Sharpen Your Birding Skills
Resources abound online and in nature to help you sharpen your birding skills. Here’s a short list, organized by key questions
Who?
Find tips on birding basics plus how to identify birds by song and plumage at All About Birds: www.allaboutbirds.org.
Watch Blackwater Refuge’s eagle cam. The bald eagle lays its eggs in January: www.friendsofblackwater.org/
camcentral.html.
Become a Citizen Scientist with Project FeederWatch and submit the birds you’re seeing: www.feederwatch.org.
Join the Feb. 13-16 Great Backyard Bird Count to help scientists get a snapshot of bird numbers and distribution: www.gbbc.birdcount.org.
Where?
Find out what birders have seen in your county and locate nearby hotspots for your next birding adventure. You can also submit your own observations: eBird: www.ebird.org.
Visit a banding operation at Chino Farms: http://tinyurl.com/kel4cjc.
Join Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary’s First Saturday Bird walks and surveys: www.jugbay.org.
Join Patuxent Research Refuge’s bird walks and owl prowls: www.fws.gov/refuge/patuxent.
How?
Find the right binoculars for birding at www.eagleoptics.com or www.birding-binoculars.net. Both sites offer reviews and information plus videos on using binoculars to best advantage.
Find a good review of bird field guides: http://tinyurl.com/l37bd69
Find reviews of best Apps for learning bird songs at Cornell Ornithological Lab: http://tinyurl.com/ly6jepg.