WHAT A PRESENT

Twas a snowy evening, with ice everywhere

I had just settled down to my warm rocking chair

Out my windows a clear view and oh what a sight

For the last birds feeding before it turned night

With feeders and heated waterers filled to the brink

Ready for birds to come take a drink

Soon came juncos, a cardinal and a mockingbird too

They were trying for perfect spots with a clear view

Then I heard it before I saw it, the flap of its wings

Everything scattered and flew, some with screams,

A pileated woodpecker swooped in for some feed

By his cautiousness you could see he was in need

First to the left, then the right to see if all was clear

His head moved so sharply to see what was near

Then he saw me, I knew it, he started to fly

But the feed before him was his Christmas pie

So he chanced it, he went for a cashew, then two

And with one sharp turn he suddenly flew

Now, what should I ask for that was better somehow?

Than a visit from Santa the woodpecker,   wow. 

How Do Birds Survive the Cold?                                                                                

With short days and long nights, the life of birds in winter is not as care-free as people would like to think.  At this time of year, often someone comes in and says they saw the fattest little birds at their feeders.  “They must really be eating to get that fat”.  I’ve seen them at my feeders and they look like they’ve swallowed a ping pong ball. What we are observing is a cold little bird, which has the ability to fluff their feathers to create air pockets for additional insulation in the winter.  They can actually increase their heat retention by 30%.   

While about 75% of the bird population migrates,  of the ones that stay with us several bird species actually grow extra feathers, which are light in weight for the purpose of flight, as part of the fall molt.  For example a chickadee has about 1,000 feathers in the  summer and 2,000 in the winter.   Also the oil that  “coats” their feathers is used for insulation.   Their legs and feet are also covered with specialized scales that help them minimize heat loss, and they have little fleshy muscle and relatively few nerve endings in their feet, thus they don’t often freeze to feeders.  They may  occasionally lose a toe or even an entire foot, but observers note this is very rare. Some birds may enter a state known as “torpor” a.k.a. purposeful hypothermia, to conserve energy during cold winter nights.  This can be very dangerous as their reduced temperature also reduces their reaction time to predators.

Birds are warm-blooded animals and they have a much higher metabolism and higher body temperature than humans.   Body temperature (on average at 105°) can fluctuate during the day depending on the climate and the amount of activity, but it can be a very big challenge for them to maintain the needed high body heat. On sunny days we often observe birds with their backs turned to the sun (therefore exposing the largest surface of their bodies to heat).  Birds are also known to roost together and crowd into small tight spaces to share body heat.  Bird houses and roost boxes are popular locations in the coldest of weather.   

Have you noticed a bird shivering, a.k.a. thermogenosis”.   Actually, they are shivering to raise their metabolic rate and generate more body heat.  It is an effective way to stay warm, although it requires more calories.   Often seen standing on one leg, while the other one is tucked into their warm plumage, and sleeping with their bills and face tucked, with just one eye open, they are preserving body heat.  Can you imagine what we would look like after standing or sitting several hours out in this kind of weather?   My husband freezes just looking out the window, much less out in the snow.   

What can we do to help them?  Those bushes and shrubs that we tire of tending through the summer can provide a wind block that most species will take advantage of and a necessary place to hide from predators.  If you have a tree area that has some fallen limbs, be sure to leave this during the winter as cover for the birds. 

All birds can build up some fat reserves to serve as insulation and extra energy for generating body heat, and this is why many birds gorge during the fall when food sources are abundant.  This gives them an extra fatty layer when winter arrives.   We can all contribute to their survival by feeding quality, high in fat foods, such as suet or black oil, which are high in protein.  Also, keeping water available in a heated or solar birdbath is a must, as eating snow only depletes their body temperature even more.  With all the joy they give us, they are truly worth the extra effort.   If you don’t have a feeder near a window you frequent, that’s a great Christmas gift to ask for.

