Bird Watching: A Year-Round Guide
By Bill Thompson, III, and the staff of Bird Watcher's Digest
(Cool Springs Press Publishers)
Enhance your birding with one of the Bird Watcher's Digest
state bird-watching guides. In each state-specific guide,
you'll find bright color photographs, clever identification
clues, and interesting natural history details for the 100
most common birds (plus other notable species). Great chapters
include Ten Must-see Birds!, Ten Best Bird-watching Spots,
Bird Watching by Season, and Tips for Getting Started in Bird Watching.
Bird Watching: A Year Round Guide by Cool Springs Press was created especially for beginning
and intermediate bird watchers in seventeen states in the Southeast and Midwest. Find your state below:
Sample text from this book: "Summers are hot in Alabama, but the breeding season continues, particularly for species such as the northern cardinal and Carolina wren that have multiple broods. American goldfinches time their breeding to coincide with ripening thistle, which occurs in late June or early July. Summer in Alabama is about juvenile birds and fledglings. Young northern cardinals, with their black bills and disheveled plumage, are everywhere. Cattle egrets congregate in fields, feasting on insects stirred up by the feeding cattle. Juvenile little blue herons in their white plumage spread out thinly around the lower half of the state. Birds again become quiet and thus harder to locate, as their energies are directed toward feeding and raising a brood.
The Gulf Coast has thousands of breeding shorebirds and seabirds, including herons, egrets, terns (including the endangered least tern), and brown pelicans, which have come back from the brink of extinction to be quite numerous. Many of these birds go to isolated islands offshore to breed away from humans - and perhaps more importantly - away from predators such as raccoons, snakes, opossums; they only reappear after nesting is complete. Magnificent frigate birds are not common, but the observant birder may find these huge birds along the coast, most often from Dauphin Island, all summer and well into the fall."
Sample text from this book: "Along Florida's extensive beaches, several species that require undisturbed habitat begin to nest in late April and May, particularly along the Gulf Coast. These include the diminutive snowy plover (whose numbers are decreasing), the larger Wilson's plover, black skimmer, American oystercatcher, and the least, royal, and Sandwich terns. Because of this habitat requirement and the fact that millions of people share this precious habitat, these birds have taken to nesting on offshore barrier islands, artificial spoil islands (such as those in Tampa Bay), and even (in the case of the black skimmer, least tern, and American oystercatcher) on gravel rooftops in coastal cities.
March, April, and May mark the breeding season for tens of thousands of sooty terns, thousands of brown noddies, and hundreds of magnificent frigatebirds on Bush Key in the Dry Tortugas, about 70 miles off Key West. For all three species, this tiny tropical island is the only breeding locality in North America. In most years, one or more black noddies can also be found here, although separating them from their larger cousins is not always easy. A few roseate terns and masked boobies also breed on the Dry Tortugas, the latter on Hospital Key, which is the only breeding locality for this species on the continent. Taking a boat trip out to these islands in spring usually produces seabirds, such as pomarine and parasitic jaegers, Audubon's shearwater, brown booby, and bridled tern."
Sample text from this book: "Bird watching is spectacular in Georgia in spring! The birds are in their spiffiest plumage, and they are singing their heads off. Spring generally runs from March to May, but in reality the first stirrings are in February. The beginning of March brings the first wave of migrants to the southern coast and the southeastern part of the state, with blue-gray gnatcatchers and northern parulas leading the way, followed closely by white-eyed vireos.
Yellow-throated warblers are suddenly singing everywhere in the southeast corner of the state, and they work their way north and west through the month of March. Louisiana waterthrushes can be found singing along small creeks and rivers by mid-March. The first swallows and purple martins show up in the south; in the northern part of the state blue-headed vireo numbers pick up and red-winged blackbirds return. Ruby-throated hummingbirds will hit the southwest and coast by the end of the month. Also along the coast and in the deep southeast, the numbers of green and tricolored herons begin to increase. By the end of March, whip-poor-wills are starting to sing all over the northern half of the state, swallows are moving north, and a few warblers have made it above the Fall Line, mostly black-and-white and black-throated green warblers."
Sample text from this book: "As a landlocked state, Kentucky is not blessed with the diversity of bird life that coastal areas offer. Nonetheless, its placement in the south central United States offers bird watchers great opportunities to experience a wide variety of birds. Our state's largely rural nature makes great bird watching locales easy to find. In fact, the combination of federal and state natural lands that are easily accessibly - including national parks, national forests, state parks and nature preserves, wildlife management areas, and other areas - makes it one of the most bird-watching friendly states in the nation!
