A point cloud of a large old tree with green indicating branches preferred by birds.
Stanislav Roudavski / Alex Holland
Trees are better at designing habitat than we are. Can we use machine learning to get some tips?
Neil Tavener
Norfolk Island green parrots are self-medicating with pepper tree bark and leaves, to rid themselves of parasites. But is there more to it? Birds are known to indulge in alcohol and take stimulants.
Vaalaa / Shutterstock
Defending planes against running into birds is vitally important – and high-speed dead chickens play a surprising role.
Are we underestimating pigeons?
Mabeline72/Shutterstock
A scientist who wanted to show pigeons don’t need intellect to navigate was surprised by nuances in his own study findings.
The extinct Australian giant flightless bird, Genyornis newtoni . Used with permission; all other rights reserved.
Jacob C. Blokland
A recent find of an ancient giant bird’s skull has revealed much about its life among the vanished lakes and wetlands of inland South Australia.
The European pied flycatcher may have a genetic predisposition to learn certain songs.
Anton MirMar/Shutterstock
It may not be obvious to the human ear but birds of the same species sing in different dialects.
Kobbi R. Blair/Statesman-Journal via AP
Migratory birds could bring the lethal bird flu variant that is assailing the rest of the world’s birds.
The studied Psittacosaurus under natural (upper half) and UV light (lower half).
Zixiao Yang
Understanding more about feathers could change the way we think about dinosaurs.
Budimir Jevtic/Shutterstock
Philosophers have been debating whether we need conditioning to link information from different senses for centuries.
KANGWANS/Shutterstock
Twitching can help promote feelings of positivity, improve mood and foster an affinity with nature
Kostya Pazyuk/Alamy Stock Photo
These birds are a harbinger of summer – but their arrival, and the seasons, are no longer predictable.
Victoria Florence Sperring
The sad case of the Norfolk Island morepork shows we need a way to control or eradicate invasive rodents without killing native species.
A hadeda ibis carries a worm it has just caught from an irrigated lawn.
Carla du Toit
Africa’s hadeda ibises can sense vibrations using a special sensory organ in their beaks. But they need moist soil for it to work.
Wild turkeys in a yard on Staten Island, N.Y.
AP Photo/Kathy Willens
Wild turkeys were overhunted across the US through the early 1900s, but made a strong comeback. Now, though, numbers are declining again. Two ecologists parse the evidence and offer an explanation.
Tundra swans migrating from southern China to the high Arctic.
Yifei Jia
As climate change threatens their food supply, migratory birds may find help in an unlikely place.
DorSteffen/Shutterstock
Great tits being studied at a woodland near Oxford are adjusting the timings of their breeding season as the climate changes.
Swift bricks like this help create more suitable nesting sites.
Simon Stirrup / Alamy Stock Photo
Swifts migrate long distances yet face many threats along their journey. Lack of nest sites is a big problem but installing swift boxes and bricks won’t be the only solution.
Bruce Pascoe.
Magabala
In Black Duck, Bruce Pascoe traces a calendar year on Yumburra, the farm his bestseller Dark Emu helped to purchase.
Wetlands at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Maryland shows signs of ‘pitting,’ where areas of cordgrass have converted to open water.
Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program via Wikimedia
A coastal scientist explains why marshes, mangroves and other wetlands can’t keep up with the effects of climate change, and how human infrastructure is making it harder for them to survive.
Birds use light as a cue, so what happens when it gets dark during the day?
AP Photo/Hassan Ammar
Since an eclipse only lasts a few minutes, you need more than just a handful of scientists running around collecting data on bird activity. That’s where a new app comes in.