FOR THE BIRDS

April 1998

By

Helen O'Shea

• Harold Fudge saw me at the Post Office and told me that he and Ben Fudge saw the first American Robin on March 21 on Havenside. These robins are brighter and thinner than the robins that overwinter. On April 2, there were 12 American Robins on lawn of Beryl and Wilson Eavis. Bill tells me that there have been equal numbers on the lawns around the Administration building at the Fortress. There’s always something good to eat after it rains.
• Cliff Peck has reported Robins pulling worms from his lawn since April 1.
• On March 28, at 12:45 p.m. Pearl Magee called to announce the first Fox Sparrow under her feeder. Since then she has had more than 30 Fox Sparrows at a time. I’ve had up to 15, but Pearl has the record. They are still around town on Easter weekend.
• The Grackles are also back. They are blackbirds with long tails and voices like rusty gates being opened. There is a large flock in the trees beside the home of Peter Chiasson and Sandy Anthony on Station Hill. I also saw quite a number in the trees around Warren Bagnell’s house.
• Darryl Peck has been watching the Crows break off twigs from Cliff’s trees and carry them over to the trees below Gerrat Brook where they are building nests.

More Eagles

Ruth Stevens saw an immature Bald Eagle at Catalone Lake on March 21. Sheila Fudge tells me that both she and Patsy MacDonald have seen a large Bald Eagle at Catalone. There was a large mature Bald Eagle on March 26 at the Fortress Barachois and later on I saw one circling over Havenside near Bruce and Rovie MacDonald’s house. It was being chased by crows but didn’t seem to mind. On April 8, two mature Bald Eagles flew inland over the highway at Albert Bridge.

At My Feeders

• On March 29, there were a pair Common Redpoll, an American Robin, 2 Fox Sparrows, a Brown Creeper, 3 dozen American Goldfinch, a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatch, 3 Black-capped Chickadees, 2 male Pine Warblers, a Chipping Sparrow, a pair of Song Sparrows, a White-throated Sparrow and at least 15 Juncos.

• Before breakfast on March 30, I looked out to discover 2 Male Red-winged Blackbirds.

• On April 4, in all the snow, there were 40 Slate-coloured Juncos in the backyard. They were very feisty, flying into one another and generally being bullies. It must indeed be spring.

• In the wet snow of Good Friday, there were at least 75 Slate-coloured Juncos in my back yard. They flew, fought and completely dominated all of the feeders as well as the ground.

• Three Pine Siskins were at the feeders on April 11.

• On March 26, I spotted a female Spruce Grouse near Visitor Centre. I was able to walk within 3 feet of it and she just stood there. No wonder these poor, silly birds are protected.

• On March 29, I saw a large number of birds at the Fortress Barachois. There were 10 pair of Buffleheads, a female Red-breasted Merganser and 2 male and one female Common Goldeneye. The male Goldeneye were courting a female. They were stretching their necks out, quacking loudly, diving, and generally trying to attract attention to themselves.

• There has been a Brown Creeper in the area. Pearl Magee saw one at Katie Burke’s and I’ve had one at my feeders off and on for over a month.

• Geneva Pond, who lives near Morrison Road, has had flocks of 200 Redpolls at her feeders this winter. Donald Cross tells me that a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers have been nesting in the woods at Catalone for at least the past 6 years. He has seen them flying homeward from the New Boston Road about 45 minutes before dark.

• During the week of April 1, Suzanne Kelly on the Sydney/Louisbourg Highway reported Song Sparrows, a pair of Mourning Doves, and numerous Juncos

• April 2, there were flocks of 50-100 Starlings in my yard and in Gary & Elaine Carter’s yard.

• Pearl and Winston Magee watched a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers excavating a dead elm at the side of the road at Middle River on April 3. They installed new feeders and attracted more Redpolls, Goldfinch and Song Sparrows.

