Where are the Winter Birds?
Have you noticed that the number of birds visiting your yard each winter seems to fluctuate year to year? Some years it may seem that you have an abundance of birds, making it difficult to keep feeders stocked, while other years seem much more manageable. What you might be experiencing is called an irruption – a sharp, irregular movement of birds to an area where they aren’t normally found. While this may seem unusual, it’s more common than you might think.
A Wide Variety of Birds Can Have Irruptions »
Service Employees Work with Partners to Combat Fire at the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: Blaine Inglis/USFWS
Service Employees Fight Wildfires at Home and Abroad
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fire management professionals work tirelessly to rapidly extinguish wildfires throughout the National Wildlife Refuge System. In 2019, Service staff committed over 155,000 hours to wildland fire response and all-hazard risk management, treating 183,000 acres for hazardous fuels reduction through prescribed fire and mechanical treatments. The Service also continues to support ongoing efforts to combat the catastrophic wildfires in Australia. Since December, seven Service firefighters have deployed along with more than 140 from other Department of the Interior bureaus and the U.S. Forest Service.
Members of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., commemorate a visit to Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge in Connecticut.
Try Nature. It’s Good for You.
Getting outdoors in nature — on national wildlife refuges, for example — can improve your peace of mind and physical well-being. Many refuges are working with their communities to strengthen that health-and-nature connection.
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