Photo by Uttar Pradesh

the Caribbean and Central and South America. IMBD celebrates and brings attention to one of the most important events in North and South America – bird migration.

IMBD was begun by the staff of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. The first event was held at the National Zoo in Washington, DC in 1993. The aviary experts at the Smithsonian figured they would bring attention to the plight of migratory birds and give the public the opportunity to learn about migratory species, the threats facing them and ways to help in their conservation.

Events to celebrate migratory birds are held thought out the United States and Canada during the month of May. To find an event near you, check out the interactive map at BirdDay.org. According to the BirdLifeInternational, nearly 200 species of birds are currently considered critically endangered. Nearly 80% of migratory birds species are affected by by two key pressures: Agriculture, which can result in habitat destruction, and biological resource use, the umbrella under which falls threats like deforestation and environmentally unsustainable hunting practices.  You can learn more at Birdday.org.

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I have hung bird houses made of straw, grass, recycled material,

Flower Top Bird House

functional wood designs, and even ornamental.

Starlings chose to raise a family in the eave which was protected by a fairly large evergreen.  They never returned.

A sparrow had a nest in the laurel hedge which I discovered when I trimmed the hedge, exposing the nest with two babies, which the Ferrell cat found soon after.  I felt so bad!

A pair of house finches started a nest in ornamental bird house by my back door, laid two eggs, and then abandoned the nest.

Mini Wren Bird House

A second pair of house finches started to build a nest in a house I had hung from a tree branch but again they abandoned the process.

I am learning the reasons for my failures and would welcome any ones input!

1. My yard is small and I am outside a lot on my days off.  They start a nest while I am at work, stay with the process a couple of weeks, and then determine my presence is too disruptive.
2. There are natural settings of trees and shrubs in the deep gully and swamp in my back yard, so there are safer more distant settings available.  Now I have moved my bird houses into those tees and let’s see what happens this year and next spring!
3. Because I have such a wide variety of birds coming to my feeders, my small yard is far too busy for birds to attempt to raise a family.  Nesting birds need space!  They do not want to fight off other birds from their nest.
4. If I have a nesting family in my yard, I have to stop feeding the other birds until the fledglings are on their own.  Since only 80% of baby birds survive, it is well worth supporting the nesters!
5. I keep my two cats indoors, but my neighbor allows his cat out and is happy when it has killed a bird!  My pleadings have not changed his attitude or actions.  There are some other Ferrell cats in my neighborhood, which seem to be diminishing in number.

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Taking part in the GBBC is a great way to get outside with family and friends, have fun and help count birds – all at the same time. Anyone who can identify even a few species can provide important information.

Participants count birds for as little as 15 minutes (or as long as they wish) on one or more days of the event and report their sighting on at www.birdcount.org.

Bird populations are always shifting and changing. For example, 2009 GBBC date highlighted a huge southern invasion of Pine Siskins across much of the eastern United States. Participants counted 279,469 Pine Siskins on 18,528 checklists, as compared to a the previous high of 38,977 birds on 4,069 checklists in 2005. Failure of seed crops father north caused the Siskins to move south to find their favorite food.

On the www.birdcount.org website, participants can get more information and explore real-time maps and charts that show what others are reporting during the count. The site has tips to help identify birds and special material for educators. Participants may also enter the GBBC photo contest by uploading images taken during the count. Many images will be featured in the GBBC website’s photo gallery. All participants are entered in a drawing for prizes that include bird feeders, binoculars, books, CD’s, and many other great birding projects.

Why Count Birds?

Blackburnian Warbler

Scientist and bird enthusiasts can learn a lot by knowing where the birds are. Bird populations are dynamic; they are constantly in flux. No single scientist or team of scientists could hope to document the complex distribution and movements of so many species in such a short time.

The Great Backyard Bird Count needs your help. Make sure that birds from your area are well represented in the count. It doesn’t matter whether you report the 5 species coming to your backyard feeder or the 75 species you see during a day’s outing to as wildlife refuge. Your counts can help to answer many questions.

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The shortest journey was 36,900 miles and the longest was 50,700 miles. The study confirmed what researchers suspected for decades, the Arctic Tern has the longest annual migration of any animal in the world. Over its life time the Arctic Tern files the equivalent of three trips from the Earth to the Moon and back.

The birds do not just fly south. They spend about a month in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. They spend this time feeding to “fuel up” before they continue to fly into the waters of the South Atlantic which have less food sources for them.

After this pause, the birds continued their long journey south down the coast of northwest Africa. However, around the Cape Verde Islands — islands off the west coast of Africa, close to Senegal — the birds’ behavior surprised the research team again. About half of the birds continued down the coast of Africa, while the other half crossed the Atlantic Ocean to follow a parallel route south down the east coast of South America. All of the birds went to the Antarctic waters, none of them stayed at any location along the their route.

After spending the summer at the South Pole on their return trip to the North Pole they did not follow the most direct route back to their breeding grounds in Iceland. Instead they flew a gigantic “S” pattern through the Atlantic Ocean. This route added several thousand miles to the birds flight back to their breeding grounds. This indirect  route allowed the birds to take advantage of the global wind system and to reduce the amount of energy they need to use on their return journey.