 Happy Bird Watching

Loggerhead Shrike

These birds are chiefly seen west of the Cumberland Platueau, but there have been several sightings in open habitats of eastern Kentucky.   Mostly in farmland where it usually observed on the roadside on wires and fences.  During severe winter weather, this species will occasionally come to feeding stations to prey on small birds.  generally seen singly or in family groups.  (According to Annotated Checklist of the Birds of Kentucky.)

9" in Length, generally seen in winter, widespread in 48 states.   It is a predator, but does not have the strong feet and talons of a raptore.  It does have a strong bill and is capable of tearing

Flattened forehead; relatively shorty, slightly hooked bill; thick black mask; dark gray with contracts of whitish breast.  White patches on wings and tail corners show in flight.  Song is "chak chak".   It eats small birds and small animals and stores them by impaling them on thorns or barbed wire, which also helps it grip to tear prey apart. 

Banded Loggerhead Shrikes Observations Requested.

Received an email today to request that we be on the lookout for Loggerhead Shirkes that are banded.  All the information is below.   One was actually spotted in last year's Christmas Bird in Somerset, Kentucky.   They are asking this year that any sightings at any time with the bands be reported.   Bird banding is a critical part of the geographical data of habitat and breeding grounds of birds that are being effected by loss of critical forest lands and the everyday urban and rural spread of homes and businesses.  Below is a brief history of banding and it's effectiveness in recording decline and increase of bird populations.   If you were to spot a loggerhead shrike or have questions about a bird you are having trouble identifying, please give us a call at (606) 330-0606.  We would be pleased to help in any way.  

A Brief History of Bird Banding

People have been banding (or ringing, as it is called in Europe) birds for centuries. The first record of a metal band attached to a bird's leg was about 1595 when one of Henry IV's banded Peregrine Falcons was lost in pursuit of a bustard in France. It showed up 24 hours later in Malta, about 1350 miles away, averaging 56 miles an hour!
Duke Ferdinand placed a silver band on a Grey Heron about 1669: the bird was recovered by his grandson about 1728, indicating the heron lived at least 60 years. In 1710 in Germany, a falconer captured a grey heron with several rings on one leg. The bander was unknown but one of the rings was apparently placed on the heron in Turkey, more than 1200 miles to the east.
The first records of banding in North America are those of John James Audubon, the famous American naturalist and painter. In 1803 he tied silver cords to the legs of a brood of phoebes near Philadelphia and was able to identify two of the nestlings when they returned to the neighborhood the following year.
A system for bird banding did not really develop until 1899, when Hans Mortensen, a Danish school teacher, began placing aluminum rings on the legs of European teal, pintail, white storks, starlings and several types of hawks. He inscribed the bands with his name and address in the hope they would be returned to him if found. His system of banding became the model for our current efforts.
In 1902 Paul Bartsch, a well-known conchologist whose hobby was the study of birds, began the first scientific system of banding in North America. In that year he ringed more than 100 black-crowned night herons in the District of Columbia with bands inscribed "Return to Smithsonian Institution". The real pioneer bander in the Americas was Jack Miner who established a waterfowl sanctuary near Kingsville, Ontario. Between 1909 and 1939 he banded 20,000 Canada Geese alone, many of which carried bands returned to him by hunters
By 1909 the American Bird Banding Association had been formed to organize and assist the growing numbers.  In 1920 the Bureau of Biological Survey and the Canadian Wildlife Service accepted the offer to jointly take over the work of the Association. Frederick Lincoln was assigned the task of organizing the banding program in the USA in the Bureau of Biological Survey (now the United States Geologic Survey). The North American banding program has been a joint effort to oversee the activities of dedicated banders all over the world ever since.
More on the first 100 years of banding in North America

REQUEST

Much time and effort has been put into Loggerhead Shrike research and recovery in Ontario, Canada, where the species is critically endangered.  Breeding shrikes found in Ontario are banded with metal and/or colour leg bands in an effort to address the greatest knowledge gap for recovery of Ontario shrikes -- migration routes and wintering areas. 

