Tag Archives: birds
sad albatross news
Just five days after I wrote about that very old Laysan albatross mother, this sad news from Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, where she was raising her chicks: the tsunami swept tens of thousands of chicks into the water. (I … Continue reading
very old mother
I love this news item from the U.S. Geological Survey: The Oldest Bird in the Northern Hemisphere Raises a Chick. She’s a Laysan albatross, she’s at least 60 years old, and she’s been sighted with a chick. They know her … Continue reading
museum tourist: beinecke rare book & manuscript library
The last time I was in New Haven, I heard that one must see the Beinecke library on campus at Yale. I didn’t get around to it. So I rectified that situation this week. It doesn’t look like much from … Continue reading
hawks are supposed to be outdoors
How cool is this? A Cooper’s Hawk is hanging around the Main Reading Room at the Library of Congress. They first spotted it on Thursday and it was still there as of this blog post Friday. Actually, the Thursday blog … Continue reading
bluebirds like to perch
I don’t know a ton about birds, but I do know this: Bluebirds like to perch on posts. If you see something cute and feathered perching on a fencepost in an open piece of land, “bluebird” should at least cross … Continue reading
birds have lice, too
A new study finds that bird lice have evolved cryptic coloration. (What you or I might call camouflage.) Read my tiny story about it here. Sulfur-crested cockatoos are awesome. This is my favorite fact about a trip I took to … Continue reading
park tourist: patuxent river park
Today I went on an outing of the D.C. Science Writers Association to Patuxent River Park – a local park along the Patuxent River, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay. We got a little archaeology tour and a boat trip. … Continue reading
birds don’t like rain
You’d think rainforest birds would be ok with rain – and you’d be right, to a point. But when the rain really comes down hard, the birds stop flying around. Today I wrote a story for ScienceNOW about a study … Continue reading
plants are awesome
Yesterday for ScienceNOW I wrote about tobacco plants that open their flowers at a different time of day if they’re getting eaten by caterpillars. (My story.) It’s kind of ingenious, if these scientists are right about it. Hawkmoths are good … Continue reading
little poopers
Scientists at the British Antarctic Survey have a clever new way to find emperor penguins around Antarctica: look for their poop. From space. Read all about it! Note that I did manage to quote the guy calling poop “poo.”