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-Birding-
Bird Identification and Interpreting Bird Language
Audio CDs by John Young
Reveiw by Thomas J. Elpel

My approach to nature awareness definitely has it's roots in Western culture-- I tend to focus my studies on the plants, rocks, birds and other animals that are most "useful" towards achieving my goals. In this case, the goal would be to successfully survive in the wilderness. In other words, I tend to think from my stomach: "Sure it's a cute bird, but can I eat it?" This utilitarian approach to nature may sound offensive at first, but believe me, you develop great respect and appreciation for every living thing when you interact with the world this way, instead of just looking at nature and saying, "Gee, isn't that cute."

Besides being illigal to kill song birds (unless you have a communications tower or a cat for a weapon), there really isn't any meat on them anyway, just lots of fluff. It is for that reason that I put off studying birds for so long. I knew I wanted to get into birding eventually to round out my nature skills, but I prioritized more "useful" skills first.

Two things helped to shift bird identification higher on my list. First, I reached a level of satisfaction with my other skills, such as edible and useful plants (i.e.: Botany in a Day), which made birding seem like the next good skill to develop. Second, and more importantly, I learned that it would actually be very "useful" to become proficient in bird identification.

It was Jon Young's CDs, Seeing Through Native Eyes and especially the last part of the series, Learning the Language of the Birds that really turned me on to birding. Jon Young describes the process of deciphering bird songs to discover if there are other animals or people nearby that are beyond the limited range of your own five senses. It isn't a matter of translating any particular bird call into English, but rather of being able to interpret alarm calls based on the intensity of the alarm and the preferred habitat of the bird(s) sounding the alarm. For example, a ground-feeding bird like a robin is going to squawk about threats on the ground--such as a cat--while a tree-top feeding bird like a tanager is going to squawk about threats from the air--such as a hawk. You might have some experience with this process already, for instance, if you know who or what is coming up the road just by the tone of your dog's bark or the wag of it's tail. It is all about reading body language.

In Learning the Language of the Birds, Jon Young out-lines a systematic process for distinguishing between normal or "baseline" bird songs versus their alarm calls. In theory at least, it isn't necessary to be able to identify which species of bird is making the call, as long as you know it's perferred habitat (low, middle, or high) in the tree cover. In practice, however, you have to learn at least the most common song birds in your area to develop your skills, then you can extrapolate that information to other species you are not so familiar with.

Jon Young also produced an eight CD series called Advanced Bird Language. The former tape, Learning the Language of the Birds is still the most important one for understanding the basic theory of bird language. The value of the additional series is that Jon Young puts theory into practice, describing the process of learning and using bird language. Especially helpful are Jon Young's numerous stories of field experiences where he and others have used bird language to read the forest around them. He gives tangible examples of how disturbances ripple through the concentric rings of nature.

Learning the Language of the Birds (one audio tape)     $13.00     Quantity:

Advanced Bird Language (8 CDs)     $75.00     Quantity:

Remember: Learning the Language of the Birds is also included in the Seeing Through Native Eyes series!

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Bird Identification Books
-The Sibley Guides-
National Audubon Society
By David Allen Sibley

The process of learning to interpret bird language requires some bird identification skills. The easiest time to begin identifying birds is when there are the least of them around to confuse you. That would be winter here in the northern latitudes. But don't let that stop you from learning birds any time of year. Just start with the most common, most distinctive birds first and work your way gradually towards the LBB's or "little brown birds" that all look alike.

You can learn to identify birds by flipping through field guides in search of whatever birds you happen to see, but perhaps a better place to get started is with a "field guide to birding," such as Sibley's Birding Basics: How to identify birds, using the clues in feathers, habitats, behaviors, and sounds. With this book you can learn the skills that professional birders use to identify birds.

As for identication guides, there are many great bird books, but the most comprehensive is undoubtedly the 544 page National Audubon Society's Sibley Guide to Birds by David Allen Sibley. Sibley begin studying birds seriously at age 7, under the tutelage of his father. Unlike other guides, the Sibley Guide to Birds includes complete descriptions for all 816 bird species found in North America north of Mexico. Most species are pictured at rest and in flight, and from several angles, above and below. The pictures also show plummage in every stage of development and in both sexes, so you can see the complete range of variations within a species. Also included are descriptions of each bird's distinctive markings, plus range maps and migration routes. The book even includes measurements for the typical wingspan, length, and weight of the birds.

The Sibley Guide to Birds is encyclopedic in depth as well as in size. For field use we recommend the more portable Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America and the Field Guide to Birds of Western North America.

