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BIRD WORD Dump nesting: When birds lay eggs in the nest of another bird of the same species. Wood ducks and common goldeneyes are dump nesters. However, if too many [...]

A friend of mine is managing a large piece of property near Rochester for bird habitat. When he planted several oak trees, many people told him he was making a [...]

***** CORRECTION PUBLISHED 05/24/05: The genus and species of the boreal owl was incorrect in this article. It's Aegolius funereus. ***** As winter drew to a close in northern Minnesota, [...]

BIRD SEASON SHOPPING Gearing up for the birding season? There is a one-stop place to shop that offers almost anything you could need to enjoy bird outings. That place is [...]

Last month, I mentioned in my column that pileated woodpeckers rarely come to bird feeders. Immediately, I was inundated with letters from readers telling me about the pileated woodpeckers that [...]

In his 1949 book 'Sand County Almanac,' conservationist Aldo Leopold wrote about sawing down a tree, recounting historical events that shaped the tree and human history. When he felled a [...]

Winter can be hard on birds, but usually not because of the cold. Occasionally birds do succumb to severe cold, but that's usually in cases where the birds were unable [...]

Tongue: Birds have tongues that are similar to ours in placement but different in many ways. Bird tongues usually are tough in texture. Some birds, such as woodpeckers, have spines [...]

On Nov. 16, while working at my computer, I suddenly became aware of a strangely familiar sound, a sound I didn't expect to hear in November: the beating of a [...]

One of the most conspicuous and beautiful of all back-yard feeder birds is the blue jay. Whether you love them or hate them, jays are a force to be reckoned [...]

BIRD WORD Vent: the single anal opening through which birds pass solid and liquid wastes as well as eggs. BIRDING WITH KIDS Would you like to know who's coming to [...]

A few weeks ago, one of my back-yard chickadees lost its tail. Every one of the tail feathers was missing - probably grabbed by a predator - but the chickadee [...]

Drawing birds is fun. It also can be an important skill for birders and ornithologists when they come across an unfamiliar species. In fact, field drawings that show distinctive markings [...]

BIRD WORD Jurassic: The geologic period about 195 million years ago when birds first appeared. The first known bird was called the archaeopteryx. Birds resembling modern loons, cormorants, rails and [...]

Every year, millions of birds travel back and forth between Minnesota and Latin America. Fall migration is a long, arduous journey, made during the height of hurricane season. To make [...]

August is the month when the most soft-spoken of songbirds become conspicuous. Cedar waxwings have a high-pitched, sibilant, wavering call that sounds to me like tiny mice snoring. After louder [...]

In Two Harbors, Minn., follow the signs to the harbor and drive to the parking lot in front of the lighthouse. Scan the harbor for loons, scoters and miscellaneous ducks. [...]

One of the most thrilling evenings I've spent in years happened in early June, when I was teaching an Elderhostel class in Eagle River, Wis. We drove to Shannon Lake, [...]

One of the most pleasant birds to have in a back yard is the gray catbird. It is long and slender, shaped like the mockingbird, its close relative. The catbird's [...]

Osprey Piscivorous: Animals that eat mostly or exclusively fish. In Minnesota, the double-crested cormorant, osprey and kingfisher are examples of piscivorous birds. BIRDING WITH KIDS You can help orioles and [...]

Baltimore orioles - luscious tropical birds that visit Minnesota every year to raise their babies - usually head our way around the first week of May. It's hard to imagine [...]

William Shakespeare died in 1616, so virtually every early explorer and settler who came to America and documented bird life arrived well after Shakespeare's death. The playwright lived his life [...]

Common redpolls are fun to watch and study. If you have redpolls coming to your yard, try some of these activities: - Take pictures. Redpolls often let us get close [...]

When Minnesotans imagine retreating south for the winter, our thoughts drift to Arizona, Texas, Florida or the tropics. But some migratory birds find Minnesota winters balmy and pleasant enough to [...]

Every now and then, I get a phone call or e-mail from someone with a pigeon problem. Common city pigeons, called rock pigeons by American ornithologists, probably were the first [...]

