Hummingbirds Archives

Posted on January 22, 2022January 23, 2022 by Barb — 4 Comments

The Ultimate List of Birds Homeschool Nature Study Resources Using the Outdoor Hour Challenge

You can enjoy a simple birds homeschool nature study with these resources we have gathered for you to use in your own backyard. It is such a delight to study and learn about these beautiful creatures!

Birds Homeschool Nature Study

This is not required, but it is always good to have some birds homeschool nature study references on hand for your part of the world. Here are some bird resources I have shared about:

Review of Peterson Field Guides for Young Naturalists

Peterson Field Guides for Young Naturalists – What would the world be without birds? Birds are a favorite subject for young children as they spy birds in their yards and at near-by parks. Nurturing a love of birds is easy when you have one or two of Peterson Field Guides for Young Naturalists on hand. These compact field guides are beautifully illustrated and feature many of the birds you can find right outside your own window. They are enjoyable to page through and you will find yourself sharing these books over and over with your family.

It is such a delight to study and learn about these beautiful creatures! You can enjoy a simple birds homeschool nature study with these resources.

Favorite Bird Field Guides and Resources by Tricia – everything from each child choosing a favorite bird to study to bird field guides with bird songs, a window observation feeder and a suet recipe.

John James Audubon quote and bird chalk pastel art lessons.

A Homeschool Bird Study with Chalk Pastels by Erin – A chalk pastels bird study with Nana is a wonderful way to introduce bird art lessons in your homeschool. Chalk pastels are perfect for preschoolers to adults. They are super easy to use with no long art supply list needed. You’ll love adding these vibrant birds to your next homeschool nature study or in preparation for the Great Backyard Bird Count!

The Great Backyard Bird Count Homeschool by Heather – It’s that time of the year when citizen scientists everywhere are gearing up for the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC). It’s easy to participate and the bird count is a great way to contribute to actual data being used by ornithologists. You can have a Great Backyard Bird Count Homeschool!

Bird Study Outdoor Hour Challenges in Homeschool Nature Study Membership

All of the birds homeschool nature study resources listed are available as an Outdoor Hour Challenge in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. If you have a membership, you will be able to pull up the Outdoor Hour Challenge curriculum and print any notebook pages, coloring pages, or other printables for your birds nature study.

Birds course Handbook of Nature Study Outdoor Hour Homeschool Curriculum

Autumn Bird
Winter Bird and Migration – Winter Outdoor Hour curriculum
Winter Birds – Winter Wednesday Outdoor Hour curriculum
Spring Bird Bird Song – Spring Outdoor Hour curriculum
American Dipper – Bird Set #1 Outdoor Hour curriculum
Baltimore Oriole – Summer Nature Study Continues
Belted Kingfisher – Autumn Nature Study Continues
Catbird – Autumn Outdoor Hour curriculum
Chickadee – More Nature Study Winter Outdoor Hour curriculum
Chicken – Autumn Outdoor Hour curriculum
Clark’s Nutcracker – Bird Set #1
Common Raven – Forest Fun Outdoor Hour curriculum
Crane- Bird Set #1
Egret – Bird Set #1
Flicker –Winter Nature Study Continues
Goose – Autumn Outdoor Hour curriculum
Hawks – Autumn Nature Study Continues Outdoor Hour curriculum
Horned Lark – Bird Set #1
House Sparrow – More Nature Study Autumn

Hummingbirds and Nests – More Nature Study Summer
Magpie – Bird Set #1
Owl and Owl Pellets – Summer Outdoor Hour curriculum
Owl Study and Printable Notebook Page
Pelican – Bird Set #1
Quail – Forest Fun
Robin – More Nature Study Spring
Sandhill Crane – Bird Set #1
Sapsucker – Autumn
Snipe – Bird Set #1
Starlings
Swallows – Autumn
Swan – Bird Set #1
Turkey – Autumn
Western Tanager – Forest Fun
Woodpeckers

This collection of Outdoor Hour Challenges features an incredibly interesting group of birds: pelican, sandhill crane, Clark’s nutcracker, egret, American dipper, horned lark, magpie, swan, and snipe.

