Birding Tips for All Seasons
Here are a few techniques for enjoying birds more, such as suggestions on how your back yard can attract birds by providing food, water, and shelter. There are also identification tips for birds that can be tricky to recognize.
In the photo, Diane has won the trust of a pair of Eastern Bluebirds. They had a nest in the garden birdhouse. While their babies were still nestlings, they visted Diane often for mealworms, which they carried off and fed to their young.
Two Gorgeous Dudes
Folks call these both red, but a male Purple Finch is more raspberry-colored, while the male House Finch tends more toward orange. Caution, though — their colors vary and can fool us sometimes. It's worth an extra look.
Why feed birds in fall?
Wild birds scout out their winter food sources in fall, and that means they are deciding which backyards they will grace with their presence in winter. Here's how to let the birds know you want their business when the weather gets rough.
Brush Piles for Birds
As birdwatchers we can help to put habitat back. One way is to construct a brush pile. It's easy. Here is a recipe for building a brush pile, and a suggestion of what to expect if your build one.
Downy vs. Hairy
Many beginning birders have been fooled by the look-alike Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers. The Hairy is bigger, but it can be hard to judge size when you see one alone. How to distinguish them? Here are two other clues to look for.
Purple Martins
Purple Martins in Eastern North America depend completely on humans to provide nesting sites. Here's a bit of history on this beloved backyard bird. And an introduction on how you can become a Purple Martin landlord.
The Bird Buffet
If you want to see scads of birds in winter while staying warm, you can invite the birds to come up close to your window. Here are some tips on what to feed birds and how to feed them.
Bird Baths
Sometimes fresh, clean water is hard to find. You can make a bird's day simply by offering a drink and a bath. Here are tips on what kind of bath is best, where to locate it, and how to make it safer.
Hand Feeding Wild Birds
Your backyard birds can be landing on your shoulder and taking food from your hand this winter. It's not hard to win the trust of the bird guests at your feeders. Here's how to do it.