Mark Borden of Whidbey Island has invited Violet-green and Tree Swallows to nest in his fence. Why? Originally, it was to control the insects on his horse farm. He once watched as a horse fly flew across the pasture. In came a Tree Swallow, and phwapp! It grabbed that fly! So he built a…

High on the north face of Mauna Kea, a volcanic mountain on Hawaii's Big Island, work is under way to save one of the island's most endangered birds, the Palila. Most Palila live on the west face of Mauna Kea. Palila bred in captivity were released on the north face, to join Palila moved…

Two hundred years ago, on an African expedition, the French ornithologist Jules Verreaux noticed that turacos - perhaps one like the Lady Ross's Turaco seen here - had a hard time flying when they were wet. So the young explorer grabbed one of the wet, grounded birds by the wing, only to…

Because many birds are largely silent in winter, it may seem that they have left us. But many remain, and even the shy and secretive sometimes reveal themselves. A Winter Wren may dart from hiding to grab a meal. The Winter Wren of the East and the Pacific Wren of the West are tiny…

The Yellow Sea coast of the Korean peninsula is one of the few places where this Spoon-billed Sandpiper can still be found. BirdNote’s Adam Sedgley joined Gerrit Vyn, Cornell Lab of Ornithology multimedia producer, to photograph and record these critically endangered shorebirds. They found…

BirdNote writer Todd Peterson reflects on his friend, a hunter, from Nebraska. Todd’s friend, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, has lost the urge to hunt. He sits in the duck blind, but he does not shoot . . .

Forest fires have profound effects on birds and other wildlife — for better or worse. Birds such as this Black-backed Woodpecker find a bonanza of insects under burned bark and ample snags in which to carve out nest holes. Woodpecker cavities are often reused by birds like bluebirds. And…

In the mid-20th Century, Dutch scientist Niko Tinbergen studied nesting Herring Gulls. He noticed that newly hatched chicks were fed by their parents only after they pecked at the adults' bills. Tinbergen devised experiments that varied the shape and coloration of the adult's bill. It…

Why is birdwatching so rewarding? Bird guide, Harry Fuller, says it's about three things: It's free. You can do it wherever you are. And it's fun! Once you start watching, you really appreciate the beauty, the complexity, and the wonder of what's going on in the world around you. Like…

Shorebirds such as these Pacific Golden-Plovers have a built-in map and a built-in compass. Many night-flying migrants use star patterns to orient themselves, and the fact that the sun always sets in the west makes it a compass point for a bird about to take off on a night flight. Perhaps…