Hummer Summer

This past summer was spent at our second home in New Mexico and what a joy it was. Hearing of our plans, friends in Vermont asked almost to a one "aren't you suppose to spend winters there when its not so hot?"...a logical question of course. Well, my explanation follows. At an elevation of 7,500 feet summer temperatures at our home are moderated with daytime highs typically in the high 80s to low 90s dipping down into the 60s or below at night. Coupled with consistently low humidity levels, unlike summers in the Northeast, we find the climate to be quite conducive to outdoor activities such as birdwatching; exploring local natural, cultural and historical sites; and yet making time for some home projects. Cool, dry nighttime air makes for restful sleep and preparation for the next day's exploits. And to top it off, there are few if any of the biting insects (black flies, mosquitoes, deer flies) that are a persistent annoyance to outdoor driven people back in New England.

Over the summer I did most of my birding in Catron County, where we reside. The county is sparsely populated and relatively little birded. Over the two-and-a-half month stay 121 species were observed of which 50 were tallied on our small property. All but two were seen from the house deck! The grandest bird show of the summer undoubtedly were the hummingbirds. Beginning in late June, the first few southbound migrating male Rufous Hummingbirds showed up at our feeders and immediately established territories associated with each of the three hummingbird feeders that we had out. These feisty jewels stood sentry in nearby trees and whenever any of the summer resident Broad-tailed Hummingbirds approached a feeder, it was immediately chased off by the attendant Rufous overlord.  As summer progressed hummingbird numbers increased as did confrontations between "resident" Rufous males and any intruders needing to fill up on sugar solution. From sunrise to sunset the scene from the deck was like an aerial wartime dogfight in miniature. With territorial males in constant defensive mode seemingly taking very little time to replenish their own expended energy reserves, one had to question what biological benefit if any is there for this behavior. Surely there was more than enough food to satisfy the caloric needs of all.

So, is there any way to break down this territoriality and enable more hummers access to the feeders? I had long believed that this could be accomplished by placing feeders apart, or preferably out of sight of one another. This strategy seems to work for our Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that we have in the Northeast; however the one obvious difference is hummingbird densities during fall migration in New England are much lower than in the Southwest. To observe more than three or four hummers at one time at our Vermont feeders in late summer is indeed a banner sighting.

As keeping the feeders separated wasn't the trick, I resorted to the internet hoping to find an effective alternate strategy. With little effort I came across Dealing with Hummingbird Feeder Wars which proved to have the solution. Moving my three feeders close together and adding a fourth in the same tree increased exponentially within very short time the number of visiting hummers and gave us hours of viewing pleasure. The feeders were so overwhelmed by intruders that the dominating Rufous males were unable to effectively fend off the assault.  The following short video clip was taken from the house deck. What is the hummingbird count? Frankly, I have no idea other than whatever the number is in this video can be conservatively expanded by a factor of four (number of feeders).

Prior to implementing the new strategy, the feeders required refilling with sugar solution once per week. By pulling the feeders together increasing hummer numbers, we found the hummers consuming nearly a gallon of solution daily.

Four hummingbird species were observed July through August at our feeders. In order of relative abundance (highest to lowest) these included Rufous, Broad-tailed, Black-chinned and Calliope.

Rufous Hummingbird, male.

Rufous Hummingbird, male.

  

Broad-tailed Hummingbird, male.

Broad-tailed Hummingbird, male.

Black-chinned Hummingbird, male.

Black-chinned Hummingbird, female.

Calliope Hummingbird, male.

Another Snowy Winter?

Project SNOWstorm, a volunteer based organization established after the 2013 Snowy Owl irruption, is forecasting another south of the Canada-U.S. border for Winter 2017-2018.  Already owls have appeared in the Great Plains, Great Lakes and Northeastern regions, including several birds spotted here in Vermont.

