Wild Side Ornithology Club

[flacaltenn]

I've got Great Horned and Barred Owls here in abundance every night and the occasional Screech outside by bedroom window in the early morning hours. It can be hard to tell how far away they are because we're in such a valley that sounds have a long long reverberation. But one night I was up way too late watching YouTube, a group of British kids doing their version of a comedy routine and falling out in laughter... then suddenly right outside the window (it was summer) there was a Barred Owl perched and calling in. Apparently the sound of the children giggling attracted it.

Called my wife out to the backyard last night because I was chatting with a Barred Owl that lives in our woods.. I hired him to clean up my mole problem.. He was perched very visibly at the very top of a tree and seemed to be annoyed that I was ruining his access to my mole highways.. I saw him leave, but it was already pretty dark.. We've got 3 diff types of owls in the neighborhood.

This season is getting REAL EXPENSIVE.. I'm going thru seed faster than we're going thru milk and bread. My feeding area has more take-offs and landings than Atlanta Hartsfield.

Some of the "regulars" start to flutter against the windows when they need service.. I feel like a barmaid at Coyote Ugly on N. Years eve.. The Cardinal pairs that own the backyard are real demanding because they don't fit on the feeders. And I have to make sure there's a pile for them on the BBQ. And the woodpeckers come and spray seed around for the ground birds like Towhees and Doves (the busboys of the group, cleaning up the party with the chipmunks)..

Purple finches just showed up --- so SOMEBODY might now eat the millet except the chipmunks. Think we hear goldfinches, but haven't seen any yet.. Mostly Junkos and Titmouse, Jays...

 

[Spoonman]

 

[flacaltenn]

Havent ever seen one that is solely black and white... what specie is that?

 

[Ernie S.]

Downy wood pecker, (female) I believe.

 

[freedombecki]

I've got Great Horned and Barred Owls here in abundance every night and the occasional Screech outside by bedroom window in the early morning hours. It can be hard to tell how far away they are because we're in such a valley that sounds have a long long reverberation. But one night I was up way too late watching YouTube, a group of British kids doing their version of a comedy routine and falling out in laughter... then suddenly right outside the window (it was summer) there was a Barred Owl perched and calling in. Apparently the sound of the children giggling attracted it.

Called my wife out to the backyard last night because I was chatting with a Barred Owl that lives in our woods.. I hired him to clean up my mole problem.. He was perched very visibly at the very top of a tree and seemed to be annoyed that I was ruining his access to my mole highways.. I saw him leave, but it was already pretty dark.. We've got 3 diff types of owls in the neighborhood.

This season is getting REAL EXPENSIVE.. I'm going thru seed faster than we're going thru milk and bread. My feeding area has more take-offs and landings than Atlanta Hartsfield.

Some of the "regulars" start to flutter against the windows when they need service.. I feel like a barmaid at Coyote Ugly on N. Years eve.. The Cardinal pairs that own the backyard are real demanding because they don't fit on the feeders. And I have to make sure there's a pile for them on the BBQ. And the woodpeckers come and spray seed around for the ground birds like Towhees and Doves (the busboys of the group, cleaning up the party with the chipmunks)..

Purple finches just showed up --- so SOMEBODY might now eat the millet except the chipmunks. Think we hear goldfinches, but haven't seen any yet.. Mostly Junkos and Titmouse, Jays...

So you're getting window bumps as reminders, are you? They'll let you know when they're hungry and some other bird is getting all the good stuff somehow. I just sunk some of my retirement into fruit and nuts for the bluebirds. Unfortunately, I have so much else on my plate right now in the laundry room and sewing room I've been a little aloof. I need to move the bird feeder in front of my sewing machine window!

 

[freedombecki]

Oh, Spoonman! She's so beautiful!!! What a sweet little angel you have visiting.

 

[freedombecki]

Downy wood pecker, (female) I believe.

Thanks for pointing out that sexual dimorphism in the little downy peeps, Ernie. A lot of times when we see this astonishingly beautiful bird with a dash of red, or fully blue, there's a little light brown bird hiding in a nest somewhere due to her naturally protective coloring that comes with having to spend so much of her life tending to the feeding of little ones, and in some areas they do 3 clutches or even more per season, so they need to be subtle or be eaten. A lot of predators have a yen for bird eggs, baby bird meat, etc., too, so a lot of the babies look very scruffy when born and don't get the coloration until time, dna, and their diets kick in to differentiate into the fabulous color (or lack of it) we see in so many of the males.

