I received this on Oneida birds and thought I'd pass it along.

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

> From: SUSAN THUENER <sue...@prodigy.net>
> Date: February 17, 2013, 12:19:45 PM EST
> To: Bird List <hummervi...@yahoogroups.com>, bird list 
> <oneidabi...@yahoogroups.com>, BIRDS_AND_US List 
> <birds_and...@yahoogroups.com>, Beginning Birder 
> <beginningbird...@yahoogroups.com>
> Subject: [OneidaBirds] Fw: [BIRDSnGARDENS] Bird lifespans vary by habitat and 
> size
> Reply-To: SUSAN THUENER <sue...@prodigy.net>
> 
> 
> 
>  This was on another bird list I subscribe to.  I thought it very interesting 
> so am
> passing it along FYI.  
> Birdy
> Susan Thuener
> Mohawk, NY
> sue...@prodigy.net
> 
> ----- Forwarded Message -----
> From: Bill Z devilsadva...@gmail.com>
> To: birdsngard...@yahoogroups.com 
> Sent: Sunday, February 17, 2013 9:56 AM
> Subject: [BIRDSnGARDENS] Bird lifespans vary by habitat and size
> 
> I almost missed the interesting story below from 
> Minneapolis, MN 55488
> 
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BackYard-Birds/links/NS_001319399085/
> I also have a news link folder above that makes 
> it easier to do some specific searches if anyone 
> here has any interest in contributing interesting 
> bird news.
> 
> Bill Z
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BackYard-Birds/
> 
> http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/homegarden/188893571.html?refer=y
> Bird lifespans vary by habitat and size
> Article by: "Jim Williams" < woodduck38@ gmail.com>
> Special to the Star Tribune 
> Updated: January 29, 2013 - 4:24 PM
> 
> The most long-lived birds are sea dwellers, but your back-yard mourning dove 
> may be with you for decades.
> 
> How long do birds live? With luck, a surprisingly long time for such small 
> creatures. Near the low end for local birds, house wrens and hummingbirds can 
> live nine years. Bluebirds, some warbler species, orioles and downy 
> woodpeckers can live 10 to 11 years. Crows can live 14, house sparrows, 15, 
> and mourning doves are near the top of the back-yard list at 31 years.
> 
> The fuller answer to how long birds live: It depends. For answers about which 
> birds live long and under what circumstances, I turned to several research 
> papers I found on the Internet. The papers contain extremely complex 
> discussions of biology, most of which escaped me, and which we will not 
> discuss in detail.
> 
> But in general:
> 
> Birds live longer than non-flying animals of similar body size, up to three 
> times as long. A chickadee, on average, outlives a shrew or mouse of similar 
> size. (Aside: But not a bat of similar size. Bats, like birds, live longer 
> than non-flying mammals of their size. There is record of a 7-gram bat living 
> 41 years. Seven grams is half an ounce. That's what a warbler weighs. 
> Warblers would be extremely lucky to live 41 months.)
> 
> Larger birds live longer than smaller birds. An albatross can live much, much 
> longer than a chickadee. But size isn't an absolute determining factor, as a 
> smaller chickadee will live longer than a larger chickadee.
> 
> Basically, both birds and bats have evolved to reduce the accumulation of 
> harmful metabolic substances in their bodies. You and I this very moment are 
> suffering from oxidation of cells and DNA. We're rusting. Birds and bats rust 
> more slowly in comparison.
> 
> Birds with larger brains — crows, jays, ravens — live longer than those with 
> small brains.
> 
> Communal roosting — often done by crows — also helps extend life. As does 
> slower maturation. Bluebirds are out of the nest and on their own in less 
> than a month. Bluebirds die young. Young crows often stay with a family group 
> for a year or two following hatch. Young crows get more attention, care and 
> learning opportunities.
> 
> Birds that live in colonies live longer than birds that nest individually. 
> This might be related in part to a larger number of eyes watching for 
> predators.
> 
> Birds that migrate live longer than birds that don't. A few months in the 
> tropics pays off. Generally speaking, birds that live in the tropics live 
> longer than birds that don't.
> 
> It isn't easy to be exact on how long birds live. Banding — attaching a tiny 
> metal band to a bird's leg with an assigned number — is the only way wild 
> birds' age can be accurately determined. When the bird dies, if the band is 
> recovered, dates of banding and recovery provide an age.
> 
> If you were a bird and wanted to live a long time, you should go to sea. The 
> bird-banding database lists species with the longest documented lives. The 
> top 10 are Laysan albatross, black-footed albatross, great frigatebird, white 
> tern, sooty tern, wandering albatross, Arctic tern, red-tailed tropicbird, 
> black-browed albatross and Atlantic puffin, which brings up the rear at 31 
> years.
> 
> The only bird we see locally that is high on the list is the mourning dove, 
> No. 11, also at 31 years.
> 
> Lifelong birder Jim Williams can be reached at woodduc...@gmail.com. Join his 
> conversation about birds at www.startribune.com/wingnut.
> 
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