Right now, millions of birds are migrating south before the onset of the boreal winter. @ksepkalab.bsky.social and I explore the evolutionary origins of this amazing behavior in our article for @sciam.bsky.social! www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-...

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Hello little treecreeper! 🪶

Is it still called a wagtail if it can't wag its tail yet? Asking for this little fella here. The third picture shows the adult, full tail wagging ahead. #birds

Chaffinches are called Buchfinken in German, so from now on I will refer to them as bookfinches. Now I wonder what they'd read... #birds

It's white stork season! You can hear their bill clattering all over the place, and I think I've already seen the first nests with chicks in them. #birds

Northern lapwings are such cool birds. Their funny crest, their glossy feathers, their flying antics and their unique "pee-wit" sound truly makes them stand out from the crowd. Or, in this case, out from the marsh. #birds

Did someone say bird bath? This wood pigeon is treating itself to a spa day. It has been soaking in there for at least 15 minutes. #birds

I came across this nuthatch sitting on the ground (!) of all things. Upon seeing me, it quickly retreated back to the trees and gave me a bit of a cheeky look. #birds

I totally forgot that I meant to share this picture like three months ago. Anyway, happy great titty Thursday! #birds

It's cold out there. Time to puff up and eat some peanuts. And maybe turn off the news for a while. 🪶

Mr. Chaffinch is a cute, yet messy eater. Today he got in before the pigeon clean up crew arrived. 😄 #birds

New local visitor unlocked! 🤗 #birds

The great tits and blue tits are going strong these days. I could watch these little bandits doing their thing all day long. #birds

"Crows tenaciously hold grudges. When a murder of crows singles out a person as dangerous, its wrath can be alarming, and can be passed along to other individuals, creating multigenerational grudges." 🪶

I've noticed a lot of buzzards circling over our part of town recently. Finally one of them decided to have a little break nearby. 🪶

The chiffchaffs are still going strong with their song. Lovely little birds. Hard to spot, too. #birds

This song thrush kept surprisingly close to me - until I realized that it had set its eyes on a tasty caterpillar. 🐛🪶

"We’re living in the golden age of birding, and like any good cult member, I’m recruiting people to the cause." 🪶

"Unhatched birds and hatchlings that are exposed to noise from city traffic experience long-term negative effects on their health, growth and reproduction." 🪶

The wood warblers have arrived! These tiny birds only recently came back to Europe from their winter grounds in sub-Saharan Africa. #birds

It took me a while because they are so well hidden, but I finally managed to get a nice shot of a Eurasian wren. And it's singing, of course. #birds

I've never seen an owl in the wild before. So you can imagine the excitement when I spotted this tawny owl roosting in a tree during the day hardly 20 meters away from the path on my recent trip to the Black Forest. #birds #owls

Another discovery from yesterday's walk: a crested tit, which thankfully sat very still for me to take a few pictures. #birds

"In a pair of new research papers, scientists reveal that another event 65 million years ago misled them about the true family history of birds." 🪶

New lifer today in the rain: A male Eurasian blackcap. #birds

"We observed that Japanese tits flutter their wings exclusively in the presence of their mate, and upon witnessing this behavior, the mate almost always entered the nest box first." phys.org/news/2024-03... 🪶

Never seen that before: This blue tit is actively scraping off the bark of the apple tree to gather its nesting material. #birds

Caught a nuthatch not hanging upside down a tree for once. #birds

According to Merlin, the serin is a rare bird around here. So I'm extra happy to welcome them back on my balcony for the second year in a row. #birds

Found a picture of this scruffy raven from our vacation in the US. We hardly see ravens where I live in Germany. However , I recently heard one in the local woods, so there is hope for a more local snap... 🪶

Imagine you just want to eat in peace and this one comes along. 🪶

The blackbirds got their waterproofing done. I love how the tiny rain drops just roll off their feathers. #birds

"The yellow-crested helmetshrike was considered lost after going unseen for nearly 20 years – now an expedition has rediscovered what appears to be a healthy population in central Africa."

New species spotted at the feeder: Eurasian siskin. Let's see if he becomes a regular or just had a fly-by. 🪶

You can tell the blackbird is plotting something 😄 #birds

"House raids, seizure of live chicks and extensive forensic testing are helping police uncover a multimillion-pound international trade plagued by illegality."

Spotted this black woodpecker this morning. #birds

"An international team of scientists found that birds began diversifying tens of millions of years before the fateful collision, suggesting that the asteroid had no major effect on bird evolution."

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The goldfinches are showing up for the first time this winter.

"The least social birds were also among the most likely to displace others."

Hello!