Two barred owls perched together on a lichen-covered branch surrounded by green foliage, both facing forward with distinctive facial discs and dark eyes.

A small kingfisher perched on a bare branch, featuring a dark slate-blue head and back, white underside with rust-colored flanks, and a long pointed bill, set against a blurred green background.

A great blue heron with extended wings wades through shallow ocean water, its long neck curved elegantly and sharp beak pointed forward, with water droplets splashing around its dark plumage.

Osprey in flight carrying a fish in its talons over water, with wings spread wide and blurred water background.

Two wood ducks standing on gravel. The duck on the left has gray-brown plumage with a yellow eye ring. The duck on the right displays vibrant coloring with an iridescent green head, white facial markings, burgundy chest, black and white body, and yellow-green wing patches.

Biodiversity: Birds

Barred Owl

Native to eastern North America, the barred owl is a large owl species that dwells in tree cavities of mature forests and woodlands. Its range often remains within the same few miles for its entire life.

During the day, a barred owl is identifiable by its dusky, mottled plumage and large, dark eyes. At night, it can be identified by its hooting call (a classic sound in mature forests), “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you-all?”

Like other owls, the barred owl is an adapted nocturnal predator with strong night vision, acute hearing, and silent flight. It feeds on mostly small mammals like mice and voles, but will also eat small birds, frogs, lizards, and invertebrates.

The barred owl's greatest predatory threat is its slightly larger cousin, the great horned owl. The two species often live in the same areas, though the great horned's aggressive nature will push the barred owl to another part of its territory when a great horned is nearby. Despite this competition, the barred owl can be a long lived species in the wild. The oldest recorded barred owl was at least 24 years, 1 month old. It was banded in Minnesota in 1986, and found dead, entangled in fishing gear, in the same state in 2010.

Barred owl perched on a lichen-covered branch, tilting its head slightly with large round eyes and yellow beak visible, surrounded by blurred green foliage.

Barred owl perched on a branch among evergreen foliage, wings partially spread, displaying distinctive facial disc and striped plumage.

Suspended skeleton of a Barred Owl (Strix varia) displayed against a gray wall, showing complete bone structure including skull with large eye sockets, spine, ribcage, wings, and taloned feet, with a labeled placard below.

Belted Kingfisher

The belted kingfisher is a stocky bird with a large, shaggy-crested head and a thick bill it uses to hunt small fish and invertebrates. It is blue-gray from above and white from below, with a blue-gray head, a white collar, and a blue-gray breast band. Male and females are differentiated by the female's brown belly band.

The kingfisher live near streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, and estuaries throughout North America. It nest in burrows dug into soft earthen banks, usually next to water. Most of its time is spent perched alone on the edges of waterways, as it searches for fish.

While the top predator of its aquatic food webs, the kingfisher can fall victim to attack by sharp-shinned hawks, Cooper's hawks, and peregrine falcons. Its population is thought to be in decline, due to a loss of available nesting sites and increased disturbances during breeding season.

Belted Kingfisher perched on a branch, holding a small fish in its beak. The bird displays a distinctive black and white head with a prominent crest, rusty-brown chest band, and blue-gray back feathers against a blurred golden-green background.

A belted kingfisher perches on a weathered branch, displaying its distinctive spiky black crest, white chest, and dark blue-gray back against a soft green blurred background.

Grey and white seabird in flight against blue sky, with distinctive black head, white neck stripe, and dark wings with visible feather detail.

Great Blue Heron

Great blue herons are carnivorous wading birds typically found on coastlines, or along the banks of ponds, lakes, streams, and rivers throughout North America. At night, herons are often found in rooks -- nests built at the top of trees. These rooks are visible both along Cypress Creek and the Tennessee River.

Great blue herons are identified by their long, narrow necks and legs, the black crest atop their heads, yellow beaks, white faces, unkempt chest feathers, and silvery-blue coloring of their bodies. These herons are sometimes referred to as 4-5-6 birds, as they measure approximately four feet tall, weigh five pounds, and boast a six-foot wingspan. The great blue heron's weight may be surprisingly light for its size because of its hollow, trellised bone structure -- a characteristic it shares with all other birds.