 

[flacaltenn]

Woke up early this morning to light the BBQ for my customers. The big guys are used to feeding from there and its 4 degrees overnight here in the mid south.. Seems like they appreciated that. Particularly the warm water I put up there.. No worries. Nobody got roasted.. Even the front yard mockingbirds showed up. They never socialize at the feeder. Little Downies were eating a warm meal and kept their puffed out chests close to the warm top..

I screwed up tho.. Only have a bit more coal and wood. And im iced in til Wednesday. Might have to sacrifice something in the garage to burn up for them.

 

[Spoonman]

a snowbird earning its name

 

[freedombecki]

Woke up early this morning to light the BBQ for my customers. The big guys are used to feeding from there and its 4 degrees overnight here in the mid south.. Seems like they appreciated that. Particularly the warm water I put up there.. No worries. Nobody got roasted.. Even the front yard mockingbirds showed up. They never socialize at the feeder. Little Downies were eating a warm meal and kept their puffed out chests close to the warm top..

I screwed up tho.. Only have a bit more coal and wood. And im iced in til Wednesday. Might have to sacrifice something in the garage to burn up for them.

Wow, [MENTION=30473]flacaltenn[/MENTION]. What a thoughtful thing to do for feeding time for the birds. Seems a good reason to save burnable junk mail and cardboard boxes for wintertime kindling. Wow. We have a jillion trees around here that we just had to burn after the terrible drought we had in the summer of 2011. I lost a stand of hundred year old pines that were probably a dozen or so 6-foot tall men heights or more. Then we lost three more when we had over 90 days without any rainfall. I'd never seen anything like that in Texas while I was growing up. Now, we have so much rain and cold for 2 winters, the pond is up to its record highs out back, and the birds are aplenty.

Thanks for sharing a trick about birds' comfort I'd never have thought of in a million years.

 

[freedombecki]

a snowbird earning its name

Spoonman, I just now opened this thread for the first time in a week, and thank you for some of the most charming pictures of birds at winter I've ever seen. Is the darkish bird a junco? And the red of the cardinal is an amazing contrast of bird life vs. the drab of winter, the promise of the year to come. And the red-naped woodpecker--that wouldn't have been a red-naped sapsucker would it? I had the thrill of seeing my first yellow-bellied sapsucker this past week after putting some decent birdseed in my porch feeders. Yesterday, I spent an hour on the front porch (or so) just loving the bird activities of some familiar birds and some not known. I saw jays, cardinals, and a cedar waxwing. The shy woodpeckers stayed away while I was out. I hopefully scared away a huge brown hawk or eagle that had a 4- or 5-ft wingspan who was directed toward the porch until he saw me sitting there staring him down, then he lifted and left, but had a mate light in the field (or trainee raptor) shortly after he decided to fly elsewhere.There were little crested blue-grey birds, oh, what's their name? Oh, yes, the titmouse. Probably there were 20 or 30 of them in the vicinity, and they had a different eating pattern than the other birds. Firstly, they were not afraid of the Cardinals. Secondly, they ate until they couldn't eat any more, which took two or 3 minutes of nonstop eating. Then they'd leave, and another one would take its place. I knew they were different, because some of them had smaller crests, were a different size, or had less or more dark feathers showing around the wing and tail area, but all seemed to be titmice. They were unabashed by other birds, and only left when the predatory large bird showed up. Then they were only gone a couple of minutes. There were some sparrows I have no idea their name, and one that reminded me of a thrasher except it seemed to have pinkish tinge to its feathers in flight, so I'm not sure what I was looking at, except the pattern of some birds' feathers when wings are spread is so astonishing to me, I can hardly catch my breath when they display their flying takeoff and landing feathers.

Oh, and those little tiny brown birds. They're not wrens, and I don't think they're sparrows either. I've seen them every year. They're about 2.5-3" in length only, and they are very slender. I have no idea what their name is, but they are regular visitors. They're light brown, nothing fancy except I'm very fond of tiny birds who can live in a world among much larger creatures who'd use them for snacks if they were just a bit bigger.

