The Kids' Guide to Birds of Minnesota: Fun Facts, Activities and 85 Cool Birds

by Stan Tekiela

Overview

With fun activities for the whole family, like building a birdhouse and preparing your own bird food, this is a must-have beginner's guide to bird watching in the Land of 10,000 Lakes!

Stan Tekiela’s famous Birds of Minnesota Field Guide has been delighting bird watchers for years. Now, the award-winning author has written the perfect bird identification guide for children!

The Kids’ Guide to Birds of Minnesota features:

• 85 of the most common and important birds to know
• Species organized by color for ease of use
• Full-color photographs and a full page of information for each bird
• Field marks, favorite hangouts, calls/songs, a range map, and Stan’s cool facts, making identification a snap!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781591937869
Publisher:	Adventure Publications, Incorporated
Publication date:	03/27/2018
Series:	Birding Children's Books
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 6.90(h) x 0.60(d)
Lexile:	IG970L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 12 Years

About the Author

Naturalist, wildlife photographer and writer Stan Tekiela is the author of more than 175 field guides, nature books, children’s books, wildlife audio CDs, puzzles and playing cards, presenting many species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, trees, wildflowers and cacti in the United States. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Natural History from the University of Minnesota and as an active professional naturalist for more than 25 years, Stan studies and photographs wildlife throughout the United States and Canada. He has received various national and regional awards for his books and photographs. Also a well-known columnist and radio personality, his syndicated column appears in more than 25 newspapers and his wildlife programs are broadcast on a number of Midwest radio stations. Stan can be followed on Facebook and Twitter.

Read an Excerpt

Mostly Red

Northern Cardinal
Look for the black mask

What to look for: all-red bird with a black mask, and a large red crest and bill

Where you'll find them: wide variety of habitats including backyards and parks; usually likes thick vegetation

Calls and songs: calls “whata-cheer-cheer-cheer” in spring; both male and female sing and give chip notes all year

On the move: short flights from cover to cover, often landing on the ground

What they eat: loves sunflower seeds and enjoys insects, fruit, peanuts and suet; visits seed feeders

Nest: cup of twigs and bark strips, often low in a tree

Eggs, chicks & childcare: 3–4 speckled bluish-white eggs; Mom and Dad share the incubating and feeding duties

Spends the winter: doesn’t migrate; gathers with other cardinals and moves around to find good sources of food

Stan's Cool Stuff: Cardinals are sunbathers! Sometimes they stretch out in the sun, spreading their wings and fanning their tails. They’re the first to arrive at feeders in the morning and the last to leave before dark. They are territorial and fight their own reflections in windows.

Real Quick

Size: 8-9"

Nest: cup

Feeder: tube or hopper

Range: year-round

Table of Contents

Introduction

• Cool Birds in Minnesota
• Body Basics of a Bird
• Amazing Nests
• Who Built That Nest?
• Attracting Birds with Feeders
• How to Use This Guide
• Sample Pages

The Birds


• Black
• Black & White
• Blue
• Brown
• Gray
• Green
• Orange
• Red
• White
• Yellow

Bird Food Fun for the Family


• Starter Snacks & Fruit Treats
• Easy Bird Food Recipes
• Sweet Homemade Nectar
• Birds-Go-Wild Spread
• Love-It-Nutty Butter
• Make Your Own Suet
• Easy-Peasy Suet
• Simply Super Suet
• Yummy Bird-Feeding Projects
• Birdseed Ornaments
• Pinecone Birdseed Feeders

More Activities for the Bird-Minded


• Help Birds Build Their Nests
• Make a Bird Watch List
• Save the Birds with Hawk Cutouts
• Build Your Very Own Birdhouse
• Create a Bird-Friendly Yard
• Take a Birding Trip to Hawk Ridge
• Practice Good Birding

Citizen Science Projects

Learning About Birding on the Internet

Glossary

Checklist/Index by Species

About the Author

Editorial Reviews

This pocket-sized book is the perfect guide for budding bird watchers. Bird expert Stan Tekiela has done a dandy job of boiling down bird identification to short and simple sentences that kids from 8 to 12 years old will easily understand. Each bird is illustrated with a full-page photo. On the opposite page from the photo, Tekiela provides one-sentence identification clues: what to look for, where to find them, what they eat, etc. His final flourish is to end each bird segment with a fun factoid called “Stan’s really cool stuff.” National Outdoor Book Awards

From the Publisher