Punk-biologist

A person holding a bird on a rooftop

Good news! I’ll be giving a virtual nighthawk talk for the Olympia Bird Alliance 11/13/25, 7pm. Registration is here: southsoundbirds.org/event/novemb...

'Goatsucker' Nighthawks Are Vanishing. These Chicagoans Are Trying To Find Out Why Populations of common nighthawks, sometimes called goatsuckers, are dropping across North America. A group of volunteers wants to make Chicago a safe haven for the species.

Here’s a great story about the Chicago Nighthawk Project and the birds people have come to think of as their neighborhood birds:

blockclubchicago.org/2025/06/27/g...

Santigoldfinch

Flamingo Lips

Mazzy starling

Favorite band/bird mashups?
Deep Purple Martin
Blue Oystercatcher Cult
I’ll see myself out.
Feel free to reply with your own.

Me too! I have one of your nocturnal shorelines above my desk to remind of my night surveys of birds.

At Smith and bybee lakes, Portland, Oregon

Think like a ranger. As a former ranger, I hereby deputize us all. Bring extra toilet paper, help each other , be kind to each other. Bonus: feel free to give impromptu nature talks.

And my thoughts (5 of 5):

(4 of 5):

(3 of 5):

(2 of 5):

Should we visit national parks?

Some thoughts from Will C De Man and my own (1 of 5):

Welp! Spring is here.
Green winged teal
Swainson thrush
Yellow rumped warblers
Tree swallows tweeting high up in the cottonwoods. Don’t know why I’m surprised when they come back every spring.
My first bumblebee, cranefly and moths of the year, a treat for the swallows.
Scaups
Ruddy ducks

Team Gar all the way.

Perhaps because you’re cdc, a syringe is more timeless and specific. ❤️

And now I will call the dish David Lunch.

Haha. I’ve done that too. Now vegan beef stroganoff is one of my favorites. Can you tell that I had a mid century midwestern upbringing? David lynch would have loved to make a movie out of it.

A red glowing device attached to a hummingbird feeder

To heat or not to heat a hummingbird feeder. Read more at my Feathered Reptile blog at gretchennewberry.wordpress.com/2025/02/14/t...

Bird foot prints in the snow

A bit of backyard birding here in Portland where we don’t often get snow. The juncos leave pretty little animal tracks.

And the working classes who quietly keep the lights on at our safety net, the federal government, quietly yet subjected to abuse,and without the ability to speak up for themselves for fear of retribution. Keep speaking up, alt national park, we need you. ❤️

A grey cat on a flowery bedspread.

My quarantini is Ellen Swallow Richards, named for the first woman to earn a graduate degree in Chemistry in the US and the mother of sustainability. I call her Ellie.

Mallards
Black capped chickadees
Red crossbills!
Bald eagles
Unidentified frogs

Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge
Trumpeter swans
Tundra swans
Sandhill cranes
Red tailed hawk
Belted Kingfisher
Canada geese
Song sparrows
Spotted towees
Common goldeneyes
Buffleheads
Stellars Jay
Red winged blackbirds
Scrub jays
Anna’s hummingbird

A bit of birding break from it all

Yes! Keanu is grown into such a soulful actor. ❤️

I gotta say, I laughed pretty hard at Keanu’s accent in the 90s, but this movie has absolutely grown on me. Gary Oldman is darkly alluring, and Winona Ryder portrays the attraction for a doomed romance so well.

“People should know we are antifascist, anti violence, anti racist, and we’re pro creativity.” - Joe strummer. An exploration of the clash’s spirit in today’s music scene.

Tune in 5am-10pm PT. This will be available in the archive for 2 weeks.

Authors if you see this, it’s a sign to post the first line of your book.

"Catastrophe is never convenient.”

Yes! Those strange feather tufts look like appendages. Most likely used to give competing birds two middle fingers. Hey it’s a new interpretation of “flipping the bird”!