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How Writer Amy Tan Helps Backyard Birds
Writer Amy Tan’s work is known all over the world. And thanks to her latest best-seller, The Backyard Bird Chronicles, she’s now also known for her d…
11 months, 3 weeks ago
The Colors of Chicken Eggs
Except around Easter, chicken eggs usually come in a predictable range of colors: white, brown, and sometimes pale blue or green. Chickens are descen…
11 months, 3 weeks ago
The Plover and the Hurricane
Piping Plovers are tiny, sand-colored shorebirds that nest on the beach. They’re threatened in much of their range. But plovers have gotten a boost f…
11 months, 3 weeks ago
Pigeon Guillemots Have Fun
Although many seabirds utter groans and croaks, the Pigeon Guillemot produces a lovely series of trills and whistles. As part of their courtship, the…
11 months, 4 weeks ago
Why Are Blackbirds Black?
Why are blackbirds black? One possible answer is that black is conspicuous against just about all of Nature's backgrounds. Blackbirds, like this floc…
11 months, 4 weeks ago
How Nestlings Leave the Nest
Young birds leave their nests in different ways. Some shuffle tentatively along the nearest branch and practice flapping their wings, while others ta…
11 months, 4 weeks ago
Crested Auklets Entice Their Mates with Scent
Crested Auklets are small seabirds that nest on remote cliffs in the Northern Pacific and the Bering Sea. But it’s their smell that really sets these…
1 year ago
Pelagic Birds by Boat
Some birds spend most of their lives on the open ocean, only coming to land when it's time to breed. These high-sea specialists are called pelagic bi…
1 year ago
Advice to Beginning Birders from David Sibley
David Sibley, creator and illustrator of The Sibley Guide to Birds, offers this advice for people learning to identify birds: “Spend time at home, pa…
1 year ago
What’s in a Name? A Bird!
Names are conventions, right? But some names contain something special: a bird! For example, the name Paloma comes from the colloquial name in Spanis…
1 year ago