Audubon MagazineMay-June 2013

Hummingbirds at Home

Turn Your Yard Into A Hummingbird Spectacular

Make smart plant choices and, with a little bit of work, your backyard can host these tiny miracles (and help scientists save them).

Quail Use Camouflage to Protect Their Eggs

The art of strategic egg-laying.

Catching Fireflies on Camera

By Julie Leibach
June 10, 2013 — A photographer immerses himself in one of nature's most dazzling light shows.

Audubon Priority Bird: Roseate Spoonbill

By By The Audubon Editors
June 10, 2013 — The unmistakable "flame bird" is one of North America's most unusual looking waders.
Books

Remarkably Curious and Intelligent, Crows and Ravens Deserve a Closer Look

By John Marzluff and Tony Angell
June 04, 2013 — A new book offers a close look at the lives of these wonderfully smart, charismatic birds.
Conservation

Night Lights May Affect Urban Birds

By Daisy Yuhas
June 03, 2013 — Birds exposed to artificial light in cities get an early start to mating season.

A Comeback for the Passenger Pigeon?

By Brandon Keim
May 30, 2013 — A new project aims bring a famous bird back from extinction.

What Makes Bird Vision So Cool

By Tim Birkhead
May 30, 2013 — They use their right and left eyes differently. Some may sleep on the wing. They may even be able to see the earth's magnetic field. Welcome to the amazing world of bird vision.

Volunteers Tap Trees for Climate Clues

By Emma Bryce
May 28, 2013 — A project to collect core samples from trees could shed light on the effects of global warming.
Climate Solutions

Sea Urchins Illuminate How to Trap Carbon Dioxide

By Brianna Elliott
May 23, 2013 — A marine creature shows researchers a new way to capture a potent greenhouse gas.

A Boost for Long Island Sound

By Jesse Greenspan
May 20, 2013 — Investment in green infrastructure proves to be a boon for the waterway.

Drones Help Track Nests

By Justine E. Hausheer
May 20, 2013 — Researchers use robots to survey and conserve breeding water birds.

Dung Beetles Navigate by the Stars

By Michele Berger
May 17, 2013 — The Milky Way guides intrepid insects.

The Healing Power of Birds

By Emma Bryce
May 16, 2013 — A Toyota TogetherGreen fellow uses stuffed animals and birdfeeders to treat people with dementia.

Young Guatemalans Take On Citizen Science

By Michele Berger
May 14, 2013 — Student scientists track birds in mountainous cloudforests of Central America.
International Travel

The Falkland Islands: A Birder’s Grail Destination

By Scott Weidensaul
May 08, 2013 — The otherworldly, windswept Falklands are home to such a vast and diverse array of wildlife—including five species of penguins—that the archipelago has become a grail destination for adventurous birders and nature lovers.

Roseate Spoonbills Send Warning Signs About the Florida Everglades

By Rene Ebersole
May 03, 2013 — Decades after they staged a major comeback from plume hunting, one of the world's most bizarre and beautiful birds is struggling in South Florida. Does this spell trouble for the entire Everglades ecosystem?

Fight Club: A Ragtag Crew Races to Save Disappearing Trees

By Brian Kevin
April 17, 2013 — Backcountry activists in the Mountain West defend the whitebark pine against climate change and beetle attacks.

Other Issues