Bird Watching - The Outdoor Directory for Birding

Nesting Urban Red Tail Hawk

2011-05-03T06:11:37Z

For 5 breeding seasons a pair of Red=Tail hawks have been nesting on the fire escape of a downtown Portland Or office building. KGW-TV Channel 8 and Portland Audubon have teamed up for the 5th season of Raptor Cam. You can go to their website www.kgw.com and follow this pair of Red-Tails and their nest on the web. Bookmark KGW's site and follow the nest through out the spring.

Shorebirds On the Move

2011-05-02T05:01:17Z

This weekend was the annual Shorebird Birding Festival at Grays Harbor on the Washington coast with many birding field trips, lectures, art displays and thousands of shorebirds migrating to their breeding grounds Canada and Alaska. many birders are attracted to this wonderful opportunity to see so many species of shorebirds and in great numbers. The birds migration back in the summer is spread out over a longer period of weeks so lacks the concentration of birds for viewing. The Long Beach penn. a little further south was great too with very few people on the northern end and clouds of birds moving along this long long sandy stretch of oceanside.. If you have never to this shorebird festival put it on your schedule for next year. Your can contact the Grays Harbor Shorebird Festival at shorebirdfestival.com

Spring Is Here

2011-03-21T05:02:28Z

The calendar on my wall announces Spring with the day and night of equal length. Many birds have been feeling spring in the air for weeks now. Nature has its own calendar. On my birding walks through the coastal woods the Northern Flickers have been announcing their availability for mates, Turkey Vultures are soaring once again in the sky after their winter sojourn further south and clouds of Pine Siskins are in the tops of the alders. At night the frogs are noisy in spring chorus. Two weeks ago I took a lovely photograph of my house covered with 6 inches of freshly fallen snow. the yellow lights of home streaming out of the windows reflecting off of the snow contrasted nicely with the bluish tone of the sky and woods in the just before dawn light. Now it is but a memory with all the snow gone. The creek is full with snow melt water from higher elevations, the corkscrew willows are blooming and the screech owls are calling for mates at night. Soon the spring migrations of birds will increase. A good time to to check on the migration patterns of birds in your particular area and enjoy spring birding.

Bird Feeding in the Winter Time

2010-12-30T22:34:30Z

The New Year is just a day away and our bird feeders have a lot of traffic. Stellar Jays, Chickadees, Nuthatches, Towhees, Juncos and the occasional Red Squirrel. Traces of snow are on the ground and the temperature has stayed below freezing the entire day. As we move fully into winter this is a good time to remember that backyard birds need water even more than food in the winter, A small low wattage heater for the bird bath can provide much needed winter drinking water. Clean bird feeders are especially important because we tend to forget about cleaning them until Spring. Any signs of mold in the feeders mean they need to come down for a cleaning.

Best Wishes for the New Year from Everyone at Birdingguide.com

Winter Is Prime Time for Birding

2010-12-06T03:47:29Z

Our National Wildlife Refuge System provides great birding opportunities especially in the winter when many migratory birds from Alaska and Canada are wintering over at wildlife refuges. Some noteworthy refuges are:

Bosque del Apache, San Antonio, NM
Bombay Hook Smyrna.DE
J.N. ding Darling Sanibel, FL
Neil Smith Prairie City, IA

Many of the refuges have birding festivals too. Check the web for National Wildlife Refuges nearest you for more information on the birding opportunities. Many birders, photographers and wildlife watchers come from long distances to visit our National Wildlife Refuge system. Bring you binoculars, scopes and some warm winter clothes and enjoy the winter birding.

The Close of the Hawk watch Season on Bonney Butte

2010-11-08T05:00:11Z

As October wound down to a rainy and snowy end Hawk Watch International raptor migration observation and banding season came to an end for another year. There were many great days with large numbers of raptors counted and banded for future tracking. Rain and fog limited some days but an unusual number of sunny days for October kept the Hawk Watch International observers on Bonney Butte until late in the month. I was able to photograph many exciting raptors passing overhead as well as photograph those that were caught and released. Hats off to the Hawk Watch staff who camp out for two months scanning the skies seven days a week counting the numbers of migrating raptors. It is not easy to spend that much time outdoors and summer comes to an early end in the mountains with some very frosty mornings.

