Safe Passage

By AV's Intern Team | February 14, 2013 |

By Matt Grimley Every fall and spring, an ongoing restlessness called zugenruhe begins to make some birds’ wings twitch at night. They will gorge on seeds and insects, fattening their bodies by as much as 10 percent per day. Solitary birds will even flock together for better predator avoidance, food finding and orientation for the…

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The Custodian’s Conundrum

By AV's Intern Team | February 13, 2013 |

By Molly Moore A swarthy tree trunk stands in a small clearing, a gap in the forest canopy created by its once-thick crown of leaves. Shrubs and saplings clamor for sunlight around the tree’s base, and carpenter ants colonize the wood’s damp interior, pushing it closer to decay. Sensing this activity, a pileated woodpecker, with…

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