ToddSpace: John's Birding Page

The Elusive Bobolink: A Personal Story

A new bird has been added to our life list, and not because we went out to seek it, but came upon it by luck. In all our years of birding, the Bobolink had eluded us. And with good reason, their numbers have declined, especially in the eastern United States, due mainly to abandonment of farms, and the loss of open spaces.

My wife and I were in search of hanging baskets on Saturday, looking specifically for baskets that contained hummingbird friendly flowers. We found a farm west of Scarborough, Maine that had what we were looking for, beautiful hanging baskets, with hummingbirds buzzing all around them!

We walked through one of the two greenhouses on the farm and exited at the rear of it towards a large open field. My eyes are always scanning when I am outdoors, and this time it payed off big time! A mound of soil was approx. 15 feet away and there sat a bobolink, singing his beautiful song. I scanned the rest of the field and was rewarded with bobolink flying around everywhere!

The proprietor of the farm said that the bobolink show up every year for approx. one month and then are gone until the next year. My wife and I stood there in awe and promised ourselves to seek permission to bird in the area.

The Bobolink is noted for one of the longest migrations in the western hemisphere, a round trip of approximately 12,400 miles. After a nine week nesting season, Bobolinks typically congregate in marshes where they will undergo their post-nuptial molt before heading southward in late August. It is thought that most of the Bobolinks that breed in the western U. S. and Canada head eastward to the Atlantic coast before turning southward. Migration proceeds down through Florida and across the Caribbean, with stopovers in Cuba and Jamaica. Some Bobolinks have been sighted over Bermuda on what appears to be a non-stop flight from the Atlantic coast between Nova Scotia and Virginia to South America. Upon reaching South America in October, the majority of Bobolinks will spend the next two months making their way to southwestern Brazil, Paraguay and northern Argentina.

Maybe the bobolink has not eluded you, let me know your experiences with this bird by commenting on this article. The sighting of this bird sure made our day!

Bird of the Month: Tufted Titmouse

The Bird of the Month for the month of June is the Tufted Titmouse. I am placing this bird early because I will be away at the beginning of the month.

The mouse-colored bird with the pointed head-dress can instantly be identified as the tufted titmouse. It is the only small-sized bird with this characteristic and its familiar song of "peter, peter, peter" further aids recognition. Light gray flanks change to a soft cinnamon rufous in such a subtle manner that it can hardly be noticed.

Like its associates, chickadees and nuthatches, the titmouse is an outstanding acrobat. From a trapeze on an oak or maple tree it swings head down in a constant search for insects or other small animal life. A piece of suet suspended in a wire cage ensures the presence of this delightful little bird at your back door.

The tufted titmouse has lots of curiosity and is not easily frightened. In winter, he flocks up in small groups, all of which are probably the same family.

This little fellow is not equipped with a chisel beak and does not care to build a nest in the bushes so its primary source of homes are deserted woodpecker holes. This bird will nest from April through late June in the northeast. In this secluded location, safe from nearly all enemies except an occasional snake, five to eight white eggs heavily blotched with brown are laid in a nest of moss, leaves and animal hair. Nesting boxes may be used in lieu of natural sites.

The titmouse is a regular visitor to the winter feeder., and they prefer peanut kernels and sunflower seeds. Another way of attracting this bird is by smearing peanut butter or suet on a section of a tree trunk or branch. A birdbath is a sure way to entice these birds from the woods in the summertime.

This link provides the song of the Tufted Titmouse, and this link its call.

I hope all of you have a safe and Happy Memorial Weekend. Do not forget to remember those who died in our nation's service!

Mockingbirds and Flickers... and a Cockatiel to boot

Over the weekend, my wife and I were strolling along the beach at high tide. It was an after-thought to go after we had dinner, so no camera was brought along. :(

On a rock, not 10 feet from us, a mockingbird lands! My wife talked to it for a bit before it flew off with something better to do. No camera!

Later, when we went back to the car, we had a pair of mockingbirds decide to show off for us only 20 feet from where we were parked. No camera!

