In this not so clear picture, is a Phainopepla! My favorite bird that I've seen in my neighborhood. When I first got my field guide and saw this bird, I thought I would never get to see such a cool bird where I live. Then to my surprise one day, I look up at one fly catching from this tree! I have never seen this bird in my life, and it was right there. It's large crest, red eyes, and black body are really cool to look at and that is why it is my favorite bird.

For the last year or so in the PNW, I kept seeing 'Blue Jays' and didn't realize that they were in fact Steller's Jays. When I see them there is usually a group of 2 or 4 that hang out together making noise. I enjoy watching them play (if that is what they are doing) and like their boldness.

Here in the Pacific NW, the first visitor to our new feeder was the  Chestnut - Backed Chickadee.  Being new to birding, it was SO exciting to see a few of them gathered at the feeder at one time.  I didn’t realize how messy our new feeder would be but, by the next few days, found quail scurrying around the feeder base as well.  Enjoy those seeds, y’all.

Hi, we have whippoorwills at our house in the mountains of Northeast Pennsylvania. (I'm listening to one right now as I type!) I had never seen or heard them before moving here about 7 years ago. I moved from near a lake in a valley about 30 miles away, but despite being relatively close, I still never heard one. They instantly became my new favorite bird, and still are due to their unique call, their litheness, and their cuteness! Amazing how such a little bird can create such a big sound! They're tough to get a picture of since they only come out at dusk and dawn. But, a couple times, when standing in our front yard in the evening, I've spotted one, and have had one or two swoop past me, around me, and do what appeared to be mid-air somersaults! I'm looking forward to learning more about them. I'm guessing they're in the songbird group? I look forward to hearing them late springtime every year!

Yvonne Activity 1.  We needed to pick a bird and expand on it:  I've chosen the songbird,  Red Cardinal.  It has a beautiful song and sits on my porch railing and serenades me in the mornings.  There are several different bird feeders on my deck with various bird feed in them.  The Red Cardinal seems to enjoy eating out of more than one.   I didn't know it liked cracked corn until I read about it.  It really does like it and seems to visit it often.  Of course it is a beautiful red color with distinct black markings.  Really brightens up my day.        

This is a photo I took of a Eurasian Green-winged Teal at a nearby park. Waterfowl are my favorite birds; the common merganser is my 'spark bird'; the one that inspired my passion for birding.  I was on vacation at a lakeside house on the Oregon coast one chilly November and noticed that there were a lot of ducks. Then I looked a bit closer and said 'hey...those look like different kinds of ducks.' And there was a pair of binoculars and a Sibley's guide on a table by the picture window that opened onto the lake...and that was that.

This is a dark eyed junco nest that a mom made in a wreath that I have hanging on my front door! I have just recently moved back into my rebuilt home that was burned down to the ground in the 2017 CA fire. There were no birds here when we first moved back, but as I have put up bird feeders, baths and landscaping has come back, so have the birds. I think of this as my baby bird miracle. The only problem is we can't use our front door, LOL, but so worth it.

Hi All, I really loved looking through the Wall of Birds and also through your posts. The Common Loon call reminds me of my childhood at the cottage and is still one of my favourite birds. It was nice to hear it again! Yesterday at a local park and pond I saw several Wood Ducks (Waterfowl), a White-breasted Nuthatch (Songbird) and two Downy Woodpeckers (Woodpecker).  I had planned to just go for a little bit, but four hours later I told myself I better go home and take a break. Anyone else find that time just flies (pun intended..haha) when birding? About a month ago I set up a bird feeder on the window of my work-from-home office.  After a few weeks, I was starting to get discouraged and wondered if I'd ever get any visitors. Last week some American Goldfinches discovered the feeder and they've been keeping me company ever since. I love watching how they arrive in little groups, each taking a turn at the feeder and looking for it when it's been knocked over by a squirrel.

The Wall of Birds is amazing! I very much enjoyed clicking on all different sizes of birds and reading about them, even those that are extinct. I particularly like the Cassowary and the Shoebill. Their appearance is fascinating! I saw many birds today from the different groups in this lesson. Three that I saw are red tailed hawks, house finches, and Anna's hummingbirds. I just love watching birds, and listening to their sounds as well! It's hard to pick a favorite bird but I have to choose a bird I saw for the first time yesterday at my feeder, a black-headed grosbeak. I was so excited to see a new bird at the feeder! There was a male and female and they came back to the feeder today as well. They are beautiful and have such big beaks! I also want to mention how much I enjoyed reading the posts from other bird lovers out there. It's awesome knowing there are so many people who get excited about birds.

Hi, I am Karcsi. I am 12. I love the local white breasted nuthatches that come to my feeder.

