• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Valley Citizen

Nature, Environment, History & Politics

The Valley Citizen

  • Arts
  • Education
  • Environment
  • History
  • Nature
  • Politics
  • Wit
  • About
  • RSS Icon

How to Really Learn the Birds

June 8, 2011 By Eric Caine 5 Comments

Anyone who has never witnessed the migratory passage of Western Tanagers through the parks and gardens of the Northern San Joaquin Valley is missing one of our grander local spectacles.

Male Western Tanagers have brilliant, flame-colored faces atop a bright yellow body cloaked in handsome black wings. Though stunning, they are easy to overlook as they pass through only during spring and fall migration. Nonetheless, with a little practice, almost anyone can learn to enjoy this spectacular bird, as well as many other avian beauties.

The key to enjoying local bird life lies in narrowing your focus. The Northern San Joaquin Valley hosts over three-hundred bird species. It’s a daunting task to learn them all; fortunately, one need not learn even half the birds to enjoy our winged friends. Learning the birds can be simplified by following one rule: Learn the common birds around you.

Learning the common birds involves understanding bird distribution and status. Distribution just means where and status means when. For example, some birds are found more often in parks and gardens, others in ponds and wetlands. That’s the “where” of the equation. “Status” refers to whether the birds are migrants, year-round residents, winter visitors, common, uncommon or rare. Focusing on the common birds around you enables you to learn the birds much faster and builds a base of knowledge you can use to learn even more birds.

To find out the status and distribution of birds in your area you need a checklist of local birds. The Stanislaus Audubon Society has a checklist of Stanislaus and Merced County birds here. Most checklists indicate rare birds with an asterisk; these birds can be eliminated from your target list.

You’ll also need a good field guide, one that includes range maps. The range maps indicate where and when the birds occur. They will give you a good idea of the status of the birds in your area. Merced and Stanislaus County residents will soon have Stanislaus Audubon’s new local guide, which will not only show the status of local birds with a bar graph, but will also include places to go.

Once equipped with a checklist and field guide, you should have a pair of binoculars. While not absolutely essential, binoculars enhance the experience of seeing birds. Close-up views reveal how beautiful the birds really are and also enable the viewer to focus on important field marks.

Field marks are characteristics that help identify birds. For example, the Black Phoebe, a common bird in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, has a black hood and vest with a white lower belly. These features are best seen with binoculars, though binoculars aren’t essential. The male Wood Duck, another common bird, is easily identified by his colorful plumage, but binoculars reveal stunning subtle detail and make viewing the bird more rewarding.

In the 1930’s, Roger Tory Peterson almost single-handedly popularized bird watching by authoring field guides that featured the Peterson Method for identifying birds. The Peterson Method simplifies bird identification by focusing on the one or two key field marks that distinguish one species from another. While not the only way to learn the birds, the Peterson Method can expedite learning, especially for beginners. It’s easy to learn the Peterson Method even from one of Peterson’s older field guides; many are available cheap.

Once equipped with a local checklist and field guide, remember to use the Target Method to learn the birds. The Target Method simply means that one goes out looking for a particular bird or birds. For example, most Valley residents know the Scrub Jay, but not by its proper name. They call it the “Blue Jay.” The beginning birder can study the differences between the “Blue Jay,” a common resident of the east, and our own Scrub Jay, and then go out and confirm the common Blue Jay by its field marks.

Using the Target Method enables you to avoid one of the beginning birder’s common mistakes, leafing frantically through a bird book while in the field. This behavior causes two problems. One, it takes the birder’s eye off the bird. Two, it produces frustration when you realize how many different species and plumages are represented in the typical field guide. The sum of these problems is usually a mistaken ID, or a quick exit from birding.

Once you’ve targeted and identified a few birds, you begin to recognize the various groups of birds: sparrows, finches, jays, blackbirds, wrens, doves, etc. Recognizing the group, or “taxon,” enables you to find birds much easier in the field guide, where they are arranged in taxonomic order. Just remember, the rule is, “When in the field, keep your eyes on the bird, not in the guide.” Study the bird closely, take notes when possible, or even a photograph. Use the guide once the bird has flown (and they always do, some too soon).

The best way to begin with the Target Method is to search for a familiar bird, say the aforementioned Scrub Jay (or a Mourning Dove), locate it, confirm the field marks, and put it on your checklist of birds. Keeping a checklist helps the learning process.

After practicing the method, begin searching for birds you don’t know. Here’s a list of year-round residents, easily found in many of our parks and gardens: Black Phoebe, American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, Oak Titmouse, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Anna’s Hummingbird, Rufous-sided Towhee, Red-Shouldered Hawk. Once you’ve learned to find a targeted bird, begin practicing the finer points of bird identification. For example, learn to tell the difference between the American Goldfinch and the Lesser Goldfinch.

