My EcoBirder Life
BIRDS
Oh! Happy DAY!
I couldn't call myself The Crazy Bird Lady if I didn't get cra cra excited when new birds come to the habitat. Eastern Kingbirds are a rare visitor, and to have a committed PAIR visit....well, let's just say I was VERY excited to see them. From their behavior, I really think they were househunting. Eastern Kingbirds will sometimes nest in cavities, and wouldn't it have been
exciting if they'd chosen one of the houses I put up for the Great Crested
Flycatchers?! Alas, they seem to have moved on as quickly as they came, but what a treat it was to see them. My favorite birds to watch are those that "hawk" from perches to catch insects, and the Kingbirds are so lovely when they do this, flairing out their tails and wings in a way that always makes me think of butterflies. :o)
What a treat to see this pair of Cedar Waxwings high in the wild cherry tree, courting! They hopped back and forth on the branch, close then apart, and passed an unripe cherry back and forth in classic bird "kissing."
species SPOTLIGHT
Indigo Bunting
It's always a thrill when a male Indigo Bunting comes to visit. The first time I ever had one here, I saw it was eating the seedheads of Bristlegrass, so, of course, I decided to devote an area just to Bristlegrass and birdseed volunteers. It worked like a charm, and I have had buntings visit that area every year since. Many other birds enjoy the birdseed volunteers, such as Cardinals and Mourning Doves. During the winter, this area is also the favorite spot of White-Throated Sparrows and Juncos.
I've also found that Indigo Buntings are attracted to the color blue, so having a bright blue birdbath or feeder is also something you could try, but the main thing that attracts them are tall weeds and grasses with lots of tasty seeds.
In the fall the females and juveniles come through, and are easy to overlook since they will be brown. Some will have a bit of blue on them, which will not show up on a photograph! The females are gorgeous in their own right though--a beautiful cinnamon color, with such sweet faces. Definitely one of my favorite birds of summer!
Who's that hiding in the Bristle- grass and bird seed volunteers?
Gray Catbird. Noticed that this bird does not have rust-colored coverts, so I think it's a first-year female.
Gray Catbird
Long before you ever see them, you'll hear the Gray Catbird mewing and singing in the shadows. They are such fun birds to have in the habitat, and if you are lucky enough to have the sames ones return from year to year, they will become less shy and stop hiding in the bushes. Mine follow me around the yard. One year it got to be too much, actually! Everywhere I went, mewing followed! I have at least 3 pairs nesting here; I think the habitat I've created is just what they like--a little bit of woods, with thickets spaced out around it, and LOTs of fruiting trees and bushes. If you put out oranges for orioles, don't be surprised if they eat them all up, and the grape jelly too! Wild grape seems to be a must-have for them--they show a preference for it when choosing a nesting area, and also will stay in the fall until every last grape has been eaten. They nest fairly low (5 ft or less) in the thickets here, always where the grape vines can help hide their nests. Their days here are spent hunting insects, and I help them by having lots of perching scattered all around the yard. I will, for instance, leave shovels and pitchforks standing in the gardens. They like to perch on the handles, which seem to be at just the right height for them. They don't tend to perch higher than about 20 ft in a tree.
Now THAT's a bird! Beautiful male Rose Breasted Grosbeak.
Rose Breasted Grosbeak
After having a female visit a few days ago, I didn't dare hope to see a male, but I'm so thrilled one has visited. I make a note in my bird journal every year when they pass through, so I can be sure to stock the feeder with black-oil sunflower seeds--both whole and chips. They will rarely visit unless food is present, and they need the energy after migrating from their wintering grounds in Central and South America, and the West Indies. They nest in a large portion of the United States and Canada, in both deciduous trees and conifers. One fascinating thing about them you might not know is that in addition to having that gorgeous rosy-pink breast, the males also have large pink splotches on their underwings. Females have yellow to yellow-orange splotches also. Like many other birds, they are a huge fans of Mulberries, so if you are lucky enough to be in an area where they nest, you can draw them in for frequent visits by planting a Mulberry tree in your habitat. Red Mulberry is native to most states, but there is a non-native white variety that won't leave stains everywhere. Young trees can be cut back into bushes for your thicket areas.
