Kirtland has flock of bird studies Published May 9, 2014 By Adam Bailey Nucleus writer KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- Kirtland's Natural Resource office is conducting seven studies of the bird population found on base. The birds the office is interested in include the burrowing owl, loggerhead shrike, gray vireo, raptors and migratory songbirds. "The majority of the research we have going on base are studies on birds," said Dustin Akins, natural resource specialist. There are three burrowing owl studies happening on base. The Natural Resource office has been gathering information about the burrowing owl since around 1998. "We have a lot of long-term data on the burrowing owl, since we have been studying it for so long and have noticed that there has been a steep decline in their population on base," Akins said. "We've reported it to the state and have been looking at it closely to find out why." Two of the studies are surveys of the owls' productivity. Natural resource specialists like Akins use leg bands to keep track of where the birds go and their activities. The third study examines the animals that prey on the owls. Cameras have been placed at the entrance of owl burrows, where they can capture images of predator attacks to help determine whether the decline in owls is related to those attacks. Coyotes and badgers are common predators for the owls. "We didn't realize how many badgers we have on base until we set up the cameras by the owl burrows," Akins said. Another study is looking at the use of telephone and electrical poles by raptors on base. Although birds sometimes electrocute themselves, the study shows the wires have not caused a high fatality rate among birds. A group from Colorado is conducting a study on the gray vireo to see how the bird is being affected by the brown-headed cowbird, which tricks other birds into raising its young. The cowbird sneaks in and lays its eggs in the gray vireo's nests, alongside the other bird's eggs. The cowbird eggs will then hatch before the gray vireo's eggs and get most of its adopted parent's care. Another ongoing project is a study on the diversity of migratory songbirds on base. Part of that study is an attempt to find threatened and endangered birds or species of interest. And a student from the University of New Mexico is doing a study on the loggerhead shrike. Student-led studies on base are relatively common this time of year, according to Akins. "The bird studies are conducted by different biologists usually seeking their master's (degree) or Ph.D," Akins said. "The studies started at the start of spring and run through the fall. This allows us to study birds through breeding, their young being born and the time before they fly out of the nest. Then, in the winter, reports are drafted with the data that we collected."