Last week two birder friends and I drove to Randolph to see the Snowy Owl that has been hanging out at the Vermont Technical College campus since November 14.  It was easily located perched on a light post near the center of campus and seemed oblivious the students walking within spitting distance of its perch.  Note the small ear tufts clearly visible in the top and middle photos below.  This is the first Snowy Owl, that I have seen, showing ear tufts.  After checking species descriptions given in several field guides in my personal library, either no mention of small ear tufts is made or it is specifically noted that Snowy Owls lack ears tufts.  While the presence or absence of ear tufts is not by any stretch a critical field identification feature, these photos show that at least some individual Snowy Owls have "ears".

I have a vivid memory of my first (life) Snowy Owl seen November 10, 1974 on Star Island, one of nine Isles of Shoals located six miles off the New Hampshire and Maine coastlines.  The owl was perched atop the granite monument erected in 1914 to honor the Reverend John Tucke, who served the fishing community there from 1731 to 1771.  Over the pst four decades vegI cannot recall how many Snowy Owls I have seen (quite a few, surely), but each has been equally as impressive as my first.  That first sighting reminds me of a poem written by Celia Thaxter, a renown 19th century author and resident on Appledore Island, the largest of the Isles of Shoals.  Her poem, The Great White Owl, from Poems (1872, 1st edition, Hurd and Houghton, New York) follows. 

He sat aloft on the rocky height, 
Snow-white above the snow, 
In the winter morning calm and bright, 
And I gazed at him, below. 

He faced the east, where the sunshine streamed 

On the singing, sparkling sea, 

And he blinked with his yellow eyes, that seemed 
All sightless and blank to be. 

The snowbirds swept in a whirling crowd 
About him gleefully, 
And piped and whistled sweet and loud, 
But never a plume stirred he. 

Singing they passed, and away they flew 
Through the brilliant atmosphere; 
Cloud-like he sat, with the living blue 
Of the sky behind him, clear. 

"Give you good-morrow, friend," I cried. 
He wheeled his large round head, 
Solemn and stately, from side to side, 
But never a word he said. 

"0 lonely creature, weird and white, 
Why are you sitting there, 
Like a glimmering ghost from the still midnight, 
In the beautiful morning air?" 

He spurned the rock with his talons strong, 
No human speech brooked he; 
Like a snowflake huge he sped along 
Swiftly and noiselessly. 

His wide, slow-waving wings so white, 
Heavy and soft did seem; 
Yet rapid as a dream his flight, 
And silent as a dream. 

And when a distant crag he gained, 
Bright-twinkling like a star, 
He shook his shining plumes, and deigned 
To watch me from afar. 

And once again, when the evening-red 
Burned dimly in the west, 
I saw him motionless, his head 
Bent forward on his breast. 

Dark and still, 'gainst the sunset sky 
Stood out his figure lone; 
Crowning the bleak rock far and high, 
By sad winds overblown. 

Did he dream of the ice-fields, stark and drear? 
Of his haunts on the Arctic shore? 
Or the downy brood in his nest last year 
On the coast of Labrador? 

Had he fluttered the Esquimaux huts among? 
How I wished he could speak to me! 
Had he sailed on the icebergs, rainbow-hung, 
In the open Polar Sea? 

Oh, many a tale he might have told 
Of marvelous sounds and sights, 
Where the world lies hopeless and dumb with cold, 
Through desolate days and nights. 

But with folded wings, while the darkness fell, 
He sat, nor spake, nor stirred; 
And charmed as if by a subtile spell, 
I mused on the wondrous Bird.

Nighthawks on the Move

As summer winds down [the first day of autumn is just three weeks away] forests, fields and wetlands have fallen silent of bird song, and with another nesting season behind them, many of the bird species that nest in Vermont and north are either in the midst or preparing for their annual southward migration to winter ranges in the southern U.S., Caribbean islands, Mexico, Central and South America.  Warblers, flycatchers and shorebirds are currently on the move and can pass through unnoticed to the untrained eye.  Currently two bird species, Common Nighthawk and Broad-winged Hawk, are wrapping up and beginning their fall migrations, respectively, at our latitude.  Both birds undertake spectacular flights: Common Nighthawks passing through from mid August to late August or early September, and Broad-winged Hawks primarily in September.  The nighthawk is the focus of this post with more to be said of Broad-winged Hawk migration in a future post.

