]
Tag: pesticides
More Bald Eagles Have Died Mysteriously
While we watched the live cam in awe as a bald eagle hatched two babies at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C., over the weekend, a mysterious bald eagle tragedy was unfolding a hundred miles away in Delaware. On Saturday, someone phoned state officials after finding five disoriented eagles in a farm field in […]
13 Bald Eagles Died in Mysterious Incident
It’s a whodunit for the animal kingdom: State and federal wildlife officials are trying to find out what happened to 13 bald eagles that were discovered dead on Maryland’s Eastern Shore on Saturday. The birds of prey were found on a farm in rural Caroline County, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) east of Washington, D.C. […]
Meet pesticides, the silent bird killers that protect our crops
The illegal killing of birds with poisoned baits and their accidental deaths from pesticides occurs on a global scale: Tens of millions have died, leading to a decline in numerous species’ populations. Birds of prey are targeted with poison baits if they are seen as predators by racing-pigeon enthusiasts, gamekeepers, livestock farmers, poultry farmers and […]
Video: Let’s Not Force Eagles to Fight Rogue Drones
Watching a giant eagle streak out of the sky to capture a rogue drone is undeniably cool. A story has been sweeping the Internet about how the Dutch National Police are training eagles to be a new avian air force that will protect us from evil flying robots. The idea that eagles could be turned […]
Over 40 years, half of China’s land vertebrates disappear
From 1970 to 2010, the world’s populations of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and fish shrunk by about 52 percent. China is right in the middle of the global pack with a nearly 50-percent loss of its land-based vertebrates, according to a recent report by the international NGO World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The situation […]
Growing parasite threat to finches made famous by Darwin
The birds that helped Charles Darwin refine his theory of evolution are in danger of going extinct, according to a new study. Finches in the Galapagos Islands are being threatened by a parasitic fly that attacks their young. A new mathematical model suggests that the birds may succumb to this pest in 50 years. But […]
The Maned wolf: saving South America’s unfortunately-named canid
The Maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) is by all accounts a bizarre creature. Nicknamed a “fox on stilts,” it is perhaps best known for its once-heard-never-forgotten “roar-bark.” A single look at this strange, gangly and rather scruffy creature, with its bobbing gait and bat-like ears — with the body of a wolf, face of a fox, […]