
“The deceptively cute Gray Jay is one of the most intrepid birds in North America, living in northern forests year-round and rearing chicks in the dark of winter.” www.allaboutbirds.org
I actually found myself looking to the tree tops and out along the marsh and open waters where I could have easily spotted any number of herons, egrets and other wading birds. Could it be that I was now bird watching?
As I fondly look back at this memory I realize that I am among thousands, if not millions of people who are not only bird watchers but actually provide for our feathered friends in the winter months, putting out bird seed, making tasty treats of berries, peanut butter and the like . . . . and, when winter slowly fades away we eagerly await the musical tones of birds calling out to one another and then it happens; bird nests begin to appear and a melodious din of tweets mingle as a symphony of cardinals, wrens, doves, mocking birds, blue jays and a flock of many birds join together in this feathered melody of Spring.

The black guillemot with its distinct black and white feathers and red webbed-feet – whalewatcher.is photo
Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Kempton, Pennsylvania attracts hawks, eagles and falcons who fly the aerial highway of the Kittatinny Ridge, and in Cape May Point, New Jersey, flocks of eastern kingbirds, bobolinks, and northern flickers among many other species follow the coastline south.
The 164-acre Audubon Bird Sanctuary at Dauphin Island, Alabama is one of many landfalls providing a needed respite for birds returning from southern regions after their long flight over the gulf of Mexico. To learn more about America’s best bird watching areas, visit http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-best-birdwatching