The Common Nighthawk is not a hawk at all but rather a close relative of the Eastern Whip-poor-will, both members of the taxonomic family Caprimulgidae (nightjars) which translates from Latin to goatsuckers, in its own right is a misnomer.  Nighthawks are insectivorous birds feeding nocturnally on the wing and almost exclusively on flying insects.

Photo taken by Lloyd R. Bunten and is used with his permission.

Although nighthawks during migration may be observed in early evening hours just about anywhere in Vermont but especially along river corridors, the very best location to see them in high numbers is at Westminster Station in Windham County, Vermont.  This location is located next to a migration corridor, the Connecticut River, and is an area dominated by open agricultural fields, both features favoring an abundance of insects.  Annual surveys to estimate nighthawk migration abundance have been conducted here since 2010 by Don Clark, the principal counter and an experienced and well respected Vermont birder and naturalist.  Below are count data collected by him over the eight years since monitoring began.

The summer range of the Common Nighthawk includes much of the lower 48 states of the U.S. and the southern Canadian provinces.  Winter range extends from southern Columbia to central Argentina, and migration distance between summer and winter ranges spans 2,500 to 6,800 miles.

Each speck in the above photo is a nighthawk migrating over Westminster
Station, VT.  Place cursor on image and tap to enlarge.  Photo taken by 
Lloyd R. Bunten and is used with his permission.

Observing a thousand birds over several hours, not to speak of the nearly 6,000 counted in one evening this year, is amazing.  So, if you haven't experienced a nighthawk fall migration, mark your 2018 calendar.  You won't be disappointed.

Atypical Broad-wing Feeding Behavior

Broad-winged Hawks are returning to Vermont since departing New England last September for their principal wintering range in northern South America.  The first report of 2017 was on April 11 from Putney.  Since then sightings have steadily increased.  This is our smallest breeding hawk of the genus Buteo with an average total length of 15 inches followed closely in size by the Red-shouldered Hawk (16 inches) and the Red-tailed Hawk (19 inches).

This is a relatively common hawk nesting in woodland habitats.  Its diet is varied consisting of small mammals, frogs, snakes, lizards, small birds, large insects, and earthworms.  Today I encountered a Broad-winged Hawk picking earthworms off the surface of a paved residential driveway (photos follow).  That the hawk was eating earthworms wasn't as much as a surprise as where it was feeding. The bird was observed consuming no less than a half dozen worms in an environment more expected of foraging robins.  After having migrated as much as 4,000+ miles on average between winter and summer ranges no doubt energy reserves are depleted and with nesting season approaching getting back into prime physical and physiological condition are critical.   Today's rainy and cool temperatures (40s) may not be prime conditions for encountering small mammals but earthworms are easy pickings at least for this hawk.

  

Spring...Really?

March weather in Vermont this year has been sort of a roller coaster ride.  A spell of unseasonably warm daytime temperatures during late February through early March kicked off maple sugaring season and the northward bound hordes of Canada Geese and other waterfowl.  Ice covering the Connecticut River broke up and ice floes flushed out earlier than usual, and open-water conditions on rivers, streams and many of the larger lakes forebode an early spring, or so it appeared, and then a return to winter.  More snow was forecast for yesterday, and this morning we woke to 13 inches of new snow carpeting the yard.  No April Fools joke...just early spring in the Green Mountain State more or less as usual.

All winter we have had a flock of Wild Turkeys numbering between 26 and 31 birds making nearly daily visits to the yard to feed on cracked corn.  With increasing day length we observed this past week two toms come into season showing off their finest "attire" before the hens which seemed not to pay any attention to them but rather focus on consuming corn.  The following movie clip was taken from the dining room window.

The recent snow storm was followed by considerable bird activity at our feeders with 18 species tallied for today.  Of special note was an adult male Pine Warbler feeding on suet and seeds.  While shoveling snow, it could be heard singing (a high, musical trill) from the tall pines hear the house.

