Dec 17, 2012 — The Adirondacks' beloved icon, the Common Loon, has left for its winter home on the Atlantic coast.

Loons have enjoyed unprecedented population growth over the last 30 years. They outlived DDT and a time when people used to shoot loons for sport. But a recent study says things could have been even better. This time the culprit is mercury pollution.  Go to full article

Nov 13, 2012 — Thousands of geese are crowding the North Country's skies, lakes, and cornfields on their way south for the winter. A first-hand listen to Snow Geese massing in one Lake Champlain bay reveals a phenomenal din as the birds are constantly moving, taking off and landing, talking all the time.

They often seem to act in unison, as if they are choreographed. When they do take off they look like a white cloud. That's when the sound explodes.

Jack Downs says you can hear them from a mile away or more. And when they lift off or become agitated, it is deafening.  Go to full article

Wilmington, NY, Sep 12, 2012 — The Fish and Wildlife Service says a rare songbird that nests atop mountains in the Adirondacks and Green Mountains may need protection as an endangered species. Todd Moe spoke with Long Lake birder Joan Collins, who has been tracking the Bicknell's Thrush for more than a decade. She says biologists are alarmed by the decline in the bird's numbers over the past year.  Go to full article

Long Lake, NY, Dec 14, 2011 — For the 112th year, volunteer birders are fanning out across the country for the annual birding census this winter. The Christmas Bird Count continues through January 5th.

The all-volunteer effort takes a snapshot of bird populations to monitor their status and distribution across the Western Hemisphere. Data collected during the Christmas Bird Count helps researchers monitor bird behavior and bird conservation. You could call it bird watching with a benefit.

Todd Moe spoke with Long Lake birder Joan Collins, who says the Audubon Society started the Christmas Bird Count in 1900 as an alternative to a Victorian-era holiday hunting tradition of shooting the greatest number of birds.  Go to full article

Aug 18, 2011 — Two Adirondack men have been accused of stoning a great blue heron to death. The attack happened last week on the bank of the Ausable River in the town of Jay.

The case has sparked anger and indignation. But wildlife experts say they often see animals wounded or killed by humans. As Brian Mann reports, some are calling for tougher penalties for this type of crime.

Brian Mann has our story.  Go to full article

WELLESLEY ISLAND, NY, Jun 09, 2011 — Save the River is the only policy advocate on environmental issues on the U.S. side of the St. Lawrence River.

Now they are collaborating with area schools and taking students on field trips to learn from the river first hand. David Sommerstein tagged along with a group of seventh graders from Thousand Islands middle school and has this report.  Go to full article

Hartford, CT, Apr 14, 2011 — After a farmer found an injured Golden eagle in New York this winter, wildlife veterinarians in Massachusetts treated the bird. And a biologist outfitted it with a GPS tracking device before releasing it in Connecticut. The goal is to map its migration north to Canada. The data is designed to help site wind turbines in places that are safe for these birds. WNPR's Nancy Cohen reports from a windswept hilltop where Golden eagle was released into the wild.  Go to full article

Brandon, VT, Mar 30, 2011 — This winter's record-breaking snows have taken a toll on our roads and our roofs. But we humans aren't the only ones having a hard time. Barred Owls in New York and Vermont have been struggling to hunt prey under the deep snow pack. So the nocturnal hunters have been getting creative - and showing up in unexpected places. Angela Evancie has more.  Go to full article

May 07, 2009 — Almost ten years ago, conservationists tried a novel experiment to protect the common tern, a threatened native bird on the St. Lawrence River. The tern's nesting habitat was getting overrun by gulls and geese. So a group of people sort of faked that habitat on the Seaway's giant navigation buoys, known as "nav cells". The plan worked. In 2006, the number of tern nests on the St. Lawrence was the highest recorded since 1982. The tern restoration project is a collaboration between Save the River, the Thousand Islands Land Trust, and Massena-based biologist Lee Harper. And the group has not stood pat. For our series "Story 2.0" - revisiting reports from the NCPR archive - David Sommerstein returns to the Thousand Islands to see the latest in tern-saving technology - a wire grid that keeps tern chicks in and other aggressive birds out.  Go to full article

Aug 29, 2008 — Iberdrola is one of the owners of the Maple Ridge wind farm on the Tug Hill Plateau. With 195 turbines spanning miles of ridgeline, it's the largest wind farm in the East. Bill Moore is an energy consultant for Iberdrola. Starting in the late 1990s, Moore was the man who went door-to-door to persuade local residents to welcome wind power. Today the project has been producing electricity for almost three years. David Sommerstein asked Bill Moore how it's been going. They talk about megawatts, bird and bat mortality, and the vicious debate over wind power in the North Country.

Since their conversation, the New York Times reported that Maple Ridge has been forced to shut down sometimes because regional electric lines have been too congested to send the power downstate. Moore wouldn't talk about the article on tape. But he did confirm that Maple Ridge has had to shut down its turbines "about half a dozen times a year." Moore said that happens during the spring and fall, when electricity demand is lowest. He said as more wind farms come online in Clinton and Jefferson Counties, the problem could get worse. He agreed with the basic premise of the Times story, that wind energy is hampered by "insufficient grid capacity" to deliver electricity from where the wind blows to where the most people are.  Go to full article