... But not all birds go south when Jack Frost comes around. Some stick around to cheer us with a little chirp as the dawn cracks - which thanks to clock changes has made sunrise a little later. So no more 4 am calls!
The trees are bare, the parks are less crowded and it is so much easier to play spot the bird. We can see them more clearly now that there is no foliage, and get to identify those which stay behind, toughening themselves up to fight the snow and hail.
So fill up your bird feeders, pull up a couch at your window or glass door - winter schminter - this is the best show in town
Well, hello there, you handsome thing -so nice of you to come!
Having a cedar waxwing in your yard is a special pleasure. They will visit for as long as there are berries to peck and as soon as there are no more, they are off.
So cherish those moments while they are still around. It’s a treat to watch them fly in large flocks and chatter in their unmistakable high pitched chirps, while making themselves comfortable on a berry branch.
This cute yellow bundle of bustling energy is a sign that the ice of winter will be melting soon. It always warms the cockles of the heart to see the finch getting his yellow feathers at the end of winter as this means sunny days are ahead, and spring is near.
Squirrels don’t just covet bird seeds. If they find a food source, they can go further and infiltrate any crevice that can give them entry to your house: chimneys, windows, garages. Once in the woodwork, they’ll start chewing away. Now - there is no cause for alarm! Yes, it’s inconvenient. That’s why we're here - to guide you through this phenomenon.
Purple martins are the largest swallows in north America.
They are known for their speed, reaching 40 miles per hour; their agility - performing crazy acrobatics as they pursue their prey; and their characteristic flight pattern mix of rapid flapping and gliding. They are aerial insectivores, which means they eat insects in mid-flight. They are known to fly in circles in the sky before they dive down for their prey.
Join us as we start the year with this sassy songbird-of-the-week! Carolina Wrens are almost as fun to watch as hummingbirds as they are so busy, melodic and cute. As the eminent American ornithologist Arthur Cleveland Bent said:“they are delightful and give us a warm touch of southern hospitality, a hearty welcome to Dixie Land.”
We could be doing so much more to attract these magical little beings into our lives. See, even before we put up our new hummingbird feeder, the hummingbird came to the flower bed on her window sill!
I set out to research what we could do - besides hanging up hummingbird feeders - to get more hummers into our gardens and to our windows.
Here are 10 tips I gathered to attract your neighborhood Hummingbirds!
Here’s one of every birdwatchers’ and birdfeeders’ favourites. And this is how much: in the 1960’s and 70’s, the population of these blue flyers went down 90% (!) due to harsh nesting competition between them and their rivals, the starlings and house sparrows.
This little one can be the first on your list of “Birds I identified today!”
Nibbling and flocking among the chickadees, titmice and nuthatches, the downy woodpecker is only just a little bigger than it’s pecking mates in the flock. Downys are a common sight in private gardens, parks and deciduous forests. They are the smallest woodpeckers in northern America, which explains how these little ones are able to make circus-like moves as they hop from branch to twig, from plant-gall to bird-feeder.
From Canada to Mexico, the most common sighting in the northern US is the mourning dove. Perched on telephone poles, cooing as if lamenting, most don’t give them a second thought.
But there is more to them than meets the eye in this elegant bird. Theirfeeding and mating are extremely unique, their sound - warm and soothing.
They cut the air like a knife when flying, reaching up to 55 mph due to their pointed wings and long slendertails!
The name has its roots in two ancient Anglo-Saxon words — “tit,” from a word meaning something small, and “mouse,” from a word applied to any small bird, as well as that little rodent.
Ruby-crowned Kinglets are extremely energetic and very tiny, only about 3.5-4.5 inches small! They are an olive-green, pocket-sized songbird with white wing bars. Their legs are black with yellow feet. A little secret how to identify these little tea-cup passerines: the white wing bar has a black bar directly underneath.
