Peregrine falcon

Although eggshell thinning attributable to DDE exposure has occurred in birds in the UK, the lethal and siiblethal effects of the cyclodiene pesticides aldrin, dieldrin and heptachlor are also believed to have contributed to the population effects, particularly in the case of the sparrowhawk and peregrine falcon. Following the withdrawal of DDT and the cyclodienes from use in the UK, Europe and North America, bird of prey populations that were severely affected have shown partial or complete recovery. ... 

Ratcliffe, D.A. (1993). The Peregrine Falcon (2nd edition). London T D Poyser. 

Peregrine falcons, crow-sized birds that reach speeds of 200 miles per hour as they dive for prey, nested in eyries that had been used continuously for centuries in Europe and since, at least, 1860 in the United States. When... 

In the aftermath of the DDT bans, many bird populations recovered. Robins, bald eagles, ospreys, and peregrine falcons returned to old nesting grounds. The use of other pesticides continued unabated, however. By 1999, American farmers were using one billion pounds of pesticides and herbicides yearly every dollar spent on pesticides seemed to save 4 in crops. 

Thomas R. Dunlap. Science as a Guide in Regulating Technology The Case of DDT in the United States. Social Studies of Science. 8 (Aug. 1978) 265-85. Source for why DDT research took so long Clear Lake impact of Rachel Carson and peregrine falcons. 

Peregrine falcon, Falco peregrinis Baltimore, Maryland, Age 7+ ... 

Ambrose, R.E., C.J. Henny, R.E. Hunter, and J.A. Crawford. 1988. Organochlorines in Alaskan peregrine eggs and their current impact on productivity. Pages 385-393 in T.J. Cade, J.H. Enderson, C.G. Thelander, and C.M. White (eds.). Peregrine Falcon Populations Their Management and Recovery. The Peregrine Fund, Inc., Boise, ID. 

DeWeese, L.R., L.C. McEwen, G.L. Hensler, and B.E. Petersen. 1986. Organochlorine contaminants in passeriformes and other avian prey of the peregrine falcon in the western United States. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 5 675-693. 

Jarman, W.M., R.J. Norstrom, M. Simon, S.A. Bums, C.A. Bacon, and B.R.T. Simoneit. 1993. Organochlo-rines, including chlordane compounds and their metabolites, in peregrine-falcon, prairie-falcon, and clapper rail eggs from the USA. Environ, Pollut. 81 127-136. 

Commercial PCB mixtures frequently contain impurities that may contribute to the 2,3,7,8-TCDD toxic equivalency factor. These impurities may include other PCBs, dioxins, dibenzofurans, naphthalenes, diphenyl ethers and toluenes, phenoxy and biphenyl anisoles, xanthenes, xanthones, anthracenes, and fluorenes (Jones etal. 1993). PCB concentrations in avian tissues sometimes correlate positively with DDE concentrations (Mora et al. 1993). Eggs of peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) from California, for example, contained measurable quantities of various organochlorine compounds, including dioxins, dibenzofurans, mirex, hexachlorobenzene, and / ,//-DDE at 7.1 to 26.0 mg/kg FW PCB 126 accounted for 83% of the 2,3,7,8-TCDD equivalents, but its interaction with other detectable organochlorine compounds is largely unknown (Jarman et al. 1993). 

Jarman, W.M., S.A. Burns, R.R. Chang, R.D. Stephens, R.J. Norstrom, M. Simon, and J. Linthicum. 1993. Determination of PCDDs, PCDFs, and PCBs in California peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) and their eggs. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 12 105-114. 

Johnstone, R.M., G.S. Court, A.C. Fesser, D.M. Bradley, L.W. Oliphant, and J.D. MacNeil. 1996. Long-term trends and sources of organochlorine contamination in Canadian tundra peregrine falcons, Falco peregrinus tundrius. Environ. Pollut. 93 109-120. 

Many of these wild places and conditions are quite unintended outcomes of our own actions. Urban people are constantly making incidental natures, interacting with nonhuman species to create environmental outcomes of startling complexity. The lesser kestrel, a bird of prey currently on the brink of extinction, thrives in some cities of the Middle East, where it nests in clay roof tiles in areas of urban growth, just as the recovery of the peregrine falcon, a threatened species in the United states, is partly predicated on its New York City... 

The wings of peregrine falcons offer an important lesson to chemists and other scientists who develop new materials. Most of the materials described in the previous chapters involve discovering or designing new molecular structures to meet a prescribed need. These materials fulfill the... 

One of the most heavily researched applications for smart materials involves aviation. The marvelous adaptability of the wings of peregrine falcons means that the bird is proficient in both soaring and diving. 

But flight stability with morphing wings is possible—consider the peregrine falcon. Swifts are another kind of acrobat flier. Researchers... 

---