Bird Watching

Shelley and our daughter (Linda) are interested bird watchers by inclination while I am by association, as are our son Ted and his wife Judy. It occurred to me that some if not many of you might be similarly afflicted, so I thought we would share some things we know about.

Editorial

Casual bird watching affords a varied spectacle of nature's handiwork. At any given time backyard feeders or plants attract that season's denizens. As the seasons change, so do the denizens but also, temporarily, there are others just passing through on migration. There are people who travel all over the world to see unusual birds, but just beyond our backyards not so far away are a great many refuges. Often one can spend a pleasant few hours, a day or even a few days in a new and scenic place with the addition of wildlife on display. Not a bad reason for getting outdoors once in a while.

 

Alerts

Where are these refuges and wouldn't it be nice if when you went you were likely to see something unusual. That's where Rare Bird Alerts (RBA) come into play.  Depending on where you live, you can subscribe to one of the lists below to receive daily information about what is being seen where. (I like the digest versions.)

BIRDEAST
 BIRDCNTR
 BIRDWEST

Where are the NWRs?  (Another where are the refuges?)
Search on "wildlife refuges".
Don't forget Mapquest.

 

 

 

Resources:

Cornell University

On the right is an example of the information provided by the Cornell University "Bird of the Week" program.

The site provides a means for accessing many weeks of past information.

 

Ralph T. Waterman Bird Club

Waterman is a local (Hudson Valley, NY) club, but the site provides an extensive list of links to other resources.

Birding-on-the-Net is regional RBAs and a whole lot more.

If you think you might be interested in participating in bird counts by supplying what you count over the internet, then Bird Source is for you. For example, you might find that the Great Backyard Bird Watch is interesting and fun. Project Feeder Watch is another one.

Online Guide (A2Z4 Birders). Picture, habitat and song. Shorebirds for those near the New Jersey shore.

The Nature Conservancy. And see the Enewsletter.

Laney doesn't want bats left out. Here's relevant gardening?

Hummingbirds. (This will explain the cursor.)

 
 
 
Pine Siskin
(Carduelis pinus)
Cool fact: Pine Siskins are the most frequently encountered member of the irruptive winter finches—a group of finches that breeds in the northern portions of North America and periodically stages major winter invasions into central latitudes of North America. These incursions may occur for lack of food in their typical wintering areas. pisimcq.gif (9744 bytes)
 

Listen to a recording of a Pine Siskin from the
Library of Natural Sounds:

Pine Siskins are approximately 5 inches (13 centimeters) in length. A small streaky finch with a pale, thin, pointed bill, Pine Siskins have dark wings and a tail that has a variable amount of yellow.

The Pine Siskin is a highly social bird and can often be found at feeders in large flocks or mixed with winter flocks of American Goldfinches. The distinctive single- or double-note flight call of the Pine Siskin is often heard throughout North America in the fall.

 

 
Migration: The estimated number of birds detected by radar passing over Cape Cod on a single autumn night is 12 million. Source: Birdscope, Autumn 2001, from Scott Weidensaul, Living on the Wind, 1999, North Point Press.

Off topic: (This section is growing!)
Wildflowers, Trees, Gardens and Arboretums, Webcams at the National Zoo.
Aboriculture: Anything you want to know about trees.
27 public gardens in and around Philadelphia open May 1-31. See the Gardens Collaborative. From Oregon: Friends of Trees.
MyTinyGarden
Travel notes:
Bombay Hook, January 27-30 2002		 Bob Pownall is President of the Northern Shenandoah Valley Audubon Society (NSVAS). Quite a site; lots of pictures.
  Fascinating tracking of migrations as they occur.

The Standard Reference on North American Birds.
A tribute to Audubon. (Be sure to turn your sound on, and click on one or more of the bird pictures, e.g., the raven.) Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve, New Hope, Pa.  Recent

Personally I also like the traveling about we do in pursuit of this interest, and it fits in quite well with the considerable bicycling we engage in.

The question is not what you look at, but what you see. --Henry David Thoreau

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Last update: 07/01/05