Bird of the Week – Grey Ternlet ~ by Ian Montgomery
Newsletter ~ 4/10/12
Last week we had the (Common) White Tern or White Noddy. Here is its counterpart the Grey Ternlet, often called the Grey Noddy. It is also an island species but is restricted in range to the Western and South Pacific. In the Australian regions it, like the White Tern, occurs on both Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands. Unlike the White Tern, it nests mainly on inaccessible rock cliffs and I had had only distant views of it on Lord Howe 20 years ago. The situation was similar on Norfolk Island, and the first photo, taken at Captain Cook’s Lookout, was our first view of any. This photo, I might add, was taken with a 500mm telephoto lens, so we were nowhere near them.
Grey Noddy (Procelsterna albivitta) by Ian 1
So we hoped that our planned boat trip to nearby Phillip Island would provide better views and photo opportunities. It was late in the nesting season, though, and when we returned to the rocky cove to be picked up by the boat, we still hadn’t seen any, even in the distance. Getting on and off the boat was an interesting exercise as there is no wharf, just a north-facing cove, sheltered in southerly winds and swell, with a slippery rock shelf, best negotiated in stockinged feet for better traction, second photo (that’s Norfolk Island in the background).
Grey Noddy (Procelsterna albivitta) by Ian 2
We were just getting ready to board the approaching boat, when two Grey Ternlets landed on a rocky cliff nearby, and the boat was forgotten while I dug the camera out of my backpack. The two birds were an adult and a juvenile, the adult standing over the juvenile, which has dark markings on the head, in the third photo.
Grey Noddy (Procelsterna albivitta) by Ian 3
I moved closer to them, but the adult flew off, leaving the youngster to its fate, fourth photo.
Grey Noddy (Procelsterna albivitta) by Ian 4
The adult had landed almost out of sight behind a rocky outcrop, but I got a photo of it when it took off a little later, fifth photo.
Grey Noddy (Procelsterna albivitta) by Ian 5
Anyway, it was time to leave the Ternlets to their own devices and get on the boat. We were to see more Grey Ternlets on the cliffs of Norfolk Island, including a flock of about 15, but we never got close to them again. It was a great ending to a very successful trip to Phillip Island and we didn’t mind too much getting rather wet from the spray on the way back to Norfolk Island, the cameras being safety stowed in a dry spot.
Best wishes
Ian
**************************************************
Ian Montgomery, Birdway Pty Ltd,
454 Forestry Road, Bluewater, Qld 4818
Tel 0411 602 737 ian@birdway.com.au
Check the latest website updates: http://www.birdway.com.au/#updates
**************************************************
Lee’s Addition:
What scenery and what a beautiful Noddy. These Noddies or Ternlets like to nest on protected cliffs it appears.
The place where you live is safe. Your nest is on a high cliff. (Numbers 24:21a NIrV)
The Grey Noddy or Grey Ternlet (Procelsterna albivitta) is a seabird belonging to the tern family Laridae. It was once regarded as a pale morph of the Blue Noddy (Procelsterna cerulea) but is now often considered to be a separate species. It occurs in subtropical and warm temperate waters of the south Pacific Ocean.
It is 25–30 cm (9.8–12 in) long with a wingspan of 46–61 cm (18–24 in) and a weight of about 75 grams (2.6 oz). The tail is fairly long and notched. The plumage is pale grey, almost white on the head and underparts but darker on the back, tail and wings. The wings have dark tips and a white hind edge and are mainly white underneath. The eye is black and appears large due to the black patch in front of it. There is a white patch behind the eye. The thin, pointed bill is black and the legs and feet are also black apart from pale yellow webs.
It feeds in shallow water, not moving far from the breeding colonies. It gathers in large feeding flocks which can contain thousands of individuals. They feed by hovering over the water and dropping down to pick food from the surface. Plankton forms the bulk of the diet and small fish are also eaten.
Breeding takes place in colonies on rocky islands. The nest site is a sheltered rocky surface or underneath a boulder or clump of vegetation. A single egg is laid. Juvenile birds are browner than the adults and have darker, more contrasting flight feathers.
The Grey Noddy is usually silent but has a soft, purring call.
(The verse is out of context, but the nest on the cliff fit with these birds. Wikipedia cited.)
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. April, 1897 No. 4
*
THE PURPLE GALLINULE.
URPLE Gallinules are found in the South Atlantic and Gulf States, and casually northward as far as Maine, New York, Wisconsin, and south throughout the West Indies, Mexico, Central America, and northern South America to Brazil. The bird pictured was caught in the streets of Galveston, Texas, and presented to Mr. F. M. Woodruff, of the Chicago Academy of Sciences. Gallinules live in marshy districts, and some of them might even be called water-fowls. They usually prefer sedgy lakes, large swampy morasses and brooks, or ponds and rivers well stocked with vegetation. They are not social in disposition, but show attachment to any locality of which they have taken possession, driving away other birds much larger and stronger than themselves.
They are tenderly attached to their little ones and show great affection for each other. The nest is always built among, or near the water plants of which they are fond. It is about eight inches thick and fifteen to eighteen inches in diameter, and is placed from a foot to two feet out of water among the heavy rushes. The Purple Gallinule is known to build as many as five or six sham nests, a trait which is not confined to the Wren family. From four to twelve smooth shelled and spotted eggs are laid, and the nestlings when first hatched are clad in dark colored down. On leaving the nest they, accompanied by their parents, seek a more favorable situation until after the moulting season. Half fluttering and half running, they are able to make their way over a floating surface of water-plants.
They also swim with facility, as they are aquatic, having swimming membranes on their feet, and while vegetable feeders to some extent, they dive for food. It is noted that some Gallinules, when young, crawl on bushes by wing claws. The voice somewhat resembles the cackling or clucking of a hen. It eats the tender shoots of young corn, grass, and various kinds of grain. When the breeding season approaches, the mated pairs generally resort to rice fields, concealing themselves among the reeds and rushes. Mr. Woodruff noted that when the railway trains pass through the over-flowed districts about Galveston, the birds fly up along the track in large multitudes.
The Purple Gallinules are stoutly built birds, with a high and strong bill, and their remarkably long toes, which enable them to walk readily over the water plants, are frequently employed to hold the food, very much in the manner of a parrot, while eating.
Purple Gallinule (Porphyrio martinica) Juvenile Circle B by Lee
O, purple-breasted Gallinule
Why should thy beauty cause thee fear?
Why should the huntsman seek to fool
Thy innocence, and bring thee near
His deadly tool of fire and lead?
Thou holdest high thy stately head!
Would that the hunter might consent
To leave thee in thy sweet content.—C. C. M.
From col. F. M. Woodruff.
Framed Purple Gallinule by Dan
Lee’s Addition:
Purple Gallinules are one of the birds we see quite frequently here in central Florida. The article says that they “are not social in disposition,” but that is not after they have found those that feed them. We have only a few places were people feed the birds here; Lake Morton, Lake Hollingsworth, and Lake Morton that I have been to. At all three of those places we have seen Purple Gallinules and many times they come running when the birds are fed. Yes, most times they hide in the vegetation and are hard to spot.
They are actually a very pretty bird and they have such a nice purple sheen to them. I like their face with the blue plate and “candy corn” looking beak. Here is one I photographed at Lake Hollingsworth. You can see its big feet and how they like to walk along the vegetation. The Lord created them with feet like this so they can walk around on the vegetation and have their weight distributed better. That is a pretty typical behavior that we have observed.