Learning all about birds Handbook of Nature Study Outdoor Hour Homeschool Curriculum

This Homeschool Nature Study Course is a collection of the Birds By Color series with custom notebooking pages, clear images, and lots of links and resources for you to use in your bird nature study. You can access this book by purchasing an Ultimate or Journey level membership here on the Handbook of Nature Study website.

Studying Birds By Color

Red Birds – Robins, Cardinals, House Finches
Blue Birds – Jays and Bluebirds
Yellow Birds – Goldfinches and Meadowlarks
Hummingbirds – Flight
Brown Birds – House Sparrows, House Wrens, and mourning Doves
Black Birds – Crow, Red-Winged Blackbird, Starling, and Cowbird
Black and White Birds – Woodpecker, Chickadee, Nuthatch, Towhee
Gray Birds – Pigeon and Mockingbird

Follow our Bird Nature Study Pinterest Board!

Even More Misc. Bird Study Ideas

We encourage you to take a closer look at these bird study ideas:

Feet
Flight
Eyes and Ears
Beaks
Feathers
Wing and Tail Shape
Starting a Bird Life List
10 Ideas for Keeping a Bird Life List
Birding By Ear
Bird Study and Nature Table Printable
Bird Field Guide Cards Printable

Additional Homeschool Nature Study You May Find Helpful

Birdfeeders in Winter
Birdwatching 101: Attracting Birds to Your Yard
Bird Nature Journal Ideas and the Great Backyard Bird Count (coming soon)
Book Review: Bird Watching Answer Book (coming soon)

Join The Homeschool Nature Study Membership for Year Round Support

Can you believe all of these bird resources you will find in membership? You will also find a continuing series on bird nature study, bird watching and attracting birds plus all the Outdoor Hour Challenges for nature study in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. There are 25+ continuing courses with matching Outdoor Hour curriculum that will bring the Handbook of Nature Study to life in your homeschool! In addition, there is an interactive monthly calendar with daily nature study prompt – all at your fingertips!

Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership Today!

-First published by Barb January 2011 and updated by Tricia January 2022

Posted on March 23, 2018 by Barb — Leave a comment

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Hummingbirds 2018

Outdoor Hour Challenge

Green Birds – Ruby Throated, Black Chinned and Anna’s Hummingbirds

From the Archives and from the Learning About Birds ebook

Use the links above to find out more information for the birds included in this Outdoor Hour Challenge. This is a week of looking for hummingbirds! I haven’t seen any hummers in my yard yet because we don’t have any winter resident hummingbirds, but when I lived in California we had Anna’s hummingbirds year round in our feeders.

Last summer here in Oregon we had rufous hummingbirds with their mechanical wing sound. I can hardly wait to see their return!

We’ll be reading about hummingbirds in the Handbook of Nature Study as a refresher and then looking up our local hummingbirds in the field guide.

There is information in the challenge link above about how to get started with a hummingbird feeder in your own yard…give it a try!

This green bird challenge is from the Learning About Birds ebook here on the Handbook of Nature Study. It’s found in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships for you to download and use with your family. If you would like to gain access to this ebook, you can purchase a membership now and have instant access.

Use the discount code BIRDLOVER5 for $5 off an Ultimate Naturalist Membership.

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Barb — Leave a comment

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Summer Hummingbirds

Outdoor Hour Challenge

Hummingbirds

From the Archives and in the More Nature Study – Summer Ebook

Also, there is a hummingbird nature study in the new Learning About Birds ebook.

This is a favorite nature study topic for so many families. If you have a hummingbird feeder, you can’t help but fall in love with these sweet nectar-seeking birds. They’re so colorful and graceful and so enjoyable to watch. You can’t help but be amazed at the speed at which hummingbirds flap their wings and fly up, down, and all around.

Use the ideas in this archive nature study to learn more about hummingbirds from the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock and the internet links provided. Follow up with a nature journal entry.

You can read about our summer hummingbird study from 2012 here: Summer Hummingbirds.

How do you get the new Learning About Birds ebook?

