Why you should count your chickens (and kookaburras, lorikeets or other backyard birds)
This year is the tenth annual Aussie Backyard Bird Count, which Professor Simon Griffith says highlights the important role citizen science projects play in our understanding of changes taking place in our world......»»
On NYC beaches, angry birds fight drones patrolling for sharks and struggling swimmers
A fleet of drones patrolling New York City's beaches for signs of sharks and struggling swimmers is drawing backlash from an aggressive group of seaside residents: local shorebirds......»»
On NYC beaches, angry birds are fighting drones on patrol for sharks and swimmers
A fleet of drones patrolling New York City's beaches for signs of sharks and struggling swimmers is drawing backlash from an aggressive group of seaside residents: local shorebirds......»»
In Cuba, a haven for the world"s tiniest bird
The wings of the world's tiniest birds are a near-invisible blur as they whizz around tourists visiting a private Cuban garden that has become a haven for the declining species......»»
A black bear may pave the way for new wildlife crossings
A bear taking the scenic route around Southern California may help researchers learn how wild animals cross freeways to get from one habitat to the next—and how they might be kept out of your backyard......»»
Researchers spot potential hazard with private well water treatment
Systems designed to treat arsenic in private well water may be malfunctioning and endangering the health of people who count on them to keep their water safe, according to Rutgers researchers......»»
How artificial intelligence can help prevent illegal wildlife trade
Imagine you are a law enforcement official at a wildlife market and suspect some of the birds on sale are from endangered or illegally traded populations. This is a situation that demands decisive identification and action, but in cases where "look-a.....»»
Heat Waves Need FEMA’s Help
Heat waves are costly and kill more people each year than hurricanes, tornadoes and floods combined, but because FEMA doesn’t count them as disasters, communities miss out on important resources.....»»
Starlings" migratory behavior found to be inherited, not learned
Young, naïve starlings are looking for their wintering grounds independently of experienced conspecifics. Starlings are highly social birds throughout the year, but this does not mean that they copy the migration route from each other......»»
Losing count: The mathematical magic of counting curves
How can you figure out which points lie on a certain curve? And how many possible curves do you count by a given number of points? These are the kinds of questions Pim Spelier of the Mathematical Institute studied during his Ph.D. research. Spelier r.....»»
High-altitude cave used by Tibetan Buddhists yields a Denisovan fossil
Cave deposits yield bones of sheep, yaks, carnivores, and birds that were butchered. Enlarge / The Baishiya Karst Cave, where the recently analyzed samples were obtained. (credit: Dongju Zhang’s group (Lanzhou University)).....»»
Study finds minority status, social origin, gender, and weight can all count against a German kid"s grades
A new study done in more than 14,000 ninth graders in Germany has revealed that students experience grading bias based on their gender, body size, ethnicity and parental socio-economic status. These negative biases stack on each other, meaning that s.....»»
I’d love to see Apple put together a creative team to invent the obvious
We’re of course all eagerly awaiting the iOS 18 headline feature to hit the betas: Apple Intelligence. But sometimes the little things really count. Steve Jobs famously said that design is not just how things look, but how they work. Jony Ive ad.....»»
Some birds win and some lose with sea level rise, expert says
Global sea level rise is accelerating every year due to climate change, and it could threaten the very existence of some coastal bird species......»»
Apple"s new M2 iPad Air has a nine-core GPU, despite original claims to the contrary
Apple has quietly changed the M2 iPad Air's listed GPU core count from 10 cores to nine cores, and Metal benchmark testing suggests that the nine-core spec is accurate.Apple has corrected the GPU core count in the M2 iPad Air's description.The M2 iPa.....»»
Saturday Citations: The sound of music, sneaky birds, better training for LLMs. Plus: Diversity improves research
In the small fishing village where I grew up, we didn't have much. But we helped our neighbors, raised our children to respect the sea, and embraced an inclusive scientific methodology with a cross section of sex, race and gender among study particip.....»»
As No Mow May ends, here"s why we should keep patches of lawn permanently wild
Over the last century, nearly all of the UK's wildflower meadows have been destroyed by expanding farms, towns and cities. This loss of habitat has driven nature's decline, according to research led by birds and nature conservation charity the RSPB......»»
Alpacas in Idaho test positive for H5N1 bird flu in another world first
The alpacas were known to be in close contact with infected birds. Enlarge / Suri alpacas on a farm in Pennsylvania. (credit: Getty | Susan L. Angstadt) Four backyard alpacas in southern Idaho have tested positive for hi.....»»
Scientists count emperor penguins in the Antarctic to investigate factors affecting population
Emperor penguins are an endangered species. Scientists are protecting the largest of all penguins by monitoring their numbers precisely and investigating which factors affect their population. A team led by researchers at Friedrich-Alexander-Universi.....»»
US has worst bird flu outbreak in two years at Iowa egg farm
Deadly bird flu was detected in an egg-laying chicken flock in Iowa, affecting 4.2 million birds in the biggest U.S. outbreak since 2022......»»
Small birds boast range of flight styles thanks to evolutionary edge
Small birds have explored a wide variety of styles of flight, ranging from hovering hummingbirds to bounding sparrows to soaring swifts and swallows. A new Cornell University study could explain why......»»