Carolina Wrens are a fixture here in the habitat.
Carolina Wren
"It's 10 a.m., and all is well!!" I call the Carolina Wrens the town criers of the yard. It truly seems as if they are reporting on the status of everything in the yard when they perch on the fence posts and begin singing. They are such perky, friendly birds too, often following me around as I garden, excited to see if I've unearthed a treat for them. They aren't afraid to come inside with you either, I've found! They are often in the garage or breezeway, which I learned the hard way years ago. I had a sticky fly strip hanging in the breezeway and later found a wren hopelessly stuck to it. I now know to use Boiled Linseed Oil in this situation, followed by a good bath with dishwashing liquid. This also works on glue traps, but the best thing, of course, is not to use these traps if you have Carolinas around. They almost seem to seek them out, even when you think you've hidden the trap where only a mouse or vole could find it. Carolinas also nest in some pretty odd places. The spare tire that hung on the back of our RV was a favorite spot. I've also heard of them nesting in grills, so be sure to check inside before firing one up for the first time this summer. A hanging plastic flower pot, filled with white pine straw and topped with some leaves is also a favorite of mine here. They will nest right on your porch and provide hours of entertainment and education for children.
White-Throated Sparrow blending in except for his headlights. :o)
One of the male Northern Cardinal fledglings that live in the yard.
Male Chipping Sparrow calling for a mate in early spring.
White-Throated Sparrow
Saying goodbye to the birds that have spent the winter here is always bittersweet. White-Throated Sparrows brighten up the dreary winter days, singing of their home--Oh Sweet Canada! They are one of my favorite birds because after spending all those months with me, they are very accepting of my presence and will simply go about their business when I'm out in the yard. I usually have around two dozen in the winter, evenly divided between the tan-striped and the white. Did you know that a mating pair is usually one of each? They nest all throughout Canada, as do millions and millions of songbirds each year. We can help preserve their habitat by buying paper products made from recycled materials, and by providing thickets for them to overwinter safely.
Northern Cardinal
I noticed this morning that one of my female Cardinals is losing all her head feathers to molt. While unattractive to us, it is a normal yearly regrowth of new feathers, and I actually found it to be quite helpful in telling the nesting pairs apart. I had three nesting pairs with the females showing varying degrees of baldness. Each pair successfully fledged a male and female, and it has been a delight to watch them grow up all winter long. The young all stayed together during the winter, and have now mostly departed to find their own nesting areas.
I don't put out as much bird food as I used to, but I do enjoy putting out a treat just for the cardinals. Cardinals are one of the last birds to roost for the night, and they will quickly learn to come to the feeders at dusk if you are fairly consistent putting out the seed at that time. I usually put out the commercial "Cardinal Mix" that includes black oil sunflower seed and safflower seed.
Chipping Sparrow
A true sign that spring is here, the Chipping Sparrows have arrived to nest at the habitat. Wintering in Mexico and Florida, they migrate throughout North America to breed, and are a species with a secure population in the millions. Their favorite tree to nest in here is the White Pine, the needles of which are my preferred material to put in the Purple Martin compartments for nesting. Chippers make an amazing nest using only horsetail hairs! It is fascinating to me how birds have adapted to use the natural materials that are around them.
Chipping Sparrow nests are sometimes predated by Cowbirds, and it is a disconcerting sight to see a tiny Chipper mother feeding what looks like a giant. Cowbirds are native, and therefore a protected species, so it is not legal to intervene, although many people do. I feel it is not necessary, though, because Chippers have enough time each summer to nest more than once. Many birds nest multiple times each summer, and their early nests often fail for a variety of reasons, but they are usually successful with their next attempt.
