The white-breasted nuthatch is one of a kind. Photo by Larry Jordan. Perhaps you have seen white-breasted nuthatches in your yard. They’re heart-warming little clowns, upside down more than right side up, with quizzical smiles in their dished-up bills, and… Continue Reading
If you stroll along the river much lately you likely see a brown bird the size of a handspan strolling, too. But you might notice that, unlike you, it is busy poking about the shoreline for insects and crustaceans, and… Continue Reading
This male western bluebird tends his family in a woodpecker-carved oak at Lema Ranch. Photograph by Larry Jordan There’s a little piece of sky fluttering through the neighborhoods and neighbor-woods of the North State. Actually, many little pieces. But they… Continue Reading
American kestrels are striking, with burnt-red backs and tails, steel-blue wings on the males, and bold falconid markings, black and white on the face. All this is packaged into a little hawk that could perch on your finger, and can… Continue Reading
We are just beyond the United State’s election season, and it’s not too big a stretch to see red, white, and blue in some of our feathered aboriginals. Many colorful birds have headed to Mexico for the winter, but northern… Continue Reading
There’s been news and discussion in North State media recently about wildfires, and whether climate change plays a role in their increased frequency and intensity, or if it’s just vegetation management and the wildland urban interface. But it’s tough to… Continue Reading
September 28, 2020: Another day and I’m writing about another fire. Stephen Pyne, the noted fire researcher and author, says we are entering the Pyrocene — the Age of Fire — and it sure feels like that. My big concern… Continue Reading
It doesn’t take much water for this goldfinch to enjoy a good bath! Photo by Larry Jordan Emily Dickinson famously wrote “Hope is the thing with feathers.” Now, under the oppressive disorientation of Covid-19, massive wildfires, technological manipulation, and political… Continue Reading
It is with great excitement that Whiskeytown Environmental School AKA NEED CAMP announces its 50th Anniversary on Saturday, September 26th. The celebration features a self-guided tour featuring historical photos, the Carr Fire impact on the school and draft plans for… Continue Reading
If you have a bird feeder in the continental United States you have almost certainly been visited by house finches. On both sides of the Mississippi their hungry flocks coat feeders like displays of cherry and root beer lollipops. They… Continue Reading
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