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I'm Roger Torrey Peterson.
Watching birds has become a great pastime in North America and continues to grow in popularity.
Of the 83 million nature-oriented wildlife watchers in our continent,
by far the largest group are those who enjoy feeding the birds in winter.
Though birds undoubtedly benefit from the food we give them, it's not just for the good of the
birds that we attract them to our homes and feed them. Ultimately, it's for our own pleasure.
By sowing our gardens not only with flowers but with cardinals, jays, finches,
grossbeaks, we're giving ourselves a visual treat, reaffirming the joy and goodness of living.
Birds fly. They're not rooted to the earth and they're amongst the most eloquent expressions
of life. And that's what this video is all about, the joy of watching birds in your own backyard.
And now to guide you through the beautiful garden of feathers is George Harrison,
author of the classic book, The Backyard Birdwatcher.
I've shared the joys of birding with George since he was a small child.
Hi, I'm George Harrison. I've been watching birds since I was a child,
from the wilds of Kenya to the Galapagos Islands. But I've always had the greatest
pleasure watching birds which live in the gentle habitat of the suburban backyard where I live.
Through the marvels of video, we will peek into the secret lives of these common backyard birds.
Through the camera lens, we'll approach closer than ever before and feel kinship with these
very special creatures with whom we share the planet. Sit back now and savor the joy of birds,
their beauty, life dramas, and uniqueness in the animal kingdom.
First I hear them and then I see them. Soon the first evening grosbeak lands on one of my feeders,
heralding the beginning of the daily spectacle on this cold, bright winter morning with a
temperature reading of zero degrees Fahrenheit. Whether your first bird of the day is an evening
grosbeak or a cardinal, a finch, or a wren, you know the joys of starting the day with a beautiful
wild bird just outside your window. I want to share with you the wonder I feel about these
common but uncommon creatures. I also want to tell you what I know about how to bring the greatest
variety of these birds to the backyard. Birds have the same needs you and I have, food, cover,
and water. Birds coming to feeders will look for food in one or more of four backyard niches,
either on the ground, slightly above the ground at tabletop height, as these evening grosbeaks do,
at hanging feeders, or around tree trunks. By knowing these places and by offering the right
kinds of food there, and by providing water and protective cover, you'll attract the greatest
possible variety of birds, from grosbeaks to woodpeckers. Let's look at how we do that. First
water. How many of us think about water in winter? Water in the backyard at any time of the year has
a magical attraction for all birds. Warm water on a cold day emits visible vapor clouds and draws
birds to it like a magnet. A full-blown feeding station is not for everyone, so before we go on,
if you want to put up just one feeder, then be sure that it's filled with sunflower seeds.
Sunflower is the favorite of the most desirable birds at the backyard, and a hanging feeder like
this one, placed close to the window, will bring the birds into point-blank range. In my business,
I test a lot of bird feeders. Good bird feeders, whether manufactured or homemade, have two things
in common. They protect the seed from rain, wind, or snow, and they're designed to allow water to
drain away from the seed. Feeders evolve and change as manufacturers become more knowledgeable
about birds feeding habits, but whether it's a tube feeder, a box feeder, or a suet feeder,
it should be placed in the appropriate niche for the birds which will be using it. Finches,
chickadees, titmice, and nuthatches are attracted to hanging feeders. Like the American gold finches
at this Niger seed feeder, they are comfortable at a feeder that swings in the wind. The more it
swings, the more at home they seem to be. Niger seed has been a great discovery for backyard
bird watchers. Dubbed black gold because of its cost, Niger seed is savored by all the finches.
It's irresistible. And gold finches also love sunflower seeds, hauled, as in this feeder,
or whole. Some folks won't recognize these gold finches dressed in their dull winter garb of olive
green. In summer, males are bright canary yellow with black wings and white wing bars, while females
are bright yellow green. In winter, they appear to be a totally different species of bird.
Every time I test a new bird feeder, I can guarantee that the first bird to check it out
will be a chickadee. Chickadees are the bravest and most curious of all the backyard birds and
are drawn immediately to anything new and interesting in the yard. They will also go
to any kind of food at any kind of feeder, from suet to seed. The backyard is full of surprises.
This brown creeper blends so beautifully with its tree trunk habitat that the casual watcher may
miss it. Birds of the tree trunk zone are attracted to beef suet, the white fat surrounding beef
kidneys. Beef suet can be procured from meat markets for a nominal cost or free. The white
breasted nuthatch is another bird of the tree trunk niche. Both species search for their natural
foods, insect eggs and larvae, under the bark of trees, but will readily accept a free meal of beef
suet when offered. Notice how the creeper uses its tail as a third leg to get around the tree.
