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Birds of the Blue Ridge

CURRENT Birds of the Blue Ridge

Homes for Displaced Chimney Swifts: A Refuge for Fall and Spring

As old industrial and school buildings and their chimneys disappear, so too do refuge spots for migrating swifts. Work is underway to create new hollow spaces for the birds to overnight safely.

Birds of the Blue Ridge: Northern Flicker

The first flicker I remember seeing confounded me. With binoculars in one hand and my favorite field guide in the other, a positive ID was made: Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker.

Birds of the Blue Ridge: Warblers

Spring migration is upon us and all our feathered friends who’ve wintered in Central and South America are winging their way to and through the Blue Ridge.

Housing Projects for Bluebirds

Sustaining the once-dwindling bluebird population depends on human help.

Eagle Watch in East Tennessee: A Species Comes Back

Our writer/photographer’s boyhood fascination with bald eagles has become a lifetime hobby.

Current Issue

Swifts can eat up to 10,000 insects a day.

Homes for Displaced Chimney Swifts: A Refuge for Fall and Spring

As old industrial and school buildings and their chimneys disappear, so too do refuge spots for migrating swifts. Work is underway to create new hollow spaces for the birds to overnight safely.
e2c11504-3dd4-11ed-a2f7-12274efc5439-Yellow-shafted-Flicker-1---photo-by-Mike-Blevins

Birds of the Blue Ridge: Northern Flicker

The first flicker I remember seeing confounded me. With binoculars in one hand and my favorite field guide in the other, a positive ID was made: Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker.
The Yellow Warbler, with its wide distribution across the continent, is also a familiar sight around water and along the edges of wooded areas. Both sexes wear the most extensive amount of yellow of all our warblers – including the tail spots.

Birds of the Blue Ridge: Warblers

Spring migration is upon us and all our feathered friends who’ve wintered in Central and South America are winging their way to and through the Blue Ridge.
f63e98da-cf94-11ec-ad14-12274efc5439-AdobeStock_354103987

Housing Projects for Bluebirds

Sustaining the once-dwindling bluebird population depends on human help.
A bald eagle soars over the Holston River in Hawkins County, Tennessee while taking a break from incubating its eggs.

Eagle Watch in East Tennessee: A Species Comes Back

Our writer/photographer’s boyhood fascination with bald eagles has become a lifetime hobby.
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Departments

At Coopers Rock State Forest, new Stargazer cabins invite guests to look up through skylights and telescopes.
Country Roads

Even Closer to Almost Heaven

New Stargazer cabins at Coopers Rock State Forest offer a skyward escape in the mountains of West Virginia.

June 29, 2026
©Duncan Seaman
Country Roads

A Mountain Tradition Turns 90 

Visitors flock to Galax, Virginia, each summer for the Old Fiddlers’ Convention, a days-long celebration of Appalachian music.

June 29, 2026
Synchronous Fireflies
Creature Feature

The Light Fantastic

Fireflies are struggling with the effects of artificial light.

June 29, 2026

CALENDAR OF EVENTS