Mar 11 2024
The Northern Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium gnoma) is proof that a bird does not need to be large to be a formidable predator. Barely larger than many of the songbirds it hunts, this tiny owl patrols the mountain forests of western North America with bright yellow eyes, sharp talons, and a surprisingly bold personality. Unlike many owls, …
Mar 11 2024
The Pine Grosbeak (Pinicola enucleator) is a large, gentle-looking finch of northern forests and high mountain country. With rosy-red males, softly colored females, a thick seed-crushing bill, and a surprisingly calm disposition, it is one of the most distinctive birds of the boreal forest. For many birdwatchers in the northern United States, seeing a Pine …
Mar 03 2024
Tropical birds include some of the most colorful, unusual, and specialized birds on Earth. Brilliant macaws sweep over rainforest canopies, hummingbirds hover beside flowers, toucans reach for fruit with enormous bills, and quetzals disappear almost magically into green cloud forests. In other parts of the tropics, hornbills, sunbirds, cassowaries, parrots, kingfishers, and birds-of-paradise occupy equally …
Mar 02 2024
The White-tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura) is a remarkably specialized grouse of North America’s high mountains. Small, round-bodied, and extraordinarily well camouflaged, this hardy bird spends its entire life in cold alpine environments where snow, wind, exposed rock, and low-growing vegetation shape nearly every aspect of its behavior. Unlike most North American birds, White-tailed Ptarmigan do …
Jan 27 2024
Small, energetic, and remarkably acrobatic, the Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) is one of the most entertaining birds to watch in North America’s conifer forests. It races along tree trunks, creeps headfirst down branches, wedges seeds into bark, and announces its presence with a nasal call that can sound like a tiny toy horn. Despite its …
Jan 27 2024
The Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) may be small, but it is one of the most recognizable and approachable woodpeckers in North America. This energetic black-and-white bird is a familiar visitor to forests, parks, suburban neighborhoods, and backyard bird feeders, where its compact size allows it to forage in places that larger woodpeckers simply cannot reach. …
Jan 27 2024
With brilliant blue wings, a golden-yellow chest, an enormous black bill, and a tail nearly as impressive as its wingspan, the Blue-and-yellow Macaw (Ara ararauna) is one of the most recognizable parrots in the world. Also called the Blue-and-gold Macaw, this large tropical parrot is native primarily to South America, where it inhabits forests, palm …
Jan 27 2024
Few birds are as instantly recognizable as the toucan. With an enormous, often brilliantly colored bill, dark plumage, bright patches of yellow, orange, red, or white, and an unmistakably tropical appearance, toucans seem almost too colorful to be real. But that extraordinary bill is far more than decoration. Toucans use their bills to reach fruit, …
Jan 27 2024
With its powder-blue plumage, deep maroon chest, brilliant red eyes, and an extraordinary crown of delicate feathers, the Victoria Crowned Pigeon (Goura victoria) hardly resembles the pigeons most people see in city parks. This spectacular tropical bird is one of the largest living members of the pigeon and dove family and is native to the …
Jan 27 2024
The Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) is one of the most spectacular birds of the Americas. Famous for its shimmering emerald plumage, brilliant red breast, and the extraordinary flowing feathers of adult males, this cloud-forest bird has fascinated people for centuries. Resplendent Quetzals live in the cool, humid mountain forests of southern Mexico and Central America, …
