BirdNote Daily

To celebrate the season, Nancy Rumbel, who composed and played the BirdNote theme music, performs "Carol of the Birds." This version was arranged by Nancy herself, with the accompaniment of Pine Sisk…

A stiff December breeze blowing down the Columbia River delivers an exhilarating chill. A stretch of river near Bridgeport, in north-central Washington, is held tightly by a series of dams, creating …

Songbirds delight us with their music, but at times they might sound repetitive. That’s because songbirds have to practice their singing to keep performing at their best. Researchers studying Zebra F…

The Northern Shrike breeds in the tundra and taiga of the north, but migrates south into the lower 48 for the winter. It has a pleasing and rhythmical song, which it sings even in winter. But its son…

Holiday cards often feature gorgeous red cardinals against a snowy landscape. So it’s easy to assume the birds have always been a colorful presence in bleak Northern winters. But cardinals used to be…

Hummingbirds such as this Buff-tailed Sicklebill specialize in nectar feeding. But other species of birds, less specialized to nectar, also visit flowers for a taste of the sweet stuff. The flowers t…

The Scaly-breasted Wren lives in Central and South America, and has a lengthy song of whistled notes separated by pauses. By analyzing song recordings, researchers found that Scaly-breasted Wrens can…

Boreal Chickadees live in the boreal forest year-round. How do they survive the harsh winter? First, during summer, they cache a great deal of food, both insects and seeds. Then in fall, they put on …

In the boreal forest, winter temperatures routinely drop to 30 degrees below zero. Birds that spend the winter in this harsh domain rely on remarkable adaptations to survive. The Spruce Grouse is one…

You may have heard that feeding birds makes them dependent on humans for food, but it’s just not true. Even if you see your local birds ravenously eating at your feeder, those same birds are also fin…

On the north Atlantic coast, a slate-gray sandpiper picks among the barnacles and mussels that encrust a jetty’s massive boulders. At the same moment, a parallel scene unfolds on the north Pacific Co…

It's morning on the island of New Guinea, and the lowland forests erupt with the crowing calls of Birds-of-Paradise. Male Raggiana Birds-of-Paradise perform elaborate displays to attract females, som…

Along the coast of Sinaloa in México, there are species of shorebirds with one of the longest migrations in the Western Hemisphere. One such species is the Western Sandpiper, here known as el playeri…

Birds are resourceful. Wherever they live, even in the biggest cities, they find clever places to build their nests. An initiative from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology called Celebrate Urban Birds onc…

Avian flu has been in news headlines all of 2024. And many people are concerned for birds, other animals, and humans. Dr. Wendy Puryear, a molecular virologist, says scientists are working together w…

Great Horned Owls have a lot to say! When a pair of Great Horned Owls calls in a duet, the female usually hoots first, and the male replies at a lower pitch. Great Horned Owls may also pierce the dar…

If you’re a new birder and find yourself feeling confused by lookalike birds, don’t be too hard on yourself. Some bird species look almost identical, and some of the most advanced birders get stumped…

The Northern Mockingbird isn’t the only mimic bird in town. Brown Thrashers also learn songs from nearby birds and add them to their repertoire. The species has been documented singing more than 1,10…

Screech-owls are opportunistic diners. In the Pacific Northwest, they’ll prey on small birds, crayfish, large ants, or earthworms. In Arizona, pocket mice and pack rats. And in Ohio, biologists who n…

In this episode of BirdNoir, Michael Stein — Private Eye — gets a call from a friend, Danny, who wants to know why the bluest bird he’s ever seen has vanished. But there are many birds that are blue …