Backyard Birding
Turn your backyard into a bird haven with tips on feeders, habitats, and attracting your favorite species.
Feeders and Food
Keeping Squirrels Off Your Feeders
An acrobatic squirrel reaches for a backyard feeder. Photo by Shutterstock. People often go to extremes to keep their feeding stations squirrel-free….
Top 10 Reasons to Love Suet Dough
I first became aware of the powers of peanut butter suet dough when Carrie Griffis of Port Orchard, Washington, sent us photographs…
What Foods for What Birds?
The experts at Bird Watcher’s Digest have compiled this informative bird food and seed list to help you attract the birds that…
These Recipes Are for the Birds!
The holiday season means lots of different things, like Christmas Bird Counts, family gatherings, and food—lots of food! As you busily prepare…
Cleaning Bird Feeders in Winter
It’s wintertime here in Ohio, and that means keeping an eye on the weather forecast on the regular. As a steady supplier…
Does Bird Feeding Affect Bird Behavior?
A male American goldfinch visits a backyard feeder. Photo kindly contributed by Todd Smith. Much of the behavior we observe in our…
Backyard Tips: How to Make Your Own Hummingbird Nectar
Hungry hummingbirds sip at a backyard feeder. Photo by J. Quinn. ’Tis the season for hummingbirds! Hanging a hummingbird feeder in your…
Top 10 Backyard Questions
“There’s a bird question on line one. Can somebody pick it up?” Between the telephone calls, regular mail, and e-mail, we get…
Feeding Eggshells
The Shell Game One of the lesser-known ways to attract birds is by putting out eggshells. Female birds, drained of calcium by…
DIY Projects
Do-It-Yourself: Prevent Squirrels from Raiding your Bird Feeder
This baffle prevents squirrels from accessing a hanging feeder from above. Two metal salad bowls, one 10-inches and another 18-inches in diameter,…
Build Your Own: Build a Brush Pile
Create a winter shelter for wildlife in your backyard High on the list of important microhabitats you can create for wildlife in…
Do-It-Yourself Stovepipe Predator Baffle
Materials: Aluminum electrical conduit, ½-inch diameter, 5-foot length Iron rebar, ½-inch diameter, 5-foot length One hanger iron (two 7-inch strips attached with…
How To: Woodpecker Box
Build an Easy Box for Golden-fronted, Red-headed, and Hairy Woodpeckers Download detailed plans you can use to build your own woodpecker box….
These Recipes Are for the Birds!
The holiday season means lots of different things, like Christmas Bird Counts, family gatherings, and food—lots of food! As you busily prepare…
Do It Yourself: Birdbath Tips
Easy Drippers We know that water in motion attracts birds, and I’ve discovered an inexpensive, easy way to add a dripper to…
Do-it-yourself Pipe House
A new use for PVC pipe! by A.J. Hamler, excerpted from the March/April 2011 issue of Bird Watcher’s Digest Many do-it-yourselfers use…
Build Your Own: Bird Bath Fountain
Birdbath and fountain: sound and motion make for special allure A home-made garden sculpture at a fraction of the retail cost. A…
Backyard Tips: How to Make Your Own Hummingbird Nectar
Hungry hummingbirds sip at a backyard feeder. Photo by J. Quinn. ’Tis the season for hummingbirds! Hanging a hummingbird feeder in your…
Hummingbirds
Myths About Hummingbirds
One of the most persistent myths in the world of birds is that hummingbirds migrate on the backs of larger, stronger birds. On…
Tips for Identifying Hummingbirds
Identifying a hummingbird is very similar to identifying other bird species—if the hummer is sitting or hovering in one place long enough…
Hummingbird Resources
The Hummingbird Society – The Hummingbird Society is a nonprofit charitable organization that strives to teach about hummingbirds and works to prevent…
Hummingbird Migration: How Do They Know When to Go?
Migration is about food and survival. Nearly all of our North American hummingbird species migrate seasonally, and for many this means the…
Foiling a Bully Hummingbird
Conventional wisdom said to offer multiple hummingbird feeders out-of-sight from each other—perhaps a feeder in the front and the back of your…
Hummingbird Behavior
Feeding, Foraging, and Reader Observations Article Topics The Avian Nectar Feeders True Nectar Feeders Bill Shape Foraging Efficiency Flexible Bills Feeding Sugar…
An Introduction to Hummingbirds
General Info The hummingbird family, Trochilidae, occurs only in the Western Hemisphere, where it is second only to the tyrant flycatchers in…
Prepare for Peak Hummingbird Season! Here’s How
For those of us who adore hummingbirds and enjoy watching their antics, late July and August are an exciting time of year,…
Amazing Facts About Hummingbirds
We could fill an entire book with “amazing facts” about hummingbirds because they are birds to which the adjective “amazing” very much…
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