Blog for the Birds

Join the Birds in the Trees

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you could be high the trees to see the birds up close - or at least a horizontal view? If you live in the Pacific Northwest, maybe you can! An amazing tree-top walkway through the lush coastal rainforest canopy of conifers at the University of B.C. Botanical Garden in Vancouver will offer just that. It’s an aluminum walkway that meanders 308 meters (1010 feet) and offer incredible views. It’s even wheelchair accessible so that everyone can see what it’s like high in the forest canopy! It’s a trail like no other.

Bird’s-eye view of coastal rain forest

Photo courtesy of the Vancouver Sun

Birding Trails New Jersey

The Stone Harbor Bird Sanctuary used to be a closed area - for birds only! Now that is all changing as the sanctuary will be getting trails. It took a change of ordinance but there will 4 trails completed by end of summer. Do the trails and people walking through bother the birds? As long as the people behave and stay on the trails. According to Pete Dunne, director of natural history information for New Jersey Audubon Society:

Many species are forgiving as long as people adhere to a certain pattern of movement. The birds acclimate themselves.

Bird sanctuary will be human-friendly

Looking for Good Birding Trail in NY?

If you live in the Great Lakes region of upstate New York or southern Ontario, you might enjoy the Seaway Trail along the St. Lawrence Waterway.  The Seaway Trail is an 834 Km (518 mile) trail featuring a wide variety of bird habitats. Educational kiosks are being implemented this summer.  This region is especially good for birding due to its bio-diversity; the forests, grasslands and shrubby habitat provide a stopover for a colorful array of birds including sparrows, cuckoos, warblers, orioles and thrushes.  Free maps are available for download (in PDF format) from their website (below).

Seaway Trail Website

Attack of the Red Winged Blackbird

Or at least a particular one in Chicago. Named ‘Hitchcock’, this bird will attack anyone who comes near its nest.  It’s fond of human hair by the way and is especially not fond of bicyclers.

Jerk Bird Attacking People

Photo By Hart Curt

St. Paul Dealing with Pigeon Problem

With a plan that has the blessing of PETA, the officials in St. Paul are implementing a contraceptive plan to reduce pigeon populations. The contraceptive, OvoControl-P, prevents bird eggs from hatching and will be mixed in with feeder food dispersed throughout the problem areas.

St. Paul Using Contraceptives to Control Pigeon Population

Israel’s new National Bird

It’s the Hoopoe!  After an exhaustive process, the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel determined the Hoopoe was the right bird for Israel. According to President Peres - 500 million birds pass through Israel’s skies annually. He wasn’t referring specifically to the Hoopoe, but that’s a lot of bird for a country with a small land mass.

Hoopoe Israel’s new national bird

Athabasca Oil Sands - Danger to Birds?

In late April 500 ducks perished in the northern Alberta oil ponds known informally as ‘oilsands’.   The open pools of the oilsands are part of the Athabasca Oil Sands.  These are a large deposit of extremely heavy crude oil and water is used to separate the oil. Unfortunately large amounts of oil sit in the open water and causes an environmental hazard as demonstrated by the 500 ducks that landed in the ponds.  Songbirds and other migratory waterfowl are regularly seen in the ponds.  It is not known how many birds may have landed in these tainted waters and whose skeletons lie at the bottom.

Groups warn of more bird deaths in oilsands ponds

Feed the Birds not the Bears

This time of year is a bad time of year for bears.  They’re hungry and those bird feeders are going to look mighty tasty.  Just ask Eunice Sanville of Alexandria, VA. She lost a home-made birdfeeder to a hungry bear. They’re just waking up and filling up. So if you live on the fringes of town where bears can show up, check with your local wildlife experts to see if it’s OK to hang your feeders. Otherwise you may have to take them down for a bit.

Trouble is ‘bruin’ for area bird feeders

Photo courtesy of FoxIsland.Net

Penguin Like Bird Lands in Florida

More and more cold water birds are showing up in tropical climates.  Imagine this boy playing in the surf in Florida and seeing a penguin.  Ok it wasn’t a penguin, but a penguin look alike - the Razorbilled Auk. They’re usually found in the Artic and rarely seen south of New England.  This and other cold water bird sightings make one wonder if this is part of the global warming trend? Are our aviary friends getting confused too?

Bird makes surprising final stop in Vero

Stop Feeding the Birds Judge Orders

Usually birdfeeders are a good thing.  But you can overdo it! An Illinois couple has been ordered to take down their bird feeders after the neighbors complained of it attracting other animals.  Other guests included birds and raccoons, opossums because in addition to the hanging bird feeder, this couple was putting food on the ground for the ducks.  No no.  Moderation is key in all things!  Keep these number of feeders to a minimum and don’t place food on ground (unless you have a (watch) dog who can attend to the overcrowding that will occur.

Prospect Heights couple obeys judge by removing bird feeders