HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: darnel@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca (Edward Darnel)
Subject: Re: Toxic Bird?
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 21:38:16 GMT

In article <C1F5Kp.H5I@zoo.toronto.edu> tony@zoo.toronto.edu (Anthony L. Lang) writes:
>In article: <1jvkhaINN6ja@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>
> br105@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Jeffrey A. Del Col) writes:
>
>>In the well known ornithology journal THE WEEKLY READER (My son's
>>in the third grade) I found an article about a toxic bird, the
>>Hooded Pitohui.  This is a New Guinea sp. found to have toxic
>>feathers and skin.  Can anyone provide more information about
>>this?  The article mentions a John Dumbacher as the scientist who
>>discovered the bird's toxicity when he licked some cuts on his
>>hands after handling a pitohui.  Has he published a report of this
>>anywhere?
>
>Dumbacher, J.P., B.M. Beehler, T.F. Spande, H.M. Garaffo and J.W.
>     Daly, 1992. Homobatrachotoxin in the genus Pitohui: Chemical
>     Defense in Birds? Science 258: 799-801.
>
>This is the original paper.  It also says that native New Guineans
>already knew of the genus' toxic properties and call it "trash
>bird".  The scientists found the toxin (an alkaloid) in the
>following species (in decreasing order of toxicity:  HOODED PITOHUI
>(Pitohui dichrous), VARIABLE PITOHUI (P. kirhocephalus), RUSTY
>PITOHUI (P. ferrrugineus).  Concentrations of the toxin were
>highest in skin and feathers.  They speculated that this property
>evolved for chemical defense.  Like other toxic species of animals,
>these species have bright, contrasting colours.  
>
>>Does anyone know of any other species of bird with such
>>properties?
>
>There are no other toxic birds.  Homobatrachotoxin is only known
>from poison dart frogs (Phyllobates spp.).  
>I wonder if the bird was named for the sound humans make when
>they spit it out?
>-- 
>
>Anthony Lang
>Dept. of Zoology, 
>University of Toronto


That is exactly how they were named (believe it or not)!!


jmsimms@chemical.watstar.uwaterloo.ca
AKA Jonathan Simms

Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: tony@zoo.toronto.edu (Anthony L. Lang)
Subject: Bird of a vanishing species was seen in N. Zealand
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1993 17:44:02 GMT
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology

In article: <38401@uflorida.cis.ufl.edu>
 mariou@astro.astro.ufl.edu (Mariou Gottesman) writes:
>
>Does anyone know anything about this ?  A moa was sighted?
>
>Please send me any information you have.  Thanks
>

Many of the native species of birds are close to 
extinction (others are already extinct), so it could
be any one of a number of species.  However, the species
of greatest concern is the KAKAPO (Strigops sp.), a nearly
flightless nocturnal parrot that looks a lot like an owl.
-- 

Anthony Lang
Dept. of Zoology, 
University of Toronto
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: Edward Darnel <darnel@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Bird-banding in North America
Originator: darnel@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 20:45:16 GMT
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.3 PL11]


Hello fellow USENET birders, I have several question regarding bird-banding.
I would be interested in obtaining information (location etc.) about the 
various bird-banding facilities in North America (for my own interests).

Any information would be greatly appreciated; perhaps I may be able to plan a
vacation around it. I am already familiar with both the Long Point Bird
Observatory and the Ottawa Banding Group here in Ontario.

Desired information would include location, dates between which banding occurs
(if not year-round), and a contact with whom it may be necessary to arrange
a visit.


Also, is anyone out there familiar with _Guide to Aging and Sexing Passerines_
by Pyle et al (1987) (I hope I got the title correct)? If so, I am looking for
any/all errata as I have been told that there are many errors contained
therein.


Lastly, I hope that I have not sent this message to the wrong news group. This
appeared to be the most suitable. Is there perhaps enough interest to create
a new news group about bird-banding?

Thank you in advance. Please send any information to the following e-mail
address:

JMSIMMS@CHEMICAL.WATSTAR.UWATERLOO.CA

Jonathan Simms
From: josh@cqs.washington.edu (Josh Hayes)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: Bird watching at night
Date: 21 Jan 93 18:42:31 GMT
Organization: University of Washington
NNTP-Posting-Host: pogo.cqs.washington.edu

On a related question, has anyone had any success "jacklighting"
birds; that is, going out at night with a nice bright spotlight
and catching eyeshine?

