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Cornell Lab of Ornithology
@cornellbirds.bsky.social
2.4K followers 10 following 100 posts
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a world leader in the study, appreciation, and conservation of birds and biodiversity. birds.cornell.edu/home/
(White-breasted Nuthatch by Hannah Criswell / Macaulay Library)
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Minnesota in early November. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Daniël Cronk for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A small brown-and-white songbird climbing up a tree trunk, against a blurred green background. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Daniël Cronk / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
November 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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Dabbling ducks are often spotted in the “tip up” position as they forage for food. It sounds silly, but learning to recognize ducks by their butts can be a real ID gamechanger! Pick up our ID tips for "tip up" ducks. Go further with Duck ID in our course, on sale this weekend: bit.ly/DuckCourse
November 21, 2025 at 11:40 PM
cornellbirds.bsky.social
BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in British Columbia in early November. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Melissa Hafting for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A gray-and-white shorebird with a long, drooping bill and orange-yellow legs. The bird is perched on a dark gray rock in front of a blue-gray background. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Melissa Hafting / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
November 18, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Florida in early November. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Cuneyt Yilmaz for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A gray, black, and white songbird grasping a thin woody stem. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Cuneyt Yilmaz / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
November 11, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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Ever felt the magic of Merlin? From spotting new birds to learning their songs, Merlin connects millions worldwide. What started as an idea in 2008 at Cornell Lab is now a global movement uniting people with birds, one sighting at a time. Full story: www.birds.cornell.edu/home/the-mag...
Image description: Timeline with various photos of people looking at or holing up their phones in nature. Text reads: The making of Merlin. 2008 Idea for a digital bird ID tool was sparked after noticing lots of people searching descriptive queries like “yellow bird black cap” on our All About Birds website. 2009 Received a National Science Foundation grant to develop a 20-questions-style game that uses machine learning to identify bird species. 2010 eBird improves machine learning by providing detailed location and date info with bird photos and sounds from the Macaulay Library. 2014 App launches with ability to identify 285 species (can ID over 11,000 today). 2021 Sound ID launched thanks to user submitted sounds & 350+ experts annotating thousands upon thousands of spectrograms. 2025 Over 30 million downloads & 540 million bird songs identified.
November 5, 2025 at 4:45 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in California in November 2023. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Barbara Wise for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A small songbird perched on a deciduous branch, with a gray sky and orange leaves in the background. The bird is light gray with a black face and yellow breast. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Barbara Wise / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
November 4, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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For 40+ years, evolutionary ecologist Craig Benkman has tracked crossbills across North America—showing how these finches & conifers evolved together in a remarkable coevolutionary dance. 🌲🕊️
Their bill shapes even match the cones they feed on.
Full story: www.allaboutbirds.org/news/craig-b...
November 3, 2025 at 7:51 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed along the New York coast in early October 2021. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to John Gluth for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A shorebird flying over blue-and-white ocean waters. The bird has brownish upperparts and a long, downcurved bill. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © John Gluth / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
October 28, 2025 at 11:00 AM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Montana in October. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Dottie Herring for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A brown-and-gray bird standing on green grass. The bird has a large red streak extending down from the base of its bill and extensive black barring on its brown upperparts. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Dottie Herring / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
October 21, 2025 at 11:00 AM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed with a flock of European Starlings in Virginia in October 2022. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Jen Davis for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A hawk viewed from below against a blue sky, surrounded by seven European Starlings. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Jen Davis / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
October 7, 2025 at 11:00 AM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Colorado in mid-September. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Hannah Criswell for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A gray-and-blue songbird perched at the tip of a broken-off branch. The bird is set against a vibrant yellow background. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Hannah Criswell / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
September 30, 2025 at 11:00 AM
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In the final episode of Wild Bird Revealed we’re going on a deep dive into an Atlantic Puffin colony. Watch the full episode: hubs.la/Q03CnXG40 to see slow-motion footage of these seabirds catching fish underwater and flying through the air, their bills full of fish.