Members of the Ultimate Naturalist and Journey levels have access to the new ebook in their library. You need to click the “Members Area” button at the top of the website, sign into your account, and the ebook is there to download and safe for your family to use when desired.

If you don’t have a membership yet, I am offering a $5 off discount code that will be good towards your Ultimate Naturalist membership.

Discount Code: BIRDLOVER5

Please note that I am an affiliate for NotebookingPages.com and these are affiliate links. I have used these pages and loved them for many years with my own family.

Posted on August 12, 2015 by Barb — 3 Comments

August Garden Update – Nasturtiums, Veggies, and More

Our attempt at a nasturtium flower study fell short again this year.

Don’t you love nasturtiums? They are such a happy flower and they remind me of my grandma. Her garden seemed to just sprout them in all the corners and I always have thought they were easy to grow and care for.

I have not had much success in growing my own nasturtiums. I have tried a few times and this year I received nasturtium seeds (Little Firebirds) from Renee’s Garden. I read the back of the package and it said they would be great in a container so I planted them in a fairly large pot on my back deck. My seeds quickly sprouted and the leaves that formed were so pretty and lily pad shaped just like the package said. But, over time, the leaves started to turn brown which I thought was from lack of water so I stepped up my watering.

Things grew worse instead of better and now all I have is a pot of crispy leaves, no flowers.

Not sure what happened there…over-watering?

The rest of the garden is going strong and I am reaping some rewards in the form of zucchini, cherry tomatoes, and basil.

The zucchini is Astia from Renee’s Garden and the seed package says it will grow compact plants and yield an abundance of tender zucchini. I have picked about eight zucchinis so far and I think my dog or some other critter has eaten a few too. I am really liking this variety but I left too many plants in my pot…..next year one plant per pot.

The tomatoes are Litt’l bites Cherry from Renee’s Garden. The package says that this plant is perfect from pots and baskets and I can tell you that I have had huge success with this veggie. The problem is that some critter comes at night and eats anything almost ripe. I have put up a cage and netting around it to protect the fruits for us to eat!

The basil is Italian Cameo from Renee’s Garden. I love, love, love this variety and it is easy to pick a bunch really fast. I harvest some every few days and it just fills right back in for the next time.

The peppers are growing every day in our hot summer afternoons. These are Baby Belle Peppers from Renee’s Garden. They are a mini snack or salad pepper which they say I can pick either green or wait for them to get red before harvesting. I think I will try doing it both ways and see which I like better. I am having success with the plants in a pot on my back deck.

So there is a short update on the garden in pots! I so enjoy getting out there every morning to survey the progress and water, trim, pick, and taste something. I have decided I don’t need a big garden to get that “garden fix” that I need in the summer. Lesson learned!

One last new thing on the deck…a second hummingbird feeder! I placed a new feeder along with some red plants to attract a few more hummers to my yard. They love both the red geranium and the red petunias….great tip for those of you trying to establish a new hummingbird feeder. Use the natural colors to get them interested in visiting your feeder and then they will become regulars.

Summer fills my days with gardening and bird watching….and cloud watching. We are still in our drought here in California and every time there are clouds we hope for rain but so far….nothing!

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Barb — 6 Comments

Project Feederwatch Continues – More December Birds

I had in mind a totally different post for you this week but our internet has been down for over a week so working online has been limited. Instead, I have a collection of recent bird photos that show some of our feeder birds that we enjoy everyday. As the leaves fall from the trees, observing birds becomes much easier. We also have more of a variety to enjoy this time of year and keeping track of them for Project Feederwatch becomes our normal routine at least two days a week.

The Outdoor Hour Challenges this month focuses on the weather and we have been noting how the weather affects the birds in our yard. We have had ice on the birdbaths quite a few mornings this week and if I don’t go out and break it up, the birds skid around on it which makes me laugh.

House finches can seem common at the feeders…oh, just another finch. But, when you see these colored birds through the eye of a camera, you realize they are not just another bird. They come in varying shades of pink, orange, red, and purple…they come day after day and provide a happy bird song (listen on All About Birds to hear the sweet sounds of a finch).

