We put out a bird feeder a couple of weeks ago. It took the birds a few days before word began to spread among them that there was a new place to eat in the neighborhood. My daughters have been enjoying seeing birds right out our window, and I have been enjoying how much they enjoy them. Together we have been enjoying learning about birds from books and by using the Merlin Bird ID app on my phone to listen to the songs of birds and look at the spectrograms of those songs that we read about. (It’s a pretty hefty app, so make sure there’s enough space on your device before you download it.) It comes from the Ornithology Lab at Cornell University. Birders probably already know about this resource, but anyone interested learning more about birds will have a lot to on this site. The online courses they offer in the Bird Academy are expensive, but there are also videos, free recordings of lectures, and games to help novice birders of all ages learn to identify birds. And the Macaulay Library has almost 20 million photos, videos, and audio clips for you to explore.
This post was inspired by an article in the NY Times this weekend: 7 Tips for Watching Birds During the Spring Lockdown.
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