By Anisha Pokharel, Conservation Science Trainee, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Pennsylvania. I sing a song Of the Blue Mountains that stand with pride Of the cool breeze that passes by And the magnificent raptors that fly by. I sing the song of turkey vulture That loves dancing up and down, back and fro, Tickling my inner desire to… Read more »
Like a huge number of tourism authorities, tour companies, optics makers, and charities, the British Bird Fair is my opportunity to get feedback from birders in the UK and, in fact, all over the world. Our “Birding For All” stand is all about the charity I set up to encourage service providers to look… Read more »
They stomp their feet like a child having a tantrum. They flare long “ear” plumes (pinnae feathers) into an impressive double erection like jackrabbit ears, and bend over to stick their tail feathers straight up in the air to moon anyone nearby. Most impressively, they inflate apricot-colored air sacs on the sides of their neck… Read more »
I don’t think I am old, but when I realize that my parents were born before the passenger pigeon was extinct, that my grandparents were born when bison filled the plains and that there were Eskimo curlews and, probably, ivory-billed woodpeckers inhabiting the planet with me at one time, I start to feel old. As… Read more »
This story, by regular Out There With The Birds Contributor Jen Hajj, originally appeared in the July/August 2013 issue of Bird Watcher’s Digest. Imagine a brisk September morning in the 1930s. Hunters gather at the gate to Hawk Mountain, a site in rural Pennsylvania known for the thousands of hawks that pass during their annual… Read more »
If you’re like me, certain of the more vocal local birds, those with individually distinctive songs, gain nicknames as the breeding season unfolds. The song sparrow that sings outside my bedroom window in the morning has come to be called Chicken Legs, due to the fact that its melody reminds me of one W.C. Fields… Read more »
I follow whooping cranes. Not literally, although some people do. In fall 2001, when Operation Migration started using ultra light aircraft to lead juvenile whooping cranes from the International Crane Foundation breeding site in Wisconsin to St. Mark’s National Wildlife Refuge in Florida, their original route took them right over my rooftop. (Again, not literally,… Read more »
It’s early September. I’m not ready to face the fade of summer. But the birds tell me that the season has already turned, and that I’d better accept the facts and get out there if I’m going to catch a last glimpse of their southbound undertail coverts. I’ve already seen migrating royal terns and red… Read more »
By Clay Taylor When the folks at Bird Watcher’s Digest collaborated with Swarovski Optik to supply the top prize for their 2014 Birder of the Year contest, picking the prize-winner’s birding trip was a no-brainer: Costa Rica! Winner Lyn Stallings and husband John Rumm of Cody, Wyoming, were thrilled to be taking their first birding… Read more »
Nestled in the Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio, approximately 75 miles east of Columbus, are nearly 10,000 acres of reclaimed surface mine habitat unlike any other area in the state. One of the world’s largest conservation centers has been located here since 1984. Birders know The Wilds as a phenomenal area to watch birds, especially… Read more »
