Most people watch the birds in their own yard and surrounding bushes and trees, at least in the beginning. Although, a trip to Costa Rica with a qualified bird guide to the Rain Forest would be a welcome, never to be forgotten experience!

When you see an unusual bird in your yard, review these three points.  If you are still convinced you have a rare bird, get a clear picture and send it to the Cornell University of Ornathology.  I know you will be describing it in your annual Bird Count .  They have helped me several times as I progressed in my ability to identify birds.  They are a great resource, and its free!

1.  Molting is a transition stage from season to season when their old feathers are replaced with new ones.  Yet not all breeds and sexes experience it at the same intensity.  The duration of the molt process varies by species as well.
2. Juveniles in your back yard keep their plumage for only a short time, so they are hard to get to know.  Often, the best giveaway is that you see a recognizable parent feeding the cryptic young.  Often juveniles are more spotted or streaked than their parents while others are just dull and nondescript.  Youngsters are seldom colorful.
3. Unfamiliarity can be a challenge in the beginning and yet you can and will get better.  Get a good pair of binoculars and observe the different markings of feathers, eyes, size, and mannerism.  Get a good field guide and keep it handy.

Welcome to our world of exciting and rewarding birding!

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One of the most effective ways to attract the widest variety of birds is by providing water sources.

• Birds need water for drinking and preening.
• Some birds that would not normally visit feeders will come for a water source.
• Any water is an improvement but standing water is the least effective.

 Moving water will attract more birds because the motion catches their eye and they can hear any dripping, sprinkles or splashes.  Adding a jiggler accessory to a standing birdbath adds motion easily.  A hose dripping into a dish or pond can have a similar effect and will attract more birds. 

 Active splashes can be heard from quite a distance and will attract a wide range of bird species.  Flowing water stays cleaner and is less likely to harbor parasites or bacteria that could harm birds.

 Providing fresh water in winter is especially important.  A heated birdbath is the easiest method and not too expensive.

 Ways To Offer Water For The Birds In Your Yard

Birdbaths are the fastest, easiest way to add water to your backyard bird habitat.  Birdbaths come in three basic designs;

1. Pedestal.  These classic birdbaths stand three to four feet above the ground and include a post-style base on an elevated dish.  Pedestal bird baths may be plastic, metal or concrete and come  in many decorative designs and colors.  The models which include small fountains, bubblers, and heaters for the winter will be the most effective.

1. Dish.  A simple saucer or shallow bowl can be used for a dish birdbath.  Dishes can be used at different heights by being placed on the ground, patio table, stump or steps.  Hanging dishes and models that attach to deck railings are available.  If there are cats in the neighborhood, dish birdbaths on the ground could be too dangerous.  Getting motion in the dish to get the birds attention is also a challenge.  Adding a jiggler is important.
2. Heated.  A heated birdbath is essential in colder winter climates.  It takes a great deal of the birds energy to melt snow to drink.  Birds will willingly visit available water sources all year round.  Heater accessories can be added to existing birdbaths.  There are a variety of fully heated models readily available.

For birds to feel comfortable using a birdbath, it should not be more than two or three inches deep.  If needed, excess space can be filled with large rocks like an island for birds to use,  or you can use an overturned saucer.  Birds need a rough surface to provide traction when wet.

The Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger)  and the Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), are the most common squirrels in North America. Native to the eastern half of the United States and Canada they have been introduced to parts of the Western United States and British Columbia. World wide their are 365 species of squirrels! An adult squirrel typically lives alone, but  they will huddle together in their nests during extreme cold weather to stay warm. In the winter, squirrels are most active in the morning hours and tend to stick around their nests the rest of the day. Mating season begins in late winter, so acrobatic chase scenes are more common during this time of the year. Spring through fall, listen for the screeching call of the young in the nest begging for food. In the summer, squirrels are most active in the morning, tend to rest in the afternoon, and then reemerge to forage for a couple of hours before sunset.

Typical litter size is 3-4.

Squirrels can eat their weight in seed in one week.

Squirrel’s front teeth grown 6 inches per year and are worn down by eating and gnawing.

Top speed for squirrels is 20 mph.

Squirrels exceptional  jumping ability can launch them 6 vertical feed and 8 horizontal feet.

