More than 17 million Commercial flights Ferry passengers in the American airspace every year. (It is more than twice in total worldwide.) Those hundreds of thousands of ships share the air with winged things that have been nearby, way Longer than aircraft, but it is not always an easy relationship. Through the work of people such as Norman Smith at the primary international terminal of Boston, we learn more about a remarkable species and their evolving ways of life every day.
‘The snowy owls from Logan Airport‘Is a short documentary about the extraordinary work of Smith that manage unexpected residents of Vogels. Made by Anna Millerthat also runs Animalia podcastThe film highlights the unique migration patterns of the largest owls in North America and why they come from the North Pole area to such an unlikely destination every winter.
Smith has been working with Snowy Owls on Logan Airport since 1981. “They fly 3000 miles to get here,” he says. “We don’t know why they come to the Boston area. Logan Airport has the highest concentration of snow -covered owls in the northeast we know.”
The choice of birds to land on a busy transport hub may not be as surprising as you would think in the beginning. It consists of 1,800 hectares of open fields, which look like something like the tundra they call home further north, full of rats and mice to eat. And on three sides, water still offers a large food source. It may be loud, but they don’t seem to lose a wink.
Programs such as those at Logan Airport have been present for decades after tragic incidents in which Jet motors have taken birds, causing the planes to crash. A specific event in 1960 in Boston led airports throughout the country to implement programs that manage bird populations, in particular grid areas, around active airports. And while photographing Avia species has traditionally been a method of removal, Smith is dedicated to a much more human solution: they move them elsewhere to safety.
Snowuils are considered ‘vulnerable’ for extinction and their populations decrease as the effects of the climate crisis habitats in the North Pole continue to influence. Although it is more difficult to predict what will happen in the coming years, Smith is dedicated to giving the birds that he encounters the best chance of survival.
Until now, he has moved more than 900 animals on his own, played an important role in implementing similar programs in the US and hopes that his passion for preservation and the urgent need to save these incredible beings will influence future generations to do the same. (Via Kottke))
