2011 Great Backyard Bird Count

The next Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) takes place Friday, February 18 through Monday, February 21, 2011. The National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, with Canadian partner Bird Studies Canada are already in the planning stages fro the event. I will be posting updates here as we get closer to kick off time.

This past February’s GBBC produced another record-breaking turnout with participants turning in more than 97,300 checklists online, and identifying more than 600 species.

A new GBBC video gives an overview of the event and detailed instructions on how to collect and enter data.

This will be the fifth year my family has participated in this event and it is really interesting to see which birds are hanging around in the backyard over winter and which birds you see only in winter. Also, I like the idea of contributing to the study of bird populations for bird conservation efforts.

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Great Backyard Bird Count is Coming

Feb 13-16, 2009
Mark your calendars.
Read more about it in their news release.

It’s a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society. This free event is an opportunity for families, students, and people of all ages to discover the wonders of nature in backyards, schoolyards, and local parks, and, at the same time, make an important contribution to conservation. Participants count birds and report their sightings online at www.birdcount.org.

My wife and I have participated in this annual event for the past several years and I want to encourage others to do the same. Here in central Utah we see Coopers Hawk, Black-capped chickadee, Dark-eyed junco, Northern flicker, purple finches, goldfinch, house finch, Cedar waxwing, Mourning dove, Rock dove, Red-winged black bird, European starling. I didn’t realize what a long list it was until we started keeping track.

Ever wonder how scientists know what the migratory range is for a specific bird? Or how many birds of a particular species there is? Well, since no single scientist or team of scientists could hope to keep track of the complicated patterns of movement of so many species over an entire continent, the information taken from GBBC participants provides valuable information to scientists as they try to learn how birds are affected by environmental changes.

The information you send in can provide the first sign that individual species may be increasing or declining from year to year. It shows how a species’ range expands or shrinks over time. A big change, noted consistently over a period of years, is an indication that something is happening in the environment that is affecting the birds and that should be followed up on. GBBC information also allows us to look at what kinds of birds inhabit different areas, such as cities versus suburban.

This is very valuable information and can only be collected by dedicated scientists and concerned individuals. If you want to do something to help birds survive this is one of the best ways to participate.

I especially encourage those of you with good photography skills to document any birds you see and enter your photos in their photo contest.

The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes. It’s free, fun, and easy—and it helps the birds.

How to participate
1. Plan to count birds for at least 15 minutes during February 13–16, 2009.
Count birds at as many places and on as many days as you like—just keep a separate list of counts for each day and/or location.

2. Count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time, and write it down.
You can get regional bird checklists here.

3. Enter your results through GBBC web page.

They have a great photo gallery of birds from all over the U.S. along with names.

The reasoning behind why this is one in February is that it gives a snapshot of how birds are surviving the winter and where they are located just before spring migrations begin in March. Scientists at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audubon Society, and elsewhere can combine this information with data from surveys conducted at different times of the year.

There are answers to all of your questions from the main page, just click on the FAQs link.

Also, check out eBird, a free, real-time, online checklist program that accepts bird counts at any time throughout the year. You can use eBird to store detailed lists of your own sightings, a list of your favorite birding spots, and checkout where birds are seen throughout the U.S.

A great online source for identifying birds is WhatBird.com.

Businesses, schools, nature clubs, Scout troops, and other community organizations interested in the GBBC can contact the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at (800) 843-2473 (outside the U.S., call (607) 254-2473), or Audubon at citizenscience@audubon.org or (215) 355-9588, Ext 16.

Take the Healthy Yard Pledge
While you’re getting ready to feed and count birds this winter, make sure you’re maintaining healthy bird habitat in your yard by taking the Audubon Healthy Yard Pledge.

The Healthy Yard Pledge is part of Audubon At Home, which focuses on managing backyards and other natural areas to help birds and other wildlife. Visit the website to learn about 16 key elements that make up a healthy backyard habitat—how many can be found in your yard?

This is a great opportunity to help further understand the nature of birds and a wonderful way to introduce more people in your area to bird watching.

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Great Backyard Bird Count Feb 15-18, 2008

For the past several years I have participated in this annual event and I want to encourage others to do the same.

Ever wonder how scientists know what the migratory range is for a specific bird? Or how many birds of a particular species there is? Well, since no single scientist or team of scientists could hope to keep track of the complicated patterns of movement of so many species over an entire continent, the information taken from GBBC participants provides valuable information to scientists as they try to learn how birds are affected by environmental changes.

