• Dennis
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Activity 3. The Bobolink is a bird I don't get a chance to see often. However when I do, I excited. I usually see them sitting on an overhead wire or flying quickly from field to field where they land and hide in the grasses. I was fortunate the other day though to have this guy accommodate me by sitting up on several blades. I really enjoy the cream colored nape on that black head followed by the white areas on the back and wings.Bobolink
      • Tamara
        Participant
        Chirps: 1
        Congratulations! We just saw our first Boblink recently, at Middle Creek Wildlife Area in Pennsylvania.  Our photos are not as good as yours as the birds stayed deep into the meadow, but we were very excited to spot them.
    • Liz
      Participant
      Chirps: 14
      hooded merg The Hooded Merganser is my favourite duck or the ten different kinds of ducks that drop by in their spring migration on the river that I live on. What a wonderful view I have of these colourful and lively little divers.
      • Nan
        Participant
        Chirps: 4
        Hi Liz, I've never seen this duck before.  Where do you live? Nan
    • Laura
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Activity 3- I am fortunate to live only 1.5 hours away from the Pacific coast.  Yesterday I was able to take a socially distanced trip to the beach and observe birds living on a large haystack.  I enjoyed watching the Common Murres, Pelagic Cormorants, and Tufted Puffins.  I have always been enthralled with Puffins, but have never actually seen one (every time I went to the shore I tried to spot a few).  I also observed a Bald Eagle snatch a baby Seagull from the top of the haystack.  I was unable to take any decent photos, but I can't wait to go back and watch again!
    • Student Birder
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Lately in my neighborhood I've seen House Finches, House Sparrows, Eurasian Collared Doves, Crows and Quail. I love seeing Quail because my grandfather loved Quail and it brings back sweet memories.
    • Montana
      Participant
      Chirps: 15
      Activity #1: I am fascinated by the Secretary bird. It's near blindness unless it's prey move makes me think of Jurassic Park and the fact that T-Rex may have had similar qualities. Could it be that the secretary bird is a downsized version of the former kind of dinosaurs? It's pretty cool to think of it that way. Activity #2: I've been birding recently with more experienced birders. Some birds that I have seen/learned about are Orchard Orioles (found a nest!); King Birds (also found a nest and learned about their territorial personalities; Red-Tailed Hawks - these are the birds that got me into birding along with the Falcon. Next to our family garden plot live a pair of hawks and it's cool to watch them hunt, observe, swoop over us, and escape all the blackbirds that want them out of their space. Activity #3: BlueBirds! So many people have bluebird nest boxes it's cool to observe them. We've watched them lay eggs, the eggs have hatched, some aggressive sparrows are being fought off, and they go out and get food to feed the babies.
    • clara
      Participant
      Chirps: 6
      Actividad 1 Las aves que me llamaron la atención y por las que vote fueron Hoatzin (Opisthocomus Hoazin), Oilbird (Steatornis Caripensis) y Nyctibius Griseus. Actividad 2 Los tres pájaros de tres grupos diferentes que encontré fueron: Grupo Palomas:  Encontré a Paloma Manchada (Patagioenas Maculosa) Grupo Loros: Encontre a Kirki (Psilopsiagan Aymara) Grupo Colibríes:  encontré a Picaflor Cometa (Sappho Sparganura), Picaflor Gigante (Patagona Gigas) Actividad 3 El pájaro que elijo es Pinchaflor (Diglossa Carbonaria), este pajaro es uno de mis preferidos porque es muy valiente ya que se enfrenta a los picaflores para poder alimentarse del néctar de las flores tubulares. DSCN0279
      • Lynn
        Participant
        Chirps: 2
        Gracias.  De donde viene el foto?
    • Louisa
      Participant
      Chirps: 10
      DDE10686-3D5E-4796-93B8-D8715C4FC9B1 Activity 3:  although this photo was digiscoped, I have a pair of California quail visiting my backyard.  My neighborhood is a recent development in farmland, so I working on improving the habitat in my backyard.  These days I have house finches, house sparrows, mourning doves, Eurasian collared doves, red-winged blackbirds, Brewer’s blackbirds, and brown-headed cowbirds coming to my seed feeders and a couple of black-chinned hummingbirds coming to my nectar feeders and penstemons.  Robins have been plucking serviceberries from the two shrubs I planted last year.  As trees get bigger, I hope to see more small, insect-eating birds show up.  I’ve had flyovers by Canada geese, snow geese, mallards, red-tailed hawks, Swainson’s hawks, osprey, and American kestrels.  This past winter I had an immature sharp-shinned hawk and an adult Cooper’s hawk hunting my feeders and dark-eyed juncos feeding on seed I scattered on the ground.  Killdeer are still present in the area but none have come to my yard.
