Have you ever really seen how beautiful birds are? They are spectacular. There are some 10,000 species of birds in the world. Some are very tiny, such as the bee hummingbird at two inches tall, and some are very large, such as ostriches, which are nine feet tall.Birds are vertebrates. They are social creatures, communicating with calls and songs and visual signals. Many species of birds migrate great distances each year, roughly 12,000 miles.
Spending time in nature encourages us to slow down, appreciate life and the natural world around us. Start with a morning walk or an early evening walk, or both, to look for and appreciate the birds around you. Walk through the woods, a park, or your neighborhood. Or just sit on a park bench, in your backyard, or in nature somewhere, and learn to appreciate the beautiful birds around you and their calls.
There are so many ways you can appreciate the beauty of birds. Grab a pair of binoculars and go out birdwatching, don’t forget to look up! Look closely at the trees, branches, and bark. Bring a camera and photograph the birds you see. Plan to visit a bird reservoir, or a natural waterway, a wetland, marsh, pond, lake, bay or stream. days, from February 18-21, a national bird count takes place to determine the health of birds.
If you want to help birds thrive today, think about hanging bird feeders (don’t forget to clean them every week); plant a bird-friendly garden with flowers and plants birds are attracted to; make your windows safer for birds so they don’t fly into them – turn out lights at night and hang window tape and “zen curtains” to keep birds away from your windows during the day. Plant native plants that support more insect food than non-native plants. Keep your cats indoors day and night — cats let outside are responsible for killing 2.6 billion birds in the U.S. and Canada each year, plus cats that go outside live shorter lives. Participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count through BirdCount.org. Every year for four days this count helps to determine the health of birds. Enjoy the birds!