About half of my really good owl sightings have come at night,
trooping down to the, uh, well...I know of no delicate way to
put this...down to the latrine at my grandparents' cabin, flashlight
in hand. Generally I can get within about five feet and they just
blink at me.

Once a screech owl was so irritated with me he just sat on his
branch, eight feet away, and - screeched!

Needless to say, I leave them alone after a few seconds....no sense
bothering them....

I have found twilight to be an EXCELLENT time for birding, and the
hour before sunrise to be excellent as well, especially for waterfowl.
The sewage ponds east of Austin, Texas, are very good at that time,
in spring especially.

Getting a little tired of being cooped up in my office,

Josh Hayes

--
  Josh Hayes, Quantitative Sciences HR-20 U of Washington
  josh@mowgli.cqs.washington.edu             206 543-5004
     The harvest now is over, the summer days are gone
	     And yet no power cometh to help us
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: tchau@athena.mit.edu (Terry Chau)
Subject: Re: My feathered friend
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 20:59:57 GMT

In article <1993Jan24.165806.16214@equalizer.cray.com>, jeff@cray.com (Jeffrey P. Anderson) writes:
|> Any bird psychologists out there?
|> 
|> There is a bird which comes to my house every morning to pick a fight
|> with its reflection in a window.  I figured it would eventually tire
|> of beating itself up, but it has been about six months now.  I am
|> tired of waking up at dawn on weekends from the noise made by the
|> little monster smashing against the window.
|> 
|> I am an ecologically sensitive person, and really would like to find a
|> solution short of destroying it.  On the other hand, I'm losing
|> patience.  I have tried everything from stuffed animals to remote
|> control vehicles, including remote-control vehicles carrying stuffed
|> animals; if the bird sees something unusual at a window, he just
|> progresses to a different window.  I cannot hang blankets on the
|> outside of all the windows since the homeowner's association would
|> execute me, even if I had that many blankets.
|> 
|> I believe it is a male and thinks it is guarding its harem; when he is
|> doing his thing, several similar-looking birds are cruising the yard
|> for food.  The bird looks like a robin in size and shape but it is
|> simply grey in color.
|> 
|> Help!
|> -- 
|> Jeffrey P. Anderson	KD6GMJ		jeff@cray.com     
|> Cray Research Superservers, Inc		San Diego, CA


Sounds like a Northern Mockingbird.  It's more or less gray.  It should also have
white wing patches, conspicuous in flight.  And it also has a darkish brow
stripe.  It might have white feathers on each side of its long tail.
  I don't know if  that's a correct field mark, though.  If it's on the ground, it
might do some "wing flashing" by briefly raising its wings.

Then again, since you're from San Diego, I don't know if Northern Mockingbirds
live around there.  I'm not familiar with western birds.

Anyway, I've read about mockingbirds attacking its own image on windows, mirrors,
etc.  Mockingbirds are vicious territory defenders, and they sometimes violently
attack people, dogs, and other creatures just by instinct.  If a mockingbird sees
its own reflection, they think it's another mockingbird violating its space so
it automatically attacks it by instinct.  I saw a clip of a mockingbird attacking
a side view mirror of a car on Marty Stouffer's Wild America (in slo-mo too!). 
Quite interesting.  Well, that's the theory I've heard about the mockingbirds. 
I'm not aware of any other theories.

What to do?  I don't know.  I never had the problem before.  You can't dispose of
them because they're protected.  I guess the way to solve it is to get rid of the
reflection.  I was thinking about installing an industrial size anti-glare
screen, I don't think so.  You can try the stick-on hawk shadows to scare away
the whatever bird you have.  Just hope it falls for it.

-- Chau
From: mackenzi@McRCIM.McGill.EDU (Paul Mackenzie)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Binoculars Question
Date: 24 Jan 93 18:41:01 GMT
Organization: McGill Research Centre for  Intelligent Machines
Originator: mackenzi@quetzalcoatl.mcrcim.mcgill.edu


I assume there must be some people in this group who know about
binoculars - can anyone tell me what the numbers listed with
a particular unit mean?  I've seen a few in stores that say
8 x 40mm or something like this, and I've also seen things like
field of vision is 340' at 1000 ft.  Can anyone tell me how to
decipher the magnification out of these so I don't buy a cheap
pair of field glasses?

Thanks,
Paul
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: edm@verdix.com (Ed Matthews)
Subject: Re: yard raptors
Organization: VERDIX Corporation
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1993 13:01:46 GMT

In article <1993Jan26.173153.13920@ncsu.edu> ssouther@ent1.ent.ncsu.edu (P. Sterling Southern) writes:

>No, no peregrines in my central North Carolina, wooded, yard.  A couple

I'm jealous.  My wife has been out sick for a while and she told me last
night that she and her mother watched the Peregrine hunt in our back
yard for three hours yesterday.  I have not known it to frequent any one
place for an extended period of time before.

Ed Matthews                                   Internet: edm@verdix.com
(703) 318-5800 work                          "Have scope, will travel"
Winchester, Virginia
-- 

Ed Matthews                                                edm@verdix.com
Manager, APSE Development
Verdix Corporation Headquarters                            (703) 318-5800
From: eco@matsim.udmurtia.su (Stashenko Alexander)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Bird watching in Russian taiga: you are welcome!
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 93 17:18:58 +0400
Distribution: world
Organization: Udmurt university and Mathematical simulation institute
Reply-To: eco@matsim.udmurtia.su

Hi all!

Do you want take part in bird watching in Russian taiga? There are many
interesting birds in 200 km near Izhevsk (Udmurtia). There are no factories
and plants, cleanest rivers and other more... Ornithologists from Udmurt
State University will be your guides.

For more information reply via E-mail, please!

Yours,

Alexander Stashenko
Ecology Modelling Lab.
Udmurt State University
--


Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: tony@zoo.toronto.edu (Anthony L. Lang)
Subject: Re: Field Notes
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 19:20:43 GMT
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology

In article: <1993Jan21.182958.13576@pixel.kodak.com>
 tgl@ssd.kodak.com (Tom Lathrop) writes:
>
>I am relatively new to birding, and am interested in learning what other
>birders use for making notes in the field. I tried using a small spiral-
>bound notebook, but it hasn't stood up well to being tossed in my

Many of the field biologists I know (myself included) use
engineering "Level books".  They are hard covered like a cloth
bound book and have fairly water resistant paper.  
They are extremely sturdy all around.  They sightly
smaller in dimensions than a Peterson field guide, so they are
a handy size (fit into a lot of pockets).  Because they are hard
covered, they are easy to write on as well.  They cost about $5 USD
and can be obtained at a store that carries drafting, surveying,
or engineering supplies (often university book stores).  There
are also engineering "Field books" but they have graph paper,
so your notes are hard to read after making 
them.  We transfer our rough
notes to a permanent "journal" in the evening, fleshing them out at
the same time.  We also keep a separate "catalogue" for tape
recordings made, or specimens collected, as well a separate
"species" account if those notes are extensive enough to warrant
being kept separate from the general notes in the journal.

>birding bag with other paraphernalia. Also, what sort of notes do you
>make? I've mostly recorded the date, weather, location, and species seen.
>In the case of a bird I don't know, I'll usually write a description,
>then look up the bird in the field guide and write down what I think it
>is. That way, if the bird flies away before I can find it in the field
>guide, at least I have a written description. But should I be writing more
>than this? 
>
>Tom Lathrop
>tgl@sector.kodak.com
>

I agree with other posters that a record of general abundance
(if not exact numbers) should be kept, however for this information
to be meaningful, there should be some information about the 
effort made to see birds that day.  That means recording the time
spent and activity undertaken at every place birded that day.
Also, write down what you think are interesting behaviours, make
comments on unusual presences or absences of species, and any
thing else that strikes you as interesting.  As Annika said,
you always wish that you had written more.  Sometimes this involves
making a few brief notes in the field notebook to remind you
to write up an extensive account in the evening in the journal.
I often make up a table of species likely to be seen on a trip
in the journal, so that I don't have to rewrite the species names
every evening.  I just fill in the numbers or relative 
abundances in the column for that particular date.
I use tape recorders mostly just for behavioural observations
when I can't take my eyes off the bird in case I will miss
some data
-- 

Anthony Lang
Dept. of Zoology, 
University of Toronto
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: HELP: Best travel destination(s) for bird-watching???
From: winer@husc10.harvard.edu (Adam Winer)
Date: 26 Jan 93 18:33:08 GMT

If you want to get started in neotropical birdwatching, the best spot
has got to be the Asa Wright Nature Preserve (not sure of exact title)
on Trinidad.  While diversity is nowhere near as high as other regions
in the neotropics, the birdwatching is very easy, the accomodations
are good.  You can get a very impressive amount of birdwatching done
right from a veranda overlooking hummingbird feeders;  when I was
there, many species of hummingbirds, including White-necked Jacobin
and Tufted Coquette were seen there, as well as Bearded Bellbird, Green
Honeycreeper and Purple Honeycreeper.

