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Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis Bill Rowe And now for something completely different…a bird that was once unknown in Missouri but is now spreading so fast that we can barely keep up with it. And, in a pattern we are now accustomed…

Kentucky Warbler, Geothlypis formosa Bill Rowe It’s a fine day in June, and you are taking a hike through the woods on one of your favorite trails. After a while you begin to notice a recurring bird song—a vigorous chant with…

Semipalmated Sandpiper, Calidris pusilla Bill Rowe Let’s begin with a reminder that the smallest sandpipers, the sparrow-sized ones, form a distinctive subset known as “peeps” in the U.S. (or “stints” in the U.K.). Worldwide, there are seven species, three of them…

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Tyrannus forficatus Bill Rowe Of the many North American flycatchers, the kingbirds (genus Tyrannus) often strike us as having a lot of “personality”—they are handsome, conspicuous, and noisy. And among the kingbirds, surely the most extravagantly handsome and conspicuous is…

Swainson’s Thrush, Catharus ustulatus Bill Rowe Every spring, along with the warblers and other migrants, come the spotted thrushes—a term that covers five species, one of which, the Wood Thrush, is a locally-nesting bird, while another, the Hermit Thrush, comes through…

Tennessee Warbler, Leiothlypis peregrina Bill Rowe The Tennessee Warbler is one of a large suite of warblers that winter in the tropics and then migrate north on a broad front, throughout the eastern United States, to reach their nesting grounds in…

Sora, Porzana carolina Bill Rowe Not everyone has ever seen a rail, so it’s time to introduce them, starting with the commonest and most easily observed of the seven American species: the Sora. This is a robin-sized bird of wetlands small…

Henslow’s Sparrow, Centronyx henslowii Bill Rowe Now that it’s April, approaching May, try walking into a dense grassy field, with thick ground cover and some emergent stalks and shrubs, and tuning your ears to soft insect-like sounds. With luck, you may…

Bonaparte’s Gull, Chroicocephalus philadelphia Bill Rowe Bonaparte’s Gull, the smallest of our four common gull species, breeds far to our north, in the Canadian and Alaskan taiga (a Russian word meaning the boreal forest of pine, fir, and spruce). There, unlike…

Barred Owl, Strix varia Bill Rowe As you explore the woods, sooner or later you will find yourself looking at a Barred Owl looking at you. There is no implied threat—the bird seems simply curious and imperturbable—but as you gradually approach…