Where Birds and Science Take Flight

The Ornithologist is an independent online magazine dedicated to birds, research, and conservation—bridging science and storytelling to inspire a global audience. Publication image is by Piotr Pogoda. All rights reserved

Peregrine Falcon Downlisting Debate Exposes a Flawed Conservation Cycle
A proposal to ease international trade restrictions on the Peregrine Falcon has triggered warnings that conservation gains could be undermined just as the species recovers. © Attila Szilágyi

Peregrine Falcon Downlisting Debate Exposes a Flawed Conservation Cycle

Peregrine Falcon CITES Downlisting 7Dec250:00/194.664489795918371× The proposal to downlist the Peregrine Falcon from Appendix I to Appendix II under CITES has prompted a wave of concern among raptor specialists, who warn that the move risks destabilising one of conservation’s most expensive recovery stories. The issue, highlighted in The Parliament Magazine, underscores a broader problem in international wildlife governance: the assumption that population recovery is equivalent to lo


Gyorgy Szimuly

Gyorgy Szimuly

News

Stay informed with the latest bird-related headlines from around the world. The News section brings you timely updates, short communications, rediscoveries, rare sightings, policy changes, and conservation breakthroughs—curated from both scientific sources and field reports. Whether it’s a vagrant appearing far from home, a forgotten species nesting again, or an urgent threat to habitat, this is where fast-moving stories in the bird world are told.

Peregrine Falcon Downlisting Debate Exposes a Flawed Conservation Cycle
A proposal to ease international trade restrictions on the Peregrine Falcon has triggered warnings that conservation gains could be undermined just as the species recovers. © Attila Szilágyi

Peregrine Falcon Downlisting Debate Exposes a Flawed Conservation Cycle

Peregrine Falcon CITES Downlisting 7Dec250:00/194.664489795918371× The proposal to downlist the Peregrine Falcon from Appendix I to Appendix II under CITES has prompted a wave of concern among raptor specialists, who warn that the move risks destabilising one of conservation’s most expensive recovery stories. The issue, highlighted in The Parliament Magazine, underscores a broader problem in international wildlife governance: the assumption that population recovery is equivalent to lo


Gyorgy Szimuly

Gyorgy Szimuly

Rare coastal hailstorm kills or injures nearly 1,900 birds in Texas
Dead Brown Pelicans lie scattered across a Coastal Bend nesting site following the 1 November hailstorm, which caused one of the region’s most severe recorded bird mortality events. © Harte Research Institute

Rare coastal hailstorm kills or injures nearly 1,900 birds in Texas

A violent hailstorm that struck the Coastal Bend of Texas on 1 November delivered a rare and devastating blow to local bird populations. Updated assessments from the Harte Research Institute indicate that nearly 1,900 birds were killed or severely injured, with Brown Pelicans making up the vast majority of the casualties. Researchers recorded approximately 1,860 affected birds, including around 1,484 Brown Pelicans. While the storm primarily hit coastal waterbirds, smaller numbers o


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The Ornithologist

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Rare coastal hailstorm kills or injures nearly 1,900 birds in Texas
Dead Brown Pelicans lie scattered across a Coastal Bend nesting site following the 1 November hailstorm, which caused one of the region’s most severe recorded bird mortality events. © Harte Research Institute

Rare coastal hailstorm kills or injures nearly 1,900 birds in Texas

A violent hailstorm that struck the Coastal Bend of Texas on 1 November delivered a rare and devastating blow to local bird populations. Updated assessments from the Harte Research Institute indicate that nearly 1,900 birds were killed or severely injured, with Brown Pelicans making up the vast majority of the casualties. Researchers recorded approximately 1,860 affected birds, including around 1,484 Brown Pelicans. While the storm primarily hit coastal waterbirds, smaller numbers o


The Ornithologist

The Ornithologist

Farewell to Solstice: The Last Stewart Island Kākāpō Passes Away
Kākāpō conservation remains one of New Zealand’s most intensive recovery missions — a reminder of what has been saved, and what could still be lost. © Oscar Thomas

Farewell to Solstice: The Last Stewart Island Kākāpō Passes Away

Solstice, the final female kākāpō originally from Stewart Island, passed away in Dunedin after several months of treatment for cloacitis – a recurring disease that has claimed several individuals in recent years. Her death has resonated deeply among conservationists who have followed her story for nearly three decades. First discovered in 1997, Solstice was found against all odds – years after her species had been declared locally extinct on Stewart Island. At that time, the last kn


Gyorgy Szimuly

Gyorgy Szimuly

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