The information you send in can provide the first sign that individual species may be increasing or declining from year to year. It shows how a species’ range expands or shrinks over time. A big change, noted consistently over a period of years, is an indication that something is happening in the environment that is affecting the birds and that should be followed up on. GBBC information also allows us to look at what kinds of birds inhabit different areas, such as cities versus suburban.

This is very valuable information and can only be collected by dedicated scientists and concerned individuals. If you want to do something to help birds survive this is one of the best ways to participate.

More information can be found at the Great Backyard Bird Count webpage.

I especially encourage those of you with good photography skills to document any birds you see and enter your photos in their photo contest.

The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes. It’s free, fun, and easy—and it helps the birds.

How to participate

1. Plan to count birds for at least 15 minutes during February 15–18, 2008.
Count birds at as many places and on as many days as you like—just keep a separate list of counts for each day and/or location.

2. Count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time, and write it down.
You can get regional bird checklists here.

3. Enter your results through GBBC web page.

They have a great photo gallery of birds from all over the U.S. along with names.

The reasoning behind why this is one in February is that it gives a snapshot of how birds are surviving the winter and where they are located just before spring migrations begin in March. Scientists at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audubon Society, and elsewhere can combine this information with data from surveys conducted at different times of the year.

There are answers to all of your questions from the main page, just click on the FAQs link.

Also, check out eBird, a free, real-time, online checklist program that accepts bird counts at any time throughout the year. You can use eBird to store detailed lists of your own sightings, a list of your favorite birding spots, and checkout where birds are seen throughout the U.S.

A great online source for identifying birds is WhatBird.com.

This is a great opportunity to help further understand the nature of birds and a wonderful way to introduce more people in your area to bird watching.

Read more...

Robins in winter

I just learned something new today. Robins don’t always fly south for the winter!

There are two Robins in my backyard as I type this. Looking on the internet for information lead me to a site called, simply enough, American Robin.

Almost every Robin migrates south to escape the cold but some actually stay even as far north as Canada. They have been known to survive blinding blizzards, ice storms, and nights as cold as 30 below zero without human help. I am amazed! Whatever happened to looking to the Robin as the first sign of spring?

The website says that their body temperature under the feathers is about 104 degrees thanks to their thick down feathers that help hold body heat in. They produce body heat by shivering. And they get the energy to shiver from their food. This is where I know I can help. And you too.

Sometimes robins gather in huge flocks in winter. Doug Von Gausig found a "robin convention" of about 1000 robins near Sedona, Arizona, and recorded their chatter. Check out his website for a recording of Robin music.

I have never seen more than five or six Robins at one time. And never really together, they run all around the neighborhood looking for worms and fruit. To see a 1,000 of them at one time must really be something.

Yesterday, I saw about seventy or eighty Cedar Waxwings sitting in the fruit trees in my backyard. First time I ever saw this bird anywhere! Very exciting times here at Utah Valley Gardens!

They were all facing southwest because there was a very strong wind blowing from that direction. I figured they must have landed here to rest and to get out of the wind for awhile. They stayed for about 40 minutes.

Both of these birds like berries so I am going to follow the advice of this website and set out some:

# fruits: cut up apples, pears, oranges; blueberries, cranberries, and other berries; raisins and currants
# softened dog food kibble
# meal worms, earthworms, and red worms

Robins never eat bird seed--their stomach and intestines are not designed to digest them.

The first problem with robin feeders is that most robins have never heard of such a thing! It never occurs to them to explore their winter areas for human handouts. One of the easiest ways to help robins discover a winter feeder is to put it near a bird bath. They recognize those readily because they are all over mine in the summer.

The second problem with robin feeders is that the food can freeze. Mike Houle of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, figured out a good way to solve this problem. He filled a heated dog dish with peat moss, sawdust, and other soft matter. Then he put the worms in that. The heat from the dish keeps the bottom of the sawdust and peat moss unfrozen so the worms stay alive until a robin digs in!

I wish I could take credit for these beautiful photographs, but I took these off of the web.

Here is a list of the best varieties of berry shrubs for any berry eating bird.

# bittersweet
# bayberry
# snowberry
# sumac
# mountain ash
# crabapple
# hackberry
# hawthorn
# red cedar
# highbush cranberry
# chokecherry

Look around and see if maybe there any Robins hanging around your yard that you can help out. You might be surprised.

