Charles Seabrook

El Paso

Environmental Writer at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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Articles

Mockingbirds will attack humans just like they do cats and dogs

1 week ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

A reader who lives in southeast Atlanta’s Kirkwood neighborhood emailed last week to say he was suddenly attacked as he strolled down a quiet street near his home. The assailant? A Northern mockingbird. “I felt something slightly touch my head,” he said. “At first, I thought it was a big bug, but when I looked up I saw this mockingbird diving straight at me. I waved my arm and he turned at the last second.
Identifying birds by their songs adds zest to birding

2 weeks ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

In my yard in Decatur the other morning, an unseen bird in a shrub belted out something that sounded like, “Drink your teeeee!” I knew immediately that it was an Eastern towhee. Then, a loud “cheerily, cheerily, cheerily” told me that an American robin was nearby. A “teakettle, teakettle, teakettle” song revealed a Carolina wren. A tufted titmouse called out, “Peter, peter, peter.”These birds weren’t using human speech, of course.
Atlanta bridge construction pauses to save Eastern phoebe fledglings

3 weeks ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

A major study published this month in the journal Science shows that North American bird populations are in steep decline, with 75% of species affected. Most alarmingly, common birds —the species that many of us see every day — have suffered the greatest losses, according to a study by a team of international scientists at seven institutions. To me and many others, it is a prime reason why saving the life of even one little bird matters, no matter how common it is.
Georgia's landscape turns many shades of green in spring

4 weeks ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

Almost overnight, it seems, trees, shrubs, vines, grasses and other growing things have donned nature’s most important color — green. The woods, fields, marshes, swamps and meadows all seem to sport every shade of green imaginable now. To appreciate this springtime greenery, I suggest that on a sunny day, when the sun’s rays are streaming through the tree canopies, you take a stroll in your neighborhood or in the woods — or gaze at a forested mountain slope — and try to pick out all the shades.
Georgia Botanical Society group treated to patch of pink lady's slippers

1 month ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

In my pickup truck last weekend, I was part of a small motorcade that parked alongside a main road in Fort Mountain State Park in Murray County to see some blooming native azaleas. Soon after, a park ranger drove up to see why we had stopped there. We said we were members of the Georgia Botanical Society taking part in its annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage — and the outing to Fort Mountain was one of 20 field trips during the three-day event.
Looking for Georgia birds in Cuba

1 month ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

This is peak time for spring migration. Countless numbers of warblers and other neotropical songbirds are streaming into Georgia — returning from winter grounds in Latin America and the Caribbean for their nesting season here and elsewhere in North America. Among the incoming waves might well be some of the same birds — especially warblers — that several of us Birds Georgia members saw earlier this month during an 11-day trip to Cuba to explore, study and observe the island’s bird life.
What you need to know about bird nesting season happening now in Georgia

1 month ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

Georgia’s bird nesting season is underway. Here’s a short primer:Q: How long do birds in Georgia incubate eggs before they hatch? A: It depends on the species — and their sizes. Typically, large birds incubate eggs longer than do small birds. Bald eagles, which began nesting in December, and vultures, hawks and owls may sit on eggs for 30-50 days, Incubation time for robins, cardinals, bluebirds and other songbirds takes 10-14 days; woodpeckers, 12-18 days; ducks and geese, 21-28 days.
Georgia birders could soon see rose-breasted grosbeaks at feeders as migratory birds travel north

1 month ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

I always get this question — or a variation of it — from at least a few folks about this time of year: “A strikingly beautiful bird is coming to my feeder. It has a big red spot on its white breast, one of the prettiest birds I’ve ever seen. I’d never seen it before now. What is it?”There’s no doubt about the answer: The bird is a male rose-breasted grosbeak. Decked out in his spiffy black and white breeding plumage, he is indeed gorgeous.
Red buckeye blooms are a boon to hummingbirds

2 months ago | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

The red buckeye’s showy, red flowers are blooming in the wild now beneath forest canopies in Georgia’s Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions. The plant, typically a small shrub, also has been widely introduced throughout much of the rest of the state. At the same time the buckeyes bloom, ruby-throated hummingbirds are returning to Georgia from winter homes in Central America. The timing is no coincidence.
There is a lot to like about lichens

Feb 25, 2025 | ajc.com | Charles Seabrook

Lichens are nearly everywhere — odd growths that appear as crusty patches and splotches on tree trunks, limbs, rocks, bare soil, stone walls, tombstones, wooden fences. Regardless, lichens often get little respect. Admirers, however, call them enchanting because, close-up, lichens can reveal fascinating, miniature worlds of all shapes, colors and textures. Their diversity, in fact, is amazing with more than 900 known lichen species in Georgia. One hardwood tree may harbor more than 30 species.