Help Count Our Backyard Birds
This coming Friday through Monday, February 17-20, is the annual Great Backyard Bird Count. Every year since 1998, the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology have coordinated this worldwide survey of wild birds in our towns, cities and around our homes. Last year, over 384,000 people in 192 countries participated in the count, observing over 7,000 species of birds.
To participate, first choose an area you are going to count. It can be your literal backyard, if you have one, or a park, greenspace, city block, or anywhere else where you can see birds. Then, at least once in the four-day period, watch birds there for 15 minutes or more, and record what you see. It’s easier than ever to record and track your sightings, with the popular birding apps eBird and Merlin both supporting the event. All lists of 15 minutes or more added to either app during the four days will be included in the count.
Repeated counts like this one, as well as the longer-running Christmas Bird Counts and the springtime North American Breeding Bird Survey, are some of the best sources of data on long-term trends in bird populations. Scientists can only be one place at a time, and these counts have spotted declines in particular species and populations that would never have been possible to see without them. To learn more about this important program and how to help, click here.
Thursday: Birds of Mongolia Talk
From our backyard to the other side of the world, Corvallis area bird enthusiasts have a full week coming. Thursday night, Corvallis Audubon members Fred Ramsey and Jim Faulkner will present photos and stories from their recent trip to Mongolia. The event starts at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 16, in the Oak Room at the Corvallis Community Center on NW Tyler Ave. More information on this and other upcoming Audubon talks (plus a few teaser photos from the presentation) available here.
Thursday: River Cleanup
Also on Thursday, there’s another chance to help clean up our river and keep it clean for birds, other wildlife and each other. Willamette Riverkeeper and City of Corvallis Parks are looking for volunteers for a three-hour cleanup effort. If the current forecast holds, it should be chilly but not rainy on Thursday, but check the weather on the day just in case. The organizers advise volunteers to wear sturdy shoes and dress to stay warm and dry. The event runs from 9 am to Noon on Thursday, February 16. Registration and more details are available here.
The Cost of Tree Plantations
Poplar is a fast-growing tree, and an even faster-growing industry. In the last 15 years, poplar plantations have doubled to over 23 million acres worldwide, growing wood that becomes fuel, paper, plywood, furniture and more. But the growth and spread of these monoculture plantations, where one species is grown like a traditional crop, rather than a more diverse forest, has its downsides. In addition to loss of biodiversity, new research from Oregon State scientists shows that it is breeding new tree diseases. OSU Associate Professor Jared LeBoldus and research associate Kelsey Søndreli collaborated with colleagues from the University of British Columbia and the USDA to show that a fungus that traditionally attacks related cottonwood trees has made the jump to poplars in these dense plantations. In the paper’s own words, “This work provides a clear example of the changes created by the intensification of tree cultivation that facilitate the emergence of specialized pathogens, jeopardizing the natural equilibrium between hosts and pathogens.”
By Ian Rose
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