Great blue herons will eat just about everything in a waterway, including fish, frogs, reptiles, and smaller waterbirds. Adult great blue herons have few predators and are uncommonly taken, but these predators include bald eagles, golden eagles, crocodiles, alligators, and to a lesser extent, Harris's hawks and great horned owls. Heron fledglings, nestlings, and eggs are more commonly predated by the above species and others, including turkey vultures, ravens, raccoons, black bears, and red-tail hawks.

Great Blue Heron in flight over shallow ocean water, wings spread wide, holding a small fish in its beak, with waves visible in the background.

Great Blue Heron perched on dried palm fronds against a cloudy sky, displaying its distinctive blue-gray plumage, long neck, and orange-yellow beak.

Osprey

The osprey, also referred to as a seahawk, is a diurnal, piscivorous raptor found by nearly any water body, including saltmarshes, rivers, ponds, reservoirs, and estuaries. Their conspicuous stick nests are placed in the open on poles, channel markers, and dead trees, often over water.

Osprey have brown plumage from above and mostly white from below, excluding a brown bib around the neck. From below, the wings are mostly white with a prominent dark patch at the wrists. The head is white with a brown stripe through the eye.

This predator has multiple adaptations to support its unique hunting style, including closable nostrils to keep out water during dives and dense, oily plumage to prevent waterlogging of its feathers.

In the mid 20th century, the osprey population suffered from toxic effects of insecticides like DDT, resulting in its drastic decline and endangerment of the species. The population has since recovered to healthy levels, though they are still threatened by improper management of recreation along waterways and urban sprawl.

Osprey diving toward water with wings spread, talons extended, capturing a fish from shallow coastal waters.

A osprey emerges from turbulent ocean waves with wings spread wide, water cascading off its feathers as it rises from the surf on a sandy beach.

Prothonotory Warbler

The prothonotary warbler, named after the yellow-robed papal clerks of the Roman Catholic Church called prothonotaries, is a songbird that dwells in swampy woodlands of the southeastern United States. It nests in standing dead tree cavities, favoring bald cypress, and can often be found foraging low in a forest canopy along waterways like Cypress Creek for insects, fruit, and seeds.

From above, the warbler's yellow head fades to olive green and eventually blue-gray wings. From below, the warbler's body shines bright yellow, though females appear duller than males. The brighter a male warbler, the more fit a female will perceive it to be.

The warbler's population is declining due to loss of forested wetlands and mangroves on its wintering grounds.

A bright yellow bird with black wings perches on a delicate white flowering plant with spiky blooms and green foliage.

Bright yellow bird with black wings perched on a brown branch, featuring a pointed black beak and small dark eye, against a blurred green and blue background.

Small decorative bird figurine with a bright yellow and green head, black beak, and gray and white striped wing feathers, perched on a thin branch against a neutral background.

A bright yellow bird perches in a hollow cavity of a weathered, gray wooden post or tree trunk, with blurred foliage visible in the background.

Wood Duck

The wood duck is a perching duck found in wooded swamps, rivers, and ponds of the eastern United States, along the west coast, and in Mexico. It commonly nests in tree cavities or nestboxes in wetland areas, utilizing sharp claws to navigate and perch in trees, unlike most other duck species.

Valued for the male's intricate plumage, you can also identify a wood duck by its unique body shape compared to other ducks. Its crested head sits atop a thin neck, while its long body has a thick tail and short wings. This body shape allows it to better maneuver in tight spaces that might be found in a wooded area, as opposed to open air.

The wood duck is the second most commonly hunted waterfowl in the nation, after the mallard. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the wood duck was nearly extirpated due to overhunting and habitat loss, However, policy and management changes since the early 1900s, including the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, have allowed their population to recover and stabilize.

In addition to being a valuable source of meat, wood ducks, like other waterfowl, control pest populations, act as sentinels for potential disease outbreaks, and are vectors for seed dispersal, among other critical ecosystem services.