This week in birds

This week in birds - #601

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

Photo by Susan Borders Evans

The orb weavers are out and doing their thing. They are wonderful critters. Please be kind to them.

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Defending Nature is a dangerous business in a world where at least three defenders are killed every week.

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Unfortunately, Nature must be defended not only against those who harm intentionally but also those who harm through carelessness.

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Fall migration is in full swing. According to BirdCast, nearly two million birds passed over my county last night.

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Sometimes humans actually manage to assist Nature. This was the case of the Bald Ibis in Europe.

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A scientific investigation has concluded that Earth vibrated for nine days after a landslide and mega-tsunami in Greenland in 2023. Figuring that out took the efforts of about seventy people from fifteen different countries.

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It is for good reason that the Amazon is referred to as "Earth's lungs.

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Some orb weaver spiders are known to use captured fireflies to lure in more prey.

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At least three major wildfires are burning in southern California displacing tens of thousands of residents.

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It seems that Earth may have a new mini-moon at least for a couple of months.

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The Brazilian city of Linhares has granted its ocean waves the status of legal personhood in order to pave the path to marine protection.

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We have recognized the need for wildlife bridges over busy highways, but do marine animals need such bridges also?

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Studies have found that methane emissions are rising faster than ever.

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Those methane emissions could contribute to the fact that this year has seen the hottest summer on record and could lead to the warmest year that humans have measured.

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The American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week this week is a seabird, the Parkinson's Petrel, also called the Black Petrel because its only spot of color is its pale yellow bill with its black tip.

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Hundreds of sea lions took over a popular California beach during their migration, causing officials to close the beach down for a period of time.

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Pompeii was destroyed by a volcanic eruption 1945 years ago, but it is still yielding up its secrets to archaeologists.

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There is evidence that birds that live in the city have less vibrant colors than the same species living in more rural areas.

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The new Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary in California will protect more than 116 miles of that state's coastline.

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This is a new tarantula species (Aphonopelma jacobii) that has been discovered in the Chiricahua Mountains of southeastern Arizona.

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: 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 ...

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. ...

The Nature of Things

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