Sibley planned the books for nearly twenty years and produced the fantastic life-like drawings--several thousand of them-- in just five years. One feature I especially like is that, if you are looking for one type of bird, like a warbler, then you can look at scaled down images on a single page covering all possible choices. That makes it easy to compare one species to another without constantly flipping back and forth through the pages. This is the sort of book that is so beautiful and so well organized that it is fun just to sit down and browse through the pages. The only thing lacking in the Sibley Guide to Birds is information about bird habits, such as nesting preferences, the number and type of eggs, and dietary choices, etc.... all of which is included in the equally impressive companion book The Sibley Guide to Bird Life & Behavior.

The Sibley Guide to Bird Life & Behavior is a 588 page book dedicated to exhaustive coverage of the bird families of North America, including family traits, taxonomy, adaptations, feeding, breeding, vocalizations and displays, nesting, migration, and conservation. Nowhere else can you find so much information under one cover. The book is illustrated with more of David Allen Sibley's incredible artwork. Sibley provided more than 796 full-color paintings to illustrate the essays and family chapters written by 44 ornithologists and expert birders. Together, the pictures, text, and Sibley's lucid design and all-encompassing attention to detail make The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior as spectacular and as useful as its brilliant predecessor.

Introductory essays outline the principles of avian evolution, life cycle, body structure, flight dynamics, and more. The 80 family-by-family chapters describe the amazing range of behavior dictated by birds' biology and environment. Among the subjects covered and illustrated are: molts and plumages, habitats, food and foraging, vocalizations and displays, courtship and breeding, rearing of young, migration and movements, scientific groupings, introduced species, accidental species, anatomy, flight patterns, nests and eggs, global distribution and conservation.

For birders and non-birders alike, in the classroom and at home, The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior will be the essential source for information on avian life.

Sibley's Birding Basics    $16.00     Quantity:

Sibley Guide to Birds    $35.00     Quantity:

Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America    $20.00     Quantity:

Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America    $20.00     Quantity:

Sibley Guide to Bird Life & Behavior (hardcover)    $45.00     Quantity:

All Five Sibley Guides (Save $16.00)    $120.00     Quantity:

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Bird Identification Games and Cards

Identifying birds is easy. The hard part is building the neural network to do it. Most birds tend to look a lot a like until you develop the neural wiring to pick up on their distinctive features. For children, developing neural circuitry for bird identification is as easy as learning a new language. Nobody has to teach them--they just have to be exposed to it and they will naturally wire their own brains to process it. We adults are not always so flexible. We often have to work at learning something new.

For parents or teachers with kids, this Birds of North America 100 Piece Memory Card Game is a great way to begin excercising the neurons for bird identification. The game includes sturdy cardboard pieces with fifty different bird pictures. You can lay out some or all of them to play a regular game of memory. We enjoyed playing this game with our four-year old. We read aloud the names of each bird uncovered during the game, and it didn't take long before he started recognizing and calling the birds by name himself. Although it is a simple game, it is a good way to wire a child's brain to be able to be aware of and recognize birds in the great outdoors.

Optional: The Birds of North America Deck of Cards includes photos of 52 birds (the same ones in the Memory Game). Order two decks of cards, and you will have a smaller, more portable version of the memory game.

Birds of N. A. 100 Piece Memory Card Game    $15.00     Quantity:

Birds of N. A. Deck of Cards    $6.00     Quantity:

Hummingbirds Deck of Cards    $6.00     Quantity:

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The Backyard Birdhouse Book
Building Nestboxes and Creating Natural Habitats
By Rene and Christyna M. Laubach

To learn to identify birds and interpret bird language, you could go out in search of birds to study, but you might also consider methods to bring the birds to you. The Backyard Birdhouse Book is one such resource, which will help you to attract native birds right to your yard.

The Backyard Birdhouse Book teŚches you what type of birdhouses to build to attract specific types of birds--and just as importantly--the best places to install the birdhouses. In essence, some birds will prefer a house that is close to shrubbery, while others will prefer a house in the open.

The book also addresses user conflicts. For example, if your goal is to attract bluebirds, but tree swallows move into your bluebird house, then you might install a second birdhouse nearby. The tree swallows are too territorial to allow other swallows to live close by, but they will tolerate the bluebirds.

The authors provide tips to discourage predators from getting the eggs or nestlings, plus they include monitoring and record keeping suggestions, as well as ideas to organize and participate in conservation programs. With the aid of this book, you will be able to provide greatly needed habitat for cavity nesting birds while bringing nature to your doorsteop for easier observation and appreciation.

The Backyard Birdhouse Book    $25.00     Quantity: