Structural Coloration in Bird Feathers
Learn about structural coloration in bird feathers and how humans are learning to use the same technique to make color-changing paint.
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Osprey: A Bird of Many Names
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.
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Revolutionizing Bird Watching with Radar
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.
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Biodiversity and Conservation Citizen Science Diversity in Science Ornithology SciStarter Blog Zoology Black Birders, Scientists Push for Equality
Black Birders Week helped show the world that Black scientists exist in the great outdoors. Now, participants hope to keep the conversation going.
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STEM Career Q and A with Joe Siegrist
In this STEM Career Q and A, we talk with the lead of Project MartinRoost. Learn about his STEM career and how you can get involved in a citizen science research project. To meet more scientists and learn about their work, check out our Get to Know a Scientist series. Q: What citizen science project do you represent? Three projects: Project MartinRoost, Project MartinWatch, and the Scout-Arrival Study. Q: What’s your professional background? I have worked as a zookeeper, a naturalist, a field biologist, an educator, and now am president…
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Project Martin Roost: A Scavenger Hunt in Your Backyard
This is part one of three in a collaboration between SciStarter and Career in STEM, in which writers will spotlight different citizen science projects, interview project leaders about their careers, and create educational content for teachers and students. This series is available from Science Connected, Career in STEM, SciStarter, and Discover Magazine. As the sun sinks low below the horizon and the crisp night air begins to descend, a miraculous sight can be seen in many areas across the continental United States. Hundreds of thousands of birds will suddenly appear…
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Another Early Toothed Bird Raises Its Head
A team of paleontologists reveals new details about one of the most striking transformations in evolutionary history: a toothed bird. By Kate Stone Sometimes what you seek is right under your nose. Using fossils found in the 1870s, paleontologists have pieced together the skull of a toothed bird that represents a pivotal moment in the transition from dinosaurs to modern birds. “Right under our noses this whole time was an amazing, transitional bird.” Ichthyornis dispar is a key member of the evolutionary lineage that leads from dinosaurian species to today’s…
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Fire Management in California’s Chaparral Harms Birds
A fire management practice known as mastication, or mechanically crushing vegetation to prevent forest fires, threatens bird communities.
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Amber Preserves Details of Ancient Bird Wings
An ancient bird wing has been found preserved in amber. Learn about it from a paleoartist, or scientific illustrator, who recreates extinct creatures.
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Bird Eyes: The Greatest Eyes on Earth
Bird eyes have incredible vision. Falcons and other birds of prey have highly specialized eyes for a predatory lifestyle on the wing.
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