O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! (Romans 11:33 KJV)
Purple Gallinule by Lee at Lake Hollingsworth by Lee
About the closest I have found to this being a Bird of the Bible is in verse 18 of Leviticus 11, which has the list of clean and unclean birds. The “water-hen” is mentioned in several versions including the BBE, ERV, ISV, MSG, NRSV and the Bishops calls it the “red-bill.” The Common Moorhen is sometimes called the Water-hen and is in the same family as the Purple Gallinule.
the water hen, the desert owl, the carrion vulture, (Leviticus 11:18 NRSV)
Here is what Wikipedia has to say about them with some editing:
This is a medium-sized rail, measuring 10–15 in (26–37 cm) in length, spanning 20–24 in (50–61 cm) across the wings and weighing 5.0–10.8 oz (141–305 g). Males are slightly larger than females. The adult Purple gallinule has big yellow feet, purple-blue plumage with a green back, and red and yellow bill. It has a pale blue forehead shield and white undertail. Darkness or low light can dim the bright purple-blue plumage of the adult to make them look dusky or brownish, although the forehead shield color differentiates them from similar species such as Common Moorhens.
Juveniles are brown overall with a brownish olive back. These gallinules will fly short distances with dangling legs.
Their breeding habitat is warm swamps and marshes in southeastern states of the United States and the tropical regions of Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. This species is resident in southern Florida and the tropics, but most American birds are migratory, wintering south to Argentina. The nest is a floating structure in a marsh. Five to ten eggs are laid. Their coloration is buff with brown spots.
The diet of these rails is omnivorous, being known to include a wide variety of plant and animal matter, including seeds, leaves and fruits of both aquatic and terrestrial plants, as well as insects, frogs, snails, spiders, earthworms and fish. They have also been known to eat the eggs and young of other birds.
This species is a very rare vagrant to western Europe. There is a similar species in southern Europe, the Purple Swamphen, Porphyrio porphyrio, but that bird is much larger.
Birds Illustrated by Color Photograhy Vol 1 April 1897 No 4 – Cover
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Canada Jay (Grey) for Birds Illustrated by Color Photography, 1897
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. April, 1897 No. 4
*
THE CANADA JAY.
I don’t believe I shall let this bird talk to you, boys and girls, for I’m afraid he will not tell you what a funny fellow he is. Isn’t he a queer looking bird? See how ruffled up his feathers are. He looks as though he forgot to fix up, just as some little boys forget to comb their hair before going to school. Well, to tell the truth, he is a very careless bird and does very funny things sometimes. He can’t be trusted. Just listen to some of the names that people give him—“Meat Bird,” “Camp Robber.” I think you can guess why he is called those names. Hunters say that he is the boldest of birds, and I think they are right, for what bird would dare to go right into a tent and carry off things to eat. A hunter thought he would play a joke on one of these birds. He had a small paper sack of crackers in the bottom of his boat. The Jay flew down, helped himself to a cracker and flew away with it to his nest. While he was gone the hunter tied up the mouth of the bag. In a few moments the Jay was back for more. When he saw he could not get into the bag, he just picked it up and carried it off. The joke was on the hunter after all. Look at him. Doesn’t he look bold enough to do such a trick? Look back at your February number of “Birds” and see if he is anything like the Blue Jay. He is not afraid of the snow and often times he and his mate have built their nest, and the eggs are laid while there is still snow on the ground. Do you know of any other birds who build their nests so early? There is one thing about this bird which we all admire—he is always busy, never idle; so we will forgive him for his funny tricks.
Grey Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) by Daves BirdingPix
THE CANADA JAY.
ANY will recognize the Canada Jay by his local names, of which he has a large assortment. He is called by the guides and lumbermen of the Adirondack wilderness, “Whisky Jack” or “Whisky John,” a corruption of the Indian name, “Wis-ka-tjon,” “Moose Bird,” “Camp Robber,” “Hudson Bay Bird,” “Caribou Bird,” “Meat Bird,” “Grease Bird,” and “Venison Heron.” To each of these names his characteristics have well entitled him. The Canada Jay is found only in the more northern parts of the United States, where it is a resident and breeds. In northern Maine and northern Minnesota it is most common; and it ranges northward through the Dominion of Canada to the western shores of Hudson Bay, and to the limit of timber within the Arctic Circle east of the Rocky Mountains. Mr. Manly Hardy, in a special bulletin of the Smithsonian Institution, says, “They are the boldest of our birds, except the Chickadee, and in cool impudence far surpass all others. They will enter the tents, and often alight on the bow of a canoe, where the paddle at every stroke comes within eighteen inches of them. I know nothing which can be eaten that they will not take, and I had one steal all my candles, pulling them out endwise, one by one, from a piece of birch bark in which they were rolled, and another pecked a large hole in a keg of castile soap. A duck which I had picked and laid down for a few minutes had the entire breast eaten out by one or more of these birds. I have seen one alight in the middle of my canoe and peck away at the carcass of a beaver I had skinned. They often spoil deer saddles by pecking into them near the kidneys. They do great damage to the trappers by stealing the bait from traps set for martens and minks, and by eating trapped game. They will sit quietly and see you build a log trap and bait it, and then, almost before your back is turned, you hear their hateful “Ca-ca-ca,” as they glide down and peer into it. They will work steadily, carrying off meat and hiding it. I have thrown out pieces, and watched one to see how much he would carry off. He flew across a wide stream and in a short time looked as bloody as a butcher from carrying large pieces; but his patience held out longer than mine. I think one would work as long as Mark Twain’s California Jay did trying to fill a miner’s cabin with acorns through a knot hole in the roof. They are fond of the berries of the mountain ash, and, in fact, few things come amiss; I believe they do not possess a single good quality except industry.” Its flight is slow and laborious, while it moves on the ground and in trees with a quickness and freedom equal to that of our better known Bluejay. The nesting season begins early, before the snow has disappeared, and therefore comparatively little is known about its breeding habits. It is then silent and retiring and is seldom seen or heard. The nest is quite large, made of twigs, fibres, willow bark, and the down of the cottonwood tree, and lined with finer material. The eggs, so far as is known, number three or four. They are of a pale gray color, flecked and spotted over the surface with brown, slate gray, and lavender.
Grey Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) by Raymond Barlow
Lee’s Addition: What an industrious bird! From what was written above, it seems this jay knows no bounds to providing for its family and apparently its curiosity.
Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it. (Proverbs 13:11 ESV) When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. (Psalms 104:28 ESV)
The Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis), also Grey Jay, Canada Jay, or Whiskey Jack, is a member of the crow and jay family (Corvidae) found in the boreal forests across North America north to the tree-line and in subalpine forests of the Rocky Mountains south to New Mexico and Arizona. It is one of three members of the genus Perisoreus, the others being the Siberian Jay found from Norway to eastern Russia and the Sichuan Jay restricted to the mountains of eastern Tibet and northwestern Sichuan. All three species store food and live year-round on permanent territories in coniferous forests.
The vast majority of Gray Jays live where there is a strong presence of one or more of black spruce, white spruce, Englemann spruce, jack pine, or lodgepole pine. Gray Jays do not inhabit the snowy, coniferous, and therefore seemingly appropriate Sierra Nevada of California where no spruce and neither of the two named pines occur. Nor do Gray Jays live in lower elevations of coastal Alaska or British Columbia dominated by Sitka spruce. The key habitat requirements may be sufficiently cold temperatures to ensure successful storage of perishable food and tree bark with sufficiently pliable scales arranged in a shingle-like configuration that allows Gray Jays to wedge food items easily up into dry, concealed storage locations. Storage may also be assisted by the antibacterial properties of the bark and foliage of boreal tree species. An exception to this general picture may be the well-marked subspecies P. c. obscurus, once given separate specific status as the “Oregon Jay”. It lives right down to the coast from Washington to northern California in the absence of cold temperatures or the putatively necessary tree species.
