Owl pellets provide clues to owl’s diet
Even though most owls are nocturnal hunters and we can’t see what they hunt, we know a surprising amount of information about their diet. An…
Category: Birds
Pheasant populations dependent on weather and habitat
Every time I drive through the valley on Copeland Road I look for pheasants near Farm to Market Road, especially in autumn and winter. Most…
Spotted sandpiper teeters along our shorelines
Boundary County has a few shorebirds and one can be found from the shorelines of the Kootenai River to high mountain lakes like West Fork…
Duration of mates varies among waterfowl
Since the ponds have become ice free, pairs of mallards, Canada geese and other waterfowl have been swimming and preparing to nest. A pair of…
Feathers don’t last forever
American goldfinches dart to and from the bird feeder in their drab yellow plumage this time of year. Their vivid yellow plumage won’t come until…
Many types of feathers make a bird
A single feather lying in the grass. The straight shaft surrounded by colorful vanes, some askew with dampness. Singly a feather doesn’t accomplish much but…
Nuthatches: The upside-down bird
While woodpeckers search for insects by spiraling up a tree, the nuthatch zig-zags down the trunk head-first. Foraging upside-down may seem unnatural to us but…
25 turkey facts to gobble up
Thanksgiving brings turkeys into the spotlight which usually is detrimental to them. So here are 25 turkey tidbits to ponder while your turkey is cooking…
Chickens of the woods not always easy to tell apart
When a grouse flushes from the brush, my heart skips a beat before I scan to see who made the noise. Was it a spruce…
Waxwings flock to fruit year-round
By mid-summer most birds have finished nesting and the young have fledged, but one bird is a late nester compared to the rest–the waxwing. The…
Don’t be fooled by a coot
The American coot may swim like a duck, dive like a duck, and look like a duck but it isn’t a duck. As much as…
Swallows provide valuable insect control
Pesky insects can bother us during gardening, barbecues and other outdoor activities but one bird species makes an impressible dent in the insect population for…
Pheasant populations dependent on weather and habitat
Every time I drive through the valley on Copeland Road I look for pheasants near Farm to Market Road, especially in autumn and winter. Most…
Spotted sandpiper teeters along our shorelines
Boundary County has a few shorebirds and one can be found from the shorelines of the Kootenai River to high mountain lakes like West Fork…
Duration of mates varies among waterfowl
Since the ponds have become ice free, pairs of mallards, Canada geese and other waterfowl have been swimming and preparing to nest. A pair of…
Feathers don’t last forever
American goldfinches dart to and from the bird feeder in their drab yellow plumage this time of year. Their vivid yellow plumage won’t come until…
Many types of feathers make a bird
A single feather lying in the grass. The straight shaft surrounded by colorful vanes, some askew with dampness. Singly a feather doesn’t accomplish much but…
Nuthatches: The upside-down bird
While woodpeckers search for insects by spiraling up a tree, the nuthatch zig-zags down the trunk head-first. Foraging upside-down may seem unnatural to us but…
25 turkey facts to gobble up
Thanksgiving brings turkeys into the spotlight which usually is detrimental to them. So here are 25 turkey tidbits to ponder while your turkey is cooking…
Chickens of the woods not always easy to tell apart
When a grouse flushes from the brush, my heart skips a beat before I scan to see who made the noise. Was it a spruce…
Waxwings flock to fruit year-round
By mid-summer most birds have finished nesting and the young have fledged, but one bird is a late nester compared to the rest–the waxwing. The…
Don’t be fooled by a coot
The American coot may swim like a duck, dive like a duck, and look like a duck but it isn’t a duck. As much as…
Swallows provide valuable insect control
Pesky insects can bother us during gardening, barbecues and other outdoor activities but one bird species makes an impressible dent in the insect population for…