Of Drones and Cranes: UAV Technology Aids California Bird Conservation

Sandhill Cranes congregate in great numbers at night, crowded together in flooded fields. How can California conservationists accurately count them. Enter a new tool in bird monitoring: the drone.

Matt Merrifield and Rodd Kelsey

Platte River Sandhill Cranes: Enjoying North America’s Greatest Bird Spectacle

Each year, more than 500,000 cranes congregate along 70 miles of Nebraska's Platte River. Want to see one of the world's great wildlife spectacles? Our blogger takes you to the heart of the action.

Matthew L. Miller

Eurasian Collared Dove: Have You Seen This Bird?

Thirty years ago, non-native Eurasian collared doves were starting to show up in South Florida. Today, this species is being documented across North America. How citizen scientists help document the spread of a non-native species.

Matthew L. Miller

Mad Men Go Falcon Trapping

Bird conservation, 1950s style. Blogger Joe Smith looks back at the unusual techniques used by bird banders, at a time when peregrine falcons faced a bleak and uncertain future.

Joe Smith

The Amazing Lemming: The Rodent Behind the Snowy Owl Invasion?

Lemmings shape nearly every aspect of arctic ecosystems. Could their recent abundance also be a key factor in the snowy owl invasion occurring in the eastern United States?

Joe Smith

The Grouse in Winter

Self-made snow igloos, "reverse" migrations and big sagebrush. The unusual ways 3 grouse species survive and thrive in deep snow and frigid temperatures.

Matthew L. Miller

Snowy Owl Invasion!

The snowy owls are here -- especially if you live on the east coast! Birder extraordinaire Tim Boucher provides the latest on this natural phenomenon -- and how you can see this dramatic bird near you.

Timothy Boucher

Wild Turkey Restoration: The Greatest Conservation Success Story?

Once, conservationists thought turkeys were doomed. Now, some consider the birds to be too abundant. How did we achieve this dramatic turn of events?

Matthew L. Miller

Meet the Ocellated Turkey

Put aside thoughts of the Thanksgiving bird. There's another turkey: a colorful bird that haunts Mayan ruins. Meet the Meleagris ocellata, the ocellated turkey.

Matthew L. Miller

Weird Nature: An Owl That Uses Dung Tools

Sure, burrowing owls are incredibly cute. But did you know that they are also one of the most intriguing tool users in the animal kingdom?

Matthew L. Miller

Shade Coffee: Not Just for the Birds

When it comes to coffee, we not only need to think about who grows the bean, but also how and where it is grown. Shade coffee is worth the investment, says Tim Boucher.

Timothy Boucher

The Sage Grouse Initiative: Science to Solutions

For sage grouse, the the apocalypse comes in the form of fire, weeds, unplanned energy development and even encroaching trees. But now, these birds are the subject of “one of the largest conservation experiments ever undertaken in North America.” Is it enough to save them?

Matthew L. Miller