Ornithology Archives

Emperor penguins facing each other across a gap in the ice. Credit: Christopher Michel, CC BY 2.0

Emperor Penguins Now a Threatened Species

January 18, 2023January 17, 2023 Science Connectedanimals, birds, climate change, conservation, extinction, penguins

Emperor penguins officially a threatened species because of projections of population decline from climate change and ineffective conservation.

Researchers find that drumming in woodpeckers is neurologically similar to singing in songbirds. Credit: Attribution withheld at license-holder's request (CC-BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Biology Ornithology

Is Drumming Like Singing? A Focus on Woodpeckers

December 28, 2022December 25, 2022 Science Connectedbirds, birdsong, communication, singing, woodpecker

Woodpeckers may not sing out melodies, but a new study hones in on how their drumming may be similar to birdsong on a neural level.

Citizen Science Ornithology SciStarter Blog

Citizen Science Projects for the Birds

May 9, 2022May 11, 2022 Science Connectedbirds, citizen science projects

These five citizen science projects invite you to discover birds in your area. Help scientists collect data and protect bird habitats.

A female great spotted woodpecker, photographed in Germany, April 2015

Biodiversity and Conservation Ornithology There Be Dragons Everywhere

Drumming with the Great Spotted Woodpecker

May 4, 2022May 4, 2022 Science Connectedbirds, wildlife photography

Meet the great spotted woodpecker. Learn where and how to spot them, and what they sound like. Photos and audio included.

A perching Anna's hummingbird (© Matthew Shain 2014)

Ornithology Zoology

How to Disrupt a Hummingbird’s Hover

January 18, 2022January 18, 2022 Science Connectedbird behavior, birds

A hummingbird’s ability to hover in place can be easily disrupted by tricking the bird’s brain. Our brains can be tricked in a similar way. Watching a hummingbird hover and maneuver can be mesmerizing. Hovering in place, however, isn’t as easy as it might appear, according to new research from University of British Columbia (UBC). UBC has found that a hovering hummingbird needs a completely stationary visual field. Zoologists Benjamin Goller and Douglas Altshuler discovered this quirk in the tiny bird’s hovering skills by offering them sugar water from a…

Ornithology Physics

Structural Coloration in Bird Feathers

June 16, 2021June 16, 2021 Science Connectedbirds

Learn about structural coloration in bird feathers and how humans are learning to use the same technique to make color-changing paint.

Environment Ornithology

Osprey: A Bird of Many Names

April 29, 2021May 3, 2021 Science Connectedbirds, wildlife photography

This bird may be called an osprey, a fish hawk, a river hawk, a sea hawk, or even a fish eagle! Learn more about the osprey.

Blogs Citizen Science Ornithology SciStarter Blog Zoology

Revolutionizing Bird Watching with Radar

November 6, 2020November 5, 2020 Science Connectedbird behavior, bird watching, birds

Ecologists can now forecast bird migrations like meteorologists forecast the weather. But without on-the-ground citizen science observations, it’s hard to tell a songbird from a goose.

Black Birders: Deja Perkins, a graduate student using citizen science to research birds, is one of the organizers of Black Birders Week. (Credit: North Carolina State University)

Biodiversity and Conservation Citizen Science Diversity in Science Ornithology SciStarter Blog Zoology

Black Birders, Scientists Push for Equality

June 25, 2020June 24, 2020 Science Connectedbirds, citizen science projects, diversity

Black Birders Week helped show the world that Black scientists exist in the great outdoors. Now, participants hope to keep the conversation going.