BIRD OF THE WEEK — ANTIOQUIA BRUSHFINCH — PLANET EARTH BIRD WORLD group

All PLANET EARTH groups supports:

Sierra Club* United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * American Bird Conservancy

PLANET EARTH BIRD WORLD has over 1,600 members and over 124,000 photos and videos.

BIRD OF THE WEEK

ANTIOQUIA BRUSHFINCH

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Atlapetes blancae
POPULATION: 50-100 individuals
IUCN STATUS: Critically Endangered
TREND: Decreasing
HABITAT: Native scrub and forest edge.

The Antioquia Brushfinch was first described in 2007, but only on the basis of three museum specimens. A live bird was not found in the field until 2018, when an unfamiliar brushfinch was spotted by a keen-eyed agronomist on his way to weekly mass on the outskirts of Medellín, Colombia.

This newly rediscovered relative of Ecuador’s Pale-headed Brushfinch joins the ranks of some of the rarest birds in the Western Hemisphere, including the Blue-eyed Ground-Dove, Bahama Nuthatch, and Stresemann’s Bristlefront.

Top Contributors

DansPhotoArtHawkeye2011DiegojacklittlebiddleS C photos

PLANET EARTH OUR HOME group

All PLANET EARTH groups supports:

Sierra Club* United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * American Bird Conservancy

PLANET EARTH OUR HOME is our flagship group with over 12,000 members and over 855,000 photos and videos.

Top Contributors

John Horstman (itchydogimages, SINOBUG)alpenglowtravelersDiegojack–MARCO POLO–tucker.tterence

BIRD — SUPERB LYREBIRD — PLANET EARTH FLOWERS group

All PLANET EARTH groups supports:

Sierra Club* United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * American Bird Conservancy

Superb Lyrebird Might Be the Fanciest Bird in the World

The male Superb Lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae) puts the many ways to be fancy together in dazzling fashion. On a carefully cleared patch of forest floor, he begins by fanning elaborate tail plumes over his head, then coordinates a precisely timed song-and-dance sequence.

He finishes off with a rapid-fire recital of borrowed songs. This makes him one of the few birds in the world that combine elaborate plumes, mimicked song, and formalized dance steps in courtship displays. Because the display is complex and takes a lot of practice to perfect, only the most accomplished males are chosen as mates. Lyrebirds are native to eastern Australia.

PLANET EARTH FLOWERS has over 2,000 members and over 93,000 photos and videos.

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3Point141Rafael Gomez – http://micamara.esAndreas PierTHE Holy Hand Grenade!minus1349

BIRD CAM — ATLANTIC PUFFIN BOULDER — PLANET EARTH UNDERWATER group

All PLANET EARTH groups supports:

Sierra Club* United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * American Bird Conservancy

Seal Island, Maine: Atlantic Puffin Boulders Webcam

PLANET EARTH UNDERWATER has over 1,000 members and over 41,000 photos and videos.

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BarryFacklerbodiverbluewavechrisedpdiverDigidiverdave

GREENPEACE — NEW ZEALAND — MAUI AND HECTOR’S DOLPHIN PROPOSALS NOT FIT FOR EXTINCTION CRISIS WORLDS’s RAREST DOLPHIN SPECIES — LIGHTNING STRIKES — PLANET EARTH OUR HOME group

All PLANET EARTH groups supports:

Sierra Club* United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) * American Bird Conservancy

PLANET EARTH OUR HOME is our flagship group with over 12,000 members and over 855,000 photos and videos.

MAUI AND HECTOR’S DOLPHIN PROPOSALS:

New Zealand dolphins (Hector’s and Maui dolphins) are found only in New Zealand. Hector’s dolphin is the South Island subspecies, Maui dolphin is the North Island subspecies.

They are Endangered due to deaths in fishing nets – gill nets and trawl nets. Maui dolphin is Critically Endangered because there are fewer than 50 Maui dolphins left in the world. The last population estimate, of 57 dolphins (1 year and older) is about 4 years out of date. This is less than 5% of the original population size.

Although there are only around 50 Māui dolphins left, just 19 percent of their habitat is protected from fishing with gillnets and just five percent from trawling. Under these conditions, the dolphins’ extinction is inevitable. New Zealand has a reputation as a leader in cetacean conservation, biodiversity protection and sustainability. It is time for the government to bring protection measures for its only endemic dolphin into line with international scientific advice, or risk its credibility. We are grateful for the support for this species from across the world, including New Zealand conservation groups Our Seas Our Future Charitable Trust and, New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust and Maori group Ngati Te Wehi.

Top Contributors

John Horstman (itchydogimages, SINOBUG)alpenglowtravelersDiegojack–MARCO POLO–tucker.tterence