Biologist and penguin expert Dr. Dee Boersma tells CBS reporter Dr. Debbye Turner that penguins numbers are dwindling rapidly. She also says that penguins are like a canary in the coalmine and it means there could serious climate consequences ahead for humans.
Michelle Kaufmann, a green blogger, is offering a free Earth Day Activity Kit. The kit contains instructions for building a number of green craft projects. Information about the projects can be found on Michelle Kaufmann's blog (hat tip Crafters Craft).
One of the projects in Kaufmann's green activity kit is an ecobirdfeeder, which is a modern birdfeeder constructed of wooden chopsticks. You can follow the instructions for the building the ecobirdfeeder here.
"Growing up in Iowa, I developed a deep understanding of the relationship between humankind and the environment, an awareness I strive to incorporate into everything I do," said Michelle Kaufmann. "I love showing people how easy it can be to make healthy green choices that also create more beautiful living spaces. That's why I created this kit especially for Earth Day."
Earth Day is April 22nd. You can learn more about it here, here and here.
The Pacific Chinook salmon population of Oregon and California is suddenly on the verge of collapse after years of decline. Federal fisheries managers are considering a ban on salmon fishing from Oregon to the Mexican border.
The fishery council is expected to decide which action to take in April during its meeting in Seattle.
"I think the likeliest outcome this year is no one will put a hook in the water," said Humboldt County fisherman Dave Bitts, who was attending the weeklong meeting in Sacramento.
The Sacramento River chinook run is usually one of the most plentiful on the West Coast, providing the bulk of the fish caught by commercial trollers off California and Oregon.
But this year's returns - even with no fishing allowed - are expected to reach less than half the council's goal for spawning a new generation. It marks the third straight year of declines, and the outlook for next year is no better.
John Larson reports on the dire situation in the NBC video below.
Government Cheaply Selling Land to Mining Companies
This National Geographic video investigates the practice of allowing the government to cheaply sell land that could be used for recreation and conservation to mining companies. They use an antiquated 1872 mining law to sell land for as cheap as $5 an acre. It's a shocking story.
For centuries the American West has been the realm of cowboys, miners and frontiersman. Since 1872 mining companies have been reaping the benefit of an antiquated law allowing mining companies to purchase land at bargain prices, such as the recent acquisition of an entire mountain for only 875 dollars. Wild Chronicles follows what happens when 19th century laws are faced up against 21st century sensibilities.
Feeding wild birds is a lot of fun but if you don't take the trouble to find the right seeds you could up harming the environment. The main reason for this according to KATU is that the wild bird seed may contain invasive weeds that are not native to the area.
Portland Audubon's Karen Munday told KATU that some seed is bad for birds because some feed mixes contain non-native weed seeds.
"The last thing we want for the health of our birds is to have non-native weed seeds and weeds be out there. The weeds non only hurt habitat bio-diversity but the wild birds can fly away and spread the seeds elsewhere."
Recently, Oregon State University researchers discovered up to 14 non-native weed seed species in bags of seed that were purchased from Corvallis-area stores.
The bags included Pigweed, Russian thistle, crabgrass and witchgrass weed seeds.
Each is an invasive weed that's banned by the Oregon Department of Agriculture.
A video report says some of the bird seed also includes milo, which is a grain that the birds won't even eat.
Have you noticed less brilliance in the colors this Fall? Do the leaves appear dull and not quite as beautiful as previous years. You can blame that on climate change and the leaves in the Northeast have been especially hard hit reports the Associated Press.
Every fall, Marilyn Krom tries to make a trip to Vermont to see its famously beautiful fall foliage. This year, she noticed something different about the autumn leaves.
"They're duller, not as sparkly, if you know what I mean," Krom, 62, a registered nurse from Eastford, Conn., said during a recent visit. "They're less vivid."
Other "leaf peepers" are noticing, too, and some believe climate change could be the reason.
Forested hillsides usually riotous with reds, oranges and yellows have shown their colors only grudgingly in recent years, with many trees going straight from the dull green of late summer to the rust-brown of late fall with barely a stop at a brighter hue.
"It's nothing like it used to be," said University of Vermont plant biologist Tom Vogelmann, a Vermont native.
He says autumn has become too warm to elicit New England's richest colors.
With winters only expected to get warmer in the future it looks like fall folliage is another thing that will change thanks to global warming. Beautiful fall scenes like the one on the right will become less common. One forestry professor told the AP that the leaves will skip color changes and go straight from green to brown. Not fun for leaf peepers. You can find some fall foliage resources here on our previous post about fall leaves.
Michelle Kaufmann, a green blogger, is offering a free Earth Day Activity Kit. The kit contains instructions for building a number of green craft projects. Information about the projects can be found on 
Have you noticed less brilliance in the colors this Fall? Do the leaves appear dull and not quite as beautiful as previous years. You can blame that on climate change and the leaves in the Northeast have been especially hard hit 