birds
I like birds. Mostly, I enjoy encountering and watching them in the world. I also feed them from several spots in my backyard, which is as close as I come to having birds as pets.
Since moving to this area in 2002, I use the Patuxent Bird Identification site to confirm identifications of new birds, once I look them up in my trusty Peterson’s guide. In 2000, I began keeping closer track of birds I’ve seen, in order to begin a lifelist, and I continue to add to it.
My backyard currently contains four feeders: a goldfinch feeder (filled with nyjer), a peanut feeder (filled with black oil sunflower seeds), a tube feeder (filled with Wild Bird Center’s backyard blend), and a tray feeder (filled with safflower). I also provide water in the form of a hanging birdbath, and I get robins and catbirds at the water, in addition to all of the below-listed species. If you’re interested in attracting birds to feeders, I highly recommend The Backyard Bird Feeder’s Bible.
Regular visitors to my feeders are:
- European (house) sparrows
- mourning doves
- white-throated sparrows
- cardinals
- blue jays
- Carolina chickadees
- white-breasted nuthatches
- tufted titmice
- Carolina wrens
- slate-colored juncos
- goldfinches
- house finches
- song sparrows
- and, of course, gray squirrels
Infrequent visitors to my feeders are:
- grackles
- European starlings
- Northern mockingbirds
- Northern (yellow) flickers
- red-headed woodpeckers
- hairy and/or downy woodpeckers
- hawks
Visit my lifelist for more information about these, and the other birds I’ve seen.
Read what I’ve written about birds.