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A colorful, iridescent pigeon preens its mate, standing on a wood railing with a black background.
What Birding Can Teach Us About Living
July 18, 2025 — After an inspiring pigeon encounter with her son, a mother discovered a new appreciation for birds and the everyday wonders around us.
A camouflaged whip-poor-will sits on the ground among brown and green leaves.
As the Whip-poor-will’s Chant Wanes, Our Cultural Loss Grows
May 06, 2024 — The iconic call of the Eastern Whip-poor-will has long been part of the fabric of American life, marking annual spring rituals and inspiring odes in popular music. What happens when we lose our connection with its meaning?
A woman and young girl in raincoats stand outside smiling at the camera.
Everyone Should Have a Mother's Day Birding Tradition Like This
January 30, 2023 — Mother, daughter, and granddaughter take joy in learning the spring migrant birds who show up to their annual May ritual.
An illustration of a woman and young girl crouching down looking at something in a driveway next to a house.
The Day We Didn’t Save the Starling
November 02, 2022 — In our rescue attempt, I thought I was giving my young daughters a lesson in compassion. It ended up being the reminder that I needed.
When a Battle Against an Invasive Weed Feels Like a Battle for Your Spirit
March 22, 2022 — I was feeling discouraged in life, when I began volunteering at a local park. That’s when the project’s leader, Eleanor Osgood, changed my outlook.
The Klamath Basin’s Water Crisis Is a Growing Disaster for Waterfowl
March 11, 2022 — Some of the continent’s most important wetland habitat is drying up. Without urgent action, we may be witnessing the death of a flyway.
How a Land Acknowledgment Can Correct Stereotypes of American History
November 18, 2021 — Here’s how to properly recognize Indigenous people and the land we’ve stewarded for millennia.
What a Songbird Lost at Sea Taught Me About Survival
March 24, 2021 — Aboard a mission to explore the alien life of the deep ocean, a chance encounter with a migratory bird offered a point of connection—one that has felt poignant this past year.  
The Wild Blue Turkey That Blew My Mind
November 26, 2019 — Appreciating the avian diversity that’s there to astound us—if only we look.
Bird Feathers and Colors