Kentucky has a great diversity of habitats - from mature mountain woodlands in the east to floodplain swamps along the Mississippi River of the far west - that makes for a good mix of bird life. Because we have such marked seasonal variations in temperature, the bird life changes greatly as well. In fact, more than 360 species have been reliably reported in the state.
The highlight season of the year for the bird watching in Kentucky is spring, when large numbers of colorful songbirds return from wintering farther to the south. Some pass through on their way north, whereas many stay to nest. Kentucky also lies right in the path of many southbound migrants during fall migration. Winter can be a good time to study the resident species, those that are hardy enough to make it through our weather extremes."
Sample text from this book: "For boating bird watchers, the barrier islands off of Louisiana's southeastern coast offer spectacular views of mixed seabird nesting colonies, especially during June. Gulls and terns crowd onto these islands, each claiming its own tiny spot and nesting directly on the sand. The most populous species of interest include the laughing gull and Forster's tern. Also present in smaller numbers are herring gull, Sandwich tern, Caspian tern, and royal tern. Keep in mind that the shallow, sloping nature of barrier island shorelines excludes the possibility of actually landing a boat on the island proper. Instead, be content to simply anchor offshore and view the spectacle through binoculars.
On more isolated portions of the mainland beaches, additional seabird nesting sites can be located. Here, look for the least tern, on the Louisiana's most elegant and endangered birds, which nests directly on the sand. Also present in this habitat is Wilson's plover. With a little luck, nesting snowy plovers may be found, especially along the more isolated portions of the state's southwestern coastal beaches."
Sample text from this book: "What has become quite a phenomenon in this state is the winter occurrence of hummingbirds. Although some are seen in the northern counties, most are reported from the southernmost counties, almost invariably at a nectar feeder or in a garden that's been groomed for them. The rufous hummingbird has been recorded as early as August and as late as April, but man others don't make a first appearance of the season until November and December when they are high-priority birds. These errant species from the West tend to stay through winter, when they are almost totally dependent upon those who play the role of host or hostess. If your bird watching enjoyment involves "hummingbirding," it is useful to know the species thus far recorded in winter: broad-tailed, rufous, and Allen's. (As a interesting side note, the rarest among the rare, was a green violet-ear, a Mexican species, that appeared at Holly Springs in northern Mississippi in midsummer.)"
Sample text from this book: "Spring is the best time to bird in the mountains. That is when neotropical migrants pour in, with many remaining to breed. More than 20 warbler species nest here, from the yellow-throated warbler (a southern species found in the mountain valleys), to the northern-oriented Canada warbler (nesting at 4,000 feet and above). Other high-elevation specialties include veeries, red-breasted nuthatches, rose-breasted grosbeaks, winter wrens, brown creepers, alder flycatchers, northern saw-whet owls, common ravens, and black-capped chickadees. Birders come from all over the South to see and hear these and many other species on territory in May and June. Lucky visitors may also encounter summering pine siskins at high elevation sites or meet up with erratic bands of red crossbills that reside here year-round (although their movements are not predictable and finding them can be a challenge).
Peregrine falcons, once historic nesters in these mountains, were absent for many years as the species declined in the third quarter of the twentieth century. They have been reintroduced to several sites and are now breeding in at least six different locations in North Carolina's mountains. Nesting begins in early spring, and the birds are most likely to be seen during May and June, when parent birds are bringing food to young or are supervising the early flights of fledglings."
Sample text from this book: "One of the most amazing avian spectacles in summer takes place on a small island in the middle of Lake Murray, near the town of Lexington. From mid-July through mid-August of each year, hundreds of thousands of purple martins congregate on the 12-acre Lunch Island to form a premigratory roost or staging area. This roost has grown since it was first discovered in the early 1990s and is now so large that it's easily detected by weather radar. Purple martins leave the roost to forage each morning before dawn, dispersing outward in a 360-degree radius. This departure outward in a 360-degree radius. This departure pattern creates a distinctive, donut-shaped ring on weather radar. Birds may forage as far as 75 miles away during the day, but return to the roost each evening in late afternoon, darkening the sky with their numbers. Some observers have estimated that at its peak as many as 700,000 purple martins utilize Lunch Island, making it the largest known purple martin roost in North America. Although no one knows how long these swallows will continue to use Lunch Island, its significance has led to its designation as the nation's first purple martin sanctuary. By studying weather radar, researchers have discovered other purple martin staging areas across the Southeast, but thus far none are comparable in size to that on Lake Murray."
