Page 6 - RR-7-23-26

Canadian wildfire smoke linked to
6 • • Thursday, July 23, 2026

fewer bird sightings in NY State

UB study compared air qual-
ity data with birdwatching
reports, including during his-
toric 2023 wildfire season’
espite burning hundreds
of miles away, Canadian
Dwildfires have become a
familiar source of disruption in
The Elaine M. Panty Branch Kids 6-12 years old - New York State – air quality advi-
Library, 820 Tonawanda St., Buf- Scooter/Helmet
sories; a spike in emergency room
falo, NY 14207 - 716-875-0562. Teens 13-17 years old - Kara- visits for asthma.
Branch Hours: oke Machine/Disco Ball
Now, a University at Buffalo
Monday: 12 p.m. – 8 p.m. Adults 18+ - Botanical Lego study has identified another con- A blackpoll warbler, one of 40 bird species that was less
Tuesday, Thursday, and Kit/Bluetooth Speaker likely to be observed in New York State when air quality
sequence: fewer sightings of doz-
Saturday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. All logs are due by Monday, ens of bird species across the decreased due to Canadian wildfires according to University
Friday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Aug. 31 at Buffalo research.
Empire State.
Sunday and Wednesday: In a study published earlier 99,000 eBird checklists collected observe during smoky conditions
CLOSED For children and youth: this month in Springer Nature, across all of New York during the than how the birds themselves re-
For Adults: researchers found that 40 different three recent breeding seasons. sponded,” says co-author Adam
bird species were less likely to be Nearly half of the species stud- Wilson, PhD, associate professor
observed in New York as levels of ied were less likely to be observed of geography and Adegbola’s ad-
fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in when PM2.5 rose. These included viser.
the air increased during recent many migratory forest songbirds, The findings suggest that few-
breeding seasons. The analysis in- such as warblers, thrushes and vir- er bird sightings during smoky
The monthly No-Pressure cluded the 2023 season that over- eos. periods don't necessarily mean
Book Club will next meet on The regular weekly story time lapped with Canada’s worst “It’s possible that smoky con- there are fewer birds – they may
Monday, July 27 from 12:15 until is back! Family Story Time will wildfire season on record. ditions changed the birds’ behav- simply be harder to detect. Under-
1:30 p.m. be held on Tuesdays in June with “Our results show a link be- ior – singing and moving less, standing that distinction is crucial
Calling all book lovers! Ms. Rachael from 11:00-11:30. tween wildfire smoke and the spending more time in dense for- for biodiversity monitoring so that
We are a social group that takes We will have Dino crafts on probability of observing particular est canopy – and therefore made temporary declines in detectabili-
the pressure out of a formal book July 23 and Aug. 6 for children bird species,” says corresponding them harder to detect,” Adegbola ty aren't mistaken for true popula-
club. Here, we never have re- ages 5 and up from 1 - 2 p.m. author Festus Adegbola, a PhD says. tion declines.
quired reading. We get together candidate in the Department of However, 15 species were ac- “Still, as climate change con-
and share what we've read For the community: Geography, within the UB Col- tually more likely to be observed tinues to intensify wildfires, it’s
lately, what we loved (or didn't), The Feedmore WNY Farm lege of Arts and Sciences. “Wild- as PM2.5 levels rose, while anoth- crucial we understand how birds
what we're looking forward to Market Truck will be parked in fire smoke is often underexplored er 29 showed no significant will be affected by increased
reading next, and share any book- our parking lot off of Prairie Street when monitoring biodiversity. change in how likely they were to smoke pollution,” Wilson says.
ish news and events happening on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Fridays of Failing to account for air quality be observed. These included many “This study is hopefully a first
around the area. each month. Stop by to purchase may bias models of species distri- aerial insectivores and some wet- step to better understanding how
If you're a lover of books, then fresh, healthy, affordable, and lo- butions and abundance.” land-associated birds. species respond to wildfire smoke
please join us and bring a friend. cally grown produce! They accept The researchers first analyzed That doesn’t necessarily mean exposure.”
cash, debit/credit, tap to pay & PM2.5 levels, a key marker of wildfire smoke benefited those Other co-authors include Stu-
For all ages: SNAP/EBT (50% off). It runs wildfire smoke, during New birds. art Evans, PhD, assistant professor
Summer Reading is on! 12:30-1:30 p.m. July 31, August York's 2021–2023 breeding sea- “These species often occupy of geography, and Olivia Sander-
Come to the Elaine M. Panty 7, and Aug. 21. sons. The highest concentrations more open environments than for- foot, PhD, a research scientist
Branch anytime during open hours occurred in 2023, when smoke est songbirds, so it’s possible their with the Cornell Lab of Ornitholo-
in July or August to pick up a We are still welcoming book from Canada’s historic wildfires increased sightings had more to do gy.
summer reading log. Children 0-5 donations. All ages, all genres – in degraded air quality across New with where birdwatchers chose to
years old, Kids 6-12 years old, good condition. We do not take York throughout June and July.
Teens 13-17 years old can com- encyclopedias, dictionaries, or PM2.5 levels exceeded World
plete timed reading throughout the text books. If you have questions, Health Organization guidelines on
summer to win mini prizes, prizes call the branch at 716-875-0562. multiple occasions, at times reach-
for checking in halfway, and Thank you for thinking of us! ing eight times the recommended
chances to win grand prizes. limit.
Adults 18+ can submit their logs Our $1 bag sale is still going The researchers then matched
for a raffle prize, as well. on. Bring your own reusable tote the PM2.5 data with nearly 99,000
You may complete more than bag (standard paper bag size, birdwatching checklists submitted
one log per person to gain extra please) or get a bag from us, and to Cornell University's eBird data-
raffle ticket entries for the end of fill it up for only $1. Multiple bags base. The citizen science project,
the summer grand prize for your are allowed. run by the Cornell Lab of Orni-
age group. For a complete list of events thology, allows birdwatchers to
For children, kids, and teens happening at the branch, please record the birds they observe, cre-
there are fun mini prizes for every stop by the branch to pick up a ating one of the world's largest
checkpoint you complete (limited paper copy of the current month’s collections of bird observations.
to one prize per visit). calendar, visit our online calendar Because the observations
Also, five book checkouts in a at: come from birdwatchers with
visit will get you an extra raffle https://tinyurl.com/PanBranchPro varying levels of experience, the
ticket! grams, or by following us on Fa- UB researchers used rigorous data
Grand prizes: cebook: https://www.facebook. filtering and statistical methods to
Children 0-5 years old - Prize com/bufffalolibrary.pan. ensure reliable results.
pack of Magnetic Building We are now on Instagram, too! In all, they analyzed 84 differ-
Tiles/Storage/Splash Mat Follow us at: elainempantylibrary ent bird species across nearly

