The Backyard Naturalist

09/10/2026

Our latest newsletter is out! Fall Migration is on. Is your backyard ready for special guests?

Help your birds maximize every feeding opportunity by offering premium quality, high calorie food from clean feeders. As always, water, WATER, W-A-T-E-R is essential. No matter how humble the bath, as long as it is clean and fresh.

09/08/2026

Our 2nd walk during this fall migration will be this coming Sunday (9/13/26). Last night it is estimated that more than 550 million birds passed over us. It boggles the mind. We will go to Redgate Park in Rockville, MD. Meet at the lower end of the parking lot by 7:30 AM. Attached are the particulars about the walk.

Bird Walk
Sunday, September 13th
Redgate Park
14500 Avery Rd., Rockville, MD 20853
7:30 AM
Meet in lower end of the parking lot

Redgate Park is a 131 acre parcel of land in the heart of Rockville, MD. It was a public golf course from 1974 to 2018 when it closed. The Rockville City Hall debated what to do with this parcel for well over a year. In 2018, the Friends of Redgate Park was organized and began immediately to lobby for the land to be preserved as a public park dedicated to conservation. After attending several hearings and organizing massive letter writing campaigns, the city of Rockville voted to retain the entire parcel as a nature preservation area.

To date, postings to Ebird have listed 182 species of birds found within the park. It features 4 ponds, tall grass meadows, and tall pine and deciduous trees making for excellent habitat for a variety of birds and other critters. It has become a sparrow hotspot and features Eastern Towhees, both Baltimore and Orchard Orioles, Scarlet Tanagers, a wide variety of warblers, and numerous raptors. I think our target birds should be the Lincoln Sparrow, Merlin, and Red-headed Woodpecker.
The terrain is exactly the same as when it was golf course complete with asphalt paths. There are several hills, some steep, to be negotiated. The walk will cover approximately 2 miles and will take about three hours.

The long range forecast calls for a slight chance of a shower around 8:00 am and clearing after that with a temperature around 70 degrees and moderate humidity. It should be another excellent day for birding.

As always, bring bug repellent, especially bring water, and bring binoculars (I have loaners). I encourage everyone with a smart phone to load the free Merlin App from Cornell. It is extremely helpful in learning to ID birds from their song.

You can contact me on my cell phone at 301-758-1420 or my email at [email protected].

09/07/2026

When I emailed everyone to listen for migrating birds last night I had no idea how that would impact this morning's bird walk. I thought that we might get 30 or 35 species. What we got was 58 species including 11 warblers, a Broad-winged Hawk, a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and a Baltimore Oriole. The day started out bright and sunny and 65 degrees with no wind; a perfect birding day. What was difficult was getting photos. The foliage was thick and turning color and many of the birds blended right in. Nevertheless, I managed a few.

Lois Y. Green Conservation Park, Montgomery, Maryland, US
Sep 6, 2026 7:06 AM - 10:28 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.328 mile(s)
58 species

Canada Goose 2
Mallard 5
Mourning Dove 3
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 3
Killdeer 1
Green Heron 2
Great Blue Heron 2
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Bald Eagle 1
Broad-winged Hawk 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Barred Owl 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
Eastern Wood-Pewee 2
Eastern Phoebe 2
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Eastern Kingbird 1
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Blue Jay 4
American Crow 9
Fish Crow 4
Common Raven 1
Carolina Chickadee 6
Tufted Titmouse 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2
Northern House Wren 2
Carolina Wren 4
Gray Catbird 7
Brown Thrasher 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
Eastern Bluebird 2
American Robin 5
Cedar Waxwing 1
House Finch 1
American Goldfinch 5
Chipping Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 2
Baltimore Oriole 1
Black-and-white Warbler 1
Tennessee Warbler 1
Nashville Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 1
American Redstart 2
Cape May Warbler 1
Magnolia Warbler 1
Blackburnian Warbler 1
Chestnut-sided Warbler 2
Black-throated Blue Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 1
Northern Cardinal 7
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1
Indigo Bunting 2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S390382804

09/03/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DEeE2M2UQ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

The coneflower that finished blooming in August is still working. The dried seed head standing in your garden right now is a feeder — goldfinches cling to it all winter and pick seeds one at a time.

Black-eyed Susans do the same thing. So do asters and goldenrod. The stems you're about to cut down are holding food above the snow line for sparrows and juncos that have no other source in January.

🌿 The spent look is the point. A garden that looks "finished" in October is one that's still feeding birds in February.

She'll look messy through winter. She'll look like a feeder to everything that stayed

09/02/2026

Sit outside at night with Merlin on. You will be amazed at what passes over.

09/01/2026

Over the next 7 weeks we will be doing a bird walk every Sunday to take advantage of the fall migration. We will kick this off this coming Sunday at Lois Greene Conservation Park. Join us by 7:30 am. We start early to get the early flight and early feeding of the birds. Meet in the parking lot.

Bird Walk
Sunday, September 6th
Lois Greene Conservation Park
7:30 AM

Fall migration is beginning and we will begin our weekly bird walks at the Lois Greene Conservation Park
(8711 Snouffer School Road, Gaithersburg, MD 20879).

The park consists of 250 acres adjacent to the Montgomery Air Park. The terrain is mostly flat with one long hill and mostly lined with forest. There is also a large meadow and two ponds. The trail itself, from start to finish, is about two miles.

Warblers, tanagers, grosbeaks, and vireos are on the move. We should have great opportunities for some good sightings. I think we should get three or four warblers as well as three or four flycatchers and some early ducks.

It will be in the mid 60’s when we start and in the mid 70’s when we finish. It should be partly sunny with very little wind, moderate humidity and moderate UV index.

As always, bring bug repellent, water, and binoculars (I have loaners). Ticks are particularly bad this year although the trails at Lois Green are well kept and wide so there should be no bushwacking. This is also a time of the year when dehydration and dizziness can happen without warning.

My contact info:
Email – [email protected]
Cell – 301-758-1420 (call or text)

Photos are all taken by me at Lois Greene Conservation Park in 2024.

08/31/2026

With migration starting to show itself, I have put together a tentative schedule for the coming 7 weeks.

9/6 Lois Greene Conservation Park
9/13 Redgate Park
9/20 Schooley Mill Park
9/27 Bombay Hook
10/4 Norwood Park
10/11 Wheaton Regional Park
10/18 Lake Needwood

I will still send out flyers with information about the walk every week. Franny will help me with the walks as much as her school schedule allows, however the walk to Bombay Hook will be hers alone. I would never make it back to the store in time to open it given that it is a two hour drive. I will try and get the first flyer out tonight. As always you can contact me through my email ([email protected]) or my cell phone (301-758-1420).

08/28/2026

https://youtu.be/0WFGBnRkx2o?si=dPgIXWtNfinJQ9EN

Hummingbirds are AMAZING!!!
Help them prepare for their migration starting soon - and experience their incredible memories for yourself!🩷💚

Backyard hummingbirds are far smarter than most people realize — an...

08/27/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/169XiTAXwvQ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Check out the last full moon of summer!