Hancock Wildlife Foundation News

What Drives the Number of Nests in a Territory?

davidh — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 09:59:04 -0700

Alternative Bald Eagle Nests - a Plethora in Some Areas - Not in Others- Why?

Here is a good Thesis topic -- but it needs a Sponsor!

In most of nature there are usually multiply reasons why some behavior or action takes place.

Why do some eaqles make several nests? In other active territories only one nest is ever found. Obviously some make a new nest to replace one that has been destroyed by the weather. The nest used for several years very successfully, simply rotted out and fell, partially or wholly to the ground. In other cases the tree blew over. In many of the urban areas the availability of strong cedar, Sitka spruce or

Bird man of Surrey tries to nurture nature

karenbills — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:38:31 -0700

By Hannah Sutherland - Peace Arch News
Published: July 22, 2010 4:00 PM
Updated: July 23, 2010 11:03 AM

As David Hancock swings open the gate to his yard, he is greeted by his regular houseguests, including Bahama pintail and blue-billed ruddy ducks.

“Hello guys, how are you?” Hancock says in a melodic voice, as the waterfowl wade through a pond stretched across the lawn.

The South Surrey acreage is home to about 20 bird species, some permanent residents, others just visiting.

A pair of Canada geese come to Hancock’s property annually to raise their young, and this year they have four babies just learning to fly. Hancock, a biologist, says the youngsters will have seven to 10 days to master the skill before the family leaves and returns next February.

Other feathered members of the backyard community are heard long before they are seen. As Hancock navigates his way along the pond’s rock wall, he stops to listen to the cry of a nearby baby pileated woodpecker. It’s the first time he has heard its call.

While most of Hancock’s guests seem calm and indifferent to his approach, he steps more carefully around the aggressive, full-grown sandhill cranes.

Just a few metres away are two adults with stilt-like legs, long, arcing necks and pointed beaks. Their large, grey-feathered wings are folded around their bodies as they walk around the perimeter of the yard, watching their surroundings closely with eyes framed by a splash of red.

They are wary, and Hancock warns they could strike if threatened. It’s easy to understand why, once the couple’s baby – the size of a month-old kitten – emerges from some shrubbery, and scurries to catch up with mom and dad.

“Hello! How are you doing?” Hancock says as he walks towards the family. “What a fine little baby you’ve got there.”

The cranes edge away and head off – a different reaction than he receives from a pair of caged crane parents. As Hancock approaches, they make a loud trumpeting call in unison, before one runs at the fence, wings at full span.

It’s the distinction between captive-reared and wild cranes, Hancock said. Those in the wild avoid humans; those that have lived near people aren’t afraid to get close and attack.

Read the rest of the story, view the video and pictures of David's birds here:

www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/peacearchnews/community/99065689.html

The Status of the Wolf Part 6: The Mexican Gray Wolf

asparks — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 11:22:48 -0700

A subspecies of gray wolf that once ranged wide regions of Mexico and the Southwestern United States including Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, the Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) is today one of North America’s rarest indigenous large mammals, existing precariously in the wild only as a small, intensely managed population in a limited area of eastern Arizona and western New Mexico. Traditionally inhabiting warmer and drier environs and often relying on smaller prey, “lobos” (as they are also called) are somewhat smaller than their northern cousins, averaging between 50 and 80 lbs (about the size of German shepherd dogs) and they typically form smaller packs. They also have more pointed ears and shorter coats, which are often handsomely patterned with rich colors of gray, gold, rust, black, and white. Although Mexican wolves were extirpated from the wild before their behavior and ecology could be thoroughly studied, it is believed they preferred mountainous forest landscapes and originally preyed mostly on elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, javelina, rabbits, and other small mammals [1].

Bald Eagles In Alaska - Bruce A. Wright and Phil Schempf

richardpitt — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:05:13 -0700

I have in my hands one of the first copies of Bald Eagles in Alaska, fresh off the press. This is one of the first full books that Hancock Wildlife Foundation has co-published, in this case along with the Bald Eagle Research Institute and the American Bald Eagle Foundation.

The book is a collection of papers by several different authors and is aimed at a wide audience, including eagle enthusiasts, birders, students, Alaska travelers and wildlife professionals.

As a matter of direct interest to Hancock Wildlife Foundation members and visitors, the historic information on the plight of the bald eagle, both in Alaska (and Yukon) as well as in continental US is discussed in several of the papers including "A Review of the Natural History of Reestablished Population of Breeding Bald Eagles in New York" (page 297) which not only brings an entirely new meaning to the word "hacking" but also shows the lengths to which the researchers had to go to get information and observations from nest towers prior to the use of our live streaming video cameras.

Lots more fascinating information on how the bald eagle was devastated by having a bounty placed on it - including insights into why and who did this in the Alaska legislature and how the law was finally trumped by the US federal government.

Well worth the US $29.95 cover price - and remember, Hancock Wildlife Foundation is now the official marketer of this and all the other Hancock House wildlife books. Buy it online from Hancock House or from a retail store and the foundation benefits.

