April 27, 2023 If you hate spiders, I have bad news for you: the world is full of them. In the state of Washington alone, […]
Solstice wanderings and the dance of the swallows
June 21, 2023 I came to Spokane Bay on the summer solstice with no intention of writing something new. Paddling up central Montana’s Hauser Lake […]
Yellow-rumped Wanderers: a special feature about yellow-rumped warblers
Welcome to Yellow-rumped Wanderers, a special production in collaboration with Will Valentine, producer of the Will’s Birdbrain podcast. Will is an amazing birder based in […]
Earth Song: birds, wolves, and the power of singing
For most of us, song is something that permeates our lives on a daily basis. We find it on the radio, in concerts, in ads, […]
Finding healing in the midst of climate chaos
I woke up this morning with a gnawing sense of depression, the wildfire smoke blurring the mountains into gray shapes and biting at my nose. […]
Unusual chickens: the dance of the sharp-tailed grouse
May 13, 2023 The bird display begins as the sun is nothing but a faint bluish glow on the eastern prairie horizon. Upland sandpipers give […]
Bizarre and vibrant: getting to know Montana’s cuckoo wasps
The tiny wasp shimmered between my fingertips, its hard exoskeleton glittering green and blue under the strong June sun. Nearby, along the base of the […]
Frigid survival: how American white pelicans overwinter in the cold
They’re like a flurry of snow in the Montana summer. American white pelicans: massive white birds with chunky orange bills and black wingtips. On the […]
Spring in Seattle and an Anna’s hummingbird mystery
March 15, 2023 When I left snow-covered Montana a few days ago to visit friends in Seattle, Washington, it was a sudden transition from the […]
How to grow a bird-friendly garden in western Montana
When you compare the birds of a manicured lawn with those that inhabit a grove of chokecherries, the difference is stark. The lawn might support […]