Rick Potvin is the manager of the McKinney National Wildlife Refuge on Long Island Sound. He oversees coastal and low-lying habitat for wildlife. Rick says, "What we need to do is to get our habitats in the most robust condition we can - because there will be a tipping point, and the…

At 9,000 feet in the Manzano Range in New Mexico, HawkWatch International counts and bands raptors making their way south along the Rocky Mountain front. Some, like this Swainson's Hawk, fly all the way to the pampas of Argentina.

Ray and Gretchen Hendrickson made homes last spring for swallows in their garage in Leavenworth, Washington. When the birds had picked out a hole, they took a coffee can and tin snips, and cut down an inch around the top so they could bend the little flanges out. They tacked the can behind…

Ray and Gretchen Hendrickson made homes last spring for swallows in their garage in Leavenworth, Washington. When the birds had picked out a hole, they took a coffee can and tin snips, and cut down an inch around the top so they could bend the little flanges out. They tacked the can behind…

August 2010 - We share the concern of all who listen to BirdNote for the well-being of the birds that are affected - and are yet to be affected - by the oil spill in the Gulf. Birds such as the Brown Pelican, Snowy Plover, Sandwich Tern, Seaside Sparrow, American Oystercatcher, Willet…

After sunset, the American Robin sings faster and more elaborate versions of his daytime songs. Some birds have more than 100 songs! They time their singing to the intensity of light as well as to the time of sunset. When dark clouds roll in, they get rolling earlier. Males sing mainly to…

We're born with a sense of wonder. As infants, we delight in many things. We're naturally curious. But inevitably the trials of life intervene... To bring some balance into your life, go outside early some morning. Be still ... and listen to the birds. What do you hear? Find your local…

Kent Woodruff is a wildlife biologist with the USFWS in Washington's Upper Methow Valley. He spearheaded the effort, which included The Trust for Public Land, to conserve a colony of rare Townsend's big-eared bats. An old cabin (left) that the bats had used for a nursery was relocated…

Kent Woodruff is a wildlife biologist with the USFWS in Washington's Upper Methow Valley. He spearheaded the effort, which included The Trust for Public Land, to conserve a colony of rare Townsend's big-eared bats. An old cabin (left) that the bats had used for a nursery was relocated…

A White-throated Swift twists and turns, sailing through the air on black, scimitar-shaped wings that span 15 inches. Dashing headlong toward an unyielding wall, the bird disappears at the last second into a slender crevice. The White-throated Swift is aptly named. Flying at tremendous…