Rodale

Grab a front row seat for the sights and sounds of feeding, nesting, and bathing birds right in your backyard using these tips shared by experienced birders. Whether the aim is to attract tiny hummingbirds or large and raucous blue jays, or lay out the welcome mat for temporary visitors stopping in during their seasonal migration, Best-Ever Backyard Birding Tips explains how to play up various landscape features and how to appreciate what happens in the backyard "birdscape."

The book targets all skill levels, offering new birders a few basics while intriguing longtime birders with new ideas. Here readers will learn:
-why moving water, even a single dripper, will make a difference in which birds visit the yard
-how to plan an entire bird garden that offers food, shelter, and water for bathing and drinking
-what seeds and foods appeal to birds at different times of the season
-how to attract new species of birds no matter which region of the country they live in
-what type of shelter keeps baby birds safe until they are ready to leave the nest

Birders will enjoy reading features such as "Everybody Wins" (birding practices that benefit nature and the environment) and "Budget-Wise Birding" (free or inexpensive ways to feed and attract birds). They'll also find step-by-step illustrations for installing a water feature, building a simple tray feeder, and converting a craft-style birdhouse into a suitable residence.

Deborah L. Martin is a freelance editor and writer who has made appearances as a gardening expert on HGTV and elsewhere. Previously she spent more than a decade at Rodale as a garden book editor and was the project editor for The Backyard Bird Feeder's Bible and Stokes' Backyard Bird Book. An avid amateur birdwatcher, she lives near Allentown, Pennsylvania.