The gift-giving season is fast approaching and the holidays are going to be celebrated a little different this year. Many of us won’t be gathering with family or friends and gift exchanges will likely be done via Canada Post rather than in person. Online purchases will likely be huge this year and shopping early is the best way to ensure your gift arrives on time. 

If you are not sure what to buy the bird lover on your list this year, here are some gift ideas to help with your shopping. 

1. Bird Feeder 

A bird feeder is a great idea gift for any bird lover as it will provide hours of enjoyment. A good quality feeder will last for many years and literally be a gift that keeps on giving. Attracting birds to a backyard is easier than you may think with the right feeder and quality seed. Keeping squirrels off a feeder used to cause great frustration but not anymore with the Squirrel Buster line of feeders. These feeders are designed so that the feed ports close off under the weight of the squirrel if it climbs on the feeder saving you money on seed and ensuring you are only feeding the birds. The Squirrel Buster Plus is an incredibly durable feeder that has attracted many birds to my yard over the years. The large perch ring is designed to attract the beautiful Northern Cardinal but many songbirds including finches, chickadees, woodpeckers, and nuthatches will also visit this feeder. 

I have always loved woodpeckers and watching them in my backyard is something I truly enjoy. After adding a peanut feeder to my yard the number of woodpeckers that visited increased dramatically. This feeder also attracts nuthatches, chickadees, and even Carolina Wrens. 

Offering suet is a great way to provide birds with extra calories needed during the winter months. The same birds that are attracted to the peanut feeder also enjoy suet. I like to offer suet year-round as it provides added energy to birds during the nesting season as well. Starlings can make short work of a suet cake so to deter these birds I use an upsidedown suet feeder. The idea behind this style of feeder is clinging birds such as woodpecker and chickadees will hang upsidedown to feed while non-clinging birds like starlings cannot, again saving you money. 

2. Bird Book

Whether the person on your list is an avid birder or simply enjoys the birds in their yard, a bird book to aid with identification is a great gift. My two favourite books are the Peterson Field Guide To Birds and the New Stokes Field Guide To Birds. The main difference between these two books is the Peterson guide uses illustrations to aid with identification whereas the Stokes guide uses photographs. So which one do you choose? If you are buying the book for a new birder or backyard birder, I would pick the Peterson guide and if it is for someone more advanced I would choose the Stokes guide simply because it offers more help with identifying birds in alternate plumage and hard to identify birds like warblers and shorebirds. 

3. Binoculars   

Choosing binoculars can be incredibly overwhelming. You can spend very little and end up with junk or practically need to take out a second mortgage to buy a top of the line pair. Fortunately, I have found a compact pair I’m quite impressed with that didn’t break the bank. The Nikon Travelite 8 x 25 EX CF are incredibly small and lightweight making them a treat to carry. They can easily be tucked into a coat pocket or backpack for convenient storage. I like the 8 power as I have a hard time holding binoculars steady and anything stronger I find for me really accentuates my shaking. These binoculars are waterproof which is nice if you get caught in a rain shower and the eyecups are adjustable which is a must if you wear glasses. This allows you to keep your glasses on while looking through them.  

4. A 2021 Calendar By Paul Roedding Photography

For the past eight years, my calendars have been a popular gift for bird and nature lovers. This year, I have an incredibly limited number arriving soon and you can pre-order yours now to ensure you get a copy. Calendars are only available through my website and when they’re gone they’re gone I won’t be placing a second order.

Most of the links provided in this post are Amazon links. I am part of the Amazon affiliate program and earn from qualifying purchases; however, I only provide links to products I have purchased with my own money and am comfortable recommending from my experience and satisfaction with them based on their performance and durability. If you are not familiar with the affiliate program all purchases are anonymous as I do not see what was purchased or by who with Amazon sending me a few bucks at no extra cost to you once the item is shipped. Using the links is a simple way you can support me and my photography.

I hope this list helps you with your gift-giving this year. If you have any questions regarding any of the items I’ve suggested please feel free to reach out.

Good birding,
Paul 

* Please note this post contains Amazon affiliate links. You can help support my website by using the above links when you purchase products on Amazon (they send me a few bucks when you do at no additional cost to you). I only provide links to products I have purchased and am satisfied with based on my own experience. Thanks for your support!*