Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

A Splash of Yellow

A bit sparrow-like from the back, but that honking bill! The Dickcissel/Spiza americana is a prairie bird that can end up among the mid-Atlantic states during migration. This was the first I’ve seen.

They are the only members of the Spiza genus and have long vexed taxonomists: they are now classified in the cardinal family, but uneasily.

This is a female.

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