Wednesday, March 14, 2018

This Posting is for the Birds

I don't know why, but this morning I started thinking about a book that my uncle Bub gave me back when I was a kid.  Yes, we always called him by his nickname not his real name.  My parents gave me his first name as my middle name.  His given name was Milton but was always known as Bub.  My Dad's name was Richard but he went by Dick.  So, I was named Richard Milton which morphed into Dicky Bub.  Then when I got my amateur radio license, my call ended in ***DZY.  So, of course all the hams started calling me Dizzy or Dizzy Dick and it stuck.

Sorry, I sort of got off the subject.  The book he gave me was "A Field Guide to the Birds" by Roger Tory Peterson and it was the 1947 version.  Before this one there was a 1934 and a 1939 version and I am sure there were many more after my version.  I have used it over and over and over again and again throughout my lifetime, and still use it today.  Thank you Uncle Bub.

Now, there are all kinds of field guides that cover almost everything that you would see in nature.  But I have to say that the one of the birds is my favorite.  I have some of wild flowers, snakes, etc. but the one about the birds gets used the most.  Take time to watch our feathered friends, put out some bird feed, and you all have a great day, you hear?



18 comments:

  1. I used to enjoy feeding the birds and used the guide a lot then. Unfortunately, feed got too expensive. I still manage to see a lot of birds living here at the edge of the woods, though.

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    1. Yes, it is expensive and the birds don't "eat like a bird". I purchase 40 bags of bird seed at Tractor Supply and if I don't get there, I pick up a couple of 20 pound sacks of seed at Wal-Mart when we get groceries.

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  2. I had so many birds in NC including the ones that just stopped over on their way south (and back again in the spring); I had several bird guides but narrowed it down now to the Nat Geo Field Guide to Birds of North America. I also enjoyed seeing various kinds of snakes in NC. Right now I am watching lots of Youtube videos on elephants. What amazing and intelligent animals they are, and it's a shame you can only see them in a zoo. I also love the large apes - you don't see such intelligent expressions in a lot of humans!

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    1. I enjoy all of nature, flora and fauna. When enjoying the great outdoors, remember to leave nothing but footprints.

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  3. It can be much more entertaining when you know what kind of bird it is you're watching.

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    1. A good bird book and a good pair of binoculars work real well together.

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  4. I had so many humming birds in my yard and they seemed to all have disappeared. Wonder if it had anything to do with the Cooper's Hawk I saw last week eating a dove

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    1. I don't know where you live, but maybe you live in the path of their bi-yearly migration.

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  5. I have the same book -Fifth Edition, copyright 2002. I also have a book just on Wisconsin birds (since that is where I live). Love my bird friends.

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    1. Best bird book their is. It is my bible when trying to identify a new bird.

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  6. Your uncle Bud would be very happy to know that a gift he gave you so long ago is still being put to good use.

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    1. I am sure he would. My Mom had four brothers and a sister and they just loved to go camping. My Mom used to tell me a lot of camping stories and of course my Mom and Dad took me camping quite a few times when I was living at home.

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    2. Here is a link to an older post telling about my mom's camping way back when she was young: http://dizzydick.blogspot.com/2012/05/wondering-about-high-tops.html

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    3. Thank you for the link Dizzy, I enjoyed reading that blog and seeing a picture of your mother and aunt in their laced up boots.

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  7. One of Bub 's favorite birds was the Eastern Phoebe. Birds and trees were his main interests. He would be glad you're still using the book and feeding the birds.

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    1. Yep, your Dad was quite knowledgeable when it came to flora and fauna.

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  8. used my bird book a lot, too. also have the spiders and snakes one.

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    1. I, too, have others that cover wild flowers, snakes, insects, etc. Love those books. And back in the day, I had Euell Gibbons books, also.

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