• Susann Myers spotted a large raft of more than 600 Common Eiders, 4 Great Cormorants off the harbour and 20 Common Goldeneye at the Fortress Barrachois. She also saw many Northern Gannets migrating up the coast.

• In March, at St. Peter’s, Susann saw a Belted Kingfisher and Darryl Peck saw a large raft of Common Goldeneye.

More about Juncos

"Juncos tend to winter at the same spot each year and stay in fixed flocks with a stable dominance hierarchy. More dominant birds will do Pecking-attacks, lunging at subordinates, who give way or avoid them. Occasionally, two birds will square off, face one another, and do the Head-dance display, in which they repeatedly throw their heads up and down. Sometimes things escalate into a fight, with the birds clawing at each other and rising up into the air, although generally things are settled by displays alone. As spring approaches, juncos start singing and do more Flight-pursuits with the male chasing the female." Stokes Nature Guides: Volume III, p. 327

• Elizabeth Hall from the Sydney/Louisbourg Highway called me on April 7 about a crazed Junco that was making the rounds of her windows all day pecking at the panes—even disregarding her cats and herself at the windows. All I could suggest was closing the drapes and hoping it would go away. I had a Robin doing the same thing to one of my windows several years ago.

In spring a young Song Sparrow’s fancy turns to ……

"As the breeding season progresses and more males arrive, look for territorial skirmishes—new males challenging established ones for favored areas. These take place with an unusual display, where one of the birds puffs out his feathers, possibly raises one or both wings, and sings. The challenges to a territory many continue for an hour or more." Stokes Nature Guides: A Guide to Bird Behavior Volume I, p.313

Late Breaking News Doug Pearl dropped by on Saturday, 11 April to report a pair of Wood Ducks in Kehoe’s Pond on the Compound Road. Bill & I took a ride up and watched them for about 15 minutes before they flew away. They are beautiful birds. While we were gone, Danielle Baldwin from Main-A-Dieu called to report a Black-Headed Gull. It had been around her yard for about 3 hours. On the way out to see it we observed a pair of Loons in Little Lorraine Harbour and a large Raven circling above. In Main-A-Dieu besides the Black-Headed Gull there were Black Backed and Herring Gulls and 12 Black Ducks. On the way back to Louisbourg we stopped by Baleine and saw 3 pairs of Black Ducks and a Bald Eagle. Sandy Ley from Lorraine called me in the evening to say that he had seen the Black-Headed Gull in John Hall’s Pond in Main-A-Dieu on Friday. Thank you Doug and Danielle and Sandy.

Remember: Do NOT watch birds flying overhead while driving a car!

Songbirds: Celebrating Nature’s Voices Songbirds: Celebrating Nature’s Voices by Ronald Orenstein

p.86 "Female Red-winged Blackbirds are not lured in with bright red shoulders. Their concern is to select mates that have managed to take over high-quality territories, with good places to put nests, water nearby, and lots of food in the area. A male’s epaulettes are part of a game of bluff among rivals, each seeking to stake his claim to the kind of territory females want. Males arrive on the breeding grounds ahead of the females, where they posture, sing their loud songs, and generally try to elbow one another out of the way. The epaulettes are not passive armaments. Their owner covers and uncovers them, flashing them like signal lights. If the bird is aggressive, he can expose his red shoulders completely. If he is not defending his territory and wants to avoid being harassed by other birds, he tucks them out of sight."

219

Great Horned Owl

"…is the largest of our common owls and is a predator on many large mammals as well as other birds. It must endure the constant harassment of crows during the day. Why crows mob owls as well as hawks, is not clearly understood. Seeing or hearing mobbing behavior is one of the easiest ways to locate these owls. Just listen for the drawn out caw that the crows give when mobbing and then rush to the spot and look at where they are diving. This will often lead to a glimpse of the owl as it takes a short flight to try to rid itself of the crows."

Helen O’Shea

Extracted from © The Seagull, Helen O'Shea, For the Birds

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