A NOTE FROM OUR TEAM

The 2024 fire season is far from over. In fact, the wildland fire potential is expected to be above normal through the end of September across much of California and the Pacific Northwest.

At Project Phoenix, the health, safety, and enjoyment of our volunteers is our number one priority. We urge our volunteers to take precautions when birding on smoky days. Please monitor your local air quality and wear an N95 mask outdoors when air pollution is unhealthy. People most vulnerable to smoke – including young children, older adults, pregnant women, and anyone with asthma or other chronic respiratory or cardiovascular diseases – should consider staying indoors to reduce their exposure.

Do you need a N95 mask? Our team will send N95 masks to any volunteer who requests them. If you would like us to mail you N95 masks, please send us an email with your name and mailing address.

Finally, please know that as eager as we are to monitor birds during this year’s fire season, we would never ask volunteers to conduct surveys in conditions they find unsafe. If it’s hazy and you’d prefer to wait until the smoke dissipates to resume monitoring birds, that is absolutely okay. And, you are always welcome to survey birds indoors from a window – those observations are also valuable to our team. If you’d like to monitor birds at a new indoor location, simply register your new site using the same registration form you used to tell us about your original monitoring site.

As always, please let us know if you have questions, and happy birding!

We love to hear from our volunteers! What motivated you to join Project Phoenix? Click here to share your story.

The Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is one of the most common hawks in North America. Their cry is also one you’ve likely heard before, as their screech is commonly used in lieu of a Bald Eagle cry in movies. Red-tailed Hawks are easily recognizable as they soar through the sky – look for their rounded wings, short tails, and reddish tail feathers.

Male Red-tailed Hawks court females by catching prey and passing it to a female midair or by performing swooping dives. Sometimes, a pair will interlock their talons and spiral together towards the ground. A mated pair will typically stay together for life, and both will work to build nests using dry sticks, bark strips, fresh foliage, and other dry vegetation. In open habitats, such as deserts, scrublands, woodlands, and tropical rainforests, Red-tailed Hawks build their nests in tall trees, but in urban settings, you can find their nests on the tops of buildings.

Red-tailed Hawks hunt small mammals, birds, and a wide range of other small animals! They prey upon voles, mice, squirrels, pheasants, blackbirds, and even snakes. They can be aggressive toward other bird species infringing on their territory, chasing off other hawks, eagles, and Great Horned Owls.

Many Red-tailed Hawks breed up north in Alaska and Canada and return to the lower United States and Mexico in the winter, so keep an eye out as the weather gets cooler!

eBird is a fantastic resource for scientists to learn all about birds, but it does require your location when making checklists. This can be a security concern for many, so we’ve put together a few tips to help protect your privacy while using eBird. 

• If you would like to hide your name on eBird, you can make your account anonymous by going to your preferences on your account. This will change your name to “Anonymous Birder,” but will still allow us to access your checklists.

• If you would like to not have the address of your monitoring site location displayed on eBird, you can change the name of the location by following the directions found here. eBird also suggests placing your location down the street from your house, for example, at the nearest intersection, as another step to help maintain your privacy.

by Caitlin O’Neil | Communications Lead, Project Phoenix

To feed or not to feed, that is the question. 

People have been feeding birds for centuries. The practice of feeding birds is a global phenomenon – all over the world, humans find enjoyment in providing food for our feathered friends. Over time, bird feeding has evolved from tossing out food scraps to setting up seed, suet, and hummingbird feeders of all shapes and sizes. Today, over 50 million Americans practice bird feeding, resulting in 1 million tons of bird seed provided to birds nationwide each year. For some birds, supplemental food consumed at feeders represents a significant portion of their diet. This may seem like a great thing – after all, with the loss of their natural habitats and an increase in adverse weather conditions, these feeders help to provide birds with food they need that might not always be accessible. However, there are some serious risks associated with feeding birds that birders should be aware of and help mitigate. 

The biggest risk posed by bird feeders is the spread of disease. Birds can congregate in large numbers around feeders, enabling much more rapid disease transmission between individuals than would occur in the wild. Feeders can also be breeding grounds for mold and bacteria that sicken birds. Mold and bacteria can grow particularly quickly on hummingbird feeders due to the sugar water mixture; feeders must be cleaned every few days, and more often in hot and humid weather. Bird feeders can also put some species at an increased risk of predation by birds of prey or outdoor cats. Additionally, bird feeders near windows can increase the risk of bird collisions, depending on their placement. Bird feeders can also attract small mammals like mice or squirrels, who can be messy or even destructive. But, these problems can be solved to make bird feeding safe and enjoyable for birds and people!

Cleaning feeders regularly is critical to prevent the growth of dangerous mold and bacteria. Seed and suet feeders should be cleaned at least every two weeks - more often if they are heavily used or in wet weather. It is also important to keep cats inside, so they do not hunt the birds that call our neighborhoods home. Feeders should ideally be placed within three feet of windows or affixed directly to the glass to reduce bird collisions. “Squirrel-proof” bird feeders can help to deter small mammal pests from your feeders. If you’d like to learn more about best bird feeding practices, check out this guide developed by the National Audubon Society.

Ultimately, one of the best ways to support birds is to plant bird-friendly native plants. These plants will attract birds to your yard and provide them with food, resources, and habitat to help them thrive. So much of birds’ habitat has been lost to urban environments, but private yards comprise a fifth of urban land, and planting native species in these areas can help restore this lost habitat. Native plants will not only help birds but also help to support pollinators and other wildlife that have lost their environments to urban surroundings. If you’d like to learn more about native bird-friendly plants for your area, check out this incredible guide created by Audubon. Simply enter your zip code to get a list of native plants, which birds they attract, and connect with local resources and vendors who can help get you started on your gardening journey!

Thank you to all our partners and supporting organizations!

Project Phoenix is grateful to our partners and all the supporting organizations who help our program soar. Visit our partners page to learn more about the incredible work of these non-profit organizations – from science to conservation to outdoor recreation, these orgs are dedicated to protecting our environment for people and the birds we love.