by Alexandra Forsythe Ask any group of people to list their favorite feeder birds and you’re sure to hear “Northern Cardinal” from most of them. People love this iconic bird with its regal crest and brilliant red plumage, and most people can identify them easily, particularly in the Midwest....
by Alexandra Forsythe The tiny and adorable Winter Wren looks like a tiny brown ball of fluff with a very short tail that usually sticks straight up in the air. It is probably best known for what naturalist John Burroughs described as its “vibrating tongue of silver”. Its beautifully...
by Alexandra Forsythe The month of October brings to mind beautiful autumn leaves, bountiful harvests and plump pumpkins. For me, October also signals the return of my spark bird: the Northern Saw-whet Owl. Just a few years ago, when I first became interested in birds, Fred Wooley, chief naturalist...
by Alexandra Forsythe Despite its size (23” – 33” inches in length with a wingspan of 36”), this member of the heron family can be quite difficult to see. It is a master of camouflage! With the American Bittern’s thick neck and bill, yellow eyes, and stripes of brown,...
by Alexandra Forsythe Looking for a home blessing? Try this one: “Grant to this chimney a swallow.” If you have Chimney Swifts in your chimney, you are indeed blessed! These talented acrobats consume a tremendous number of mosquitoes, flies, flying ants and termites daily. Each Swift will eat a...
by Alexandra Forsythe “To those whose pleasure it is to live in the realm of the Summer Tanager, both he and his less brightly colored, though beautiful, mate form one of the most beautiful features of nature. He is ‘the redbird par excellence’ and in the estimation of many,...
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