A Three-pronged Attack

Two days ago, just after noon, a blue jay began to shriek from a treeline behind our Littleton house.  He was soon joined by three other jay...

Stressed Swallows

The recent chilly, damp weather in Colorado has curbed the activity of flying insects and has stressed those birds that feed on them.  Swall...

Noisy Intruders

By late April, some songbirds, such as robins and mourning doves, are already nesting.  Their parental activity will soon be mimicked by sum...

Squirrel Siesta

On the south side of our Littleton farmhouse is a large catalpa tree, its massive branches extending in all directions.  Every day, just aft...

A Short Carefree Life

Walking to the University yesterday morning, I came across a young American toad, smashed on the pavement of our street.  Conceived during a...

The Eastern Snowy Owl Invasion

Snowy owls breed in the Arctic, where they feed primarily on lemmings.  Since the lemming population tends to crash every four years or so, ...

Sail Fishing

Yesterday afternoon, as northeast winds raked Sarasota Bay, I watched as several species of birds used the same fishing technique.  Ospreys,...

Magpie Mafia

On my last day in Colorado, as Arctic air enveloped the Front Range and snow began to coat our Littleton farm, a flock of black-billed magpi...

Reunion Pond

Yesterday morning, glorious November weather coaxed me down to South Platte Park, in Littleton, Colorado.  There I encountered almost every ...

Communal Bird Roosts

Last evening, waves of starlings passed over our yard in Columbia, Missouri, moving toward a roost site somewhere northwest of our neighborh...

Gulls vs. Humans

An article on the ESPN website today reports that the San Francisco Giants and their fans have been dealing with gull invasions since the ne...

The Global Egret

Cattle egrets evolved on the vast savannas of East Africa where they followed herds of elephants, water buffalo and other herbivores, feasti...

Midwestern Mimics

In spring, when birdsong is most intense, even non-birders take note of the varied tunes offered by our mimic thrushes.  Composed of short, ...

Avian Drones

Driving back to spring, we left the wintery landscape of northeastern Ohio and headed WSW across the Glaciated Plain of the American Midwest...

Snow-stressed Snow Geese

Heading west this morning, I saw numerous flocks of snow geese between Columbia, Missouri, and Lawrence, Kansas; most were not heading north...

Feeder Magnetism

During periods of heavy snow, as has occurred in Columbia this week, backyard feeders are especially effective at attracting a wide variety ...

Coyotes on the Farm

Over the past year, coyotes have successfully extirpated the red fox from our Littleton, Colorado, farm and are now using their abandoned de...

Nature's Hoarders

As the days shorten and we move toward the harsh, lean season of winter, wild creatures adapt in a variety of ways.  True hibernators, inclu...

House Wren Mystery

Having spent a great deal of time in central Missouri over the past 15 years, I have become accustomed to the arrival of house wrens in late...

Rock Squirrels on the Piedmont

Rock squirrels have long been common residents of canyons throughout central and western Colorado and of the varied rock formations that ris...