Springtime is here! In the northern latitudes we are seeing birds coming back from their winter grounds.These ducks are enjoying a "pond" made by the runoff pipes. Thank you Rose Wood for the great duck pic! Do you have a photo or video of an urban species doing something unusual? What about a rare... Continue Reading →
Bullies and Underdogs: Species Interactions in Urban Birds
An outstanding question in urban evolutionary biology is what factors influence a species' success in urban environments. This is a topic we've talked about before (check out Urban Adaptation in Mammals) and several other recent papers have tackled this topic. A variety of factors may influence whether or not a species occupies an urban environment... Continue Reading →
Urban Observation of the Week: Eastern Phoebe
We get a whole lot of New York City's wildlife observations here. For your viewing pleasure, here is the Eastern Phoebe, which may look like it is in pristine wildlife, but listen closely and you can hear the sounds of the city. Do you have a photo or video of an urban species doing... Continue Reading →
Urban Observation of the Week: Early Birds
There's an old saying, "the early bird gets the worms." Well in Washington D.C., the early bird, a Peregrine Falcon, gets the better parking spots! This week our observation comes from iNaturalist, a web and mobile app that allows users to record, share, and discuss observations of plants and animals. You can read more about... Continue Reading →
Urban Observation of the Week: Purple Gallinule
We find all sorts of flora and fauna in urban areas that don't seem to belong there. Here is a purple gallinule (Porphyrio martinicus) that was found a bit outside of its Southern US range. These birds are usually found in marshes further south than Washington D.C., and usually not so high up as this apartment sill!... Continue Reading →
Pigeons as a Model for Ecological and Social Research
As a common urban bird, pigeons usually provoke strong opinions — people often either despise them or enjoy the daily wildlife interaction that they provide. While conducting an urban ecology study in Butte, Montana, Dr. Stella Capoccia noticed that because of their ubiquity, pigeons are often taken for granted as an important member of the urban ecosystem. This... Continue Reading →
SICB 2019: Female Aggression in Song Sparrows is Higher in Urban Habitats
Urbanization has repeatedly been shown to negatively impact wild animals and is a particular concern for wild birds. Fortunately, some species are able to flexibly alter their behavioral phenotypes and adapt to the busy life in the city. Resource competition may be higher in urban environments, thereby selecting for more aggressive behaviors in city-slicking birds.... Continue Reading →
The Future of Darwin’s Finches with Intensifying Urbanization
Darwin's finches in the Galapagos are the poster children of adaptive radiation. These birds have formed many species that differ in their beaks. The size and shape of beaks make them uniquely suited to take advantage of different food resources. Hard big beaks are great for eating large hard seeds, small beaks for small seeds.... Continue Reading →
People Watching: the study of urban wildlife is a two-way street
My eyes are instinctively drawn to a black, blue, and snow white flurry of movement. A reflex hammer to my naturalist’s knee. The subject of my fascination springs a brisk two-footed hop-scotch, just ahead along a ribbon of green separating parking lot from bustling sidewalk in downtown Calgary. The throng of oncoming foot-traffic ignore the... Continue Reading →
Tools of the Trade: the Net Gun
Collecting samples in urban environments can present some challenges (as Matt Combs describes in "The Good, The Bad, and The Smelly" and Jane Remfert describes in “Urban Residential Field Tip”). As someone working on pigeons in Northeastern cities, I’ve encountered problems while simply trying to collect my samples. Many ornithologists use mist nets, but these... Continue Reading →