Another ice storm today,
but the spring migrants keep coming. Here's a very weather-battled Cowbird.
Let's hope the power lines stay put!
Teen birds can be
very confusing, especially when you are just starting with birdwatching. They have the coolest patterns and colorations going on, and I have to say they are one of my favorites to see. It is fantastic that it is possible to see them even into fall. The calendar birds for August, September and October are teens. There’s a Rubythroated Hummingbird with just the first parts of the gorget appearing, a juvenile Cowbird morphing into adult plumage, and a teen Cardinal, still with lots of baby feathers and the characteristic brown beak.
The molting continues.
There are still flocks of adventurous looking Cowbirds passing through, along with Grackles and Starlings. Many of the Blue Jays are also still looking rather rough, but the weather is nice enough so they will not be cold. The Goldfinches have come back, bringing their adorable and excited youngsters, and they are beginning to molt into their winter feathers. The resident Cardi family also has made it through the summer fine, they have at least two young ones but except for this female, they are all camera shy. Hopefully in the coming weeks I can get one of the babies to check a camera out. Come good into Saturday!
There is really no bird
that I see more often misidentified than this one, and I had my issues in the beginning too. All of these are the same species a Brownheaded Cowbird. The first two are youngsters. A juvenile that is morphing into adult feathers, a stage that I love, it looks so cool because they all have different markings. The one next to it is a baby, and I was a little surprised to see that yesterday, so late in the season. The pink edges of the beak, the speckled brown feathers and the cute appearance are tells. The other two are adults - a female and a male. They get a bad reputation but are fascinating native birds and do not act out of malice. If you are interested to learn more about them, Audubon has a great article about them here.
At this time of the year,
you might see birds that look a bit scary, rugged, even sick or somewhat familiar and you just cannot put your finger on what species they belong to. This means we are in the middle of molting season. Molting means either an adult bird loses older feathers and grows new ones or a juvenile bird is growing the first adult plumage. I love this time of the year because you get to study bird anatomy a bit and you might see some spectacular patterns, textures and color combos. Here are two examples of juvies changing to adult feathers (Cowbird and Starling) and two for adult molts (Blue Jay and Grackle). They will all look smooth again in a bit.
Video: I put a little station
with nesting material on the chestnut tree to see if anybody would take some. Activity has been low on this camera, but the other day I saw something interesting. A female Cowbird came to inspect the material. She must have thought it was a nest. Brownheaded Cowbirds are so-called brood parasites. They lay their eggs in other birds’ nests and let them raise their young. Later in the season, the whole family will flock and migrate together. This was recorded with one of my Birdsy cameras. They are having a Memorial Day Sale right now too, go and check it out at birdsy.com.
During migration time
it is always fun to see the “winter world” clash with the “summer world”. Yesterday and today we have snow, but migration has started, and so they mingle. A flock of Cowbirds passed through the other day (the first photo shows a female), and the Juncos are still here, enjoying the snow and filling their bellies for the big trip up north. On Thursday, we are expecting truly springlike temperatures, and i have to say I am more than ready to say goodbye to winter for now. Gayle and Mr. Business will also have a much easier time to raise their babies (they are due to hatch on / around the 24th.)
While the winter crowd
can be a bit boring at times, surprises can happen any day. I think this is part of why I enjoy birdwatching so much. Every day has the possibility of something fun happening. Anyways, yesterday, I had this lone Cowbird lady on the feeder, and I also saw a Redwinged Blackbird. They sometimes travel with Starlings, so it makes sense that they were around. Here’s to a good week with fun surprises!
Everybody's molting,
and it’s quite the sight to behold. For smaller birds like Chickadees, Titmice and Bluebirds, the molting is also a good ID marker for the adults. The babies usually look all preppy and brandnew at the end of the season. Blue Jays and Grackles look most dramatic. Here we have: young Cowbird, Blue Jay, House Finch, Blue Jay, young Blue Jay and Grack. They all appreciate quality food and water during this time. The feathers will grow back and they will look like new soon again.
Another round of Who's that girl?
