We found a rufous hummingbird, a towhee and a dark-eyed junco at our new birdfeeder at our house!

This Scarlet Tanager inspired me to take this course. Today I've seen a nuthatch (which I didn't previously know was a "tree creeper", a mourning dove, and the usual blue jays, grackles, and cardinals. Cardinals I know are finches, grackles are blackbirds, but blue jays? Also finches maybe?

Cardinals are one of my favorite birds that frequent our feeders year round.  Bird watching and photography is a new hobby and I am enjoying adding to my list of observed birds.  I am fortunate that the small town I live in is also a designated bird sanctuary.

I always enjoy seeing the American Goldfinch show up at the backyard feeder in the spring.

My favorite bird is the. Hummingbird, but I have seen it only once near my house this year. I tried to hang a feeder at the edge of a porch , shade, somewhat closed in, Instead of in a fruit tree and have not been able to lure one to that spot. looking at the wall  of birds was wonderful 3 species: the humming bird, the woodpecker, the finch? Is that correct?

I spent some time watching birds from my porch by a lake in upstate New York this morning. Here's what I saw: lots of mallards, several ruby-throated hummingbirds, a dark-eyed junco, a blue jay, and a (I think) hairy woodpecker (whom my husband has named Harry). I didn't see our local common loons, but did hear them.

My back yard ends where the brackish mash begins between Georgia and Florida.  I am just beginning to learn about birds.  I found the breakout presented in this first lesson very helpful.  Some birds I have been able to broadly identify are:  mourning dove, ibis, great blue heron, humming bird, blue bird, cardinal, woodpecker, vulture.

Carolina wrens are reportedly present here in Boston neighborhood of Jamaica Plain but not sure I have seen one. am trying to learn call, Recently had a hawk right outside our kitchen window I think it was Broad shouldered hawk but not sure

I've been paying more attention to the birds in my yard, recently, and have seen 20 different types, in at least 4 groups. Robins, sparrows, Downy Woodpecker, Ruby throated Hummingbird pair, Cardinal to name a few.  A new bird for me was a Indigo Bunting that was on my window feeder. It's hard say which bird is my favorite. I enjoy being able to ID them by sight or sound. I was able to lure a male Cardinal closer by using eBird audio!

This is the Coopers Hawk I used to see (but not as much now, as the trees are all now leafy! BTW, i live in Mississauga Ontario.  Sandra

There is a small woodlot abutting a local park that i go to during these Covid days. I found this little warbler and wonder if someone could tell me what it is.  I'm surprised at what I found as it's a very busy location! There's also a Cooper's Hawk with a nest.. thank goodness, there was a birder watching me one day and told me what hawk I'd been seeing. Liking the bird course so far.. Sandra

This morning in my backyard in Claremont CA, I saw:  western scrub jay, mourning doves, band-tailed pigeon, house finch, monarch butterfly, mourning cloak, cabbage white, baby bunny.  Hoping the black hooded oriole comes by for lunch again. It is 90* and no wind nor rain.

Activity 3--favorites in my neighborhood. I never get tired of seeing great egrets in the ponds of my neighborhood.  I associate them with early morning not only because that's when I usually see them but because they seem to match the still and calm of that time of day.  So slender and elegant, and so very bright white.  They're very zen.  :)  Another favorite that I often see in the same environment is the tree swallow.  They're so much fun to watch--they dart, they circle, they buzz the surface of the water.  If the light's not right, it's hard to see their beautiful color, but their head and shoulders are brilliantly blue and their fronts are gleaming white. Honestly, though, almost any bird can be my favorite at the moment that I see it or hear it, especially when it's unexpected or when it's something I haven't encountered before.  :)

Lesson one was very helpful as we placed birds in groups. Now I can place birds in categories based on their description. As a new birder it is very difficult to identify birds. The bird that stood out on the Wall of Birds was the Hispaniolan Spindalis. I enjoyed observing the bird and placing it in a particular grouping. The grouping I chose was songbirds.

