I loved "The Wall of Birds" and as I clicked on several different species I learned some neat things about them.  The American Oyster Catcher doesn't migrate too far; it finds oysters and other food and can pry them open or smash them open on rocks !  That's pretty cool ! Because of its colorful looks, the Artic Puffin has always been a bird that I have found interesting.  However, it was fun to learn that while it does fly or walk very well, it is a fantastic underwater swimmer and this enables it catch it's food ! Neat !

For Activity 2 in this Chapter. Found lots of birds, but am not the best at taking photos. This will be something to work on. I believe these are Coopers Hawks. They are only here (Southern California) during the summer months, and drive our local Red Tailed Hawks crazy. I think this was a Turkey Vulture, first time seeing one of these up close. Got several videos, was circling looking for lunch.   We see lots of these small sized Lesser Goldfinch every day, usually in groups of 4 to 10,  for 'pool parties'.

The first time I used the Merlin bird ID app, I used this photo which I took last week in Southern New Jersey.  I had believed, originally, that it was a Tree Swallow, but the app directed me to the Eastern Kingbird.  Accurate knowledge is a better bless.

I am Diana from Colorado.  For activity 3 my favorite birds are from the Finch family.  We had a house finch have two broods this summer in the nests she built in the wreath by our front door.  The first one held 5 eggs and the second 4 eggs.  She would lay one egg a day.  She laid the first egg on May 1 and by about June 3 all of the babies had left the nest.  Then within two weeks she started again.  Those babies just left the nest last week so I am waiting to see if she will build another nest.  I read that they can have up to 3 broods a year. 

Hello, my name is Cindy from Central Florida. I am enjoying the course and learning from all of you! Activity 3: Above is my favorite bird the Roseate Spoonbill. I rarely see this beautiful bird wading in my Florida backyard, but after a recent lake draw down they have been making an appearance. The Spoonbill moves it's head back and forth with it's beak surveying the bottom of the shallow lake. Activity 2: This evening I spotted a majestic Great Blue Heron fishing on the lake shore. Two gray common Sandhill Cranes walked across the backyard eating snails that washed up from the shore. The third bird was a beautiful red northern cardinal swooping down from fence to fence finding seeds on the ground.

For Activity 1, my three favorite families are:

• Barn Owls (Tytonidae)
• Owls (Strigidae)
• Waxwings (Bombycillidae)

I have never actually seen any birds in the barn owl or waxwing families, but would love to someday. For Activity 2, three species that I have seen recently and their groups are:

• Killdeer - shorebirds
• Song sparrow - songbirds; sparrows
• Some sort of unidentified warbler - warblers

For Activity 3, a favorite bird in my area is the song sparrow. They are a mostly brown and grey bird grey plumage on its head. While one might argue that this coloration is boring, I find it grounding and earthy. I also like that these birds are reasonably easy to approach and get relatively close to.

Activity 3: In my neighbourhood, Toronto, Canada, so far my favourite bird is the Gray Catbird. They really don’t mind hanging around for me to get my act together for a picture haha I also find them very pretty, I love the soft gray  Also, I’ve learned their song somewhat mimics other birds in the area, I’ve been tricked a few times.

For the first activity, I like the calls of New World Warbler and Olive Warbler. Their calls are very clear and just like someone playing short and sweet ringtones on my phone. I have not seen these birds before. The closest one I have spotted was the Yellow Warbler call at a path/trail near the bushes at Fort Edmonton Park. For the second activity, swimming birds include Ruddy Duck, Mallard, and American Coot. They are all found in the lake by St. Albert Lois Hole Centennial Park. I love the American Coot the most as it has colourful feet, red eyes and black body. Ruddy Duck has light blue beak. Songbirds include sparrows, warblers and red -wing blackbird. I am most amazed about the size of a sparrow as it has all the required organs to survive. Seabirds include ring-billed gulls and Franklin gulls. For the third activity, I do not have the images of birds in my computer yet. My favourite bird would be the Redhead. I saw the duck in one instance at the lake by William Hawralek Park, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I live close to that park. The dominant bird was Canada Goose. In terms of Redhead, red is one of my favourite colour. Its head, beak and body look beautiful. I did not mention its fish hunting ability. When ducks hear noise or see people, they dodged their heads right into the water and said goodbye.

