Laura Erickson's For the Birds

The Day of the Condor, Part 2 16.01.2026 7:58 ↓

Last month, Laura got to feast her eyes on her "Most Wanted Bird" in the world--an Andean Condor.

Day of the Condor, Part 1 15.01.2026 8:56 ↓

Today Laura celebrates the California Condor.

2026: The Year of the Pigeon? 07.01.2026 5:40 ↓

What does it mean when your first bird of the year is a pigeon?

The Darkling Thrush 31.12.2025 6:32 ↓

One of Laura's listeners and readers, Linda Peplinski, gave Laura a lovely reminder of Thomas Hardy's poem *The Darkling Thrush.*

Homecoming 26.12.2025 6:45 ↓

Five percent of Laura's joy in a trip comes during the planning stages; 45 percent comes during the actual trip; and a full 50 percent comes in the days, weeks, and years after the trip is over.

Ecuador! 24.12.2025 5:41 ↓

Laura's back from a wonderful trip.

Katie's Birthday 10.12.2025 7:52 ↓

Laura's daughter, turning 42 years old on December 10, is facing a hard ordeal.

Ecuador! 09.12.2025 5:07 ↓

On December 8, Laura plans to go to sleep on the far side of the Equator.

Energy Star 02.12.2025 7:34 ↓

Tech companies and data centers will squander electricity and water until we impose strict regulations and give them cost incentives.

Fakery 21.11.2025 4:52 ↓

Why would anyone use AI to create fake birds when reality is so splendid?

Big Data 18.11.2025 6:04 ↓

Little by little, we've become inured to more and more technological intrusions, some of which bear enormous environmental costs.

Book Review: New edition of the National Geographic guide 11.11.2025 7:55 ↓

It's comprehensive and includes birds of Hawaii now, but is too big to carry in the field, and the font is much too small to be readable for me.

Another October Rarity: A Cattle Egret! 05.11.2025 5:54 ↓

What's a cattle egret doing just outside Duluth around Halloween?

Dealing with the sun, insects, difficult terrain, and heavy equipment 31.10.2025 6:20 ↓

Laura talks about how she protects herself from sunburn, bug bites, and falls while traveling, and also how she manages her heavy equipment in her dotage.

Staying Healthy for Birding at 73 30.10.2025 4:53 ↓

Laura is trying to keep her body fit and healthy so she can keep birding.

Keeping my brain sharp at 73 29.10.2025 6:04 ↓

Now that Laura's in her seventies, she's developed a few strategies for keeping her mind and body fit for birding tours.

A Black Phoebe in Minnesota?! 28.10.2025 7:11 ↓

A Black Phoebe, a species of the American Southwest not known for wandering, showed up at Gooseberry Falls this weekend.

Chestnut-collared Longspur in Two Harbors! 23.10.2025 6:11 ↓

On Saturday, Laura saw a brand new, long-coveted state bird for Minnesota--a Chestnut-collared Longspur

Longspurs! 22.10.2025 7:09 ↓

Laura tells us about her experiences with a group of little birds that were once considered sparrows.

Sun Parakeet 21.10.2025 5:26 ↓

When Laura was in Guyana, she fell in love with this stunningly beautiful bird, a species that is globally endangered thanks to the pet trade.

My Top Bird Guides: Leon Moore 14.10.2025 7:51 ↓

Laura's Guyana trip this year was led by one of the best bird guides Laura has ever spent time with. What makes a good bird guide truly great? Laura will be doing a live Zoom presentation about her Guyana trip for subscribers (free or paid) of her Substack blog next Tuesday night (October 21 at 7 pm CDT). The program will be recorded and made available on her website.

Saw-whet Owl Banding, Part 4: Finding Saw-whet Owls 07.10.2025 4:42 ↓

How can we find owls on our own?

Saw-whet Owl Banding, Part 3 03.10.2025 5:48 ↓

The more bird banders learn about owls, the more questions they have.

Saw-whet Owl Banding, Part 2 01.10.2025 5:33 ↓

After saw-whet owls molt out of their baby feathers in summer, it's impossible to look at any Northern Saw-whet Owl and know what sex it is or how old it is unless it's in the hand and we're armed with measuring tools and a black light.

Saw-whet Owl Banding, Part 1 30.09.2025 5:00 ↓

Laura got to spend Saturday night watching saw-whet owls get banded at Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory.