Enough About Birds, already....

     No more birds for awhile, I promise. This dude and his faithful dog are in the OFH for a few days. Why? Inquiring minds ask. To attend a family even on Sunday.

    Entering the metro area after 6pm I thought would avoid traffic. Traffic screeched to a halt and then oozed along  at a crawl. in the west metro. When finally reaching a dozen emergency vehicle with lights blazing the only issue visible was a highway patrol car stuck in the ditch. It had sunk to the floorboards yet someone was trying to dig it out with a spade. That's not going to work, and only a tow truck will get it out.    

Takk for alt.

Al

Well then...

       While my intention was not fulfilled it wasn't a total loss. Brown Thrashers appear regularly in a tree belt by some grassland. Consequently, it's most likely that they are nesting there. Activating the Merlin Recording App in the area I hoped to record their beautiful song. That was not successful but I did discover two species new to me.

     Those new to me species were a Clay-colored Sparrow and a Warbling Vireo. Also on the recording were these birds; Baltimore Oriole, Yellow Warbler, Brown-headed Cowbird, Robin, Yellow-headed and Red-head Blackbird, Grackle and Canada Goose.

Takk for alt,

Al

   

"The Clay-colored Sparrow's buzzy song is a signature sound of the vast shrublands of the northern prairie and Great Plains."  All About Birds

"Warbling Vireos are fairly plain birds with gray-olive upperparts and white underparts washed with faint yellow. They have a mild face pattern with a whitish stripe over the eye. They stay high in deciduous treetops, where they move methodically among the leaves hunting for caterpillars." All About Birds

Skunk birds!

      Boys make up names for things of which the don't know the nomenclature. That's what we did for the little striped birds that sang to us from the fence lines. Their stripes reminded us of skunks, with which we were very familiar, so we called them 'skunk birds.'  Have you guessed their real name?

   Out in the grassland this morning I saw a 'skunk bird'. They're much  less common now than previously because much of the grass has been plowed under. It pleases me that Bobolinks inhabit my grass. Pulling out my phone and switching on the Merlin Bird recording app I hoped to record it. Yes, it's song soon registered on the app, naturally it was not alone.

   This is what was recorded; Bobolink,  Marsh Wren, Willow Flycatcher, Red-winged Blackbird, Sedge Wren, Pheasant, Common Yellowthroat, and Yellow Warbler. The recording was 90 seconds long to capture all these birds.

Takk for alt,

Al

"The Bobolink is one of the world's most impressive songbird migrants, traveling some 12,500 miles (20,000 kilometers) to and from southern South America every year. " Cornell Lab

"The bobolink is a small New World blackbird and the only member of the genus Dolichonyx. An old name for this species is the "rice bird", from its tendency to feed on cultivated grains during winter and migration." Wikipedia

Bird Obsession!

    The recent blogs about recording birds brought back a memory that may be worth sharing. In October 2024 I travelled with a group to Greece. Much of our time was on the mainland where we visited Athens, the monasteries of  Meteora,  Thessalonica and other places. The trip also included the islands of Santorini and Crete.

   Part of our time on Crete included a farm stay. My accommodations for the farm stay was an outdoor compound. The compound was my reward for being the oldest person in the group. The setting was beautiful but not the best situation for a creaky old man. (See pictures below.)

   Staying in the compound exposed me to birdsong. The trusty Merlin Bird App that I use frequently here is an American product. It is from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.  The question in my mind was if it would work in Greece?  There was one way to find our so I set to recording while in my open air compound. 

  Yes, it worked in Greece!  This is what I recorded;  Great Tit, Eurasian Blackcap, European Robin, Willow Warbler, Common Chatfinch, House Sparrow, Eurasian Magpie, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Eurasian Nuthatch, Gray Wagtail, Eurasian Blue Tit, Spotted Flycatcher, Eurasian Blackbird, and Hooded Crow. A great feature of the app is that the birds sounds can be replayed.