    

A Rare Visit from the "Gray Ghost"

When the sighting of an impressive Great Gray Owl in Newport, New Hampshire was announced last Monday, February 27, it generated considerable attention within the New England birding community.  Since then, birders have traveled lengthy distances to view and photograph this rare and unpredictable vagrant from the boreal forests of northern Canada.  Fortunately the owl has been very "cooperative" in rewarding its pursuers with awesome close-up views.  There has been an irruption of Great Grays south of their normal range this winter with birds being reported from Montreal and Ottawa, Canada, nearby northern New York, and northern Maine.  The last incursion of this species south of its normal winter range was eight years ago.  I have heard of several New England birders making extensive drives to these locations, some seeing multiple owls in a day; others striking out altogether. So when a Great Gray is discovered south of the border and so close to U. S. population centers, birders are going to jump at the opportunity to see this striking bird.

Eva and I made the short drive to Newport from our home in Vermont last Wednesday and upon arrival we saw about 40 vehicles parked along Oak Street at the Sugar River Rail Trail access. Walking the trail a short distance to the owl location we passed about a dozen departing happy birders, and at the site joined another 32 birders with scopes and cameras aimed at the owl as it perched on a low limb at the edge of a large field.  With observers as close as 30 feet or so to the owl, it appeared indifferent to all the attention and was content to doze off for minutes at a time presumably getting rest before its evening meal of small rodents.  During our brief visit, I took about 100 photos of the bird of which the following two are typical poses.

At one time something, possibly a vole or the like, below the owl's perch caught its attention (photo below) for only a moment before nodding off again.  As we walked out another 10+ birders and otherwise curious persons were going in to see the Gray Ghost or Ghost Owl, as this bird is sometimes called.

As the world's largest owl species, by length (27± inches) but not weight, it is known to make cyclical winter irruptions south of its boreal range.  Incursions into southern Canada and the northern Great Lakes states typically occurs every four years or so and correlates with low vole population abundance, the principal prey of such a large owl [1].  Appearances in New England are less frequent.  Sightings in New Hampshire occur on average every seven years [2].

As of the date of this posting, the owl continues to be seen and reported from the large field lying just east of the trail.  A Northern Shrike is also being seen at this location.

Citations:

[1] Chereau, M., Drapeau, P., Imbeau, L., and Bergeron, Y. 2004. Owl winter irruptions as an indicator of small mammal population cycles in the boreal forests of North America. Oikos 107:190-198.

[2] Masterson, E. A. 2013. Birdwatching in New Hampshire. University Press of New England, Lebanon, N.H.

Bizarre Pink Blue Jay

Back in January I heard of an oddly colored Blue Jay that had been frequenting a Unity, NH backyard feeder since early December.  I was shown a poor quality photo of the bird which stirred my curiosity having never seen such an oddity and questioning whether it was in fact an example of erythrism or had been artificially induced, such as dyeing.  I tracked down the homeowner (name withheld at request) to whom's feeder the bird was regularly being seen and who kindly permitted me the opportunity to view and photograph it firsthand. Shortly after my host placed fresh seed out at the feeding stations a group of 15 normal colored Blue Jays arrived and several minutes later the str pink bird flew in. Even though it's visit was brief, I did manage to get several photos including the one posted below.  In all respects the jay is typical except for the pale rosy-red overcast coloring most but not all of its plumage.  Bill, eyes, legs and feet are normally pigmented.

An internet search failed to turn up any similar variants in birds and particularly in jays with exception of a pink Blue Jay photographed in Canada.  That bird generated some discussion on Birdforum in May 2013, but the consensus was the image had been altered significantly or fabricated.  The Unity, NH bird photo posted here is as it appeared and is not a hoax.

The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology was contacted to inquire whether any similarly colored jays are known to have been encountered and if so possible causes for the strange pigmentation.  While staff are unaware any such birds, two possible explanations were offered: (1) a genetic factor causing erythrism, or (2) some sort of environmental staining.  One respondent thought that it looks like staining, such as a fluorescent colorant having been applied for a science project.  Thus an actual cause for the pink plumage remains in the realm of speculation and is unlikely to be resolved without having feather samples from the jay to subject to analysis.

