A bird robot named Snooki is helping biologists learn about the Greater Sage-Grouse, a species that is threatened in Colorado.
Gail Patricelli, a biologist from the University of California Davis, constructed a remote-controlled sage-grouse look-alike with a built-in camera to give scientists a bird's-eye view through which to study the animals.
Patricelli's research is intended to inform protection of the Greater Sage-Grouse. The imperiled bird only occupies about 50 percent of its original sagebrush habitat in Colorado and other western states. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering whether to list it as endangered, and has until fall 2015 to decide.
Meanwhile, politicians have proposed legislative alternatives to an endangered-species listing. Farmers, the energy industry and hunters also favor localized protection plans rather than a federal listing.
