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Wild Birds Trained to Pick Up Litter

Wild crow trained to pick up litter

eric isselée/AdobeStock.com

Crows, capable of complex thought and skilled problem solvers, can also make and use tools. Now, several projects aim to enlist crows and other wild creatures as volunteers to keep the environment tidy. A Dutch company, Crowded Cities, has a device called the CrowBar that trains birds to collect discarded cigarette butts in exchange for food, creating a low-cost solution to a problem that is labor-intensive for humans.

The machine presents a piece of food next to a cigarette butt on a platform, training the crow to expect food there. Then it starts dispensing the food only after the crow arrives, teaching the crow how the machine operates. Next, it presents only the cigarette butt, with no food. The crow starts looking around for the food and accidentally knocks the butt in, which releases a treat. The last step is to scatter a few cigarette butts on the ground around the CrowBar. When the training is complete, the crow will start collecting butts from the surrounding area and bringing them to the machine for a reward.

In-Print pollution National Content Global Brief Global and Health Briefs June 2021
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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