News

Creating a More Just Climate Future for Those on the Front Lines
December 21, 2020 — The Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act accounts for the unjust burden that climate change poses to communities of color.
Coasts and Oceans
A Pandemic, a Cancer Diagnosis, and a Year List Like No Other
December 18, 2020 — How birds became a thread of sanity through my tumultuous year.
COVID-19
Everything You Need to Know About Buying Ethically Sourced Down Products
December 18, 2020 — A growing number of brands are prioritizing the welfare of the birds that supply the feathers stuffed into items like jackets, comforters, and pillows.
In a Historic Move, Biden Picks Haaland as First Native American Interior Secretary
December 18, 2020 — If confirmed, the New Mexico congresswoman will oversee tribal affairs, important wildlife habitat, and one-fifth of the country's land area.
Birds Help Bind Us to Our Roots, and to One Another
December 17, 2020 — Our winter issue illustrates how, in today’s topsy-turvy world, we would all benefit from stronger connections.
Letter From the Editor
Scientists Braved the High Arctic to Chase Clouds on History’s Largest Polar Trip
December 17, 2020 — The Arctic is warming faster than anywhere on Earth, and clouds may be key. Photographs by Esther Horvath capture an extreme scientific mission.
A Struggling California Marsh Gets an Overhaul to Prepare for Rising Seas
December 17, 2020 — The restoration of the Sonoma Creek in the San Francisco Bay Area not only corrects problems of the past, but also looks to the future.
Climate
A Bestselling but Nearly Forgotten Writer's Life Offers Lessons for the Winter Ahead
December 17, 2020 — Homebound by illness and grief, Ada Clapham Govan found healing and a new direction by observing her backyard birds.
How Researchers Hope to Save the Florida Scrub-Jay From an Inbreeding Crisis
December 17, 2020 — Human development has caused the bird's gene pool to shrink. An ambitious experiment to relocate scrub-jay families could bring reprieve, while also pointing the way to preserving other threatened species.
Conservation
An Innovative Effort to Return Loons to Massachusetts Hits a Major Milestone
December 17, 2020 — New recovery techniques have helped the iconic waterbirds nest in the state's glacial lakes for the first time in more than a century.