Superb Owl week - Get it?

  

A Snowy Owl sits on a car tire near New Haven, Conn.

    Comedian Stephen Colbert is using the Superb-Owl technique to avoid an NFL copyright infringement on his talk show, and I'm hitching a ride just because it's bird related. So there.
   Anyway, let's talk owls. Owls aren't likely to show up at our feeding stations unless it's dawn or dusk, and an owl likes the squirrels on the menu. But one particular owl has created a bit of a buzz lately. Snowy Owls have come south recently, a few even reported here in North Carolina. Of course, whenever I try to chase down any of these rare sightings, it's like burning gas for nothing. The birds never hang around long enough for me. The couple of trips I've made recently have come to naught.
   You may have seen a Snowy Owl, particularly if you live farther north. Oh, you'd know it if you saw one. Snowy Owls are bigger than our more-common Great Horned Owl, and they're white. If you've seen the Harry Potter movies, you know what I'm talking about. There's nothing in the U.S. that looks quite like a Snowy Owl. And don't expect one to show up in your yard - unless your yard is in the middle of a huge, flat, open field. They like open spaces, because they're used to hunting in the vast open tundra of Canada and Alaska. They rarely migrate any farther south than Canada, but this winter has been different, and experts aren't sure why. They think it might have something to do with the population of Lemmings; that's what Snowy Owls generally feed on when they're on their home turf. Nevertheless, Snowy Owls have been showing up at airports and in coastal areas much farther south this year. It's what birders call an irruption. No, not eruption - irruption. It's when species suddenly grow in number in a certain area.
  Snowy Owls aren't the most likely subjects for winter irruptions at our feeders. That goes to crossbills, grosbeaks and the like. I've had Pine Siskins in my yard on a couple of winters, but that's about the most unusual observation.
  You probably won't have a Snowy Owl visit, but you should keep an eye out for unusual species, particularly in this cold winter.
   Since I haven't posted recently, here's a list of the species I've seen this week:
(conditions cold and snowy)
 
Northern Cardinal
Dark-eyed Junco
House Finch
Northern Mockingbird
American Goldfinch
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Wren
Blue Jay
White-throated Sparrow
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Pine Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Brown Thrasher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker

Why Carolina Chickadee?

         Ever wonder how birds got their common names?
         No?
         Well I do. So sit down, shut up and take this lesson … and like it.
         Now by common names, I mean Field Sparrow, as opposed to the Latin name Spizella pusilla, which the ornithologist types like to toss around to make us think they know something.
      I’ll discuss birds most of us see at our feeders each day.
       Some birds are named by appearance or color. Cardinal – that’s obvious.  Then there’s Red-winged Blackbird, Blue Jay and so on. Grosbeaks have big thick bills. Then there are habits and habitats. House Sparrows and House Finches like to live around structures. It is not unusual to find one of their nests in a hanging plant on your porch. Some birds are named for the calls or sounds they make. Take the Mourning Dove – that’s a kind of sad song, right? And listen to a chickadee sometime – “chicka-dee-dee-dee.”
      But there’s a Black-capped Chickadee that most of you see up north. Then there’s a Carolina Chickadee, which looks much like the Black-capped, but lives down south. Why Carolina? Why not Florida Chickadee or Southern Chickadee?
      First of all, many American species were named for – or by - early naturalists. You have the western birds, Lewis’s Woodpecker and Clark’s Nutcracker, named for – you guessed it – the early American explorers.
      Back in the 1830s, our boy John James Audubon hung out with a preacher named John Bachman (Bachman’s Sparrow) from Charleston, S.C.  Now this was back before lenses and photography had been refined enough to capture images like we can today. How did Audubon get all of those detailed images on paper? I mean it’s not like he could get them to pose. So the best way for Audubon to get a good close look at birds was to shoot them and bring them back home for study – and painting. He’d often skin the birds and stuff them, then pin them on a board for his paintings. Sounds brutal, but this was a time before Americans had little notion of conservation or preservation because of the sheer abundance of most species. I referred to this in a previous post about the sad story of the Passenger Pigeon.
      Audubon and Bachman would go out with their trusty shotguns and, when they saw or heard a species of interest, they’d shoot them. Some years earlier Audubon had painted an image of a chickadee he had killed in one of his Louisiana expeditions. He named it a Black-cap Titmouse (titmice and chickadees are from the same family – Paridae. Don’t ask) and sent it up for his Birds of America publication. But while he was in South Carolina, he and Bachman were talking about chickadees one day when Bachman noted how big Black-capped Chickadees were up north. Audubon recalled being shown a specimen from the north that was also particularly large. So Audubon sent for some specimens from buddies up in Boston and Baltimore. In the meantime he and Bachman when out chickadee hunting.
     When they got the specimens together, they discovered that they were two different birds. Just in time, too, because Birds of America was about to go to press, and Audubon had to send word to England to get his Louisiana bird’s name changed. It appeared as “The Lesser black-headed Titmouse: Parus Caroliniensis,” which we now know as the Carolina Chickadee.  The important thing is that Audubon and Bachman were the first to differentiate the two species, and the name Carolina Chickadee evolved from the place where the species was first officially ID’d. The Carolina Wren naming was a similar story.
     In case you’re wondering, I got most of this stuff from a book called Had I the Wings: The Friendship of Bachman and Audubon, by Jay Shuler.  It offers lots of interesting facts about how Audubon went about his work and things he saw that we will never see. There are six species in Birds of America that are now extinct.
      You see the names of Audubon, Bachman, Wilson, Harris and others, tagged to bird names in your bird guide because these were the pioneers of ornithology in the U.S. They were the ones who first discovered and named species that Europeans had never seen.
      Here endeth the lesson.
       I ran out of my regular bird seed, so here are the species who took interest in the suet, leftover rice, apple slices, bread and peanut butter I offered today:

(PM, sunny, 45 degrees, 20 minutes)

Northern Cardinal
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Blue Jay

The Sons of Anarchy move in

A flock of Red-winged Blackbirds dropped in on the feeding station the other day and sparked a turf war with the Mourning Doves.

   That’s how I think of things with the birds in my backyard – one big battle over turf. Just like gangs in our streets.
   You have the blackbird gangs – the starlings, grackles, Red-winged Blackbirds. They’re like motorcycle gangs; every now and then they swoop in, take what they want, then move on. The Red-winged Blackbirds soon came an agreement with the doves the other day. The doves took the ground territory while the blackbirds took over the tube feeder. So Sons of Anarchy.
   But the Mourning Dove gang pretty much owns this block. They’re like The Sopranos. They have the numbers and muscle control things. And they like to hang out under the feeders, like Tony’s crew did at the restaurant.
   Then there is the cardinal gang. They’re more like the traditional Mafia network. They’re snappy dressers who flit in and own whatever feeder they like as long as they’re around.
   The Blue Jay crew is a raucous bunch that try to scare everyone around. But they’re more like the Reservoir Dogs crew – robbers who storm in when their favorite fare – peanuts - are in for the taking. They pick out these jewels and take off.
    Then you have the phony mayor. That would be the mockingbird. He tries to act like he has control over the whole domain, but everyone knows he’s helpless against the gangs.
   Caught in between all of this gang stuff are the honest, hard-working smaller birds, the chickadees, titmice, wrens and sparrows. They just scratch out a living, coming and going, getting what they can until the bigger gang birds show up.
   The woodpeckers mind their own business. The juncos and finches are like tourists passing through and watching their backs the whole way.
   Then, of course, there are the cops – the hawks. They spy on the scene and wait until just the right time to move in. Everyone scatters when 5-0 shows up, and pity the poor soul who is too slow to escape.
    That’s my backyard street scene. Not much bloodshed, because everyone knows his place. Nevertheless, it’s an entertaining series of episodes I don’t want to miss.

Here’s the lineup from today:

(PM, 75 degrees, partly cloudy, 30 minutes)

Carolina Wren
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-throated Sparrow
Brown-headed Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Red-bellied Woodpecker
American Goldfinch
Blue Jay

A tale of two birds

     I think of two birds when I think of the first Thanksgiving.
     First is the Passenger Pigeon. I surmise that Passenger Pigeons were part of that first

Thanksgiving meal, because these birds were once so prevalent in America’s skies and were a good source of food for people. History tells us that Passenger Pigeon flocks were once so big that they would darken the sky. So they were frequently hunted by Native Americans and new Americans alike.  Up until about 1900, people netted them and shot them regularly with no notion that the species could ever be in danger. But the combination of hunting and habitat destruction all added up to a once-abundant species simply vanishing. The timing wasn’t too good for Passenger Pigeons because until the 20^th Century, people weren’t too concerned about things like conservation and preservation of species.
      The timing was a little better for the Wild Turkey. These birds were once abundant in America,

too. So they could well have been part of the first Thanksgiving meal. Of course, turkey has been the traditional plate of the holiday ever since. But the fate of the Wild Turkey could easily have been that of the Passenger Pigeon had we not paid attention to the dwindling numbers of these birds. It was in the early part of the 20^th Century that people began noticing the decline of the species, and by the 1940s the situation was so dire that conservationists began trapping and moving the birds to more favorable habitats. Now, thanks to those conservation efforts, hunting regulation and licensing, and organizations such as the National Wild TurkeyFederation, these grand birds have become a healthy and prosperous lot once again.
     For those of us who live in suburbs, seeing a Wild Turkey would be rare. But for people who live in rural areas, it is not uncommon for Wild Turkeys to stroll into their yards and even snatch food from their platform feeders. I passed a home in the North Carolina mountains once, and saw three Wild Turkeys on their deck!
    So the return of the Wild Turkey is something we can all be thankful for.
    I don’t expect to see a Wild Turkey in my yard any time soon. But here is what I did see today:

(AM, partly cloudy, 52 degrees, 20 minutes)

Carolina Chickadee
Northern Cardinal
White-throated Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Mourning Dove
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Dark-eyed Junco             

 

 

When suet isn't suet

  My nephew e-mailed me the other day with a problem. It went something like this:
- Squirrel knocks down suet
- Little terrier gets into suet
- Dog poop everywhere
   So I suggested to him a recipe for a suet without the suet. Suet is beef fat, and that's what the pup likes.
   Since winter is coming on, and homemade suet works better in cold weather, I'll offer a couple of recipes here, one without the beef fat.
   I generally don't suggest making your own suet because it is so messy,
and store-bought suet is cheap and adequate. But you can come up
with ingredients that vary from the store-bought kind, and your birds may
like it better.

Here's a recipe for suet without the beef fat:

• Take some crunchy peanut butter and mix in some bird seed - mixed and/or sunflower.
• Add some grits (for southern birds!) or corn meal, and then some raisins or berries. 
•  I like to put a little honey in mine, but you can put in brown sugar, table sugar or molasses to sweeten it up.
• Mix it and form it into a mold to fit your suet cage. I use one of those Tupperware sandwich containers, but you can also use the bottom of a 1/2-gallon juice or milk carton. You might want to line it with waxed paper to prevent sticking.
• Cover and put it in the freezer overnight.
• Serve

For the suet with beef fat:

•  Get some beef fat from your butcher, or use trimmings from your own cuts of meat.
•  Cut it up into small squares - running it through a grinder is even  better.
• Cook it down to as close to liquid as possible, but BE CAREFUL NOT TO SCORCH IT - it will smoke and smell up the joint. You can do this in a pan or even in a microwave on a lower setting.
• Then mix it with the peanut butter and the other stuff above, and freeze it like above.