We live in Point Loma, San Diego and have a wooded area around our house.  We have a family of cooper's hawks in back of our yard, swooping and screeching throughout the day.  Two are adults and the other two are fluffier looking, probably juveniles, and they seem to be involved in training?  Is that how it works? Will these guys stick around?  We have hummingbird feeders, and have many Anna's and a rufous visiting, plus this yellow warbler who likes to sample the nectar we provide.  Finally, we had a very cute, industrious hummer build a beautiful next in our lime tree, only to disappear one day without laying any eggs.  We were very disappointed not have chicks to see!

I live in San Diego, but was recently on Oregon coast. I love how this class has taught me to pay more attention to my surroundings while in nature. My daughter pointed to this bird, which I learned is a Stellar's Jay, I believe. I'm really new to bird watching, but in my backyard and neighborhood I think I've seen House Finches, Western Kingbirds, Mourning Doves, and Red-Tailed Hawks.

Hello, My name is May. I joined the course in July 2020. It looks very interesting. I don't have any experience in the world of Birds. The only thing I have is my passion for these lovely creatures. There are many birds that I like.  Yet, my favorite bird is the Hummingbird. I like Hummingbirds because of the lovely colors and swift movement while trying to take a drop or two from flowers or a sip of water from the bird feeder. As for the wall of Birds, I like the drawing of the Bermuda Petrel. Amazing creature that has nice wings. I included some drawings about the Bermuda Petrel . I'm not a bird watcher, but I managed to capture the photo that I'm sharing of a bird I spotted from my window. Its not clear though. The bird has dark color. Lovely sound. May be towards the end of this course I will learn more about birds and be able start journaling about them. The images below are my first attempt.      

This baby bird ran up to greet me a couple months ago. Every time i look at that face, those fuzzy head feathers, it makes my heart sing. The iridescence of this European Starling knocks me out.

I like this Steller's Jay that visits my back porch.

In my Nantucket neighborhood, there is a salt marsh where dozens of willets live. I love shorebirds and waders, and I especially love the willet, with its protective spirit and its beautiful white wings in flight.

For activity #2, the three bird groups I’ve seen in my Phoenix backyard are Woodpecker-Gilded Flicker, Parrot-Lovebird and Chicken-like-Gamble Quail! Beautiful!

I love all birds in the flycatcher family. They are all so acrobatic and graceful. I live in central Illinois and am thirteen years old. During spring migration this year, I spotted a vermilion flycatcher in my back yard. I was writing an essay on songbird behavior so I didn't have my camera with me. Here is one of my favorites that I photographed. This is an eastern-wood pewee. I actually managed to locate its nest and get a close look at the babies. I sat motionless, camouflaged for about thirty minutes until a female flew up. I got this picture a few days later. I am a pretty advanced birdwatcher. But since I'm self taught, I never learned some of the basic stuff. This course is very helpful to me. I am enjoying it a lot.

I have enjoyed watching and listening to the barn swallows in my neighborhood. They swoop through trees and above houses, only offering a momentary glimpse of their beauty.  

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.allaboutbirds.org%2Fguide%2FNorthern_Cardinal%2Foverview&psig=AOvVaw0FX6xa10VMs8C7HSInJRCX&ust=1594919367761000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCMC7hOjfz-oCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

I am guessing this little fellow is a house sparrow. He is not a favorite but I do admire the tenacity. I live on the western. slope of Colorado and miss cardinals. Our neighborhood has mourning doves, finches, hummingbirds, golden eagles, and surprisingly, killdeer.

Here is a Beautiful Northern Cardinal. He was really in a Posing mood this day,   he sat still for quite some time, allowing me to capture a few wonderful shots before he took off.

This is a Wonderfully colorful bird found in the Sky Islands (Including Madera Canyon, AZ).   It is called the Elegant Trogon. I love the Greens, Red's and White contrasts, as well as it's interesting call, which sounds like a dog barking.   People come from long distances for a chance to see and photograph this bird.

I moved to Green Valley AZ one year ago from Minnesota.   I love the Variety and Beauty of the Birds and Hummingbirds here.    Here are a Black-headed Grosbeak and a Broad-Billed Hummingbird.

Activity #3 This is a male of Antillean Euphonia (Puerto Rican race) in my house in Puerto Rico. It is one of my favorite backyard birds because has a melodic song and their colors are awesome.  

Activity #3 Favorite backyard Ground bird is Gamble's Quail. Male will find the highest point around to make his calls, top of houses, trees, chimneys; they walk really fast and is great to see the little ones with mom, dad running around the neighborhood.