Found in much of Central America, White-throated Magpie-Jay flocks are family groups led by a dominant female. They include a mate and several female offspring that bring food to the primary female and her young. It’s an example of cooperative breeding, when birds other than the parents…

Most bird species in North America mate for a single breeding season. Some may team up again the following year, just because both stay in - or return to - the same territory. Fewer than one-fifth of Song Sparrow pairs are reunited. Hawks, eagles, and ravens have wide territories, thus few…

Over the course of four days in February, the Great Backyard Bird Count gathers heaps of info about birds all over the world — and helps people connect with their local birds. Anyone can participate with the Merlin Bird ID app. And if you’re familiar with your neighborhood birds, you can…

Organized by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Project NestWatch is made up of volunteers around the world who monitor bird nests, reporting whether the birds successfully raise their young. Joining the project involves a bit of online training, finding a nearby bird nest, and briefly…

You’ve probably heard the old saying: “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” Well, it’s a very old saying, and it’s gone through some changes over the years. In each era, the pragmatic wisdom is clear: Hold on to the sure thing rather than taking a gamble on something better. The…

Birds have a highly efficient breathing anatomy that powers the exertion of flight. It is driven by large, thin-walled air sacs located throughout the body cavity that operate like bellows. This parabronchial system for extracting oxygen from the air has a far greater surface area than the…

In parts of the United States, House Finches overlap with similar-looking Purple Finches. Their distinct songs help us sort them out. House Finch songs are jumbled and have a sharp, buzzy note — especially during the breeding season. Purple Finches’ songs, on the other hand, are smoother…

No human dreams of relaxing on the shores of Novaya Zemlya, an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean that’s best known as a Soviet testing site for nuclear weapons. Yet a growing flock of Pink-footed Geese have begun to make this militarized zone their summer home. Though this region was once…

Birds’ four-chambered hearts run larger than those of mammals, relative to body size, and they are coupled with extremely efficient cardiovascular systems. The energy demands of flight require these adaptations. An exercising human has a heart rate around 150 beats per minute. In contrast…

We've all heard that the early bird gets the worm. But research shows that birds dining early and heavily may lower their life expectancy. Socially dominant birds stay lean (and agile at avoiding predators) during the day, and then stoke up later, before a cold night. Subordinate birds…