Winter is when most bird feeder operators do their thing.

Snow and colder temperatures make the birds hungrier. And while the golf clubs are stashed in the closet, and the fishing pole is on the rack, watching wild critters flit about the yard is a good way to ease the January doldrums.

Feeding birds is one of the most popular outdoor activities in the country.

A skier glides along the Loppet Trail that starts at the Meacham Divide parking lot and ends at Loppet Point. Observer photos/PHIL BULLOCK

It is just what the Blue Mountain Nordic Club ordered.

And local skiers will be the beneficiaries this weekend.

COLORFUL SPECIMEN: Evening grosbeaks will likely be spotted during the 33rd annual Union County Christmas Bird Count Sunday. Photo/JIM WARD

That is why Sunday they will make another gallant attempt to conduct the 33rd annual Union County Christmas Bird Count. The count was originally scheduled for Dec. 21 but had to be canceled because of extremely poor weather.

People interested in participating in Sunday’s bird count should come to the Bobolink, a La Grande birding supply store at 1102 Washington Ave., to pick up a packet of materials for the event.

The haze of history sometimes obscures controversy.

The highly publicized elk shipped to Wallowa County from Wyoming in March 1912 is an example. Many accounts about the transplant today celebrate the event.

And for good reason.

Mitchell Henry stands between two of the 14 signs he made for the Tule Lake Public Access Area. Submitted photo

Fourteen redwood signs have been constructed and installed at the public access area by Mitchell Henry, a La Grande High School senior. The signs replaced paper ones previously posted at the popular bird-watching site.

“This is a huge addition,’’ said Cathy Nowak, an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist based at the Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area.

Mitch Workinger of La Grande started calling for ducks and geese 2 1/2 years ago. Mitch is a seventh-grader at La Grande Middle School. Observer photos/DICK MASON

This may come as news to Mitch’s neighbors in north La Grande.

“People think ducks and geese are flying in all the time (to the Workinger family’s backyard),’’ said Shirley Rogers, Mitch’s grandmother.

Compact in size, the 422-page book is 6 by 4.5 inches.

Follow the bouncing ball.

The reason is lyrical: western screech owls are known for their characteristic “bouncing ball’’ song.

Chad Carlson of Island City has hunted geese for about 16 years. He is shown here with geese he took with the help of two decoys. - Submitted photo

And possibly their foot speed.

Duck and goose hunting seasons open Saturday in much of Eastern Oregon including Union and Wallowa counties. The season officially begins at sunrise, 6:37 a.m. This time, however, is not the focus of many people who hunt waterfowl at the popular Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area.

The Gregorian calendar, the one most widely used in the world, lists Sept. 21 as the first day of fall.

However, in the hearts of many sportsmen the day of autumn’s true coming out party is Oct. 4 — the opening of deer buck rifle season in Northeast Oregon.

Saturday represents a seasonal rite of passage. Hunters in Union and Wallowa counties will celebrate more than tradition Saturday They will also celebrate promising hunting conditions.

This bull moose was photographed Wednesday in the Lookout Mountain area north of Elgin by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Pat Matthews of Enterprise. - ODFW/PAT MATTHEWS

Will there ever be a moose hunting season in Northeast Oregon?