February 2009

Beautiful, bi-monthly BirdWatching magazine (formerly Birder's World) appeals to every bird enthusiast — from backyard birdwatcher to serious birder. Subscribers receive helpful hints for attracting and feeding birds, handy identification tips, photography pointers, info about where to find birds, superb color photography, and much more!
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Features
Varied Thrush
By Matt Mendenhall
Even if you're far from the Pacific Northwest, you should be watching for this winter wanderer.
Grandpa's photos
By Mike Kearbey
A grandson discovers long-lost photos of the most sought-after nest in history.
You can find rails
By Chris Duke
Tips for adding all six rails to your life list - and 10 great places to find them.
The middle of it all
Located at the midpoint of a ­flyway and between two great refuges, Great Bend, Kansas, is the editor's choice for a perfect spring birding trip
Spotting scopes
By Matt Mendenhall
Nine pocket-size spotting scopes field-tested, rated, and ranked.
Hotspots Near You
Maps, photos, and directions for four birding destinations.
Russ Pitman Park, Bellaire, Texas
By Fred Collins
Discovery Park, Seattle, Washington
St. Joseph River Mouth, St. Joseph, Michigan
By Walter Booth
Falls of the Ohio, Louisville, Kentucky
By Win Ahrens
Columns
From the Editor
Ringing in the new year, Birder's World has three new features
Birding Briefs
New research about Townsend's and Hermit Warblers, the tragic cost of tar sands exploration, and a photo gallery of recent rare bird sightings.
Birder at Large
The director of the Cape May Bird Observatory describes his most surprising Great Gray Owl experience.
ID Tips
Kenn Kaufman, author of the Field Guide to Birds of North America, explains how to identify Long-eared, Short-eared, Great Horned, and Stygian Owls.
ID Toolkit
David Sibley, author of The Sibley Guide to Birds, explains crests.
By David Allen Sibley
Amazing Birds
Founding Editor Eldon Greij writes about the bird that migrates farthest - by far!
By Eldon Greij
On the Move
Migration expert Paul Kerlinger discusses the astounding flights of the neglected Sanderling.
By Paul Kerlinger
Attracting Birds
How to attract birds in January and February.
By Anne Schmauss, Mary Schmauss, Geni Krolick
New Products
Three new products: Woodlink National Audubon Society Going Green Feeder, Leupold Yosemite 6x30 binocular, and Jim's Birdacious Bark Butter bird food.
Fieldcraft
A great reader photo posted in our online bird photography forum. Forum member Stephen Pollard describes his photo of a Mississippi Kite.
From Our Readers
Your Letters
Flight feathers and bird-window collisions
Since You Asked
Ornithologist Julie Craves explains why some birds hop and others walk, and the warblers most likely to come to your feeder.
Your View
Two pages of stories and photos submitted by readers, including Western Bluebirds, a Gray Catbird with an Orchard Oriole, and a Yellow-throated Warbler.
Resources
Ad Index
Links to every advertiser in the February issue.
Classifieds
Birding tours, events, bird seed, lodging, and more.
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