To add insult to injury, two male flickers were fighting over a fence post in a yard. Once again, only 20 feet from us, and no camera! The dominate flicker won out and proceeded to do a victory dance in a mud puddle. He soon spotted some ants and had a feast!

What's my point? Along with a good pair of binoculars, a camera can be handy to have around! Of course, sometimes a camera brought along is useless because it seems birds know you have it and will do their best to land a half mile away. But when they decide to become photogenic, a picture can be worth a thousand words. If a species is unknown to you, a picture is the best way of finding out what it is.

My wife and I purchased a male cockatiel this weekend. We named him Zeus and he is settling in nicely. He was born in Australia and is 8 months old. Whenever he gets a little better used to his surroundings, I will take a picture and post it here. Now begins the long process to try to get him to speak and whistle songs.

No birds at your feeders?

Bird watchers love birds and grow accustomed to seeing them at their feeders.  But there are periods of time when some folks simply don't have any birds at their feeders.  Instead of thinking the problem through they complain about the lack of birds and expect them to magically reappear, and when they don't their first reaction is to declare that the bird seed they recently bought is no good.  Unless the bird seed is terribly old because it has been sitting in the owner's storage area for months on end, it is unlikely that the seed is bad.  Most wild bird supply stores have very good and fresh seed.

There are more logical causes to why you may not have birds at your bird feeders.  For example, if you have a mild winter with no snow or cold snaps occurring when they are usually anticipated, you have to remember that nature is nature and is not so easily ordered around by mere humans.  In mild winters there are still plenty of open areas where the birds can find their food sources with relative ease.  So why should it be automatically assumed that they will flock to your feeders?

In the spring they are busy building their nests and then they raise their young, at which time they are more inclined to stay put and look for easy sources of food such as your bird feeders.  Later, they even bring their young to the feeders for an easy source of food.  But after the young have grown and are able to fend for themselves, the parents are once again free to move around to where they wish.

STERILIZE YOUR FEEDERS

Sterilizing your feeders should be one of the first priorities on your list to attracting and keeping birds at your feeders. It should be done at least once per month! Bird seed gets wet from rain and snow and in time turns moldy.  YUCK!  The feeders get dirty and mold settles in the various areas of the feeder.  The birds desire good food and clean feeders and will simply search out more appealing sources of food, perhaps your neighbor's bird feeders.

It's very easy to sterilize your feeders and here's how you do it:

Wash your feeders in water and a 10% solution of household bleach.  In other words, use 1 part bleach to 9 parts water. Wash them in this solution and thoroughly rinse them out.  Let them dry out completely before refilling them and putting them back into service.

This washing applies to ALL kinds of feeders, wood, plastic, ceramic, or whatever you have that makes sense.

If you don't take the time to sterilize your feeders your really not being a very good guardian of the birds nor a very good friend to your fellow birders.  In fact, you may unwittingly be contributing to a very sad and debilitating disease to a great number of birds, primarily the House Finch.

Since at least 1996 there have been a great number of House Finches afflicted with conjunctivitis (Mycoplasma Gallisepticum), which is a disease that infects the eyes of the House Finch and leaves them partially blind.  These infected birds then eat at your feeders and spread the disease at your feeder and infect the seed at the feeder, plus other House Finches.  Not only that, but there have been reported cases of it even spreading to some Gold Finches.

By sterilizing your feeders you help to slow down or even stop the spread of this dreadful condition among the birds at your feeder and at your fellow birder's feeders.

You may discuss this and other birding issues at the New England Birding Community.

Please check feeders during this very wet period

With the very heavy rain that we have had, and rain forecasted for the better part of the upcoming week, PLEASE go out during a break in the rain and check your feeders.

I had to clean out several of my feeders because of the very wet conditions. Since Wednesday, we have had nearly 7" of rain, with almost 10" just to our south. Seed was starting to spout in the hoppers, and we do not want this in our feeders. Mold and bacteria will grow under these idea conditions, and is a detriment to our backyard friends.

