Welcome to Ranger Rick’s Tree House!

But I finally found a way to wow my two toughest critics. I brought home an iPad loaded with Ranger Rick’s Tree House, a brand new interactive version of Ranger Rick magazine. And, according to my kids, it is really, really cool.

Open the app, and you find yourself inside Ranger Rick’s cozy tree house. With a tap of a finger, you can move to a video screening room to watch leopards run and dolphins dive. You can read articles, complete with gorgeous photos and fun pop-ups, and follow the comic adventures of Rick, Scarlett, and the rest of the gang. Or play games and catch up on animal riddles and jokes. At the end, you can take a quiz to earn a badge.

My kids are 5 and 3—technically a little young for the Tree House, which is aimed at children ages 7-12. But they love scrolling through the pages of the articles as I read along. They watch the videos with rapt attention (and ask a million questions). And they don’t seem to mind that their little fingers can’t quite master the games yet—they are fascinated anyway.

I grew up reading Ranger Rick, and I am proud that the magazine is just as well done as it was almost 30 years ago. I’m also glad that it is adapting to its readership. Kids still read print magazines, thank goodness. But e-readers, smart phones, and tablets aren’t going anywhere, and I think that’s probably a good thing. Kids will still read that leopards can drag a whole antelope up into a tree (it’s true!). But now they can also watch it happen—plus hear the leopard roar. Isn’t that what we want: something that encourages our kids to explore and be curious?

That’s what I want. Well, that—and for them to realize just how cool my job is. And thanks to Ranger Rick’s Tree House, now they do.

Ranger Rick’s Tree House is available by subscription for $14.99 per year or by the single issue for $4.99.

A peaceful scene, sure, but look at that crest: This blue jay is angry! Photo by Dawn Huczek

It’s against company policy.

BUT. . . when we were working on Click the Birdie, our new iPad game app for kids, a certain other app involving birds came up a few times. It’s popular. Okay, maybe even addictive. (Does playing during work hours count as research? No? Darn.)

But we wanted our own bird app to be fun AND educational AND non-violent. So our app lets players capture birds on camera—no slingshots necessary.

Still, even the animal lovers at Ranger Rick can appreciate the fun in Angry Birds—and REAL angry birds. So here are a few of our favorite avian toughies.

Cardinal.  Ever seen a cardinal attack a window? Or a car’s side-view mirror? That bird doesn’t have anything against your house or car. It sees its own reflection and thinks it is a rival for territory.

American crow. Crows are famously smart birds. But they can also hold a grudge. A recent study found that crows remember people who have bugged them in the past—even years later. A researcher wore a distinctive mask while trapping and banding several crows. Crows HATE being banded. So right after the birds were released, they gathered around, scolding and mobbing the researcher. Five years later, a scientist in that same mask got the same angry reaction.

Blue jay. This bright blue bird is known for the crest on top of its head—and its feisty attitude. If you ever wonder what the blue jay in your yard is thinking, that crest gives a pretty good clue: The higher the crest, the higher the jay’s level of aggression.

Mockingbird. Mockingbirds are notoriously aggressive and protective of their nests. Exhibit A: In 2007, the Postal Service sent letters to some Tulsa, Oklahoma, customers, warning them that a local mockingbird had repeatedly attacked postal workers on their block. The Postal Service deals with aggressive dogs all the time—but rarely with birds. So the service used its usual form letter for owners of aggressive dogs. But in the letter, the words “your dog” were crossed off—and replaced with “a mockingbird.” Beware of bird!

Of course, these birds aren’t exactly angry—they are protecting their nests or their territory or trying to fend off an attacker.

If you or your kids would like to learn more about native birds from Hawaii to the East Coast—while playing a fun game!—check out Click the Birdie at the App Store. You can also test your bird knowledge with our quiz “Are You a Bird Brainiac?” Also, we’d like to tip our hat to this attempt to link the characters from Angry Birds to real bird species.

All aboard! Amtrak's new kids' website offers fun games that test memory, problem-solving, and knowledge of the environment.

Hey, parents! Gas prices are sky-high and it’s almost time to make summer travel plans. But if you’d like to avoid all the hassles of car travel—pricey fuel, bad traffic, and (worst of all?) bored kids—maybe you should consider going by train.

While you ponder your options, get your kids excited about rail travel by steering them to Amtrak’s new Kids Depot, an interactive website where kids of all ages can learn about the history of rail travel, geography, and the environment. There are also some fun memory and problem-solving games—a few of them featuring art from Ranger Rick! (Check out the “Park” section.)

The site also offers downloadable and printable activities, including coloring sheets, word searches, and matching games. So once you decide to travel by rail, your kids can be entertained on the train, too. Not that they’ll necessarily need it. If your kids are like mine, traveling by train is excitement enough!

ALSO: Whether you hit the rails or the road, be sure to check out our own travel activities to keep kids thinking about the great outdoors even while they are stuck inside a moving vehicle.