"more species coming soon"
Bird Houses: It's Complicated
I have a love/hate relationship with bird houses. All too often, I see bird houses in yards that have non-native birds nesting in them, such as House Sparrows or European Starlings. These invasive birds are much more aggressive than our native species of cavity nesters, such as Bluebirds, Flickers, Chickadees, Titmouses, and Purple Martins. When we put up houses for our native species, we are purposefully inviting them into our lives, and with that comes the responsibility to do everything we can to keep them safe.
Fancy, decorative houses are most often unsuitable for birds to actually use, especially the elaborate ones with multiple holes. Each cavity-nesting songbird has specific housing needs. Research must be done to learn what size entrance hole they use, the correct size of the house, what month they begin nesting, where the house pole should be located, etc. Keep a bird journal of arrival dates so you will know when to put the houses up, and keep the entrances blocked until they do arrive. You can track the arrivals of neotropical birds, such as Great Crested Flycatchers or Purple Martins, by typing the species name in the search bar here http://ebird.org/ebird/map/ Zoom into your area enough to see where they have been reported just south of you. This is when housing should be opened up. No non-native bird should ever be allowed to claim a bird house, even if it means taking the house down. House Sparrows and Starlings begin looking for nests in late winter, and once the male claims a house, they will fight to the death to keep it, so it is of the utmost importance to take housing down or completely cover it during the fall and winter.
Most importantly, be realistic. If you live in the center of a town or city, for instance, the likelihood of attracting Bluebirds is practically non-existent. What you will attract, however, is House Sparrows. In the years since my sleepy, little town began growing, I have seen an explosion in the populations of both House Sparrows and Starlings. If you have housing up that has been taken over by these birds, native birds will never be able to nest there, and also consider that these non-native birds will be using up valuable resources and available food that our native songbirds need to survive, especially in winter.
It is, as you can see, complicated. Too complicated? Just want to put up a
house and see pretty birds nest in it? You're in luck! The best "starter" bird
is the Chickadee. Chickadees are pretty much the most adorable bird on
the planet, and when you buy their specific house, it comes with a tiny
1 1/8" hole that no Sparrow or Starling can enter. Existing houses can be
modified quite easily by purchasing a metal entrance plate, such as this
one: http://www.duncraft.com/Portal-Protector-1-1-8. With a Chickadee
house, the only species that may try to take it over is the House Wren. If
Chickadees have not claimed the house by the time the wrens migrate
into your area, you can then either take the house down or plug the hole
and try again next year. I do not recommend allowing House Wrens to
nest in your housing. House Wrens are cute, and native, but their
population has grown beyond what Nature intended due to people buying
all the inexpensive houses at big-box stores and putting them up in their
yards. (Yes, I did that too, years ago before I knew better.) Male House
Wrens will frequently poke holes in the eggs of birds nesting nearby, as
one did to my Chickadees this year.
Final thought: If you already have decorative bird houses up in your habitat that have been or are in danger of being taken over by House Sparrows or Starlings, but you don't want to take them down, the remedy is to permanently block the entrance holes so that the house becomes completely decorative but non-functioning. If the house has a side or bottom panel that opens, you can screw or glue a piece of wood over the hole from the inside. Paint the side that will show through the hole black, or use a permanent marker to color it from the outside. Light-weight balsam wood circles can be purchased at any crafts store for this purpose also. Use wood glue so that the repair is weather-resistant.
Eco-birding and eco-responsibility are not always fun topics to discuss, but it is so important to our native birds. We must be their champions and their guardians in a world where the odds now so often seem stacked against them. Populations of all songbirds have been declining dramatically for years. "What's nesting in YOUR yard?" should be a question you can answer with the certainty that you are indeed helping only our beautiful, native songbirds to once again fill our skies and our lives with joy.
Chickadee nest predated by House Wrens. The eggs have been "pinned" by a male.