LEARN ABOUT CREATURES

Sometimes it's really hard to see all the birds that are supposed to live near you. But that's OK, because some of the best bird-finders in the world have said that birding is 90% listening.

To get you started, try this:
1. Find a comfortable place to sit where you can hear outside.
2. Take about 10-15 minutes to just sit and listen.

• Don't worry about identifying the birds at this point
• How many different songs do you hear?
• Can you whistle the songs that you hear?
• Does it ever get really quiet all of the sudden?

3. The next day, take a little stroll outside. Go really slowly. When you hear a bird, stop for a little while and see if you can tell where it is hanging out.
Is the bird on top of a bush? Is it high up in the tree? Is it hiding under the roof of a house?
4. Write a little story about who you found on your walk. You may include drawings as well. The drawings don't have to be fancy.

Until the site is up and running for general submissions, Fall '08, you can send your story and pictures to Local Biology, webmaster@localbiology.org.

These Listen: Listening Tools might help you.

This activity is adapted from an activity posted on the Listen website from the Exploratorium (which I worked on.)