Woodpeckers do the same. Nuthatches also eat seeds. Sunflower seeds are their first choice,
but unlike most other birds, which crack and eat the seeds while they perch on the feeder,
the nuthatch selects one seed at a time, flies to a tree, inserts the seed into the vise grip
of a piece of bark, and hammers it open with his sharp, slender bill. The average backyard
feeding station in winter has a dozen or more goldfinches throughout the day. People are
mistaken when they believe that the same dozen birds remain all day. Bird banning records show
that the average backyard might have more than a hundred goldfinches in a given day. Watching
this chickadee reminds me why we feed birds. It's not to save the birds from starvation,
it's for our own pleasure. The birds have survived for eons without our help and could do the same
for eons to come. This is an important point to remember when placing bird feeders and water
areas. We want to be sure that they are placed in the best locations for maximum viewing and
enjoyment. In other words, if we can't see the birds using the feeders and water areas,
then there's no reason to have them. Unless you look very carefully, you're apt to confuse
purple finches and house finches. These lovely birds are the purple finches, more rotund,
and deeper raspberry in color. They are more peaceful toward their fellow feeders than house
finches.
It's just not a normal winter without pine ciscans at our house. But when the weather up north is
mild and the natural food plentiful, they just don't make it here for the winter. When they are
here, they add a great deal of excitement to the feeding station. Their fondness for Niger and
sunflower seeds, plus their feisty and pushy behavior toward each other and other finches,
produces constant threats and fights over the food. After years of watching bird behavior at
feeders, I've come to recognize that pine ciscans, like other birds of winter, are accurate weather
forecasters. Somehow they know that a storm is coming hours before the bad weather actually
hits. We know this because we can see them in a kind of frenzy, eating faster and heavier than
usual. If the birds are behaving this way, we can count on having a storm a few hours later.
After a storm, we love to sit inside and look out upon the pastoral scene of beauty,
nature's painting of stillness and light. The birds bring life to the painting. They give it
color, movement, and sound. But we must not be lulled into thinking that all was well on the
other side of the glass. This is the time to get out there and brush off the snow,
refill the feeders, and make room for the hungry flocks of birds.
In winter, when the insects are dormant and tree sap is still, it is the time when woodpeckers
will readily eat beef suet, offered in any backyard where an abundance of natural cover
gives them security. This yellow-bellied sapsucker, generally a shy member of the
woodpecker family, is more bold when beef suet is available. Notice the bright red
throat of the male, which is absent in the female. The pileated, largest member of the
woodpecker clan is an unusual and very dramatic visitor to any backyard habitat. But once it has
found appropriate food and cover there, it will usually return on a regular basis. Like other
woodpeckers, the pileated relishes beef suet. See how it supports itself with its stiff tail
feathers while eating in the tree trunk zone. All woodpeckers use their tail feathers to give them
support and balance as they move around the trees. Our smallest woodpecker, the downy,
is the most common member of the clan in backyards across North America. Though it is most at home
in yards which have large, mature trees, it will visit nearly any backyard which offers a little
cover and suet. Downies begin courting in midwinter, long before most other birds. In early February,
they seem to come alive, signing off with more tapping on tree trunks, more moving around the
woodlands, and taking more interest in other members of their species. The downy sometimes
shares a backyard habitat with its close relative, the larger hairy woodpecker, and both are
attracted to the same kinds of food and cover. I am fortunate to have had at least one pair of each
in my backyard for many years, but the hairy is the shyer of the two. Downies and hairies look
very much alike. The males of both have a red spot on their heads, which is absent in the females.
Yet when you see the two species together, the difference in size and thickness of their
bills is very evident. When placing suet for woodpeckers, don't be afraid to be creative. If you
have problems with squirrels and raccoons stealing the suet, place it in a metal feeder like this one
Don't overlook the ground feeders. At least a half a dozen backyard species forage there. They
include the sparrows, junkos, and morning doves. The most practical food for these birds is a wild
bird seed mix. In a recent study of the winter food preferences of backyard birds where I live
in Wisconsin, it was found that the four most popular seeds were sunflower, red and white
millet, and crack corn. However, food preferences of winter birds vary from region to region,
so check with an expert in your area. Here's the classic wild dove of North America. It loves crack
corn thrown on the ground, but it'll eat almost any kind of seed at either ground or tabletop
levels. Morning doves begin their nesting season in March and April with the first billing and
cooing between the pairs. As many as five complete nestings are possible in a single season. Because
only males coo, a census of nesting pairs can be made annually by biologists who count the number
of males which are cooing. The dark-eyed junko is called snowbird for good reason. It arrives at my
backyard feeding station with the first snow of the winter and usually leaves with the last
threat of snow in the spring. Notice the tree behind the feeding tray. It's our Christmas tree.
That extra cover gives the birds additional security against predators. Through the winter
months doves, junkos and sparrows are peaceful and tolerant of each other while feeding, but you'll
notice when they pair up in the spring they get touchy and pushy about sharing food and space with
other birds. There are at least a half a dozen kinds of sparrows of winter, but the American
tree sparrow, nicely appointed with a red cap and black dot on its breast, is among the most common.