Parents’ Choice is a highly respected foundation that gives parents information on quality children’s media and toys. Two other NWF magazines, Your Big Backyard and Just for Fun, also received gold awards; our other magazine—my 2-year-old daughter’s favorite, Wild Animal Baby—brought home the silver.

There are many reasons I was excited to be hired as an editor at Ranger Rick a few months ago, including my own 25-year-old memories of lying in bed, devouring the magazine. (Particularly the jokes:  What’s orange and sounds like a parrot? A carrot!). But now that I’m a mom to two young kids, the best perk was one I never really considered: I get to bring home a really great kids’ magazine each month and tell my children that I helped make it.

While I bask in the secondhand glory, I can already see the everyday, behind-the-scenes work that makes these magazines so extraordinary. Just a few examples:

Congratulations to Ranger Rick! The magazine was named a 2011 Gold Award winner by Parents' Choice.

• Poring over hundreds of gorgeous photos for each story—then going back and looking at dozens more to illustrate some strange-but-interesting animal behavior (perhaps a black bear picking berries with its lips? A leopard dragging a whole antelope into a tree?).
• Debating the finer points of potty humor, including whether two issues in one year could contain a news item on plants used as toilets by wild animals (answer: no, but let’s save one for next year).
• Making daily judgment calls on what a 9-year-old kid—not a grownup editor—wants from our magazine: Would our readers rather see a bear catching a fish (exciting!) or cuddling with cubs in a den (adorable!)?
• Always, always keeping in mind what will be interesting and relevant for our readers. This means that every day, my colleagues and I stretch our brains, reaching back to remember (or imagine) what it felt like to be a kid clutching a fresh copy of Ranger Rick. What would we want to see? What would make us want to pay more attention to the natural world and protect the environment? Okay, and what would crack us up? Well, speaking from past experience: Q: What newspaper do sheep like to read? A: The Wool Street Journal! (Thanks, Lucia B. of South Carolina!)

Congratulations again to Ranger Rick and the other NWF kids’ magazines!

A bald eagle slows to land in a nearly leafless tree by Maryland's Conowingo Dam. Photographed by Jim McCollum of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

See more beautiful nature photos and share your own at National Wildlife‘s PhotoZone Facebook community.

Of course, that doesn’t mean some people don’t find certain animals spooky, icky or just plain scary.

In honor of Halloween, here’s a gallery of “spooky” animals, all photographed by members of National Wildlife Magazine’s PhotoZone Facebook group.

Edgar Allen Poe's "grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore" is actually one of the smartest birds around, using tools to collect hard-to-reach food and, in lab experiments, appearing to use logic to solve complex problems. This raven was photographed by Efren Adalem.

If this doesn't give you at least a little chill, then you can be sure you don't suffer from ophidiophodia - the fear of snakes. This cottonmouth was photographed by Ron Broome.

If you're scared of spiders, imagine how this poor fiery skipper feels. Alison Sheehey photographed this common orb weaver making a meal of a skipper.

Okay, so most people aren't scared of raccoons (my son is evidently the exception). But with their glowing eyes and nocturnal habits, they seem an appropriate subject for Halloween. Happy Halloween from Ranger Rick!

For more on spooky birds and nature’s vampires, check out National Wildlife Magazine online!

Ready for its close-up, this praying mantis looms large over a group of blissfully unaware humans in the background. 17-year-old Kevin Skrzynski noticed the insect while on vacation in Connecticut. The mantis sat on Skrzynski's shoulder for several minutes, allowing the photographer to get face-to-face. And what a face!

Each week, National Wildlife editors select one image of North American wildlife to share on the blog. To see more wildlife photos and to share your own, visit the PhotoZone Facebook page.

There goes your college fund, kid. Jim Conlon of Elysian Energy shows the author and her son where heat escapes and cold air leaks in around their back door. A quick fix? Inexpensive foam tape and a draft blocker.

Three years ago, soon after my husband and I bought our first home (a 100-year-old, unrenovated row house), we realized that we had bigger problems than the dusty carpets and stained wallpaper that covered the house. It was winter, and we were freezing. Thanks to a free city-run program, we had a professional  energy auditor come to our house and tell us just where our house was wasting energy. (Hint: everywhere.)

Expert auditors have the equipment and the knowledge to do a thorough, fine-tuned evaluation of your home’s air leaks and other inefficiencies. But if you cannot afford an audit or don’t want to wait, you can conduct a home energy audit yourself. When auditing your house, keep a list of areas you have inspected and problems you found. This list will help you prioritize your energy efficiency upgrades.

1. Check for leaks.

Energy savings from reducing air leaks in a home can be as much as 30 percent per year, and many of those leaks can be easily detected, either visually or by feel.

