I spent much of the summer transfixed by this year’s pair of phoebes who nested on the back porch as usual, and from a favorite low perch just across the way from there, launched themselves repeatedly into mid-air to catch insect after insect. ![]()
How do birds get their food, and what do they eat, anyway? Well that depends on the bird, and Ellen Blackstone of BirdNote.org has some answers. A million people a day and more than 200 radio markets hear the 2-minute public radio show called Bird Note, and now “BirdNote” is a book too, which Ellen edited.

A Way to Garden with Margaret Roach: Ali Stafford on Favorite Cookbooks Sorry to spoil the surprise, but if you’re on my holiday shopping...
The time is approaching for my annual pass with the tractor through my little meadow on the hill above my house, the one time...