Diet-induced erythrism has been observed in other species of birds.  The introduction and spread of nonnative red berry bearing shrubs, e.g. bush honeysuckles Lonicera spp., is suspected of causing unusually red feathering in Baltimore Orioles occurring in southeastern Canada, and reddish House Sparrows reported in Scotland are thought to have been diet induced.

     

Some Observations of a Turkey Vulture Roost

Admittedly I'm a fan of Turkey Vultures despite their dietary habits.  The sight of a vulture effortlessly soaring overhead, wings slightly tilted upwards, gently rocking side to side makes me wish for such freedom and views of the landscape spread out below.  Andrew Wyatt's painting "Soaring" has long captured my interest.  Of course I could take up hang gliding or skydiving for a similar experience, but I prefer to keep both feet firmly planted on Earth and leave unconfined flight to my imagination and to creatures that have evolved to fly.  Some art critics have described the painting as dark and unsettling.  I'll venture to guess that they are not birders.

"Soaring" (1950) by Andrew Wyeth.  Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, VT.

This past summer I kept close watch on a Turkey Vulture communal roost located in North Springfield, VT.  The roost has been active for some years, and this summer was occupied by at least 35 birds.  At dawn vultures congregated in a large dead elm tree next to the Black River, spread their wings for a morning stretch and to absorb the sun's radiant energy.  By mid morning by ones and twos they took to the air rising on thermal currents, congregating once again in kettles drifting off in various directions presumably in pursuit of a meal of carrion.  At the approach of evening they gathered again at the roost tree before retiring to an adjacent conifer stand for the night.

What I found puzzling is that the number of vultures counted at the roost tree never varied by more than several birds on each of my visits conducted from late spring through the summer.  This seemed odd being they appeared to be all adults and I thought that they would have been incubating eggs and caring for young for much of that time rather than hanging out at a communal roost.  For a plausible explanation I delved into several references on vulture life history.

According to the species account given on the EOL website, Turkey Vultures at northern temperate latitudes lay eggs (typically 2) between May and June.  The incubation period is 32 to 41 days (average 35 days) and the young fledge the nest at 70 to 80 days of age.  There is little data from Vermont establishing when nesting typically begins; however, assuming a date of May 10, egg hatch would be expected to take place about June 14 with young fledged some time between late August and early September.  Both parents share in egg incubation and the care of the young.  This eliminates the possibility that the roost is comprised of mostly post-mating males.  Rather, sexual maturity is not attained until 3 years of age which suggests the vultures seen at the roost through the summer were likely sub-adult birds with the possibility of a few mature individuals that either failed to mate or experienced nest failure.

On the morning of September 30, my last count of the year, a total of 36 vultures were counted at the roost.  A few weeks later the roost tree was abandoned as the birds undertook fall migration to points south for the winter. Sometime around the last week of February or first week of March the first Turkey Vultures of the New Year can be expected to return to Vermont on steady outstretched wings riding spring air currents with seemingly little to no effort as captured by Wyeth.

2017 New Year's Resolution

Never having been one to make New Year's resolutions I am going to go out on a limb and make one this year.  Since starting this blog over eight years ago, I have become increasing lax in posting articles and keeping the site current.  For that I apologize.  I have learned that blogging takes time...a lot of time...and work to keep the site up to date, interesting and hopefully relevant.  My passion for observing, learning about, and enjoying birds, other wildlife, and the environment is as important to me as ever. What has changed as of the end of 2016 is my retirement from a 36+ year professional career as a fisheries biologist, and now find myself in the enjoyable position of having more time to pursue birding and other interests. So, my New Year's resolution is to commit more time to writing blog articles and hopefully become better at it.  In my pursuit of self-improvement I welcome feedback and constructive criticism from readers.

A New Year's Day treat in Swanzey, New Hampshire: male Varied Thrush, a
species that breeds in moist, coniferous dominated forests of the Northwest (Alaska,
western Canada, northwestern United States) and is a winter vagrant in the East.