So much for my musings. Today Bing had pictures of a short-eared owl, and when I binged! short eared owls, I found two male agonists at one website that I thought were most interesting:

Nature isn't kind to the loser. The winner gets prime territory. The loser could just be a younger or smaller male who is inexperienced in territorial warfare, and it's not clear to me whether the specie is one of willingness to try and try again until some kind of territory is won. I gratefully acknowledge Ron Dutton's photographic effort: http://www.featheredphotography.com...c-fighting-behavior-in-male-short-eared-owls/

 

[Spoonman]

yes that is a junko. commonly referred to as a snowbird up here

 

[asaratis]

Berry College - Experience it Firsthand

I hope another follows soon. It will be enlightening to watch the eaglets being fed.

 

[flacaltenn]

Woke up early this morning to light the BBQ for my customers. The big guys are used to feeding from there and its 4 degrees overnight here in the mid south.. Seems like they appreciated that. Particularly the warm water I put up there.. No worries. Nobody got roasted.. Even the front yard mockingbirds showed up. They never socialize at the feeder. Little Downies were eating a warm meal and kept their puffed out chests close to the warm top..

I screwed up tho.. Only have a bit more coal and wood. And im iced in til Wednesday. Might have to sacrifice something in the garage to burn up for them.

Wow, [MENTION=30473]flacaltenn[/MENTION]. What a thoughtful thing to do for feeding time for the birds. Seems a good reason to save burnable junk mail and cardboard boxes for wintertime kindling. Wow. We have a jillion trees around here that we just had to burn after the terrible drought we had in the summer of 2011. I lost a stand of hundred year old pines that were probably a dozen or so 6-foot tall men heights or more. Then we lost three more when we had over 90 days without any rainfall. I'd never seen anything like that in Texas while I was growing up. Now, we have so much rain and cold for 2 winters, the pond is up to its record highs out back, and the birds are aplenty.

Thanks for sharing a trick about birds' comfort I'd never have thought of in a million years.

Charcoal works best because it doesn't flare easily and less smoke.. You don't want the Surgeon General on your back about 2nd beak smoke.... And you don't really a fire -- just the heat.

They really really like access to warm water during those times. So next time I'm thinking of using one of those fancy silver chafing dishes with the sterno bases.. Wifey will have a fit even if she sees her favorite Cardinals using it.. But its an emergency !!!! And a lot cheaper than:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/API-K570-01-Kozybird-Birdbath-Pedestal/dp/B000JCVV2A]Amazon.com: API K570-01 Kozybird Spa Heated Birdbath With Pedestal: Patio, Lawn & Garden[/ame]

Maybe I'll design a solar charged winter spa for wild birds..

All the regulars are accounted for --- except for our resident dove pair. I've seen just one of them alone. That's a worry..

 

[flacaltenn]

Berry College - Experience it Firsthand

I hope another follows soon. It will be enlightening to watch the eaglets being fed.

That is way cool.. Except for the violation of privacy rights.

 

[freedombecki]

Berry College - Experience it Firsthand

I hope another follows soon. It will be enlightening to watch the eaglets being fed.

I liked learning something about our national mascot, the Bald Eagle at your web page (above), asaratis. Thanks for sharing it. It read:

