Tag: canadawildbirding
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Blending In
Blended families are not only found among people. This family of Wood Ducks has a surprise duo of Hooded Mergansers. Mother woody didn’t just pick them up on the water, she hatched them in her nest along with her own brood. Both species of ducks nest in tree holes. There is no way to know…
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How to Make Your Garden Bird-Friendly
Observing birds from your kitchen or living room window is one of life’s great pleasures for a birder, and the best way to attract more species is to approach gardening with a bird’s eye view. Fortunately, creating a bird-friendly backyard doesn’t necessarily require a total landscaping overhaul. Instead, try these easy solutions to help birds…
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Sunflower Hearts, #1 on the Menu
Couers deTournesol, Sonnenblumenherzen, Cuori di girasole, no matter how you say it, Sunflower Hearts are the favourite seed of birds flocking to the feeders. Cardinals, finches, woodpeckers, bluejays, grosbeaks, doves, nuthatches, chickadees, … and the list goes on, all enjoy this seed. During breeding season you may even see some birds that don’t usually visit…
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Nesting Time
This is a critical time of year for birds because their energy must be focused on the next generation. Whether they are local residents or migrants, all engage in the routine of building a nest, incubating eggs then feeding their young. The amount of time spent in these stages of the breeding cycle depends on…
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Spring is Humming Along
With summer conditions already upon us, our smallest birds are busy enjoying the bounty of fresh nectar-bearing flowers with even more to come in the next few months. While nature provides amply for their needs, gardeners can add to their menu with the selection of the right flowers. Once bee balms, hollyhocks, daylilies and lupines…
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How to get kids interested in birding?
It’s never too early to get the little humans in your life excited about birds. For all of the time kids spend learning the animals on Old Macdonald’s Farm and the inhabitants of the zoo, you’d think there might be a bit more attention paid at school to the creatures living closer to home. Until…
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The Flood Gates Are Opening
Warblers are among the high points of spring migration. These small birds of about three dozen species flit about the shrubbery checking for insects and offering us not only a bevy of colours – orange, red, blue, green and plenty of yellow – but a rich mixture of songs. There are warbles of course, trills,…
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Pine Siskins, Will they Stay or Will They Go?
The winter of 2020 and the winter and spring of 2021 have seen unprecedented numbers of Pine Siskins. The reason for this is a shortage of conifer seeds throughout the boreal forests of Canada causing the Siskins to move south in search of food. High numbers of this species have been recorded in southern Canada…
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Dawn Chorus
You may have noticed that mornings sound livelier as new songbirds arrive with each passing week. We have been serenaded by Robins for a while but Song and Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Phoebes, Juncos and the pint-sized kinglets each add a new dimension to spring sounds. A small number of warblers have returned as well but…
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Beginners Guide to Bird Feeding
Anytime is a good time to start the hobby of bird feeding. The warm weather of spring and summer offer an opportune time to transform your backyard space into a magnificent habitat for birds. By asking yourself some simple questions, you will be able to decide what is going to work best for your yard.…