Focusing On Wildlife

Widespread Illegal Bird Trapping in Malta

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:02:45 GMT

Numerous reports of illegal bird trapping throughout Malta and Gozo within the last few weeks have lead to the apprehension of 5 individuals by police. Video evidence will be submitted by BirdLife to assist police in their investigations.

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Power Line Threats to Migratory Birds

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 11:20:10 GMT

Governments are set to adopt new guidelines on power line threats to migratory birds. Delegates at the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), in Bergen, Norway are poised to adopt new guidelines on how to avoid birds being killed by power line collisions and electrocutions.

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Emperor Penguin Spa (Aptenodytes forsteri)

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:39:45 GMT

A mud bath brings a little light relief to the hot Emperor Penguin chicks (Aptenodytes forsteri).

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Tracking Migrating Cuckoos Part III

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 12:26:45 GMT

After spending almost three months in Nigeria, Clement has now joined the other four cuckoos in the Congo Rainforest. This is now the closest all five Cuckoos have been to each other since leaving East Anglia this summer.

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Millions of Bird Deaths in Nevada

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 11:58:56 GMT

American Bird Conservancy, the nation's leading bird conservation organization, is asking Nevada citizens to act on a state law that now gives them the ability to prevent thousands, possibly millions of bird deaths at mining claim sites. The law, passed in 2009, included a provision that became effective this month enabling anyone to pull up claim marker stakes that are improperly set and act as bird-killing traps.

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Penguins Released After New Zealand Oil Spill

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 13:08:36 GMT

The first little blue penguins (Eudyptula minor) affected by the Rena oil spill were released back into the wild at Mount Maunganui on Tuesday, after several weeks of recovery and care by WWF staff and other members of New Zealand’s National Oiled Wildlife Recovery Team.

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Wolves Get Lucky and Catch Bison

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 14:21:50 GMT

A young bison (Bison bison) is dealt a fatal blow.

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Great Bustards On Tour

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:49:54 GMT

Great Bustards (Otis tarda) released as part of an ambitious project that is bringing the birds back to the UK are causing a stir by conducting their own tours of southern England.

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Criminal Adélie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae)

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 12:10:47 GMT

Some Adélie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) turn to a life of crime to build the perfect nest.

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Florida Scrub-Jay Has Declined Significantly

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 21:04:58 GMT

An extensive new study by the Avian Ecology Program of the Archbold Biological Station on the health of the Florida Scrub-Jay, the only bird endemic to the state of Florida, has found that despite significant efforts to protect the species, populations have dropped significantly in the last 18 years. In managed study areas, populations have fallen by as much as 25%, but it is likely that the total species’ population throughout the state may have dropped as much as 35 – 40 percent.

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RSPB Trailer "Born To Fly"

Sun, 20 Nov 2011 11:50:56 GMT

Cranes are among the most ancient of birds and undertake great migrations every year. The film follows the crane as it travels from the Arctic, across Europe to the sun-drenched oak woodlands of Spain and Portugal.

Watch "Born to Fly" Trailer on FocusingOnWildlife.com

Swiss Village Ravaged by Fieldfares

Sat, 19 Nov 2011 12:17:21 GMT

During the last few days a large flock of Fieldfares (Turdus pilaris) has descended on our tiny alpine village. Within a matter of days the noisy flock stripped off all of the red berries on the mountain ash (rowan) and holly trees as well as any remaining fruit on the apple and pear trees.

More Fieldfare Photos and Birdsong

Northern Gannets Diving At High Speed

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 14:08:32 GMT

Northern Gannets (Morus bassanus) are colonial breeders on islands and coasts, normally laying one chalky, blue egg. It takes five years for gannets to reach maturity.

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Tokay Gecko Trade Booms in South-East Asia

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 11:54:53 GMT

Unfounded claims of a potential cure for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is one factor behind a boom in the trade of Tokay Geckos (Gekko gecko), according to a new report launched today by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.

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Scarlet Macaws Take Flight in Guatemala

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:17:59 GMT

Researchers and conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Guatemala Program, WCS’s Bronx Zoo, the National Park Service of Guatemala, and other groups report a major conservation victory from Central America: a bumper crop of magnificent scarlet macaw (Ara macao) fledglings that have now taken flight over the forests of Guatemala

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Hungarian Police Seize Thousands Of Dead Songbirds

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 14:40:40 GMT

Border Police in Hungary seized around 10,000 dead songbirds from a Romanian truck near Szeged, close to the border with Romania on 5th November, according to MTI, the Hungarian News Agency.