General Facts About Bald Eagles

• 2007 - The Department of Interior took the American bald eagle off the endangered species list.
• The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a member of the sea and fish eagle group.
• Juvenile bald eagles are a mixture of brown and white. They reach full maturity in four to five years.
• Size - The female bald eagle is 35 to 37 inches, slightly larger than the male.
• Wingspan ranges from 72 to 90 inches.
• Bald eagles can fly to an altitude of 10,000 feet. During level flight, they can achieve speeds of about 30 to 35 mph.
• Bald eagles weigh from 10 to 14 pounds.
• Diet - Mainly fish, but they will take advantage of carrion (dead and decaying flesh).
• Hunting area varies from 1,700 to 10,000 acres. Home ranges are smaller where food is present in great quantity.
• Because an eagle lives up to 30 years in the wild, it has many years in which to produce offspring.
• Bald eagles build their nests in large trees near rivers or coasts. A typical nest is around 5 feet in diameter. Eagles often use the same nest year after year. Over the years, some nests become enormous, as much as 9 feet in diameter, weighing two tons.
• Eagles lay from one to three eggs. Parenting duties are shared by both male and female during the 35 days of incubation, but it is the female who spends most of her time on the nest.
• The young birds grow rapidly, adding one pound to their body weight every four or five days. At six weeks, the eaglets are very nearly as large as their parents.
• An eaglet can take its first flight some 10 to 13 weeks after hatching and approximately 40 percent of young eagles do not survive it.
• All eagles are renowned for their excellent eyesight.
• Fidelity - Once paired, bald eagles remain together until one dies.
• The bald eagle became the National emblem in 1782 when the great seal of the United States was adopted.

 

[freedombecki]

yes that is a junko. commonly referred to as a snowbird up here

Thanks, Spoonman. There was one here yesterday afternoon sometime. He'd obviously eaten his weight in birdseed!

 

[Sunshine]

Berry College - Experience it Firsthand

I hope another follows soon. It will be enlightening to watch the eaglets being fed.

I liked learning something about our national mascot, the Bald Eagle at your web page (above), asaratis. Thanks for sharing it. It read:

General Facts About Bald Eagles

• 2007 - The Department of Interior took the American bald eagle off the endangered species list.
• The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a member of the sea and fish eagle group.
• Juvenile bald eagles are a mixture of brown and white. They reach full maturity in four to five years.
• Size - The female bald eagle is 35 to 37 inches, slightly larger than the male.
• Wingspan ranges from 72 to 90 inches.
• Bald eagles can fly to an altitude of 10,000 feet. During level flight, they can achieve speeds of about 30 to 35 mph.
• Bald eagles weigh from 10 to 14 pounds.
• Diet - Mainly fish, but they will take advantage of carrion (dead and decaying flesh).
• Hunting area varies from 1,700 to 10,000 acres. Home ranges are smaller where food is present in great quantity.
• Because an eagle lives up to 30 years in the wild, it has many years in which to produce offspring.
• Bald eagles build their nests in large trees near rivers or coasts. A typical nest is around 5 feet in diameter. Eagles often use the same nest year after year. Over the years, some nests become enormous, as much as 9 feet in diameter, weighing two tons.
• Eagles lay from one to three eggs. Parenting duties are shared by both male and female during the 35 days of incubation, but it is the female who spends most of her time on the nest.
• The young birds grow rapidly, adding one pound to their body weight every four or five days. At six weeks, the eaglets are very nearly as large as their parents.
• An eaglet can take its first flight some 10 to 13 weeks after hatching and approximately 40 percent of young eagles do not survive it.
• All eagles are renowned for their excellent eyesight.
• Fidelity - Once paired, bald eagles remain together until one dies.
• The bald eagle became the National emblem in 1782 when the great seal of the United States was adopted.

There are a lot of them in LBL. But they are hard to photograph.

 

[Sunshine]

yes that is a junko. commonly referred to as a snowbird up here

Here on the Gulf coast, they refer to ME as a 'snowbird!'

 

[freedombecki]

To anyone lucky enough to have purchased an Audubon Society Bird Calendar with pictures of birds on each day, Today's bird is the Carolina Chickadee. I've been calling the same bird "black-capped chickadee," but I was wrong. I know the ones out front are the same as the Carolina. They just are.

From the USGS Patuxent Bird Identification, here's a Carolina Chickiadee, Poecile carolinensis:
Identification Tips:

• Length: 4.25 inches
• Short bill
• Black crown and throat
• White face
• Pale gray upperparts
• Gray edges to wing coverts
• Grayish-white underparts
• Rusty flanks
• Sexes similar
• Often found in small flocks

And from the Patuxent center, here's the Black-capped Chickadee, Poecile atricapilla:
Length: 4.5 inches
Short bill
Black crown and throat
White face
Pale gray upperparts
White edges to wing coverts
Grayish-white underparts
Rusty flanks
Sexes similar
Often found in small flocks

Hope that helps anyone who keeps seeing them change.