Gray Jays typically breed at 2 years of age. Pairs are monogamous and remain together for their lifetime, but a male or female will find another mate following the disappearance or death of their partner. Nesting typically occurs in March and April. Male Gray Jays choose a nest site in a mature coniferous tree and take the lead in construction. Cup-shaped nests were constructed with brittle dead twigs pulled off of trees, as well as bark strips and lichens. Cocoons of the forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma dysstria) filled the interstitial spaces of the nest. Nests are usually built on the southwestern side of a tree for solar warming and are usually
Gray Jay young are altricial. Nestling growth is most rapid from the 4th through the 10th day following hatching. Young are fed food carried in the throats of both parents.
Gray Jays do not hammer food with their bill as do other jays, but wrench, twist, and tug food apart. Gray Jays commonly carry large food items to nearby trees to eat or process for storage, possibly as defense against large scavengers. They are “scatterhoarders”, caching food items among scattered sites for later consumption.
Any food intended for storage is manipulated in the mouth and formed into a bolus (rounded mass) that is coated with sticky saliva, adhering to anything it touches. The bolus is stored in bark crevices, under tufts of lichen, or among conifer needles.
Risk and energy expenditure are factors in food selection for Gray Jay, which selects food on the basis of profitability to maximize caloric intake. Increased handling, searching, or recognition times for a preferred food item lowers its profitability.
The Gray Jay takes advantage of man-made sources of food, hence the names “camp robber” and “whiskey Jack”. According to Maccarone and Montevecchi, human observers do not inhibit Gray Jay’s feeding behavior; however, Rutter claims that “once having identified man with food it does not forget”. He found that after a nesting female was accustomed to being fed by humans she could be enticed to leave the nest during incubation and brooding.
Gray Jays cache thousands of food items every day during the summer for use the following winter. Caching behavior allows for permanent residence in boreal and subalpine forests, ensures a food source in areas with high elevations and cyclic availability of food resources, and favors the retention of young and a kin-selected social organization. In southern portions of the Gray Jay’s range, food is not cached during summer because of the chance of spoilage and the reduced need for winter stores. Cached items can be anything from carrion to bread crumbs and are formed into a bolus before being cached. Cached food is sometimes used to feed nestlings and fledglings.
Caching is inhibited by the presence of Steller’s jays and Gray Jays from adjacent territories, which follow resident Gray Jays to steal cached food. Gray Jays carry large food items to distant cache sites for storage more often than small food items. To prevent theft, they also tend to carry valuable food items further from the source when caching in the company of 1 or more Gray Jays. Scatterhoarding discourages pilferage by competitors. Cache thievery increases with increased cache density.
When exploiting distant food sources found in clearings, Gray Jays temporarily concentrated their caches in an arboreal site along the edge of a black spruce forest in interior Alaska. This allowed a high rate of caching in the short term and reduced the jay’s risk of predation. A subsequent recaching stage occurred, and food items were transferred to widely scattered sites to reduce theft.
Birds Illustrated by Color Photograhy Vol 1 April 1897 No 4 – Cover
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Ian’s Bird of the Week – Common White Tern ~ by Ian Montgomery
Newsletter – 4/2/12
Another species on my photo list on Norfolk Island was the (Common) White Tern. I’d admired on Lord Howe Island more than twenty years ago, before I got seriously into bird photography. They’re only Common if you’re on a remote coral or rocky island in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans, but the label really means ‘standard’ and reflects a split of the species, not universally recognised, into ‘Standard’ and Little White Tern. It used to have the attractive name ‘White Noddy’, until some prosaic purist decided that only terns belong the genus Anous were real Noddies.
They are unusually looking terns, with a pointy, slightly upturned bill and very white, actually translucent, feathers, usually described as ‘ethereal’. Seen against the sunlight, the effect is something like looking at an X-ray as in the second photo. In this one, you can see the bill is very thin laterally so it is shaped more like a pair of scissors.
White Terns are numerous on Norfolk Island and as they nest on the branches of Norfolk Island Pines, you see them all over the island. If you’re used to seeing terns near water, it’s initially slightly disconcerting to see them flying around in forest. Many of these are parents feeding young, but do also see pairs or small groups of birds, as in the third photo, and very pretty they are too.
In March, the breeding season is nearly over, but there are still some hungry and very bored looking chicks in the pines waiting for a feed. The single egg is laid precariously in a concavity on a branch or palm frond. Norfolk Island pines, with their horizontal limbs, are ideal for this and the recent establishment of breeding White Terns on Lord Howe Island can probably be attributed to the introduction of Norfolk Island Pines.
The fourth photo shows a nearly fledged juvenile. At this age they look like furry toys, but the slightly younger ones, that were just losing the last traces of their down, often looked quite comical. The bird in the fifth photo shows one that looks for all the world like an aged goddess of the silver screen who doesn’t believe in growing old gracefully, with faux eye-lashes, smudged mascara, thinning hair, an ancient fur coat and a grumpy expression.
Hopefully, though, it has a bright future ahead.
Best wishes
Ian<
**************************************************
Ian Montgomery, Birdway Pty Ltd,
454 Forestry Road, Bluewater, Qld 4818
Tel 0411 602 737 ian@birdway.com.au
Check the latest website updates: http://www.birdway.com.au/#updates
**************************************************
Lee’s Addition:
What a description of the that last photos. Puts a chuckle in you. What is so amazing is that it fits.
“The White Tern (Gygis alba) is a small seabird found across the tropical oceans of the world. It is sometimes known as the Fairy Tern although this name is potentially confusing as it is the common name of the Fairy Tern Sternula nereis. Other names for the species include Angel Tern and White Noddy.
The White Tern is a small, all white tern with a long black bill, related to the noddies. It ranges widely across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and also nests in some Atlantic islands. It nests on coral islands, usually on trees with thin branches but also on rocky ledges and on man-made structures. The White Tern feeds on small fish which it catches by plunge diving.
…there are costs associated with tree nesting, as the eggs and chicks are vulnerable to becoming dislodged by heavy winds. For this reason the White Tern is also quick to relay should it lose the egg. The newly hatched chicks have well developed feet with which to hang on to their precarious nesting site. It is a long-lived bird, having been recorded living for 17 years.” (Wikipedia)
Looks like the Lord, in his creation of these chicks, provided feet that can help them hold on.
All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs; under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth to their young, and under its shadow lived all great nations. (Ezekiel 31:6 ESV)
Great Horned Owl – Birds Illustrated by Color Photography
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. March, 1897 No. 3
*
THE LONG-EARED OWL.
HE name of the Long-Eared Owl is derived from the great length of his “ears” or feather-tufts, which are placed upon the head, and erect themselves whenever the bird is interested or excited. It is the “black sheep” of the owl family, the majority of owls being genuine friends of the agriculturist, catching for his larder so many of the small animals that prey upon his crops. In America he is called the Great Horned Owl—in Europe the Golden Owl. (Today it is the Eurasian Eagle-Owl, I believe.)
Nesting time with the owl begins in February, and continues through March and April. The clown-like antics of both sexes of this bird while under the tender influence of the nesting season tend somewhat to impair their reputation for dignity and wise demeanor. They usually have a simple nest in a hollow tree, but which seems seldom to be built by the bird itself, as it prefers to take the deserted nest of some other bird, and to fit up the premises for its own use. They repair slightly from year to year the same nest. The eggs are white, and generally four or five in number. While the young are still in the nest, the parent birds display a singular diligence in collecting food for them.
