The Zen Birdfeeder

Listening to Day Break

I woke knowing it was a Project FeederWatch day and perhaps immediately wanted to set the stage for my first count day.  So while I hung out in bed with the kitty and read a few pages of my new book, I turned on the sound monitor.  It wasn't even light yet so I waited for the first sounds of the new day.

The chatter of a red squirrel broke the silence, perking up Lizzie's ears.  The squirrel's solo introduction lasted perhaps 3-4 minutes before he was joined by other members of the chorus.

While still too dim to even see them, goldfinches joined in.  A trio or perhaps quartet of zweeee-zweeee-zweee calls told me a small flock was passing through the yard.  Goldfinches have been sparse lately so I hoped they'd come back later in the day to be amongst the counted.

The next chorus member to join in was the Red-breasted Nuthatch with their yank-yank calls.  Just yesterday a group of 3 nuthatches serenaded me from the top of the silver maple; it seems like they were back for an encore.  They were soon joined by the dee-dee-dee of the Black-capped Chickadee, who I knew would be included in my count.

Then from afar, I heard the peek! of a Hairy Woodpecker.  It crescendoed as the woodpecker approached, peek! Peek! PEEK! PEEK! PEEK! Peek! peek!, then decrescendoed as it most likely flew over the house and into the woods across the road.

Taking in the sounds of nature before dawn arrives is like listening to music with the lights off.  You rely on sound only, removing the distractions of the eyes to enhance what you hear.  So, with darkness gone, the chapter finished, the kitty content, and carrying bird calls in my head, I was ready for a day of counting the birds.  Oh, and maybe a little work in between too.

Just Beyond the Bird Feeders

Whenever we leave for a few days, we load up the feeders.  Hopper feeders filled to the brim, suet logs all plugged, and especially WBU seed cylinders, which seem to outlast them all.

Downy Woodpecker on seed cylinder w/Bark Butter bonus

Even so, we were surprised when we returned from our 6 day trip to the Midwest Birding Symposium last month to find that all the feeders weren't empty.  That was the first sign that bird activity in the area had tanked.

Yet even though the feeders aren't busy, there are still lots of birds around, and some in very good numbers.  Most prevalent are Dark-eyed Juncos and White throated Sparrows.  To reward their loyalty, I've been spreading WBU Deluxe Blend under the feeders and in the shrubs they feed near and within.  The white millet in the Deluxe is perfect for both of these ground-feeding birds.

Dark-eyed Junco

The White-throated Sparrows are still singing their "oh, sweet Canada, Canada, Canada" song as well.  Not in the "belt it out" voice they use during the spring but in a high pitched, feeble voice that is clearly white-throated but one badly in need of voice training.
 
Since I refilled the seed in a couple hopper feeders today, at least a dozen Blue Jays have been around, filling their crops with seeds to cache.

Blue Jays

And while I lament the paucity of birds at the feeders, over the last 2 weeks I've still seen over 24 species of birds:

Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Tufted Titmouse
American Goldfinch
Purple Finch
Black-throated Green Warbler
Red-eyed Vireo
Eastern Phoebe
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Mourning Dove
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Black capped Chickadee
Pileated Woodpecker
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Broad-winged Hawk
American Crow
Cooper's Hawk
Gray Catbird
Blue-headed Vireo
Ruby crowned Kinglet

Eastern Phoebe

Not too bad for "slow bird activity".  Just goes to show us that there are always birds out there, and sometimes just beyond the feeders.   

Song of the Wood Thrush

With Recordings Inspired by Donald Kroodsma

Did you know that some songbirds have 2 voiceboxes?  I didn't either until about 4 years ago when I heard ornithologist Donald Kroodsma on NPR's Fresh Air Program.  Kroodsma has been recognized by the American Ornithologists' Union as "the reigning authority on the biology of avian vocal behavior."

At that time, his new book "The Singing Life of Birds" had just been released.  In the program, host Terry Gross played a number of birdsongs that are on the CD that accompanies the book, with Donald providing fascinating explanations.