Our feeders and our neighbor's feeders bring in lots of birds. One of my favorites is a pair of Carolina Wrens. They actually nested in one of our deck side flower boxes last year. Before that, I had never even heard of them, let alone seen one. I am hoping they do the same this year. (Songbirds) Another favorite is Downy Woodpeckers. We have a male and a female that visit both our tube and suet feeders daily. I also had not heard of or seen a Downy Woodpecker before I started watching the feeders. (Woodpeckers) And lastly, I have always enjoyed Mourning Doves. We have between one and four that visit each day, picking up seed from beneath the tube feeder. They look elegant and make a wonderful cooing sound. (Pigeons and Doves)   Carolina Wren almost ready to fledge last spring.

I have found birds mostly in my yard.  The first is a songbird. I have a LOT of sparrows in my yard that I have come to learn are white-crowned sparrows. Another bird I saw while on a bike ride was a wild turkey-from the chicken-like group.  There was even a big Tom Turkey showing off his feathers.  My favorite part was his blue head. Another bird I saw in my yard was from the Hummingbird group.  It was an Anna's Hummingbird.  I was surprised to see it here in the late winter, but learned they hang around my area year-round.

I enjoyed exploring the Wall of Birds and spent time reading about many of the birds families represented on it.  I hope to have the opportunity to see it in-person one day.

Last year I monitored Bluebird Boxes for our county parks. I found tree swallows instead of bluebirds. I enjoyed observing and learning about their habits.  They were full of energy. This activity prompted me to take this course to learn more about other birds.

My name is Nori. I am 10 years old.  My favorite bird from the Wall of Birds is the American White Pelican.  Pelicans eat fish. The white pelican scoops fish out of the water. My mom helped me with this.

Hi I'm Henry. I live in Merriam KS. I am 8 years old and I recently looked at the wall of birds and my favorite was the osprey

I live in Berkeley, CA and have been enjoying identifying many new birds, but my favorite is the Bushtit. Though not very distinctive in color, they are adorable and rich in personality, tiny butterballs of pure energy. I love how they blow through the yard in berserk little flocks, peeping away and flitting about from shrub to tree for a minute or two before cruising on to new destinations. I don't have a good pic of my own, so I borrowed this one from the web.

Activity 3: Ever since I was a little child I have always celebrated the arrival of spring. My mother says she doesn’t know how I developed my fascination with the first day of spring! Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, it’s not even that big of a transition out of winter! But now I have lived in Wisconsin for almost 40 years. The end of winter is a huge thing for me!! So every March I begin my American Robin watch. I make note in my calendar the first time I see a robin in my city, and again when I see one in my yard. It’s my own little victory celebration for surviving another winter.

Activity 2: my husband and I are brand new to birding. We are loving the Merlin app! Of course we have always been able to identify familiar birds in our neighborhood: songbirds such as robins, swimmers such as mallard ducks and Canadian geese, and woodpeckers. But we were excited to identify a common grackle, a blackbird, in our visit to a nearby state park yesterday. This is going to be a fun post-retirement hobby!

My favorite bird changes from day to day.   Actually, I have two favorites, very similar.  They are the Red-breasted Nuthatch and the White-breasted Nuthatch.   The first is the color.  Not many local birds have a lot of blue, so it makes them easy to identify.  I love the intensity of the blue in both varieties.  I like it that they are not shy.   I can get relatively close and watch for more than a few seconds before they fly away.  But most of all I like their climbing behavior.   They are as comfortable upside-down as upside-up.   While most backyard birds are active and persistent, the nuthatches seem so curious and thorough, looking at every crack from every possible angle.

My favorite bird this year has been a mating pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers that have been regular daily feeders in my front yard.

Curious to find out about the "beautifully colored bird" that my daughter spied while in Mexico, I research it and we both agreed that it probably was a turquoise browed motmot.  Finding it on the Wall of Birds, I learned that it has a really long forked tail that it swings back and forth like a pendulum while perching in trees watching for food.  Fascinating!

as a new homeowner in southern Maryland ( grew up in Massachusetts). i have been seeing a lot of the same birds from childhood me and my mother loved identifying. I've focused a lot of time and energy to see what feeders work for who and during the colder months been making sure my juncos are well fed but i must say i love my wrens! something funny about a little brown golf ball flying through the wind . A lot of new birds have caught my eye and the most distinct are my pine siskins! for the longest time i had no idea who they were and of course had to make a phone call to ole mom who apparently knows all. I've utilized a lot of my deck space, hangers, garden space in the front yard and many of dollars spent at wild birds unlimited but I cant get enough. the kids get excited to see a bird now and we all watch and identify and do our best to get pictures! happy hunting!