The squeals of delight and mock terror pierced the July sky as Atlanta, a red-tailed hawk, made an appearance at the summer camp sponsored by the Audubon Nature Center and Aquarium in Bristol. Patiently perched on the gloved arm of Lauren Parmelee, Atlanta served as a real-life show-and-tell. The captivated campers, ages 4 to 9, listened intently as Lauren talked about the raptor and expertly answered a myriad of questions:
No, you cannot pet a bird of prey (“Ohhh”). Yes, hawks eat small rodents, which they catch with their talons (“Oooo”). And, yes, they poop whenever they need to (“EWWWW!”) in order to stay as light as possible to soar in the sky.
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While you may not realize it, you see and hear a variety of birds every day while grabbing the mail, outside your windows, on your way to work, watching their kid’s play just about everywhere.
But despite birds being all over the place, we are probably only able to name a handful of them. We ve put together a small gallery (it would take us hours to construct a complete one) that covers many of the birds you are likely to see on a regular basis throughout the Western New York area. Species listed here can be seen around the majority of backyards and feeders. As mentioned this gallery lists some of the more popular and colorful varieties of birds that frequent the Niagara Frontier.