Inside the house: Check for visible gaps and feel for drafts around baseboards, electrical outlets and switch plates, window and door frames, attic hatches and wall or window-mounted air conditioners. Also look for gaps around pipes and wires, electrical outlets, foundation seals and mail slots. Check to see if the caulking and weather stripping are applied properly, leaving no gaps or cracks, and are in good condition.

Tip: If you can rattle your window in its frame, it is likely that the window is leaky. If you can see daylight around a door or window frame, then the door or window leaks and should be sealed with caulk or weather stripping. If your windows are very leaky and replacing them is not in your budget, consider installing low-cost plastic sheets over the windows.

Outside the house: Inspect all areas where two different building materials meet, including all exterior corners, where siding and chimneys meet, along the foundation, and around faucets and outlets.

2. Conduct a basic house pressurization test.

Close all exterior doors, windows and fireplace flues. Turn off all combustion appliances such as gas-burning furnaces and water heaters, then turn on all exhaust fans (generally located in the kitchen and bathrooms) or use a large window fan to suck the air out of the rooms. This test increases infiltration through cracks and leaks, making them easier to detect with your bare hand.

3. Make sure your insulation is adequate.

Attic: Since heat rises, one of the best ways to save energy is to insulate the attic. A quick look inside the attic or crawl space will tell you whether it is insulated. If your attic hatch is located above a conditioned space, check to see if it is at least as heavily insulated as the attic, is weather stripped and closes tightly. In the attic, check the openings for items such as pipes, ductwork and chimneys to make sure they are sealed with expanding foam caulk or other sealant. There should be a vapor barrier—tarpaper or a plastic sheet—under the attic insulation. Ensure that attic vents are not blocked by insulation.

Walls: Checking a wall’s insulation is more difficult: It can be done either by probing through a wall outlet (turn off the circuit breakers first!) or by drilling a small hole in a closet or other unobtrusive place.

Basement: If your basement is unheated, look at the basement ceiling to determine whether there is insulation under the living area flooring. Other insulation: Your water heater, hot water pipes and furnace ducts should all be insulated.

4. Examine your heating and cooling systems.

If you have a forced-air furnace, check your filters and replace them as needed. Generally, you should change them about once every month or two, especially during periods of high usage. Have a professional check and clean your equipment once a year.

If the unit is more than 15 years old, you should consider replacing it with a newer, more energy-efficient unit—especially if the existing equipment is in poor condition. Check your ductwork for dirt streaks, especially near seams. These indicate air leaks, and they should be sealed. Insulate any pipes that travel through unheated spaces.

5. Update your lighting.

Examine the wattage size of the light bulbs in your house, and consider replacing larger-watt bulbs with smaller ones. Also, consider replacing some or all of your bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, which save energy and last much longer.

Adapted from information provided by the U.S. Department of Energy.

NWF Tips on Conserving Energy at Home

Did you know you should never place a lamp near a thermostat? Find out why and get more hints on how to save energy (and money) at home.

Tree frog? What tree frog? Efren Adalem spotted and photographed this tiny, well-camouflaged Pacific tree frog (Pseudocris regilla) in his Watsonville, California, backyard.

STARTING THIS WEEK, National Wildlife editors will select one image of local wildlife each week to share on the blog. To see more wildlife photos and to share your own, visit the PhotoZone Facebook page.

So that's why this condor looks so happy.

In 1987, the last 22 condors remaining in the wild were captured for a captive breeding program. The program, run jointly by the Los Angeles Zoo and the San Diego Wild Animal Park, began slowly; scientists were frustrated by the birds’ unusually slow reproductive habits (see below). But eventually the condors began to reproduce reliably, and in 1991, the first juveniles were reintroduced to the wild. Since then, young birds have been released each fall, and a handful of chicks have also hatched naturally in wild nests.

Small populations of the birds also survive in the southwestern U.S. and in Baja California, but scientists estimate that the entire population, wild and captive, remains below 400.

Anyone who has ever seen a condor knows that these are extraordinary birds. They’re huge, with the largest wingspan of any North American bird: more than 9 feet. Their heads and necks are nearly featherless. Condors can soar for miles without flapping their wings, which gives them a grace in flight that is at odds with their reputation as homely birds.

These long-lived scavengers are picky about their mates (as befits any animal that mates for life and lives as long as 50 years) and do not breed until the relatively advanced age of six, making them especially prone to population loss. Throughout the 20th Century, condors suffered terribly from various human-related causes: lead poisoning (from consuming animals contaminated with lead shot), DDT poisoning, poaching and the destruction of their habitat.

By the 1960s, fewer than 100 condors survived in the state, making this week’s announcement very good news for anyone who wants to see condors once again become a significant part of the ecosystem of the American West.

How Our Work Helps the Condor

The National Wildlife Federation works to strengthen and defend the Endangered Species Act, the law which has helped protect the California condor. Our California affiliate, the Planning and Conservation League, also works to protect important habitat for the condor, including the establishment of the Tejon Preserve.