John E. Riutta

At the close of my previous post I encouraged all who wished to do so to write their senators and representatives to urge them to reign in U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff in his circumventing of the environmental laws that will be violated in the process of completing the construction of the Great Wall of […]

When I first heard the news that the Bush administration and its Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff planned to circumvent a host of environmental laws in order to effect the completion of the “Great Wall of Bush” dividing the U.S. from Mexico, I knew that various crimes against nature would soon be committed. The […]

Tapping away on the laptop late this morning, I noticed out of the corner of my eye considerable activity just outside the window in our yard. The flashes of orange and black, and the overall level of commotion made me initially think it was simple a flock of passing American Robins, Turdus migratorious, and I […]

Though it has long been thought to be merely an incorrect assumption made on the part of early ornithologists who lacked the understanding of bird physiology and migration that we possess today, it seems that the idea that hummingbirds migrated by riding on the backs of larger birds is actually true. A recent report scheduled […]