To see more profiles of the Birds of Ocracoke, click here Text and photos by Peter Vankevich Fall migration is a time when unusual birds appear in unexpected locations. Such was the […]
Birds of Ocracoke: A rare Yellow-headed Blackbird
Birds of Ocracoke: The American Kestrel
By Peter Vankevich From early September into early winter, it is possible to see three species of falcons on Ocracoke. Peregrine Falcons migrate through and some will occasionally be seen perching on […]
John Weske and his bands of terns
Text and photos by Peter Vankevich Neither hot weather nor age stops John Weske, 81, from his passion—banding birds—work he has done since he was a young man. Royal and Sandwich Terns […]
Birders to flock to Outer Banks for Wings Over Water
Editor’s note: The Portsmouth Island field trip is full, Ocracoke has three openings as of yesterday (Sept. 14). Since its beginning 20 years ago, the Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival has grown so much it […]
Birds of Ocracoke: The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
By Peter Vankevich Ocracoke is a pretty good island to see a family of wading birds known as herons, egrets and bitterns. Twelve species are possible, though two are rare; the Reddish […]
Birds of Ocracoke: the Great Horned Owl
N.C. Press Association first place award for spot photograph, 2017. By Peter Vankevich Editor’s note: To read about the famous Snowy Owls that visited Ocracoke for an extended time during the winter […]
Birds of Ocracoke: The Prairie Warbler
Text and photos by Peter Vankevich For those not that familiar with the birds of the Outer Banks or know that there are many species that poorly named, one may think that […]
Spotted on Ocracoke: A Razorbill
Text and photos by Peter Vankevich Ocracoke gets unusual visitors throughout the year and some of them have wings. The Observer was alerted of one from the subarctic when Muskie Cates of […]
How an albatross got to Portsmouth Island
For Ocracoke news, click here. By Peter Vankevich Visitors to Portsmouth Island may notice a photograph in the school exhibit of a teacher and two students with a large seabird. It is […]
Birds of Ocracoke: The Northern Gannet
To see more profiles in the Birds of Ocracoke series, click here Morus bassanus By Peter Vankevich If one were to choose a bird that represents the character of Ocracoke–tough, resilient, thrives […]
