For many people the world over, spring migration with the return of our summer songsters is an exciting time of year. The first swallow or cuckoo heralds in the summer and floods our thoughts with summer haze and the smell of wildflowers. When I lived in Ireland March was typically cold and wet and summer […]
Bird Watchers All Atwitter Over Rare Bird In Lewis County
For two days, serious bird watchers have been flocking to southern Lewis County. They’re there to see a male Gray-crowned Rosy finch. The bird is way out of his element. Native to the western U.S. and Canada, the bird is rarely seen there, let alone here, in the Northeast. In fact, this is only its […]
Colour Blending
The Green Ringtail Possum (Pseudocheirus archeri) is one of the several rare and endemic species found only in northern Australia tropical rainforests. With an unusual green tinge, this is the result of black, yellow and white hairs in its fur. With this excellent camouflage this animal can be observed at all levels of rainforest by […]
Legendary Birdwatcher – Fair Isle’s Jimmy Stout 101 Years Old Today
A strange call comes from a flushed Pipit as 14 year old Jimmy walks across the croftlands. The inquisitive young man follows the bird and sees unusual white markings. Later the boy recounts his observation of white mantle stripes and the swooping movement in flight to his father George (Fieldy) Stout and house guest, the […]
Sometimes the birds come to you: Snowy Owl
On a recent Wednesday morning, one of our graduate students came into my office with a quizzical look on his face, seeking my professional opinion on his sanity. Though I am not a psychiatrist, I do know something about birds and he suspected that the Snowy Owl he had just hallucinated flying through campus might […]
Black grouse numbers on the rise in Scotland
The number of black grouse in Scotland has risen, according to new figures. Surveys of traditional ‘lek’ sites across black grouse strongholds of Dumfries and Galloway, Deeside and Speyside, revealed a rise in numbers on the previous year – an encouraging sign for this scarce bird which is red listed as a species of high […]
Shell Sues Oceana, Others Over Arctic Drilling
You’ve probably heard that Shell is planning to drill in Arctic waters. But now the plot thickens: In a bizarre move, Shell has decided to preemptively sue a group of environmental groups, including Oceana, to attempt to silence our voices and remove our right to challenge their spill response plan. Naturally environmentalists have been fighting […]
Raptor Island – Mull and its Superstars
I used to hear about Mull growing up, with its many eagles and its huge range of wildlife. Seeing documentaries on TV along with hearing things like ‘Europe’s premier wildlife location’ and ‘best place to see birds of prey in the UK’ encouraged me to go for the first time in spring 2009 with my […]