    • Julie
      Participant
      Chirps: 3
      Really like the Wall of Birds concept.  My main intent is to have basic bird watching skills, as I'm moving to Morocco and our house is located next to a bird wetlands/sanctuary that is now a formally protected area.  It's hard to find a lot of info on the birds I will see there, but learning how to use the apps and try to identify - and started drawing them.  By me now I got to see a huge flock of pelicans, and it was really exciting.
    • Lori
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I love Western Meadowlarks. I hear them in  fields two miles from my home. They are difficult to photograph, because they are far from the street in grassy fields. Focusing on the bird and not the grasses is a challenge, but I was able to at least get an image that proves it is a meadowlark! I love their songs. The course is good for me - I have been birding for a long time but have lots to learn.345A4174 (2)
    • Entrapta
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      Ahhh I’m a huge fan of the snowy plover (such a beautiful bird, considered a symbol of longevity and perseverance) ~I think it’s in the shorebird family? I don’t think I’ve ever encountered one, so I will be excited to add that to my life list at some point! before corona hit, I would see barn owls near the student union at my college (they’d come out at about 8pm regularly.) that’s something I really miss since having to go back home. But I’ve still gotten some nice encounters with birds since returning from school. we have a nest of barn swallows on our porch, and they’ve had two rounds of chicks. Lovely birds, if a bit sloppy! Haha
    • Kayla
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I live in East Texas. Some birds I have seen on our property: Song birds..... Painted bunting (MY FAVORITE ❤️) Wading birds...Great blue Heron Woodpeckers....Pileated woodpecker, Downy woodpeckers, Red headed woodpecker Hummingbirds.....Ruby throated woodpecker
    • John
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Here in west Houston (TX)  today  Northern Cardinals, Tufted Tit Mouse (or should they be Titmice?) pairs, Carolina Chickadees and Blue Jays were all dining at our backyard feeder. White Wing Doves along with all of the others were using the bird bath to drink and cool off in the heat of the early summer. Overhead,  Black Vultures that roost on the roof of nearby office buildings were circling overhead. Great Blue Herons were flying in a straight path several hundred feet high from their roosts & nests in nearby Addicks Reservoir to either Barker Reservoir or Buffalo Bayou.
    • Jyoti
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Activity 1: Hi! I really liked Wall of Birds and how it represented each bird on their geographical location. I came to know about the Albatross when I read a poem in school in which Albatorss was one of the main character. It was "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Since then, I am always thrilled with this bird. When I saw the Wall of Birds, my eye got fixed on Wandering Albatoross which I loved on how it is potrayed. I would like to thank the artist responsible for creating such a nice artwork. Activity 2: Grey-hooded Warbler (Phylloscopus xanthoschistos) (Insectivore), Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala) (Frugivore) and Himalayan Griffon Vulture (Gyps himalayensis) (Carnivore) Activity 3: I like Himalayan Bulbul (Pycnonotus leucogenys) which is very common in my neighbourhood. It is an omnivorous bird and resident in Himalayas part of India. Himalayan Bulbul_2
    • Andrew
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Fortunate to live in San Francisco right next to Presidio Park. My field guide is in the mail and I can’t wait to start exploring.
    • Cheri
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I’m so fortunate to have access to some of natures cutest creatures. From songbirds like the chirping sparrow and bluebirds, to adorable tree creepers like the nuthatch and chickadee. Especially the not so common jewels like cedar waxwings, the downy and Harry woodpeckers, and northern flickers. This course is a pleasant way to pass quarantine time, thank you!!
    • Ann
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Activity 3 The robin is one of my favorites.  In my yard they are the harbingers of spring when I hear their voices singing early in the morning.  I typically have one couple every  year build a nest on the downspout to raise a family.  This year they needed to share their space with a couple of house sparrows after I blocked the gutters and other spaces where the sparrows were nesting.  At first it was a battle over who would win the spot, but they seemed to reach a truce.  A duplex was built with the shorter robin's nest against my house and the house sparrow nest (2 stories high compared to the robin nest) forming a wall and protecting the other from the elements.
      • Marion
        Participant
        Chirps: 1
        IMG_2236 We have a robin nest in our gutter too. It's so lovely.
    • Laura
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I've enjoyed seeing many birds this Covid-19 Spring.  One of my favorites is the Greater Sandhill Cranes that nest near my house in NW Colorado.  I have lived in this location for 16 years and watched the pair of Sandhill Cranes come back each year to raise young.  Often they have two chicks (which I have learned they call colts) but only one this year.  I sometimes wonder if this year's pair may be one on the descendants of the original pair.  I love to hear them call in the early mornings.   I have heard a "woop woop woop" sound in the evenings for the past several years and could not figure out what it was.  I though maybe an owl, or even a frog.  This year I actually saw a "shorebird" with a long thin bill.  After looking it up on Merlin and Audubon aps, I figured out it is (actually they are - I later found a pair) Wilson Snipes!  What a cool call they have.   Early spring we saw what looked like finches (songbirds), but I couldn't ID them.  They came to our bird feeder.  About the size of goldfinches, but without the full coloration.  As we watched through the spring, the birds changed color and became yellow for the males and more distinct yellowish green for the females.  Yes, goldfinches.  I'm guessing the colors were "grayed out" during the winter.  Does anyone know if that right? Enjoying the course.
