Birds
So do ostriches really bury their heads in the sand?
Why do we say ostriches bury their heads in the sand - and do they really bury their heads? Stuart Blackman looks at the evidence and how this saying originated
Heron vs egret: what's the difference between these two leggy, long-necked, very elegant, beautiful birds?
Know your herons from your egrets? Tom Hibbert from The Wildlife Trusts takes a look at some of the differences…
What's the most common bird in the world? Clue there's a whopping 20 billion of them
From agricultural pests to garden favourites, these are the most common and widely seen birds around the world – both wild and domestic
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Caught, plucked, and kept ALIVE: Does this deadly predator take ruthlessness and cruelty to a new level, inflicting a fate worse than death on its prey?
Do Eleonora’s falcons cach migrant birds alive to eat later?
What's the most common bird of prey on the planet?
Have you spotted one of these mesmerising raptors?
“I’ve got a lost baby swift – I’m going to put it in our bedroom!” What happened next is remarkable
When a baby swift falls from the nest, it’s the start of an extraordinary journey for both bird and rescuer
"With a gothic sartorial elegance worthy of a Transylvanian count, it’s not hard to see how the Dracula parrot got its name"
Learn all about the Dracula parrot and what it eats...
These 5 birds have the weirdest feet you’ll ever see – from flipper-like toes to neon blue feet – and incredible reasons for them
Bird feet come in all shapes and sizes in the animal kingdom - some of them are deadly, some not, and some of them are downright bizarre.
It spans a colossal 2.7km, borders two countries and can be seen from space – and is home to one of the most daring animals on Earth
South America's Iguazu Falls is the world's largest waterfall system. Yet, despite its imposing size, a devoted bird flies through its crashing cascades to raise its young.
“It has features unseen in any birds.” This bizarre Hawaiian animal just got even stranger
The ‘akiapōlāʻau has evolved similarly to woodpeckers, despite being found in different regions of the world
It might sound sweet – but actually it's anything but as your garden robin is sending out a warning
Robins sing all year round, but their songs become more of a warning call in winter
10-year-old boy tags rare black stork near Chernobyl then tracks it in motorhome. This is what he discovered
Noah Beshto is on a mission to learn more about one of the planet's most mysterious birds.
Invasive rabbits were removed from an island in Chile – then something "extraordinary" happened
In just over 10 years, the population of Peruvian diving petrels on Choros Island soared from 12,000 breeding pairs to nearly 90,000, offering hope in a time of global seabird declines.
Rare bird species breeds in UK for first time ever
A pair of Blyth’s reed warblers raised young at a site in Scotland.
They strike with clenched talons at 200mph, crush skulls, shred prey, and can inflict deep head wounds on humans – 10 most dangerous, deadliest birds of prey on the planet
Silent wings, razor-sharp talons, and killer precision—these apex aerial predators rule the skies. Here are the world’s deadliest birds of prey
Researchers studied these mysterious penguins for the first time in over 25 years. They were shocked at the results
New data provides insight into the two isolated populations of the erect-crested penguin – both helping and complicating future conservation efforts.
Scientists put a dead chicken in a forest. Vultures gathered, then a carnivore lunged out of the trees
Researchers studying scavenger communities in Ecuador were stunned when a carnivorous mammal attempted to attack a group of vultures.
Seabirds can suffer jet lag that throws them off course, say experts
Manx shearwaters returning to their colonies can veer up to 15 degrees off course when their internal clocks fall out of sync with local time.
Fox finds bird of prey nest in tree – then does something that has never been seen before
Remote cameras in Argentina have filmed Pampas foxes climbing trees and preying on chimango caracara nestlings.
In the 1980s, California condors went extinct in the wild. 7 were just released near the California-Oregon border
The recent release is part of the Northern California Condor Restoration Program’s efforts to re-establish a healthy population of birds across the species’ historic range.
“It’s awful to see as it leads to slow, painful deaths for birds.” This swan couldn’t swim – until a rescue team swooped in
When a sick, struggling swan was spotted in Kent, a rescue mission set off to save him.
This underwater robot was filming 30m deep off the Californian coast, when an “unexpected visitor” showed up
A cormorant surprised ocean researchers when it photobombed their underwater survey.
Urban birds may be more afraid of women than men – and scientists are struggling to explain why
The difference appeared across 37 different bird species in five European countries
“Unbelievable thing to see”: Drone captures never-seen-before footage of penguin chicks plunging 50 feet into Antarctic Ocean
The dramatic footage was filmed for National Geographic's series Secret Lives of Penguins.
