I'm super new at this, and live in Northern Colorado (NoCo, to us locals). ;-) I spotted two downy woodpeckers on my daughter's playhouse this morning -- one male, one female. Of course they'd flown away by the time I grabbed my camera! While walking my dog, we startled two hawks out of a yard. Both were the same size. Both had been on the ground, which made me think maybe they were eating something? We have tons of red-tailed hawks around here, but I don't generally see them on the ground. I didn't spot the red tail as these two flew away, but both seemed to have striped patterns on the under-side of their wings, so I wonder if they were juveniles? Or maybe a different kind of hawk? Wish I knew. Went back with my camera but again, they were gone by the time I returned. (Of course!) Pretty sure I heard an owl this morning, but couldn't spot it. We've had this big guy in the neighbor's tree a few times, so not sure if he's the culprit. Not sure which bird would be my favorite. I love the hawks because they're everywhere and I love seeing them hanging out on the lightpoles. But I love the owls because they're NOT everywhere (or at least, not visible!). And I love the chickadee's little song.  

Activity one Lesson one was my first introductory education in the world of birds. I am astonished by the unique characteristic of birds. My interest in knowing and understanding birds has increased after this lesson. It is difficult to pick a favorite bird knowing, similarities are not the same. Every bird is unique individually. My favorite on the wall of birds is the Yellow-billed Oxpecker. Oxpeckers play a vital role in controlling the tick population on large animals and tick-related diseases. Oxpeckers also serve as an alert trigger to huge mammals been the first to sight or hear a predator and will make a loud sound.

For Activity 2: This morning I saw 2 Anna's Hummingbirds (hummingbird group) in my backyard. Right now I can hear American Crows (songbird group) in the front yard. I want to know what they are saying. And yesterday my friend and I rode our bikes to a wetland to see the Great Egrets (wading birds group). They were so beautiful.

My experience today, related to the lesson, is the usual chorus of crows in the morning, a circling red tail hawk way above (a youngster maybe?) and humming birds buzzing my head as I made a few drip system repairs. My favorite neighborhood bird, though saw none today, is the California quail. So pretty, comfortably chubby, and always in family groups at this time of year.

I had heard of the bird the Elegant Trogan and on a recent visit to Madera Canyon I knew I had a good chance to see one. On my first morning, a wonderful woman named Liz offered to show me where she had seen one earlier in the morning and we strolled off with our masks and 6 foot distancing down to the picnic area. She pointed up in a tree and I was excited to get my first view, but my pictures really didn’t show much but a brown blog. That same afternoon one flew outside my cabin window and I got a pretty good picture and was very excited. But the next morning, I got up early to go down to the picnic area because it was Monday and I figured no one would be at the picnic area. When I arrived, there was a lovely family of five enjoying the morning,  but even with their laughter and joy I could hear the trogan call that sounds like a barking dog. And I found it and again got a pretty good picture, but my waiting paid off as once the family left on their hike and it was quiet, I got to watch him eat a worm on the ground.  This was so exciting that I was like a little kid on Christmas morning as I had not only gotten to see an Elegant Trogan but got to observe him in nature eating breakfast.  The early bird gets the worm and got me  hooked me into becoming a birder.

Activity #1:  After reading the book, "The Wall of Birds", my husband and sister travelled to Ithaca for an overnight stay just to see this spectacular painting.  It was just as incredible as I imagined after reading the book.  A great memory! Activity #2:  Find birds from three different groups:  During these crazy days, after working remotely all day, I enjoy sitting out on the porch to read or just watch the birds in my yard.  There are sparrows, cardinals and mourning doves, but I most enjoyed the catbird that would come and sit on the bush near the porch.  I think that catbird falls into the 'Songbird' group (but not absolutely certain).  On one of my morning walks, I was startled by a large raptor that flew across my path (I probably startled him)...I think it was a red-tailed hawk.  On another morning, heading out the front door, there was a wild turkey in my front yard.  Very cool! Activity #3:  Pick a favorite bird that you see in your neighborhood:  On my morning walks, I encounter a lot of Robins...and I found it interesting that they do not seem to 'like' to fly, but instead, seem to prefer to walk, even run when I would get too close.  While this is a common bird, I find them interesting and funny.

While studying this course, I was sitting outside in my backyard in Mississippi. I saw at least 15 different species of birds just in the last hour or two. I would say my favorite from today was the Yellow Shafted Northern Flicker. I saw two doing some kind of dance in the trees, and it was just fascinating! I don't have a good camera yet to take pictures, but it's next on my list of birding buys.

