Here we go. Let's start out in the back yard. There's a trail there that leads into the woods. Oh, look on that tree trunk. There's a small brown bird. You almost can't see it, it blends in with the bark so well. That's funny how it starts at the bottom of the tree and hops around in spirals as it goes up. It has a curved bill. What do you think it is? I think it's a . Over there, under the feeder, is a fellow I like to see at my feeders. He prefers to eat off the ground or a platform feeder. He's cute with his little black hood and brown back. Some of his cousins are slate colored, almost black except for their white breast, but this little fellow looks like a bandit with his prominent black hood. He must be an . Up above I see we have at our feeder. They are comical little birds with a black cap and a black bib. They can eat upside down. They keep me entertained for hours with their acrobatics and calls. They say their name when they call so I know what they are before I get to the window to look at them.

Here's the trail. It'll take us through the woods, past a little meadow, up the creek and to the river. I always see lots of birds on this trail. I'm lucky to live in a place with such a variety of birds. Here's a woodpecker. At first I thought it was a Hairy Woodpecker but it can't be. For one thing it is too small. Its bill is much shorter. But it has nearly the same markings as a Hairy Woodpecker. It must be a .

Oh... there goes a flash of blue headed back toward the house. These birds can be a pain at the feeders. They drive the smaller birds away if we don't put out peanuts for them. These birds are blue and they have a dark gray head with a crest. I think they are pretty and enjoy having them around the house. They are.

Now I think if you look very carefully here in this tree you can see a tiny nest. I was amazed I even found it but I saw the mother bird at the flowers nearby. She stopped at several flowers and then caught some small insects. When she flew to the nest instead of off to find more flowers I was thrilled. She has two tiny babies. The male bird has a black mask and a purple patch below his mask. They are known as and they come to the nectar feeders at the house. They always migrate south in the winter and I miss them until they return.

Ah, here's the meadow. There's a bird here that I always look for. It blends in really good with the browns of the grasses but it likes to get up on that fence post over there and sing. I love to listen to these . When they are out in the open you can identify them easily because they have a bright yellow breast with a bold black V on the front. It's eastern cousin has the V too but there are slight differences.

Wow! What a flurry of activity! I must have frightened a covy of . These birds are the largest in their family in North America. They have a thin head plume, a chestnut throat patch and distinctive white bars along the flanks. I have seen these birds here before but they are usually harder to flush than this.

Up at the end of the meadow is the creek, I can hear the water from here. It must be flowing pretty good. It can get rather swift. There is a little marshy area to one side and I already see some birds that should be easy for you to identify. They like this little marshy area right by the meadow. I usually see them in the cat tails. They are dark black with a bright red shoulder patch. I knew you'd know right away that these are .

At the creek I like to watch a little gray bird. It flies along the creek and when it stands in one place it has a curious dipping motion that it makes. It can even walk under water! This curious little bird is called a . Its actions make up for its drab gray feathers. They always live near rushing water so they must really like this creek.

Here the water settles down before it enters the river. This is a nice calm river. I like to fish here and watch the wade around in the shallows looking for fish. This stately blue-gray and white bird stands four feet tall and has a wing span of 70 inches! It can be found along rivers all over the US. Even though they are fairly common I never tire of watching them.

Here come some birds that like to swim. Unlike the ducks, have slender bills with a hook on the end. The handsome males have a dark green head and white throat and breast. The males don't have a crest like some of these birds do. The females have a nice reddish-brown head, a sharp contrast to the white throat and breast, and the females do have a small crest. These birds are fishing too. Maybe I should have brought my fishing pole.

Now if I follow the river a little ways I can take a quick trail back to the house. There's a bird over there in the rocks by the river. It's acting like it's wing is broken but it won't fool me. This is a and it is trying to lure me away from its nest. I know that's what it is because of it's behavior and because of the two black rings around its neck. If I watch it carefully I can usually find its nest. She is trying to lure me that way so if I go this way, yes she is deffinitely upset. Well I don't want to upset her. I'll leave her nest alone.

Here's the trail. I hear the familiar sounds of birds at the feeders near the house. That was a nice walk. Now let's see if you got all the birds we saw identified. If you filled in the names of the birds as we went along it should be easy to find out. All you have to do is take the first letter of each birds' name and put it in the url at the top of your screen. If the names of the birds were robin, western tanager, sage sparrow then the url should read http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/8509/rws.html

Notice you have to have the whole, common name for each bird. Sometimes the name can be long (like the broad-tailed hummingbird and long-billed marsh wren) but other birds have a short common name (like the robin and dipper). Get it? Then plug those letters in, press enter and see if you guessed them all right. If you did then you should end up at a page with a small award which you are welcome to download. Thank you for taking a walk in the woods with me. If you enjoyed this walk please e-mail me and let me know. I'd also like to know how easy or difficult you thought it was to identify the birds. If you had a hard time and missed some of the birds you are welcome to take your field guide on the next walk. I use my field guide a lot when I am out on walks. You might just learn a thing or two.