Around this time of the year, many people start seeing this kind of bird and wonder what it is. It was certainly one of my “struggle birds” in the beginning, too. However, it is fairly easy - this is a female Brownheaded Cowbird. In size, they are between a Robin and a Cardinal, and they have a soft trilling call. Cowbirds are known and often disliked for their breeding behavior. They are so-called brood parasites, meaning that they lay their eggs into other birds’ nests and let them raise their babies. This is not out of malice. They used to follow cattle around and never stayed anywhere long enough to build nests. This way of breeding ensured their survival as a species. Nowadays, there is less cattle roaming around and humans have taken over lots of habitat. The birds are still the same, and so we might witness one of nature’s oddities in the summer when for example tiny Chipping Sparrows feed one of their own babies but also a ginormous Cowbird baby. The human birdwatcher might feel bad and think about interfering, but remember that Cowbirds are native to the US and protected by law. Read up before you act.
The snow brought in
some unusual visitors - a couple of Brown-headed Cowbirds. The females (here on the left) are one of the hardest birds to identify for a beginner birdwatcher. But if you know what the males look like and compare their overall shape and the beaks, things become more clear.
Along with the Starlings,
a group of Brownheaded Cowbirds has been coming recently. I am not sure I have seen them so late before, usually they arrive by spring and leave for the winter. Many people don’t like them because of their nesting behavior (they lay eggs in other birds’ nests and let them raise their young ones, often to the disadvantage of the original chicks), but I find them fascinating and also think they have the perfect bird shape.
Video: Breakfast with the Starlings
The flock came back this morning. My post last night evoked lots of interesting reactions. For the birder on a budget, Starlings can be a bit of a nuisance because of their voraciousness. They will chase other birds away and can be rather aggressive in defending the food (also amongst each other). They are an invasive bird in the US, and can be a threat to native cavity nesters like the Red-bellied Woodpecker, taking over nestboxes and killing the inhabitant. But they are also very clever, impressive and beautiful birds, and none of their behavior is their own fault. As a native European myself, I do feel a connection to them, but I am always glad to only enjoy them in small doses.
Snow day today!
The birds came in droves and the day concluded with a gorgeous pink sky. Snow is always a nice backdrop, so I am hoping for a couple more days like this, maybe with some sun?
(Brownheaded Cowbird, Eastern Bluebird, American Goldfinch, Blue Jay, female House Finch)
The dark bird crowd
has been thinning out recently, but there are still groups passing through on their way south. The Grackles come for a quick snack (here showered in sun rays), the Cowbirds usually take a bath. While I love them all, it is nice that the bird food budget gets a little break right now.
Number 1 confusion bird
for many seems to be this species. This is a Brown-headed Cowbird, and he is growing his adult feathers. The hues in the black portions as well as the simple brown of the youngsters and females can make it hard for people to identify this bird. When I was still a birdwatching beginner, at one point I thought, “Everytime I don’t know what it is, it is very likely a Cowbird.” And that was often the case. I love this particular look on them and am happy this one came to the camera. He seems to have some bumps on the feet but I haven’t seen them on any other bird.
For some reason
it feels like there are more Cowbirds around this year. Or maybe I am just paying more attention to them. Pictured here is a female.
Now that nesting season is underway,
we will all see birds that we cannot identify for one or the other reason. As I said the other day, it feels like the female Brownheaded Cowbird is one of those “I don’t know what bird I just saw” ones. They are a bit bigger than a Cardinal, they don’t have the brown head like the males, they look intriguing because they are beautiful birds, and us birders are confused. Maybe this photo helps a bit with identification.
Video: Bird identification - the Brownheaded Cowbird
This is the time where many people see these birds and wonder what the heck they are.
Well, this is a Brownheaded Cowbird, either a female or a young adult. Many people dislike them for their nesting habits (they lay eggs in other birds’ nests so that they raise their babies) but this is how they evolved. They used to follow cattle and never settled anywhere to nest. Now that humans are destroying habitat, not as many herds wander around, and the Cowbirds come to our backyards (it is of course more complex than that, but that is the gist). It is their survival strategy, and other birds have found ways to survive nevertheless. Cardinals for example have several broods, and usually only the first one seems to be affected. (This was recorded with a Birdsy camera.)
