In one of the most iconic founding legends of the Americas, a Golden Eagle devouring a serpent atop a cactus marked the spot where the Mexicas would build Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire. Over the centuries, that ancient metropolis transformed into what we now call Mexico City. Though the

Solar panels are a popular source of renewable energy, but large groupings of them — called arrays — can take up a lot of space. Chelse Prather, an ecologist at the University of Dayton, wanted to know how wildlife are using the habitats underneath two arrays in Ohio. The first site was a fixed

In this episode of BirdNoir, the Private Eye gets a call from his friend Frank, his eyes and ears in the neighborhood. He’s hearing a Red-shouldered Hawk call, but there’s no hawk in sight. Going through the lineup of usual suspects found in backyards, they examine the surprising talent for mimicry

El cuevero de Sumichrast ( Hylorchilus sumichrasti) y el cuevero de Nava ( Hylorchilus navai) son dos saltaparedes de plumaje marrón oscuro del sur de México. Ambos viven en selvas tropicales donde los afloramientos de piedra caliza funcionan como un anfiteatro natural para lucir sus habilidades

To out-sip their competition, Sword-billed Hummingbirds have a distinct adaptation: these birds’ beaks are longer than their bodies. Found in temperate forests from Venezuela to Bolivia, these hummingbirds rely entirely on tube-like flowers that other species could never reach. While most birds can

Male birds are often the larger, flashier sex that courts choosy females, who in turn raise their chicks. But not always. Female phalaropes – like this Wilson's Phalarope – challenge each other over territories in which to house a cluster of males half their size. And the males do all the childcare

Connecticut Warblers nest in the northern boreal forests, migrate through the Midwest, and winter in the rainforests of South America. Even with all that traveling, you rarely see one of these birds. Though their loud, ringing song might be easy to identify, it often seems to emanate from low in a

Most baby birds are adorable little floofs — but not all of them. The tongue and palate of estrildid finch chicks are strangely spotted and ringed. They display these markings while they beg for food. Most species’ chicks have mouth markings in colors ranging from black or white to bright yellow

Grammy-winning musician Rickie Lee Jones has performed on stages around the world. At home in New Orleans, she found a new audience: backyard birds! Rickie welcomes wildlife to her yard with feeders and bird baths. She loves watching her feathered friends and learning their calls. You can help

When you go birding, sometimes you’re in the right place at the right time and there are more species than you can count. Other times, not so lucky. Striking out when looking for birds is frustrating. But a bad day of birding can teach you a lot. Try doing some research into the conditions that day