If you should happen to know of an owl’s nest, stand near it some evening when the old birds are rearing their young. Keep quiet and motionless, and notice how frequently the old birds feed them. Every ten minutes or so the soft flap, flap of their wings will be heard, the male and female alternately, and you will obtain a brief glimpse of them through the gloom as they enter the nesting place. They remain inside but a short time, sharing the food equally amongst their brood, and then are off again to hunt for more. All night, were you to have the inclination to observe them, you would find they pass to and fro with food, only ceasing their labors at dawn. The young, as soon as they reach maturity, are abandoned by their parents; they quit the nest and seek out haunts elsewhere, while the old birds rear another, and not infrequently two more broods, during the remainder of the season.
The habits of the Long-Eared Owl are nocturnal. He is seldom seen in the light of day, and is greatly disturbed if he chance to issue from his concealment while the sun is above the horizon. The facial disk is very conspicuous in this species. It is said that the use of this circle is to collect the rays of light, and throw them upon the eye. The flight of the owl is softened by means of especially shaped, recurved feather-tips, so that he may noiselessly steal upon his prey, and the ear is also so shaped as to gather sounds from below.
The Long-Eared Owl is hardly tameable. The writer of this paragraph, when a boy, was the possessor, for more than a year, of a very fine specimen. We called him Judge. He was a monster, and of perfect plumage. Although he seemed to have some attachment to the children of the family who fed him, he would not permit himself to be handled by them or by any one in the slightest. Most of his time he spent in his cage, an immense affair, in which he was very comfortable. Occasionally he had a day in the barn with the rats and mice.
The owl is of great usefulness to gardener, agriculturist, and landowner alike, for there is not another bird of prey which is so great a destroyer of the enemies of vegetation.
Great Horned Owl LPZoo by Lee
THE OWL.
We know not alway
Who are kings by day,
But the king of the night is the bold brown owl!
I wonder why the folks put my picture last in the book. It can’t be because they don’t like me, for I’m sure I never bother them. I don’t eat the farmer’s corn like the crow, and no one ever saw me quarrel with other birds.
Maybe it is because I can’t sing. Well, there are lots of good people that can’t sing, and so there are lots of good birds that can’t sing.
Did you ever see any other bird sit up as straight as I do? I couldn’t sit up so straight if I hadn’t such long, sharp claws to hold on with.
My home is in the woods. Here we owls build our nests—most always in hollow trees.
During the day I stay in the nest or sit on a limb. I don’t like day time for the light hurts my eyes, but when it begins to grow dark then I like to stir around. All night long I am wide awake and fly about getting food for my little hungry ones. They sleep most of the day and it keeps me busy nearly all night to find them enough to eat.
I just finished my night’s work when the man came to take my picture. It was getting light and I told him to go to a large stump on the edge of the woods and I would sit for my picture. So here I am. Don’t you think I look wise? How do you like my large eyes? If I could smile at you I would, but my face always looks sober. I have a great many cousins and if you really like my picture, I’ll have some of them talk to you next month. I don’t think any of them have such pretty feathers though. Just see if they have when they come.
Well, I must fly back to my perch in the old elm tree. Good-bye.
Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) chicks – WikiC
THE OWL.
In the hollow tree, in the old gray tower,
The spectral owl doth dwell;
Dull, hated, despised in the sunshine hour,
But at dusk he’s abroad and well!
Not a bird of the forest e’er mates with him;
All mock him outright by day;
But at night, when the woods grow still and dim,
The boldest will shrink away!
O! when the night falls, and roosts the fowl,
Then, then, is the reign of the Horned Owl!
And the owl hath a bride, who is fond and bold,
And loveth the wood’s deep gloom;
And, with eyes like the shine of the moonstone cold,
She awaiteth her ghastly groom.
Not a feather she moves, not a carol she sings,
As she waits in her tree so still,
But when her heart heareth his flapping wings,
She hoots out her welcome shrill!
O! when the moon shines, and dogs do howl,
Then, then, is the joy of the Horned Owl!
Mourn not for the owl, nor his gloomy plight!
The owl hath his share of good—
If a prisoner he be in the broad daylight,
He is lord in the dark greenwood!
Nor lonely the bird, nor his ghastly mate,
They are each unto each a pride;
Thrice fonder, perhaps, since a strange, dark fate
Hath rent them from all beside!
So, when the night falls, and dogs do howl,
Sing, Ho! for the reign of the Horned Owl!
We know not alway
Who are kings by day,
But the King of the Night is the bold Brown Owl!
Bryan W. Procter
(Barry Cornwall.)
Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) by Bob-Nan
Lee’s Addition:
Our Owl friend is a Bird of the Bible also. Owls are mentioned in 8 to 9 verses in Scripture, depending on which version. The KJV has 8 “owl” and 1 “owls” mentioned. The “horned owl” is mentioned in several versions. They are also one of the Birds of Prey mentioned in the Bible.
The little owl, the great owl, the horned owl, (Deuteronomy 14:16 AMP)
The Great Horned Owls range in length from 18–27 in (46–69 cm) and have a wingspan of 40–60.5 in (101–153 cm); Females are larger than males, an average adult being 22 in (55 cm) long with a 49 in (124 cm) wingspan and weighing about 3.1 lbs (1400 g). Depending on subspecies, Great Horned Owls can weigh from 0.72 to 2.55 kg (1.6 to 5.6 lb). At present there are 14 subspecies.
Adults have large ear tufts, a reddish, brown or gray face and a white patch on the throat. The iris is yellow, except the amber-eyed South American Great Horned Owl (B. V. nacurutu). Its “horns” are neither ears nor horns, simply tufts of feathers. The underparts are light with brown barring; the upper parts are mottled brown. The legs and feet are covered in feathers up to the talons. There are individual and regional variations in color; birds from the sub-Arctic are a washed-out, light-buff color, while those from Central America can be a dark chocolate brown.
Their call is a low-pitched but loud ho-ho-hoo hoo hoo; sometimes it is only four syllables instead of five. The female’s call is higher and rises in pitch at the end of the call. Young owls make hissing or screeching sounds that are often confused with the calls of Barn Owls.
Great Horned Owl call by Jesse Fagan
Owls were given spectacular binocular vision allowing them to pinpoint prey and see in low light. The eyes of Great Horned Owls are nearly as large as those of humans and are immobile within their circular bone sockets. Instead of turning their eyes, they turn their heads. Therefore, their neck must be able to turn a full 270 degrees in order to see in other directions without moving its entire body.
An owl’s hearing is as good as – if not better than – its vision; they have better depth perception[citation needed] and better perception of sound elevation (up-down direction) than humans. This is due to owl ears not being placed in the same position on either side of their head: the right ear is typically set higher in the skull and at a slightly different angle. By tilting or turning its head until the sound is the same in each ear, an owl can pinpoint both the horizontal and vertical direction of a sound.
Closeup of Great Horned Owl toes and talons
Great Horned Owl Foot LPZoo by Lee
These birds hunt at night by waiting on a high perch and swooping down on prey. Prey can vary greatly based on opportunity. The predominant prey group are small to medium-sized mammals such as hares, rabbits (statistically the most regular prey, juvenile raccoons, rats, squirrels, mice, moles, voles, shrews, bats, armadillos, muskrats, weasels and gerbils. It is even a natural predator of prey two to three times heavier than itself such as porcupines, marmots and skunks. Birds also comprise a large portion of a Great Horned Owl’s diet, ranging in size from kinglets to Great Blue Herons. Waterbirds, especially coots and ducks, are hunted; even raptors, up to the size of Red-tailed Hawk and Snowy Owls, are sometimes taken. Regular avian prey includes woodpeckers, grouse, crows, pigeons, herons, gulls, quail, turkey and various passerines. Reptiles (to the size of young American alligators, amphibians, fish, crustaceans and even insects are only occasional prey. In addition, the Great Horned Owl will predate on domesticated cats and small or young dogs.