It may be a hassle to keep an eye out so the feed does not get too wet, but it will be worth it as we keep our wildlife friends free from birdfeeder diseases.

Purple Martin Migration Map

I have received a link from Warren that contains his Purple Martin Migration Map. Also, surf the rest of his wonderful site for detailed information on the Purple Martin.

Great site Warren, and thank you for the link!

Bird of the Month: Cardinal

I received a very good suggestion by Perry this week, and decided to incorporate it into the Birding Blog. Below is her message:

How about featuring a local bird every once in a while, with a photo, profile, identification hints, habitats, calls and songs, etc?

I'd like to get to know my local birds a bit better. The big bird sites are fine for those folks who already know what they're looking at, but not for beginning birders. And they often have birds that aren't in our range, further confusing new birders.

Kind of a "Bird of the Month" thing?

So this month we will discuss the cardinal. Thank you Perry for this great suggestion!

The cardinal is probably one of the most recognizable and popular backyard birds because of its brilliant red color and crested head. Cardinals will mate for life and remain together throughout the entire year. That's why you will usually see a male and female together at your feeding station.

Range and Habitat
The Northern Cardinal is a year round resident of the Eastern U.S., and has been moving to the north and the southwest during the 20th century. Cardinals prefer brushy woodlands, streamside thickets, orchards, swamps, suburban gardens and parks. They like to roost and nest in dense thickets, evergreens and privet hedges.

The conical shape of the cardinal's beak marks this bird as a seed eater. The Northern Cardinal's diet consists of fruits, seeds and insects. For a seed eating bird, the Northern Cardinal eats a remarkable number of insects, especially during the breeding season.

Cardinals are known to eat over a hundred kinds of fruits and seeds in the wild. Cardinals love pomegranate halves on a fruit feeder. Attractive garden plants include brambles, sumac, cherry, dogwood, grape, mulberry, blueberry, elderberry, tulip tree, hackberry, and Russian olive. Many of these plants are also used for nesting.

At the feeding station, they prefer unhulled black-oil sunflower seeds over all other foods. They will also eat safflower, cracked corn, white proso millet, bread, nutmeats and peanut butter mixes.

You can attract the Northern Cardinal to your backyard by:

• Providing open areas with trees and berry producing shrubs such as mulberry, blueberry, grape and dogwood.
• Create a dense hedge or thicket around your backyard. Cardinals are especially fond of roosting and nesting in honeysuckle thickets.
• Add a hopper feeder with plenty of perching space and fill it with black oil sunflower seed or safflower.
• Or better yet, put out a specially designed sunflower seed feeder with sunflower seed.
• Fill a platform feeder with sunflower seed, safflower or bread crumbs.
• Offer a source of water for drinking and bathing.
• Cardinals don't migrate, like most songbirds. Help them out during the winter months by providing lots of cover and roosting places with pines, spruces, hemlocks and other dense evergreens.

This link provides the song of the Northern Cardinal, and this link its call.

Birding Optics

Optics are not one of my strong points, so I base my purchase on recommendations and research. I have learned over the years that you get what you pay for.

From spotting scopes to binoculars, there are a wide range of products to choose from. One important point to remember is to make sure you purchase optics that are comfortable to use. Nothing can ruin an otherwise perfect day of birding than to lug around optics that are too heavy or cumbersome.

The following are some links you can use when considering the purchase of optics:

• Birding America Guide to Birding Optics 
• Birding.com Guide to Binoculars
• Bird Worthy Binoculars
• The Best in Birding Optics

Optics can range in price from a few dollars, to thousands. Everything from image stabilization to built-in camera binoculars are available.

The choices can be overwhelming. Retailers usually allow you to try out various items in-store. Be sure to do this, as a good set of optics can mean a pretty good investment.

Please post your experiences with optics simply by clicking "Comments" below this article.

Let's hear from you

It's as easy as clicking on the "Comments" link under this article. Let me know what you want to read about.