I had no clue how many different kinds of birds are in my neighborhood until I hung feeders and really started paying attention. Some of my favorites are the Carolina wrens, the tufted titmice (only just recently started visiting my feeders), the dark-eyed juncos (have stopped visiting my feeders now that its warm for some reason), the American goldfinches, the red-bellied woodpeckers, the white-breasted nuthatches... honestly it's hard to just pick a few favorites! Attaching a couple recent photos from my backyard. We went to FL in February before everything really shut down and we visited the Flamingo Gardens. There were so many beautiful birds I'd never seen before! Attaching a photo from the bird sanctuary with some really cool looking wading birds. 

My favorite bird on the Wall of Birds was probably the Lilac-breasted Roller. I liked the folklore that goes with it. And it's pretty! Around my house, I've been primarily seeing songbirds. So far this spring, I have been able to identify mountain chickadees, nuthatches, stellar's jays, robins, and a dark-eyed junco. I haven't gotten any good photos of them though. I did see a raptor the other day, but couldn't get a good look at it.  I know that we get woodpeckers too, just haven't seen any yet this year. There were a couple hairy woodpeckers that spent all last summer in my backyard.

I just installed a bird feeder to my window where I am teleworking, and it has brightened up my days so much! I love watching the range of different characteristics and feeding habits of the birds- it is delightful to see them up close. One of the first visitors was a male house finch. Then, later in the week, he showed up with a female, and they have visited together several times. My other favorite is a male tufted titmouse, with his tiny grey crest-he has been a regular guest.

I really enjoy watching birds in my neighbourhood, especially Northern Flickers and Anna’s Hummingbirds. I like flickers because they’re so unlike other woodpeckers and have beautiful bright feather shafts in wings. Hummingbirds are just so cute and adorable! As I moved to Canada from Europe just a year ago, I can’t help getting fascinated by every bird I see around.

Staying safer in the mountains of North Carolina we have had fun getting to know the birds in our yard - old Friends like the Cardinal and Robin who both would be special if they weren't so common.  We have a pair of Phoebe's who have looked into every window trying to get in the house.  The ruby-throated hummingbird loved our irisis - now gone since they have gone.  We have a Scarlet tanager high in the trees, a red-winged Blackbird who passed by for a day only.  Our wood thrush came later than normal and I don't know if the brown-spotted belly bird was it or a brown thrasher.  We hear our palliated woodpecker back, but haven't seen him yet.  The wild turkeys come singularly or in groups.  Guess that covers - songbirds, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, chicken-like birds.  there have also been wrens and chickadees. My favorite is the Phoebe because it is hanging around and I can get to know it.

ugly day here in Miami, raining all day.  I still decided to go for a abbreviated bird walk with low expectations when it slowed down to drizzle. I was surprised to see a tree completely busy in the rain with a pair of downy woodpeckers which when I see I normally only see one,fighting? pair of red bellied woodpeckers  and a pair of smaller blue jays in the same medium size tree.  Does rain make birds more or less active?

From my deck, i often see downy woodpeckers, white throated sparrows and ravens. Northern harriers are a favorite bird that are common in my neighbourhood. They are easy to identify because of their white rump patch and the way that they glide just above the trees and shrubs.  I think a pair might be nesting nearby, since i've seen them a couple of times today.  The female is darker, but the male's underside looks strikingly light colored, with black on his wingtips.  I like the way they almost seem to float in the breeze as they glide along, and the elegant shape of their wings.

I have been seeing a pileated woodpecker in my yard for a week or so now. I’m so excited because they are one of my favorites and rarely see them this close to home. What beautiful birds!  My house finches continue to entertain us with their sweet songs and antics.

The Wild Turkey is not really my favorite bird, but this is one of my favorite bird photos.  I live east of San Francisco Bay, where there a lot of wild turkeys.  My wife and son and I saw a flock in a park.  The hens and juveniles flew away when we approached, but this tom had no fear.  He stood there and posed for us while we got within 10 feet to take the photo.

• Valerie

  I have many Black birds in my yard on Cape Cod. I use to just think they were crows, ravens, or red wing blackbirds.  I now realize I have many common grackles. I find them to be just stunning with their luminous heads and beautiful tails.  I enjoy watching them fly, sing, and feed.

Activity 2 & 3: Recent sitings 2 California quail at my local nursery Several turkey vultures flying over the neighborhood House Finches in the backyard. Here’s one male perched on my fence. I love the cheerful chirping. Love all finches!