BY KIERAN LINDSEY, PhD As the most literal of helicopter parents, a ruby-throated hummingbird mom (RTH, Archilochus colubris) takes hovering to a whole new competitive level. In the case of this feathered sprite (2.8 – 3.5″ long, including bill, and just over 1/10 of an ounce), though, the word “hover” has more to do with the […]

BY KIERAN LINDSEY, PhD There’s been a marked decline in the number of sunspots over the past decade or so. That’s what NASA scientists say, and I have no reason to doubt their research findings. Luckily, I haven’t observed any reduction in the terrestrial version of this phenomenon. Hardly a day has passed lately when I’ve […]

BY KIERAN LINDSEY, PhD It’s a fine world, though rich in hardships at times. ~ Larry McMurtry   There’s a sweetness in the lament of a Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) that makes the sorrow bearable, and believable. Theirs isn’t an pop tune about a hookup with a hook, or a power ballad tale of infatuation, thrill, […]

BY KIERAN LINDSEY, PhD JAY!  JAY!  JAY! Uh oh… I’ve been spotted! The Blue Jays (Cyanocitta cristata) on guard have ratted me out. Halt! Who goes there? Thought you could just slip past, did you? Not on my watch. Hey everybody—look! Look! Over there!” Now every non-human ear in the neighborhood knows I’m here. It feels […]