Super Rare Redwing in New Hampshire

On March 13 a Redwing (Turdus iliaca) was discovered by Christopher McPherson in Hollis, New Hampshire.  To describe this bird as "super rare" is by no means an over-exaggeration being this sighting is only the fifth record for the "Lower 48" of the U. S., an ABA Code 4 species, and perhaps a first for the state.  Previous accepted sightings are from New York, 1959, the first North American record; Washington, 2004; Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, both in 2005.  Sightings are a bit more numerous from eastern Canada, particularly the Maritime Provinces.  In addition to the Washington state record, there is one record each from Alaska, 2011, and British Columbia, 2016.

The Redwing is an Eurasian species with a breeding range that spans from the southern tip of Greenland east through Iceland, the Faeroe Islands south to northernmost Scotland, through Scandinavia, the Baltic States, northern Poland and Belarus, northern Russia and to the Kolyma of the Russian Far East.  Its winter range is southern Eurasia and northern Africa.  Two subspecies are recognized: Eurasian (Turdus i. iliaca) and Icelandic (Turdus i. coburni).  It seems reasonable that most if not all western North American sightings are the Eurasian subspecies and those from the East are the Icelandic.

Getting back to the New Hampshire bird, it was found in the company of American Robins (Turdus migratorius) which were present in astounding numbers (perhaps conservatively in the high 100s) frequenting the several athletic fields and brushy edges at Hollis-Brookline High School.  So for Christopher to pick out one Redwing out of the hordes of robins is a testament to his meticulous patience and/or luck. Whatever it may be, kudos to him for this very special find and his promptly getting the news out to the birding community.  As would be expected birders from throughout the Northeast and beyond converged on the location and for the most part the bird failed to disappoint.  I made the trip with a friend early Tuesday morning in a misty rain.  Arriving at the school a few minutes after 7:00 a.m. about a dozen hopeful birders had already staked out the fields but with no sighting of it up to that point.  We checked out several fields, most dotted with robins, checking them out one by one.  The robins tended to be a bit unsettled and easily spooked causing many to take cover in the thick brush and others flying off elsewhere. In such a maelstrom, frankly we each thought our chances of seeing the Redwing were a long shot.

The numbers of birders steadily increased to as many as 50 or more, when the thrush was spotted on the ground in the brushy edge behind the chain link fence that formed the backdrop of the track field. Those that had their binoculars, spotting scopes and cameras on the bird barked out directions to others not yet on it.  Eventually the thrush moved out onto the grass next to the track providing everyone in attendance with great views and photo opportunities.  Seeing a birder without a smile was nearly as rare as the "guest" thrush.   Satisfied we headed back to Vermont only to learn on eBird that a Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius), a bird of the Pacific Northwest, was in Merrimack, one town north of Hollis.  Oh, well.

The Redwing continued to be seen off and on through March 17.  Reports state, robins remain in abundance and considering there is so much habitat suitable to them (fields, lawns, brushy hedgerows, etc.) in the neighborhood, it may very well continue to be in the area.  Relocating it will require perseverance, sorting through robin flocks, and of course luck.

American Robin, left; Redwing, right.

Gloucester Birding Trip

Gloucester, Massachusetts and other nearby Cape Ann locations, such as Rockport, Andrews and Halibut points, have long been favorite destinations whether to watch winter waterfowl, take in the area's historic and current commercial fishing culture, or simply for relaxation and enjoyment of the rugged New England coastline. The sights and oddly even the smells of the ocean, salt marshes, mudflats and fishing vessels are all comforting to me.

So when up to four Thick-billed Murres appeared in Gloucester Harbor and were being reliably sighted on a daily basis with a bonus King Eider being seen regularly off Bass Rocks, I needed no additional encouragement to make the nearly 3 hour drive from home.

