Category: Songbirds

The Purple Martin’s Majesty

The Purple Martin is the largest North American swallow (Family Hirundinidae), with a wingspan of 18 inches, length of 8 inches, and weight of 2 ounces. It is about the size and appearance of a starling in flight and can be confused with it. (In both species, the purple is due to iridescence of feather …

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The American Goldfinch

The sun is shining brightly over the edge of the woods and over large patches of weeds. There is a beautiful song toWEE toWEE toWEEto tweer tweer tweer, and then, as you approach, comes a frighened ti ti ti ti ti di di di, as a burst of yellow joins the sunlight in the sky. This is the American …

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Welcome Home Purple Martins!

Purple Martins are members of the swallow family. They are almost 8 inches long and have a wingspan of just over 15 inches across. Of course the species of birds got their name from the beautiful color of the males. The males have a deep purple bluish color on their feathers and their feathers seem …

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The Elusive Bluebird

The Eastern Bluebird is a small thrush. Smaller than the Robin with fairly long wings and short legs. Their bills are short and straight. The blue color is what makes them catch the eye, but they are fast and blend well with brush and foliage because of their brownish underneath feathers. The male birds of …

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The Robin – Our First Sign of Spring

The other day another teacher and I were talking about robins. My friend is from Alabama. I said to her, “Well, up here, when we see a robin, we know spring is not far behind.” In reply, Gail said, “Come on, Robins!” There have been some years when the robins have not left this part …

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