Early Visitors

With all of the snow, the birds have been hot and heavy at the feeders. I have an occasional red-winged blackbird visit the feeders, but we're talking once or twice a winter, not on a regular basis, probably because there is usually plenty of natural food available. Yesterday, I  had dozens of them because the natural food was covered in a foot of snow and it was darned cold. 

This morning I got up and had at least 200 red-winged blackbirds converged on the area where I ground feed. Mingled in among them were two yellow-headed blackbirds. I caught a quick picture with my cell phone through the blinds (and a dirty window). If you look between the slats on the deck, right in the center, you can see two yellow heads. I didn't see any females, but there were so many blackbirds for such a short period of time, I didn't have the chance to look for them. We have a pair of Cooper's hawks in the neighborhood, so the birds are constantly startling.

Usually, I don't see yellow-headed blackbirds until around April. I couldn't recall ever seeing any this early in the year, so I checked eBird. According to eBird, there is not a record of one in Wichita County before 15 March. Good thing I got a photo, poor quality though it might be.

Just goes to show, birds don't read the field guides. Keep an eye on your feeders for unusual birds. You never know what you might see.

Good birding!

Winter Lockdown

Photo by Amanda Frank on Unsplash

It has been cold, really cold, here in Wichita Falls, and in much of the country. We are not expected to see temperatures above freezing for a week. We are also expecting a lot of snow, although there has been only a smattering of that so far. I am planning on staying in the house for the duration. Fortunately, I have an office at the house, so I can do that.

The picture to the left is not Wichita Falls and is not our Carolina Chickadee (it's a black-capped chickadee), but looks a little like our environment right now. How can such a tiny little bird, weighing only a few ounces, survive these cold temperatures?

I saw a post yesterday on Facebook where someone was asking what they could do to provide a way for the birds to keep warm. Birds are phenomenally well adapted to surviving in the cold. But there are things we can do to help. 

First, shelter. It isn't necessary to put up houses. Instead, think habitat. Trees, shrubs, vines, and grasses. These provide a windbreak and when covered with snow, can be relatively snug. Brush piles are also well-loved by small birds. With the exception of the brush piles, if you haven't already put the plants in place, you can't do much about habitat now, but you can put in some plants when we thaw out.

Extra food, especially food high in fat, is important for birds to be able to keep their body temperatures up. It takes a lot of energy to produce heat. I am going out multiple times a day to ensure there is plenty of food for all. 

Water is also important and hard for birds to find when water is frozen. Either add fresh water to the birdbath every little bit when it freezes or invest in a bubbler or heater for your birdbath.

Birds don't really need our help in the winter, but it does make us feel better to do something. Birds have some very interesting adaptations to help them survive the cold. Like what?

In the cold, birds look bigger. They fluff up their feathers. This traps air between the feathers to provide insulation between the surrounding air and their bodies. Some birds add additional feathers in their fall molt to add even more insulation. And birds add oil to their feathers as they preen.

The scales on bird legs are an adaptation that helps minimize heat loss. Birds can also control the amount of blood circulating in their legs and feet, reducing heat loss that way.

Some birds also have the ability to reduce their body temperatures in order to need less fuel. Hummingbirds do this. They have an extraordinary energy requirement, even compared to other birds. They can drop their body temperature from a normal 104 degrees F to as low as 38 degrees. Swifts and poorwills also do this.

Birds also share body heat by roosting together. Smaller birds will sometimes form piles in sheltered areas. I can remember seeing a small flock of Inca doves huddled up together in a small sheltered spot a few winters ago when we had a snowstorm.

Birds can lay down a lot of body fat in a short period of time and they will eat as much as they can in order to do so. Birds do this in the fall before migration and before winter because both require a lot of energy.

For now, keep the food out and water in the birdbath. Create a brush pile or some sort of windbreak. Plant native plants (bonus points if they provide food as well) before next winter comes.

Our birds have what it takes to survive the cold without us, but all of us can use help now and again. 

Good birding!

Scouts on the Way!

 

Purple Martin scouts are on the way. Generally, they arrive in mid-February in our area, searching for suitable nesting sites. Historically, purple martins nested in tree cavities, as do many birds. However, now they rely upon purple martin houses. If you have a martin house or plan to put up a martin house, now is the time to get serious about preparing for the incoming house hunters, as we tend to get scouts around Valentine's Day. I would think they would stay south another week, considering the cold front heading our way, but that's not always how it works out. You can track scout reports at the Purple Martin Conservation Association Scout Arrival Study page. You can see scouts have been reported very close to us already. The closest I see is Clyde, TX on 2 February.

If you have a martin house, it is time to clean it out to eliminate last year's parasites. A good scrub with soap and water is fine. Please do not spray insecticides in the nesting compartments. Then keep the house sparrows and the starlings out of the houses. You'll have to just pull out nesting materials as the birds attempt to build nests. Once the purple martins move in, a few sparrows or starlings are not as big a deal. But if the starlings and sparrows use up all the space, then no martins.

If you put up a new house, again, keep it cleaned out of unwanted neighbors until the martins find the house. You may or may not get martin guests the first year. Be sure the area has some open space for the birds to hunt insects.

Purple martins have a reputation for eating mosquitoes. This is largely a myth. If you want a good mosquito control, put up a bat house. Purple Martins catch some mosquitoes, but if you think about when and how purple martins hunt compared to mosquito activity, you can see why mosquitoes don't make up a large percentage of their diet. They eat many more dragonflies and spiders, although any flying insect works.

Purple martins are not quiet birds. They have a odd, robotic type chatter as they fly around, scooping up insects.

Obviously, if  you are going to try to attract martins, you need to be sure NOT to spray a bunch of insecticides in your yard. Low numbers of insects spell starvation for the young (and possibly the parents as well) and poisoned insects lead to poisoned birds.

With just a little bit of work, you too can enjoy these beautiful, active birds on your property.

Good birding!