Tag: birdwatching
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Vortex Triumph HD: High-Quality Binoculars at an Affordable Price
Whether you are an avid birder or someone who enjoys watching the birds at a backyard feeder, binoculars are a great investment. The magnification binoculars offer allows us to identify birds more easily while better admiring their stunning plumage and intricate feather detail. Over the years, I have tried a multitude of binoculars and own three…
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Moving On
Fall migration is in full swing. Many of the swallows and flycatchers have already largely disappeared with an increasing number of warblers, vireos and other songbirds filing past now. As they head out, many hawks join them, appearing in numbers overhead on days with northerly winds. Hawk watching sites along Lake Erie and Lake Ontario,…
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MIGRATION SAFETY TIPS
It’s mid-September already, and fall migration is in full swing. Many of the beautiful songbirds we’ve enjoyed over the spring and summer months are making their way to their wintering grounds, including thrushes, warblers, tanagers, orioles and last, but certainly not least, hummingbirds. Did you know that we can help them safely reach their destinations? …
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The Party is Almost Over
The breeding season is essentially over for most species but one holdout, the American Goldfinch, is late to the game. Unlike virtually all other songbirds, they do not take advantage of Nature’s bounty and serve their chicks insects. Instead, they carefully pluck small seeds, notably from late-blooming plants like thistles, daisies and other composite flowers…
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THE MOULT IS ON
Have you noticed stray feathers in your bird baths or gardens? This is the time of year when many birds are in the process of moulting. Perhaps you’ve seen patchy looking birds including grackles and red-winged blackbirds, bald cardinals, or maybe blue jays with very few head or neck feathers. Our feathered friends need to…
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They Grow Up So Fast
It is hard to believe how quickly a bird can go from an egg to a full-grown adult. Small birds like warblers can leave the nest in only 8-10 days but will still be fed by the parents for a couple of weeks. Robins leave the nest at 14 days, reaching adult size around 20…
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Nesting Season is in Full Swing
With spring migration over, birds are active with all aspects of breeding. Songbirds that arrived in recent weeks began with males claiming territory and calling out for a new partner. Females show up a little later and if they find a suitable mate, one or both will quickly begin nest construction, depending on the species.…
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The Rush is On
An unbelievable number of birds are pushing north this month as we reach the peak of spring migration. This is the time that our brightly-coloured birds show up, the songbirds. The number of individuals heading north across the continent at this time is staggering, in the hundreds of millions – and sometimes that is in…
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The Pace is Accelerating
March was a time for early arrivals. Blackbirds, Robins, Song Sparrows and waterfowl too numerous to count showed us that spring was indeed in the air. Now we have moved into the next act of the unfolding drama when insect-eating birds show up in ever increasing numbers. In April, all of the swallows appear, along…
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A Tried-and-True Feeder for Hummingbirds
Walk into any store that sells hummingbird feeders and the selection can be overwhelming. Choosing a feeder to attract these little beauties to your yard doesn’t have to be difficult and, in this post, I’m going to share my favourite. Whenever I’m asked what hummingbird feeder I recommend, the Perky-Pet Pinch Waist Glass Hummingbird Feeder…