Field Notes

Photographer Gregg Thompson captured a quick succession of images of a Great Blue Heron striking - and then swallowing - an unlucky fish. Herons have modified vertebrae, which allow them to hold their necks in an "S" shape and recoil quickly to capture fast-moving prey. Besides fish, a Great Blue... read more »

Gyrfalcons - the largest falcons in the world - are amazingly powerful hunters. Body design and muscle allow these athletic birds to soar, stall and stoop with speeds up to 130 mph. They dine mostly on birds but will grab mammals for a meal - squirrels, lemmings, even a rabbit. On a lucky day... read more »

Environmental Education ProgrammingEach year, BirdNote Next Generation awards grants to three or four environmental education programs to incorporate BirdNote media into their curricula. BirdNote also contracts with three or four media producers each year to create new media about, by, and for... read more »

Photographer Gregg Thompson watched a Horned Grebe catch — and eat — a Bay Pipefish at the Edmonds Marina on Puget Sound in Washington State.Wondering how this bird got the descriptor "Horned"? Check out its breeding plumage!Gregg writes: "Bay Pipefish are family relatives of seahorses. The males... read more »