Naturally
 Birds teach me to listen.
 I heard geese. Canada geese too young to breed, along with those that lost nests early in the breeding season, undertake a molt migration in late May and early June. They fly to northern and subarctic areas where they molt their flight feathers and spend the summer. They migrate back In September and October.
 I ran outside to fill the bird feeders. I scurried like a carhop hoping for a big tip. I checked the nyjer seed feeders. Goldfinches love this seed (once commonly called thistle seed) native to Ethiopia. It's sterilized by heat treatment to deter the germination of noxious weeds. This shortens its life, making the seed vulnerable to spoilage. It spoils like milk. Nyjer contains natural high-calorie oils. When the oils dry, the seed loses food value and flavor, and is shunned by birds. Replace nyjer seed every month if it's not being eaten. Nyjer seed stays fresh for as long as three months, so buy it in amounts you'll use in that time.
 A monarch butterfly polished my day. I love seeing monarchs any time, but they're particularly good to see in May.
 I went for a walk. I listened closely. A noisy killdeer hobbled by on crutches. The killdeer feigned having a broken wing, dragging its bad wing while calling loudly. This display is meant to draw me away from its nest. Why would a hungry predator like me want measly little eggs when I could have a plump bird like her? The killdeer's nest was a scrape in the gravel. The eggs blended in with their background.
 A yellow warbler called. The mnemonic is "sweet sweet sweet I’m so sweet." Collective nouns for this species are a trepidation or sweetness. A red-eyed vireo sang a series of slurred notes sounding as if it were counting the leaves. Perhaps it asks a question and then answers it. We've all done that.
 I watched a ditch mallard stand on one leg. That probably felt good after a long day and isn't unlike me putting my feet up on my desk.
 A red-winged blackbird launched a vigorous attack on a crow. The crow was likely relieved its attacker wasn't a great horned owl. Owls and crows make the Hatfields and McCoys look like best friends. I found a headless crow years ago. An owl probably ate the head. Brains are nutritious and are relatively easy to get at through the thinner bones of the skull. The juncture between head and body on birds is a weak one. The head can be removed quickly, leaving an opening into the upper torso, and allowing easy access to organ meats without needing to pulling off many feathers first.
Q&A
 Donna Stolaas of Glenville asked how common scarlet tanagers are in Minnesota. They're a regular breeding resident and migrant. They are broadly distributed, but are most abundant in the north-central region of the state where they utilize mature upland forest habitats.
 "How about some bird movies to watch?" The most famous is Alfred Hitchcock's classic     horror story, "The Birds." It's not my favorite. "The Big Year, "Rare Birds," "The Birder," "Winged Migration," "March of the Penguins," "The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos," "Ghost Bird," "A Birder's Guide to Everything," "The Bird Men," and "The Love God" starring Don Knotts as a publisher of a birding magazine. I didn't include series like "The Life of Birds" or animated films.
 "Do you know of an online store offering birding binoculars? I'm not interested in cameras." Redstart Birding at https://redstartbirding.com. Phone: 833-262-1568. Email: info@redstartbirding.com
 "Why don't you capitalize bird names in your column?" A yellow warbler might make a case for capitalizing bird names. There is a species named the yellow warbler and there are yellow warblers, which are warblers that are yellow, but any confusion can be handled with careful writing. Capitalization is generally determined by the style of the publication. Some find capitalizing every common name gives a text a cluttered look. Capitalization in academic papers fits the purpose. An argument can be made for each side, but the AP Style doesn't capitalize.
Thanks for stopping by
 "To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common — this is my symphony." — William Henry Channing
 "I think if you listen closely In the sweet, glad days of spring, With the song of the brook, the breeze and the birds, You can hear the flowers sing." — Helen Isabel Moorhouse 
 Do good.

© Al Batt 2020