THEME: CAMPING

ACROSS DOWN
1. Soapy enemy 1. Eye infection
5. Architect's software, acr. 2. College party chant
8. Professional number cruncher, 3. Russia's ____ Mountains
acr. 4. Western European city-state
11. Through, to a poet 5. Collectible in a cabinet
12. Z, NATO phonetic alphabet 6. Skirt shape
13. Garden pest 7. Animal waste
15. Chinese monetary unit 8. Chocolate candy, to a Brit
16. Sportscaster Andrews 9. Essence
17. Certain water birds 10. Marketing creations
18. *Luxury camping 12. Gentle breeze
20. Scratch's target 13. Raspberry drupelets
21. Same as coho 14. *Like drinking water
22. DNA transmitter 19. Customs and conventions
23. Explanation backed by evi- 22. "Losing My Religion" band
dence 23. *Leave no ____
26. Gottfried ____, calculus co- 24. Egyptian falcon god
creator 25. Put out on a curb
30. R in rpm 26. Totes or tugs
31. Er on Periodic table 27. Orient's bigwig
34. Bowling ball path 28. Preface, e.g.
35. Arabic VIPs 29. Piquant
37. .0000001 joule 32. *____ bag or ____ canister
38. Financial woes 33. Rage
39. Cecum, pl. 36. *Waterproof cover (2 words)
40. "Et tu, Brute?" speaker 38. Funny
42. Food morsel 40. Large edible mushroom
43. Siren, e.g. 41. Of low pH
45. *____ camping, or camping 44. Serve food at events
without shelter 46. Restaurant staff member
47. Siesta 48. "The _____ of Wakefield"
48. "There it is," à Paris 49. On the radio (2 words)
50. Gold or frankincense or 50. *Annoying biting fly
myrrh, e.g. 51. Tiny quantity
52. *Fire starter 52. Leafy green
55. American chameleon 53. Like Hitler's Germany
56. Antioxidant-rich berry 54. *Good Ol' Raisins and Pea-
57. New Mexico art colony nuts
59. Nymph chaser 55. Venomous snake
60. Nonclerical 58. Greek letters on campus
61. Poet Pound
62. High school parent org.
63. Be off base
64. Ready for picking
Answers on page 7