March 19, 2018—In the future, data sent from seabirds like streaked shearwaters could improve the accuracy of weather forecasting. Each year, streaked shearwaters visit the coasts and islands of East Asia to breed, returning from their winter journeys to tropical and subtropical waters. Because of their wide and varied range, much of which is far from land, Katsufumi Sato, National Geographic explorer and University of Tokyo behavioral ecologist, has made these oceangoing birds a part of his research team. By outfitting the shearwaters with lightweight weather data recorders, Sato is able to capture information from points on the ocean, including temperature, wind speed, and currents, and compare it with results from other sources. He plans to add transmitters to the instruments, which could augment data coming in from ships, buoys, and satellites.
THE YEAR OF THE BIRDIn 1918 Congress passed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to protect birds from wanton killing. To celebrate the centennial, National Geographic is partnering with the National Audubon Society, BirdLife International, and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to declare 2018 the Year of the Bird. Watch for more stories, maps, books, events, and social media content throughout the year.
