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Tag Archives: sea birds

Night Lights and Bird Environments…

This is a book I picked up at the local university library.  If your community/public library does not have this book for loan, you local university/college library might!  Most university and college libraries have community library cards that are free, some of these libraries charge for a card (it goes to a good cause!) and, you can always visit and take a look around.  Some of these places are absolutely amazing and they only begin with the book collection.  There are often other collections too….

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Chapter:  Influences of Artifical Light on Marine Birds by William A. Montevecchi.

Book:  Ecological Consequences of Artifical Night Lighting.  Edited by Catherine Rich and Travis Longcore.

Published in:  2006

Published:  Island Press:  Washington, DC

Find more of William Montevecchi’s writing here  –  Publications Link

If the link does not work, please contact me and I will try to help you find a copy.

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Here are some articles that I have found that might be of interest in a “connections” sort of way.  I hope that you might find them interesting too.

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Article:  Ecological Responses to Climate Change in a Bird-Impacted High Arctic Pond (Nordaustlandet, Svalbard).  pdf

Author:  Jules M. Blais, Lynda E. Kimpe, Doninique McMahon, Bronwyn E. Keatley, Mark L. Mallory, Marianne S.V. Douglas, and John P. Smol.

Published in:  2005

Journal:  American Association for the Advancement of Science, Vol. 309, No. 5733 (Jul. 15, 2005), page 445.

My copy was downloaded in November, 2014.  I found it here http://post.queensu.ca/~pearl/Blaisetal2005Science.pdf

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Article:  Disturbance to a Foraging Seabird by Sea-Based Tourism:  Implications for Reserve Management in Marine Protected Areas.  pdf

Authors:  Alberto Velando and Ignacio Munilla.

Published in:  2011

Journal:  Biological Conservation, Vol. 144, pages 1167-1174.

My copy was downloaded in November, 2014.  I found it here http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/%28ISSN%291551-6709/issues

Find more of Alberto Velando’s writing here  –  Publications List

Find more of Ignacio Munilla’s writing here  –  Publications List

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Article:  Light-Induced Bird Strikes on Vessels in Southwest Greenland:  Technical Report No. 84, 2010.  pdf

Author:  Flemming R. Merkel

Translated by:  Soren Kristiansen

National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University Greenland Institute of National Resources.

Publisher:  Pinngortitaleriffik, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources.

Publication Date:  November 2010.

My copy was downloaded in October, 2014.  I found it here http://www.natur.gl

Find more of Flemming Merkel’s writing here  –  Publications List

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Article:  Reducing the Ecological Consequences of Night-Time Light Pollution:  Options and Developments.  pdf

Authors:  Kevin J. Gaston, Thomas W. Davies, Jonathan Bennie, and John Hopkins.

Published in:  2012

Journal:  Journal of Applied Ecology, Vol. 144, pages 1167-1174.

My copy was downloaded in November, 2014.  I found it here http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3546378/

Find more of Kevin Gaston’s writing here  –  Publications List

Find more of Thomas Davies’s writing here  –  Publications List

Find more of Jonathan Bennie’s writing here  –  Publications List

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If any of these links do not work, please contact me and I will try to help you find the article or book that you are looking for.

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If you find any broken links on this blog, please leave a comment or send me a note so that it can be repaired.  Thank  you….

Arctic Pollution from Unexpected Sources

A summary of the article, Sea Birds Fly Pollution to the Arctic, by Andreas von Bubnoff.

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The Original Article:  Sea Birds Fly Pollution to the Arctic:  Bird Guano Makes for Hotspots of Toxins

Author: Andreas von Bubnoff

Source:  Nature, 14 July 2005 , doi:10.1038/news050711-13

My copy was downloaded on , October 24, 2014

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My Precis

We know that pollution is being carried to the Arctic by wind and tides and now we also know, through scientific investigation and the testing of lake water, that pollution is carried into the Arctic by migrating birds.

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My Precis Expanded:

Arctic lakes that are used by birds such as Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) have been found to contain higher concentrations of toxins such as mercury, DDT, and hexachlorobenzen (HCB) than lakes with lower bird populations. To determine the extent that birds are bringing pollution with them, eleven Arctic lakes, located both near and at a distance from, nesting sites were tested for chemical pollutants. Some of these lakes were found to have very high mercury concentrations.

Birds eating contaminated prey or carrion become contaminated themselves as chemicals such as HCB, DDT and PCBs collect in an animal’s fatty tissues. These chemicals then pass on to other predators when the contaminated meat is eaten. Indigenous peoples living in the Arctic and relying on game for food are eating contaminated animals. “Mercury and PCBs can cause immune system dysfunction, adverse neurological effects and IQ deficits.”

Wind and sea currents are major sources of pollution in the Arctic. The best way to fix this problem is to prevent more contamination “from entering the environment in the first place.”

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I found the original article through a search using Google.

http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050711/full/news050711-13.html

If you have any trouble locating the article please contact me or, call your local college or university library for assistance.