Birdwatching is a $36B business

Most wildlife watchers already know that their hobby is big business. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service backs that up with a new report that shows birdwatchers contribute $36 Billion to our economy.

That's a lot of money, but it didn't surprise me. I was surprised, though, to see the birding participation rate is only 17% in Florida. (The national average is 21%.) However, 79% of residents say they are birdwatchers. Go figure.

Florida has great birdwatching!

Check out the report – Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis.

Peregrine falcon

The state of Florida is preparing to take the peregrine falcon off its endangered species list, according to Florida Today. The Audubon Society of Florida said it supports delisting but is still concerned to see the bird be protected.

Peregrine falcons spend winters in Florida and were delisted from the federal Endangered Species List in 1999. Find out more about them in the article.

Florida's state bird focus of a different kind of election

Florida students in grades 4 through 8 are voting this year -- to elect a new Florida state bird, Florida Today reports. (Update: The people have spoken! It's the osprey!)

The current state bird, the mockingbird, is also the state bird of other states, and Florida wants a bird that is unique to Florida. The candidates are the osprey, great egret, black skimmer, snowy egret and brown pelican, the articles says.

Many of those birds are also found in other states, however.

The winner of the election will be named by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which will look for state Congress members to sponsor a bill to change the state bird.

I'm curious why the Florida scrub jay wasn't included among the candidates because of a previous push to name it as the Florida state bird.

Whooping cranes head to Florida for 8th year

It's whooping crane time again. The experimental migratory flock of cranes are following an ultralight from Wisconsin to Florida for the eighth year. The cranes are raised from chicks to learn to follow the ultralight, then when fall arrives, they fly from their home in Necedah National Wildlife Refuge to Florida's central-western coast. (They usually end up at Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge one way or another.) Previous years' cranes now number 68, according to the article linked above, and those cranes will make their way south on their own.

The idea is to establish a flock of migratory whooping cranes in the eastern U.S. A flock already exists toward the west and winters in Texas. There is also an experimental non-migratory flock of whooping cranes that stays in Florida.

You can follow the cranes' migration on a map at the Operation Migration Web site.

I started following this story when the researchers first tried to get sandhill cranes to follow an ultralight, which was the year before they proceeded with the endangered whooping cranes. So ... holy cow, does that mean the EcoFlorida site is almost 10 years old?! Yes. I started it in 1999. Whoa....

Reader question: When is feeding crossing the line?

Q: I keep seeing warning after warning: It's against the law to feed or harass wildlife, including birds. Where do they draw the line on the people who have been feeding the backyard birds in their bird feeders for years? Why do stores sell bird feeders and bird food? There must be a fine line between what you can feed and what you can't feed but, who's the one to make that decision? Do I make that decision, or does the officer issuing the ticket make that decision? -- Mike

A: You will have to check with your local laws and also any regulations in your particular community, as some people live in homeowners' associations that might have rules against bird feeders.

For us personally, though, we don't see any problem with setting out backyard bird feeders. It's when you try to hand-feed an animal that usually causes problems. If you are standing there and tossing food to the animal or even trying to get it to take food from your hand, then that's not good. If you are feeding wildlife somewhere besides your own property, then that's not good.

I like to think of it like this: Is the animal in question trying to get away from you when you approach? Most bird-feeder birds (and squirrels) will. Animals that approach you for food, though, have been habituated to depending on people for food, and that's when you know you've crossed the line.

Do any other readers have thoughts to share on this topic?

A whole new meaning to the phrase "chick patrol"

Volunteers have been hanging out around an Albertson's supermarket with nets to catch any wayward falling least tern chicks, Tampa Bay 10 reports. That's because the endangered birds have been nesting on top of the St. Pete-area store, apparently due to beaches -- their usual nesting grounds -- being too crowded.

Early migrating birds back already?!

The unmistakable sound of the blue-gray gnatcatchers that spend their winter in my neighborhood caught my attention last night. It's only the end of July. Why are they back so early? In past years, I had noticed their return in August.

If you pay attention to the timing of natural events like this, that's called phenology. So there's your word for the day.

Maybe it's just me, but the gnatcatchers seem to live here more than they live in their "summer" home! They come early and they leave late.

Photo from U.S. Geological Survey

Man arrested for killing burrowing owl with paintball gun

A 20-year-old man was arrested after a neighbor reported that someone was shooting at a burrowing owl -- a protected species -- with a paintball gun; it is believed to be the first time someone was arrested for killing a burrowing owl - May 17, Sarasota Herald Tribune

Wood storks nesting on Caloosahatchee Island

Nesting season has begun at tiny Lenore Island in the Caloosahatchee River, where boat traffic and automobile noise have made this an unlikely breeding spot for the endangered storks - Feb. 28, News-Press

Surviving whooping crane to stay in the wild

The sole survivor of the whooping crane "Class of 2006" will be allowed to stay free in the wild but will be closely monitored; strong storms killed the 17 other birds that were with it - Feb. 6, St. Petersburg Times

Bird extinctions may quicken

The subject hits close to home, where Merritt Island was the site of the most recent bird extinction in Florida and mainland America: the dusky seaside sparrow, declared extinct in 1990 - Jan. 23, Florida Today

Urban noise can be harmful to birds, people

In a noisy urban environment, birds have to sing more loudly to be heard above the artificial din; singing more loudly comes at a cost, though: the birds need to expend extra energy to sing more loudly, and that can affect an individual bird's health - Nov. 20, Lakeland Ledger