Citizen Science for the birds!

This month, we're makng bird feeders. The first of fall is almost here and throughout the winter months and into spring, birds have learned to somewhat depend on bird feeders as a good source of food. Attracting birds to your yard during winter may provide you with a front row seat to the first flights of hatchlings next spring.

Here is a video I took, last spring, of some white breasted nuthatches taking their first flight from the nestbox in our backyard.

As a mad scientist, you may feel drawn to observe these birds and daydream about the time of dinosaurs. Did you know that the closest living relative to a velociraptor is a turkey? Well, check this out!

Scientists need valuable information about birds in nature. There's no one better to help collect it than those of us who love science, and love nature. Scientists are studying the migrating patterns of birds, to ensure that birds have security in the environments they need to survive. You can help.

Join Audubon, birdwatchers and other citizen scientists all over the country for the Annual Christmas Bird Count from December 14, 2009 to January 10, 2010! Don't worry, you don't have to watch birds all day long - or even participate every day of the event. Just check out this website for more information.

Remember, to keep your filling your feeder regularly, so when the bird count rolls around, you'll have a nice variety of birds to report!

While you wait for the big Christmas Bird Count to arrive, practice your bird watching skills. You may want to set up your feeder near a window, so it's easy to see from inside. This way, no matter how cold it gets, you can still record your bird visits! You may also want to keep a pair of binoculars close, so you can get a really good look at the birds who visit. Once the birds get comfortable coming to your feeder on a regular basis, you might sit very still outdoors and see how close the birds will come, then.

If you wish to participate in the bird count, you might want to brush up on the different kinds of birds in your area. There's even a great website that allows you to discover what kind of bird you saw, by choosing your location, and entering some simple details about the bird. That website is whatbird.org! It will really simplify learning to recognize birds at your feeder.

After you've practiced a bit, you can join others at eBird! eBird is a site, like a bird count, except that it's ongoing year round and lets you contribute bird counts from your backyard at any time.

You can also do experiments with your bird feeder. This one, I'm going to tell you about, will even help you attract more birds to your yard.

What kind of food do birds like best?
There are so many kinds of bird food out there, now. Most of them are just different combinations of the same types of things. But, every package will say, "Attracts the MOST birds!" Inquiring minds want to know, which kind of food really attracts the most birds?

1. Buy two or three kinds of bird food and put them out in different feeders. Keep them all in a visible location.

2. On a sheet of paper, make a graph with three columns. Each column is to keep a tally of how many birds visit each feeder.

3. Choose a time of day to watch the feeders for 15-20 minutes each day. Put a tally mark in the right column whenever a bird comes to eat food at a feeder.

When we did this experiment, we learned that birds really do have preferences. Some birds would visit the same feeder everyday and when it ran out of food, they would still go to that feeder first! Some of the birds treated the feeders like an all-you-can-eat buffet, visiting each feeder before flying off. If a bird visits more than one kind of food, at your home, you can mark both columns of food as having had a visitor.

I hope you enjoy your bird feeder and come back to our Mad Scientist Spooky, Kooky Halloween Special in October.