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NIKON'S BATV NEWS Greetings!
Yesterday was World Wetlands Day! Please read news from BirdLife International about the importance of preserving the world's wetlands. Remember to log-on to our Life List page to use our free life-list software. Congratulations to the winner of our weekly quizz, John Bellmon! And be sure to enter this week's quizz to win a comprehensive Nikon lens cleaning kit Learn more below about our upcoming show, the Green Jays of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. Stay tuned for another Birding Adventure! 
THE TV SHOW WHERE BIRDS OF A FEATHER ADVENTURE TOGETHER
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WORLD WETLANDS DAY HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF WATER! Yesterday was World Wetlands Day and this year's theme - Caring for wetlands: an answer to climate change - highlights the bonds between wetlands, biodiversity and climate change. "Caring for wetlands is part of the solution to climate change", said Melanie Heath - Senior Advisor on Climate Change at BirdLife. "If we manage them well, wetland ecosystems and their biodiversity have a vital role to play in mitigating against, and adapting to, climate change".
Freshwater ecosystems are vital to life on earth, despite occupying less than 1% of the earth's surface. They provide ecosystem services - such as water, fish, water purification and flood control. "The functions provided by wetlands are essential for human survival and aid our resilience to climate change", added Melanie. "For example, due to their ability to store and slowly release water, wetlands can be a vital lifeline in periods of extreme drought".
But the existence of these wetlands, which are part of the solution to climate change, are themselves vulnerable to climate change, as highlighted by this year's World Wetlands Day theme. There is plenty of evidence that modern living is causing unparalleled losses of species at the global level, and that climate change is making the situation much worse.
"Wetlands are being lost and degraded faster than any other ecosystem", said Dr Jonathan Barnard - BirdLife's Senior Programme Manager. Nearly one in five waterbird species in the world are considered Globally Threatened by BirdLife on behalf of the IUCN Red List, and where their population's trends are quantified 41% are in decline. "If wetland species are in trouble, wetland ecosystems are in trouble, and this is of serious concern for people everywhere".
BirdLife International News 02.02.2010 |
GREEN JAYS! . The Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas) is a New World Jay species, which exhibits distinct regional variations within its large but discontinuous range. This stretches from southern Texas south into Mexico and Central America, with a break before the species reappears in a broad sweep across the highlands of South America It has been suggested that the North Americam species should be considered a separate species, Cyanocorax luxuosus. If following this taxonomy, the northern species retains the common name Green Jay, while the South American population, which retains the scientific name C. yncas, is renamed the Inca Jay. Green Jays feed on a wide range of foods. They take seeds, acorns, insects and other small vertebrate prey. Meat and human scraps add to the diet when opportunity arises. Green Jays have been observed using sticks as tools to extract insects from trees. Green Jays usually build a nest in a tree or in a thorny bush or thicket, and the female lays three to five eggs. Only the female incubates, but both parents take care of the young.
As with most of the typical jays, this species has a very extensive voice repertoire. The bird's most common call makes a rassh-rassh-rassh sound, but many other unusual notes also occur. One of the most distinctive calls sounds like an alarm bell.
Catch the quest for this beautiful species this week on BATV!
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 BATV WEEKLY QUIZZCorrectly identify the mystery bird in the photo at left and win a comprehensive Nikon lens cleaning kit for your binoculars. Email all answers to info@BirdingAdventures.com and title your email "Quizz". Clue: The name of this little bird can be misleading The winner (first correct entry drawn) will be announced in next week's newsletter. Congratulations to our last winner, John Bellmon of Utah, who correctly identified our last mystery bird as a Brewer's Sparrow! John won a 5-DVD set of Birding Adventures' first season, featuring Florida, California, Panama, Guyana and more. |
TV SCHEDULE Our immediate upcoming schedule is as follows: Week of February 1 Green Jays - Texas Week of February 8 Snail Kites - Palm Beach County Florida 
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Happy Birding,
Nikon's Birding Adventures Team 
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