When the Lord has created these birds Hi also gave them 200–300 pounds per square inch of crushing power in their talons. An average adult human male has about 60 pounds per square inch in his hands. In northern regions, where larger prey that cannot be eaten quickly are most prevalent, they may let uneaten food freeze and then thaw it out later using their own body heat. They also tend to eat and regurgitate food in the same locations.
The article is titled the Long-eared Owl. Actually there really is a Long-eared Owl.
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Ian’s Bird of the Week – Pacific Robin ~ by Ian Montgomery
Newsletter – 3/25/12
The Pacific Robin was another bird that I was keen to photograph on Norfolk Island. It has only recently been split from the mainland Scarlet Robin and, until that happened, it attracted little attention. As a consequence, I had trouble sourcing photos, particularly of adult males, and getting reliable material for the description of the species for the digital version of the Australian field guide by Pizzey and Knight.
It’s not common on Norfolk Island with an estimated population of 400-500 species and its distribution is restricted to areas of native forest. Happily, there was a resident family at the place, Palm Glen, where we did regular evening vigils for the Norfolk Island Parakeet and, being more confiding than Scarlet Robins, the members of the family proved to be good subjects for photography. The first photo shows the adult male. At first glance, it looks like a small Scarlet Robin, but closer examination reveals the diagnostic lack of white on the flight feathers of the wing and the outer tail feathers: the only white on the wing is the secondary wing coverts. Another supposed difference is a smaller area of white on the forehead, but this bird at least seemed to me to show much more white, extending back to a point above the rear of the eyes. If you’re interested, compare with http://www.birdway.com.au/petroicidae/scarlet_robin/index.htm .
Pacific Robin (Petroica multicolor) by Ian 2 Fem L-Juv R
The second photo shows the adult female, left, and the juvenile, right, posing obligingly for comparison. Both lack the obvious white forehead spot characteristic of, in fact diagnostic of, their Scarlet Robin counterparts and also lack white in the outer tail feathers. The colours are also richer and the wing stripes are a deeper buff, almost blending with the buffish-brown of the rest of the wings and back. The third photos shows the same female face-on, and the lack of the white spot is more obvious: there is only slight white scalloping.
Pacific Robin (Petroica multicolor) by Ian 3 Fem
The fourth photo is another shot of the same juvenile, showing the lack of white on the outer tail feathers.
Pacific Robin (Petroica multicolor) by Ian 4 Juv
Having noticed the large amount of white on the forehead of the male, I kept an eye out for another individual and eventually photographed this one, fifth photo, on nearby Mount Pitt. This too had a large white spot.
Pacific Robin (Petroica multicolor) by Ian 5
The Pacific Robin, as now described, is quite widely distributed on islands in the South Pacific from the Solomons in the north via Vanuata and Fiji to Norfolk Island in the south. It is quite variable in plumage and 14 races have been described. It is closely related to the Tomtit of New Zealand, the males of which vary in colour from the white-breasted (North Island), through yellow-breasted (South Island) to the complete black race on the Snares: http://www.birdway.com.au/petroicidae/tomtit/index.htm. There is clearly enough material here to keep a South-sea-island-loving taxonomist busy for at least a lifetime and I won’t say anything further except to note an interesting historical twist in the story of the splitting of the Pacific and Scarlet Robins.
Norfolk Island was settled in the same year as Sydney, 1788, and one result of that was that the Scarlet Robin was described using a Norfolk Island specimen (the type specimen) by German Naturalist Johann Gmelin in 1789 and given the specific name multicolor.When the species was split 210 years later, the rules governing taxonomy insist that this name remains with the Norfolk Island bird, so the mainland species becomes the new one and was named boodang after the SE Australian race (up till thenPetroica multicolour boodang). To avoid confusion in Australia (at the risk maybe of increasing it in the Pacific Islands) the common name Scarlet was transferred to the new species and the new name Pacific was given to the old species.
I’m sure this family of birds at Palm Glen would be astounded to learn that their kind is the subject of such intense scrutiny!
He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; (Matthew 16:2 NKJV)
Those changes aught to keep the Bird Guide writers busy keeping up with the divisions and name changing. What a gorgeous bird and fantastic photography. Thanks again, Ian, for sharing all these great birds.
It seems small in the photos, so I checked to see its size. “The Pacific Robin is a small passerine, 4.5-5.3 in (11.5–13.5 cm) long and weighing .31-.38 oz (9–11 g.) Over much of its range it is the smallest species of bird. Pretty small.
“The Pacific Robin is a seasonal breeder, although the timing of the breeding season varies across its range. Information on the timing of the season is patchy or absent in many islands. On Norfolk Island the breeding season is from September to December, and in Vanuatu the season is from October to January. Parents with young have been seen in mid August in the Solomon Islands and in June through to September in Samoa. The species builds a compact nest which is a cup of plant fibres and spider webs. The outside of the nest is decorated with moss and lichen, and is therefore easily overlooked. The nest is usually set into a fork or stump on a tree branch, or on a horizontal branch.
Around two to four eggs are laid in each clutch, with two being the typical clutch size in Norfolk Island, and two to three being typical in Fiji. The eggs are dull grey or greenish, and are incubated by the female. The nests of Pacific Robins are parastised by Fan-tailed Cuckoos where the two species co-occur.” (Wikipedia)
We had not been to Circle B recently, nor especially out to the Marsh by the windmill. Actually the windmill has lost its blades. It is a long trek out there for me, but praise the Lord, one of the workers came along with one of their vehicles and gave us a ride to the marsh. We were greeted by a group photographing Sandhill Cranes with their baby. That would have made the trip worth it alone.
Of course there were other birds awaiting our arrival. It is never boring out there. Since we had parked up by the entrance to get to the marsh, when we got out of the car and were getting our cameras and binoculars, we were greeted by the sound of a Pileated Woodpecker. When we returned, the Pileated showed off and we got some close-up shots of two of them. They were right by the pavilion and didn’t seem to mind those of us nearby.
Great Blue Heron with Catfish at Circle B by Lee - cropped
Another neat observation was the Great Blue Heron that caught a fish, actually a catfish. He was out from the edge a bit, but was able to zoom in on him. Took some video of it trying to kill the fish.
It is still quite dry out there as the rains have not started yet. It has been rather dry this winter. Water levels are still low.
I am including some photos and video taken out at Circle B that day. Video has segment of Great Blue with the Catfish and a close-up of the Pileated Woodpecker. Notice how he uses his tail to support himself.
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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. (John 1:1-3 NKJV)
Here is the list from e-bird for that trip. (37 species total)
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. March, 1897 No. 3
*
THE CROW.
Caw! Caw! Caw! little boys and girls. Caw! Caw! Caw! Just look at my coat of feathers. See how black and glossy it is. Do you wonder I am proud of it?
Perhaps you think I look very solemn and wise, and not at all as if I cared to play games. I do, though; and one of the games I like best is hide-and-seek. I play it with the farmer in the spring. He hides, in the rich, brown earth, golden kernels of corn. Surely he does it because he knows I like it, for sometimes he puts up a stick all dressed like a man to show where the corn is hidden. Sometimes I push my bill down into the earth to find the corn, and at other times I wait until tiny green leaves begin to show above the ground, and then I get my breakfast without much trouble. I wonder if the farmer enjoys this game as much as I do. I help him, too, by eating worms and insects.