Our backyard Anna’s hummingbirds are still at the feeders every day. They have a particular tree they sit in and most days it is on the same little branch that hangs over one end of our deck. I can hear them making their little chattering noises whenever I am outside. In this image the feathers look black but it is just the way the light is hitting him. If he tilts his head in just the right way or the sun hits him just right, his chin and throat are the most brilliant pink and his body is a dazzling green. I always thought that hummingbirds were delicate creatures but I have seen them at my feeder in the pouring rain and when we have snow. All About Birds says that they weigh the same as a nickel….imagine that!

The return of the Dark eyed junco is complete for the season. We started having one or two a day under the feeders but now I am counting 12-20 every day. They mostly poke around under the seed feeders to glean some food but I have noticed that they are hanging out at the suet feeder as well. They do give the woodpeckers first chance at the suet but as soon as the woodpecker flies away, they hop on and have a meal.

Our Northern Mockingbirds make daily appearances at the berry vines in our front yard. I read on All About Birds that they switch to an almost all berry diet in the fall and winter. The other fact I learned about the mockingbird is that they don’t sing at this time of the year. The website says that they sing from February to August and then from September to early November. Isn’t that interesting? I am going to record the dates I hear them sing in my neighborhood…a little extra project for me.

The Nuttall’s woodpecker is a frequent diner at the suet feeder. We seem to have a female that is rather shy but I have observed her quite a bit as she hops up and down the trees near the feeder. She shares the feeder many times with the little White-breasted nuthatches.

The excitement this season is that we appear to have a wintering Red-breasted nuthatch who comes daily to the trees outside my window. At first I thought he was my usual White-breasted nuthatch but I read online that the Red-breasted has an eye stripe….sure enough, our nuthatch had an eyestripe. He is super quick and I have yet to capture a clear image but you can see in this one that he definitely has an eyestripe! Hopefully I will get a good image of him for my nature journal sometime this winter.

Project Feederwatch has helped bring my bird observation skills to the next level. In just a few minutes a day, I have learned so much more about the bird life right outside my window. What a gift this activity gives…hopefully you enjoy seeing my bird friends and are inspired to start learning about your own backyard birds.

Take it one bird at a time and enjoy!

There is a wealth of birding information on the internet but I have not found a more homeschool-friendly site than the ones sponsored by Cornell University. I would love to encourage you all to subscribe to their homeschool blog (click the logo to pop over there now).

You can also follow them on Facebook .
You can download their FREE Homeschool Guide to Project Feederwatch.
Of course, my favorite resource is their AllAboutBirds website which is a great tool for identifying and learning more about birds in your own neighborhood.

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Barb — 5 Comments

Summer Bird Study – Hummingbirds

This is our busiest hummingbird feeder. They also like the flowers in the pots.

We love hummingbirds. I think we pay more attention to the hummingbirds in our yard than any other bird. They are constantly at our feeders, in our garden flowers, and flying around…front yard and backyard.

There are at least three in our yard at all times, competing for the feeders and flying fast. They sit in the trees and chirp at us when we eat dinner on the back deck. They are not afraid of us when we are out in the backyard and frequently will fly right up by us as we work in the yard.

They are year round residents.

What aspect did we focus on this time in our hummingbird study as part of the More Nature Study Book #4 Hummingbird Challenge? We started off asking questions about their feathers and how in a certain light they are very green and in then in another light they are bright red. What makes them iridescent? But then we got side-tracked asking why the Anna’s hummingbird chases the Black Headed Grosbeaks out of the seed feeders. I mean they are aggressively chasing them far out of the yard. Our field guide says they defend a 1/4 acre territory. We haven’t found the concrete answer to our questions yet but we have some guesses.

Also, we were fascinated this week by one hummingbird in particular. We call him “Flutter”. He has a unusual sound to his flying. Most of the birds have the familiar “hum” to their wings and the Anna’s Hummingbird make a clicking sound as well. But Flutter sounds like he has a bum wing…like it is not beating like the other birds. It sounds like a fluttering instead of a humming, if that makes sense. We have yet to catch him with the camera because our thought is that if we can take a photo and take a look at his wing shape, maybe he has some sort of injury.