Activity 1: While there were many contenders for my favorite bird from the Wall, I chose the resplendent quetzal because of the beautiful verdant color of its feathers, the streaming tail of this species's males, and this bird’s prominence in Mesoamerican iconography. The last time I traveled to Costa Rica, I visited Los Quetzales National Park and was incredibly happy to see several of these birds as they feasted on wild avocados found in the cloud forest. Activity 2: For my first bird, I selected the Greater Bird of Paradise in the Paradisaeidae family. Birds from this region of the world are wondrous and strange, and this one in particular is multi-hued and spectacular! I would love to travel to that part of the world to see them in person. Second, I will mention the roseate spoonbill, a wading bird that is in the Threskiornithidae family. With their lovely pink coloring and uniquely shaped bills, they are quite a sight to behold. Thirdly, while they are quite common and many others have mentioned them, I enjoy watching the antics of ruby-throated hummingbirds as they hover at my feeder and then zoom away. Hummingbird is the common word used to refer to birds in the Trochilidae family.   Activity 3: For this activity, I am choosing the gray catbird. Its unique cry, akin to that of a cat, is likely how it derives its name. They are small gray birds with a black mohawk that I often see on the ground or in the shrubs around my house. I knew they were Passeriformes, but I had to look up their family, the Mimidae, which also includes thrashers and mockingbirds. I enjoy watching them move about in my gardens.

that is a copper-smith Barbet i have only seen him a couple times i named him smithy!!!

I do a lot of photography, and most of it seems to be out in nature, and of birds! I started this course in part so that I could properly identify some of the beautiful birds I see in our back yard and also at our summer cabin. The cabin is on a lake, so that means lots of shore birds.  Great Blue Herons are always my favourite, and our lake has many, but this year I started seeing another, smaller, heron-shaped bird. Using an online identification app I was able to pin it as a Green Heron--something I had never seen before. A few days later, we had a visitor on our dock, and it turned out to be a juvenile Green Heron. Very exciting!

Activity 1: Macaws as #1, with toucans coming in as a close second. Activity 2: Seabirds - wilson storm petrel - I would have thought the seagull would have been the most common seabird. Arctic - the rock ptarmigan -I didn’t realize it was the only species that all populations inhabit the tundra. Songbirds - American crow - spoiler alert to section 2 - I didn’t know they fly different than the raven. Activity 3: my favourite bird in my neighbourhood is the Bohemian waxwing. I believe I saw a flock of these birds eating berries on my way home from school as a kid, but they may have been cedar waxwings. They seemed to look more like bohemians, but if they were bohemians they would have been visitors to this area of eastern Ontario.

I have spent an enjoyable afternoon starting my bird academy course.  I now have the first assignment to complete.  As I perused the Wall of Birds my favourite was obvious.  I enjoyed a poem as a child about a puffin.  It was a favourite for me then and still is now.  On to activity two. I am in my backyard barbecuing dinner, does the chicken I am cooking count towards a bird sighting??  I must say that we are blessed with the variety of birds that visit our backyard...usually. Currently just a ruby throated hummingbird is at the feeder.  It is chirping what I believe to be a thank you.  Today being Thursday is the day I clean and refill the sugary elixir they love.  The only other birds are the grackles.  I find it funny that one seems to like the niger seeds more than the sunflower seeds.  I must admit, I used to loath the grackles coming to my feeders because they would clear them out quickly.  However, I spent some time watching them last week and found them quite attentive to their young.  Also, I was fascinated at how they would puff up before making their squawk. They looked like a warlord or gangster from a 1940's movie.  I can hear bluejays but they have not shown up at the feeder.  Do they know something I don't?  Is the rain finally coming??  A mourning dove has arrived with a welcomed cool wind. We recently purchased a wooded lot where we plan to build our next home.  That's what led me to taking this course.  It is only an hour north of where we live, but with so many birds I have never seen in person.  We identified an American woodcock in early March.  There was a pair of ducks (type unsure) we saw twice take off from the woods.  My current favourite (activity 3) is a pair of Barred owls, residents on the property.

I had to post one more of my favorites! We have a cactus that is home every year to a family of great horned owls. I never knew that they are such fans of cactus as nests. It is a real treat to watch the process unfold every spring. What a hoot! 

• I have always been a big fan of the Roadrunner. We caught this guy eating bugs off the grills of all the cars parked at Joshua Tree State park. While we have many here in AZ this is the best photo I have ever taken. He walked right up to us. I never knew that they drop their body temps at night and expose their dark back feathers to the morning sun to warm back up.

Activity 1: So many interesting birds to read about, a few I looked into are Whiskered Treeswift and Western Yellow Wagtail. Activity 2: Three birds that I commonly find in my neighbourhood are Mourning Doves (Doves and Pigeon group), American Goldfinch (songbird group) and Downy woodpecker (woodpecker group). Activity 3: I picked the Northern Cardinal. I love its vibrant red colour especially when winter rolls around.

Activity 1 - I picked familiar birds — loon for it’s elusive eerie call, great blue heron for it’s long legged look and sometimes startling call and osprey for its diving fishing prowess. activity 2- purple Martin Songbird, mallard swimming bird, osprey raptor activity 3 — hummingbird. Even though very aggressive their small size and fabulous beating wings are charmers. I added a rainbow pic from same spot I saw hummingbird.

activity 1.  The wall of birds is a great place to explore and learn.

