Mostly birds in the garden
A week of transition … and something for you to do
One of the great pleasures of my life, all the more so each year older that I get, is to be able to sit on the deck or in a window with a large mug of tea and note the comings and goings of the wildlife – in particular of the birds. We have done much with design and plant selection and provision of food in one form or another to make the garden appeal to resident and passing birds. Not that that is any guarantee they will make use of what we offer. Fortunately, they mostly seem to like what they see, and so we have pleasure and enjoyment from watching them and noting their behaviour every day of the year. Even on the coldest days of winter (that’s around -30C here) there are birds to enjoy.
Gardening is good as a smoke-screen, and the habit of observing birds through powerful glasses can always be turned to account. —MISS MARPLE IN MURDER AT THE VICARAGE (1930)
Our total garden list, that is bird species that we have seen in and from the garden, stands at 120. Not bad for suburbia. At a rough count, this year’s garden bird list has welcomed its sixtieth species of 2023. Usually, we will see 70–80 species in a year, but the winter influx from the north has yet to arrive and that will boost things, though I expect by the end of the year we might be down a bit on the record. But who knows?
As we go through the months ahead, you are going to meet plenty of really cool birds that live out their lives very close to you, quite probably in your garden. This month already, behavioural changes are happening all around as the temperatures start to come down, and the days grow noticeably shorter, both events being triggers in the natural world. Typically, I expect the middle of September, say the 15th, to be the acceptable time for me to start wearing socks again – and if I am triggered to do that then certainly weather changes outdoors will be having impacts on the behaviour of our wildlife. So far, this year, I remain sockless - even as the rain pours down. Climate changes, normal, or GHG moderated, affect everything 😉
This week has been particularly enjoyable for two things. Firstly, the gradual appearance of the early migrating birds (or birds “in passage” as birders would say) that are dropping by to find good things in the garden. Secondly we are simultaneously seeing some rather tired and ragged looking birds that have been able to raise a second, maybe even third in one case, brood of juveniles that are busily hassling mum and dad for food. This particularly applies to the local Northern Cardinals, Am. Goldfinches and House Finches. The adults look weary indeed. As would anyone.
Meanwhile, other birds are, as I mentioned in a recent post, gathering in groups. Some of them will stay through the coming winter, as others are packing their bags for the south. But gathering they certainly are. Blue Jays, Common Grackles, American Robins, Northern Flickers and Euro-Starlings. Plus, we mustn’t forget, our regulars such as American Goldfinch, Black-capped Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatch, Mourning Doves, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers and the like. Northern Flickers are usually seen individually in the garden, often on the ground working for a meal from the many ant nests we host. Not long ago, an adult appeared with a juvenile and then, this morning a tall, dead ash tree in a neighbour's garden was decorated with at least five Flickers, and a single Cedar Waxwing. That’s unusual.
Of particular note were the visits from early warblers a few days ago. Wilson’s Warbler was outstanding, but also some Nashville Warblers and a couple of Common Yellowthroats. The first of many more, we are confident to say.
A rather scruffy juvenile Carolina Wren, a mostly ground feeding species, poked around some cleared soil in the garden taking insects at the start of the week - hadn’t seem those since quite early in the spring. We had heard Carolina Wrens singing nearby a few days earlier however. Good to know they are with us, as this is still an uncommon species this far north and one that usually makes good use of our feeders when the snow keeps them away from the ground. They are are rather hard to see during nesting season, good at skulking in the shadows.
We still have Ruby-throated Hummingbirds appearing daily. They are particularly drawn to the flowers of red Monarda (bee balm), to Zinnias, and to the one plant they cannot resist – Mexican cigar plant (Cuphea). Yes, we know that this is far, far from being a locally native flower, but it supports Hummingbirds like nothing else. Especially as, unlike the other plants they can exploit, it flowers continuously from the start of summer though into the fall. A reliable food source. With the variety of mostly native flowers we have it is never necessary to put out Hummingbird feeders. We would much rather grow flowers than mix sugar solution.
These are all visitors that the owners of mown-lawn-and-a-narrow-flowerbed gardens will probably never enjoy. All the more so if, as if too often the case, the solitary bird feeder on a pole out somewhere in the middle of the lawn is not kept filled with seed and protected from squirrels. The “Why do I never see birds in my garden?” question is easily answered if they just look around. “Think on”, as my Yorkshire relatives would say.
Final observation – I was on the deck chatting to a friend half an hour after completing this article. J came out to join us and looked up … then drew our attention upwards. Talk about the “Fall Gathering”, there circling lazily and low over the garden was an impressive kettle of Turkey Vultures. I hope they weren’t eyeing us up for closer attention. That’s one more pre-migration coming together of birds preparing to leave us for winter. We are in a transition period.
Everyday Bird Evolution - Juncos
This is a pretty interesting – we all know the Dark-eyed Juncos that will be arriving with us shortly and staying until the snows go. Have a read. How Juncos Changed Their Migration, Behavior, And Plumage In A Matter Of Decades
Feederwatch
Want to find a way to keep usefully being a naturalist during the winter that doesn’t involve freezing your toes off. I think you might seriously enjoy becoming a Feederwatcher - we have been feeder watchers for over 20 years and really look forward to getting started. You can find out all about it here:
https://www.birdscanada.org/you-can-help/project-feederwatch
Feederwatch is for North America, but there are similar projects of citizen science in other countries and your search engine will search them out for you. For example, in Britain there is the “Garden Bird Watch”
Briefly, quoting from their website:
Project FeederWatch is a joint research and education project of Birds Canada and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology that depends on volunteers like you to help us all learn more about bird populations. You don’t have to have a feeder. The plants, water and other features around our homes provide important habitats for birds year-round. To help birds, we need to understand how these habitats and the birds using them are changing over time. Your counts of winter yard birds tell us which species are doing well and which ones need our conservation attention. Everyone is welcome. You don’t need to be an expert birder. You also don’t need to make a huge time commitment – you decide how much time you spend. Even if you count birds only once during the season, that is a helpful snapshot of the birds in your location.
A short video to encourage you:
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