A dying red oak was about to be felled when a bird’s parental instincts kicked in.

When songbird species congregate at bird feeders, they're at higher risk of disease transmission. Humans can help by keeping feeders clean. 

It started in the Eisenhower era: Every year, Wisdom, a Layan albatross, has returned to her nesting grounds on the Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.

Birds descended from the dinosaurs, but researchers have known relatively little about how the bird's brain took shape over millions of years. A new fossil sheds light on that mystery.

As Vaux’s Swifts migrate south, they roost together in a chimney, drawing crowds

Nest-building isn’t just instinct. Birds can learn from others, letting groups within one species develop their own distinctive nest-building traditions.

After illness decimated the population in Georgia two years ago, annual surveys of bald eagle nests by the state Department of National Resources found nesting success was above average in most areas checked in 2024.

A study finds that carrion crows can be taught to count and make vocalizations that indicate the number counted, much in the same way that human toddlers do.

It may seem far-fetched to believe your pet could be carried off by a larger bird, but it can and does happen. In fact, Georgia is home to the main culprits when it comes to pet abduction.

When an NPR reporter heard a startling loud metallic noise in her house, she was about to get an interesting lesson in animal behavior.

Georgia beaches beckon not only locals and tourists, but also nesting shorebirds and seabirds and migrating species beefing up for long flights to the Arctic.

With strong binoculars or a spotting scope, you can see two roughly 6-week-old raven chicks in the nest. Ravens used to be more abundant in the Eastern U.S., but by the 1930s their numbers had declined, likely from a loss of forested habitat. A wildlife biologistsays the nest at Tallulah Gorge is a good sign for the species.

At Bear Divide, just outside Los Angeles, you can see a rare spectacle of nature. This is one of the only places in the western United States where you can see bird migration during daylight hours.

They say the chicken crossed the road to get to the other side, but folks in Houston County are asking about why a different bird is wandering about. Wandering the streets is a peacock, leaving onlookers surprised, social media delighted — and animal control on the hunt.

Tiny, black-capped chickadees have big memories. They stash food in hundreds to thousands of locations in the wild – and then come back to these stashes when other food sources are low. Now, researchers at Columbia University's Zuckerman Institute think neural activity that works like a barcode may be to thank for this impressive feat — and that it might be a clue for how memories work across species.

Curious about other animal behavior mysteries? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.