News
Updates
July 2014
July 2014
Since finishing his "red paperclip" adventure mentioned in The Mockingbird Speaks, Kyle MacDonald has been busy. He married his girlfriend Dominique and after living in Saskatchewan in the house he traded for for some length of time, he donated it back to the town of Kipling and the couple moved back to Montreal. There Dominique has started a cooking school and Kyle has begun an internet company, appropriately enough called Red Paperclip. He describes it as "an internet company that does things in real life" and promotes turning odd ideas into reality. One example is it enabled two friends to hitchhike to each of the 50 state capitals in just 50 days and of course record every mile of their journey. Besides creating interesting stories for individuals, Red Paperclip has done out-of-the-box work for clients such as Master Card, Volkswagen and the Canadian government.
Tim Gallagher still works at Cornell University and is still fascinated by woodpeckers. In 2013 he published his second book on the subject, Imperial Dreams, about his search for another large and endangered bird, Mexico's Imperial Woodpecker. While his search for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker I reference in The Mockingbird Speaks forced him to deal with risks in the swamps such as poisonous snakes and alligators, the Mexican odyssey was risky due to the woodpecker occupying habitat drug smugglers use to hide out and move their product.
As for the Ivory-billed Woodpeckers Gallagher helped re-discover, a few others were seen by credible observers in swamplands of northern Florida in 2005-06 and in Louisiana off and on since. One flew under a video camera set up in a tree there in 2008 and while the video was of dubious quality, it helped prove the continued existence of the bird local woodsmen call the "Lord God Bird". The US Fish and Wildlife Service accepted Gallagher's (and assistants) video footage and have established a "Recovery Plan" for the birds under the authority of the Endangered Species Act.
Ebola has been in the news again this year. Unfortunately a major outbreak has been plaguing three countries - Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone- in western Africa. As of mid-July, CNN reports almost 1000 cases and 603 deaths from it. Once again, Doctors without Borders is on scene attempting to help local healthcare workers, but they warn that they have "reached the limit of what it can do". Journalists note that many local people fear and mistrust both outsiders and health professionals so there is little co-operation and at times outright hostility shown them. One hopes that at least some of the lessons taught by Matthew Lukwiya can be learned from and the epidemic can be controlled soon.
Tim Gallagher still works at Cornell University and is still fascinated by woodpeckers. In 2013 he published his second book on the subject, Imperial Dreams, about his search for another large and endangered bird, Mexico's Imperial Woodpecker. While his search for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker I reference in The Mockingbird Speaks forced him to deal with risks in the swamps such as poisonous snakes and alligators, the Mexican odyssey was risky due to the woodpecker occupying habitat drug smugglers use to hide out and move their product.
As for the Ivory-billed Woodpeckers Gallagher helped re-discover, a few others were seen by credible observers in swamplands of northern Florida in 2005-06 and in Louisiana off and on since. One flew under a video camera set up in a tree there in 2008 and while the video was of dubious quality, it helped prove the continued existence of the bird local woodsmen call the "Lord God Bird". The US Fish and Wildlife Service accepted Gallagher's (and assistants) video footage and have established a "Recovery Plan" for the birds under the authority of the Endangered Species Act.
Ebola has been in the news again this year. Unfortunately a major outbreak has been plaguing three countries - Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone- in western Africa. As of mid-July, CNN reports almost 1000 cases and 603 deaths from it. Once again, Doctors without Borders is on scene attempting to help local healthcare workers, but they warn that they have "reached the limit of what it can do". Journalists note that many local people fear and mistrust both outsiders and health professionals so there is little co-operation and at times outright hostility shown them. One hopes that at least some of the lessons taught by Matthew Lukwiya can be learned from and the epidemic can be controlled soon.
More UPDATES
JULY 2014
Terry Fox is to be honored in Manitoba with a holiday named for him . The Winnipeg Free Press (among other sources) reports that Manitoba Premiere Greg Selinger wants the holiday Monday in August to be known as "Terry Fox Day" and is going to bring a bill to the legislature this fall to make it so. Barring any unexpected opposition, the mid-summer long weekend, currently known only as the Civic Holiday, will be named for Fox.
Selinger reminds the public that Fox "embodied hope, courage, commitment and strength in the face of adversity."
I commend him and the province and hope other provinces follow suit.
Ebola is still in the news into September, as more and more cases are being reported in Africa in the worst-yet outbreak. However, there is some sign of good news-- two American health workers treated with an experimental drug, along with a regimen of hydration, in an Atlanta hospital they were returned to were released, healthy and virus-free last month and on Sep. 8, the Associated Press reported that a new vaccine is being tested on monkeys that seems to show good protection against Ebola for several months, and longer if given a booster shot (derived from a monkey cold virus) four or five months later. While it might not protect everyone from th deadly virus, presumably it could help protect doctors and nurses working in infected areas, which in turn should lead to fewer walking off the job as was experienced both in the outbreak Dr Lukwiya worked in and in the current one. GlaxoSmithKline say they are going to manufacture 10 000 batches of the new vaccine.
Selinger reminds the public that Fox "embodied hope, courage, commitment and strength in the face of adversity."
I commend him and the province and hope other provinces follow suit.
Ebola is still in the news into September, as more and more cases are being reported in Africa in the worst-yet outbreak. However, there is some sign of good news-- two American health workers treated with an experimental drug, along with a regimen of hydration, in an Atlanta hospital they were returned to were released, healthy and virus-free last month and on Sep. 8, the Associated Press reported that a new vaccine is being tested on monkeys that seems to show good protection against Ebola for several months, and longer if given a booster shot (derived from a monkey cold virus) four or five months later. While it might not protect everyone from th deadly virus, presumably it could help protect doctors and nurses working in infected areas, which in turn should lead to fewer walking off the job as was experienced both in the outbreak Dr Lukwiya worked in and in the current one. GlaxoSmithKline say they are going to manufacture 10 000 batches of the new vaccine.