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Recording the White-Throated Dipper

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 12:54:41 GMT

Chris Watson attempts to record the birdsong of the White-throated Dipper (Cinclus cinclus), a sound that has eluded his microphones for more than 30 years.

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Orange Tip Metamorphosis

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 14:54:14 GMT

Close up film of an Orange Tip Butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines) emerging from its chrysalis.

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Nation’s Mayors Asked to Stop Spread of Feral Cats

Sat, 12 Nov 2011 12:09:29 GMT

American Bird Conservancy (ABC), the nation’s leading bird conservation organization, has called on the mayors of U.S. cities to stop the epidemic spread of feral cats that threaten national bird populations as well as scores of other wildlife. Letters were mailed to mayors of the fifty largest cities in the Unites States, urging they support responsible pet ownership and oppose Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) programs that promote the feeding of outdoor cats.

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Western Black Rhino Declared Extinct

Sat, 12 Nov 2011 07:58:41 GMT

No wild Western Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis longipes) remain in West Africa, according to the latest global assessment of threatened species:

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Threatened Whistling Ducks Arrive In Barbados

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:09:57 GMT

The BirdLife Caribbean Program established Woodbourne Shorebird Refuge on Barbados in 2009 with funding and support from the US Fish and Wildlife Service and Canadian Wildlife Service. Originally a 5-ha wetland “swamp” managed specifically for shorebird hunting, Woodbourne was abandoned and fell into disrepair until BirdLife restored it as a “no-shooting” refuge for migratory shorebirds and resident waterbirds – a move that has been actively (and financially) supported by the Barbados Wildfowlers Association. The result is that in just over two years, an astonishing 24 species of shorebirds have found safe haven at Woodbourne.

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Pelicans Plunder Cape Gannet Chicks

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 15:16:13 GMT

On Malgas Island in South Africa's West Coast National Park, there are thousands of Cape gannet chicks that are safe from human interference. But there is no protection from the large white pelicans that swallow the poor chicks whole.

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Male Spatule-Tailed Hummingbird Woos A Female

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 06:10:48 GMT

A male spatule-tailed hummingbird (Loddigesia mirabilis) woos a female with an incredible aerial display showing off its outrageous but cumbersome tail feathers. In fact, they are so cumbersome that the male can only stay airborne for a matter of seconds. But what wonderful seconds they are.

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Taming The Alaskan Hummingbird

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:58:01 GMT

Taming the Alaskan hummingbird. These hummingbirds were filmed at the Alaska Grand Lodge, no feeder required! Did you know their hearbeat can be as high as
1200 beats per minute! Mother nature is amazing!

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The Great Rift: Africa's Wild Heart

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 14:30:41 GMT

The Great Rift: Africa's Wild Heart Millions of Lesser Flamingos (Phoenicopterus minor) descend on the rich waters of Lake Bogoria.

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Through the Lens: White-tailed Ptarmigan

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 21:13:18 GMT

Join Cornell Lab of Ornithology photographer Gerrit Vyn as he searches the high slopes of Washington's Mount Rainier for White-tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura).

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Fighting the "Pipeline of Death"

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 18:24:14 GMT

The Puerto Rican Energy and Power Authority is requesting permission from the Army Corps of Engineers to construct and operate a 92-mile-long pipeline to transport liquefied natural gas from the south side of Puerto Rico to power facilities in the north.

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Young Stoats Playing For Keeps

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:28:16 GMT

The manic games of young stoats (Mustela erminea) help them develop the killer skills they need to catch their prey. As rabbits are fast-moving, quick-turning, and ten times larger than the slim-lined stoats, the young kits must hone their skills early if they are to stand any chance of catching these relative giants.

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Clever Eurasian Jays Plan For The Future

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 19:37:51 GMT

Experiments with Eurasian jays have shown that the birds store food that they will want in the future - "planning" for their impending needs.

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Birds of Australia's Northern Territory

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:41:23 GMT

Join wildlife photographer Marie Read as she documents the bird life in Kakadu National Park in Australia's Northern Territory.

Watch video on FocusingOnWildlife.com