Environmental Studies Professor Noah Perlut publishes on study of bobolink diet

Noah Perlut, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Environmental Studies, co-authored a paper that was recently published in the journal The Condor: Ornithological Applications. “Winter diet of Bobolink, a long-distance migratory grassland bird, inferred from feather isotopies” examines what foods are consumed by bobolinks, a grassland bird species, after they fly south for the winter.

The paper describes how, by analyzing carbon compounds in the bobolinks’ plumage, the researchers confirmed that more rice is consumed by the birds in South America (during the winter) than in North America and that the highest rice consumption takes place in the late winter as the bobolinks prepare for their northern migration.

The research team concluded that while rice could be beneficial to the birds by providing needed calories before they embark on their journey, it also may increase the bobolinks’ exposure to pesticides and to the threat of rice farmers who view them as nuisances.

Read a summary blog about the paper

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