Dunk-a-doo: A folk name for the American bittern. Dunk-a-doo approximates the bird's call. It also has another colorful common name: slough-pump. BIRDING WITH KIDS Pigeons are interesting to watch. But, [...]

Last week I was sitting at my desk working when suddenly a pileated woodpecker lit on the suet feeder on the window just above my desk. The bird, a female, [...]

BIRD WORD Frugivorous: Fruit-eating birds such as the scarlet tanager. GOOD CAUSE CALENDAR We're Taking Care of Nature (WTCN), a group that helps high school students establish habitat for wildlife, [...]

As days get shorter, and more and more birds head south for the winter, I find myself searching for birds wherever I can, including the shelves of greeting-card stores. Luckily, [...]

Have you ever tried to train your neighborhood chickadees to take food from your hand? It takes some time, but it's worth it. Start by making a scarecrow figure. Just [...]

Before winter descends, we humans make sure we have warm clothes and enough food and fuel to get us through the harshest season. Birds, too, put a lot of energy [...]

Wirebirds: An unofficial term that refers to birds that typically perch on wires, such as phone or power lines and fence wires. Meadowlarks and many species of grassland sparrows are [...]

As Halloween approaches, we'll see more spooky reminders of our superstitiousness. Graveyard scenes are standard, with at least one tombstone or crooked tree branch inhabited by a shadowy owl staring [...]

From a distance, a kettle of hawks can look like pepper specks. How can you begin to tell them apart? The three main groups of hawks - buteos, accipiters and [...]

Rachel Carson wrote that 'there is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of birds. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature - the [...]

Air currents don't push us around, but we can feel air current and even see thermals. How? Did you ever notice how air wiggles just above a car sitting in [...]

Birds are bugged by bugs, so what do birds use for bug repellent? Some birds protect themselves from mites, lice and other biting insects by smearing bitter-tasting chemicals on their [...]

In mid-summer, there are more birds in North America than at any other time of year. Forests and fields, lakes, rivers and wetlands are teeming with bird life. That's because [...]

BIRD WORD Corvid: One of many families of birds. The members of the corvid family that are regularly found in Minnesota include the gray jay, blue jay, black-billed magpie, American [...]

Americans would probably identify the bald eagle as the nation's most patriotic bird. But the bald eagle wasn't always the hands-down winner for that designation. Shortly after the 13 colonies [...]

BIRD WORD Pileated: A word with two pronounciations (You say PIE-lee-ated. I say PILL-ee-ated), either way meaning crowned, capped or crested. It's also the name of Minnesota's largest woodpecker, the [...]

In June, baby birds abound. Some, such as great horned owlets and red-tailed hawk chicks, are already putting on some size. Others are just hatching out. Ornithologists classify baby birds [...]

Just as the trees in Minnesota's forests are leafing out, the most vividly colored bird appears against the backdrop of the spring green. The intensity of color displayed by a [...]

BIRD BOOK LISTS CLUES TO IDENTIFICATION With the publication of his third book, 'Sibley's Birding Basics' (Knopf, $15.95), David Allen Sibley has firmly established himself as an excellent guide for [...]

One of the most treasured back-yard birds is the familiar black-capped chickadee. This endearing little sprite can't help but cheer anyone who sees it. But don't they have some enemies? [...]

Several years ago, when I was living in Madison, Wis., I used to get up at 4 a.m. every spring day to go birding in a local park. The only [...]

The white-breasted nuthatch looks at life from an upside-down perspective as it works its way down tree trunks, peeking into crevices that other birds miss. Nuthatches adapt to their topsy-turvy [...]

With the hush of new-fallen snow, the woods can be numbingly silent in winter. Away from traffic and the sound of human voices, we can walk for many minutes without [...]

One snowy day in late November, I saw five robins in the mountain ash tree in my Duluth yard. Robins are unusual this time of year, but they're not considered [...]

Two of the smallest, most endearing ducks swimming on lakes and rivers in the metro area now are named, oddly enough, after Alexander the Great's war horse. The horse, noted [...]