Lauren Leffer

Reporter, Audubon magazine

Lauren Leffer is a science and environmental journalist based in Brooklyn, New York.

Articles by Lauren Leffer

Illustration of robot hands typing on a laptop, the screen showing elements of a power plant, with a bird perched on the screen.
How the AI Boom Threatens to Short-Circuit Climate Action
December 10, 2024 — The energy-devouring technology is giving new life to fossil fuels.
Field Notes
Hundreds of dead birds laid out in rows on a large metal table.
More Than 1,000 Birds Collided With a Single Chicago Building in One Night
October 06, 2023 — Weather conditions, a pulse of migrating warblers, and bright lights combined to create a wave of bird death across the city Thursday morning.
News
Close up of a brown and white bird with a long curved yellow beak looking at the camera, held in someone's hands.
A Migrating Cuckoo Named Hummus Makes a Tasty Case for Land Conservation
August 31, 2023 — On its international journey south, one federally threatened bird has passed through at least six protected areas.
Western Water News
A bird nest made with hundreds of metal spikes in the fork of a tree branch.
Apparently Magpies and Crows Are Using "Anti-Bird Spikes" to Make Their Nests
July 13, 2023 — Birds often incorporate human-made materials while nest building, but a new study shows European corvids are taking the idea to the extreme.
News
The Many Styles of Bird Migration Are More Varied Than You Think
April 13, 2022 — It's the journey, not the destination.
From Audubon Magazine
The Planet Is Undergoing an Ecological Transformation, Imperiling Biodiversity Everywhere
March 04, 2022 — In a decade, 9 percent of all species worldwide could be at risk of total extinction, according to a new UN report on climate change
Climate
Many Birds Are Shrinking and Growing Longer Wings as the World Warms. Why?
February 07, 2022 — A growing body of research suggests a warming world could mean smaller birds with longer wings, but nothing about the findings is settled.
Climate
As Threats to Chile’s Birds Grow, a New Strategy Promises Stronger Protections
February 04, 2022 — Advocates are optimistic that the just-launched bird conservation framework will catch on throughout Latin America.
News
A small bird with a proportionally large beak, and orangey-red plumage on its face and chest perches on a tree branch and holds a small, pink flower blossom in its beak.
10 Fun Facts about the House Finch
December 21, 2021 — These common and adaptable birds provide a welcome pop of color at feeders from coast to coast. But they weren’t always so ubiquitous.
News
6 Unexpected Ways Birds Are Important for the Environment (and People)
December 17, 2021 — Birds play countless roles in healthy ecosystems—which is why preserving bird diversity helps everyone.
News