For most birds, wings are for flying. But for Rock Pigeons, they’re also for clapping. When the pigeons erupt into flight, some may slap their wings together above their bodies in a “wing clap.” A male Rock Pigeon will also do this when courting. Short-eared Owls have evolved wing-clapping…

In North America, the European Starling has gained a bad reputation for competing with native bird species for nest cavities. But researchers in Ontario, Canada, were surprised to see three Hairy Woodpecker nestlings receiving care from both a female Hairy Woodpecker and a European…

Knowing when to hunker down and when to move on is a matter of survival for the Red-headed Woodpecker. This noisy bird spends its summers taking insects from the sky in flashy, acrobatic flight. But prey is harder to find in winter, and in most years the woodpeckers move south. A bumper…

A stiff December breeze blowing down the Columbia River delivers an exhilarating chill. A stretch of river near Bridgeport, in north-central Washington, is held tightly by a series of dams, creating massive lakes. High on an overlook, a Bald Eagle watches a flock of birds – coots, ducks…

Songbirds delight us with their music, but at times they might sound repetitive. That’s because songbirds have to practice their singing to keep performing at their best. Researchers studying Zebra Finches found that females preferred the songs of males that had been practicing…

Hummingbirds such as this Buff-tailed Sicklebill specialize in nectar feeding. But other species of birds, less specialized to nectar, also visit flowers for a taste of the sweet stuff. The flowers they visit likely have a more open shape, with nectar more accessible to a non-specialist’s…

The Scaly-breasted Wren lives in Central and South America, and has a lengthy song of whistled notes separated by pauses. By analyzing song recordings, researchers found that Scaly-breasted Wrens can precisely measure out pauses — even as they increase to several seconds. The findings…

In the boreal forest, winter temperatures routinely drop to 30 degrees below zero. Birds that spend the winter in this harsh domain rely on remarkable adaptations to survive. The Spruce Grouse is one such bird. Most Spruce Grouse remain here all year. In the snow-free summer, they forage…

On the north Atlantic coast, a slate-gray sandpiper picks among the barnacles and mussels that encrust a jetty’s massive boulders. At the same moment, a parallel scene unfolds on the north Pacific Coast. A slate-colored sandpiper emerges from the salt spray to forage over a windswept jetty…

Great Horned Owls have a lot to say! When a pair of Great Horned Owls calls in a duet, the female usually hoots first, and the male replies at a lower pitch. Great Horned Owls may also pierce the darkness with an eerie shriek, which may signal a hungry owlet begging for food or a female…