This time of year it’s fun to watch the songbird parents bring their offspring to the backyard to show them all the nuts and seeds and suet that is available.
Most of my neighbors put out bird feeders too, so there are all kinds of food offerings and feeder types for a young bird to figure out.
When they arrive at the feeders for the first time, many young birds (fledglings) will beg to be fed using whiny calls and wing-fluttering. Most parents oblige at first but eventually make the babies work for the food themselves.
So far at our feeders this summer I’ve seen baby Blue Jays, Common Grackles, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Black-capped Chickadees, Red-winged Blackbirds, House Finches, Mourning Doves and House Sparrows.
Because I’ve spotted adult pairs at our bird feeders, we probably also have young American Robins, Northern Cardinals, American Crows, White-breasted Nuthatches and Northern House Wrens being raised in and around around our backyard this summer.
Not too bad for a small patch of land in the middle of a rapidly-growing city!