What Is an Egg? A Tiny Miracle of Nature
A Tiny Miracle of Engineering At the Los Gatos Birdwatcher, we spend our time talking with customers about backyard birds, wild bird feeding, and the joy of birdwatching in Los Gatos and beyond. But behind every chickadee, hummingbird, or grosbeak you see at your feeder begins something extraordinary: an egg. A bird’s egg is one […]
Why Birds Like Hot Pepper Bird Food (and Why Squirrels Hate It)
One of the most common questions we hear in the store is, “Won’t hot pepper bird seed burn the birds’ mouths?” The short answer is: No. Birds can’t taste the heat from hot peppers at all. And that’s exactly why hot pepper–treated bird seed and suet work so well. The Science: Birds vs. Mammals The […]
Black Squirrels: Variation of the Eastern Gray Squirrel in Los Gatos
If you’ve recently spotted a black squirrel in your yard or neighborhood and thought, “What is that species?” you’re not alone. We’ve had many customers asking about these squirrels and why they seem to be showing up more often around Los Gatos. The short answer is they’ve been here for decades and love suburban environments.. […]
Cranes and Conservation: What You Might Not Know about Sandhill Cranes in California
Each autumn, as the seasons change and the snow starts to fall in the far north, a trumpet-like call can be heard for miles across California’s Central Valley–it’s the call of the Sandhill Cranes as they arrive by the thousands. These ancient and elegant birds have captured the hearts of bird lovers, especially Lisa Myers, […]
The Complete History of the Christmas Bird Count
From Shotguns to Spotting Scopes: Dec 14, 2025 –Jan 5, 2026. Did you know the most important bird census in the world began as an alternative to a bird-killing competition? Photo: Buffle Heads by Tony Woo That’s right, before the 20th century, holiday traditions sometimes included the “Christmas Side Hunt,” where people would head into […]