Two research projects caught my eye recently. In Austrailia GPS trackers have been attached to the tail feathers of native species to help environmentalists understand how much territory the powerful owl, a native species, needs to live and breed well. The question is important because urban areas offer the owl’s other great need, food, but may not offer sufficient space the owls survive.
Deakin University honors student releasing a powerful owl in suburban Melbourne this month. Photo: John White
You can see more here:
http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/tracking-the-nighttime-travels-of-the-cryptic-powerful-owl-20160407-go0nrz.html
Meanwhile in Michigan the Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch has been banding owls in an effort to map migration patterns.
A northern saw-whet owl during a Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch owl banding session Friday, April 15, 2016, at the Cheboygan State Park. The bands are custom-fitted and have a number that is registered into a national data base in Maryland. John L. Russell, Special to Detroit News
You can see more about that one here:
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/04/18/owl-captures-migration-environment/83217890/
I say hurray! The more we know, the more we can help these magnificent birds thrive.