One rainy morning a week ago, I hear a beautiful bird song that I cannot quite identify. It’s longish, sweet and melodic. From in the bedroom, I glance over at the feeders and there’s the usual ...

We had no sooner talked about American goldfinches last week than an uncommon finch was showing up at people’s feeders all over town. It’s a purple finch that breeds from New England to Appalachia, ...

My last visit to the Thinking Chair occurred on Oct. 20 — a bright, sunny day. There had been a frost during the night, which produced some interesting effects on the remaining leaves down in the ...