A while back I wrote a blog about ornithophobia and then I saw a TV episode of Big Bang Theory with Sheldon being afflicted by this fear. A “blue jay” was hanging out on Sheldon’s apartment windowsill, making Sheldon anxious. The bird, however, which eventually flew into their Pasadena apartment, was a Black-throated Magpie-Jay, a bird found only […]
I once thought that the name “sapsucker” was a pejorative appellation laid upon someone or just another version of “seersucker.” The latter is a type of cotton fabric and the former is actually a type of bird. There are four species of sapsuckers in North America: the Williamson’s, Red-breasted and Red-naped Sapsuckers are western species
It has been written that there are 81 million birdwatchers in the United States. Well, if you include every person who looks out his or her window and observes it for a few seconds, then that figure might be accurate. But how many of these folks give birds a good look through a pair of
What Bird is That? Read More »
A couple of years ago there was a Falcated Duck visiting the Colusa Wildlife Refuge in Northern California, way out of its normal range of Russia, China, Mongolia, Japan, and Korea. Of course this got birdwatchers all excited and some came to see the bird from as far away as Florida. Now it’s certainly possible
Birds Out of Boundaries Read More »
The Belted Kingfisher is most often seen flying along or above creeks as it makes its distinctive, raucous, chattering call, ( see here) but it can also be spotted above any body of water as it searches for likely prey. It plunges into the water headfirst to capture fish, its preferred food, but it will
Bird watchers’ hopes in the discovery of a new species of hawk have been shot down after a New Zealand farmer was revealed to be spray painting the birds pinkish-red and releasing them for fun. In a judge’s decision released this week, Grant Michael Teahan was found guilty of two charges of ill-treating an animal after
Seen any crows lately? There are about 40 species of crows, found across the world except, curiously, South America. The four species in North America are the American, Northwestern, Fish, and Tamaulipas Crow, and some small populations of the Eurasian Jackdaw. For many hundreds of years crows and ravens have been a substantial part of
Those Amazing Crows Read More »
Bing Crosby, Al Jolson and many others sang the well-known song “When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbing along”…… . And then there was “Rockin Robin” in the 50’s. You can go here to listen to the birds’ actual song. American mythology holds that American Robins are the first sign of spring; actually,
Harbinger of Spring? Read More »
I was in Warsaw, Poland about ten years ago, just being a tourist. As my wife and I walked through the main square we noticed a lot of commotion and people gathering. We were curious so we stood around for a few minutes to see what was up and all of a sudden a
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
Birds We Like, or Not: Birdism Read More »