One last thing to relate about our hummingbirds this week. I was out in the yard using the hose to water a few of the bushes since it has been extremely hot and dry. I had the hose in a fine sort of mist and in the shape of an arc. Well, a hummingbird decided that it was the perfect place to fly in and out as he took a bath! It was amazing to watch and I am hoping I get to see it again some day. Our hummingbirds are quite comfortable with us right now and they will fly right up behind you and visit the feeder even if you are inches from them.

Posted on July 10, 2012 by Barb — 10 Comments

Gardening for Birds – Expect to Be Dazzled By Who Comes to Visit

Our garden and our bird list is very interconnected. The birds are coming and enjoying a variety of things in our garden habitat. I learned from Angie at Petra School that it takes about twenty minutes before the birds forget that you are watching. I have tried to find a spot to sit or stand in the garden and just wait to see who will come back during that twenty minute’s time.

The results?

I can confirm that she is right on! Usually after a few minutes the jays come back and the nuthatch and the grosbeaks come fairly quickly too. But some of the birds take a good long time before they reveal their hiding places in the trees and in the shelter of the bushes we have at the edges of our yard.

It is worth the wait. I decided that this week’s garden/bird entry would be a photo essay with lots of colorful images and very few words. Enjoy!

Day lilies and our back birdbath

The birdbaths are a frequent stopover for the neighborhood birds.

Our little wild patch of blackberries just behind the birdfeeding station.

The blackberry bushes are a perfect shelter for birds to rest and to wait their turn at the feeder.

The leaves on our sunflowers are being eating by nibbling finches.

The sunflowers and birch trees are attracting the Lesser Goldfinches…who are eating the leaves and seeds.

The Black-headed Grosbeaks and the Western Scrub Jays are in and out of the feeders all day long.This is the best image I could get this week…they are fast in and out of the feeder. They have a sweet little song as well.The Mourning Doves and California Towhees are pecking around under the feeders.The White-breasted Nuthatches, House Finches, Titmouses, and House Sparrows are always found in the seed feeders.The European Starlings and Robins are busy eating the fruits from the neighbor’s tree that hangs over the fence into our yard.The birds are making a huge mess by taking the fruits all over the yard and eating them. They leave the pits behind and they are covering our driveway. This starling will leave the pit in our neighbor’s grass and next year it may start to grow into a tree. I know this from experience.

The Anna’s Hummingbirds are everywhere. They still come to the feeders but they also are in the trumpet vine, the roses, the bee balm, the butterfly bushes, and several of my potted plants.The neighborhood Great Horned Owl is heard once it is dark and still outside. I envision him hunting the rodents that get into my birdfeeders.The mockingbird sings all the time…almost round the clock.

Additional bird notes:
We have heard the Steller’s Jay and their “shook-shook-shook” several times in our neighborhood but we have yet to see one. This would be a new to our neighborhood bird.
We have heard the Nuttall’s Woodpecker lots of time but only once in our back tree. I need to remember to fill the suet feeder.
The Starlings come everyday now which is new for this year as well. Their buzzing sound is now a familiar backyard bird sound.
The Black-headed Grosbeaks are also a new every day bird. Their flash of color at the feeders is beautiful.

Jami’s Tuesday Garden Party meme is open from Tuesday to Thursday so there is still time for you to jump in and participate!You may be interested in reading my entry, If You Build It, They Will Come, entry that shows the butterflies that are frequently found in our yard.What are you doing to make your yard attractive to birds and butterflies?

Sage, Lavender, and Butterfly Bushes

Not sure what kind of tree this is but it sure is messy…the birds love it though.

Starling in our neighbor’s yard with a fruit from the tree.

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Barb — 2 Comments

OHC More Nature Study Book #4: Hummingbirds and Nests

More Nature Study Book #4
Hummingbird Study – Summer Birds

This week is bird watching week!

You may find that your family likes birds so much that you decide to keep a running list of birds you see this summer. You can see Outdoor Hour Challenge #5-Keeping a List for more ideas. You can print a notebook page to record your birds or use your nature journal.

