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The Cardinal of the North reminds us to be good scientists
Written by Bob Confer,
As you can imagine, I not only spend a lot of time in nature, but I also spend a lot of time reading about nature.
I have a sizable library of outdoor research accumulated over my lifetime. I subscribe to several bird watching magazines and always read newspaper articles that discuss nature and the environment.
Over the past ten years or so, I’ve developed a certain revulsion when reading articles in these periodicals and newspapers. I cringe every time a study or related opinion piece cites climate change as the sole reason for changes in wildlife behavior, range, or population. Often, the single-mindedness of such articles can irritate you and even cause you to stop reading.
I love science, but I don’t like sloppy science.
Many scientists have reached the point where they default to climate change as the end goal of all theories. This trend is especially true for young biologists (young people in their 20s and 30s ) is noticeable. It is inescapable from their studies, from society, and in news, marketing, and messaging. I can’t help but think that some kind of peer pressure is also involved. Do they feel that if they don’t commit to this, they will be seen as heretics and will not receive support, resources, and funding? do they need?
What’s frustrating to me is that while a weak winter may be part of the reason for the change in species behavior, it may not be the reason at all, or there are other things we should be doing. Because it can be part of a more complex puzzle that can be easily put off. Become more aware of everything from invasive species that permanently change habitats, to humans’ continued modification of landscapes, to chemicals that contaminate water, to pesticides that completely disrupt food chains in specific areas, if not globally. There is a need.
For me, one of the leaders of this excessive attention to weather is the northern cardinal.
Northern cardinals did not always exist in the north. It was once considered a southern bird.
Ornithologists of the 1800s and early 1900s, such as James Decay and Elon Howard Eaton, focused only on a few cardinals in their studies of New York’s birds, some of which lived in the state’s coastal lowlands and Hudson Valley. Was.
Throughout the 1900s, the cardinal’s fortunes changed, and it spread across the state like a kind of wildfire to match its vibrant colors. It is now common throughout New York State, except in the higher elevations of the Adirondack and Catskill Mountains. They have also migrated to southern Ontario in significant numbers.
A quick Google search on the subject of this bird’s northward migration turns up a number of recent articles attributing this to climate change. Just to be clear, this is just a new belief among cardinals, an idea that has kind of become mainstream over the past decade.
Before that, ornithologists, birdwatchers, and amateur naturalists like me had many reasons that made a far more reasonable case for expanding the bird’s range beyond the 20th century. I did.th century. Here’s why:
- With the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918, cardinals who had been on the brink were able to flourish. Before this important law, hundreds of thousands of birds were killed each year by hunters for their bright red feathers to adorn women’s hats.
- During that century, countless family farms disappeared. The former open space has been replaced by a forest. Particularly in New York’s lower elevations, many of these fast-growing woodlands have spent decades as dense undergrowth, densely packed with small trees, shrubs, and grass undergrowth. .That’s the main habitat
- In both suburban and rural areas, backyard landscaping and maintenance, including hedges, bushes, and vines, has created millions of small habitats where humans’ presence reduces encounters with predators.
- Cardinals are loved by all who see them, and the male’s bright red color makes them a great addition to dreary winter landscapes. It’s no wonder that the bird food industry focuses on the best feeders and food for pit cardinals, and markets around these beautiful birds. Currently, 50 million Americans feed birds. Literally, the explosion in popularity of bird feeding is made specifically for cardinals, and the existence of an endless food supply sustains them through the winter.
As you can see, these are all much more important and likely than “got warmer”.
I admit that there are some cases where that actually seems to be the only possible answer. For example, the northward migration of Carolina wrens, which now remain in significant numbers year-round, cannot be explained other than the fact that winters are not as cold, long, and snow-covered as they once were.
But it’s not the norm. Most species have many reasons for what they do and why.
Consider this a rallying cry to nature lovers, newspaper reporters, science teachers, and scientists. Inaction on climate change is one of the cardinal sins of modern biology. The natural world is influenced by much more than that. Pay attention to how you perceive the “why” and “how” behind nature and understand its nuances. Think beyond single causal relationships, ponder possibilities, and look to the past to see what’s trending. Science has never been easy.
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