Seven Tips to Protect Birds

In Lancaster, California in 2011 they installed 70 loud speakers and broadcast bird songs, tweets and chirps.  What do you suppose they learned?  These songs had a calming effect on the people who heart them and minor crime was reduced by 15 percent while major crimes dropped 6 percent.  What a great idea!

Take some kids on a nature walk and share your enthusiasm for birds and nature. Or volunteer to help hang bird feeders. Give a speech about the wonder of birds and how important it is to save them. Offer a drawing, photography or painting class to the public. This is a great way to learn to distinguish one bird from another.

I bring this up for a couple of reasons.  One reason is that some birds use the stars to help them to migrate and light pollution hinders them.  So turn your lights out to help them and also to reduce your carbon footprint.

The second reason is that a lot of birds die because they fly into windows.  Putting up screens can help. Closing your blinds or drapes can also help (and it keeps your home cooler inside too). You can also put multiple decals on your windows about 3” apart will work well.

Many birds die yearly because they enter empty pipes and end up dying, so if you have fence pipes, please cover them with wire so they cannot get inside.

I'll tell you why I donate to the Migratory Bird Conservancy because each dollar you donate grows to $4 in on-the-ground habitat conservation which is achieved by federal funds and matching grants.  So you and the birds get more bang for your buck!  So I recommend that you contribute today.  Of course, your gift is tax deductible.

What is bird banding and why do we do it? 

We usually do banding during spring or fall migration in order to study which species are present and when and where do they migrate?  This is also helpful for conservation.  If you get a chance I would recommend attending a bird banding.  It is very educational and fun! 

First they must catch the bird in order to put a band on it with a unique number on it so that if it is captured again we have data on when (timing) and where (what is their route) this bird has been in their life.  Check with your local Audubon chapter to find out when and where bird banding is taking place in your area.

I experienced a bird banding station this year at an event sponsored by the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, which was held at Chatfield Reservoir in Colorado. Not only will you see them catch the birds in a mist net (which does not hurt the bird) and handle them, weigh and measure them and record the data and put on the band and release the birds.

This is a breeze.  When you purchase your coffee check the can and make sure it was SHADE GROWN.  Why - because birds need habitat and if they cut down the trees the birds loose their homes. Look for coffee that has certified shade status.

Told you it was easy peasy. Thank you and tell all your friends a people at neighboring tables at Starbucks or where you drink yours. Knowledge is power.

Birds are becoming endangered in many cases due to loss of their habitat such as wetlands.  There are many good organizations to choose from.  Volunteer at a local preserve or park and help restore ecosystems.

“The truth of the matter is, the birds could very well live without us, but many – perhaps all – of us would find life incomplete, indeed most intolerable without the birds.”

Join the Cornell Lab of Ornithology by calling 866-989-2473 or go to birds.cornell.edu/donate

Think about asking your employer for a matching gift.  Set up something in your will to support birds, because government funding may be very scarce!

The book Penguin the Magpi - the odd little bird that saved a family is a very touching book that will lead people to conservation and also is a touching story of tragedy as well as hope.

This is a beautiful poem that I found at the beginning of the book:

Family

As people know in black Africa and indigenous America, your
family is your entire village with all its inhabitants, living or dead.
Your relatives aren't only human.
Your family also speaks to you in the crackling of the fire,
in the murmur of running water,
in the breathing of the forest,
in the voices of the wind,
in the fury of thunder,
in the rain that kisses you
and in the birdsong that greets your footsteps.

Eduardo Galeano