Each fall and winter Massachusetts Audubon Society receives a number of calls from concerned citizens asking, in essence: “Where have all the birds gone?” Where there were once a lot of birds in the yard or at feeders, now there are almost none. How come? Unless there has been a significant change in the immediate area of a feeder, or in the local habitat, the answer will usually be explained by population dynamics. Populations of all songbirds are subject to natural fluctuations from year to year. These are usually associated with widespread success or failure during the breeding season, which in turn is related to weather, food supply, predators, and other conditions.

BIRD POPULATIONS VARY WITH THE SEASONS
Many people are under the impression that the birds they see in their yards from day to day are, like the trees and shrubs, constant elements. In fact, however, bird populations are extremely dynamic. For instance, there are some years when most, if not all, of the summering chickadees, Blue Jays, and other “resident” birds are replaced by a different wintering population. Because individuals of a species look pretty much the same, shifts in feeding birds usually go unnoticed except when concentrations become unusually large or when the out-going visitors are not immediately replaced by a new group of hungry customers.

When struck by a worrisome disappearance of birds in the early fall, people may start searching nearby woodlots and their fears are confirmed. Where recently the woods were full of songful birds there is now a pall of silence and inactivity. This too is completely normal. Except for unusually loquacious species such as mockingbirds, bird song essentially ceases by late summer. Because bird song is such an integral part of our outdoor experience, on a nice day in September we often fail to notice its absence unless we’re listening for it. Once they have left their breeding territories, birds tend to coalesce into feeding flocks, and it is not unusual for extensive sections of the landscape to be birdless when such a flock or flocks are elsewhere. There is nothing alarming about a prolonged silence in the depths of an autumn forest.

BIRDS FIND FOOD IN THE WILD
Wild foods include berries, weed seeds, mast (acorns and other nuts), and invertebrate sources such as lace bug larvae. These foods are subject to fluctuating availability both seasonally and from year to year. Birds will concentrate in regions where wild foods are particularly plentiful, thus leaving areas where there is less bounty. The availability of food in the wild will affect the number of winter residents, for example, if there is a poor mast crop in Massachusetts, Blue Jays will migrate farther south to where natural foods are more abundant. When Massachusetts experiences an unusually open winter in the early part of the season, the fields remain open, and the weed seeds are available to seedeaters, especially Dark-eyed Juncos and Tree Sparrows.

FALL WEATHER INFLUENCES WINTER POPULATIONS
Weather during the fall migration period is another factor that determines which birds will winter in Massachusetts. Some understanding of the mechanics of bird migration helps explain this relationship. Although we all recognize that the general trend of bird migration in the fall is southward, it is probably less well known that there is a significant movement of mostly immature birds that fly north in the fall. Apparently birds take their directional cues from the weather, and when a strong spring-like flow of warm southwest wind is the dominant weather pattern, they fly north. Most of these misguided waifs eventually move south, but if the northward movement has taken place late in the season and the internal drive to migrate has lessened, then they may spend the winter in the inhospitable northland, some to perish, some to survive. The number of Brown Thrashers and Northern Orioles, etc., that linger is almost solely dependent upon the weather influences of the late fall.

FEEDER FRUSTRATIONS
Many who ask “where are the birds?” have just put up their feeders for the season or for the first time ever. No flocks have descended. The feeders remain full of seed. Even the cardinals that nested in the yard haven’t come. The worried birdwatcher becomes suspicious that the bird seed is at fault, undertakes a thorough cleaning of the feeders, replacing the seed or even buying brand new. It is normal for weeks or even months to elapse before birds recognize and frequent a new feeding station. There are some considerations in the placement of a feeder which will affect the number of birds which will use it. Proximity to a sheltered staging area such as a bush provides for quick escape from predators and increases feeder visitation.

Finally, day to day visitation at a feeder may be influenced by neighborhood predators. Birds make themselves scarce when threatened by predators such as cats and hawks. It is not uncommon for a sharp-shinned hawk to frequent a feeding station while there are abundant birds there as easy prey. This is usually a temporary situation, if the birds are scared away the hawk will soon move on to other territory. For more information on feeders refer to the Massachusetts Audubon Society publication “Attracting Birds with Food.” Feeding birds is an increasingly popular winter activity, therefore it is possible that there is local competition for birds at backyard bird feeding stations. We encourage people to persist in their efforts and, as always, patience will be rewarded.