Feeding birds is a great way to introduce kids and teens to nature, right in the backyard. It teaches compassion and patience, and helps them understand how birds with different beak shapes and habits correspond with the different types of foods they consume. Below are some suggestions for attracting showy, colorful summer birds. Attract Bright, Orange-and-Black Baltimore Orioles Baltimore Orioles…
Spring is just the beginning of the nesting season for our backyard birds. Some birds will produce numerous broods over the entire summer season and some birds will wait until mid-summer to start nesting. Multiple Broods Extend the Nesting Season For instance, American Robins can produce 3 or 4 broods from May through August. Each brood can take up to…
One of the latest nesting songbirds, American Goldfinches don’t get started on nesting until late June or early July. This appears to be timed with the life cycle of the late blooming thistle plant which provides both nesting material and food for goldfinches. This correlation between the thistle seed ripening and goldfinch nesting may explain why goldfinches seem so much…