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Help feed the birds

I saw a photo the other day of a Christmas tree trunk used as a prop for peanut butter used to feed birds. I agree it is a good idea. I have been doing this same thing for a couple of years now, but with a twist. I am one of those families that doesn’t buy a Christmas tree every year. Yeah, that’s right, I have an artificial tree and it is just as beautiful as any real once-live tree and it works just as well to satisfy our need for celebration.

Anyway, I put thick globs of peanut butter on my existing trees and the birds love it. I simply smear a large glob in the crotch of two branches and they find it without any problem.

Whenever I go grocery shopping with my wife, or when I do it myself, I look for the cheapest, largest jar of peanut butter I can find and the birds and I are set.

Birds eat up the peanut butter quickly so it never sits around long enough to spoil during those warmer days of winter we are beginning to experience more frequently.

Every winter we see an increase in the number of birds as well as in variety because of the suet feeders (and the fact that very few people put food out for birds). Downy Woodpeckers, Northern Flickers, Redwing blackbirds, Chickadees, Starlings, and Dark-eyed Juncos all come around to enjoy the free offering. At times, the noise from the birds is almost deafening but it is a very satisfying noise as I know they have a better chance of survival due in some small part to me and cheap peanut butter.

There are many recipes on the internet for suet-based or peanut butter-based mixtures but I find that plain peanut butter works just as well.

Here is a very basic recipe that can be used as a ‘starter’ mix and keeps well even in warmer weather:
peanut butter (you can use smooth or crunchy, I have not noticed any difference in bird activity so do it for yourself)

oatmeal (Quaker oats or whatever)
cornmeal
lard (do not substitute vegetable shortening)
white flour (just to make it not so sticky)

Melt the lard and peanut butter, and stir them together. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Pour the mixture into freezer containers or muffin tins or a brownie pan, about 1 ½ inches thick. When cool, cut into squares, wrap in wax paper or plastic, and store in the freezer. You can add a bit more peanut butter to make a softer mixture which allows you to stuff into any holes or nooks in your tree.

You can get as creative as you want with recipes by adding pieces of fruit, corn bread mix, popcorn, raw seeds, fruit juice, eggs (as cannibalistic as this sounds the will eat it.) Just keep in mind that most of this embellishment is more for you than for the birds, sure they will eat it but you really don’t need to go to the extra expense.

So, be creative and join in on the fun of bringing birds to your yard.

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Two out of three isn’t bad

Birds and I have a pretty good working relationship. I feed them and they come around and eat.

There are also two bird baths available for their drinking and bathing pleasure. I try keep them cleaned and filled regularly.

The one missing element, in this otherwise garden of eden, is shelter. Shelter from the weather and predators and shelter for nesting.

There are two trees in my front yard, this large Catalpa tree, left photo, and a fairly full Dogwood tree, photo on the right, but there are many larger trees in the neighborhood that bear leaves all winter and therefore are far better suited for sheltering the birds that grace our humble part of this planet. And I have no intention to compete with these beautiful trees just to get birds nests built in my yard.

Here is a small example of these sheltering trees within my immediate vicinity.







There are several fruit trees in my back yard but they don’t provide the suitable shelter these evergreen trees do. As you can see from this photo taken last Spring, the apple tree, pictured here to the right, gets pretty full but I have never seen a birds nest in it.
The cherry tree doesn’t seem to be attractive to nesting birds either.

I don’t really have to have nesting birds in my yard. I suppose it’s just one of those ‘nice things to have’.

I feel fortunate enough to be able to provide these birds with at least two of their requirements for survival. And they seem to ‘appreciate’ it because they come back every day, rain or shine, or snow, mainly finches, chick-a-dees and doves. Other birds come in once in awhile, but my guess is they only come around when they can’t find what they want anywhere else. A family of Northern Flickers show up every winter for the suet. Dark-eyed Juncos also show up in winter for whatever falls from the feeders because they won’t sit on the feeders’ perches. Maybe the finches are too aggressive for them.

Nowadays I only put out sunflower seeds, because the birds throw every thing else onto the ground and it doesn’t get eaten.

Many people think there has to be a variety of plants to keep birds coming around, but I have found, as long as you have feeders, they will come.

So, as long as someone else is taking care of the shelter and nesting requirements for these birds, I am satisfied with two out of three.

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Coopers Hawk is back

A couple of days ago I wrote about the puzzle of why there weren’t as many birds at the feeders as usual. Today I discovered why. the Coopers Hawk is back.

I saw him sitting high up in the cherry tree and all of the Finches and Doves immediately took off.

The hawk eventually left as well.

He wouldn’t turn around so this is the best shot I could get of him.

