Natural History Journal

"Ask the animals and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky and they will tell you; or speak to the earth and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you.  Which of these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?   In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind ."  (Job 12:7-10) If you missed part one of this essay, Reflecting on Nature and Faith , I encourage you to  read it here first ! I believe that God speaks through nature, his creation, to everyone, but I think he speaks to naturalists and those interested in the natural world in very special and specific ways. He speaks to biologists, revealing himself in the beautifully balanced ecosystems around us: "He [the Lord] makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.  They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.  The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the br...

  "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.  Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.  There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.  Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." (Psalm 19:1-4) I believe "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis 1:1) I believe "In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of men." (John 1:1-4) I believe "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;" (Psalm 24:1-2) My Christian faith affects how I see rocks and sunrises, how I hear birdsong and laughter, how I think about bird migration and photosynth...

With a name that sounds like an insult and the habit of repeatedly beating its head against tree trunks, the non-birder might not expect much of the Red-breasted Sapsucker.  The uninitiated might not even believe you when you try to convince them that "sapsucker" is, in fact, the name of a real bird! The sapsuckers of North America (there are three more species in addition to the Red-breasted: the Yellow-bellied, Red-naped and Williamson's Sapsuckers) are closely related to woodpeckers and flickers, all of which are members of the woodpecker family, Picidae.  North America's diverse forests are home to 22 extant species of woodpecker, including the four sapsuckers.  (Sadly, a twenty-third species, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker of the South's old growth swamps was last seen with certainty in the 1940's and is most likely extinct.) Woodpeckers are a super cool group of birds, uniquely adapted with some really incredible anatomical features that allow them to take ...

These Orange-crowned Warblers are quickly becoming some of my favorite backyard birds.  In addition to splashing in the birdbath , they have also taken to visiting our hummingbird feeders, perching on the edge and sipping nectar like oversized yellow hummingbirds.  (No wonder the nectar is disappearing so fast!) Though largely insectivorous, Orange-crowned Warblers will also supplement their diet in winter by feeding on nectar from flowers, and, when the opportunity presents itself, hummingbird feeders!   Our feeders hang just outside the windows, so I've been able to snap a few photos.  These birds are such fun to watch!

 Same birdbath.  Different warbler. While Yellow-rumped Warblers move through the trees and shrubs of wintertime neighborhoods in loose flocks, constantly calling to each other with soft contact calls, Orange-crowned Warblers are generally seen singly during the winter, moving quietly through low trees and shrubs in search of food.  A couple of these little warblers have been hanging out in our yard lately, and I managed to snap a few photos of this one taking a bath. Unlike Yellow-rumped Warblers, which prominently display their namesake field mark, Orange-crowned Warblers are named for a subtle feature that is hardly ever visible in the field: a small patch of orange feathers on the top of its head.  In a few of these photos, the orange crown just shows through this bird's wet feathers.  Look closely! Like many other North American warblers, the Orange-crowned breeds in montane forests across Alaska and Canada, following the Sierra-Cascade and Rocky Mountain ...

One of the best ways to attract a greater variety of birds to a backyard setting is to add water.  While only certain birds visit seed feeders, they all must drink and bathe.  I have found that a few strategically-placed (and regularly cleaned) bird baths fashioned from shallow terracotta saucers attract warblers and other insectivorous songbirds up close, affording longer looks at these beautiful though often flighty creatures. Recently, I snapped a few photos, through the window, of a Yellow-rumped Warbler enjoying a morning bath.   Yellow-rumped Warblers ( Setophaga coronata ) are perhaps the most familiar warbler across the North American continent, where they breed in northern coniferous forests during the summer months before moving south in great numbers to fill the southern half of the continent.  Dubbed "Swarm Warblers" by expert birder Pete Dunne, this apt description only hints at the sheer number of fluttering, feeding, chipping Yellow-rumps that ove...