After listening to the program, I became enamored with the song of the Wood Thrush, one of the songbirds that has 2 syrinxes (voiceboxes).  Kroodsma's recordings of the thrush were first at full speed and then slowed down in order to hear as the bird "sings a duet with himself."  Kroodsma shares that the "left voice box specializes in low sounds, the right one in high sounds."

Fast forward a couple years to this summer.  I've had resident Wood Thrushes singing in the surrounding woods not only at daybreak and at dusk, but all day long.  I took my low tech computer microphone, set it in front of my sound monitor and recorded this song of the Wood Thrush.  (A 13 second recording.  Make sure your speaker volume is high.  The quality is not great, with a bit of a buzz, but bear with me.)

Then I used my equally low tech Microsoft Sound Recorder to slow the Wood Thrush song down, à la Donald Kroodsma.  (A 27 second recording.)

And then slowed I slowed the song down once more.  (A 55 second recording.)

I find the slowed-down recordings, even with my primitive equipment, simply amazing.  So haunting, so mesmerizing.  And just like Kroodsma says in his book, I will never "hear a Wood Thrush singing in the same way again."

If you'd like to hear high quality recordings of the Wood Thrush, Terry Gross' interview with Donald Kroodsma is still available to listen to online.  His book is The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Birdsong, which includes a CD with 98 birdsong tracks, including the Wood Thrush. 

All quotations in this post were taken from Kroodsma's book.

Female Oriole Arrives! Time to Hook Up!

One week after the male Baltimore Oriole arrived and started staking out his territory, the female oriole has also arrived in the area.  Here she is gleaning insects from the near the top of a birch tree.

Female Baltimore Oriole (digiscoped image)

The male arrived on May 11, was around for 2 days, but hadn't been seen or heard after that.  But I heard his wonderful call this morning and found both he and Mrs. Oriole up in the treetops. Here is a recording I made of the oriole song. 

I freshened up the oriole feeder with new nectar and a new orange half (still waiting for them to visit the feeder).  Hopefully they will together defend their territory and set up for a new breeding season.

Male oriole (digiscoped image)

Besides the return of the female oriole on Monday, it was a great day to watch birds at home.  Twenty-three species passed through the yard or the skies overhead.  Here's a list of Monday's visitors:

• Blue Jay
• Black-capped Chickadee
• Red-breasted Nuthatch
• Tufted Titmouse
• Mourning Dove
• American Goldfinch
• Purple Finch
• Ovenbird
• Rose-breasted Grosbeak (at least 3 males and 2 females)
• House Wren
• Dark-eyed Junco
• Black-throated Green Warbler
• Hairy Woodpecker
• Downy Woodpecker
• Northern Flicker
• Chipping Sparrow
• Ruby throated Hummingbird
• Baltimore Oriole
• American Robin
• Belted Kingfisher (overhead)
• Turkey Vulture (overhead)
• Yellow rumped Warbler
• Red-winged Blackbird

Northern Flicker female (digiscoped image)

SOM Seeking SOF

Single Oriole Male, new to area since May 18th, looking for Single Oriole Female for monogamous relationship.

Great singing voice.  Enjoys meals of caterpillars, moths, aphids, and other insects as well as oranges, nectar, and grape jelly.  8" long, weight 1.2oz.  Flashy dresser (wears orange and black suit).  Well groomed.  Love to travel long distances twice a year. Vacations during winters along Atlantic Coast of US.  Spends summers in rural area of upstate NY. Will help build great pouch-shaped nest in treetops. Hope to raise 4-5 young ones this season. Establishing territory right now and waiting for that special somebird.

This male oriole has been around and singing exuberantly from the tops of trees every day since the 18th. I posted his song on the 18th and decided to try to help him out some more with this personal ad.  If any one out there has an extra female oriole looking for love, send her this way!