Here is a video that will inspire you to start your own hummingbird feeder station in your yard:
Hummingbird Station

Inside Preparation Work:

Read pages 115-117 (Lesson 29) in the Handbook of Nature Study. There is also a section on pages 46-47 (Lesson 7) that focuses on The Study of Birds’ Nests in Winter. Read for information and highlight questions you can use in the future when you observe a bird’s nest.
You absolutely must watch this video of a Hummingbird Building a Nest. Most of us will never experience this in person so a video is the next best thing! You can also read the previous Outdoor Hour Challenge for Hummingbirds where we focused on their beaks. Read online: Burgess Bird Book for Children: A Butcher and a Hummer.
Advanced Study: Use a local field guide to familiarize yourself with birds you may see in your neighborhood. You can also use this tool on the Great Backyard Bird Count: Explore Results By Location. Enter your town and the site will generate a list of birds seen during the count. Note that you may see different birds during the summer months but it will give a starting point to use with your field guide. Ebook Users: Print several of the Bird Nature Study Observations sheets included with the ebook (used with permission from HeartsandTrees).

Outdoor Hour Time:

Take your outdoor time for this challenge early in the day and look for birds before it is too hot. If you have hummingbirds in your neighborhood, spend some time observing their behavior. Watch for any birds that visit your yard or at your feeder. Compare any birds you have to the hummingbird: size, beak, tail, food, color, flight.
Advanced Study: Ebook Users: Use the Bird Observation sheets included with the ebook to make a careful study of any backyard birds you view for this challenge.

Follow-Up Activities:

Use a field guide to identify any birds you observed during your outdoor time. Complete a nature journal entry for any bird you observed. If you would like to complete a notebook page for hummingbirds, the NotebookingFairy has some very simple free pages for you to print.
Advanced Study: Complete a nature journal entry for a hummingbird you have in your local area. Use a field guide for more information. Ebook Users: There is also a notebook page in the ebook for recording more nest and beak information.

Additional Links:
YouTube: Hummingbird Chirp
YouTube: Mama Hummingbird feeds her Babies (in the nest)

Fun Facts on Hummingbirds

Nests and Beaks Links for the Notebook Page:
AllAboutBirds—

World of Hummingbirds

All the summer challenges for 2012 are included in the new More Nature Study Book #4 Summer Sizzle ebook. The challenges in the ebook are the same challenges that will post every Friday here on my blog. If you want to follow along with notebook pages and coloring pages, click over and learn more about the ebook.

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Barb — 5 Comments

Handbook of Nature Study – December Bird List with Two New Birds!

December Bird List –
Our Family’s On-Going Record of Our Bird Sighting
A Life Project

We have had a busy and full month watching birds in our yard and as part of our December travels. Project Feederwatch has become a natural part of our weekly routine and helps us take a few minutes two days a week to count birds that come to our feeders. First a few interesting photos and then this month’s bird list!

First off, our sweet and fabulous White-breasted nuthatch resident…or at least one of the three that entertain us everyday with their acrobatics on our backyard tree trunks. Ups and downs and lots of pecking are observed as we watch out the window. They also have a very distinct bird sound that they make and we are alerted to look up when we are outside and they are present. If you click the link above and click the Pacific song, you will hear what our nuthatch sounds like (there is an Eastern song as well).

I had to zoom this one in and crop it to show you this cute little guy and his expression.

Our beloved California Towhee in the feeder….usually he scratches around under the feeder but today he showed up for pictures. Isn’t he interesting with his pink-orange rump and pink-orange around the eye? There is always a pair in the yard and they don’t ever stray very far from each other. We learned that the colored patch under the tail is called the “crissum”.

Here is the other half of the pair….up on the branch, waiting for a turn in the feeder. (Males and females look alike.)

Since we started participating in Project Feederwatch, we have seen three of these Spotted Towhees in the yard. They are strikingly beautiful birds and since they are not year-round residents we try to enjoy them while they are here.

I love the way this bird friend is clinging to the twig and posing. You can see the dried up blackberries on the vine that we left from the summer garden. The birds are seen frequently stopping by for a purple snack.