Like the junko, it frequents backyard feeders only during winter months and disappears in spring when
it's time to fly north to its coniferous forest nesting grounds. When you see or hear the first
song sparrow, you know that spring can't be far behind. Its musical, happy sounding notes fill the
spring air with freshness and renewal. The song sparrow relishes wild bird seed mix, but changes
its diet to insects, caterpillars and grubs later in the spring. Another sure sign of spring is the
sight of a male cardinal trying to win the attention of a female. Look closely as he passes a
carefully selected sunflower seed to his lady. If she is in a receptive mood, she will accept it,
crack it and eat the meat inside. The male may repeat this courting gesture many times a day
throughout the breeding season.
Male house finches also become more courtly in springtime. Whatever you think of house finches,
they are becoming more prevalent at feeders throughout the country. I'm not sure if you want
to know how to attract them or repel them. In many eastern backyards, they are now considered
pests. With the lengthening of daylight in springtime, you will notice the gold finches,
olive green winter plumage begins to show blotches of bright yellow. House finches were strictly
western birds until several were liberated from cages in New York in 1940. Since then there has
been a booming eastern population of house finches which is expanding westward and is soon expected
to meet its western kinfolk somewhere east of the Rockies. A flock of house finches can empty the
seed from a feeder in a few hours. When the birds are eating heavily, it's a good idea to fill the
feeders again late in the day so that you can watch them until nightfall and at first light the
next morning. Most people who feed birds in winter begin in October and November, but by March many
have lost interest. This routine is exactly opposite of the actual needs of birds, which
have an abundance of natural food in autumn, but which face food shortages by early spring. The
birds of winter find March and April before new growth and insects appear, the most difficult time
of the year to make a living. I try to keep my feeders filled with fresh seed and suet
throughout those difficult spring months.
Spring doesn't just happen, it appears gradually through March and April. Those who are searching
for signs of spring need only to look and listen to the birds. Males of most species begin to court
females by singing and displaying for them. They are also more aggressive toward other males of
their kind, fighting at feeders and competing for the attention of the females.
In many parts of the country where chickadees are found, there will also be tough to tip mice,
a common and delightful bird of the backyard. Their beady black eyes and expressive crests
make them a joy to watch as they go about their daily routines.
Both the mockingbird and the tough to tip mouse are permanent residents in southeastern United
States, but have expanded their ranges northward, perhaps due in part to the increased food and
cover available in backyards. Nearly everyone can identify the American Robin, the gray-backed bird
with a brick-red breast, but few of us have looked closely enough to see the white eye ring
and white throat with broken black stripes. The first appearance of a Robin in most backyards
is considered a sure sign of spring, but often the Robins return to their nesting grounds in
the north before the last snowstorm of winter. With their natural food buried beneath snow,
many perish. This is the time when people can give the Robins raisins, apples, and other kinds of
fruits to help them through the severe weather. Robins will even eat beef suet when they are
really desperate, but the suet must be placed in their feeding niche on the ground or on a
tray feeder. Cedar wax wings eat fruit and berries in winter and insects in summer,
but do not normally come to feeding stations, but they will come to a birdbath or any kind
of water that is provided for them in the backyard. A water area for birds will increase the number of
species visiting the backyard because it is an attraction even to birds that do not eat the seeds
and suet offered in feeders.
Some of the birds which we feed all winter, like this cardinal, are likely to nest nearby
and remain frequent visitors throughout the spring and summer months. There are many bonuses to
feeding birds all year long, but one of the best is seeing the baby birds accompanying their parents
to the feeders. Not only is a baby cardinal cute beyond words, but watching it try to eat seed at
the feeder for the first time is really a showstopper. There is something very magical
about watching birds in the backyard. Perhaps Roger Torrey Peterson said it best,
birds not rooted to the earth are among the most eloquent expressions of life.
Ah, what joy there is in watching birds. We've designed this video to be viewed
over and over. There are so many fascinating things to discover, both sights and sounds. You
can enhance your bird watching experiences by making your own backyard more attractive to birds.
At the end of the program, we have listed books and magazines that have the expertise to help you
bring the birds flying to your home. I'm George Harrison wishing you happy backyard birding.
A chickadee weighs only one third of an ounce, which isn't much of a body to survive a subzero
winter night. Researchers believe that a chickadee can survive severely cold nights by lowering its
body temperature nearly 20 degrees and slowing its breathing and heartbeat to almost put it
into a state of hypothermia, which conserves enough energy to get the chickadee started the next day.
Isn't it strange that there are 500 million morning doves in North America and no passenger
pigeons? The morning dove has adapted well to man's intrusion on the land and has actually
benefited from it while the passenger pigeon did not and became extinct. The presence of morning
doves at backyard feeding stations is a good example of their survival instincts. The northern
mockingbird, king of the southern backyard, rules its feeding and nesting territory with vengeance.
Named for the male's habit of imitating the songs of other birds, mockingbirds have been heard
mimicking the songs of 32 other birds in just 10 minutes. Water in the backyard at any time of the
year has a magical attraction for all birds, even those which don't eat from bird feeders.
This is especially true if the water flows, splashes, or drips.