Hi friends! The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is this weekend!
The 2023 Great Backyard Bird Count will take place from Thursday, February 17 to Monday, February 20. It’s so fun and easy to participate. Here’s how:
Go birding any time and as often as you want during the four day event. Go alone or bring family/friends! You can count from any location.
Try watching for at least 10 minutes and take note of everything you see and hear that you can identify.
Put your sightings on eBird. If you don’t have an eBird account it only takes a minute to set up. You can log all your past and future bird sightings when the count is over.
Enjoy!
This is a worldwide event, so there will be a lot of amazing bird sightings. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology will be updating the results of the count throughout the weekend on birdcount.org.
If you want to learn more about the GBBC and how to participate, check out the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s website here. Happy birding!
The answer to that question is different for all of us and highly dependent on where you live. But one thing we all have in common: there are some birds in which we see much more frequently than others. Occasionally we chase the thrill of searching for birds that are uncommon, seasonal, or rare. That’s great and all, but we can also find exciting avian friends right at home .
Jack Gedney reminds us that some of the greatest pleasures can be found in our own backyards in his book The Private Life of Public Birds: Learning to Listen to the Birds Where We Live. According to Gedney, our “common” backyard birds are just as unique and special as any “uncommon” species we may find. By learning to listen to and appreciate our avian neighbors, we can discover a whole new world and bring joy to our daily lives.
I love Gedney’s writing style. I was not surprised after reading the book that he studied literature and natural history. You can tell that his local birds, no matter how common, bring him joy. Gedney writes 15 short essays (or love letters if you will) about species around his home in California. Here are some of my favorite tidbits that I learned from the different essays. I hope you give this book a try and get a fresh perspective on your own avian neighbors.
California Towhee mates defend their territory year round and will duet together up to 7 times per hour. According to Gedney, “The two then rush together in a jubilant cascade of synchronizing squeals and end up side by side in gratified reassurance.”
It’s estimated that each California Scrub Jay plants 5,000 to 7,000 acorns per year and retrieves only about half of them for food.
American Crow families work together to feed chicks, defend themselves, and play. Gedney states, “Crows compete at aerial acrobatics with their sibling, play tug-of-war with sticks, and like to belly-sled down snow-covered roofs.”
American Crow (Image by Michelle Horowitz)
Cedar Waxwings eat almost nothing else in the winter but berries.
An American Robin has a repertoire of 10-20 different caroling phrases that it repeats at intervals.
The House Finch was originally a western species, but released in New York in 1939 and has expanded its range throughout the eastern seaboard. This expansion has brought two ecological consequences: House Finch eye disease and the displacement of the Purple Finch.
Lesser Goldfinches have up to 100 unique phrases in their singing repertoire. They not only learn phrases from other goldfinches but from other birds encountered on their travels.
Mourning Doves can nest up to 6 months and raise up to 6 broods (groups of chicks) per breeding season. The Mourning Dove essay was my favorite and I loved the way Gedney described them. For example, “The dove is the falcon’s equal.” in regards to their flying speed.
Mourning Dove (Image by Michelle Horowitz)
Northern Mockingbirds are known as Sinsonte in Central America. The word comes from the ancient Na’huatl name meaning “four-hundred voices”.
White-crowned Sparrows and Golden-crowned Sparrows live in small hierarchical and territorial flocks, which helps them avoid internal conflict.
Great Horned Owls have the greatest diversity in their diet of any American owl.
Hooded Orioles use the fronds of fan palms to create their nests. These palm fronds were originally only found in the oases of Southern California and as people planted them in other regions the Hooded Oriole’s range expanded northward.
Who are your favorite avian neighbors? Some of my favorites include Dark-eyed Juncos, Gray Catbirds, and American Crows. Tell me about your favorites in the comments!
References
Arrigoni, B. (2018, February 17). Anna’s Hummingbird (male) Paton’s Patagonia Canyon AZ 2018-02-17 10-48-12.jpg. [Photograph]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anna%27s_Hummingbird_(male)Paton%27s_Patagonia_Canyon_AZ_2018-02-17_10-48-12(40582518551).jpg
Gedney, J. (2022). The Private Life of Public Birds: Learning to Listen to the Birds Where We Live. Heyday.
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