This not the end of all raptor movement for our area. By January of the coming year there will be large numbers of Bald Eagles along the Columbia River who will winter here with thousands upon thousands of waterfowl where it relatively milder than their northern summer homes. Relatively milder! Winter birding opportunities are splendid along the river but a good rain proof parka and rain pants over winter weight fleece are advised for comfortable winter birding

Raptors On The Move

2010-09-24T04:07:06Z

The deer are munching the wild apples around our place and the nights are cooler. From New Hampshire to the Pacific Northwest the fall migration of raptors is underway. I drove up to Mt Hood and took the short walk to Bonney Butte where Hawk Watch International has its raptor banding station and raptor migration monitoring people. running a bit south to south east from Mt Hood Bennett Ridge creates a natural flyway for raptors heading south. Since 1994 Hawk Watch International has been monitoring raptors from Bonney Butte in Oregon. Last weekend was cold and rainy, but the weather broke on Tuesday and many raptors that had been waiting for the weather to improve. Sharp shinned hawks were the most numerous, but also many Red Tail hawks, Turkey Vultures and Osprey were to be seen.

Watching migrating raptors is a true thrill for all birders. Check Hawk Watch Internationals web site or your local Audubon Society chapter to find out if there are good places near you to watch the migration. If you are too late for this season for your area then mark your calander for next year. Many banding stations will let you hold the just banded raptor and release it which is a real thrill.
Happy Fall
Bill@birdingguide.com

Summer Fledglings

2010-08-16T03:48:53Z

We usually consider springtime to be the time of birth in nature. Themes of spring flowers, baby birds and new growth abound in the popular imagination and media representations of the season. On several recent birding outings I have been noticing the great abundance of young fledglings in the woods in late July and August. Large numbers of young Finches, Violet Green and Tree Swallows, Oregon Juncos, Western Scrub Jays and Towhees are everywhere.

Often young birds do not have the developed colors of the adults and blend into the surroundings. Identification of the young is often trickier than adult birds. The illustrations in many field guides are of adult males and under represent the young and females. I know publishers do not want birding field guides to become to bulky as well as to expensive but I wish there could be more illustrations to help birders with identifying young birds. Identifying and watching young birds can give you insights into the world of nature that are very special.

Nature's Little Springtime Dramas

2010-05-28T04:43:38Z

While walking in an urban neighborhood I heard House Hose Sparrows fussing loudly and excitedly. I looked up searching for the source of the excitement and saw a male and a female pair of House Sparrows on the power line leading into the Japanese Methodist church I was passing. i spotted the source of their alarm/ A Western Scrub Jay was pulling bits of the sparrows nest out of the nook in the church created by the power line going into the building. Western Scrub Jays are very aggressive and often rob nests. He would paused from his nest raiding and advanced up the power line as the parent sparrows retreated. Then stepping down the power line he would return to his nest attack.

Passing a four-plex apartment building I noticed an adult starling in the grassy curb strip. Four young noisy starlings were pursuing the adult. You do not need to know bird languages to know what they were demanding. "Feed Me, feed me." The adult bird was having nothing to do with their demands. It was as if the adult was saying "Feed yourself. Just watch. This is how you do it" Poking at the grass and dirt the adult starling moved rapidly along the grassy strip pursued by the young who began copying the the searching and poking feeding behavior of the parent.

White Crowned Sparrows caught my eye as they flew in and out of a bank of juniper bushes in front of an office building. One bird had an insect in its mouth. There is a nest in there somewhere I thought reflecting on all the little dramas of nature going all around us even in the urban environmet.

May Is Cold, Wet and Filled With Birds

2010-05-24T03:23:23Z

It has been a cold, wet month with rain, near daily hail storms and spring snow in the mountains. My bird feeders and suet blocks are busy with feeding birds. Suet blocks are consumed and need replenishment every 6 hours. The sun flower seed feeders get emptied out daily. I let the feeders go empty for a day or so just to disperse the birds. Over crowding around feeders can sometimes spread avian diseases.

During breakfast this Sunday morning I saw through the dining room while eating a bowl of oatmeal window many, many Evening Grosbeaks, Black Headed Grosbeaks and American Goldfinches. Purple Finches, Fox Sparrows, Song Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows flew by the window much to the delight of my cats who are indoors cats, naturally. Towhees, Juncos and Stellar Jays moved into the feeders when the Grosbeaks gave them a chance.

