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I and the Bird: What is a Swallow?

10,000 Birds

Many species build nests of sticks or mud or spit on human-made structures , or in houses we’ve constructed specifically for their use. Taxonomically, swallows are one of the few families of birds that has seen little change in its ranks. The family is global in its distribution, with 83 species of around 19 genera.

Jordan 192
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I and the Bird: What is a Wren?

10,000 Birds

Sure, they may lack the audacious colors of jays or the imposing attitudes of raptors, but it is wrens, with jaunty tails and brazen attitudes and ringing, rambling voices, that re on anyone’s short list of favorite garden birds for almost as long as humans have paid attention to birds. Which, of course, is why we call them troglodytes.

Jordan 207
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I and the Bird: What is a Vulture?

10,000 Birds

The smellier the better, particularly as, unusually for birds, many species can boast a robust sense of smell. In any case, our hang-ups with vultures clearly stem from our own issues rather than any inherently bizarre trait of the species themselves. Vultures famously feed on carrion. Dead things. millions years ago.

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Most Well-endowed Birds

10,000 Birds

Humans are hardly the only organisms that look for more in prospective mates than just loyalty, kindness, and a great sense of humor. And it’s no wonder, considering how millions of years of evolution have bred species with the capacity to command a room well before they enter it, if you know what I mean! inches long.

Pelicans 174
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The Nonessential Whooping Crane

10,000 Birds

It may be as sick as deliberately targeting an endangered species for death. Birders know that the light’s not always perfect or even particularly good when you’re trying to tell one species from another. Speculation is useless in acts of vandalism. It may be as simple as trying to hit the big white one. The big white one. It flies on.

2011 243
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Leucistic Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis

10,000 Birds

I briefly entertained the idea that I had found a rare species never before seen in New York but quickly came to my senses and realized that I was dealing with a leucistic individual. Leucism “is a condition characterized by reduced pigmentation in animals and humans.&# I for one missed it. Do you think it is the female?

Ducks 154