Opened March 20, 2021. Last updated by The POOG on March 20, 2021.
We live on a large town lot on the edge of a small conservation area. Although I try and support bird life, much of it calls the conservation area their home. This is a list of birds we have seen in the last 4 years with a bit of information about them. We have two feeders plus a suet station. One feeder is for black oiled sunflower seeds. The other is for finch-type birds and consists of white and red millet and niger seed.
If the bird’s name has an active link, it is to a recording of its call (source: Bird-sounds.net).
Confirmed Birds
- American crow. They don’t come to feeders but look for nests to rob.
- American goldfinch. We’ve had as many as a dozen migrating pairs at the feeders in the spring.
- American robin. The first appeared mid-march this year.
- Baltimore oriole. We’ve had a couple of migrating pairs in the spring. They will use nectar feeders and like fresh orange.
- Black-capped chickadee. They love sunflower seeds. In urban trails, they become tame enough to eat out of your hand.
- Blue jay. Migrating visitor to the sunflower seeder.
- Brown-headed cowbird. A feeder visitor but not resident.
- Hairy woodpecker. Comes to a suet station.
- House wren. We had one nest in a box successfully. Bold little critters.
- Mourning dove. We’ve had as many as 4 pair visiting. One pair seems resident.
- Northern cardinal. We have a pair at our sunflower feeder year round.
- Northern flicker. We watched one having a dust bath in our garden.
- Red-bellied woodpecker. Came to a suet station, only one winter. However, they are nesting close by in the conservation area by their calls.
- Rose-breasted grosbeak. We’ve had a pair at our sunflower feeder. The female is an undistinguished brown unlike the male.
- Red crossbill. Likes sunflower seed. The red head is on the dark side rather than the bright side.
- Ruby-throated hummingbird. There seem to be a pair in the neighbourhood.
- Slate-coloured junco.
- White-breasted nuthatch
Probable Birds
These are birds whose call we think we can identify or are birds we might expect to see. Some just need confirmation.
- Brown thrasher
- Chipping sparrow
- Common Starling
- Downy woodpecker
- Eastern bluebird
- Gray catbird
- Great crested flycatcher
- Hermit thrush
- House finch
- House sparrow
- Red-winged blackbird
- Song sparrow