Jun
24
2010
I haven’t been helping birds or wildlife in the Gulf region, but I did my small share for birds yesterday by saving a Black-capped Chickadee from the clutches of the nasty cat that lives across the street. At about 6:30 a.m., I looked out my office window and noticed the neighbor’s black and white cat [...]
Tags: bird watching, black-capped chickadee
May
26
2010
There’s a pleasant House Finch couple that have become regulars at our backyard feeders. They can be seen in the mornings and evenings eating sunflower seed. I started noticing the male finch about three weeks ago. Since then, he and his mate have been visiting almost daily. Year-round residents, the House Finch [...]
Tags: bird watching, house finch, purple finch
May
20
2010
I finally had a chance to hang my two hummingbird feeders late this April to attract some hummingbirds this season. And filling them with a homemade sugar and water solution was easy. (See recipe below) My efforts at refreshing the sugar/water solution every week paid off last week. A Ruby-throated Hummingbird visited our window feeder [...]
Tags: bird watching, hummingbirds
May
05
2010
Researchers from Tufts University will be spending their third year of a study on grassland birds at Woodsom Farm in Amesbury, MA, this summer, the Newburyport Daily News reports. The research will include casting nets to tag and draw blood from birds, as well as figure out why species such as the Bobolink and Eastern [...]
Tags: Amesbury, bird watching, bobolink, eastern meadowlark, nature, tufts university
Jun
30
2009
Here’s an amusing spoof of a 1970s birds documentary, taken from the “Look Around You” series, a parody of the old British school science programs. (Thanks to the Birdchick blog for pointing this one out.)
Tags: bird watching, comedy, science, Television, videos
May
03
2009
This has been a good week for new birds at our feeders. This morning, I saw another new visitor, a Gray Catbird. A year-round resident, it’s the first time this bird has been seen in our yard. The Gray Catbird is mostly slate gray with a small black cap on its head and a black [...]
Tags: bird watching, gray catbird, nature
May
03
2009
Randye gets a big rousing golf clap for sighting and identifying a new bird visitor to our backyard feeders, an Eastern Towhee. A male bird (see picture below) started visiting in the mornings about two days ago, and has been somewhat regular to our backyard since. He mostly forages on the ground for seed and [...]
Tags: bird watching, eastern towhee, nature
Feb
17
2009
It seems that the GBBC ended like it started for us, rather unexciting. Having to zip off to work in the morning also didn’t leave much time for feeder-gazing. On Monday, the weather was the same as the weekend, sunny, slightly breezy and in the mid 30′s. Here’s the list of the morning’s meager sightings: [...]
Tags: bird watching, science
Feb
17
2009
Another quality day of bird watching this past Sunday. It seems that the word finally got out to the neighborhood birds. The weather was sunny and warm for the season, in the mid 30′s. Visibility was great and there was just a slight breeze. Here’s a listing of Sunday’s sightings: 5 American Goldfinches 6 Dark-eyed [...]
Tags: bird watching, science
Feb
14
2009
Today was a much better day for bird watching. Lots of flying critters in the backyard. The weather was sunny and in the mid-30s, although a bit windy. Here’s a breakdown of what flew in: 6 American Goldfinches 2 Blue Jays 7 Dark-eyed Juncos 1 Female Northern Cardinal 2 European Starlings 4 House Sparrows
Tags: bird watching, science