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‘Twas the night before Christmas (count that is)
when all through the dark
not a creature was stirring
not even a lark.

The stockings were hung
on their feet with care
in hopes that real frostbite
would not settle there.

The birders were quiet
listening for owls
filled up with coffee
which gurgled their bowels.

And Jan in her kerchief
and Scott in his cap
were straining their ears
to hear any yap.

When out in the field
there arose such a clatter
we sprang from the forest
to see what was aflutter.

When what to our wondering
eyes should appear
but a miniature flock
of eight tiny Killdeer.

I got out my camera
lively and quick,
I knew in a moment
I must have a pic.

More rapid than eagles
the birders all came
and they whistled and shouted
each calling a name.

They’re buntings. No, warblers.
They’re swallows. No, grouse.
They’re Mallards. No, nightjars.
Or maybe titmouse.

To the tops of the trees
the birds flew away all.
Oh dash it! Oh darn it!
Did you hear a call?

As varied opinions that before
no proof will fly
the arguments of birders
will mount to the sky.

They’re sparrows. No, bobwhites.
No, alcids. You dolt:
They were Black-headed Gulls
in second-year molt.

And then in a twinkle
we heard from the air
a trilling or chirping
or something unclear.

As we drew in our heads
and were turning around
down to the clearing
they came with a sound.

They were all dressed in feathers
from head to their foot,
they were dark as if tarnished
with ashes and soot.

A bundle of speckles
they had on their breast
their belly and shoulders
but not on the rest.

Their eyes-how they twinkled,
their mandibles-how pale.
Their cheek patches brownish,
not much of a tail.

Their dull little coverts
were brown like the wing
and their backs and their heads.
They had no eye ring.

They were chubby and plump
all filled up with berries
and also from composted
maraschino cherries.

A wink of an eye
and a twist of a head
soon gave us to know
we had something to dread.

They sprang to the air
to our team gave a whistle
that sounded as raucous
as an incoming missile.

But we heard them exclaim
e’er they flew out of sight
many starlings to all
and to all a good flight!

This poem is from an email that was forwarded to me. Mr. Lappen Thank You for writing this poem. To all I wish you a Merry Christmas and an Happy New Year.

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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!

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.

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During the breeding season male woodpeckers, mockingbirds and cardinals may see their own reflections in the window or car mirror and want to “fight” it. They will stop banging your window or door glass as the breeding season comes to an end.

In our case living in the Pacific Northwest our backyard is in shade most of the time. Linda was having trouble growing some of her plants in her Serenity Garden. To solve this problem we had to remove several trees.  The new sunlight in Linda’s Serenity Garden was great for the plants, but was now causing a reflection off the back sliding glass door.

How can we reduce the reflection on our glass door? Life-size, animate “scare birds” such as plastic owls or falcons do not work. Even owl or falcon silhouettes attached to windows with suction cups are not very effective deterrents.  Window or door screens and bird netting are effective in breaking up the reflection of large glass windows and doors. Our problem is we have a sliding glass door and only one half of the door glass is covered by the screen. The half not covered is where the birds fly into. Planting trees or high bushes or shrubs to block the sunlight from reflecting in the glass door was not an option, since we had just removed trees to allow sunlight into the yard.

The solution was to move the feeders closer to the house. Now the birds do not get up to flight speed before they fly into the window. Since moving the feeder we did see one bird fly into the glass door, then after striking it, turn sideways and fly away. If you have space moving the feeders a considerable distance away from your home is another option.

Sat, October 3, 2009:

Birds know all about “social networking”.

The show began at 7:15 AM, Oct 3, 2009, just outside my dining room window.  On the suet feeder was a male and female Northern Flicker.  Nothing out of the ordinary, you say.  They were followed by a male and female Yellow Shafted Flicker (the male has a red V on the back of its head and the lower portion of the wings and under side of the tail have yellow markings.)

To my great delight, two male and two female Black Headed Grosbeck arrived which I had not seen since early spring.  There were the usual Towhees checking out the seed supply on the ground, the first ones I had seen in several months.

 I noticed a couple of juvenile robins in the Mountain Ash tree which, surprise, surprise, had dropped all its orange berries last night.  In the past four weeks, I had enjoyed many robins feasting on the berries.  I became aware of pairs of Robins flying through my yard and in and out of surrounding trees and branches.  I had to move to my bedroom window to get a view less restricted by trees!  My best guess was over 20 Robins.  Never had I seen so many at one time and in just a 75 foot radius.  My neighbor saw the same thing and will vouch for me!

I could hardly miss the Pileated Wood pecker as he cautiously investigates and finally goes to the suet feeder!

Then a pair of Morning Doves did their strut across the grass, they mate for life you know.

Within that hour I had 15 varieties of birds to my feeders and close surrounding trees.  I can only estimate but there must have been 55 birds.  There were finches, sparrows, chickadees, Stellar Jays, a couple of European Starlings. Of course there were a few squirrels, too.

That was a new record for my yard.  It was the first night the temperature dropped to 38 and the morning was clear and sunny.   

We humans can take a lesson from the birds about real “social networking!”

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