You’ll soon find that you can easily recognize twenty or thirty local birds. And you’ll look forward to the changing seasons when fall brings winter residents, including White-crowned and Golden-crowned Sparrows. You may even begin to look forward to targeting a migrating Western Tanager next migration.

Filed Under: Nature

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. best linux reseller hosting says

    July 30, 2011 at 5:56 pm

    You are my inspiration , I have few blogs and infrequently run out from to post : (. whm reseller | reseller hosting |

    Reply
  2. Mac Powal says

    September 7, 2011 at 3:04 pm

    Right on!

    Reply
  3. beats dr dre says

    September 16, 2011 at 2:30 am

    Hello! Ive been reading your website for a long time now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Lubbock Texas! Just wanted to mention keep up the beneficial function!

    Reply
  4. Stacey Smith says

    September 23, 2011 at 1:04 am

    This is inspirational! If only I had time to climb out of the mountain of text books required for the quarter to look for them! Great stuff Mr. Caine! Way to go!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Valley Citizen - Nature Environment Politics History Editorials says:
    June 16, 2012 at 11:09 pm

    […] find it. Thus, those who wished to see the spectacular Blue Grosbeak, our most recently featured, “Target Bird,” were limited to a few locations where the bird might be seen, and most of the locations featured […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Note: Some comments may be held for moderation.

Primary Sidebar

Off The Wire

Trump made 30,573 false or misleading claims as president. Nearly half came in his final year.
Trump made 30,573 false or misleading claims as president. Nearly half came in his final year.
The Washington Post Fact Checker’s database of Trump claims, originally launched as a project to track his first 100 days, offers a window into his obsessions.
www.washingtonpost.com
The Grim Conclusions of the Largest-Ever Study of Fake News
The Grim Conclusions of the Largest-Ever Study of Fake News
Falsehoods almost always beat out the truth on Twitter, penetrating further, faster, and deeper into the social network than accurate information.
www.theatlantic.com
Could a homegrown coronavirus strain be partly to blame for California's surge?
Could a homegrown coronavirus strain be partly to blame for California’s surge?
California scientists have discovered a new coronavirus strain that appears to be propagating faster than any other variant in the Golden State.
www.latimes.com
The Worst President in History
The Worst President in History
Three particular failures secure Trump’s status as the worst chief executive ever to hold the office.
www.theatlantic.com
Trump forces seek primary revenge on GOP impeachment backers
Trump forces seek primary revenge on GOP impeachment backers
Candidates, donors and local party officials are already organizing against the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump.
www.politico.com
McCarthy Falsely Denies Voting To Overturn Election Results
McCarthy Falsely Denies Voting To Overturn Election Results
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Thursday denied that he, in fact, voted to overturn the election results as…
talkingpointsmemo.com
Audubon Files Lawsuit to Protect Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Audubon Files Lawsuit to Protect Migratory Bird Treaty Act
A coalition of conservation groups is going to court to overturn Trump Administration’s weakening of the landmark bird protection law.
www.audubon.org
Californians scramble for shots amid slow vaccine rollout | CalMatters
Californians scramble for shots amid slow vaccine rollout | CalMatters
Gov. Newsom said the feds failed to deliver promised vaccine supplies, but he expects Californians with their first shots to be able to secure their second.
calmatters.org
David Brooks column: Trump ignites a war within the church
David Brooks column: Trump ignites a war within the church
“Over the last 72 hours, I have received multiple death threats and thousands upon thousands of emails from Christians saying the nastiest and most vulgar things I have ever heard toward my family and ministry. I have been labeled a coward, sellout, a traitor to the Holy Spirit, and cussed out at least 500 times.”
www.courant.com
Here are the companies suspending political contributions following the Capitol riots
Here are the companies suspending political contributions following the Capitol riots
thehill.com
How the Capitol Riot Thrust Big American Companies Deeper Into Politics
How the Capitol Riot Thrust Big American Companies Deeper Into Politics
“Words alone are not enough.” Corporate moves to halt political funding and decry the forces behind the Jan. 6 riot have accelerated a broader movement in business to address social and political issues.
www.wsj.com
I've hesitated to call Donald Trump a fascist. Until now | Opinion
I’ve hesitated to call Donald Trump a fascist. Until now | Opinion
After last week the label seems not just acceptable, but necessary.
www.newsweek.com
The Cheney-McCarthy rift busts open
The Cheney-McCarthy rift busts open
The Republican leaders’ split on impeachment presages a bigger battle over Trump and the GOP.
www.politico.com

Find us on Facebook

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Footer

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Subscribe for Free

* indicates required

Search

• Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 The Valley Citizen

Dedicated to the memory of John Michael Flint. Contact us at thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Editor and publisher: Eric Caine

Website customization and maintenance by Susan Henley Design