This Day in Alaskan History-May 23rd, 1922
Tracking bird flu in Western Alaska
The United States is in the midst of a bird flu outbreak first detected in December 2021. Alaska Sea Grant’s Gay Sheffield has been closely monitoring the situation in the Bering Strait region as part of her work as the Marine Advisory Program agent based in Nome. Avian influenza, or bird flu, is a disease […]
The Northern Shrike: Songbird Like No Other
Not long ago, John Wright of Fairbanks heard a thump against a window above his deck. He pulled on his coat and walked out to investigate. He was surprised to see a lovely pine grosbeak down on the deck. Standing above it was a northern shrike — a predatory songbird with a black eye-mask that […]
Under Cover of Thanksgiving, Trump Administration Pushes to Relax Rules Protecting Birds
The proposal—which the administration admits would likely lead to more avian deaths—would let energy and other companies off the hook for “incidentally” killing birds. Despite acknowledging that the move would lead to an increase in the 500 million to one billion birds that die each year in the United States due to human activity, the […]