A day in the American south-west with Owls that burrow and stand around in the daylight and an Ibis of remarkable beauty.

Sometimes birds are hard to find. Sometimes not. Bob Gosford takes two steps from his bed and finds an ornithorium of wonder and beauty.

What is a dead bird worth? Bob Gosford talks to Dr. Nate Rice of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University in Philadelphia about his life and work with 200,000 dead birds.

There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that some species are active promoters of fire in the northern Australian savannah landscapes, using small fire-sticks and embers to spread fire throughout the open grass and woodlands of the semi-tropical north.

A look at the work of Madhaviah Krishnan, an Indian journalist and photographer who for 46 years wrote the “Country Notebook” column for The Statesman of Calcutta that ranks among the finest nature writing out of the sub-continent.

Part Two of a conversation with Amadeo Rea, taxonomic ornithologist and ethnobiologist who has spent most of his life working with the Piman people of the greater south-western American deserts.

All I had to do was walk on stage and open my mouth and let the curse of God roar through me. Floods, fire and frogs leapt out of my throat. Though I had no notion of that then, God was talking not just to me but through me, and his breath stank.

The Crows tune up in the soft light. “We are just awake, but not ready yet” some say. “Go back to sleep” say others. The inevitable. Silence. A small croooaak. A waaaark. Crack!. Then ten and more giving full voice. Silence. Once more chuurrppp. Kwaaaark – kwaaaak. Much more now of the rattling, raucous corvid morning symphony.

A friend of mine, who was just finishing the manuscript for Birds of Arizona with the University of Arizona Press said “Why don’t you find out from your old Indian friends what the river was like when it ran and what birds were there?”

The real beauty of La Tanrrilla is only revealed when under threat or as part of their elaborate courtship rituals when they spread their glorious wings to reveal a truly magnificent display of colour and light.