Birds

Winter is in full swing, and our bird population at our house has grown.  In addition to our black oil, I put out homemade suet and sunflower chips.  Changing up the food, which I began last year with my reformulated suet, has brought some interesting birds into our viewing. It's a conscious act of observing, and by doing so, one 'sees'.

A more systematize way of seeing the birds is by participating in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Project Feeder Watch (you can visit here https://feederwatch.org/) which begins the first week of November annually.  It's a weekly count of birds at feeders in your back yard.  You observe the highest count of a species seen simultaneously at your feeder over the two day period.  It's a great project to get you focused on your back yard visitors.  I have a feeder just outside of a large west window, so it is easy to take a look and see who is who and what is what.  And by doing so, there is so much to see!


Another systematic way to see and report is using Cornell's free E-Bird Application.  It is a simple phone app that allows you to enter your birdwatching data for any slice of time that you are interested in doing so.

Finally, the Great Backyard Birdcount is taking place on February 15-18.  Why not consider participating?  http://gbbc.birdcount.org/

Our weather has turned particularly cold.  The suet is a huge hit for all of the birds.  This year is the first year that I've seen the cardinals eating it.  This winter, I've noticed three birds that I've not seen before:  Yellow-bellied sapscuker, Brown Creeper and Pine Warbler.  I've lots of Juncos, Goldfinches, Cardinals and a whole camp of white throated sparrows.  In addition to seeing the old friends, it is always a delight to see some new ones.  Hopefully you will see some too!