This is a guest post by Lisa Comer. 

Once birds start visiting your bird feeder, you may see one that you are not familiar with.  The best way to identify an unknown bird species is with a field guide.  There are plenty on the market.  I like the ones that are designated for a specific area or region.  I have the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Southeastern States and Stokes Beginner’s Guide to Birds of the Eastern Region.  During the migration season you may need to check out a larger field guide because you might see birds that are not native to the area and not found in the local guides.  Field guides in book form make it easy to identify unknown birds by simply thumbing through the pictures and looking for similarities.  The birds may not look exactly like the birds in your yard, but once you have pinpointed a species, you can look online for more pictures.  Birds look different in the summer from the way they look in the winter.  The juvenile bird in a species doesn’t always look like the adult of the species.  That is also the case between the male and female of a species.  The female usually has a duller color scheme to aid in camouflage, while the male will have the brighter plumage in order to attract the female.  This is a Rose-breasted Grosbeak couple.  Notice how they look like two different species of birds, but it is simply the difference in the male / female coloring.  This male cracked the shell and allowed the female to eat the inner seed.

Watching a bird feeder is a study in bird behaviors.  The Carolina Chickadee likes to eat the black oil sunflower seeds on my feeder, but they don’t sit still for long periods of time.  They will perch close by and wait for their turn.  When they feel safe, they will fly to the feeder, eat for a few seconds, and then fly away.

The male Northern Cardinal is very choosy about who he shares the feeder with.  He will run off other Cardinals before perching on the feeder.  The Red-bellied Woodpecker is the same, but seems to be tolerating this Cardinal.

The female Northern Cardinal seems to be a more sociable eater.  I have seen the female Cardinal eat with almost every species of bird that has been on my feeder.  They don’t mind eating with other female Cardinals, but will usually only eat with the male if he is the mate.  Common Grackles normally flock together on the feeder, but only a pair flew down on this day. 

As I wrote before, you don’t even have to leave your house to go bird watching.  I have seen over 16 species of birds just by looking through the sliding glass door at my feeder.  I was able to get much closer to aid in identification and get a good picture.  You are also able to watch how the birds interact with each other.  By watching birds on your feeder, you will notice that bird behavior is just as different between the species as their appearance.  Each day, you see something new and interesting.  It is a very entertaining and rewarding past time.