Forty Years of Knowledge

Over four decades ago I learned about climate change and the potential for global warming, in a human ecology class at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona.

That lead me three decades ago to a career in wildlife biology and the opportunity to go twice to Churchill, Manitoba and view Polar Bears, Arctic Foxes, and Snowy Owls in a changing arctic environment.

Two decades ago I watched, listened to, took photographs of and taught my two young boys how to identify birds like Scaled Quail that were in our Rio Rancho, New Mexico, backyard often. 

Ten years ago we watched many Gambel’s Quail, presumably expanding their range north, almost daily in our yard and rarely saw or heard a single, displaced Scaled Quail. 

This past year I have seen Scaled Quail only twice in the yard. But I am hoping it is not too late and the knowledge of climate change soon will become wisdom.