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Glenda Simmons
Troubled Waters: a Homegrown Effort to Track American Dipper Success
American Dippers in southwestern Colorado are at risk from water pollution, wildfire, climate change, and microplastics. Concerned community members rallied to form The American Dipper Project, a nest monitoring effort to help the birds recover.
Does One Person Really Make a Difference?
Once in a while, NestWatchers document something that is seldom seen. That’s what happened when Jo Roberts of western Texas recorded the first known instance of a Scott’s Oriole reusing the same nest for years. Jo reminds us that even one person can make a difference in what is known about a species.
How to Protect Tree-Mounted Nest Boxes from Snakes
Most predator guards that prevent climbing predators are built for nest boxes that are mounted on poles. New research supports the effectiveness of a simple DIY predator guard meant to deter snakes from tree-mounted boxes.
Will Brood X Benefit Nesting Birds?
Brood X is an enormous cohort of periodical cicadas in North America and is emerging now! NestWatchers are asked to be on the lookout for impacts on the 2021 nesting season.
What Kind of Nest Materials are Best to Provide for Birds?
By Holly Grant, Project Assistant Some birdwatchers and nature lovers like to celebrate the beginning of breeding season by providing nesting materials for use by the birds that will soon become their neighbors. Each spring we see a similar uptick in questions regarding which type of nesting materials are best to provide, ranging from pet […]
How Do Nest Parasites Affect Purple Martins?
Recent research reveals that a strategy thought to reduce ectoparasites may not have the presumed benefits some nest box landlords expect. According to the new study, replacing nest materials infested with parasites is not a recommended practice due to its lack of benefits and potential for stressing nestlings.
Anthropogenic Light and Noise Pollution Affect Nesting Birds
In one of the most comprehensive studies on the effects of noise and light pollution on nesting birds published to date, researchers find a variety of detrimental impacts to reproduction. Data collected by NestWatchers across the country, combined with maps of noise and light pollution, show heterogeneous effects on nesting success, clutch size, hatching failure, and timing of nesting.
Stories from the archives: Vivian Pitzrick the “Nest Hunter”
Our Nest Quest Go! project is bringing the Lab’s historic nest record cards out of the filing cabinet and into the digital era. While digitizing bird nesting data is our primary goal, we also want to highlight the stories of remarkable people like Vivian Pitzrick, a fellow birder, trailblazer, and prolific citizen scientist.
Stories from the archives: Larry Walkinshaw, “Father of Cranes”
Our Nest Quest Go! project is bringing the Lab’s historic nest record cards out of the filing cabinet and into the digital era. While digitizing bird nesting data is our primary goal, we also want to highlight the stories of remarkable people like Larry Walkinshaw, a fellow birder, conservationist, and prolific citizen scientist.
Stories from the archives: Daniel Smiley of Mohonk, Ecosystem Ecologist
Our Nest Quest Go! project is bringing the Lab’s historic nest record cards out of the filing cabinet and into the digital era. While digitizing bird nesting data is our primary goal, we also want to highlight the stories of remarkable people like Daniel Smiley, a fellow birder, naturalist, and prolific citizen scientist.