September 26, 2025 at 1:00 PM
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Migration Alert: Over 470 million birds are forecast to fly across the eastern Midwest tonight. Turn off all nonessential lights from 11 PM to 6 AM to keep them from becoming disoriented. More than a 1B birds die in glass collisions every year. Discover ways to help them: bit.ly/stopbirdcoll...
September 25, 2025 at 2:01 PM
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BIRD QUIZ:
September 23, 2025 at 11:01 AM
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Episode 2 of our new video series Wild Birds Revealed is here! This week we’re going deeper into the bustling world of Tree Swallows. Tracking this insect-loving bird through the sky is hard! This episode reveals their flight in slow motion and takes us into an active nest. hubs.la/Q03CnShz0
September 17, 2025 at 9:00 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Poland in early September. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Michal Rycak for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
A shorebird standing in shallow water, with its reflection below it. The bird has white underparts, mostly dark upperparts, and a black mask behind the eye. The bird is holding a small food item in its bill. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Michal Rycak / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.
September 16, 2025 at 11:01 AM
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This migration season, we've added extra quizzes to the free version of our BirdWise ID quizzing tool!🍂 Practice ID for Yellow-rumped Warbler, Western Sandpiper, Broad-winged Hawk, Rufous Hummingbird, and more. Be sure to try them before this special edition preview ends: bit.ly/BirdWiseFall
September 13, 2025 at 5:25 PM
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We’ve got a new video series out now! Wild Birds Revealed slows down the fascinating behaviors of wild birds, giving us a glimpse of their nuanced flight, fishing, diving, and nesting skills.
Watch Episode One, all about Ospreys, here: hubs.la/Q03CnKWX0
September 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in New Jersey in September 2022. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Erica Heusser for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A songbird perched on a branch in a deciduous tree, with large green leaves behind it. The bird has yellow underparts, olive-green upperparts, and a mostly pale bill. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Erica Heusser / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
September 9, 2025 at 11:01 AM
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YOU can be a bird hero: dim or turn off unnecessary lighting from 11pm-6am every night & treat the outside of your windows with repeating patterns spaced no more than 2x2 inches apart so birds see glass as a barrier. Learn how small actions can significantly reduce bird deaths bit.ly/stopbirdcoll...
September 4, 2025 at 3:00 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Alaska in August. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Karim Bouzidi for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A seabird holding several fish in its large, colorful bill. The bird is mostly black, with a white face. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Karim Bouzidi / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
August 26, 2025 at 11:01 AM
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It's no wonder people find fall warblers tricky to ID with so many variations on yellow plumage! Warblers are also notoriously quick and difficult to follow. Attend our fall warbler ID workshop to improve your skills! There are two dates to choose from: academy.allaboutbirds.org/live-event/i...
August 19, 2025 at 8:11 PM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Florida in early August. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Jerry Ling for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A bird perched on a thick branch, partially obscured by dense green vegetation. The bird has grayish-brown upperparts, light underparts, and a thick, slightly curved bill. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Jerry Ling / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
August 19, 2025 at 11:01 AM
cornellbirds.bsky.social
BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Quebec in August 2022. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Julie Blondeau for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A shorebird standing against a background of silvery water. The bird has a streaked breast, white belly, and brownish upperparts. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Julie Blondeau / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
August 12, 2025 at 11:01 AM
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BIRD QUIZ: Here is a bird photographed in Arizona in August 2022. Do you know what species it is? Leave your answer in Comments and we'll post ours at the end of the day. Thanks to Michael Stremciuc for sharing this photo with eBird and the Macaulay Library archive.
[Image description: A small songbird with a conical bill perched near the tip of thorny vegetation. The bird is blue, red, and purple, with black around the bill. Text on image: Mystery Bird, Avis ignota, © Michael Stremciuc / Macaulay Library, Cornell Lab.]
August 5, 2025 at 11:01 AM