Eric Moore is the owner of Jay’s Bird Barn, with two locations in northern Arizona — Prescott and Flagstaff. Eric has been an avid birder for over 50 years. If you have questions about wild birds that you would like discussed in future articles, email him at eric@jaysbirdbarn.com.
I have recently been thinking how ironic it is that some of our ‘winter’ birds will be back in Prescott next month. Our recent spell of hot, dry weather makes fall seem so far away, even though it is just next month.
We’ve all heard the expression of someone being a little ‘cuckoo’, or ‘going cuckoo.’ I have been a little obsessed with cuckoos myself — yellow-billed cuckoos that is.
I made a quick trip to Utah this past week to help a friend move from Prescott to Logan. This gave me the opportunity to visit two of our sons that live in Provo, and to do some bird watching in northern Utah.
My wife and I made a quick trip over to California last week to attend a memorial service at the Riverside National Cemetery for her 95-year-old uncle.
Last Friday morning, I received an urgent phone call from some folks who live out Williamson Valley Road. They explained they had a baby hummingbird that was trying to leave the nest, but was “stuck.”
One of my many roles at the Bird Barn is answering questions from customers. Sometimes the questions are about bird behavior or the products we sell. More often than not, the questions have to do with the numbers of birds people are NOT seeing.
Several years ago, I heard the following story, which I will attempt to retell in my own words.
This past Saturday, I did some birding along a stretch of the Upper Verde River. I had two ‘target’ birds on this particular outing — golden eagle and yellow-billed cuckoo. ...
This past Friday, June 5, I saw a rare bird (for this part of the United States)—a hooded warbler. The typical summer range for this species is mostly east of the Mississippi, so to have one in the Prescott area is indeed rare.
I count myself fortunate to have grown up as a birder. I don’t remember the “moment” when I got turned onto birds, but I tell people I started bird watching when I was 5 years old! In reality, it could have been earlier. I don’t know for sure, as I can’t remember anything before then!