Song of the Baltimore Oriole

A male Baltimore Oriole visited our yard again today.  I heard him before I saw him, as he was loudly singing his low-flutelike song in the plum tree right off the deck. I was able to capture a recording of his rich, beautiful song. (Click twice on the small forward arrow)

Both male and female orioles sing. Songs are "given between males in territory formation and between males and females during courtship". (Stokes Nature Guide to Bird Behavior) 

Orioles are most often seen in treetops, poking through trees like this birch for caterpillers and other insects like beetles and wasps. This digiscoped image was taken during his last visit a couple days ago.

Orioles can be attracted to an oriole feeder filled with nectar (1 part sugar to 6 parts water), fruit (orange halves), and even grape jelly (in small amounts so they and other birds don't immerse themselves in it).

The oriole is an infrequent visitor in my yard, so I especially relish its brilliant orange and black coloration and its beautiful song.  Read more about Baltimore Orioles on rightbird, Wild Birds Unlimited's Online Field Guide.

Need Help with Warbler Song

My mystery warbler is back, singing away. I recorded the song last year, and have attached the file that has 4 good repetitions. Always 6-7 notes, zoo-zoo-zoo-zoo-zoo-zoo-zee.

My guess is Black-throated Blue, which we do have in our area, and does nest here we believe (1300 ft elevation, Adirondack foothills). I hear the call all summer long.

Habitat: Coniferous 2nd growth forest, hemlock, white pine, norway spruce.  Some deciduous: black cherry, yellow birch.

I would appreciate the opinions of readers. Thanks in advance.

A Day Filled with Song

Lots of singing going on today.  Robins typically sing more for us here first thing in the morning and late in the afternoon, but today I had a robin kickin' his head back and belting away midday.

Had a couple visits from the Gray Catbird today.  When he sang, the feathers on his neck would ruffle, though I couldn't seem to catch that in any photos.  Just singing today, didn't hear his cat-call.  He didn't visit the feeders, though we have had catbirds eat WBU Fruit Cakes Dough in the past. 

There are lots of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks around.  Since the breast pattern of the males varies from bird to bird, I'm trying to sketch them out so I know just how many individual males we have. This is going to take awhile so I'll have a follow-up post on that later.  Here's a couple of the guys.

They were singing away today too - their song has been described as a robin with singing lessons.

Evening Grosbeaks Return

I enjoyed multiple visits from a pair of Evening Grosbeaks today.  Here they are sharing the tray feeder with a Chipping Sparrow.

Click on images to enlarge

Like the finches they are, they were flocking with the American Goldfinches and Purple Finches.  I saw four of them - 2 males and 2 females - but only 2 visited the feeder at any one time.

These are big, beautiful birds.  To look at them through the scope or binoculars was a real treat on what turned into a dreary foggy day.  I never noticed before that their large, seed-crushing bill is a very pale green.  You discover all kinds of things when you really take time to observe!

Their call is a sharp chirp.  Click on the play arrow on the controller below to listen to their loud, clear call coming through.  I recorded this earlier today.

We hear stories in the store from folks who tell of the huge flocks of Evening Grosbeaks that used to be in the area.  Hundreds of these birds would descend into a yard - what a sight that must have been!  Here is an excerpt from "Birds of New York" by Elon Howard Eaton, published in 1914.

"This interesting species, which is related to the Hawfinch of Europe, is a bird of striking appearance, especially the full plumaged males, whose conspicuous coloration of bright yellow, olive, black and white, and their enormously heavy beaks, immediately attract the attention of the most casual observer. The sight of a mountain ash tree full of Evening grosbeaks, feeding on the brilliant red berries is an event long to be remembered."

(My thanks go out to Bruce Blackie who recently dropped off this interesting volume at the store for us to use as we see fit.)

When Evening Grosbeaks visit, I'll usually see them for a day or two - then they're off.  In New York, they breed in the coniferous forests of the Adirondacks.

Read more about Evening Grosbeaks on rightbird, WBU's online guide to the birds.