After a while, one learns what to expect with each month and each season. July is going to be hot and humid. October will be colorful and somewhat melancholy. January will be cold and sleepy. And then ...

Texas is home to more birds in the U.S. than any other state. With more than 600 species to see, there are quite a few that share the same gothic appearance as the blackbird. However, blackbirds ...

My friend John loved grackles. He believed that, to be true to the oft-trumpeted independent Texas spirit, we should change our state bird. Why share the mockingbird, he said, with four other states, ...

Failing that, perhaps we could find some regal Houston designation for the grackle. Consider this excerpt from B.C. Robison’s “Birds of Houston”: “Common grackles assemble in flocks in open areas such ...