Backyard Birding

For most feeder watchers in North America, the southward migration of the hummingbird is not so exciting as the northward migration. The numbers slowly dwindle until it becomes apparent that there are no more hummers taking advantage of the feeder and it is taken down. The migration can begin as early as July and last until November, making many unsure as to when they have indeed seen the last hummer of the season until it is already gone.

Here in Eastern Nebraska, however, this is an exciting time. Hummers do not generally nest in this area, but they do pass through while migrating. We get two chances a year to attract these sassy little birds to our yards: during the spring migration and during the fall migration.

And the hummingbird migration is upon us. Ruby throated hummingbirds have been sighted down at Pioneers Park, on the outskirts of the capitol. I have written previously about how to attract hummingbirds. I guess it is time to dust off my feeder and set it out with the others!

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Project FeederWatch is a citizen science project that surveys birds that visit feeders in winter. When you register, you get a poster of the most common feeder birds to aid in identification, a booklet describing the count and how to attract birds and a nice calendar to keep track of count days. The data collected during this annual count is published in multiple journals and used by researchers to track the health of our feeder bird populations.

We learned a great deal from participating last year and plan to take part again this year. Not only is it great encouragement to take a few notes while watching your birds, you get to see the results that have been entered online for your state (or any other). It is interesting to see what birds are common in the state. Often, they are the same that are coming to your feeders, but not always.

Counts do not start until November, but FeederWatch will begin sending packets out this month. If this is something you are interested in, now is the time to start thinking about setting up feeders so that you will have something to count when the time comes! The cost is $15 which goes to help pay for the administration of the program.

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There are, of course, hazards to attracting birds to your backyard, as President Bush found out yesterday morning in the Rose Garden. During his news conference, a bird deposited a dropping on the sleeve of his jacket. Interestingly, in some cultures it is considered good luck to be hit by bird poop. So I guess there is reason to rejoice as you clean the windshield of your car. Or the sleeve of your jacket in the Rose Garden.

You can watch the video here.

Hat Tip: Birds Etcetera

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Tehachapi birder Clark Moore died May 19 of a heart attack. Known for starting the Tehachapi Mountains Birding Club in 1998, raising awareness of the diversity of local bird species, and an undying commitment to community service, Moore spent his life devoted to birds.

Where did this story begin? At home, in his own backyard. From the Tehachapi News:

Born on Oct. 20, 1929 in San Jose, Clark became interested in birds at an early age: he began learning all he could about them in the third grade and he even made his own field guide using photos he cut from his parents’ old National Geographic magazines. As a boy, the first bird he ever identified on his own was an Evening Grosbeak.

Sharing birding with our children can instill a lifelong commitment to our community and our environment.

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