Birds

Urban ecology is the focus of this year's annual Errington Lecture at Iowa State University. Dr. Amanda Rodewald will present “A Bird’s Eye View: Understanding Predator Prey Interactions in the City” Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. on the ISU campus.

Will Bortz used writing to get through a rocky childhood, spending time in and out of the foster system. Experiences from that time inspired much of his latest collection of poetry, Many Small Hungerings.

Ranchers across the Midwest are battling black vultures, a federally protected bird that has a reputation for killing newborn livestock. While the birds play a major ecological role, their expanding population is becoming a big nuisance for producers.

The days may still be hot, but fall is just around the corner, and with it comes all kinds of migratory birds to watch this season.

The spring bird migration is well underway. Expert birders return to the show to discuss the species that are returning to Iowa and others that are passing through.

Prairie chickens, a native species to parts of the Midwest and the Great Plains, were extirpated from the state through habitat destruction and hunting. The species was reintroduced in the 1980s with varying levels of success. There are now fewer than 100 wild prairie chickens living in the state.

Host Charity Nebbe and wildlife biologist Jim Pease observe the prairie chicken mating dance and discuss the species’ precarious situation in Iowa.

A wildlife biologist discusses the waterfowl who spend their winters in Iowa and what their presence can tell us about our state.

The latest case of bird flu in Iowa and the first of 2023 was found in a Buena Vista County commercial turkey facility. More than 27,000 turkeys are being destroyed to contain the spread of the virus.

Iowa conservation groups hope restoring a wetland just north of Big Spirit Lake will lead to better water quality and greater wildlife.