City Birds and Birding

Bird-watchers might be surprised how many birds they can see in the city. Birding is not just a hobby or activity for country-living.

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Who’s the Smartest Bird? – Birds.com

Which bird species is the most intelligent? Many researchers believe that the most intelligent birds are found in the Corvid family (ravens, crows, magpies and jays). These social birds show advanced problem-solving skills, both in the lab and in the wild.

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Bird watching in Australia

Australia offers bird-enthusiasts a very special treat. You could spend a lifetime learning about this island-continent’s 770 species of birds.

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Bowerbirds – Birds.com

If you’ve ever marveled at the structure of a robin’s nest, you’ll be blown away by what bowerbirds can do. This family of birds, found in Australia and Papua New Guinea, take nest construction to a whole new level. They even do some interior decorating!

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Tips for keeping your hummingbirds happy

It’s easy to attract wild hummingbirds to your yard – use red feeders filled with sugar-water. The feeders are available at most gardening and bird seed stores.

What you may not know, however, is that your sugar-water could actually hurt your birds! Follow these two basic guidelines, to ensure the health of your colorful feathered friends:

• Refresh the sugar-water every 2-4 days- Sugar water can ferment quickly. The hummingbirds will continue to drink it, but the fermented mixture enlarges their livers, causing health problems. Do your iridescent friends a favor, and keep changing the feeder’s water, especially in hot weather. Wash the feeder while you’re at it: use only hot water and a scrub-brush, no soaps.
• Only use sugar! Avoid red food coloring – it may not be good for the birds. The red colors on the feeder itself should be enough to attract them. Use a simple mixture of four parts water to one part table sugar. Avoid any other sweeteners like honey, which will ferment more quickly.

Don’t have the time to keep cleaning that bird feeder? Consider hanging some flower baskets by your windows instead – fuchsias and petunias are a few hummingbird favorites.

Amazing woodpecker tongues – Birds

You’ll often hear woodpeckers rattling their bills against trees. They’re going after their favorite food: bugs hiding under the tree bark. The woodpeckers have some very specialized equipment for extracting them.

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