4/10/26 Entry #5- Outside Reading

 In the same National Geographic, I read an article about scientists who turned WWII era infrastructure in Alaska into a research platform for birds. They turned old radar sites and its accompanying buildings into a research station, to include nesting boxes for numerous sea birds. They measure the health and reproduction rate of the birds, these are leading indicators of the health of the surrounding fish populations and ultimately the larger ecosystem. They also measured the effects of marine heat waves, specifically a single event in 2014-16 that was the largest bird die-off since the Exxon Valdez disaster of the 1980’s. I found it interesting to see research based in an extreme environment and how their insight helped to document the larger effects if global warming. There is a photo of the USS Coldbrook, a WWII era ship that ran aground here, covered in vegetation and numerous birds. I found it encouraging to see nature incorporate human leftovers into its cycle. 


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