Arriving at Jodrey State Fish Pier shortly after 9:00 a.m. I was rewarded with excellent views of the murres, an elusive life species for me.   I cannot count the number of trips over my many years of birding that were made to the New England coast with the purpose of seeing this species but only to come up short by missing it by a few hours.  Well, not this time.  Other harbor sightings included a hen Black Scoter, male and female Surf Scoters and Common Eiders, a Long-tailed Duck, Greater Scaup, Red-breasted Mergansers, a Common Loon, and of course Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gulls.

Thick-billed Murres

Thick-billed Murre

Common Eider "Atlantic" dresseri subspecies, adult male

Red-breasted Merganser, adult males

Black Scoter, female

Surf Scoters, left to right: mature & immature males, female

From there it was a short drive to Bass Rocks on the Atlantic Ocean side of Gloucester and more waterfowl to be seen: Buffleheads, Common Goldeneyes, White-winged Scoters, and Red-necked Grebes.  But the highlight at this relocation was the adult male King Eider positioned well off shore and almost out of binocular range but clearly identifiable with the spotting scope albeit too far to get a good photograph.

Even though my birding had to be cut short, the birds and seacoast made for a very satisfying break from late winter in Vermont.

Buffleheads

Tufted Duck

The first Vermont record of this handsome duck was reported from Lake Champlain's Shelburne Bay on April 7, 2000.  Since then, Tufted Duck has been observed on the lake 13 out of 17 years.  While not reported from the lake in 2012, one was seen on Lake Carmi (Franklin County) on April 13.   Lake Carmi is about 12 air-miles from Lake Champlain.  All Vermont reports are male birds except when seen paired with a female which occurred in 2005, 2006 and 2009.  The seasonal distribution of Tufted Duck in the state is December through April and is usually found in the company of Lesser and Greater scaups.

Tufted Duck is an Old World species of diving duck (genus Aythya) with a breeding range extending from Iceland through northern Europe and Asia.  Vagrants observed on the East Coast of the U. S. likely come from populations located in Iceland and Europe.  On the East Coast the species has been documented in all four Canadian Maritime provinces and all U. S. states from Maine south to North Carolina.

The  male Tufted Duck in the photos below easily differentiated from male scaup by the pronounced head plumes, black back and white sides was observed on February 6 of this year on Lake Champlain from Chimney Point.

Windsor Prison Farm Lands Finally Conserved!

During the final day's of last year Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin signed an executive order transferring 739 acres of the 899 acre Windsor Prison Farm property from the Department of Buildings and General Services (BGS) to the Fish and Wildlife Department (FWD).   The remaining 160 acres are to be retained by BGS on which the Southeast State Correctional Facility is located and additional lands for a possible 4.9 MW panel solar array development.  This decision assures the lands will remain in the public domain to be responsibly managed for wildlife and the enjoyment of outdoor enthusiasts.

Mount Ascutney from Windsor Prison Farm.

In an April 2014 post I wrote of the Windsor Prison Farm and its noteworthiness as a special Connecticut River Valley birding destination.  Once a state operated working farm affiliated with the Department of Corrections, farming operations largely ended by 1992.  Since then open lands have been gradually reverting back to various stages of early successional habitats (ESH), such as upland and lowland shrub and young forest communities.  Several fields have been maintained in grasses and mowed annually through lease arrangements with local farmers for hay production.  The consequence has been a boon for ESH bird species,  Fifteen (or 26%) of the 57 state designated bird Species of Greatest Conservation Need have been documented on prison farm lands.  These include Ruffed Grouse, Northern Harrier, Cooper's Hawk, American Woodcock, Black-billed Cuckoo, American Kestrel, Veery, Wood Thrush, Brown Thrasher, Blue-winged Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Field Sparrow, and Bobolink.  Being ESHs are ephemeral in nature and will in time transition to forests active management is necessary for their maintenance and continued use by ESH birds, wildlife and flora.

For some years the future of the property had been up in the air with proposals including prison expansion, intensive agricultural use, and residential and industrial development.  The former Governor Douglas administration sought to dispose of "surplus" state lands for local development pursuits.  While this had its proponents, it also greatly concerned many local citizens who recognized the importance and value of the prison lands as wildlife habitat, bird watching and other recreational uses (e.g. hunting, hiking, snowmobiling, horseback riding), or to those who simply receive pleasure from taking in views of Vermont and New Hampshire undeveloped rural landscapes.