During the spring and summer I live in my nest on the top of a very high tree. It is built of sticks and grasses and straw and string and anything else I can pick up. But in the fall, I and all my relations and friends live together in great roosts or rookeries. What good times we do have—hunting all day for food and talking all night. Wouldn’t you like to be with us?
The farmer who lives in the house over there went to the mill to-day with a load of corn.
One of the ears dropped out of the wagon and it didn’t take me long to find it. I have eaten all I can possibly hold and am wondering now what is the best thing to do. If you were in my place would you leave it here and not tell anybody and come back to-morrow and finish it? Or would you fly off and get Mrs. Crow and some of the children to come and finish it? I believe I’ll fly and get them. Good-bye.
Caw! Caw! Caw!
Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus) at Lake Morton By Dan’sPix
THE COMMON CROW.
“The crow doth sing as merry as the lark,
When neither is attended.”
EW birds have more interesting characteristics than the Common Crow, being, in many of his actions, very like the Raven, especially in his love for carrion. Like the Raven, he has been known to attack game, although his inferior size forces him to call to his assistance the aid of his fellows to cope with larger creatures. Rabbits and hares are frequently the prey of this bird which pounces on them as they steal abroad to feed. His food consists of reptiles, frogs, and lizards; he is a plunderer of other birds’ nests. On the seashore he finds crabs, shrimps and inhabited shells, which he ingeniously cracks by flying with them to a great height and letting them fall upon a convenient rock.
The crow is seen in single pairs or in little bands of four or five. In the autumn evenings, however, they assemble in considerable flocks before going to roost and make a wonderful chattering, as if comparing notes of the events of the day.
The nest of the Crow is placed in some tree remote from habitations of other birds. Although large and very conspicuous at a distance, it is fixed upon one of the topmost branches quite out of reach of the hand of the adventurous urchin who longs to secure its contents. It is loosely made and saucer shaped. Sticks and softer substances are used to construct it, and it is lined with hair and fibrous roots. Very recently a thrifty and intelligent Crow built for itself a summer residence in an airy tree near Bombay, the material used being gold, silver, and steel spectacle frames, which the bird had stolen from an optician of that city. Eighty-four frames had been used for this purpose, and they were so ingeniously woven together that the nest was quite a work of art. The eggs are variable, or rather individual, in their markings, and even in their size. The Crow rarely uses the same nest twice, although he frequently repairs to the same locality from year to year. He is remarkable for his attachment to his mate and young, surpassing the Fawn and Turtle Dove in conjugal courtesy.
And he lives to a good old age. Instances are not rare where he has attained to half a century, without great loss of activity or failure of sight.
At Red Bank, a few miles northeast of Cincinnati, on the Little Miami River, in the bottoms, large flocks of Crows congregate the year around. A few miles away, high upon Walnut Hills, is a Crow roost, and in the late afternoons the Crows, singly, in pairs, and in flocks, are seen on the wing, flying heavily, with full crops, on the way to the roost, from which they descend in the early morning, crying “Caw! Caw!” to the fields of the newly planted, growing, or matured corn, or corn stacks, as the season may provide.
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) by Kent Nickell
Lee’s Addition:
The Raven family which includes the Crows is mentioned in Scripture in the list of unclean birds in Leviticus and Deuteronomy (14:14) as “after its kind.”
every raven after its kind, (Leviticus 11:15 NKJV)
Crows form the genus Corvus in the Corvidae – Crows, Jays Family. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws (Eurasian and Daurian) to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents (except South America) and several offshore and oceanic islands (except for a few, which included Hawaii, which had the Hawaiian crow that went extinct in the wild in 2002). In the United States and Canada, the word “crow” is used to refer to the American Crow.
The crow genus makes up a third of the species in the Corvidae family. A group of crows is called a flock or, more poetically, a murder, But the term “murder of crows” mostly reflects a time when groupings of many animals had colorful and poetic names. For example, other “group” names include: an ostentation of peacocks, a parliament of owls, a knot of frogs, and a skulk of foxes.
Recent research has found some crow species capable not only of tool use but of tool construction as well. Crows are now considered to be among the world’s most intelligent animals. As a group, crows show remarkable examples of intelligence. Crows and ravens often score very highly on intelligence tests. Certain species top the avian IQ scale. Wild hooded crows in Israel have learned to use bread crumbs for bait-fishing. Crows will engage in a kind of mid-air jousting, or air-“chicken” to establish pecking order. Crows have been found to engage in feats such as sports, tool use, the ability to hide and store food across seasons, episodic-like memory,[vague] and the ability to use individual experience in predicting the behavior of environmental conspecifics.
One species, the New Caledonian Crow, has also been intensively studied recently because of its ability to manufacture and use its own tools in the day-to-day search for food. These tools include ‘knives’ cut from stiff leaves and stiff stalks of grass. Another skill involves dropping tough nuts into a trafficked street and waiting for a car to crush them open. On October 5, 2007, researchers from the University of Oxford, England presented data acquired by mounting tiny video cameras on the tails of New Caledonian Crows. It turned out that they use a larger variety of tools than previously known, plucking, smoothing, and bending twigs and grass stems to procure a variety of foodstuffs. Recent research suggests that crows have the ability to recognize one individual human from another by facial features.
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. March, 1897 No. 3
*
THE BOBOLINK.
“When Nature had made all her birds,
And had no cares to think on,
She gave a rippling laugh,
And out there flew a Bobolinkon.”
O American ornithologist omits mention of the Bobolink, and naturalists generally have described him under one of the many names by which he is known. In some States he is called the Rice Bird, in others Reed Bird, the Rice or Reed Bunting, while his more familiar title, throughout the greater part of America, is Bobolink, or Bobolinkum. In Jamaica, where he gets very fat during his winter stay, he is called the Butter Bird. His title of Rice Troopial is earned by the depredations which he annually makes upon the rice crops, though his food “is by no means restricted to that seed, but consists in a large degree of insects, grubs, and various wild grasses.” A migratory bird, residing during the winter in the southern parts of America, he returns in vast multitudes northward in the early Spring. According to Wilson, their course of migration is as follows: “In April, or very early in May, the Rice Buntings, male and female, arrive within the southern boundaries of the United States, and are seen around the town of Savannah, Georgia, sometimes in separate parties of males and females, but more generally promiscuously. They remain there but a short time, and about the middle of May make their appearance in the lower part of Pennsylvania. While here the males are extremely gay and full of song, frequenting meadows, newly plowed fields, sides of creeks, rivers, and watery places, feeding on May flies and caterpillars, of which they destroy great quantities. In their passage, however, through Virginia at this season, they do great damage to the early wheat and barley while in their milky state. About the 20th of May they disappear on their way to the North. Nearly at the same time they arrive in the State of New York, spread over the whole of the New England States, as far as the river St. Lawrence, and from Lake Ontario to the sea. In all of these places they remain during the Summer, building their nests and rearing their young.”
The Bobolink’s song is a peculiar one, varying greatly with the occasion. As he flys southward, his cry is a kind of clinking note; but the love song addressed to his mate is voluble and fervent. It has been said that if you should strike the keys of a pianoforte haphazard, the higher and the lower singly very quickly, you might have some idea of the Bobolink’s notes. In the month of June he gradually changes his pretty, attractive dress and puts on one very like the females, which is of a plain rusty brown, and is not reassumed until the next season of nesting. The two parent birds in the plate represent the change from the dark plumage in which the bird is commonly known in the North as the Bobolink, to the dress of yellowish brown by which it is known throughout the South as the Rice or Reed Bird.
