Nearly all of us can claim some measure of Irish heritage, and not only on St. Paddy’s Day. Recall our surprise when President Obama celebrated his Irish roots in a trip to the Emerald Isle back in May?
Well, it turns out that Irish immigrants have covered the entire globe, including its northern poles. A fascinating new study of polar bear genetics indicates that the great bears of the north are descended from the same great-grandmother, an Irish brown bear.
Get ready for the best duck season in recent memory.
Dripping-wet nesting habitat has created the biggest population of ducks since waterfowl biologists began their spring pond survey back in 1955. That’s big news, and proof that a rising tide lifts all boats (or at least some duck species), populations of every flavor of duck except for wigeon and scaup are up. Way up. Gadwall numbers are up 80 percent over the long-term average. Redheads are up 106 percent, and mallards are up 22 percent.