I dread fall migration. The day the Chimney Swifts leave New York is the day I contemplate throwing myself off the roof, rather than face another dreary winter full of slush oceans and unending darkness. Sure, other birders may lament the loss of warblers, shorebirds, or flycatchers. But for me, Chimney Swifts zipping around overhead, chittering at each other and gobbling insects, is the very definition of summer, and September’s empty skies promise the impending wintertime barrenness of my very soul. Well, I say a pox on all of these literal fair-weather friends. Screw you, warbler. Fie, thrush! Begone you vacillating swifts and swallows! Today I want to celebrate, instead, the birds who will never leave—those birds who will be there during the worst frostbitten January days when it feels like the sun god will never come back. For those who never migrate: We salute you. Mallard Oft overlooked—I admit I’ve forgotten to add them to my eBird lists in the past—but...