Cambodian tailorbird: A new species in Phnom Penh

The BBC article is here for a quick read on the discovery of Orthotomus chaktomuk from the Mekong flood plain.  The Oriental Bird Club Journal, Forktail, will link you to the PDF write-up of the new species.

The photo below and another write-up from The Guardian.

The Cambodian tailorbird, a small bird, which has a black-feathered throat and is the size of the more common wren, which lives in thick, lowland scrub in Phnom Penh and other sites in the nearby floodplain. Photograph: James Eaton/AFP/Getty Images

Birding's Glass Ceiling

A friend sent me this link of a recent (06-12-2013) ABA blog essay.  I thought it might also be of interest to others - especially birders who are women.

Open Mic: The Field Glass Ceiling.  At the mic:  Brooke McDonald.

Atlantic puffins in peril in U.S.

For details, please see the attached Associated Press article by Clarke Canfield.  The information discussed in the article is not surprising, but this doesn't relieve the distressing features of the problem.

Scientists warn Atlantic Puffins in peril in the U.S.

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) - photo taken off Ramsey Island in Wales,
June 2010