For the Birds
Author's posts
May 28 2025
White-throated Robin
The White-throated Robin (Irania gutturalis) is a striking migratory songbird of the mountains and dry scrublands of western and central Asia. Adult males are especially memorable, combining slate-gray upperparts, a dark face, brilliant orange underparts, and the crisp white throat that gives the species its name. Despite being called a robin, the White-throated Robin is …
May 11 2025
American Dipper: North America’s Remarkable Aquatic Songbird
Most songbirds spend their lives among branches, grasses, and open skies. The American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) takes a very different approach. This stocky gray bird makes its home beside cold, rushing streams—and routinely plunges directly into them. American Dippers can swim, dive, and even move along rocky streambeds while searching for food. They are considered …
Apr 26 2025
Bird Watching at the Beach
A trip to the beach can be about much more than swimming, seashells, and sunsets. Coastal shorelines are among the most exciting places to watch birds, offering everything from tiny sandpipers racing ahead of the waves to pelicans gliding over the surf. Bird watching at the beach is especially rewarding because many species are easy …
Apr 25 2025
Discover the Backyard Birds of North Carolina
Discover the Backyard Birds of North Carolina North Carolina is a wonderful place to become a backyard birdwatcher. From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Piedmont and the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the state contains an impressive variety of forests, fields, wetlands, pine woods, gardens, and suburban neighborhoods. More than 400 migratory, wintering, and year-round bird …
Apr 19 2025
Identifying Sandpiper Birds: A Practical Guide to Shorebird ID
Sandpipers are among the most fascinating—and sometimes most challenging—birds to identify. A flock feeding across a mudflat may initially look like dozens of nearly identical little brown-and-white birds. Look more carefully, however, and differences begin to emerge. One bird has yellow legs, another has black legs. One has a short, straight bill, while another carries …
Apr 17 2025
Evening Grosbeak
The Evening Grosbeak is one of North America’s most dramatic finches. With an oversized bill, bold white wing patches, and flashes of yellow and black, an adult male can look almost tropical when it lands at a snowy winter bird feeder. Females are more subdued, but their combination of gray, olive, yellow, black, and white …
Apr 14 2025
Celebrate Puffin Day: Fun Facts and Conservation Efforts for These Charming Birds
Puffins have an almost irresistible combination of features: bright bills, expressive faces, compact bodies, and a slightly awkward walk that makes them look as though they are always hurrying somewhere important. Yet beneath their charming appearance is a remarkably well-adapted seabird capable of spending months on the open ocean and pursuing fish deep beneath the …
Apr 12 2025
Why Are Birds Dying in Our Environment?
Birds are among the most visible signs of a healthy environment. They fill forests with song, patrol fields for insects, pollinate flowers, disperse seeds, and migrate thousands of miles between seasonal habitats. So when birds begin disappearing—or when several dead birds suddenly appear in a neighborhood—it is understandable to wonder what is happening. There is …
Apr 11 2025
The American Kestrel, North America’s Smallest Falcon
Discover the beauty and power of the American kestrel, a small but mighty bird of prey. Learn about their habitat, behavior, and conservation efforts in this informative article.
Apr 08 2025
Andean Condor
Few birds create a sense of scale quite like the Andean Condor. With enormous wings stretching more than 10 feet from tip to tip, this legendary scavenger can glide above mountain valleys for hours while barely flapping. The Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) is one of the largest flying birds on Earth and possesses the longest …
