Just in time, that's what our October 2010 issue is. Just in time for one of the most anticipated bird phenomena of the year: the annual, epic migration of hawks and other birds of prey across North America.
The issue will go on newsstands on August 31. (Ask for it at your favorite birding shop or bookstore!) Subscribers can read it online right now.
What's inside? Hawks!
Readers' Favorites Places to Watch Hawks
In the fifth installment of our series chronicling favorite places to watch birds, Associate Editor Matt Mendenhall lists the 25 locations in the United States and Canada that visitors to BirdersWorld.com voted their favorite places to watch hawks. Matt also describes our readers' favorite hawk hotspot -- you may have heard of it: it's a magical place at the southern tip of New Jersey called Cape May. Read Matt's article. See the 25 hawk hotspots on a map.
Read more about our Readers' Favorites Surveys.
Special bonus: A Guide to Hawks Seen in North America
Matt's article includes a special treat: a two-page guide to identifying 21 migratory birds of prey from our friends at the Hawk Migration Association of North America. It's what every beginning hawk watcher needs to get started identifying high-flying hawks, falcons, vultures, and eagles. And take it from me, you'll like it even if you're a hawk-watch veteran! Download the guide from HMANA.
A hawk on the cover
If you're one of the many fans of our online photo galleries, the Red-shouldered Hawk on the cover of the October issue might look familiar. That's because Florida photographer Robert Strickland posted it in our U.S. and Canada Gallery at the beginning of the year. "He presented me with a photo opportunity of a lifetime," Robert wrote of the hawk, "and I was sure glad to be there at the right time and right place." We're glad too. Have you posted a photo in our online galleries yet?
The October 2010 issue also contains three superb feature articles and describes four great places to go birding:
The House Effect
Science and nature writer Emily Wortman-Wunder explains the predictable and dramatic effect that a house, ranch, or other structure will have on the number and species of birds. Read about the house effect.
The Cave Swallows of Carlsbad Cavern
Steve West, author of the Birds of North America account about the Cave Swallow (No. 141), describes what we have learned about the species as a result of a banding project he started at the mouth of Carlsbad Cavern in New Mexico 30 years ago. Read about Cave Swallows.
Product review: Spotting scopes
Associate Editor Matt Mendenhall summarizes how birdwatchers at two great Milwaukee-area nature centers ranked 16 of the best spotting scopes on the market. Read our spotting-scope rankings.
Read about the Urban Ecology Center.
Read about the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center.
Where to go birding: Hotspots Near You
Four experienced local birdwatchers describe their favorite places to go birding:
From our contributing editors:
Kenn Kaufman focuses his binoculars on the crested flycatchers of the genus Myiarchus and tells what you should look for to distinguish Ash-throated Flycatcher from Great Crested and Brown-crested Flycatcher. Read ID Tips.
Julie Craves answers readers' questions about why bird poop is often white and how the chemicals used to keep our lawns green may be poisoning robins and other birds. Read Since You Asked.
Send your question about birds to Julie.
Pete Dunne writes about serving this summer as an instructor at the famous Audubon birding camp at Hog Island, Maine, along with Project Puffin founder Stephen Kress, author Scott Weidensaul, and Contributing Editor Kenn Kaufman. Read Birder at Large.
Read about 2011 Hog Island Ornithology Programs.
Founding Editor Eldon Greij provides a surprising explanation for the structure and purpose of the unusual horn-shaped structure that sits on top of the bill of many hornbills. Read Amazing Birds.
Paul Kerlinger describes the northern breeding range and long annual migration of the Parasitic Jaeger, and he gives strategies that will maximize your chances of seeing one this year. Read On the Move.
David Sibley explains what birds do with their legs and feet when they fly and describes how leg position can change the appearance of sandpipers, gulls, and terns from slender and tapered to stocky and short-bodied. Read ID Toolkit.
Read more about our contributing editors.
And that's not all…
You'll also find a summary of recent changes to the AOU's Check-list of North American Birds... a forecast of what migratory birds will find along the oil-soaked Gulf coast... a gallery of recent rare-bird sightings, including a photo of that Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush in South Dakota... and as in every issue, plenty of reader-supplied pictures, including the most recent winner of our Photo of the Week Contest.
See the table of contents of the 2010 issue.
I hope you enjoy reading the issue as much as we did creating it. Please leave a comment below or send a letter to the editor if you have questions or comments. I'd be happy to hear from you. --Chuck Hagner, Editor
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