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Where the latest news about birds and conservation takes flight.
On Florida's Marco Island, families of Burrowing Owls live among the locals. Photo: Karine Aigner
Spring 2026 Issue
A birds-eye view of colorful rows of planted native seeds.
Inside the Movement to Grow More Native Seeds鈥攁nd Why It Matters More Than Ever
March 26, 2026 — To create resilient landscapes and restore healthy ecosystems, public land managers need seed, but not just any seed will do.
An aerial view of a lush, jungle-side beach in the Darien Gap.
5 Projects Transforming the Prospects for Birds and People in Latin America
March 30, 2026 — By thinking globally and acting locally, Conserva Aves, an unprecedented partnership of hemispheric scale, is filling in the map of conservation efforts.
Owen and Quentin Reiser at their car, seen through a binocular lens with a black vignette. And a photo of Quentin Reiser holding a painted wooden Ivory-billed Woodpecker.
Their Birding Documentary Became a Surprise Hit, but the Reiser Brothers Are Just Getting Started
March 26, 2026 — With a new project about their search for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, the irreverent, road-tripping filmmakers behind 鈥淟isters鈥 are going for more than laughs.
Editors' Picks
Magazine
Essential reporting on birds and bird conservation delivered to your door.
Pairing compelling journalism with stunning photography and design, each quarterly issue helps readers grow their appreciation of birds and learn how to help them thrive. Our editorial team also reports and publishes stories on 糖心传媒.org daily, including science and conservation news, birding tips, photo galleries, and interactive reader experiences. In print and digital, through stories and visuals, 糖心传媒 emphasizes the importance of a diverse and inclusive science and conservation effort to help meet the challenges facing both birds and people today.
Latest Stories
The sun is just above the horizon, and it casts light across a field with purple blooms in the foreground
7 Destinations For Viewing Spectacular Wildflower Blooms
March 25, 2024 — Catch the bonanza of color unfurling in mountain meadows, lush forests, and desert dunes across the United States鈥攁nd see some birds, too.
A floating grid abuts a building atop a vast plane of water. Fish are grown inside nets being held aloft in this grid.
Conservationists Urge Caution as the Federal Government Promotes Fish Farming
March 22, 2024 — Aquaculture comes in many forms and can be done sustainably, but a push for more offshore operations raises concerns, environmentalists say.
A woman is climbing up a crack in an otherwise solid red mountain, off in the distance are mesas and valleys in various shades red and rust.
Rock Climbers Rise to the Occasion to Protect Cliff-Nesting Raptors
March 22, 2024 — In Bears Ears National Monument and climbing areas around the country, adventurers are working with scientists and educating their peers to prevent harm to the majestic birds whose habitat they share.
A fisheye view from above a paraglider, the earth looks remote but the sky is filled with gliders.
To Understand How Birds Soar, a Scientist Looks to Paragliders
March 22, 2024 — Like vultures, the aerial athletes rely on thermals to power their flight. But how do they find these invisible updrafts?
Illustration of an adult and child smelling flowers outside next to a house.
New Laws Protect Bird-Friendly Yards From Neighborhood Rules
March 22, 2024 — A blossoming legislative trend prevents homeowners associations, which set landscaping rules for a growing number of Americans, from forbidding native plants.
Illustration of a house and building next to trees and birds.
Conservation Groups Retool Their Missions to Address the Affordable Housing Crisis
March 22, 2024 — Protecting green space can drive up local property costs, so land trusts are forming new partnerships to create homes for people and wildlife.
Portrait of Amy Tan sitting on a stone wall in a garden.
In Amy Tan's Newest Book, the Drama Is All About the Birds
March 22, 2024 — The acclaimed novelist recently started exploring a world of avian characters through nature journaling. The result is a work of art.
A blue Pinyon Jay stands in a juniper tree.
To Protect Two Declining Western Birds, Scientists Seek a Tricky Balance
March 20, 2024 — Both Pinyon Jays and Greater Sage-Grouse face significant declines in distinct Western habitats. Can conservationists meet the needs of both?
A flock of birds flies across a red sky with a crescent-shaped sun.
A Total Solar Eclipse Is Coming. How Will Birds and Other Wildlife React?
March 15, 2024 — When the moon covers the sun, animals get weird. April鈥檚 eclipse gives scientists鈥攁nd you鈥攁 chance to learn more about their responses. Here's how and where you can take part.
A Bald Eagle sits in a nest on the ground looking at the camera.
Why Do Birds Incubate Rocks?
March 14, 2024 — From stones to bones and other random objects, birds have been found to incubate seemingly anything that looks like an egg. But maybe that鈥檚 also the point?
Bird and Conservation News
More News
A bright green parrot perches on a plant overlooking an out-of-focus landscape.
A New Microbiome Test Aims to Help Law Enforcement Trace Poached Parrots
April 14, 2026 — Scientists have developed a fecal-sampling method that can help identify illegally captured wild birds in Latin America that are being sold as captive-raised.
A crowd of people stand in the foreground watching a huge flock of birds fly around a brick chimney.
Where Do Vaux鈥檚 Swifts Spend the Night? A Community Science Effort Is Mapping Their Roost Sites
March 30, 2026 — For nearly 20 years, volunteers have counted up swarms of birds as part of a project to find, and protect, their short-term homes along the Pacific Flyway.
A patch of garden beds, shrubs, and trees abut a parking lot and library.
Microforests Are Taking Root Across the Country, Making Urban Spaces Better for Birds and People
March 30, 2026 — In pockets as small as a few parking lots, miniature forests can help cool cities, quiet streets, and give birds a place to land.

