December 2012

This issue, our 156th, is special. It's the sixth and final number of our 25th-anniversary year, the first of another exciting winter season, and the first to be published by our new owner: Madavor Media of Quincy, Massachusetts.

When to listen for Great Horned Owls, where they nest, how they hunt, and whether you should be concerned about your pet dog or cat.

How Anna's Hummingbird became a year-round visitor at backyard feeders in the Pacific Northwest, and what to do if a hummingbird chooses to stay in your yard this winter.

An Important Bird Area where thousands of Brant, Northern Pintail, and other waterfowl gather to feed, shelter, and socialize each winter.

A 35-mile-long road south of Orlando that makes it easy to spot Anhingas, Limpkins, and other large specialty birds of the Southeast.

A backcountry birding bonanza nestled in Los Padres National Forest, only 20 minutes from Santa Barbara.

Located in 240-acre Chisholm Creek Park, a great place to see handsome Harris's Sparrow and many other birds.

Why we birdwatchers are driven to turn nonbirders into birders — and why suburbia may be more effective at it than we are.

How to economize on your bird feeding while increasing its value to your birds.

Clever and surprising heat-saving adaptations and strategies that enable birds to tolerate winter's coldest weather.

How to distinguish Least Bittern from Green Heron and American Bittern, and what to look for to recognize the rarely photographed "Cory's" Least Bittern.

How to use the shape and size of distant flocks to identify the birds flying in them.

Researchers have discovered contaminants from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster more than 1,100 miles from the site of the oil spill — in eggs laid by American White Pelicans in Minnesota.

Why biologists now believe that foods provided by birdwatchers aren't to blame for the deformed beaks observed on chickadees, crows, and other birds in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.

How a book by Fred Bodsworth, who died in September 2012, revealed to the world the beauty, audacity, and fragility of birds.

Why the summer of 2012 will be remembered for major irruptions of two songbirds that normally occur in vastly different habitats: Dickcissel and Red Crossbill.

How it has been proved that yards with native plants are better for birds than yards dominated by green lawns.

How poisons meant to target rats are killing birds, including a mate of New York City's most famous Red-tailed Hawk, Pale Male.

See the winner of our most recent photo contest, plus a ghostly Ruffed Grouse, an adorable Mallard duckling, a Wood Duck really close up, a just-fledged Great Horned Owl, a curious Gray Jay, and five other photos.

How a subscriber managed to take a photo that shows every feather of a Ruddy Turnstone in flight over a beach in Redington Shores, Florida.

Readers write about aspen logging in Alberta and the winter SeaBC, or Sea Bird Count, and share how they felt about the news of Madavor Media's purchase of BirdWatching magazine.