how citizens - and birders - can use the 2016 State of the Birds report, and take action

Many people think bird conservation actions are beyond their ability - that those actions can only be taken by agencies, non-governmental organizations, or other large entities. But here is a list of actions any individual can take: http://www.stateofthebirds.org/2016/resources/change/#citizens

Businesses can also play a role:  http://www.stateofthebirds.org/2016/resources/change/#business

With one-third of our birds needing conservation action, we need everyone to get involved on some level. Learn about what you can do to help protect our birds!

grassland birds in northeast more affected by climate change

A new paper published in the journal Landscape Ecology looks at how birds in various habitats may respond to the effects of climate change. The authors (M.A. Jarzyna of Yale, B. Zuckerberg of UW-Madison, and A.O. Finley of Michigan State University, and W.F. Porter) conclude that birds in forest habitats may be somewhat "buffered" from climate-related effects, but that species found in open habitats, especially those that are fragmented may experience more severe effects.
The paper is published in the journal's June 2016 online edition, with the title:
Synergistic effects of climate and land cover: grassland birds are more vulnerable to climate change

The State of North America's Birds - new report

Read a great summary of the new "State of North America's Birds" at http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/sonab2016/

One third of North American birds are in need of conservation action. 

Read the full report at http://www.stateofthebirds.org/2016/

more on controversial cormorant control efforts

The controversy over killing thousands of cormorants continues.

The following articles provide some background information.

Much more to be learned...

http://audubonportland.org/issues/habitat/sand-island

http://www.audubon.org/news/the-corps-cormorants-and-cull

http://www.animals24-7.org/2016/04/13/cormorant-killers-shoot-the-bird-to-d-c-judicial-ruling/

http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/features/19298/to-kill-a-cormorant

https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2015/double-crested-cormorant-08-12-2015.html

cormorant control in the Pacific Northwest

Read about a recent cormorant colony failure at: http://audubonportland.org/pressroom/press-releases/cormorant-nesting-colony-targeted-by-federal-agencies-suffers-complete-failure