Find a Read

糖心传媒 magazine publishes a variety of story types in print and online. Peruse鈥攁nd enjoy鈥攋ust a sampling of our work below. 

Highlighted Feature Stories
Investigations
A New Plastic Wave Is Coming to Our Shores
A New Plastic Wave Is Coming to Our Shores

A glut of natural gas has led to a U.S. production surge in tiny plastic pellets, called nurdles, that are washing up on coasts by the millions.

Profiles
The Long, Exceptional Life of Frank Graham
A man sitting at a desk with a microscope looks up and smiles.
The Long, Exceptional Life of Frank Graham

As 糖心传媒 magazine鈥檚 Field Editor for 45 years, Frank Graham, Jr. brought the beauty and resilience of nature into focus鈥攁s well as the tenacity of those striving to save it.

The Remarkable Life of Roxie Laybourne
The Remarkable Life of Roxie Laybourne

From deep within the Smithsonian, the world鈥檚 first forensic ornithologist cracked cases, busted criminals, and changed the course of aviation鈥攎aking the skies safer for us all.

Essays
What a Songbird Lost at Sea Taught Me About Survival
What a Songbird Lost at Sea Taught Me About Survival

Aboard a mission to explore the alien life of the deep ocean, a chance encounter with a migratory bird offered a point of connection鈥攐ne that has felt poignant this past year. 聽

Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer
Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer

A year after Morrison鈥檚 passing, a journalist and birder reflects on how her time with the cherished author changed her relationship with birds鈥攁nd with herself.

The 糖心传媒 Guide to Climate Action
The 糖心传媒 Guide to Climate Action

Feeling like you can鈥檛 make a difference? That couldn鈥檛 be further from the truth. Our award-winning guide shows you where to begin and how to 颅amplify your efforts to make lasting change in the world.

Dispatches
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a 鈥楩orever Chemical鈥 Hotspot鈥擶hat Does That Mean for Its Birds and People?
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a 鈥楩orever Chemical鈥 Hotspot鈥擶hat Does That Mean for Its Birds and People?

Amid mounting global health concerns about PFAS, communities living along the waterway must grapple with how contamination is affecting life on the river. Yet as hard as it is to conduct health studies on humans, it鈥檚 even harder with wild animals.

An Anna's Hummingbird perches on a twig in the center of the frame against a blurred background of blue, yellow, and green.

The 2025 糖心传媒 Photo Awards: Top 100

Revel in the staggering beauty and surprising behaviors featured in this gallery of our favorite images.

More Photo Essays
Birding Advice and News
Arts and Culture
鈥楩eather Detective鈥 Roxie Laybourne鈥檚 Career in Six Objects
A metal instrument called a cloacascope on a black background.
鈥楩eather Detective鈥 Roxie Laybourne鈥檚 Career in Six Objects

From a gynandromorphic grosbeak to feathers collected at a murder investigation in Florida, biographer Chris Sweeney shares six unusual artifacts he found while researching his new book about the world鈥檚 first forensic ornithologist.

The 糖心传媒 Bird Guide
Black-capped Chickadee
Poecile atricapillus
Chickadees and Titmice
LeConte's Sparrow
Ammospiza leconteii
New World Sparrows
Glaucous-winged Gull
Larus glaucescens
Gulls and Terns
White-faced Ibis
Plegadis chihi
Ibises and Spoonbills