Sample text from this book: "Fifty years ago one of the most characteristic sounds of fall migration across Virginia was the honking of Canada geese as they arrived from their breeding grounds to the north. This situation changed as the species made an astonishing range expansion to the south. The Canada goose, like the guest who came for dinner and then decided not to go home, has now become a common year-round resident over the entire state. In some areas, the number of Canada geese increases somewhat during the fall, but for the most part the birds don't move much.
The strong winds of November blow the remnants of foliage off most of the trees, and with the fronts come the secretive little saw-whet owls. Long considered to be rare winter visitors, recent banding studies indicate that these birds move through Virginia every year in good numbers. An irruptive migrant, the number of saw-whet owls tends to fluctuate from one year to another."
Sample text from this book: "Bird watching in Illinois can be a thrilling, heady adventure filled with color and song. And you can enjoy it out in the field or from your own backyard. Year-round, black-capped and Carolina chickadees add spirit to the day, giving their dee-dee-dee calls as they snatch seeds from a feeder or build nests in a tree hole right in your backyard. Year-round, too, woodpeckers, nuthatches, cardinals, and blue jays will all come to your yard if you provide them with food, water, and habitat. And during spring and fall migration, Baltimore orioles will eat orange halves provided for them, while scarlet tanagers may enjoy the suet that you put out for the woodpeckers and nuthatches. Some birds readily nest in human-supplied bird boxes - these include the house wren, eastern bluebird, tree swallow, chickadees and others.
When you're ready to leave your yard and visit some local forest preserves you can enjoy many more bird species, those that require larger tracts of land and certain types of habitat for breeding and feeding. Venture out to the woods anywhere on a spring day and you'll be greeted with a riot of song and color. Perhaps you'll hear and see the black-throated green warbler, which indeed has a black throat and a green back with lots of yellow on the belly, or the yellow-rumped warbler, which, indeed, has a yellow rump, along with yellow shoulders and a yellow crown patch. Rose-breasted grosbeaks sing melancholy songs in the trees, while wood thrushes sound like Pan playing his flute. Walk the prairies in summer to listen for the rollicking calls of the bobolinks and the buzzy insect-like trills of Savannah sparrows - or take a walk in winter through the snowy landscape to enjoy the birds such as dark-eyed juncos that come to Illinois for their winter vacation!"
Sample text from this book: "Late in July and August, when most other birds have finished nesting for the year, goldfinches are just beginning. From the heads of thistles going to seed they get down to line the nests they build in saplings in fence rows and scrubby fields. As the goldfinches begin to incubate eggs, swallows are flocking, often perching on power lines like rows of clothespins.
Shorebirds that nested farther north, such as yellowlegs, dowitchers, and a host of little sandpipers, reappear on the shore of Lake Michigan, then the shores of lakes in Indiana. These birds have molted into post-breeding plumage and are migrating, already on the way south, although it might seem early, to us, for the onset of fall migration.
In August there are multitudes of red-winged blackbirds as well as starlings. The blackbird crowds grow as flock joins flock until, as they fly, they appear from the distance like wisps of smoke drifting across the sky. There may be tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands in a single flock. At night the flocks fly to communal roosts, usually dense stands of cattails. As they collect in trees around the roost at dusk their calling creates a din that drowns out all other sound."
Sample text from this book: "Just as leaves unfurl and trees turn pale green, the tiny warbler and vireos appear. Their arrival coincides with the renewed activity of caterpillars and other small animal life in the foliage. In one of nature's great feats of coordination, the birds find their food while defending the tender new growth from being devoured before the leaves can develop. In Iowa, thirty-six species of warblers enter the state in spring. Most of them are simply passing through on their way north, and can be found in the state only for a few weeks. Although they are small, and many are hard to get a good look at in their treetop habitat, warblers are the jewel in the crown for birders. If you wish to join the fun, look for warblers early in the morning, especially in May. Since each warbler species sings differently from all the rest, learning their songs will be a great help. Furthermore, since you can hear birds sing you'll "see" more warblers with your ears than you can with your eyes."
Sample text from this book: "Although somewhat removed from the middle of the continent, Michigan's birdlife provides a taste of North, South, East, and West. The majority of birds occurring here are decidedly eastern in flavor, but a western influence is evidenced by the state's small breeding populations of clay-colored sparrow, western meadowlark, and yellow-headed blackbird, and by the annual migrations, in small numbers, of more westerly species such as Franklin's gull and Harris's sparrow. Without doubt, Michigan is a northern state, and breeding warblers are well represented, in addition to breeding white-throated, Lincoln's, and Le Conte's sparrows, and hermit and Swainson's thrushes. There is also a far North component to Michigan's birdlife in the presence of boreal breeding species, mainly in the Upper Peninsula, represented by breeding spruce grouse, black-backed woodpecker, gray jay, boreal chickadee, Connecticut warbler, and white-winged and red crossbills. In winter, species from even farther north (including common redpolls, pine grosbeaks, white-winged and red crossbills, and great gray, snowy, boreal, and northern hawk owls) move into Michigan on three- to five-year cycles, or irruptions. In the southernmost portions of Michigan several species occur, some near the northernmost limits of their distributions. These include red-bellied woodpecker, Acadian flycatcher, white-eyed vireo, Carolina wren, cerulean warbler, Kentucky warbler, hooded warbler, and yellow-breasted chat."
