Starving Raptors
These photos are of a Northern Harrier on the hunt, swooping over grasslands and fields in search of small mammal prey. While I took these shots mere days ago this type of predatory behavior in itself has been a bit more scarce than usual this winter. Birds of prey, including owls and various hawks, have had a very difficult time finding food during the historically cold and very snowy conditions. Needing more calories than ever to survive in this weather they have had very little to find, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation reports there has been a high mortality...
Read MoreVenomous shrew slaughtered by cat
The following is a photo of the head and upper body of what appears to be a Northern Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina brevicauda). Where did I find this deceased and otherwise tough to spot and secretive mammal? In its natural habitat, of course – the floor of a closed garage! The half of the body you cannot see has been devoured by a cat who does not leave a locked garage and the connected basement and is never permitted to even see an open door, let alone venture outside it. It would seem this shrew decided to come inside…looking for a snack? After taking a wrong turn with its poor...
Read MorePreventing window strikes
As we hit mid-October we enter a period with southbound migration still in full swing, certain species irrupting (Blue Jays and Purple Finches this year!) or making nomadic movements (Pine Siskin or Northern Saw-whet Owl anyone?) and a lot of birds beginning to visit feeding stations. It is an exciting time as backyard bird watchers start to spot what mix of species will be staking claim to winter territory in their yards. Unfortunately this time of year can still be very active in a negative way: window strikes. Birds on the wing in migratory movements face a fatal fate many times more...
Read MoreLet’s educate the cats
We here at RTPI care a lot about advancing education as we work with children and adults, students and teachers, researchers and communities in a wide variety of programs and initiatives. You can see more here on our education page. We use our website and this blog, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and more to help advance this mission. One group that we have not worked hard enough to educate is one I plan to focus on going forward – the cats. Cats, or Felis catus as some of them prefer to be referred to as, are notoriously difficult students. They dislike having to sit through long classes...
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