    • maureen
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Hi all, I have been a bird watcher for as long as I can remember but have only recently started to study and try to differentiate their calls, songs, and names.  I live on Maui and my husband and I were able to see a Japanese White-Eye or Mejiro nesting in a ti leaf plant right outside our living room window.  The pair of birds nested for about 10 days and then hatched 3 babies.  For the next ten days the pair took turns feeding the three and continuing to keep them warm.  It was amazing to watch the progression from newly hatched and on to fledgling.  We watch the three take their first tentative steps and trial flights out of the nest and on to the leaves and branches of the ti leaf plant.  Within a half hour two of the three had flown off.  The third departed about 15 minutes later.  I'm sorry I don't have pictures to accompany my entry but hopefully I will become better with the camera.
    • Greg
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I am already an avid bird watcher although most of my watching is confined to my small back yard in NC. My favorite backyard birds are the Eastern Bluebird, the Red-Bellied Woodpecker, the Carolina Wren and the Brown-Headed Nuthatch.  My favorite birds at the beach are the Great Egret, the Snowy Plover and the Sanderling. I am in the process of teaching two of my grandchildren (ages 5 and 3) about the birds and they can already identify many of the species in the backyard.  They have not mastered binoculars yet - so I am using a telephoto camera on a tripod to give them close-up views.  
    • Kelsey
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      Hello all! Recently I have seen a Western Grebe (waterfowl/swimming birds), a couple eagles (raptors) and several mountain bluebirds (songbirds). I was on a hike when we saw several mountain blue birds, it was very exciting! I had never seen a bluebird before and we got to see several so it was very cool! The blue colour of the male is so striking. I have two favourite birds that I see in our neigbourhood in northern Alberta: black-capped chickadees and blue jays. I love seeing the chickadees because I see them often, I love their calls, and they are social, active birds that are fun to watch. Plus they are just so cute!! I love seeing the blue jays as they have never been a resident bird in any other place I have lived before. Their bright blue colouring is very pretty and their calls are very neat. I haven't managed to get pictures of either birds as they often move too fast before I can get my phone out!
    • Jane
      Participant
      Chirps: 3
      I enjoy watching birds in my yard and hope to learn more about them. I enjoy cardinals and finches especially. This year I was pleased to attract rose-breasted grosbeaks to my yard and was able to identify both the males and females. Hurray for me. I have also seen a small raptor enjoying a meal of a small rodent twice in my backyard. Not good enough a birder to be sure but I think it was a sharp shinned hawk. I once saw a female kildeer and her nest. She had picked an open space near a public garden plot I was tending. She clearly demonstrated injured bird behavior to protect her nest. Last year I had an opportunity to go on a birding foray with David Sibley in Denali National Park. He found an arctic warbler for the group. It was thrilling to see him observing and to hear him talk about our find.. Arctic warblers are only found in North America during their migration to their Alaska breeding grounds from Asia.
    • Matthew
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      I saw three groups of birds today! A great blue heron (wadding bird), a Carolina wren (songbird), and a barn swallow (wasn't mentioned in any of the groups so I'm pretending it's a different one :) )
    • Sharon
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      I'm excited to learn more about the lyrebird, found in Australia.  They can mimic any sound or noise, including human-made noises like car doors closing or chain saws.  Remarkable!
    • Pamela
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      On the Bird Wall it reminded me how I love the common loon. I think it is beautiful and it’s call is just so soothing. The other bird I just love is the peregrine falcon. I remember when I lived in NYC a peregrine falcon was making the news living up on the skyscrapers. There are house finches that live in thick bushy trees outside my apartment. They sing so beautifully. I love to listen to them and I stop to see where he is perched.
    • Margaret
      Participant
      Chirps: 13
      From a trip to the Galapagos (and on the bird wall) I am fond of the Blue-footed Booby, a sea bird. They are really beautiful and easy to get fairly close to on the islands as there are no predators. I understand they engage in biparental parenting. bluefooted boobiesbluefooted booby
      • Jane
        Participant
        Chirps: 3
        I also had an opportunity to see the Blue footed booby. It was so exhilarating to see this storied bird and to be that special place. Their peaceful behavior was a wonder because they have no fear of humans. They could actually be a bit of a nuisance if you want to walk where they are!