Hancock Wildlife Foundation Leaps Into Print

richardpitt — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 10:16:43 -0700

The Hancock Wildlife Foundation gets another boost from Hancock House Publishers Ltd -- our Foundation will take over the entire marketing and promotions of the Hancock House specialized wildlife titles and generate a revenue source for this function. Because Hancock House has the existing order entry, Credit Card and distribution function these functions will for now still be handled by Hancock House.
Read on for David Hancock's expansion on this announcement...

Phoenix: Rising or Falling?

JudyB — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 09:26:17 -0700

by David Hancock

Quick comment on the diagnosis of Phoenix by the MOE (Ministry of Environment) avian pathologists for the British Columbia Animal Health Laboratory, Dr. Schwantje and Dr. Vicky Bowes.

Their "preliminary findings from the necropsy performed on Phoenix. Phoenix was a female. She died from acute bilateral mycotic pneumonia."

This is sad but a very common disease of raptors and of young eagles. Usually the problem organism is the fungus Aspergillosis. This is a world-wide contaminant found literally everywhere that only becomes toxic when the host is under nourished or stressed. I have seen sitting birds, in this case a ptarmigan, undergo a slight hormonal shift as the egg laying body hormones changed to incubation hormones and we believe the Aspergillosis in the bird's body took this shift as a threat and the Aspergillosis emitted a sudden toxic bloom of spores to insure it survived. Flowering is the plant's way to insure new life. The ptarmigan died within minutes still sitting on its eggs.

Taking Advantage of our PTZ at Lafarge

richardpitt — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 15:43:45 -0700

Now that Tenas Chakchak, our eaglet at the Lafarge site, has fledged, we get to take advantage of the fact that the camera we're using has the ability to pan, tilt and zoom around the tree's neighbourhood.

The parents and Tenas have been in and out of the tree all day, and when in the tree they've been on any of several branches or up on the feeding platform.

Rather than trying to track them, a problem made difficult by the fact that the video is about 30 seconds delayed from the control inputs due to the network, we've put in place a program that visits several of the many "waypoints" that we've defined at fairly random times and in fairly random order.

The waypoints include vistas of the Vancouver harbour, North Shore and of course the Lions - the most famous of the local mountain peaks.

We'll leave this program running for the time being - chances are that you'll see one or more of the eagles on each cycle which lasts from about 1 to 5 minutes.

Baby eagle followed by webcam dies, breaking hearts online

jkr — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:10:37 -0700

Damian Inwood, Vancouver Province: Thursday, July 15, 2010 2:03 PM

The Hornby Island eagles had one egg hatch but Phoenix, the 11-week old eaglet, has died.

Photo Credit: Screengrab, YouTube

VANCOUVER — A baby eagle from B.C.'s Hornby Island — whose 11 weeks of life were followed by more than 11,000 people through a webcam — has died, prompting an outpouring of emotion by bird-lovers online.

Phoenix the eaglet was hatched on April 29 in a tree in the yard of Doug and Sheila Carrick.

Donations Needed for 2010-2011 Nesting Season

JudyB — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 12:10:03 -0700

Donations Needed to Prepare
for the 2010 - 2011 Nesting Season

Donate via Paypal

Our most urgent need is to reactivate our current nests for next year. This includes cleanup of the existing cams or replacing them with ones that have been tested and are ready to go as we can generally only go "up the tree" once per season. Our next priority is to establish some new Bald Eagle Cam Installations and to expand some cams that didn't reach their full potential last year - and we're hoping to find sponsors for a few optional sites.

Other Ways
to Donate

NOTE from David Hancock: After hearing from some regular and some previously silent lurkers it is apparent we have a great following. Our challenge is to both provide the keeners with their favorite site, most frequently this is our old pals at Sidney, and yet prepare enough alternatives should nature or simple accidents, from disintegrating nests to dirty cameras, to have good sites for our viewers to follow. This particularly means enough nests to insure teachers we will provide them the whole reproductive cycle. The real challenge in a tight financial world is to get enough dollars in at the beginning to make the commitment for cleaning and setting up at a minimum of 5 nest sites. From some commitments already made we are well on our way.

While some of you wish to designate your funds to specific nest priorities, and we accept that, I fully believe - and hope -- we can accomplish the 5 main sites and several of the key alternatives. The funds requested are the 'starter fee' and each site carries additional costs to keep it going during the year but we will be undertaking those Funding campaigns as the season progresses.

Each weekend we will post the total dollar donations reached -- and what is needed. All your efforts at direct donations or assisting in fundraising efforts is very much appreciated.

Here's what we'd like to accomplish:

Wild Cat Found Mimicking Monkey Calls; Predatory Trickery Documented for the First Time in Wild Felids in Americas

jkr — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 16:12:15 -0700

ScienceDaily (July 9, 2010) — In a fascinating example of vocal mimicry, researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and UFAM (Federal University of Amazonas) have documented a wild cat species imitating the call of its intended victim: a small, squirrel-sized monkey known as a pied tamarin. This is the first recorded instance of a wild cat species in the Americas mimicking the calls of its prey.