Now if you're looking for a greater diversity, Hato Pinero, a ranch in
Venezuela is just superb.  In a typical stay youd get over 200 species
over a great variety of habitats;  Scarlet Macaws and Jabirus are easy.
Hoatzin are abundant on a nearby river.  Truly spectacular.

Of course, in the rest of the world, Cairns is incredible.  So is Kenya.
So is...  To be honest, most of the world has great birdwatching in
some way or another.  One of the things I like best about birdwatching
is that there isn't anywhere in the world I don't want to go.  There
aren't many hobbies that can find just about any location in the world
desirable.

-- 
Adam Winer              | The number you have reached is imaginary.
WINER@HUSC.HARVARD.EDU  | Please rotate your phone 90 degrees and
                        | try again.
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: porterg@nextnet.csus.edu (greg porter)
Subject: Re: Field Notes
Organization: California State University Sacramento
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 20:00:17 GMT

In article <josh.727661810@pogo> josh@cqs.washington.edu (Josh Hayes) writes:
>Tom asks about how we take notes in the field.
>
>tape machine with me, and just speak my notes. I can then
>transcribe them at my leisure ...
>
>Anyone else?
>
>Josh Hayes
>
>--
>  Josh Hayes, Quantitative Sciences HR-20 U of Washington
>  josh@mowgli.cqs.washington.edu             206 543-5004
>     The harvest now is over, the summer days are gone
>	     And yet no power cometh to help us


I, my wife my brother and father all use the tape machine method, works great
havn't had to fumble with note books since!  We also use them on our
photography expeditions to record apreture, shutter speed, frame number etc.
-- 
 Greg Porter                                    |     gporter@csus.edu
 California State University, Sacramento        |     ucdavis!csusac!porterg
 University Telecommunications Services (UTS)   |     
        -- All opinions are my own and not of my employer --
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: christ@sci.ccny.cuny.edu (Chris Thompson)
Subject: Re: Field Notes
Organization: City College of New York - Science Computing Facility
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 23:33:37 GMT

In article <1993Jan21.182958.13576@pixel.kodak.com> tgl@ssd.kodak.com
	 (Tom Lathrop) writes:
>I am relatively new to birding, and am interested in learning what other
>birders use for making notes in the field. I tried using a small spiral-
>bound notebook, but it hasn't stood up well to being tossed in my
>birding bag with other paraphernalia. Also, what sort of notes do you
>make? I've mostly recorded the date, weather, location, and species seen.
>In the case of a bird I don't know, I'll usually write a description,
>then look up the bird in the field guide and write down what I think it
>is. That way, if the bird flies away before I can find it in the field
>guide, at least I have a written description. But should I be writing more
>than this? 
>
>Tom Lathrop
>tgl@sector.kodak.com
>
I use an engineer's field book and India ink.  It's a bit expensive, but you
can drop your notes in the ocean and they will still be legible (trust me-
I've done it:).  I've been VERY pleased with the ones I ordered from
Forestry Supply (Forestry Supplier?).  They are located somewhere in TE or
WV, I believe; they have an 800 number, and are happy to do mail order.

As to what I take down, well, usually as much as possible.  How about
habitat?  What kind of tree is the bird in (if identifiable).  Behavior?
Is it feeding?  Singing?  Is it in a flock?  If so, is it a single-species
flock or is it mixed?  If it is feeding, what is it eating?  I look under
the tree just on the off-chance I might find some bug parts (hit the jackpot
once, when I saw an Eastern Kingbird nail the first butterfly of Spring, a
couple years ago).  (It was a swallowtail:).
Microhabitat is sometimes intersting, also.  Try to determine the preferred
spots of species- canopy, mid-level, low down.  "Field" gives a vague idea,
for instance, but is the field mowed low, is it reedy, or what?
In looking over your post, I noticed something missing that you probably
DO record- TIME OF DAY!  This will help A LOT in determining activity 
patterns.
Finally, pay particular attention to whatever you're most interested in!