Takk for alt,

Al

Inside my compound, with the shower (cold) and soaking tub in view. 

The bed was comfortable but it was very cold at night.

 

More Birds.

       Today I was working between an abandoned farm site and a low area filled with cattails. The buildings have all been buried so what is left is a nice grove of trees. This offered a recording site with marsh, grassland and mature trees. The air was filled with bird song from all directions. It was a good place to activate the Merlin Bird App and see who was singing.

    This is the list of birds on the recording: Grackle, Goldfinch,  Meadowlark, Mourning Dove, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Savannah Sparrow, House Wren, Sedge Wren, Red-winged Blackbird, and Song Sparrow.  There are nesting boxes, suitable for House Wrens, in the trees so that may account for their presence.

    Prior to the acquisition of the Merlin App I was clueless regarding the wide variety of birds present. Dad was interested in birds and I gained and interest from him. This marvelous app has expanded my knowledge base and gives me much pleasure.

Takk for alt,

Al

"Yellow Warblers are small, evenly proportioned songbirds with medium-length tails and rounded heads. For a warbler, the straight, thin bill is relatively large."  All About Birds

Hawk Sighting!

       The hawk most often seen here is the Red Tailed Hawk.  Seeing a Northern Harrier, aka, Marsh Hawk, today brought back memories from boyhood. These hawks are ground nesters and are seldom seen perched in trees or on poles. The one seen today was acting according to kind, flying low over a pasture searching for mice.

    Our farm had some lowland that tended to be too wet in the spring to work. Dad planted rye there. Rye, like winter wheat, is bi-annual, planted in the fall it sprouts, goes dormant over winter, and grows the next spring and summer.  During harvest of that rye field a hawk nest was spotted and the harvesters managed to avoid it. There were two fledgling hawks in the nest. The nest was moved into a wooden box for protection and the hawk successfully raised her young.

   Perhaps you've heard the old saying "he goes to bed with the chickens", i.e., he goes to bed early as chickens are wont to do.  Chickens on our farm would be heading to the coop in late afternoon and be inside long before dark. There's a flock of free range chickens at the house across the street. Strangely they do not retire early and are busily scratching for food long after sunset. Why are they so untypical? 

Takk for alt,

Al

"Parts of Europe and Asia have several kinds of harriers, but North America has only one. Harriers are very distinctive hawks, long-winged and long-tailed, usually seen quartering low over the ground in open country. At close range, the face of our Northern Harrier looks rather like that of an owl; like an owl (and unlike most other hawks) it may rely on its keen hearing to help it locate prey as it courses low over the fields."  Audubon Society 

Lethal Cold!

      Temperatures have been trending cold since a brief hot spell a few weeks ago. The temperature at night is about 50 degrees and daytimes 60s. Consequently, insects have been slow to hatch. The effect of low insect numbers has been difficulty for birds which feed on them. A neighbor said that many of her Purple Martens had died, likely from malnutrition. They feed on the wing on a feast of flying insects, which have been absent.

    Early hatch pheasant chicks would also be vulnerable. Critical to their early diet are insects that provide the protein they need. The sight of pheasant hens with roosters at this date might suggest the hens are re-nesting.  Each subsequent nest attempt by a hen has fewer eggs.

    Crops are also showing the effects of the cold. The corn and soybeans are barely growing. Corn fields show a yellow cast as the corn responds to the cold.

   Todays bird chorus included; Canada Goose, Blue Winged Teal, American Goldfinch, Sedge Wren, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Yellowthroat, Song Sparrow, Pheasant, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Marsh Wren,  and Western Meadowlark.  A mallard hen was spotted with a large clutch of ducklings newly hatched.

Takk for alt,

Al

"Are Common Yellowthroats rare?  Abundant and well-known, the Common Yellowthroat has succeeded by being a nonconformist. As the only one of our warblers that will nest in open marshes, it is found in practically every reed-bed and patch of cattails from coast to coast." Audubon Society