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Bird Songs, Calls and Their Inspirational Effect on Humans (Author’s note: Our informational and educational newsletter features articles are usually science-based and written for birders who may not have a strong grounding in the natural sciences. This articles deviates from the usual in that it describes how musicians and poets throughout history have been influenced by, benefited from, and produced works that were inspired by the natural world, animal sounds, and particularly bird songs and calls.) Curved-bill thrasher by Doris Evans It has long been speculated that human music has its origins in bird song. This makes sense as mankind...

Distraction Displays By Shani Friedman (Originally published in the January, 1994 Wild Bird Store Newsletter) When a predator approaches most nesting species, the parent bird usually makes no attempt to cover the nest or young. Instead, it makes itself as prominent as possible. The intruder’s attention is thus drawn away from the nest and toward the adult bird’s exaggerated motions. These actions occasionally may be mildly aggressive, as in the case of the surfbird, a shorebird that “explodes” into the face of either man or animal that steps too close to its nest. More often, the threatened bird pretends to...

Mysterious Eggs By Jon Friedman Ostrich egg photo by Doris Evans Eggs are among the most enchanting and mysterious of natural objects. All birds lay eggs, and with very few exceptions, incubate them. Eggs range in size from those of the Bee Hummingbird (Mellisuga helanae) at less than 1/2 inch long to those of the ostrich at almost 7 by 5-1/2 inches. While it is true that the smallest bird lays the smallest eggs, and the largest birds lay the largest eggs, this proportion of body size to egg size does not always hold true for all birds. The largest...

Responsible Backyard Birdfeeding By Jon Friedman Regardless of where you call home – whether you own or rent a single family home; live in an apartment, condo or townhouse; or occupy a manufactured home or travel widely in an RV – you can always feed birds wherever you live. Most birders simply enjoy having birds nearby and awaking to their call and songs. We may think of ourselves as amateur naturalists and want to encourage conservation in the natural world we live in. Or, perhaps we just want to provide a helping hand and make life a little better for...

Soundly Sleeping Birds By Shani and Jon Friedman (recently revised by Jon Friedman from a WBS newsletter article that was originally published in the March, 2000 issue) Where Birds Sleep All animals need to rest after activity. Birds are no exception. Diurnal birds, those that are active during daylight, spend about half of their lives resting and sleeping in a wide variety of styles. Some sleep on the ground, others in vegetation of some sort (trees, shrubs, marshes). Some sleep as they float on water; some rest in holes they have drilled in trees (or cavities other species created but...