How do Woodpeckers Peck Without Damaging Their Brains?

Woodpeckers have special foam linings in their skulls that cushion their brains, right? WRONG. This onetime ornithological hypothesis has become … More

Sweet Song of Summer

Walking round the garden, I hear him loud and clear. “Check…check…” he warns at first, before exploding in song: ”Conk-la-HDREEEEEEE!” It’s … More

Help, I can’t shake him!

“It’s so embarrassing,” cries young Ajay the Blue Jay… “Here I am completing my first adult molt and looking dapper … More

Fly, Otis, FLY!

In the course of greeting Otis (Sitting on the Dock of the Bay) the great Blue Heron, I was fortunate … More

Turf War! Part II

As promised, here’s the conclusion of the Gaffer Gander vs. Otis the Great Blue Heron Turf War, showing what happens … More

“Fly Casting” with a Snowy Egret

Sammy, our Snowy Egret buddy, returns today as the tide recedes, to feast on small crabs and other sea critters … More

Turf War! (Part 1)

Otis the Great Blue Heron was Sitting on a Dock of the Bay, peaceably fishing in one of his favorite haunts, … More

The astonishing exploding black orchid

See the tiny particles that ruin the black perfection of these Catasetum Orchids? At first I thought they were dust, … More

Mallory’s Blue Poppy

In 1922 , the USSR, BBC and Eskimo Pie all began, the Ottoman Empire ended, and an heroic attempt to … More

Aphrodite’s Red Slipper

This orchid belongs to the genus Paphiopedilum. The word comes from Paphos, the ancient city on Cyrus famed as the birthplace … More