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Not as many birds lately

For some odd reason I haven’t seen as many birds as usual around the feeders and bird baths for the past several days. I get an eerie feeling when I walk out back and don’t see them flocking around as they normally do.

These photos were taken at 2PM, here is the cherry tree, these feeders are usually empty by 1PM.


And this one is in the apple tree.


It isn’t that cold weather is coming on because these House Finches and Mourning Doves and have stayed at these feeders every day for the past three years, right through winter.

When I go out to refill the feeders just after dark, the feeders in the backyard are almost full. I always fill them to the top so some of it is being eaten.

Today, the feeder in the front yard, just outside my office, was half full at 4 PM. This feeder is usually empty by 1 PM.

I have seen cats come around, and I know their usual hiding places. But they always come around and after I chase them away the birds come back.

The Doves are still coming around in the morning and sitting on the top of the chain link fence at the back of the yard. It is the spot that first gets the morning sun, so they warm up there.

I see Finches in the tree tops throughout the day and they do occasionally come down to eat.

I don’t remember this happening last year. It is just so quiet without hearing their usual chirping. I don’t know what to think.

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Put out the Suet

Saw my first Flicker since last Spring.

While sitting in my home office a few days back, I heard a bird call that I hadn’t heard since April. I recognized it immediately. The Northern Flickers are back in town.

I went to the window and saw him pecking at the empty suet feeder. I hadn’t filled it yet waiting for signs that they were back. Last year was the first year I had seen one in my backyard. Coincidently, last year is the first year I hung suet feeders in my yard because we had a large population of European Starlings. They love the suet. In my journal I had recorded first seeing a Flicker eating the suet on January 23, 2007. And they visited regularly until sometime in April when I realized I didn’t see them coming around anymore.

They like open areas but mate in forested areas where they make nests by carving out a hole in a tree. They are slightly larger than Starlings and whenever one of the three I had seen here last year came to the feeder, the Starlings stepped aside an let them eat on their own.

The Flicker I saw four days ago flew away without eating but I knew it would be back. The next day I put suet in each of the three feeders, and that afternoon he was at the feeder in the Dogwood tree pecking the suet apart. After a short while, he flew over to the trunk of the Catalpa tree and stood there pecking at the bark. They like to eat ants, which is their main staple. After sitting on the side of the tree for a few minutes he dropped to the ground and began pecking there. And then flew away. I have since seen him in the backyard at one of those feeders early in the day.

They are the only woodpeckers that frequently feed on the ground. They eat fruits, berries, seeds, and nuts, their primary food is insects. Ants alone make up 45% of their diet. They use the acid from the ants to preen themselves because the acid helps control parasites.

There are two types of Flickers in the U.S., the ‘Yellow-shafted” is found in the eastern and northern regions of the U.S. and the “Red-shafted” is found out here in the West.

Real suet is the fat that surrounds the beef kidney, but it isn’t easy to find anymore so I buy the prepackaged suet cakes for birds. Most suet block manufacturers mix suet or lard with everything from sunflower seeds to peanuts to fruit when making bird treats. I have tried all of them and they like them all equally well.

If pure suet isn’t available in your area, fat trimmings, lard and peanut butter are good substitutes. I also hang stale bread layered with peanut butter and then rolled in fruit and nut pieces as a special treat that these and other birds love. Black-capped Chickadees are especially fond of the peanut butter.

Having Flickers come back is another reason why the change of season is so welcome. With all the birds I feed, I have very few problems with insects. So I am very happy to supply all the suet these guys want to eat.

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Autumn colors-Alpine Loop

Finally was able to find the time to take a drive up into the mountains to see the trees changing colors. Beautiful as always.

Drove part of the Provo Canyon Scenic Byway, along the Provo River, gold medal trout fishing just so ya know.

The above photo was taken just downstream from Bridal Veil Falls, shown below. There used to be an aerial tram that you could ride up to the top of the falls. This photo was taken a few months ago when the water was flowing a lot better than it is this time of year.


After we got back into our car we drove a little further up the canyon to the turnoff to Sundance Ski Resort. Lots of activity up there, everyone anticipating this winters great skiing that Utah is famous for.

The mountains are sprinkled with Aspen trees and their golden yellow leaves never disappoint.
This is a shot of Mt. Timpanogos from about 7,000 feet. It stands at 11,749 ft. One of the tallest peaks here in the Wasatch Mountain range. The first snow arrived about ten days ago. It was a bit overcast so it was difficult to get a better shot of it being up in the clouds and all.
We took a short hike along the middle Provo River trail but didn’t see any fish. The river was running swift and deep and the water was extremely cold.
There were several fly fishermen in waders, I should have gotten some photos. No one I talked to had caught anything but there were a few fish about.