More UPdates
Sep. 2014
Some good news about the endangered Kirtland's Warbler, mentioned in the book in regards to needing to generalize (this little bird requires, for unknown reasons, very specific forest conditions to live and breed). Traditionally only known to nest in a very small area of northern Michigan, Ontario Birds reports that the species has nested successfully in Ontario on and off since 2007 and at least 27 little Kirtland's have fledged. The bird has been seen infrequently in an area of Jack Pine forest (similar to those it lives in in Michigan) near Petawawa, but hadn't been known to nest there. This is encouraging, of course, as it would create a more diverse genetic pool and would help the species survive should something happen to the main habitat in the U.S.
Update - Nov. 2014
Ebola continues in the news , as most are aware. When i published the book, it was hardly a household word, now scant months later it has become one of the dominant topics of conversation worldwide. Doctors Without Borders (mentioned in The Mockingbird Speaks) have continued to try to care for patients in Africa, and unfortunately have lost 13 of their volunteers to the disease, according to Time. "From Day One, the epidemic has not been under control. And nobody is on top of the epidemic,even today," their spokesman Christopher Spokes told the magazine .
On the positive side, all American health-care workers who have been infected and treated at home have recovered, and while still serious and taking new victims daily, the fatality rate from it has begun to decline, from about 60% of those who contracted it before June to about 35% now . Whether this suggests better health care and caution used by medics now, or if the virus is mutating into a milder version is unclear but in the battle any decrease in deaths is good news.
On the positive side, all American health-care workers who have been infected and treated at home have recovered, and while still serious and taking new victims daily, the fatality rate from it has begun to decline, from about 60% of those who contracted it before June to about 35% now . Whether this suggests better health care and caution used by medics now, or if the virus is mutating into a milder version is unclear but in the battle any decrease in deaths is good news.
UPDATES April 2015
Ebola continues to be in the news as the largest outbreak of it on record continues to wreak havoc in Western Africa. However, the news is relatively good. As of April 21, the CDC in Atlanta report there have been no new cases this month in Liberia, and only 33 new cases were reported in Sierra Leone and Guinea over the previous week. This is only a fraction of the number of cases being reported when the epidemic was at its worst, last fall.
Also mildly encouraging, though a little over 26 000 cases have been reported in this outbreak, "only" 10 835 of those have died. While still a terrible loss of life, the percentage of fatalities is much lower than previously expected, suggesting either the virus is mutating into a slightly milder form ,or more likely, that with experience, doctors are better able to cope with it and provide adequate care for those afflicted.
It's now been just over 10 years since the news of the "reappearance" of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker was made public, by Tim Gallagher (mentioned in my book) and others. The anniversary drew a fair bit of attention in the birding world and both Birder's Digest and Bird Watching magazines had articles devoted to the aftermath and current status.
Neither magazine was overly optimistic about the species ongoing survival, as reports soon dried up in the area of Arkansas where the video was taken and after a handful of likely sightings in northern Florida in the two or three years after, none have been seen there. David Laneau told the former magazine he still is sure the bird he videotaped was the elusive Ivory-billed and doubts it was the very last one of its kind. As he points out, no matter what, some good came of the event as many acres of endangered wilderness were protected as a result and the "conservation effort received a boost in the public mind." I hope that one day more of the magnificent birds will be hammering away at old trees in the White River reserve and elsewhere!
On a more upbeat note, this past December, the Oshawa Christmas Bird Count (covering the area where 'my' birds were), a record 14 Mockingbirds were tallied, suggesting the species continues to adapt and thrive in its new territory.
One more "note"... as I say in The Mockingbird Speaks, music matters. Because of that, and because I want to be true to my passions, as also described in the book, I am in the process of working on a new e-book, about some of the music that matters to me. I hope it will to you too! Watch this space and my home site for more details later this year.
Also mildly encouraging, though a little over 26 000 cases have been reported in this outbreak, "only" 10 835 of those have died. While still a terrible loss of life, the percentage of fatalities is much lower than previously expected, suggesting either the virus is mutating into a slightly milder form ,or more likely, that with experience, doctors are better able to cope with it and provide adequate care for those afflicted.
It's now been just over 10 years since the news of the "reappearance" of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker was made public, by Tim Gallagher (mentioned in my book) and others. The anniversary drew a fair bit of attention in the birding world and both Birder's Digest and Bird Watching magazines had articles devoted to the aftermath and current status.
Neither magazine was overly optimistic about the species ongoing survival, as reports soon dried up in the area of Arkansas where the video was taken and after a handful of likely sightings in northern Florida in the two or three years after, none have been seen there. David Laneau told the former magazine he still is sure the bird he videotaped was the elusive Ivory-billed and doubts it was the very last one of its kind. As he points out, no matter what, some good came of the event as many acres of endangered wilderness were protected as a result and the "conservation effort received a boost in the public mind." I hope that one day more of the magnificent birds will be hammering away at old trees in the White River reserve and elsewhere!
On a more upbeat note, this past December, the Oshawa Christmas Bird Count (covering the area where 'my' birds were), a record 14 Mockingbirds were tallied, suggesting the species continues to adapt and thrive in its new territory.
One more "note"... as I say in The Mockingbird Speaks, music matters. Because of that, and because I want to be true to my passions, as also described in the book, I am in the process of working on a new e-book, about some of the music that matters to me. I hope it will to you too! Watch this space and my home site for more details later this year.