Today's Show

Ducks Unlimited Celebrates Anniversary - 75 Years!

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This January marks the 75th anniversary of Ducks Unlimited. Ducks Unlimited – or DU – has grown to become, by many measures, the most effective wetland conservation organization in the world. To date, they’ve conserved more than 12 million acres of waterfowl and wildlife habitat in North America. So for hunter and birder alike, for all who care about ducks, geese, swans – and shorebirds, rails and many others – DU plays a vital role. BirdNote salutes Ducks Unlimited on 75 years of achievement.
You can celebrate them, too. Buy a Duck Stamp!

An Owl Is Mobbed

A pint-sized Northern Pygmy-Owl, not much bigger than a pine cone, hoots from a tree-top on a winter morning. Before long, this diurnal owl – a determined predator of small birds and mammals – will attract a mob of a dozen or more small birds. Mobbing may be a collective response to danger. But it’s not certain if the “mobbers” hope to drive away the predator, or simply draw attention to the threat.
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Feeding Frenzy

It’s late winter at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island, Florida. Many birds have finished nesting, and young birds are everywhere. This morning, wind and tide have conspired to strand schools of fish in backwater ditches. And the birds are taking advantage of it. It’s a feeding frenzy! [Seen in the *Enlarged* version of the photo: White Ibises, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, and American White Pelican] Thanks to the National Wildlife Refuge System, these birds – and many others – can thrive in protected habitats.

Why Arctic Terns Have Short Beaks

The bill and legs of Arctic Terns are shorter than those of Common Terns. Because Arctic Terns breed in the Arctic and winter in the Antarctic, they are subject to much colder weather than are Common Terns. Birds' bills and legs lose heat, because they're not covered by feathers. Birds in cold climates have short bills and legs, lessening their exposure. Note the difference between the bill and legs of the Arctic Tern on the bottom here and those of the Common Tern on the top. Tell a friend about the BirdNote podcast!

Piracy Among Raptors

One bird of prey may steal another’s meal, a behavior that biologists call piracy, or kleptoparasitism. The prey may change hands several times, perhaps from Northern Harrier to Peregrine Falcon to Bald Eagle. The Peregrine — like this one — may steal a meal, or have its meal stolen, or both!
Visit your local Audubon chapter, to see where you might watch raptors this winter. Begin here.