Backyard Birds of Utah: How to Identify and Attract the Top 25 Birds

You probably need more than one bird book, and one of them should be this one, if you live in Utah (another should be Stan Tekiela's Birds of Utah). Bill Fenimore is something of a birding legend here, and he has a great store for birders. Obviously, he knows what he is talking about. I wish the range maps were larger, or maybe just covered Utah (since it is a Utah book). They are so small, you can barely find the Great Salt Lake on them. Probably, more than twenty-five birds should have been covered, since the book is very small (only 96 p.); I would nominate Bushtits, Gambel's Quail, and Barn Swallows, which I often see in my yard without doing anything to attract them. The European Starling could easily have been left out, since it certainly doesn't need any help in finding a yard. What I like about this book is the attention given to attracting birds to your yard: both for each individual bird, and with much additional material at the end (more than a quarter of the book). This information alone is a good reason to buy it.

Bill Fenimore knows his birds. In addition to having his own business selling birding related paraphernalia, he writes a weekly column featuring birds in Utah's largest newspaper. So he knows his stuff! This book, Backyard Birds Of Utah, is a collection of 25 species Fenimore chose to introduce to interested readers. Although I would have my own list of 25 "common" species that would differ from his list, it is a pretty good and varied sampling. Twenty-five species, unfortunately, is on the extreme low end for a bird guide, so this book has limited utility in that regard. On the other hand, if you look at this book more as a guide to helping people attract birds to their backyards, porches, or even their window feeders in a second floor apartment, then this book has a lot of helpful information. You'll learn about making your own nectar for attracting black-chinned hummingbirds (fairly easy to attract, and a fun species to have around). You'll be able to finally recognize that species hanging around your crabapple trees, making that high frequency "zeee" sound (cedar waxwings, featured on the cover of this book). Some common species even in the most urbanized environment will be found in these pages (European starling and house sparrow), while others fit into the "55 mile an hour bird" category (birds you can recognize even when you are traveling in a car at 55 mph - black-billed magpie). For each species featured, Fenimore discusses their description, behavior, song or call, habitat, nesting behavior, range, size, and tips for attracting this species. Even more than this, Fenimore includes some good general information on what to look for when attempting to identify a bird, a summary table of foods for bird feeders, a discussion of bird protection around feeders (protection from cats and inhibiting the spread of contagious diseases to other birds), and notes on vegetation preferred by different species in developing your yard into useful habitat. The species featured include: - black-chinned hummingbird - rufous hummingbird - ruby-crowned kinglet - lesser goldfinch - American goldfinch - pine siskin - black-capped chickadee - house finch - dark-eyed junco - house sparrow - downy woodpecker - cedar waxwing - white-crowned sparrow - brown-headed cowbird - black-headed grosbeak - Bullock's oriole - spotted towhee - European starling - American robin - western scrub jay - mourning dove - northern flicker - sharp-shinned hawk - black-billed magpie - Cooper's hawk This book is to get a person interested in birds and birding. Once they get hooked, it's time to encourage them to get a more comprehensive field guide, like one of these: National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Fifth Edition Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America (Peterson Field Guide Series) National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Birds, Western Region The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America Birds of North Ameri

For a person who knows nothing about birding but wants to, this pocketbook appears to be a perfect introduction. By identifying 130 of the most common birds in Utah and providing succinct and distinctive info and rich photos of each, keyed by color and following an informative overview, I have found the book inviting and easy to use. Success. Other books I have attempted to use have been too complicated with too much info and too many birds, have covered a wide geographical area; or, too brief and limited and more for the tourist than the beginning birder. This book would make a great xmas gift for the nature lover or outdoor enthusiast, teen, adult or family;...and especially for the would be or beginning birder. (The author also writes a weekly birding column for the Salt Lake Tribune newspaper well worth your attention.)

My family recently discovered the joy of sharing our backyard with birds. The kids absolutely love learning how to attract specific birds to our backyard and being able to identify the birds that frequent our area. This book describes ways to make your backyard bird friendly and lists the favorite foods of each bird as well as the best feeders and housing to offer to attract each type of bird. The book also has beautiful pictures to help with bird identification. We appreciate the love of nature that Bill shares with us all.