The Best Singing Cockatiel Ever?
She’s got it all: Hits all the notes right on, perfect timing, all the cadences – and notice how she rounds out the end of the…
Did Hitchcock Have It Right about Birds?
Are the birds out to get us? When movie director Alfred Hitchcock decided to scare us all to death with seagulls and crows in his movie…
Birds Tweeting about Death
Do birds of a feather hold their own version of a funeral service? Or when scrub-jays gather round one of their own who has died, with…
Let’s Share Some Spaghetti!
“Counter-walking cats,” you write, “should be kept out of the kitchen during preparation and during dinner when the extra food is just sitting there.” A reader of your column just sent us this video of Mackinaw Queenie and Kenzie in the kitchen:
Why Do Chickens Like Music? Why Does Anyone?
Music is found in every human culture. But we humans are not the only animals to enjoy a melodic hook. In the spring, I wake up every morning to the songs of birds outside my bedroom window. Mammals also sing.
You’d Feel Chirpy, Too!
Birds’ smoothing each other’s plumage was mostly thought to be simply part of their bathing routine. But we’ve now learned that, like other animals, they do it to relax – just like a massage, and often after a busy bout of foraging for food.
The Birds Are Watching!
Movie director Alfred Hitchcock may have had it right: The birds are watching us. Crows, in particular, keep watch on you if they think you’re out to get them or their family. And they never forget your face.
Defying Conventional Wisdom at 60
Wisdom, the albatross, is the oldest wild bird documented in North America. Wisdom has probably raised at least 30 to 35 chicks during her life.
Wooing Your Mate with a Chain Saw
The lyrebird can impersonate any other bird on the planet, interspersed with human voices, a jack-hammer and the tooting of car horns – all to say “I love you!”
Shakespeare and the Aflockalypse
We now know what really happened in at least one of the recent mystery bird deaths. They were killed by our government. The whole story begins with something Shakespeare wrote in Henry IV and that his fans in New York City did more than a century ago
Has the Aflockalypse Begun?
There are lots of theories about why birds have been falling out of the sky. But while it’s surely sad for the birds, what’s happening is small potatoes compared to what else is happening to animals around the nation and beyond
Caught in the Custody Crossfire
Did Norton the parrot belong with the family he now lived with? Or with the neighbors who had given him away but now wanted him back? Companion animal custody cases are becoming more common. Check out the judge’s ruling in this one, and tell us if you agree.
Creating Your Own Wildlife Preserve
Arizona resident replaces water-thirsty lawn with native plants. She saves water and money, and soon birds and other welcome wildlife are gracing her backyard. “It’s a riot of color in spring when everything is blooming,” she says
This Week in Green – Nov. 12, 2010
What do sunburned whales, deformed beaks, rice, chocolate and beer have in common? They’re all in the environmental news this week. Rice may be the highlight, with strategies in the offing to help combat both hunger and poverty
To the Moon and Back – Twice!
This Arctic tern was first identified 30 years ago. Since then, she’s being flying pole-to-pole migrations every year. That’s roughly a million miles. And she rears her young, feeds and educates them. That’s quite a mom!
Rescued Birds Get Warm Sweaters
Sunny the chicken had lost most of her feathers when she was rescued and rehomed from a factory farm in England. So Amy Leader, who runs…
How Not to Help a Hawk
Let’s leave rehab to the professionals By Liz Stelow, D.V.M. “There’s a woman named Judy here with a red-tailed hawk,” our receptionist told me. I thanked…
Living at Peace with Pigeons
How pigeon lofts are good news for birds – and also for cities By Marleen Drijgers. (Photos by Regina Jockwer) (Editor’s Note: In her previous post,…
A True Aussie Love Story
An injured cockatoo finds a new home and true love By Robyne Le Brocque About eight years ago, a wild Australian Sulphur Crested cockatoo flew into…