    As I have said before, birds eat most anything, so the combinations of
ingredients are almost endless. Some people put in flour or bread crumbs,
dried fruit, leftover rice, chopped nuts, oats, cereal, eggshells ... the list goes on and on.
    But suet of any type gives birds extra energy they need, particularly in winter.
Here's what I saw today:
(AM, sunny, 42 degrees, 20 minutes)
White-throated Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Carolina Wren
Northern Cardinal
Carolina Chickadee
Blue Jay
Tufted Titmouse
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird

Is Woodstock skating on your bird bath?

 

   November is usually the driest month of the year. Windy too. That means our
bird baths dry up in a hurry, so it's good to keep an eye on them and make sure they
stay in water.
  For people up north, November means something else: the first freezes set in as
precursors to a winter of frozen bird baths.
  The best solution for an icy bird bath is is a heater. We folk here in da South kinda snicker at the notion of a heater for a bird bath. "Oh my, what'll they think of next." Our idea of ice is the wiper sticking to the car windshield. At the first forecast of snow, we flock to the stores like a bunch of doomsday preppers. But then, we don't play ice hockey on our ponds and lakes down here.
   So, a bird-bath heater is the best way to go if you live where hard freezes are the
norm. You can buy these things for as little as $20, but the high-end hot-tub versions
go for up to $100. And they're usually plug-in deals, so you have to use a drop-cord
and all that.

Here are other options to consider:

•  Move the bath out of the shade and into the sun.
•  Use a black trash bag as a liner - it absorbs heat.
•  Just clean the birth bath and put it away - birds often don't like to bathe in water during the coldest weather, since the water can freeze up on their feathers.
•  Some birds like to take dust baths, so a small pile of loose sand in the yard might be good.

  If you have one of those garden fountains or some sort of drip device, just keep an eye on it for the coldest temps.
  Of course, bathing isn't the only reason for a bird bath. Birds need to drink, too,
which makes the heater option the best. If you don't want to do any of that, just take
something like a Frizbee or one of those flat bottoms to a potted plant and put it out
each day.
  I live in eastern North Carolina, so I rarely need more than an ice pick and a little
warm water, even on the coldest days. But this year I'm gonna try one of those shallow black dishes you get with a microwave meal at the store, and just put it in the middle of the bath to absorb heat.
  A water source is always an attraction for birds, so it is good to have something out there.
Here's what I saw in my yard today:
(AM, sunny, 47 degrees, 30 minutes)
Carolina Wren
Carolina Chickadee
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Tufted Titmouse
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Northern Mockingbird
Mourning Dove

Getting back to normal

   The sparrows have returned. A couple of Chipping Sparrows showed up about a week ago, and a couple of days later a beautiful White-throated Sparrow was at the platform feeder on my deck.
   As luck would have it, my computer was down with a virus and I couldn't relay this stuff to you right away. My little baby was whisked away to CPU ICU UFN. But now she's back and humming away as usual.
    It's like the end of the world around here when the computer goes down. I only use one unit, so I'm lost without it. I can't get to my work, my bank account, my email, my porn sites ... it's a downright disaster. I was doing stuff like house-cleaning last week! And TV. A mall shooting a day on CNN. I bet I put in four hours of CSPAN - now THAT'S depressing. Oh yes, and I started into "Call me Ishmael ..." I can't wait to get to the whaling chapters. Well, yes I can ... and will.

"I really could put it down!"

                     -  Webster Lupton
                       Birds In The Yard

    Anyhow, the presence of the sparrows and the absence of any hawk sightings tell me I may have sparrows back as regulars for the first time in weeks. White-throated Sparrows are winter visitors in the South. They are one of the few backyard birds that sing in the winter; you'll know the song when you hear it. The Dark-eyed Juncos have appeared here also, and together they indicate that the fall migration is nearly complete.
    If the Song Sparrows and Field Sparrows show, I may have a normal winter. I'm also going to put out a fruitier version of suet to see if I can get more woodpeckers.
    Here are the species that visited while my computer was down:
Northern Cardinal
House Finch
Carolina Chickadee
Dark-eyed Junco
Chipping Sparrow
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Northern Mockingbird
White-throated Sparrow
Mourning Dove
Carolina Wren
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Tufted Titmouse