With the land transfer now in hand, the FWD and other Agency of Natural Resources departments will need to prepare a long-range management plan with involvement of stakeholders for the 739 acres.  According to FWD Commissioner Louis Porter, "We are looking forward to managing [the land] for the wildlife and for the people who care about wildlife." Porter and other agency staff will meet with the Windsor Selectboard early next month to begin a discussion of the planning process.

Southeast State Correctional Facility.

This will become the FWD's 85th Wildlife Management Area (WMA) and the 11th located in Windsor county.  Unlike the other southeastern Vermont WMAs, that are primarily forested tracts, the former prison lands present unique management opportunities for habitat diversity and bird conservation.

Black Squirrels

While spending Christmas with our daughter, her husband and extended family members in Melrose, Massachusetts we were surprised by the appearance of a melanistic Gray Squirrel.  It was in the company of typical gray morph individuals foraging for acorns under a backyard oak tree. Now I have been aware of the existence of melanistic populations in other parts of the country, such as in several mid-western states, since having studied genetics during my long-ago college years, but until this sighting I had never seen one in the flesh.

As many birders have experienced, including myself, once a long sought after "lifer" species is seen, it afterwards seems to pop up everywhere with little to no effort.   And so, I may be experiencing this phenomenon once again except now with black Gray Squirrels.  This past Sunday, now back in Vermont and running errands, I saw another black squirrel feeding under a local bird feeder. What's with that: two black squirrel sightings in different states within a day of one another?

Melanism, a genetic condition whereby tissues (skin, hair, feathers) produce excessive amounts of the dark-colored pigment melanin, occurs widely in the animal kingdom at both individual and population levels.  Among birds, several raptor species exhibit dark plumage morphs, including Short-tailed, Swainson's, Red-tailed, Ferruginous and Rough-legged hawks, and the Gyrfalcon. Unlike amelanism (the absence of melanin) and albinism, melanism appears to be a genetic adaptation to a particular environment increasing a species fitness for survival.  Adaptive melanism may allow animals to better absorb solar heat and more efficiently maintain body warmth in cold environs; or others to blend in with their habitat enabling either dark-morph hunting predators to evade detection by prey species or, vice versa, allow dark-morph prey to hide from predators.

Dark-morph Red-tailed Hawk, Catron County, New Mexico

So what is the adaptive advantage to a black squirrel inhabiting an urban or suburban environment? It seems doubtful that such individuals are better camouflaged from predators, such as hawks and free-ranging house cats.  Easily the gray-coated squirrel in the photo below blends in better with the setting than if it was black.  On the other hand, melanism seems to be an effective survival strategy as long as the squirrel is not out in the open but takes advantage of deep shade produced by thick vegetation and forest canopy (bottom photo).  

Here are a couple links to web sites discussing specifically melanism in Gray Squirrel populations: Wikipedia and a more technical treatise in the Journal of Heredity.

December 2015

As 2015 winds down birders' attentions may be catching the few remaining lingering fall migrants or enjoying some early winter arrivals, or many of us look forward to taking part in one or more annual Christmas Bird Counts. The holiday season also calls on many to indulge in more family-centric activities.  In addition to all of these activities I find this is a good time to reflect on the many birding experiences encountered over the year, such as my attending a family reunion in central Missouri and finding a little time to steal away for first time birding in that state; the spring and fall trips we made to New Mexico; and here in Vermont a personal first: birding in all 14 counties.  The following photos are a small sample of ones taken last May during a visit to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, one of the premier birding destinations in New Mexico.

Yellow-headed Blackbird, male, and Brewer's Blackbird, female

Blue-winged Teal, male

Cliff Swallow constructing mud nest

A completed nest

Cinnamon Teal, male
  

Greater Roadrunner

Northern Shoveler, male

Snow Goose, a straggler

White-faced Ibis