Borderlands Restoration Network works to rebuild, restore and reconnect wildlife, land and people in the incredible Arizona/Sonora borderlands. To that end, this year BRN is excited to join in the celebration of 2020 Migratory Bird Day, themed "Birds Connect Our World" on Saturday May 9th by celebrating hummingbirds! The borderlands are a hummingbird super highway with Sierra Vista even being dubbed the Hummingbird Capital of the United States.
THANK YOU TO USFS FOR
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BRN restores degraded ecosystems between two of the great North American migratory bird flyways: the Pacific Flyway and the Central Flyway. Each year, an incredible diversity of birds migrate great distances for food and shelter through the Sky Islands.
In the spring, birds travel north from summers in the Central/South American tropics to summer feeding and breeding grounds in Alaska and Canada. Of the 17 species of hummingbirds that live in Arizona, only three are winter residents: Anna, Costa, and Broad-Billed hummingbirds. That means the other 14 species only migrate through during warmer months. Visitors from all over the world travel to southern Arizona (home to more than 550 species of birds) to catch a glimpse of our winged travelers. Through our many programs and projects, we are working diligently to restore habitat for migratory birds, including these loved and admired pollinators, the hummingbird. BIRD ACTIVITY KITS
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CHECK OUT BORDERLANDS RESTORATION POLLINATOR SEEDS FROM THE PATAGONIA PUBLIC LIBRARY SEED LIBRARY
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The Patagonia Library Semilloteca/Seed Library, makes available for planting a wide-range of locally adapted seed. Borderlands Restoration Network is thrilled to have recently donated some of our seeds for plants particularly loved by pollinators for you to check out from the library. - Coral Bean (Erythrina flabelliformis) - Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) - Arizona Thistle (Cirsium arizonicum) - Arizona Yellow Bells (Tecoma stans) - Parry's Penstemon (Penstemon parryi) - Beardlip Penstemon (Penstemon barbatus) - Hummingbird Trumpet (Epilobium canum) - Lemmon's Sage (Salvia lemmonii) - Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis) |
HUMMINGBIRDS & BLOOMS SOCIAL MEDIA LIVE / MAY 9th 10AM
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Join us live on Facebook and Instagram in celebration of Migratory Bird Day to talk about one of our favorite migratory birds, hummingbirds! Join Francesca Claverie, BRN Native Plant Program Manager and John Hughes, BRN volunteer and birder extraordinaire to learn about these amazing traveling birds, and native plants you can plant to provide food sources for these little winged wonders. Photographers: Send us your best hummingbird photos that might get selected to be part of our presentation! Send photos to horticulture@borderlandsrestoration.org by May 6th. Watch the saved video on Facebook, or in our highlights on Instagram. |
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT HUMMINGBIRDS?
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PUT OUT HUMMINGBIRD FEEDERS Hummingbirds are a joy to watch. You can support them, and bring them to your yard by putting out hummingbird feeders with DIY food made of plain water and regular white sugar at a 4:1 ratio. (Please don't use red-dyed food as it isn't healthy for the hummingbirds and isn't necessary.) Remember to keep them clean by cleaning feeders on a regular basis, and making sure the food hasn't soured if it has been out for some time. |
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PLANT NATIVE POLLINATOR PLANTS FOR HUMMINGBIRDS Native plants produce beauty in your yard, and are a nectar source for pollinators such as hummingbirds. Planting native plants creates natural habitat with drought tolerant plants that require little irrigation after being established, and are easy to care for since they are from the region and already adapted to this climate. Native plants are also what a hummingbird would feed on naturally, which is always best!
Borderlands Restoration Network, grows thousands of native plants through our Native Plant Material program and sells them through the Borderlands Restoration Native Plant Nursery. Check out how to buy our plants and seeds during COVID-19. Short on space to plant in the ground, or want to do a little container gardening? You can build a container pollinator garden with native plants. Check out our guide and suggestions for a pollinator container garden! Need help designing and installing a hummingbird garden, or other landscaping projects? We are for hire! Contact us for more info.
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Marathon verses Migration
4/29/2020 By Cholla Nicholl, BRN Wildlife Intern In May and October the bird lovers among us celebrate International Migratory Bird Day. These special days have been set aside to recognize the unique and still mysterious journeys many of our feathered friends take each year. Created in 1993 and now organized by Environment for the Americas, International Migratory Bird Day focuses primarily on conservation and education. The conservation of migrating birds has been a priority for Americans for over a century. |
FOR THE KIDS
As we all try to keep busy these days, a few fun activities for the kids might make for a an educational and welcome distraction. Check below for some fun facts about migratory birds, go do a spring bird count, and print off a hummingbird coloring page.
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Calliope Hummingbird Fact Sheet
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Calliope Hummingbird Coloring Page
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DIY BIRD FEEDERS FOR ALL OUR OTHER BIRD FRIENDS
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