Animal News
Jun. 01, 1998
Practically all of the birds have arrived from their migration and spring is in full swing when the eastern wood-pewee decides to grace us with its presence.
May. 01, 1998
Those of you who have suffered from "warbler neck" may well have acquired this common birding malaise while attempting to find our Bird of the Month, high in the top of a spruce or hemlock tree.
Apr. 01, 1998
Out on the range, in the sage and pine lives the Great Basin's indomitable, spirited Empidonax, the Gray Flycatcher. The subject of much confusion in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, this...
Mar. 01, 1998
Standing on a hilltop in central Panama in October, you might suddenly notice that the midday sky has gone dark. Sure, clouds have rolled in as usual during the rainy season, but this dark cloud...
Feb. 15, 1998
Over the quiet murmur of a woodland stream and the subtle whisper of breezes through the leaves of tall trees, the rich, liquid song of a Wood Thrush resonates through the morning air.
Jan. 14, 1998
The largest of the nine swallow species that breed in North America north of Mexico, the purple martin (Progne subis) maintains a geographic range that swoops from the western to the central...
Jan. 01, 1998
The word pesticide is a catch-all term for chemicals that kill or control anything that humans have deemed to be a pest. A danger inherent to the use of synthetic poisons is that once the chemicals...
Nov. 15, 1997
January winds in Nantucket are wicked, a ferocious combination of arctic cold and New England dampness. Downtown streets and rural woods are nearly empty—tourists and birds alike having fled for...
Sep. 15, 1997
The appearance and behavior of Swainson's Hawk is much like its close North American relatives; Red-tailed (Buteo jamaicensis), Broad-winged (Buteo platypterus), White-tailed (Buteo albicaudatus),...
Sep. 01, 1997
With outstretched wings, a male Buff-breasted Sandpiper tilts its bill upward and does the "shake". Several females scrutinize his dance in their search for the best male to father their young....
Jul. 01, 1997
In the summertime, the high-pitched, persistent song of the dazzling male indigo bunting is a common roadside sound throughout the eastern United States and southeastern Canada.
May. 01, 1997
Like a centurion standing guard, the Cedar Waxwing strikes a commanding pose with its natty garb and erect profile.
Apr. 01, 1997
In the cool mist of a waterfall, several black arrows dart back and forth to the recesses behind the falls. Behind this veil of cascading water in the damp moss-laden cliffs, hidden and safe from...
Feb. 01, 1997
Rice bird, meadow-wink, skunk blackbird, reed bird, butter bird—these various names for the member of the blackbird family most commonly known as the bobolink reflect the diversity of ways in which...
Jan. 14, 1997
Suddenly, a flash of golden-yellow darts across the background of muted greens and browns. The bird lands, throws back its head and belts forth a sound to make the forest come alive—"Sweet sweet...
Jan. 01, 1997
Imagine you have been travelling in your car for hours. You are hungry, thirsty, tired, and need to stop soon for a break.
Jan. 01, 1997
When we think about birds migrating to the tropics, we often focus on nearby areas such as Mexico and the Caribbean. However, each fall, millions of songbirds migrate from North America to their...
Nov. 01, 1996
When first described by scientists in 1830, this species was named the “Franklin's Rosy Gull” for its rose-colored breast and belly.
Oct. 15, 1996
From mid-June to late August thousands of birds foraging on brine shrimp and fly larvae dot the large saline and alkaline lakes of the West with whirling, spinning patterns. Many of these are Wilson'...
Sep. 01, 1996
At top speed, a needle-like bird beak, flared with chestnut and horns of gold and followed by bright black-and-yellow tiger stripes, hurtles towards its target. This is the view that many birds have...
Jan. 01, 1996
The brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) is a brood parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of other birds. These "foster parents", called hosts, usually raise cowbird young at the expense of their...
Jan. 01, 1996
Flight affords the utmost in mobility and has made possible the evolution of avian migration as a means of exploiting distant food resources and avoiding the physiological stress associated with cold...
Jan. 01, 1996
Imagine. It is dark and you have been traveling at an altitude of 5,000 feet for eight hours over arid desert, crossing the Mexican border at midnight. You have been flying on your own two wings,...
Jan. 01, 1995
Several species of insects including the Western Spruce Budworm, Gypsy Moth, Western Pine Beetle, and the Eastern Spruce Budworm experience population cycles in which populations remain low for...
Jan. 01, 1994
In the midst of altered and shrinking habitat in both North and Latin America, migratory birds have found a sanctuary in the forest-like environment of traditional coffee plantations. In eastern...