Climate change is for the birds

The Post-Intelligencer, Paris, Tenn.: What if the only Orioles in Baltimore were wearing baseball uniforms?

Most if not all of the states of the union have named an official state bird — Tennessee’s is the mockingbird — to help identify what’s characteristic of each state.

So it’s ironic to learn that some bird species named as official may disappear from the states that named them. The culprit, says the Audubon Society, is climate change.

The mockingbird is not threatened in Tennessee, the society said, but experts calculate that if current climate trends continue, these “official” birds soon may be rare or nonexistent in their states.

Bald eagle at risk

The Audubon Society said climate warming affects bird populations as breeding seasons shift northward. The bald eagle may find its habitat decreased by 75 percent by the year 2080, the study estimates.