Things to Love This February: #FeedTheBirdsDay & The Great Backyard Bird Count

It's that chilly time of year where some parts of the country are blanketed with either white, cold, or a combination of both. This is the time that animals who have stockpiled their food supply may be running low. It's that time of the year where our neighboring nature creatures are start really having a hard time finding find food. This is especially true for our feathered friends. 

Given that and given that February is National Bird Feeding Month, every year on February 3rd is Feed the Birds Day. The first official one was in 1994, proclaimed by Congressman John Porter, encouraging people to hang their bird feeders to offer food to flyer-by. Additionally, you can help by setting up bird baths for drinking water or birdhouses for shelter. 

Also tying in to all this, the Great Backyard Bird Count is held annually for 4 days in February. This year it is February 16-19. The Great Backyard Bird Count gives you an opportunity to be a citizen scientist. Lowest level commitment to participate: find a 15 minute block of time during those 4 days, then record your findings online at birdcount.org. (As I tell my students: you can always do more!!) Your recorded observations will then help scientists get a flavor of the biodiversity in your area, as well as helping to better understanding of global bird populations. You can always learn more at their website.

Whether you are a tried-and-true bird watching aficionado or a casual backyard enthusiast, you can take part during this last leg of winter. Help pump up those extra calories to help them stay warm and help make their search easier. Fill your feeders and embrace that mantra from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams: "If you build it, they will come." Make your backyard a fly-through dinner spot for your neighborhood feathered friends this month, especially here on the 3rd of February!

Video from https://youtu.be/6RdXDGcqHTg?si=DNGto7Y_6fy4HOgR, pictures from my backyard, Backyard Bird Count Logo from https://www.ogeecheeaudubon.org/new-events/2020/2/14/the-great-backyard-bird-count-zyx3g, Feed the Birds Day graphic from https://www.postermywall.com/index.php/art/template/79d7cf62b65886934167e721e61b0e25/feed-the-birds-day-design-template