Do you remember calling your birdwatching friends on a landline to tell them about the different types of birds you were seeing? The days of telephone trees and logbook record keeping aren't completely dead. Backyard birdwatchers use these alerts to find out about an uncommon bird. Birdwatchers appreciate the signs when they know what they are looking at.

The Dawn Chorus is a phenomenon that is unexplained and is only getting louder.

Don't miss the new addition to your morning concert! The resident cardinals and chickadees might be signaling an alarm about a new visitor and transforming their usual dawn performance into nature's morning news. The new trill or unexpected warble could be your first clue to something wonderful visiting your garden.

All of a sudden, your typical birds fall silent.

Just like the concerts of the Beatles, who would make the audience go quiet, it is not just in your imagination because the feeders suddenly quiet means something has entered the area that is out of the ordinary. Your rare frequent visitors may actually be making way for a rare guest, and they may even be in fear of a rare species.

Your friend who used to work as a mailman just called and gave me a 'tip'

When Carol, who has spent thirty years walking the entire neighborhood, calls to say she saw something 'different', you would grab your binoculars. Carol is known to all the mail carriers on her route, be it a person or a bird. An unexpected call from her could have you watching one of the most incredible sights of the season.

The Squirrels Have Been Stopped From Their Usual Shenanigans

Those acrobatic little thieves who've been plotting against your "squirrel-proof" feeder since 1992 suddenly freeze like they're posing for a Norman Rockwell painting. When these usually unstoppable performers pause their show, it's often because they've spotted something that even they find fascinating. Your backyard's most persistent critics just became your early warning system.

Your favorite wind chimes are behaving a bit oddly.

Your copper wind chimes bought at the 1989 craft fair have provided background music – they've now turned into a weather station! If the wind chimes start playing a new tune, they could be signaling dangerous weather. Besides the different types of weather that wind chimes can detect, there have also been many sightings of some rare birds.

The berry bushes planted back in 1998 are finally starting to show a profit!

What about the employee at the garden center who claimed these bushes would bring in amazing birds? In terms of years of dedication and care, the timeframe that you have invested may finally begin to pay off. Due to a rare weather phenomenon, fully ripened berries of the bushes may be discovered and feasted upon by birds of a rare migratory species, likely including fully ripe berries.

Your grandchild's weather app is showing a weird weather front.

Bird alerts combine the wisdom and knowledge of the generations before us and the generations that are more time savvy. If the predicted bird migration time frames with the weather forecast, an unrealistic bird migration prediction could land around your knee. Explaining to a weather tech-savvy grandchild app about a knee is clever. They will understand why the birds aren't their birds.

Fresh Management for the Bird Bath Crowd

You’ve had a bird bath since President Carter was in office, and just like that, new visitors have come to take over. Pecking orders are totally normal for backyard bird baths and watering holes, and when they are disrupted it usually means there is a new, interesting visitor. These social changes in your backyard when new families move onto your block are wonderful for your birdwatching!

Your neighbor's cat is watching the trees.

Mr. Whiskers from next door loves to chill on the porch rail, but now he seems to be very focused on your maple tree. These purr machines have been practicing their bird-watching skills since Ancient Egypt, and if they are breaking from the usual, it’s for good reason. Even the most stoic watcher in the block gets what it means when a new show is in the area.

Opening The Cornell Bird Guide Again From Your College Days

That cherished field guide with the cracked spine and the dog-eared pages is getting another workout with some new sections. It is quite a special occasion to open the ‘uncommon visitors’ chapter and add some new entries. You might even remember those margin notes you wrote in ‘75.

We have finally made use of the costly binoculars from Christmas '85.

Those high-end Bushnells that were your spouse's "investment in your hobby" have spent more time in their case than around your neck – until now. When you find yourself adjusting the focus more carefully than a jeweler examining diamonds, your instincts are telling you something extraordinary is about to appear. Time to give those lenses the workout they've been waiting for all these years.

Your Dad's Old Cotton Ball Trick Still Works.

The old technique of placing cotton balls outside has continued to attract new, and rather unexpected, visitors. Newcomers, like other generations of bird watchers, are placing materials for the birds to construct their nests. The birdwatching hobby offers more possibilities than simply nesting materials. The analogy of birds nest real estate comes alive. When birds are provided with high quality nesting materials, they will flock to the area like they are in a buyers market.

Your log for your feeder that you keep records for shows a pattern.

The backyard notes in your closet indicate years of observation, and that is not just a hobby. Those notes are real observations that contribute to the body of knowledge in science, and if they are documenting abnormal behavior of common birds, nature just may be up to something big. Your pages marked with pencil may guide you toward your next great discovery.

No coffee tastes the same as when it is in your special bird watching mug 🦩☕️

You have a great mug! It's the one with the cardinal design from the birdwatching group you went to in 1992! The way the steam is rising and the sun is shining on it makes the coffee taste better this morning. If your morning ritual is making you feel something, I say lean into that.

You're excited to finally use the nice/costly camera that your kids bought for you.

Since last Father's Day the digital camera has been sitting in the corner collecting dust, but with the new camera gear fetish growing, it is now becoming more valuable. The time spent wearing down a rechargeable battery is not normal, neither is the strange compulsion to clear space on the memory card. There is something you may be subconsciously preparing for. Those photography lessons you watched on YouTube 'just in case' might actually come in handy.

There is extra excitement around the local Audubon society.

Martha has been coordinating everything since before emails existed! When she begins to work the phones like one of those wallstreet traders, you know it is about to get real! Of course, the old school network has transitioned to a new digitally focused one, but the excitement in her voice means the same thing as it did 30 years ago: grab your things and get ready!

Your partner really did stop while mowing the lawn.

The great outdoors is a learning experience you will both grow to love, maybe even especially if it is not usually something you both enjoy. Your love for your partner and for birds will influence an appreciation for nature and all it has to offer. The first signs of this appreciation will be when your partner takes a break from their Saturday morning lawn mow to see what is going on off in the distance. This will also be a sign of how much your partner has been impacted by your love of nature. After all those years of explaining the importance of bird migrations, it looks like your partner has finally been sold.

\"Looks\" From Bird Feed Store Owners

***Before premium birdseed blends existed Bob was operating the local feed store.*** ***He is frequently observed bagging customer orders and engaging in small talk about the weather, but that is not small talk.*** ***He is one of those old-time merchants, and like all of them, he knows the local bird traffic patterns to a greater accuracy than any app.***