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The most common bird at Four Seasons is the Lesser Goldfinch. Lesser Goldfinches are tiny, stub-billed songbirds with white wing patches and notched tails. Males are bright yellow below with a black cap; females and immatures are duller and lack the black cap. These birds gather in flocks of up to several hundred and feed on seeds and grains in weedy fields, budding treetops, and bird feeders in many habitats from the western U.S. to South America. Lesser Goldfinches are most common in California and Texas and are present year round at Four Seasons. The male's breeding song is a jumble of clear notes mixed in with wheezes, trills, and stutters, lasting up to 10 seconds. When mingling in a flock, Lesser Goldfinches make a contact call that's wheezy and descending, given one or two notes at a time. Their songs and calls are a ubiquitous background on our club's monthly bird walks and sightings of these birds prompt, "it's just another Lesser Goldfinch" as we search for less common birds. Flocks of these birds move through our yards and landscaped areas and congregate at thistle feeders around Four Seasons. Common as they are, Lesser Goldfinches are not as plentiful as might be initially assumed from Irve Sturner's photo taken at Four Seasons. Irve is President of the Four Seasons Camera Club and he used Photoshop to make one bird into three. Now we know what a male Lesser Goldfinch might look like to a cross-eyed cyclops! ~ Steve Edelman Birding CLUB We welcome beginning and experienced birders. Our main activity is a monthly bird walk along our beautiful nature trails, which follow native riparian woodlands. We also take field trips to local birding hot spots, discuss backyard bird feeding, and share information on unusual species and behaviors. In his presentation Why Birding Is The Best Hobby, Jeff Reiter states "an estimated 85 million Americans enjoy feeding, observing or photographing wild birds … Birding's popularity is due in part to its simplicity … all you really need is a decent pair of binoculars … and a field guide … the simplicity of birding includes being able to do it almost anywhere at any time." If you enjoy nature but would like to "see" more, birding is the best gateway to nature interpretation and Four Seasons Birding Club is your gateway to birding! We meet on the first Saturday of each month at 8 am in the Lodge RCN Lobby, talk about birding, then we go on our bird walk from the Lodge. Bring binoculars or come to a meeting and ask about birding gear. For more information, email Steve Edelman at steve.h.edelman@gmail.com. ~ Steve Edelman Bird of the Month FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | DECEMBER 2017 65 Three Male Lesser Goldfinches. Photo by Irve Sturner, Four Seasons Camera Club Every spring, thousands of birders, including many Amish birders, converge on Magee Marsh, Ohio, where warblers and other migrants stop to feed before continuing north across Lake Erie to their Canadian breeding grounds.

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