When young hens begin laying at five or six months, their ovaries aren’t fully in synch. So every hundred or so eggs, they release two yolks instead of one. Double-yolk eggs are usually a little bit larger than average, so if you’re looking to get one, try buying the extra-large or jumbo…

In 1559, Duke August of Saxony ordered that the House Sparrows of Dresden be excommunicated. The birds were slipping into Holy Cross Church, where they interrupted the sermon with exuberant chirping and “endless unchaste behavior” before the altar. Now their manic chirping and courtship…

In summer, across much of North America, a sudden flash of orange and black in the treetops usually means one thing: orioles. Baltimore Orioles (like this one) in the East, Bullock’s Orioles in the West, and Hooded Orioles in the Southwest and California. These vividly colored birds return…

The real James Bond was born in Philadelphia in 1900 and worked as a banker after college. But his first love was the natural world. Eventually, he kissed the banking world goodbye and dedicated the rest of his life to exploring and documenting birds and nature.

A Rock Pigeon bobs its head as it walks, making it appear that its head and feet are linked. Pigeons' eyes are on the sides of their heads, permitting them to watch for predators from all directions, but limiting their ability to distinguish distances. To compensate, these birds move their…

It’s more important than ever to map their travels – to learn when birds take flight, where they stop to rest, and what they require for food and shelter along the way. New tools like advanced weather radar, crowdsourcing, and geolocators are helping us learn more about where birds go and…

Formerly known as the Gray Jay — and nicknamed the Camp Robber or Whiskey Jack — the mountain-dwelling Canada Jay seems to crash your picnic even faster than hungry ants. The fluffy, long-tailed jay will escape with any edible bits it can get, which it will store for the long mountain…

Many birds look for islands when they want to find a great nesting site, because islands are often protected from mammalian predators. Some of the best places to find islands are oxbow lakes, like many of the ones protected by the National Wildlife Refuge System.

In Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, thousands of Whiskered Auklets — miniature relatives of puffins and murres — nest in deep rock crevices. The birds owe their name to the white plumes that sprout from their heads each summer. These fancy “whiskers” likely play a role in courtship. But they're…

Sandpipers spend most of their days running back and forth at the edge of the surf. They stick their long bills into the mud, looking for little crabs and critters and sea worms just below the surface.