Have questions about birds? Read this first

People ask me a lot of questions about birds. So let’s clear up some things.

• “When do the hummingbirds get here?” They are always here. In the Bay Area, Anna’s hummingbirds are common all year round. Although we do get an additional influx of smaller, rusty-sided Allen’s hummingbirds in spring and summer, they are always in the minority compared to the far more abundant Anna’s hummingbirds.

• Backyard bird ID lightning round: “What is the big yellow bird on my hummingbird feeder?” That’s a hooded oriole, just arrived back from Mexico. They enjoy both nectar and jelly. “What are the little yellow birds on my seed feeder?” Mostly lesser goldfinches, with American goldfinches in some yards. “What are the red birds on my feeder?” Those are male house finches, while the streaky brown birds of the same shape and size are female house finches. “What is the really loud bird I hear singing even at night?” A mockingbird, our most extraordinary singer. See what imitations you can recognize and enjoy their songs.

• Bird ID beyond the feeders: “What are those flocking black birds with red on their wings?” Red-winged blackbirds, typically found near ponds and wetlands. “What’s that really fast hawk that chases the little birds in my yard?” Probably either a Cooper’s hawk or their smaller lookalike cousin, the sharp-shinned hawk. “What’s that really big hawk perched in a tree?” Probably a red-tailed hawk. Adult plumage is a bit different than juvenile plumage — only adult birds have red tails, and even then it is only clearly red from above. The pattern to look for on perched red tails is a dark helmet, then a lighter “bib” at the top of the chest, with more marking lower on the belly.

• “What do I need to watch birds?” Only two things — a field guide or app and binoculars. If you’re just getting started, I recommend a simple, fold-out, laminated guide to backyard birds of our area, such as David Allen Sibley’s “Backyard Birds of Northern and Central California.” The free Merlin Bird ID app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology is also a powerful tool. For binoculars, it’s best to go into a store where you can try them out in person, but as a general recommendation I would suggest either a full-size 8-by-42 model or a mid-size 8-by-30 or 8-by-32 model if a lighter weight is more comfortable for you.

• “Where can I go to see birds?” My first tip is to look around you; the birds in your own yard and neighborhood are the ones you can see every day, and which therefore have the greatest potential to enrich the overall texture of your life. For your first explicit “bird walk,” my go-to recommendation is the Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District ponds in San Rafael, where wintering ducks will continue to be present in April along with a wide variety of songbirds. The fastest way to accelerate your learning is to go out with skilled observers; join an upcoming free public walk from Marin County Parks or Marin Audubon.

• “Do bird houses really work?” Bird houses, or nesting boxes, are happily accepted by a number of species that normally nest in tree cavities, including titmice, chickadees, wrens, bluebirds and some swallow species — get them up as soon as possible to attract a nesting family this spring. Many other birds, including finches and hummingbirds, build open cup nests and will not use nest boxes.

• “I’ve heard about avian flu this year — is it safe to feed birds?” It is still safe. While avian flu is strongly impacting poultry, waterfowl and raptors, it does not significantly affect or spread through songbirds. Both the USDA and Cornell Lab of Ornithology concur that taking down feeders is not an effective intervention. Putting out seed or suet for backyard birds does not cause dependence or interfere with migration, but can be a fun and valuable way for you to get more familiar with the birds in your yard.

There is always more to learn about birds. But one of the wonderful things about that process is that every step — from identifying the most common and mundane species for the first time to noting the change of seasons through a bird’s sudden appearance — is independently rewarding and deeply fulfilling.

Recognize a single bird and your life becomes a little richer.

Jack Gedney’s On the Wing runs every other Monday. He is a co-owner of Wild Birds Unlimited in Novato and author of “The Private Lives of Public Birds.” You can reach him at jack@natureinnovato.com.