His nest, small and a plain one, too, is built on the ground by his industrious little wife. The inside is warmly lined with soft fibers of whatever may be nearest at hand. Five pretty white eggs, spotted all over with brown are laid, and as soon
“As the little ones chip the shell
And five wide mouths are ready for food,
‘Robert of Lincoln’ bestirs him well,
Gathering seeds for this hungry brood.”
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) CC Pair ramendan
Other birds may like to travel alone, but when jolly Mr. Bobolink and his quiet little wife come from the South, where they have spent the winter, they come with a large party of friends. When South, they eat so much rice that the people call them Rice Birds. When they come North, they enjoy eating wheat, barley, oats and insects.
Mr. and Mrs. Bobolink build their simple little nest of grasses in some field. It is hard to find on the ground, for it looks just like dry grass. Mrs. Bobolink wears a dull dress, so she cannot be seen when she is sitting on the precious eggs. She does not sing a note while caring for the eggs. Why do you think that is?
Mr. Bob-Linkum does not wear a sober dress, as you can see by his picture. He does not need to be hidden. He is just as jolly as he looks. Shall I tell you how he amuses his mate while she is sitting? He springs from the dew-wet grass with a sound like peals of merry laughter. He frolics from reed to post, singing as if his little heart would burst with joy.
Don’t you think Mr. and Mrs. Bobolink look happy in the picture? They have raised their family of five. Four of their children have gone to look for food; one of them—he must surely be the baby—would rather stay with his mamma and papa. Which one does he look like?
Many birds are quiet at noon and in the afternoon. A flock of Bobolinks can be heard singing almost all day long. The song is full of high notes and low, soft notes and loud, all sung rapidly. It is as gay and bright as the birds themselves, who flit about playfully as they sing. You will feel like laughing as merrily as they sing when you hear it some day.
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) by J Fenton
Lee’s Addition:
Even the birds in the sky know the right time to do things. The storks, doves, swifts, and thrushes know when it is time to fly to a new home. But my people don’t know what the LORD wants them to do. (Jeremiah 8:7 ERV)
Adults are 16–18 cm (6–8 in) long with short finch-like bills. They weigh about 1 ounce (28 g).[1] Adult males are mostly black, although they do display creamy napes, and white scapulars, lower backs and rumps. Adult females are mostly light brown, although their coloring includes black streaks on the back and flanks, and dark stripes on the head; their wings and tails are darker. The collective name for a group of bobolinks is a chain.[2]
[edit]Distribution and movements
These birds migrate to Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. One bird was tracked flying 12,000 miles (19,000 km) over the course of the year, and up to 1,100 miles (1,800 km) in one day. They often migrate in flocks, feeding on cultivated grains and rice, which leads to them being considered a pest by farmers in some areas. Although Bobolinks migrate long distances, they have rarely been sighted in Europe—like many vagrants from the Americas, the overwhelming majority of records are from the British Isles.[citation needed] Each fall, Bobolinks gather in large numbers in South American rice fields, where they are inclined to eat grain. This has earned them the name “ricebird” in these parts. However, they are called something entirely different in Jamaica (Butterbirds) where they are collected as food, being that they are very fat as they pass through on migration.
Their breeding habitats are open grassy fields, especially hay fields, across North America. In high-quality habitats, males are often polygynous. Females lay 5 to 6 eggs in a cup-shaped nest, which is always situated on the ground and is usually well-hidden in dense vegetation. Both parents feed the young.
Bobolinks forage on, or near the ground, and mainly eat seeds and insects. Males sing bright, bubbly songs in flight; these songs gave this species its common name.
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Ian’s Bird of the Week – Norfolk Island Parakeet ~ by Ian Montgomery
Newsletter ~ 3/15/12
Well, your unwavering moral and spiritual support has done it again: here is the Tasman or Norfolk Island Parakeet (better known here as the Green Parrot to distinguishing it from the introduced Red Parrot – the Crimson Rosella). Thank you very much!
We were met at the airport by Albury-Wodonga birder Dougald Frederick, excitedly carrying the news that there was a vagrant Ringed Plover at Slaughter Bay. So we picked up the hire cars, checked into our accommodation and went down to the Bay, whose name is a corruption of Slackwater Bay, rather than the site of a messy event in the generally nasty penal history of the island. Ringed Plovers are indeed rare in Australia, but I was brought up with them in Ireland and couldn’t conceal my impatience to get to Palm Glen near Mount Pitt, where Dougald had been regularly seeing the Parakeets in the evening.
Eventually we went there and eventually, just before sunset and after my travelling companions had left to buy food for breakfast, the Parakeet in the first photo arrived and starting feeding on the feral guavas, fruiting prolifically around the picnic area. The guavas have dense foliage and the red fruit made the feeding Parakeets very hard to see. They were easier to see, but harder to photograph, when they used the top of the numerous tall Norfolk Island pines as vantage points, second photo. This less brightly coloured bird is a female or juvenile; the ones in the first and third photos are males.
Norfolk Parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii) (fem or juv) by Ian 2
After that, we visited Palm Glen regularly in the evenings and always saw at least one, distant Parakeet, with a flock of 6 on the second day when I took the third photo, the last occasion on which the birds were close enough to photograph. As well as being a pleasant spot to watch the sunset, it was also a good site for the other two remaining endemic species, the Norfolk Island Gerygone and the Slender- or Long-billed White-eye, and for the endemic races of the Golden Whistler and Grey Fantail.
Norfolk Parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii) by Ian 3
The Norfolk Island Parakeet was originally regarded as a race of the Red-crowned Parakeet of New Zealand until genetic studies showed that it was sufficiently distinct to warrant the status of a full species. It came close to extinction in the 1980s when the population declined to an estimated 32 individuals with 4 breeding pairs (the sex ratio was heavily biased towards males). Since then, it has been the subject of an intense recovery program to control introduced predators and competitors, and the population is now estimated at perhaps 200 individuals, though our birding guide on Monday, Margaret Christian reckons that that is optimistic, given the frequency of sightings.
It’s a lovely island, friendly and historically interesting, so we have had an enjoyable week. If you intend to visit, we can highly recommend our accommodation, Poinciana Cottages – we all agreed that we could quite happily live in them permanently, and they gave me a free upgrade from an extra bed in one of our two cottages to solo occupancy of a third cottage. If you’re birding, then a morning spent with Margaret Christian is essential and she bakes delicious cake for morning tea. We also did a trip to Phillip Island for the seabirds. That too is highly recommended if the weather is suitable and David Bigg is the person to see about that.
Best wishes and much gratitude,
Ian
**************************************************
Ian Montgomery, Birdway Pty Ltd,
454 Forestry Road, Bluewater, Qld 4818
Tel 0411 602 737 ian@birdway.com.au
Check the latest website updates: http://www.birdway.com.au/#updates
Lee’s Addition:
Glad we could assist with our prayers. What another neat creation to observe. I love the way they were designed to blend right in with the plants they like to eat. It protects them, but it does make for the challenge of birdwatching photographers and watchers. Thanks for your persistence, Ian.
Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (Matthew 6:26 NKJV)
The Norfolk Parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii), also called Tasman Parakeet,[1] Norfolk Island Green Parrot or Norfolk Island Red-crowned Parakeet, is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is endemic to Norfolk Island (located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia in the Tasman Sea).
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and plantations. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Birds Illustrated by Color Photography – Revisited
Vol 1. March, 1897 No. 3
*
THE FLICKER.
GREAT variety of names does this bird possess. It is commonly known as the Golden Winged Woodpecker, Yellow-shafted Flicker, Yellow Hammer, and less often as High-hole or High-holer, Wake-up, etc. In suitable localities throughout the United States and the southern parts of Canada, the Flicker is a very common bird, and few species are more generally known. “It is one of the most sociable of our Woodpeckers, and is apparently always on good terms with its neighbors. It usually arrives in April, occasionally even in March, the males preceding the females a few days, and as soon as the latter appear one can hear their voices in all directions.”