Sample text from this book: "July is the warmest and sunniest month of the year. Severe weather is a possibility, and these are the sultriest days of the year. It's a great time to visit a northern lake and listen to the haunting call of the common loon and watch the accomplished fishing technique of the osprey. Young birds (including loons and western grebes) can be observed and enjoyed. Young American white pelicans can be found on some of the state's remote islands.
It seems early, but the fall migration begins in July, as some shorebirds begin the long journey south to their wintering grounds in Central and South America. Many things happen in July. Raspberries and blueberries ripen. Baby toads may be seen on lawns. The first cicada is heard singing. Cinquefoil, blazing star, coneflower, goldenrod, Queen Anne's lace, wild cucumber, and evening primrose bloom. Mosquitoes are joined by deer flies in a constant effort to annoy humans. This fact is made bearable only because the tomatoes begin to ripen."
Sample text from this book: "The woodlands are ablaze with the breeding plumages of cardinals, summer and scarlet tanagers, painted and indigo buntings, rose-breasted and blue grosbeaks, orchard and Baltimore orioles, black-and-white and yellow warblers, American redstarts, red-headed woodpeckers, and both goldfinches and house finches. As you drive from birding spot to birding spot, you can see eastern bluebirds, eastern kingbirds, and the spectacular scissor-tailed flycatchers sitting on power lines and wires.
The sounds of a Missouri summer include the haunting calls of the whip-poor-will and chuckwill's-widow, the cawing of the crow, the scream of the blue jay, the happy song of the Carolina wren, the lyrical song of the wood thrush, the meeow of the gray catbird, and the constant all-night serenade of the mockingbird.
The grasslands and prairies give the birder a chance to sort out all those "little brown jobs," the sparrows that many people don't bother to distinguish. Grasshopper, chipping, field, lark, vesper, and song sparrows are found in many areas, while Henslow's is a sparrow of the prairies. All qualify as "LBJs."
Sample text from this book: "Our grasslands come alive now, and a place like The Wilds is transformed into a noisy, bubbling cacophony of bobolinks, eastern meadowlarks, and other birds of wide-open spaces. As one's senses become adapted to the sounds of the grasslands, the more subtle sounds of the prairie birds will come into focus. The two-pitched trill of Savannah sparrows vies with the more monotone, jangly trills of grasshopper sparrows, and careful searching will often reveal these birds perched on a fence post or tall weed. But the one to really cup your ears and listen for is the Henslow's sparrow, which is at the peak of activity in June. These chunky little sparrows' hiccup-like song is easily lost among the bolder residents of the grasslands, but keying on their call is about the only way to eventually spot one of these skulkers.
As June rolls into July, days become hotter, birds become more sluggish, and activity lessens. Many of our songbirds have already fledged young, and may even be starting a second brood. Now it's imperative to get afield at the crack of dawn to hear the singers, as bird song really slows and becomes intermittent as July goes on."
Sample text from this book: "Summer is a time of first flights for many of the state's new avian residents. In the lower portion of Horicon Marsh, young great egrets and great blue herons fledge from nests in rookeries on Four Mile and Cotton Islands. The graceful birds are often seen south of State Highway 49, sometimes joined by large numbers of American white pelicans, ducks, and geese in the wetland expanses.
Throughout the state young chimney swifts also take to the air during summer. Although usually associated with urban areas because of their propensity to nest in chimneys, they are also found in forested areas where they nest in trees stumps or on the walls of abandoned farm buildings. Whether nesting in a chimney or elsewhere, they use the same blueprint and materials. Swifts gather twigs while skimming treetops, then cement them to a smooth surface using saliva. These long-winged, stubby-bodied birds are sometimes referred to as "flying cigars."
In late August, if you're in the right place at the right time, you might see common nighthawks by the hundreds, or even thousands, zigzagging in a stream of birds. Bat-like in their flight patterns, nighthawks are often seen at dusk. Earlier in summer, these birds nest on flat rooftops in urban areas or on gravel or sandy patches in rural areas; listen for their distinctive pzeents calls on warm summer nights."
