The Nemesis Bird » bird feeding

White-winged Crossbilll irruption

Drew — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:11:52 +0000

We are currently enjoying a large irruption of White-winged Crossbills across much of the northern states. I have gotten to see a flock several times near New Holland and have been returning in hopes of finding a Common Redpoll or Red Crossbill mixed in with the good numbers of Pine Siskins and White-winged Crossbills. Unfortunately, I have not gotten any pictures of the crossbill but you can check out Mike’s Birding & Digiscoping blog for some great pictures and a video.

I put a map together a while ago of crossbill sightings, so you can see they are quite widespread across the state. These are not all the sightings but I may have time to update them later.

Leave me a comment of where you have seen crossbills in PA this year and I can add them to the map.

[umap id="17634" size="m" alignment="center"]

Night-Herons at Alcoa Marsh

Drew — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 15:59:13 +0000

Hearing a report that there was a juvenile Yellow-crowned Night-Heron at Alcoa Marsh in Lancaster, I headed off to check it out early this morning. Arriving at the marsh, the first birds I heard were Yellow Warblers and a Willow Flycatcher. Scanning the edges of the marsh there are several dead trees, perfect for perching waders. The only bird making use of this perch was an adult Black-crowned Night-Heron (click on image to zoom in).

There were also four Green Herons perched on logs that were scattered thoughout the marsh. Most of the birds were spending their time preening as well as spreading their wings to warm up in the morning sun.

Finally, scanning back into the western corner of the marsh I saw a young night-heron sunning in a tree. Setting up my scope I saw that it was the immature Yellow-crowned Night-Heron. I managed to snap this photo of the distant night-heron with my camera’s zoom maxed out and my scope’s eyepiece set at 60x. Luckily there was enough light to take the picture at a fast enough speed.

White Ibis at the flats

Drew — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:43:33 +0000

Finally got out on the flats for the first time since late April. There had been both an immature White Ibis and a Sandhill Crane hanging out there together so I was hoping to see both these birds. Unfortunately, only the White Ibis was around while I was on the flats but it was very cooperative. It was hanging out in the cove by Avocet Point and as we were watching it, the ibis wandered back up along the woods, almost disappearing.

This is my second White Ibis in Pennsylvania, the first being the immature bird that showed up last year in Harrisburg. Apparently juvenile White Ibis were annual at one time in Washington Boro, attracted to the rookery there. During an invasion year in 1977, 17 White Ibises were counted at the Conejohela Flats on August 11th.

Anyone going to see the White Ibis should be forewarned that it is keeping to the upper part of the cove on the west side of Avocet Point which makes it hard to see from shore unless you walk down the river from the boat launch to where there is a break in the trees.

Feeding actually beneficial to birds

Drew — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 01:45:00 +0000

As seen on the front page of Nature.com, feeding birds during the winter is not only fun for the people feeding them. According to a British study, feeding birds in winter benefits them during the breeding season by allowing them to lay their eggs 2.5 days earlier on average than birds that did not have access to winter food. Birds that had been fed all winter also managed to raise an average of almost one more chick each year.

House Finches and American Goldfinches

The researchers looked at 500 nest boxes in N. Ireland, feeding some lucky birds more than 6 tons of peanuts and allowing the others to find their own natural food sources. The researchers think that the nutrients in the peanuts allow for better egg laying so the benefits may be different for various kinds of bird food. Another possibility is that the extra food allowed the birds to get into breeding condition more quickly.

Some birds can come to rely quite heavily on human provided food, relying almost entirely on feeder handouts. The researchers are unclear about how this affects the migrant species that arrive in the spring to search out possible nest sites. By the time they arrive, prime nesting locations may be taken by the birdfeed reliant birds and result in lower numbers of the migrant species hatching each year.

So, it’s hard to say how feeding bird affects all species but for the birds that stick around for the winter, the extra food source can be a real boon. The extra chick/year could really increase certain populations which, depending on the species, could be good or bad. The article also points out how important it is to keep feeding areas clean to avoid the transmission of diseases such as trichomoniasis which can be fatal to young birds.

Link

Bainbridge Sparrow hunting

Drew — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 20:36:00 +0000

There is a little spot on the Susquehanna River south of Harrisburg known for fall Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrows. It’s basically a collection of small islands populated by sedges and grasses and the sparrows seem to like it. Today, the most common passerines on the islands were American Pipits and Savannah Sparrows.

The real show-stoppers today were the shorebirds, though. A friend and I managed 11 species, which is notable for an October birding excursion in Pennsylvania. For me, the most exciting find were the three juvenile Long-billed Dowitchers that foraged for a long stretch of time with both Yellowlegs. Unfortunately I forgot the memory cards for the camera and so this is the best shot of the birds I could come up with.

Long-billed Dowitcher- juvenile

American Golden-Plovers also put in a good showing, with at least six juvenile plumaged birds flying consorting with a trio of Black-bellied Plovers and Killdeer. I took some decent shots of them last week when I managed some shots of an adult transitioning out of breeding plumage.

American Golden-Plover- transitional plumage

juvenile American Golden-Plovers with Killdeer

juv American Golden-Plover