National Audubon Society

Trivia time! True or false? The Western Tanager gets its red feathers from a rare pigment that they produce called rhodoxanthin.
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Newsletter | August 2023

A bright orange, yellow, and black bird perches on a leafy, flowering branch.

Rockies 2023 Mid-year Update

Audubon has adopted a new North Star Vision: “A future where birds thrive across the Americas because Audubon is a powerful, diverse, and ever-growing force for conservation.” Audubon Rockies’ work is critical to this mission and our goal to ensure that birds and people in the Rockies have a place to not only live, but thrive. Our new mid-year update reports on our efforts and biggest accomplishments so far this year.Learn about them here

Western Tanager. Photo: Evan Barrientos/Audubon Rockies

A slender white bird with black legs and a red crown flies across an indistinct background, its wings blurred from motion.

Birds & Transmission: Building the Grid Birds Need in the West

We have long known that combating climate change is imperative for the survival of many bird species. To achieve climate stabilization, we need a rapid build-out of transmission and clean energy. This provides an opportunity to build a bird friendly grid—one with the capacity and flexibility required to power our economy without emissions, and constructed and managed to minimize risks to birds and the places they need. Audubon's new Birds and Transmission Report details how you can help advocate for a clean, bird-friendly energy grid. Join us on August 21 for a free webinar to learn more!

Register here

Sandhill Crane. Photo: Stan Bysshe/Audubon Photography Awards

Two brown and beige owls stand in open dirt patch among tall grass. One owl is preening the other.

Audubon Supports New BLM Public Lands Rule

Audubon supports a draft rule from the Bureau of Land Management that would balance conservation with development. It enables more consideration of conservation benefits on public lands, which is needed to meet the challenges of a climate-threatened future. Effective management and conservation efforts can make a significant difference in whether the more than 300 bird species that depend on these landscapes thrive—or slide towards extinction.

Learn how the new BLM rule would help

Burrowing Owl. Photo: Elizabeth Yicheng-Shen/Audubon Photography Awards

A grayish-brown bird stands in shallow, moving water with wings outstretched. It is holding dried vegetation in its beak.

Flowing Together: Colorado’s Streams Need Your Help

Audubon Rockies is sponsoring several volunteer opportunities with Wildlands Restoration Volunteers and other organizations to help restore Colorado’s streams between now and early October. If you are passionate about environmental and wildlife conservation, enjoy spending time in nature, and want to make a tangible difference for the birds, people, and ecosystems that depend on healthy waters, these are perfect opportunities for you!

Learn more and register

American Dipper. Photo: Dan Streiffert/Audubon Photography Awards

A beige bird with a white belly and small, black beak stands on a sandy flat.

Meet the Snowy Plover

Snowy Plovers have likely been racing about salt flats adjacent to Great Salt Lake for about 10,000 years. So just how important is the lake to their survival? This summer, we started a new project with Tracy Aviary to monitor their nesting success. We’re excited to share more about this work in the future, but in the meantime, get acquainted with this tiny, drab, but charismatic bird in our article from 2021.

Read more

Snowy Plover. Photo: Frank Lehman/Audubon Photography Awards

Bumble bee on a cluster of orange flowers.

Habitat Hero Pre-planned Gardens

Planting season is coming up, and if you’re considering making a bird-friendly garden, this is a great resource. The Habitat Hero Pre-planned Gardens—which we helped create—are now available for pre-order from High Country Gardens! These kits contain sixteen plants selected to thrive and attract birds in our region.

Pre-order here

Bumble bee on Asclepias tuberosa in a Habitat Hero garden. Photo: Evan Barrientos/Audubon Rockies

A vibrant yellow bird with a black crown perches on a branch with maroon leaves.

Fall Migrations Begin!

We can’t believe it’s already here either, but fall migration has begun! Starting this month, millions of birds are expected to fly south through Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. Learn more about their travels and how you can reduce the risks they’ll face during migration.

Read more

Wilson’s Warbler. Photo: Mick Thompson

Trivia answer: False. While the Western Tanager gets its red feathers from the pigment rhodoxanthin, the substance is likely obtained from insects in the tanager’s diet. Western Tanagers cannot produce it themselves.

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