Modern birds are descendants of probably three different dinosaur lineages. Those three lineages have evolved into 47 different orders as described by the International Ornithological Congress (IOC; Gill et al., 2021) although as genetic testing improves and increases in simplicity, this number may change. Of those 47 orders, only three contain bird species that show active learning of song (Figure 1). All bird species have innate calls that a...
Freedom Center for Wildlife volunteer Allison McClure recently published an article in The Huffington Post titled, "Counting Birds: Over a Century of Citizen Science." The article highlights three important projects, including the Christmas Bird Count, Project FeederWatch, and the Great Backyard Bird Count, in which tens of thousands of people participate every year.
The combined data from these citizen science projects help researchers understand factors
From now until the end of November, the Atlantic Flyway will be a busy place. Thousands of migratory birds will pass through this region on their way to warmer temperatures and better food sources. This region is between the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean, where air currents are favorable for flight. The mountains provide updrafts created by the wind bouncing off their surfaces. Because most hawks soar, they need the updrafts provided by temp...