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Activity 1 My favourite birds from the bird wall are the Montezuma Quail and the Splendid Fairy Wren. I have always loved California Quail, which we have locally (coastal BC) but I think the Montezuma Quail is so beautiful and adorable too. I’d love to see one in person. The males have rounded bodies, rounded heads and patterned feathers. The females are also round bodied but they’re brown with a ghosted pattern of what the male has. I would also love to see a Splendid Fairy Wren in person (they are native to Australia, specifically SW or inland) — I find it so interesting that the males are nearly entirely blue when breeding then are partially blue the remainder of the time. The females are brown. They’re very tiny and cute with beautiful clear calls. I follow the hashtag #birdsofaustralia on Instagram and am learning Australian birds that way. Activity 2 Three different birds that I learned about: the Arctic Tern, the critically endangered Kakapo, and the Barn Owl. The Arctic Tern amazes me that it can travel our entire earth from its Arctic breeding grounds all the way to Antarctica. It is also a striking bird, all white with the distinctive Tern black crown and orange beak. The endangered Kakapo is a very special flightless bird that resembles something from a children’s book, with its expressive eyes, round body weighing up to 4kg (making it the heaviest parrot), and bright green feathers. The Kakapo can’t fly but it does climb and it can also glide using its wings. I hope its numbers can be reestablished as it is less than 300 in the entire world. The Barn Owl is closer to home, and I have seen many myself; however, I learned that this round headed, “heart” faced white coloured bird with brown wings can hunt in pitch black darkness and locate prey via sound. I found that really fascinating. Onto activity 3... one local favourite of mine is the Downy Woodpecker. Wevisit them at the local marsh during the warmer weather, then when it’s cold they stop by for suet in the winter. Weve had Robins build nests in our holly at least twice now (I think three times, but have only seen two sets of chicks personally). Here’s the chicks from this year.

  The top picture is at Shaver Lake, CA. I believe it is a Steller Jay. And the next two pictures are in my backyard and front yard in Fresno, CA. I believe it is a Red tailed Hawk, as they are fairly common in our area. My favorite bird on The Wall was The Superb Lyrebird. I was first attracted to its beautiful long tail, but when I read of its musical prowess, it became my favorite. My daughter runs a music school at my home, and I am definitely a lover of music!

One of my favorite birds that I voted for on the Wall of Birds is the Montezuma oropendola. I was lucky enough to see a male displaying when I took a trip to Belize. He was so comical that I fell in love with this bird. I really enjoy hearing their unique calls as well.  Looking at the picture on the wall made me remember and smile. :) One of my favorite birds is the Eastern Bluebird. I remember seeing them and reading about them in Ranger Rick magazine when I was a little girl. The magazine was discussing the bluebird trails and how the birds were declining because of loss of habitat and nesting locations. I was intrigued and dreamed of seeing one. I did not see my first Eastern Bluebird until I was 18 years old. It was on a fence next to a pasture with horses on the outskirts of town. When I was shopping for my first house (the one I live in now and have lived in for 24 years) I thought the house was okay but when an Eastern Bluebird landed on the powerline in the front yard I knew this was the house for me. I have a bluebird house and have had many batches of babies over the years. I have seen their population increase pretty dramatically in my area and I still love seeing them every day! Here is a picture of the male from the pair that nest in my bluebird house. They do come to the feeders and eat nuts, as well as mealworms. One group of birds that I really enjoy is raptors. I am very lucky to have quite a few that I can see if I just watch the skies in my backyard. Today I saw several Mississippi Kites, Red-tailed Hawks,  Red-shouldered Hawks, and Turkey Vultures. Hummingbirds are another group of birds I really love! I currently have many Ruby-throated Hummingbirds coming to my feeders and my flowers throughout the day. Woodpeckers are the third group that I will discuss today. I have always found woodpeckers very interesting. I have Pileated Woodpeckers, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, and Downy Woodpeckers in my yard on a regular basis right now. The Pileated Woodpeckers never come to the feeders but the other two come regularly. I really enjoy seeing them. I feel like they have a lot of personality.

and For Activity 2 in this Chapter, I live near the Northeast Coastline and here we have so many wonderful birds to observe and admire.  As it is July, we have a big population of Great Egrets, Great Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets right now !  I have enjoyed the Snowy Egrets the best of this group !  I think this more compact sized heron, with its bright yellow feet and their faster paced wing beat attract my attention more than the other herons.  I am working on my photographic skills and these bigger, sometime slower, graceful birds will stay still longer and allow better study and images through the lens ! It is fun to watch how carefully all of the herons stalk and then "strike" with their extended neck and sharp bills to spear their prey !  It is fun trying to guess exactly when they will strike by observing their foraging routines !