This week in birds

This week in birds - #525

A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:

A common sight in Southeast Texas in the summer and fall - a pair of Cattle Egrets in a field.

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Maui is leading the way! A new ordinance has been implemented there that will control outdoor illumination at night and will help keep migrating birds safe.

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The prolonged drought has reduced the mighty Mississippi River to the status of a small stream in places and it has revealed shipwrecks, some of them from many decades ago. The shrinking of the river is having a serious impact in many places along its course.

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What is the cause of these "fairy circles" in the African desert? Many theories abound.

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Environmentalists breathed a sigh of relief with the victory this week of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in the presidential election in Brazil. He has promised to protect the Amazon rainforest and restore Brazil's leadership in environmental matters.

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Exposure to PFAS "forever chemicals" is widespread in this country. A study in North Carolina found nearly 100% of participants had been exposed to the chemicals.

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This is the Lesser Prairie-Chicken. It is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week. Like many birds of the prairie, its numbers are decreasing.

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A Cop27 task force report this week warned that food companies and governments must come together to change agricultural practices or risk "destroying the planet."

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The Mauna Loa volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii is giving indications that an eruption may be imminent.

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Siberia is burning. The warming of the Arctic has led to extreme wildfire seasons in Siberia in recent years.

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Wind energy could be the wave of the future for the Gulf South.

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The last Chisos mountain oak, or lateleaf oak, was thought to have perished in 2011, but reports of its demise have proved premature. The tree has been found alive in Big Bend National Park.

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Gabon, in Central Africa, is turning to its rainforest for revenue while also promising to preserve the forest.

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Who are the biggest consumers of plastic on the planet? Why it is the blue whales who consume millions of particles of microplastic pollution every day.

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China is emitting more greenhouse gases because they are burning more coal. The country is seeking a viable alternative that will not pollute the environment.

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The National Park Service plans to rid one of Glacier National Park's coldest lakes of non-native trout in order to make it a refuge for a native variety.

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Nations are failing to meet their promises in regard to controlling harmful emissions and that could be a serious problem for the planet.

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A Pinyon Jay enjoys a pinyon pine cone. These jays are decreasing in population throughout their range in the Southwest.

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In a speech this week, President Biden accused oil and gas companies of 'war profiteering' off Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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Remember all the excitement a few years ago when there were reports that the Ivory-billed Woodpecker still lived in the swamps of Arkansas? There were never any verifiable sightings and eventually the excitement died. But there are still plenty of exciting species in those swamps and somewhere in there, there might even be an Ivory-billed.

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This tiny butterfly is called the Fender's blue and there is good news about it. The good news is: It exists! Not only that but its numbers are increasing. All of that is particularly good news because a few years ago, the species was presumed to be extinct.

Poetry Sunday: Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver

How about we share another Mary Oliver poem? After all, you can never have too many of those. In this one, the poet seems to acknowledge that it is often hard to simply live in and enjoy the moment, perhaps because we are afraid it can't last. She urges us to give in to that moment and fully experience the joy. Although "much can never be redeemed, still, life has some possibility left." Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is no...

Poetry Sunday: Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman

You probably remember poet Amanda Gorman from her appearance at the inauguration of President Biden. She read her poem "The Hill We Climb" on that occasion. After the senseless slaughter in Uvalde this week, she was inspired to write another poem which was published in The New York Times. It seemed perfect for the occasion and so I stole it in order to feature it here, just in case you didn't get a chance to read it in the Times . Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman Everything hurts, Our hearts shadowed and strange, Minds made muddied and mute. We carry tragedy, terrifying and true. And yet none of it is new; We knew it as home, As horror, As heritage. Even our children Cannot be children, Cannot be. Everything hurts. It’s a hard time to be alive, And even harder to stay that way. We’re burdened to live out these days, While at the same time, blessed to outlive them. This alarm is how we know We must be altered — That we must differ or die, That we must triumph or try. ...

Poetry Sunday: Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney

My mother was a farm wife and a prodigious canner. She canned fruit and vegetables from the garden, even occasionally meat. But the best thing that she canned, in my opinion, was blackberry jam. Even as I type those words my mouth waters! Of course, before she could make that jam, somebody had to pick the blackberries. And that somebody was quite often named Dorothy. I think Seamus Heaney might have spent some time among the briars plucking those delicious black fruits as well, so he would have known that "Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour." They don't keep; you have to get that jam made in a hurry! Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney Late August, given heavy rain and sun For a full week, the blackberries would ripen. At first, just one, a glossy purple clot Among others, red, green, hard as a knot. You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust ...

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