The Pale-headed Brushfinch was rediscovered in a dry inter-Andean valley in west-central Ecuador almost 25 years ago — following three decades without a record of the species. A wave of relief rolled over those on the expedition that found this “lost” bird, an effort spearheaded by Fundación de Conservación Jocotoco (Jocotoco) with ABC support. But … Read More>>

More than 180 bird species (out of around 10,000 total) have likely gone extinct over the last 500 years, and the rate of extinction is accelerating. Bird species have disappeared for a number of reasons. These include: competition with and predation by introduced species, unsustainable hunting and trapping by humans, habitat loss due to human … Read More>>

The Commonwealth of Virginia's tourism and travel slogan is “Virginia is for Lovers,” but it's also for lovers of birds. Virginia supports a high diversity of birds and bird habitats, from the mountains in the west to coastal and offshore areas in the east. According to eBird, 488 species have been observed in Virginia, among … Read More>>

Virginia hosts a diversity of raptor species, and there are hawk-watching opportunities at coastal and mountain sites during migration, which are usually most active in autumn. As raptor populations expand, some species are becoming more common in our urban areas, including the Cooper's Hawk, Mississippi Kite, and Peregrine Falcon. Day-flying raptors and waterfowl are two … Read More>>

According to research published by ABC and other partners in 2019, grassland bird populations declined by 53 percent (more than 720 million birds) in the U.S. and Canada since 1970. These declines were steeper than those of boreal forest birds, eastern forest birds, coastal shorebirds, and aerial insectivores. The following three grassland birds offer a … Read More>>

Virginia is a great place to watch birds. The state supports a variety of forest types, including bottomland hardwoods in wet areas and along riparian corridors; pine forests and oak-hickory woodlands in uplands; and conifer forests and mixed broadleaf/coniferous forests on top of mountains. These forests and their various successional stages support a great diversity … Read More>>

Waterbirds are among Virginia's superlative birds, including some of the largest (pelicans and swans), most colorful (ducks), most ornamentally plumed (egrets and herons), and most exciting to watch (skimmers skimming, terns diving, ibises flapping over marshes at sunrise or sunset). Most are great flyers and many are migratory. Given these abilities, rare waterbirds from distant … Read More>>

Most birders in Virginia start watching birds around their homes. The following species can be seen almost anywhere in the state, often in cities and towns. While some of the bird species included here are among the most common birds of Virginia, others are harder to find, but worth the effort. This post is part … Read More>>

For this piece, I was asked to write about what it feels like to have seen now-extinct bird species in the wild. Different emotions come into play: Sadness that they are gone, gratitude that I saw and heard them in the wild, despair, and oftentimes anger that, at this moment, other species are perilously close … Read More>>

While birds may appear abundant — we see them every day, right? — recent studies point to an unsettling truth: Avian populations are declining. In just the last 50 years, nearly a third of all U.S. and Canadian birds have disappeared. As it stands, one out of every eight bird species in the world faces … Read More>>