Author: BrantaMedia.Com

_{This YouTube video was produced by the American Bird Conservancy.}

The Pigeon Guillemot (Cepphus columba) is an attractive member of the auk family, a group of marine birds that also includes the puffins, murres, and auklets. The auks are largely known to forage on the open ocean, with some species diving to extraordinary depths for their food. The Pigeon Guillemot, however, forages in shallow waters near the shore and doesn’t usually dive deeper than about 100 feet. Nonetheless, they are graceful divers, “flying” underwater, their partially opened wings helping them maneuver and propelling them along. Like other auks, they use

_{This YouTube video was produced by the American Bird Conservancy.}

The American Robin (Turdus migratorius) is one of North America’s most widespread, familiar, and well-loved songbirds. Although homesick settlers named it after the European Robin because of its reddish-orange breast, the two species are not closely related. The American Robin is a thrush, related to the Wood Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, and Hermit Thrush, while the European Robin is a flycatcher.

Despite being a classic sign of spring, not all American Robin populations migrate, and some may actually stay near their breeding grounds year-round. However, this large, stately-looking thrush is a

_{This YouTube video was produced by the American Bird Conservancy.}

Don’t let its plain-sounding name fool you: The Gray-bellied Comet is dazzling. In the right light, the upper sides of this large hummingbird shimmer with greens, blues, and bronzy oranges. Males have a violet-blue throat (gorget), and both sexes have long tails similar to those of the Swallow-tailed Hummingbird and Violet-tailed Sylph.

This hummingbird is so local and uncommon that sightings of it were infrequent for many years. It was re-found in the early 1990s and is now spotted regularly within its limited range, which consists of five fragmented populations