Three chipmunks sat on the deck railing feeding on sunflower seeds I had scattered along the railing. A Red Squirrel looked around the deck for dropped seeds when another Red Squirrel appeared. they immediately got into a territorial wrestling match. Shrieking and scolding one another they became a blurred ball of fur rolling across the deck. "This is almost too much action to go with a simple bowl of oatmeal. I wonder what I will see if I go outside?

Goldfinches, Hummingbirds and Turkey Vultures

2010-04-16T01:36:15Z

Our Rufus Hummingbirds returned the beginning of April nearly two weeks later then is usual. Friends further down the valley in a warmer zone where the Rufus typically show up in mid February said their birds were quite late this year too. It is nice to see the hummingbirds zooming around the feeders once again. As always there is an aggressive male working hard to chase the others away from the feeders.

Clouds of American Goldfinches fill the tops of the deciduous trees. Their olive yellow bodies blending in with the fresh spring yellow greens of the leaves. Oh what a beautiful racket the goldfinches make! The Turkey Vultures have also returned. I see them soaring with their distinctive tippy manner over the highway as I drive. Last week there were late spring snows in the mountains but the sight of the Turkey Vultures is a hint that summer is really not that far away.

Spring Has The Upper Hand Over Winter

2010-03-26T05:19:31Z

Our unusual sub zero winter temperatures are a memory now. The Rufus Hummingbirds have returned though a week overdue. In years past they arrived within 24 hours of March 14. They always make their arrival known by flying around the house and peering into all the windows as if to demand we hang up the feeders or else! I spotted the returning Violet Green Swallows checking out our swallow nesting boxes last Sunday. I cleaned off the nest boxes. Feeling a bit guilty about waiting so long to do the nest box housekeeping I opened up the boxes and cleaned out last years straw so new fresh nests could be built. No Turkey Vultures yet but when i see them soaring on thermals above the highway i will know that Spring has finally triumphed in the annual back and forth tug of war between winter and spring.

Robins, Robins and More Robins

2010-02-24T03:23:01Z

I was walking the other day and was awe struck by the number of robins I saw. Every tree and I mean every tree had 8 to 12 robins in the still leafless branches. Half a dozen more robins were running around on the ground below. Any shrub with last years berries was soon un-berried. A large movement of robins was underway. Chirping, whistling, singing, trilling and clucking sounds came from every tree and shrub. What to call such a glorious event? A flock of robins is too tame a description. A gang of robins has a sinister sound. A hoard perhaps? That brings up images of pillaging and destruction. I suppose if the enormous number of robins took a violent turn of mind they could have carried away dogs and cats. I did not see any air borne cats hoisted off the ground by robins but I did see hour after hour of robins on a memorable afternoon walk.

Migration Season Again

2010-02-24T03:06:46Z

Our birds that migrated south last fall and early winter are due to be returning soon. About half will not have lived to return this spring. Bad weather and predators take their natural toll. Habitat loss due to logging, urban sprawl and other human causes like collisions with tall buildings and automobiles also reduce migratory bird populations.

You can help by landscaping your property with native trees, shrubs, grasses and fruit bearing trees. Landscaping that is dense enough to provide cover from predators and provide hidden nesting sites for the birds is essential. Water sources and bird feeders are helpful though not as vital as good landscaping for our feathered friends.

Spring weather brings people out into their yards to garden and clean up weeds, leaves and yard debris from the winter. remember a too tidy of a yard is not good for our birds who need some "overgrown" shrubs for cover, leaf piles that harbor worms and insects for food. Your local Audubon Society chapter or Nature Conservancy chapter and garden store can provide landscaping tips birds, butterflies and other wildlife.

Conservation Birding Tourism

2010-01-18T20:25:11Z

The American Bird Conservancy has launched a new website, www.conservationbirding.org, that has been created to help plan your birding trips to South American bird reserves that the Conservancy has helped established or expand. Birders traveling to such reserves helps fund the reserves which protect our tropical birds. Check this new resource out for your next birding adventure. There is information on birding routes, lodges, google maps and travel companies. Links to other useful websites and trip reports are included