We are asking for your help by alerting all your CBC volunteers to determine if any Loggerhead Shrikes they find are banded.  Please ask your CBC volunteers to report BANDED Loggerhead Shrikes sightings to Wildlife Preservation Canada:jessica@wildlifepreservation.ca.  Of greatest importance are shrikes banded with ONLY a red band over silver on the left leg, OR silver band on right leg and red band on left leg -- these birds are carrying 'geolocator' tags and must be captured to retrieve the tag, which will provide information on their migration route.

Please forward this email to any birders or birding organizations (newsletters, birding list serves, ornithological societies and clubs, etc.) which may be of assistance in locating BANDED wintering Loggerhead Shrikes.

We have provided more information about the recovery programme, banding colour coding and the reporting of sightings in the attached file.  Please feel free to forward this information to others.

Thank you for your assistance.

Dan Bone, Wildlife Preservation Canada (volunteer), 705-887-4691, http:///, Fenelon Falls, Ontario, Canada

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Cedar Waxwings and Spiked Berries

My granddaughter and I were out and about yesterday and we saw several cedar waxwings gleaning crabapple trees, junipers and holly bushes.  They were working like busy bees, as they cleared entire limbs of their berries.   My granddaughter is 3 and when she saw them she said they looked like pirates.  I didn't know what she meant, but when I asked, she said they had on masks.   Leave it to a three year old to put things into perspective.   We saw them first at Carnaby Square in downtown London, and then at the Somerset Community College Campus and in a yard near our home.   Several customers had called to say they'd spotted their first of the winter.   Abi and I were just having an easy evening and we spotted three different flocks in one evening. 

The name "waxwing" comes from the waxy red secretions found on the tips of the secondary wings of some birds.  They exact function of this waxy substance isn't known, but thought to be used to help attract mates. 

Since the waxwing specializes in eating berries, occasionally they become intoxicated and even die when they run across overripe berries that have started to ferment and produce alcohol. 

When I first (identified) the cedar waxwing a couple of years ago, I was quite sure I'd seen them before and just misidentified them as a female cardinal.  Brown and gray in color and with the little tufts on their head, I'd never given second thought, but once I spotted the yellow tail bar and some red spots on their wings, I knew I was looking at a cedar waxwing.  They move from here, Kentucky, to Panama and Costa Rica for the winter, more and more are wintering in the southern most United States. 

The cedar waxwings eat the whole berries and let them pass thru, instead of spitting out the seed.

American Crow

 American Crow 

Size & Shape : A large, long-legged, thick-necked bird with a heavy, straight bill. In flight, the wings are fairly broad and rounded with the wingtip feathers spread like fingers. The short tail is rounded or squared off at the end.

Color Pattern : American Crows are all black, even the legs and bill. When crows molt, the old feathers can appear brownish or scaly compared to the glossy new feathers.

Behavior :  American Crows are very social, sometimes forming flocks in the

millions. Inquisitive and sometimes mischievous, crows are good learners and problem-solvers, often raiding garbage cans and picking over discarded food containers. They’re also aggressive and often chase away larger birds including hawks, owls and herons.

Cool Facts : American Crows congregate in large numbers in winter to sleep in communal roosts.  These roosts can be of a few hundred up to two million crows.  Some roosts have been forming in the same general area for over 100 years. 

*   Young American Crows do not breed until they are at least two years old, and most do not breed until they are four or more.  In most populations, the young help their parents raise young for a few years.  Families may include up to 15 individuals and contain young from five different years. 

*   The America Crow appears to be the biggest victim of West Nile Virus.  Crows die within one week of infection, and few seem to be able to survive exposure.  No other North American bird is dying at the same rate from disease.

*   Crows sometimes make and use tools.  Examples include a captive crow using a cup to carry water over to a bowl of dry mash and shaping a piece of wood and sticking it into a hole in a fence post in search of food.

