The first thing you learn when you pick up your binoculars and head out is that you are not “bird-watching,” but “birding.” Bird-watching implies a sedentary activity, while birding is proactive. The second thing is that birding can be a powerful form of meditation. As you scan the trees for the slightest movement and listen for the faintest peep, you are fully in the moment. Especially this year, with the stress of the pandemic, that can be its own reward. Birds by the Billions NYT
Backyard Birding Around the Birdbath (Spring):
Arroyo Pasadena Bird List (PDF)
Songbirds (Passeriformes):
A passerine /ˈpæsəraɪn/ is any bird of the order Passeriformes (/ˈpæsərɪfɔːrmiːz/, Latin passer (“sparrow”) + formis (“-shaped”)), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or songbirds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching.
House Finch, Yellow Warbler (Peregrine Popcorn!), Northern Mockingbird, Dark-Eye Junco,
California Towhee, Black Phoebe, Bewick’s Wren, Red-Whiskered Bulbul,
Other Backyards
Nuttal’s Woodpecker (Piciformes), Mourning Dove (Columbiformes)
Outside in the Trees:
Parrots of Pasadena, Peacock Diaries,
Books
National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 7th Edition
Alderfer, Jonathan
The Field Guide to Dumb Birds, Matt Kracht
Effin’ Birds, Aaron Reynolds
The Mincing Mockingbird: Guide to Troubled Birds, Matt Adrien
American Birding Association Field Guide to Birds of California (American Birding Association State Field) American Birding Association State Field
Jaramillo, Alvaro (recommended by Alicia)
++
The Bedside Book of Birds: An Avian Miscellany An Avian Miscellany
Gibson, Graeme, Atwood, Margaret
Charm of Birds, by Sir Edward Grey
Birds Art Life, by Kyo Maclear
Living on the Wind: Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds
Weidensaul, Scott
A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds Hardcover – March 30, 2021
by Scott Weidensaul
Pasta for Nightingales: A 17th-Century Handbook of Bird-Care and Folklore
Olina, Giovanni Pietro
Why Birds Sing: A Journey Into the Mystery of Bird Song, by David Rothenberg
Dewdrop World 