As the weather warms, flocks of birds begin their arduous journeys spanning continents, and birdwatchers get out their binoculars to track the migration.
“We hold our Birdathon in the spring because we live in a migratory corridor,” says Carolyn Knight of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society, headquartered at McClellan Ranch in Cupertino.
Birdathon is the Audubon Society’s annual bird counting event, when members visit as many habitats and observe as many species as possible. This year’s Birdathon was set to kick off on March 17.
Knight says tracking bird populations is a must for a healthy ecosystem.
“When you remove birds, you remove a visible part of wildlife,” she adds. “You also destroy a natural form of pest control.”
According to Sunnyvale resident Barry Langdon-Lassagne, president of the local Audubon Society, birds select their own habitats.
“There’s an amazing variety of nature within five miles of my house,” he says. “I’ve got Saratoga Creek, Baylands and San Tomas Aquino Creek.”
Creeks and streams are home to riparian birds that include kingfishers and wood ducks. “Wood ducks are beautiful,” Langdon-Lassagne says. “They are unusual in that they nest in holes in trees.”
Pond birds such as Canada geese, cormorants and various species of duck make their homes on Vasona Lake in Los Gatos; the creek flowing through Campbell is a haven for riparian birds.
“You can go to a nature park, and you may only see two different types of mammals, such as squirrels and chipmunks,” Langdon-Lassagne says. “You may even see a coyote. But you will see a dozen or even 20 birds in a day.”
Brooke Miller, a Willow Glen resident and avid birder, says the trees and plants that birds are most attracted to are native trees and shrubs and eucalyptus, as they are food sources. Avian species residing in leafy San Jose neighborhoods include Anna’s hummingbird, the California Towhee and the American robin.
“Others migrate here in spring and stay to breed,” Miller says. “They include the Western tanager, Wilson’s warbler, the hooded oriole and my personal favorite, the black-chinned hummingbird.”
For backyard birders, Miller suggests planting native flora, providing water and putting up bird feeders.
For more information, visit https://scvas.org/birdathon.
