Bird Watching 4/8

Time: 3:40 p.m. - 5:10 p.m.
Location: Hard'Ack Forest, St. Albans, VT
Weather: Sunny. 58 degrees F. No wind.
Habitat #1: Open grass field next to I-89 on exit 20. The field was surrounded by trees on three sides. Planted spruces on the side near the interstate. Paper birches along a small brook. Several different hardwoods on the third side, including ironwood, several maples, and a few miscellaneous. The final side of the field was bordered by a plant similar to feather reed grass.
Habitat #2: Residential area next to a quiet street. The trees that were near were blue spruces, a red maple, and a weeping willow.
Birds for habitat #1: 2 American robins, 3 black-capped chickadees, 3 American crows, 19 cedar waxwings.
Birds for habitat #2: 2 mourning doves and 4 European starlings.

Unfortunately for this bird watching I was restricted to my house due to a family member possibly having COVID-19. I was able to go out for a little bit, but was forced to leave when more and more people started to show up to my location. To clarify my two different locations, "habitat #1" is located at a local forest, and "habitat #2" is located at my house.

Out of the birds I spotted, most of them migrate except for the black-capped chickadees. Three of the bird species where facultative migrants (some migrate and some stay); American crow, American robin, and the mourning dove. From my research I read the majority do, but it is still common to see some in the North during the winter. The reason that birds forego migration is to find prey. The smaller birds in the northern part of the Northern hemisphere tend to migrate south to find insects because they cannot penetrate through the ice and frozen ground. Since the smaller birds are absent from the northern part, the larger birds will also migrate south to find smaller birds to prey on.

While some mourning doves can be seen over the Gulf of Mexico during their migratory pattern, others will endure the harsh winters of the north. One behavioral adaptation that allows them to do this is that they will rely on the food that they find from bird feeders. Black-capped chickadees on the other hand rely on physiological adaptations to survive the winter. The main adaptation they have is their insulating feathers. They have a half-inch coat of feathers that can keep their body temperature upwards of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, even if the outside weather is 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

The reason that the facultative migrants are coming back is because because there is a larger food supply. When they left for warmer places, it was partially due to the fact that there wasn't enough food for them. The environment has changed since then, the trees have began budding, and the berries have appeared again.

The obligate migratory bird that I would like to focus on is the cedar waxwing. The birds that I saw likely arrived in March, especially because it has been in the forties for a month. These cedar waxwings likely resided in the southeastern part of the United States. I say this because there are some cedar waxwings that go as far as Panama, and those cedar waxwings will be arriving around May. There are benefits for the cedar waxwing to arrive in early April. One of the main benefits is that the birds which arrive earlier than others are able to breed. Another advantage to coming back early is that there is a more abundant food source for the birds to rely on.

Mini-Activity:
For the cedar waxwings, the distance they could have migrated from (Panama) to my location in St. Albans, VT is 2,497 miles (for one) or 47,443 miles combined for all 19 birds.
For the American robins I saw, they possibly flew from Florida, all the way to St. Albans, VT which is 1,256 miles. Or 2,512 miles combined for the two robins.
I am not going to calculate the distance for the mourning doves because I have been hearing them all winter.

Posted on April 8, 2020 10:50 PM by dannybouwens