HUMMINGBIRDS can be seen feeding on nectar plants such as Salvia leucantha and Mountain laurel. (To keep hummin' along, they eat tiny insects, too.) Hang feeders late March through mid May as migrants are heading North for summer nesting. Spring blooming plants that encourage hummers to hang around your garden are Gulf Coast Penstemon, crossvine, Turk’s cap, Penta, and Salvias. Look quickly…hummers don’t linger in Houston very long in the spring. They’re on their way to start new families.

HAWK MOTHS are hummingbird look-alikes. They hover and dart, traveling at speeds of 30 miles an hour. Watch for them at dusk sipping from evening primrose, honeysuckle flowers or blue plumbago. Pentas are host plants for the green, spotted caterpillars of the TERSA SPHINX MOTH.

WOODPECKERS have to search harder for habitat as we tidy up our city lots. At our new office property in Spring Branch, we have allowed the trunks of a few old trees to stand. As the trees decay, they become “feeding posts” with high-rise living spaces for woodpeckers and other insect-eaters. Try it in your yard and see who takes up residence. You may be lucky enough to get SCREECH OWLS to nest in the woodpeckers’ old home!

SPARROWS and STARLINGS are tough competitors in the local housing market. Help the distance-weary PURPLE MARTINS as they arrive in Houston after wintering in South America. Clean out the martin house by March 15, so they can take up residence as your aerial insect-eating machines. Listen for the martins' clicking songs this spring and summer as they raise their families and patrol the skies for flying insects.

MOCKINGBIRDS relish the flower petals of the pineapple guava tree, which blooms in May. Try some of the delicate blooms on your salad and give new meaning to the expression, “Eat like a bird”.

MIGRATORY BIRDS take the Texas Central Flyway and rely on our habitats for food, water and shelter. Orange and black ORIOLES may be sighted at hummingbird feeders during April. Watch for tiny WARBLERS in your treetops as they nervously flit around eating insects from under leaves and bark crevices.

BIRDS that cross the Gulf of Mexico return to our coast extremely thirsty. Fresh water in your yard will beckon to them. Add a few nectar and berry plants with some sheltering shrubs and your wildlife sanctuary will encourage more air-borne travelers to stop by.

ORIOLES may look like an orange and black flash through your yard in late March through April. Here’s a recipe for an oriole feast: Dip an orange half into birdseed and place in a shady, open site near your bird feeder.

GOLDFINCHES head north in late February. Freeze that fancy thistle seed until next Christmas.

APHIDS appear with early spring plant growth. If LADYBUGS don't devour enough of them, use insecticidal soap or Neem oil.

BABY BLUE JAYS, MOCKINGBIRDS AND CARDINALS spend a few days on the ground being fed by their parents before they are able to fly. You don't have to rescue them, unless the parents are not attending to them. But do put the predatory family dog and cat inside for a few days!

Venture From Your Backyard
Great birding sites include nearby Brazos Bend State Park and the High Island Audubon Sanctuary. With wildflowers blooming and birds migrating, it's hard to know whether to look up or down! Russ Pitman Park in Bellaire offers a diverse habitat that attracts birds and birders, especially during spring and fall migration. It earned a place on the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, right here in the middle of the city!