Urban Find: Making the Case for Backyard Birding

There’s nothing new under the sun right? Wrong. Kind of. All too often we fail to recognize what’s been in front of us all along. While we like to think birders are more observant than the average Joe, even birders were asleep at the binoculars in Cambodia.

The Atlantic’s  John Metcalfe brought the birding world a great story. Recently, a ‘new’ species of bird was uncovered in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. This bustling city of over 2.3 million was unaware that it shared its neighborhoods with the newly dubbed ‘Cambodian Tailorbird’. This, despite the bird’s song being likened to an emergency whistle! This ‘discovery’ shows us that there are still reasons to slow down, and take account of what’s around us.

Now, I’m not saying that you’ll go down in ornithological history if you spend more time sitting outside. But then again, this story proves that it isn’t impossible! So here’s the Mr. Canary® Company’s advice for becoming a backyard researcher.

1.  Grab your tablet or smartphone, and find a comfortable spot to relax in your yard.

2.  Go to www.birds-of-north-america.net. This simple, easy-to-use resource is a great companion for backyard birding.

3.  Check out the birds that call your backyard home, and identify them using the ‘Birds of North America’ guide, which even lets you search species by color!

4.  On the off-chance you discover a new species, remember to tell your friends at Mr. Canary®!

**If you find that your backyard is well, less-than-prime birding territory, your next step will be to sample our ‘Backyard Songbird’ product collection. Our bird feeders pre-filled with Nyjer thistle are sure to bring the birds to your backyard!

Author: Nathan Odell

Published: July 1, 2013