We did find this Eagles nest on this telephone pole. I guess they couldn't find a tall enough tree, although there were some around. Didn't get to see any Eagles but we did see a few Falcons and Hawks.

These signs are posted throughout the area and were put up after several sightings and near encounters earlier this Spring.
It says that if confronted with a bear and you can’t get away that you should yell, scream, kick, fight back and be aggressive. Whether or not this actually works, I will never know because I have no intention of testing the theory out.

The air was crisp, the sun was warm, the perfect mountain air for sight seeing.

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First snow of the season

On the morning of September 29th, it was raining when we awoke and the temperature was 50 F.

By 1:30 PM the temperature had dropped cold enough to turn the rain into snow.

It snowed for just over two hours but the ground was too warm for it to stick.



Some Finches were trying desperately to escape the cold rain/snow mix by clinging to the cross members on the shed doors as well as the threshold. Notice the birds at the top of the doors.

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Last Hummingbird of the year?

As it turned out this might have been the last two hummingbirds I will see this year.



This photo was taken near the end of August. Since refilling and hanging the two feeders two weeks ago I have only seen one hummingbird.

What determines when hummingbirds migrate is the length of daylight so my guess is somewhere around the third week in September is when the days are short enough to trigger their instinct. I will keep at least one of the feeders up to feed any that may be passing through.

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First hummingbird of the year

Saw the first hummingbird to return from their yearly trek. It was a black-chined hummingbird, the only one we have here in Utah. The others will soon follow.

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Ducks and more

We are visited regularly by Mallards coming to eat the sunflower seeds that drop from the bird feeders I have them hanging from our Apple and Cherry trees.

During Winter months I also spread cracked corn to feed the Dark-eyed Juncos and Mourning Doves.

There is a canal about 1/2 mile from here where the ducks hang out and I guess the ducks don't find their regular food source in Winter so they come here. It's pretty funny to watch them waddle down the street out front visiting each yard.

I see them mostly in pairs of one female and one male. Occasionally, another male will get the idea that he wants the female and he begins chasing them around. Or maybe he is just protecting a pile of cracked corn I left for them.

One thing I find really funny is watching them land. They are so graceful on water, but on land they have their feet stretched out in front as usual and when they hit the ground they almost topple over onto their beaks. They quickly recover and then stand there looking around as if to see if anyone caught them looking silly.

When we have gone to the canal to feed them with our grandkids they all come running expecting some treat. But when they are in the back yard they keep a wary eye on me and stay to the other side of the yard. If I get too close they just take off.

They say that the ducks are migratory and every Fall I see a lot of them in the sky heading South along with the Canadian Geese. There is a group that elect to stay here and I can't understand why they wouldn't go to a warmer climate with all the others.

Haven't seen the Juncos or Flickers recently. They have all been here all winter, maybe they found their natural food source has returned. Now that I think about, I don't see Black-capped chickadees much either.

The Finches and Starlings are always here. The Finches are the ones that eat so much sunflower seed and make the mess under the feeders. As long as the Ducks eat up the seed mess I don't mind at all. There are purple finches, goldfinches and house finches and are definitely the most common of all the visitors. And boy are they noisy. When the Starlings are on the suet feeders they get pretty rowdy too. It's nice to hear their songs and voices all through Winter though.

I saw a Coopers Hawk this morning sitting in the Apple tree, about three feet from the bird feeder on the same branch. And I didn't see one finch anywhere.

The hawk sat stone still in the Apple tree for about 30 minutes keeping an eye on the feeders in the Cherry tree about 60 feet away. Slowly finches were coming to the feeders in the Cherry tree and when there were about 10 or 12, the hawk shot out of the Apple tree towards the Cherry tree and snagged a finch from one of the lower branches.

The hawk then landed on a fence post about 10 feet past the Cherry tree and began plucking the feathers off of it and ate it. It was pretty thrilling to see the hawk in action, not many people get to see that. Unfortunately for the finch he didn't enjoy it as much as I did. But, it is part of the circle of life.

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Hummingbird feeders

Hung one hummingbird feeder today. I want to see how early they begin arriving. We hung several feeders last year starting in May when we first saw them flitting around the yard.

This year I want to be prepared for when they first get here.

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Robins have returned

The true ambassadors of the bird world. When these guys show up everyone knows Spring has arrived! Welcome back.

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