The Western bluebird enjoys a little bath this time in our front yard. I still get excited when he comes to visit. They usually come in a small bunch and then leave all at the same time. Lovely.

Here is the very best shot of the Anna’s Hummingbird at our feeder that I could capture to share. The flash accidentally went off but that really shows his beautiful ruby/pink/iridescent color. We have one or two at a time in the feeder these days, usually a male and a female. There might be more than two since the feeder is emptied frequently even at this time of the year.

In Our Yard – mostly at the feeders

Spotted towhee
Dark-eyed junco
House sparrow
White-crowned sparrow
Mourning dove
Western bluebird
Mockingbird
Western scrub jay
American robin
White-breasted nuthatch
California towhee
House finches
Lesser goldfinches
Anna’s hummingbird
Oak titmouse
Ruby-crowned kinglet
Acorn woodpecker

Out and About:

American crow
Northern flicker
California quail
Steller’s jay
Wild turkeys
Brewer’s blackbird
Pigeons
White-tailed kite ***New to our life list
Red-tail hawk
Barn swallow
Bewick’s wren ***New to our life list
Downy woodpecker – hanging on a tall weed (more on that later)

I would love for other families to join ours in watching your feeder birds. It is super easy and you just need to devote a few minutes a week to getting to know your feeder birds one bird at a time. Email me with any questions you have about the program.

So which bird photo did you like the most? I think I like the California towhee in the feeder the best since it is one that I have been trying to snap for awhile now.

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Barb — 5 Comments

Our Nature Study Week – The Familiar and the Surprising

Want to know what I love about walking a familiar trail? I love knowing where things grow, the landmarks to notice, the way you can tell that something is different. Usually this is the changing of the season, seeing the plants grow, blossom, and then die down in the fall. Sometimes it is a man-made change and it is shocking!

This is where our star thistles, Queen Anne’s lace, and sweet peas grow in mass every spring and summer. We haven’t been on this section of the trail in a few months and were were surprised to see that they had cleared it off, inserted a culvert and pipe, and then recovered it with this material. We are wondering what they reseeded it with. I can guarantee it is not star thistle, Queen Anne’s Lace, and sweet peas.

I dug up a photo from a previous season.

Our family used this spot as a landmark. I could say to the boys as they ran on ahead, “Stop at the thistle spot.” Now we shall have to see what grows and make a new landmark. I know I will miss my Queen Anne’s lace.

Another change we see is in our bird feeder attendees. This year we are seeing Anna’s hummingbirds everyday in our feeder. They are coming and going all day long. Several of you have noted the hummingbirds on my monthly bird list. This species (Calypte anna) is an iridescent green and gray below…the male has an iridescent red head and throat. If you catch a glimpse of them in the sunshine, you are amazed at their dazzling color. They stay all winter even in the sub-freezing temperatures. I go out to check their feeder each day to make sure it isn’t frozen.

We took a walk around our yard last week as part of the Preparation for Winter-Plants challenge. This challenge had us looking for ways that plants get ready to survive the cold winter temperatures. We noticed that several of our plants are putting out a new bloom. This Moonshine yarrow is very pretty..especially up close.

One plant that is surprising us is our yellow rose. It is still blooming…not the prettiest of blooms but still treating us to some rose-goodness for the kitchen table. For all you Redwall readers out there, we have named this the Winter of the Rose.

As part of my research and preparation for the new More Nature Study #2 ebook, we are having fun studying rocks up close with our magnifying lens. I set up a spot on our nature table with some interesting rocks and I noticed that just about everyone has stopped by to take a peek. (Quartz will be a topic in the new ebook.)We have lots of examples of quartz in our rock collection so pulling them out and putting them in one place has brought them back out of the shoeboxes and into the spotlight.

We are headed into another week of dry sunny days so we will be outdoors walking quite a bit. I know at some point the rain and snow will come but for now we are breathing deep the warm (50’s) afternoons together. Hope you get the chance to be outdoors this week.

Scheduled Publish Date: 12/28/11

By popular demand, here is the link to the SE Folding Magnifier, Glass Lens 2 1/2″ Dia., Power 5X
we have in the photo above.

Tag: Hummingbirds