Wow, what a pretty day

On my way to work this morning I spotted mallards, and a great blue heron, and a little carolina wren sung to me as I was leaving my house.  All blessings.  I saw four eastern towhees yesterday and several cardinals, robins, and a red shouldered hawk.  I've spent a little extra time this week "bird watching", especially in Levi Jackson Park.   My granddaughter, Abi, and I, saw 5 deers, 4 squirrels, a red bellied and a pileated woodpecker on one outing.  She's three and getting to be quite the bird lover.  With the changing weather be looking for yellow bellied sapsuckers as well as look on any water you're near for ducks as they are migrating thru.   Just take a little extra time to realize all the beauty around you, it's such a treat

Since I was a little girl, I've loved birds and watching them and watching them raise their families.   From the Carolina Wrens that built nests in our old wooden garage, where our dad tacked up fertilize bags turned inside out along the inside rafters.  They truly love a place to hide.   The birds would build and raise their young in that old garage, with 2 collie dogs, laying under the bench. 

We owned and operated a dairy so we didn't spend much time sitting in the old tin covered garage, but when it rained, we cracked walnuts from the tree in the front yard, for our Christmas Fudge.   We would listen to the birds come and go and the conversations they seemed to have with each other.   My dad would do the dialog, for example, when one would come in and sound frustrated, he say something like, "Who didn't take out the garbage, or who left this mess", and then he'd encourage us to listen and make up replies.   Sometimes it was instructions on leaving the nest and the does and dont's of the farm cat and her kittens. 

We loved the quail, the bluebirds that faithfully built every year and also the martins that daddy called "the girls" as he would begin to say "it's about time for the girls to come home" when spring began to rise.  We had cardinals in the bushes and hawks that visited the chicken lot sometimes.  

When my husband and I were looking for a home, we looked at several very nice places, but nothing seemed to be "home".  As we were going to meet a realtor for a look at yet another house, we passed by "our present home" and there was a For Sale by Owner sign in the yard.   We stopped and pulled up and a wren and her five babies were on the carport.  We came inside and it felt like we were home.  

We've bought a farm and hope to build there sometime soon and even my husband comes home to report hawk sightings and turkeys.  I think he's catching the bug.

Every time my sister and I see a wren, we discuss how they seem to be there just at the right time to lift us up.  When God knows when every little bird falls from the sky, and even how much more precious we are to him, it makes me think of our mother and dad and the reminders of them that we're blessed with. 

As I was on my way from my daugthers this morning, I saw 48 wild turkeys, in three flocks, within 1/2 mile of each other.  My granddaughter (who's three) wanted to stop and hold one.  We also were fortunate to see bluebirds, a kestrel, a red bellied woodpecker, about 10 bluebirds, a cardinal, meadowlarks and of course a dozen or so european starlings.  (This was in Madison County).

We own a feed mill and about 15 years ago we began private labeling and manufacturing wild bird feed for some of the most well known bird stores, all over the south eastern United States.  The mill that does this was actually bought to do some horse feed and now it's bird feed only.   Really curious how God puts our interests together with our business.   These folks approached us, not our idea at all.   I can truly say we have some of the best fed birds in Laurel County.   Since then we've started London Wild Bird Club and have enjoyed many outings learning how to idenitify different birds, lots that have been here all my life and I didn't even know they were here.  We have a great friend, Granville Cox, who is an avid birder and has taught us so much. 

Advise:  Try different kinds of feeds as different birds like different kinds and you actually can buy types that the european starlings, the doves, and the squirrels are not crazy about, and then feed them in a different location so you can enjoy the song birds, and the many varieties at your most monitored feeders.  

Also when you see a flock of birds, european starlings, or whatever, most of the time there will be another species amongst them.  I've found this in european starlings, robins, and ducks and geese. 

My number one goal is to share what I've learned and am learning and to create a place where we can talk about the birds that are in our area. 

Until next time, happy birding