The Flicker is an ardent wooer. It is an exceedingly interesting and amusing sight to see a couple of males paying their addresses to a coy and coquettish female; the apparent shyness of the suitors as they sidle up to her and as quickly retreat again, the shy glances given as one peeps from behind a limb watching the other—playing bo-peep—seem very human, and “I have seen,” says an observer, “few more amusing performances than the courtship of a pair of these birds.” The defeated suitor takes his rejection quite philosophically, and retreats in a dignified manner, probably to make other trials elsewhere. Few birds deserve our good will more than the Flicker. He is exceedingly useful, destroying multitudes of grubs, larvæ, and worms. He loves berries and fruit but the damage he does to cultivated fruit is very trifling.
The Flicker begins to build its nest about two weeks after the bird arrives from the south. It prefers open country, interspersed with groves and orchards, to nest in. Any old stump, or partly decayed limb of a tree, along the banks of a creek, beside a country road, or in an old orchard, will answer the purpose. Soft wood trees seem to be preferred, however. In the prairie states it occasionally selects strange nesting sites. It has been known to chisel through the weather boarding of a dwelling house, barns, and other buildings, and to nest in the hollow space between this and the cross beams; its nests have also been found in gate posts, in church towers, and in burrows of Kingfishers and bank swallows, in perpendicular banks of streams. One of the most peculiar sites of his selection is described by William A. Bryant as follows: “On a small hill, a quarter of a mile distant from any home, stood a hay stack which had been placed there two years previously. The owner, during the winter of 1889-90, had cut the stack through the middle and hauled away one portion, leaving the other standing, with the end smoothly trimmed. The following spring I noticed a pair of flickers about the stack showing signs of wanting to make it a fixed habitation. One morning a few days later I was amused at the efforts of one of the pair. It was clinging to the perpendicular end of the stack and throwing out clipped hay at a rate to defy competition. This work continued for a week, and in that time the pair had excavated a cavity twenty inches in depth. They remained in the vicinity until autumn. During the winter the remainder of the stack was removed. They returned the following spring, and, after a brief sojourn, departed for parts unknown.”
From five to nine eggs are generally laid. They are glossy white in color, and when fresh appear as if enameled.
The young are able to leave the nest in about sixteen days; they crawl about on the limbs of the tree for a couple of days before they venture to fly, and return to the nest at night.
A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24 KJV)
The Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a medium-sized member of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. There are over 100 common names for the Northern Flicker. Among them are: Yellowhammer, clape, gaffer woodpecker, harry-wicket, heigh-ho, wake-up, walk-up, wick-up, yarrup, and gawker bird. Many of these names are attempts at imitating some of its calls.
The Northern Flicker is part of the genus Colaptes which encompasses 12 New-World woodpeckers. There are two living and one extinct subspecies of Colaptes auratus species. The existing sub-species were at one time considered separate species but they commonly interbreed where ranges overlap and are now considered one species by the American Ornithologists Union. Whether or not they are separate species is a well-known example of the species problem.
The Yellow-shafted Flicker Colaptes auratus resides in eastern North America. They are yellow under the tail and underwings and have yellow shafts on their primaries. They have a grey cap, a beige face and a red bar at the nape of their neck. Males have a black moustache. Colaptes comes from the Greek verb colapt, to peck. Auratus is from the Latin root aurat, meaning “gold” or “golden” and refers to the bird’s underwing.
Under the name “Yellowhammer” it is the state bird of Alabama.
The Red-shafted Flicker Colaptes auratus cafer resides in western North America. They are red under the tail and underwings and have red shafts on their primaries. They have a beige cap and a grey face. Males have a red moustache.
According to the Audubon guide, “flickers are the only woodpeckers that frequently feed on the ground”, probing with their beak, also sometimes catching insects in flight. Although they eat fruits, berries, seeds and nuts, their primary food is insects. Ants alone can make up 45% of their diet. Other invertebrates eaten include flies, butterflies, moths, beetles, and snails. Flickers also eat berries and seeds, especially in winter, including poison oak and ivy, dogwood, sumac, wild cherry and grape, bayberries, hackberries, and elderberries, and sunflower and thistle seeds. Flickers often go after ants underground (where the nutritious larvae live), hammering at the soil the way other woodpeckers drill into wood. Their tongues can dart out 2 inches beyond the end of the bill to snare prey. As well as eating ants, flickers have a behavior called anting, during which they use the acid from the ants to assist in preening, as it is useful in keeping them free of parasites.
Campo Flicker (Colaptes campestris) by Dario Sanches
The Northern Flicker is in the Picidae – Woodpeckers Family of the Piciformes Order. There are 6 Flickers; the Northern, Gilded, Fernandina’s, Chilean, Andean, and Campo Flicker. The other subgenus of the Colaptes (Chrysoptilus) includes the Black-necked, Spot-breasted, Green-barred, Golden-olive, Gray-crowned, Bronze-winged, and the Crimson-mantled Woodpeckers. The whole Woodpecker family has 231 species.
The above article is the first article in the monthly serial for February 1897 “designed to promote Knowledge of Bird-Live.” These include Color Photography, as they call them, today they are drawings. There are at least three Volumes that have been digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Dan and I were able to get in a small visit to the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa a few days ago. Our goal was to go to the Sulawesi, Free-Flight and the Lorikeet Landing Aviaries. Most of the birds we saw were busy preening that day. Probably the most feather fluffing seen by so many birds on the same day, by us at least. It was difficult to get a good photo of them.
Bornean Orangutan at LPZoo 3-8-12
Never the less, it is always enjoyable to watch and observe their behaviors. Actually there were a couple of Bornean Orangutans displaying a behavior of covering their heads with cloths that can be quite funny. In the past, we have also seen them use cardboard as coverings.
Bornean Orangutan at LPZoo 3-8-12
Back to birdwatching. One of the highlights was getting to see the juvenile Sulawesi Hornbill maturing. The beak colors have not started developing yet.
Sulawesi Hornbill (Penelopides exarhatus) LPZoo 3-8-12
“As this youngster ages the colors of the adult will become more pronounced. The Sulawesi Hornbill (Penelopides exarhatus), also known as the Sulawesi Tarictic Hornbill, Temminck’s Hornbill or Sulawesi Dwarf Hornbill, is a relatively small, approximately 45 cm (17.7 in) long, black hornbill. The male has a yellow face and throat, and black-marked yellowish-horn bill. The female has an all black plumage and a darker bill.
An Indonesian endemic, the Sulawesi Hornbill is distributed in the tropical lowland, swamps and primary forests of Sulawesi and nearby islands, from sea-level to altitude up to 1,100 metres. There are two subspecies of the Sulawesi Hornbill.
The Sulawesi Hornbill is a social species that lives in groups of up to 20 individuals. It is believed that only the dominant pair breeds, while the remaining members of the group act as helpers. The diet consists mainly of fruits, figs and insects. The female seals itself inside a tree hole for egg-laying. During this time, the male and helpers will provide food for the female and the young.” (Wikipedia)
Here is the adult male that was standing nearby the two youngsters.
Sulawesi Hornbill (Penelopides exarhatus)LPZoo by Lee
Below are some of the photos taken on this trip to the Zoo. It was another enjoyable day to observe the Lord’s creation up close.
The works of the LORD are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein. (Psalms 111:2 KJV)
Lee's Birdwatching Adventures Plus 