In temperate climates like North America, it’s often male songbirds that sing the most. Typically the males migrate north before females and establish territories for the short breeding season, using their songs as a way to claim a spot. But many female birds do sing, even in colder…

While many birds have hollow bones that make flying a breeze, diving birds are built differently. The bones of divers such as Common Loons are denser than those of songbirds and other expert fliers. With a lightweight skeleton, they’d be too buoyant to dive and chase fish. Instead, loons…

The call of the Common Loon is a symbol of the far north. But the species once nested as far south as southern New England, Ohio, Iowa, and California. Human activity and changes to the landscape in these more populated areas has made it harder for loons to persist. There have been…

Like an expert angler, a tern can read the surface of the water to find where to catch its next fish. Scientists piloted a drone to track the flight paths of terns on the hunt. The terns sought out turbulent water. A vortex formed by colliding currents traps fish near the surface, where…

The songs of two common finches provide a steady soundtrack in cities across North America: the House Finch and the American Goldfinch. While they can sound similar, a couple of key features help set them apart. House Finches sing sweetly but often have a sharp, buzzy note near the end…

For folks looking to try birding for the first time, getting started can be daunting. Should you learn every species’ call, every subtle feather pattern before you head out to look for birds? While it’s good to prepare, there’s a risk of scaring yourself out of starting, and preventing the…

Sandhill Crane families form a close bond. A pair of adults might travel north with their young from the previous summer, along with grown-up offspring from several years ago. After the breeding season, families will stick together for the journey south and the winter, even in large flocks…

Sometimes, a species’ song changes over the course of a few decades. But a bird that lives in the mountains of eastern Africa, the Forest Double-collared Sunbird, appears to have kept the same song for at least 500,000 years. That’s the amount of time that two populations of the species…

Ray Young Bear is a writer, musician and a member of Meskwaki Nation. He considers himself a word collector, writing poetry in both English and Meskwaki, his first language. And he enjoys taking photos of the birds around his home in Iowa. In the spring of 2021, he was spending time with…

In spring and summer, Yellow Warblers sing from treetops to stream sides. While their beauty and songs commonly light up our most vibrant months, they face imminent challenges. Yellow Warbler populations have adapted genetically to their local climates. That makes them vulnerable to…