Chris


-- 
(Help!  I've fallen and I can't reach my beer!)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: Edward Darnel <darnel@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Bird-Banding in North America
Originator: darnel@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 20:18:30 GMT
X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.3 PL11]

Newsgroups: rec.birds
From: tony@zoo.toronto.edu (Anthony L. Lang)
Subject: Re: Toxic Bird?
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 22:53:51 GMT
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology

>In article <C1F5Kp.H5I@zoo.toronto.edu> tony@zoo.toronto.edu
>(Anthony L. Lang) writes:
>......
>> This is the original paper.  It also says that native New
>>Guineans
>> already knew of the genus' toxic properties and call it "trash
>> bird".  The scientists found the toxin (an alkaloid) in the
>> following species (in decreasing order of toxicity:  HOODED
>>PITOHUI
>> (Pitohui dichrous), VARIABLE PITOHUI (P. kirhocephalus), RUSTY
>> PITOHUI (P. ferrrugineus).  Concentrations of the toxin were
>> highest in skin and feathers.  They speculated that this
>>property evolved for chemical defense.  Like other toxic species
>>of animals,
>>                                
>>^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> these species have bright, contrasting colours. 
>>  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

In article: <1k1u0qINNlki@shelley.u.washington.edu>
 dwright@u.washington.edu (David B. Wright) replies:

>True, but it does not necessarily follow that the pithoui is
>brightly colored *because it is toxic*, i.e., that it coloration
>is a warning adaptation.  Bright colors are very common among
>birds. If the clade that includes the pithoui evolved bright
>colors before toxicity evolved, then bright color is not a warning
>adaptation.  At best it would be an exaptation. It's a simple
>question of carts and horses (or perhaps more apropos, of chickens
>and eggs).
>
>A similar argument applies to the notion of "mimicry" in relatives
>of the pithoi: plesiomorphy -- inheritance from a common ancestor
>-- is the null hypothesis for that resemblance.  Unless that null
>hypothesis is rejected (on the basis of phylogenetic evidence), it
>is unecessary to invoke mimicry as an alternative explanation.  

It is certainly true that the evolution of bright colours and the
appearance of mimicry as a result of toxicity is not the most
parsimonious explanation for the evolution of the first two
characters.  I'm sure that is why the authors stated that they were
only speculating when invoking that hypothesis (based on similar
explanations for butterflies and frogs).  They thus do not rule out
phylogenetic effects.  
-- 

Anthony Lang
Dept. of Zoology, 
University of Toronto
From: Joe.Morlan@f20.n125.z1.fidonet.org
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: attracting birds
X-Sender: newtout 0.07 Jan 18 1993
Date: 26 Jan 93  15:08:02

      ***** On 01-25-1993, Max Coltheart wrote to All *****

MC> I've been in rainforest with an experienced birder who
MC> considered that he could bring birds closer to within seeing
MC> distance by making sounds which I can only describe as
MC> somewhere between squeaking and kissing noises with his lips
MC> on the back of his hand.  Now someone has given me for Xmas
MC> an Audubon Bird Call, a little wooden implement which can be
MC> made to emit extremely birdlike sounds, though none is a
MC> replica of any real bird call.

MC> Do either or both of these techniques work?

Yes.  The first technique works with a great variety of songbirds
and I have even seen astonishing results with it attracting
shorebirds.

The wooden Audubon Bird Call works with pigeons (Rock Doves) but
is otherwise fairly ineffective.

MC> Do they ever bring birds closer so they can be seen, or seen
MC> better?

The first technique is very effective.

--Joe Morlan, Albany, CA
Joe.Morlan@f20.n125.z1.fidonet.org.

--- Maximus/2 2.01wb
From: mathieu@quine (Philippe Mathieu)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Bird Checklist
Date: 26 Jan 93 21:57:57 GMT
Organization: Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]


  Does anybody know anything about a list of all species of known birds on
the net (ftp...)? Is anybody interested in one? 

--
Philippe Mathieu (e-mail : mathieu@info.polymtl.ca)
From: bridges@mala.bc.ca
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: HELP: Best travel de
Date: 27 Jan 93 14:07:52 -0700
Organization: Malaspina College

In article <37271138a@kennel.fidonet.org>, Joe.Morlan@f20.n125.z1.fidonet.org writes:
>> There is a local there who speaks excellent English who will
>> give guided tours just for bird watchers.  Unfortunately, I
>> can't remember his name.
> 
> Is it Manuel Lomeli?
> 
> --Joe Morlan, Albany, CA
> Joe.Morlan@f20.n125.z1.fidonet.org.
> 
> --- Maximus/2 2.01wb
That's the fellow.  Thanks for jogging my feeble brain.
Doug (hoping to go there next winter) Bridges
Newsgroups: rec.birds