I often get asked, “what’s your favorite bird?” I don’t have one. They are all fascinating, from the common European Starling to the rare Kagu. Some have striking coloration, others display complex or bizarre behaviors, and some are just impressive for their size. Some are ugly. But they are all cool. Another question, though, is […]
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From Middle English starling, sterling, sterlinge, from Old English starlinc, stærlinc (“starling”), from stær (“starling”) + -linc, -ling (diminutive suffix). Cognate with Middle Dutch sterlinck (“starling”). The European Starling’s scientific name is Sturnus vulgaris, which some think is very appropriate. Maybe the name is not fascinating, but the bird is. The European Starling was
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One of the more common birds around households in the west, the “phoebe”, pronounced “fee-bee”, comes from the high pitched short, thin whistled call of this bird (listen). In Greek mythology, Phoebe is the “moon goddess”, but I doubt if that had anything to do with the bird’s naming. Black and white, it is usually seen
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Although we don’t use carrier pigeons to send messages anymore, they were once used extensively. With a short rolled up message inserted into a little tube attached to their leg a pigeon could deliver a message by simply returning “home”, wherever that might be. The system wasn’t perfect as birds occasionally got lost or taken
Thomas Nuttall was an English naturalist who spent many years in the U.S. collecting specimens; this woodpecker was named after him by William Gambel (after which a quail is named.) The Nuttall’s Woodpecker is small , a little more than seven inches long. Like most woodpeckers, it is mostly black and white; it has a
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The word “gull” originally came from the Welsh, meaning “cry or mew.” In the 16th century it came to mean one who is gullible or easily swallows a story, deriving perhaps from “gullet.” There are about 45 species of gulls around the world, all called gulls except for two kittiwakes. Although seen all over the
The Evening Grosbeak is an attractive yellow and black heavy-billed finch with a white wing patch most obvious in flight. The scientific name, Hesperiphona vespertinus, means “sound of the evening,” although the idea that they are mainly crepuscular is mistaken. They were apparently first named by French explorers who probably first observed them in the twilight
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This and every end of year holiday season we see lots of references to birds. Christmas cards are full of birds, especially Northern Cardinals. No other bird seems to symbolize Christmas. You see it on greeting cards, note paper, figurines, clothing, tree ornaments, and other decorations. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology reported last year that
Our national symbol and the first bird on a U.S. stamp, the Bald Eagle is an icon for the success of the Endangered Species Act. Once decimated by DDT, it has recovered and was removed from the endangered list in 2007. In 1963 there were only 400 nesting pairs in the lower 48 states; today
The Killdeer gets its name because someone thought the screeching sound the bird makes when it takes off sounded like “kill-deer, kill-deer.” I don’t , but I’m too late to rename the bird. The Killdeer’s scientific name is Charadrius vociferous, the last part referring to its call. (I’ll get to Charadrius later.) The Killdeer is
