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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
How Street-Smart Birds Are Hacking Human Infrastructure
December 17, 2025 — Recent studies have uncovered some of the clever ways our avian neighbors are making the most of the urban environment.
With a lab coat and gloves on Maria Ortega inspects multiple trays of nest materials in her lab.
Scientists Are Now Finding Microplastics in Backyard Birds
December 17, 2025 — The tiny particles are widespread in waterbirds around the world. New research is finding them in neighborhood songbirds, too.
A charcoal drawing of a wood stork held up in front of a brick wall.
Putting the Quiet Dignity of the Wood Stork to Paper
December 17, 2025 — It may not be the prettiest bird, but Franna Lusson loves it all the same. Through an expressive mixed-media portrait, the artist aims to convey the wader鈥檚 deeper essence.
A gull floating on water stares at the camera and tilts its head slightly.
Forget Valentine's Day鈥擟elebrate Gullentine's Day Instead
December 17, 2025 — This Februrary, start a new tradition with some of North America鈥檚 most confounding birds. What could be more romantic?
An Unexpected Baby Boom Is Bringing Snowy Owls South This Winter
December 16, 2025 — A nonprofit science group has discovered a great deal about the species over the past decade, but the irruption shows that Snowies still have the power to surprise.
A male and female mallard swim next to each other with their heads lowered.
Watch For These Early-Bird Mating Displays This Winter
December 16, 2025 — Not every species waits until spring to start wooing their partners.
Caroline Saunders sits at a table showing a platter of small bird-shaped cakes.
How to Be a Better Baker for the Planet
December 16, 2025 — It's not hard to whip up delicious, climate-friendly desserts at home. Try your hand with these tips鈥攑lus a recipe!
A backlit Winter Wren stands on a mossy log.
It's Winter. So Where Are the Winter Wrens?
December 15, 2025 — Found across much of these eastern U.S. during the winter, these tiny birds can be tough to spot鈥攑roviding a fun challenge during the slower birding months.
A Common Grackle vocalizes with its beak wide open and wings outstretched, perching on a cattail.
10 Fun Facts About the Common Grackle
December 10, 2025 — Scrappy, adaptable, and cosmopolitan, this blackbird is a survivor worth celebrating.
A person's hands sort through small bones and bits of fur with a toothpick on a white surface.
Where Do Owl Pellets Actually Come From? Inside the Unusual Business of Bird Barf
December 02, 2025 — From roost to retail, a network of field scouts and suppliers collect and process the regurgitated balls of bones that students dissect in science classrooms across the country.
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
Blue-throated Mountain-gem
Lampornis clemenciae
Hummingbirds
American Kestrel
Falco sparverius
Falcons
Pacific Wren
Troglodytes pacificus
Wrens
Little Egret
Egretta garzetta
Herons, Egrets, Bitterns