Goshawks in the Forest

At an undisclosed location, I was taken by a birding friend to see a nest.  This wasn't just an ordinary nest.  This was the best of a Northern Goshawk. Northern Goshawks are becoming harder and harder to find in southern New England. For one, they need large tracks of forested land to survive and they are very territorial. As southern New England went through various stages of its recent history, namely Agricultural, Industrial, Urban, and Suburban, our forests were cut and processed to satisfy the different space and energy needs. This meant that the Northern Goshawk had to go elsewhere to get the land and space it needed. Some have returned despite the continuing challenges of forested spaces around the region. 

 My friend was lucky enough to know of a nest and inspired me along for the ride to see the nest and the birds. Approaching the nest is a careful endeavor. Goshawks are territorial about all the creatures in their space and well chase of people and all sorts of birds and animals. We approached carefully. The Goshawks had chased several Pele already and we didn't want to stress the bird and the nest site. We barely made one bird sitting on the nest. After deciding not to stress them out any more, we began to gather to walk out of the forest. Then the other Goshawk returned. We heard it first. Then sawed it flying through ths trees. The Goshawk was circling us. We continued our walk and the Goshawk took to a perch to make sure we left. We honored the request and hoped or visit hadn't stressed the birds too much. 

 Enjoy the pictures. Until the next time, get outside and go birding !  

A Warning about approaching the nest

The Nest

An Angry Parent Goshawk Approaches

After Flying around and Vocalizing, Goshawk Watches us leave

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday - Link here

On Winged Flight

Swallows and swifts are two birds that enjoy most of their lives on the wing.  Meaning that their capacities for flight are impeccable.  Some of these birds can only eat on the wing and some can even sleep on the wing (so the rumor goes...).  These birds are simply put awesome visitors to our environments.  I've been lucky enough to be a Tree Swallow Nest Monitor for a local Park Group and Audubon Connecticut IBA.  Being a Nest Monitor means that you get a real close up view of a birds nest.  It also means that you get buzzed a lot by Tree Swallows.  I am hoping that consistently doing this over the next few weeks will mean that the tree swallows will eventually recognize me and will buzz me less.

Some fun Facts about Swallows:

For many years, people and ornithologists believed that swallows would borrow into river banks to hibernate.  Today, we have tracked their migrations as far as south America.  Some appear to have flown through the day and night!  Do these birds possess the capability to sleep in flight?  or can they, like dolphins, shut off part of their brain?

The vast Majority of Purple Martins live in Human made habitats.  Why you ask?  Supposedly Native Americans discovered the fact that Purple Martins like to nest in dying Gourds.  At the same time, they discovered that the Purple Martins ate a lot of the insects that would otherwise threaten the crops.  They also also protected the crops and fields from Crows.  So Wins all around for the Martins and the Native Americans.

These birds are also among the hardest to photograph.  I was going to include a picture of Chimney Swifts, but they all come out blurry or too tiny to really appreciate the bird.  Chimney Swifts are also a struggling species due to habitat loss and the growing unpopularity of Chimneys (no joke).  Many people are opting to cap their Chimneys and this has resulted in a massive decrease in where Chimney Swifts can nest and their successful broods.

Also...

Bank Swallows nest along side the Banks of rivers, not in commercial Banks :) Couldn't resist.  

Here's a tip when it comes to IDing Swallows.  Learn how to do it without your bins.  Take time to appreciate their colors and shape with your naked eye before you start chasing them around with your bins on.  Enjoy their acrobatic antics and make observations and use your bins to verify details and colors.  Until the next time, get out side and go birding!

What do you think about our winged friends who soar instead of dart?

Tree Swallow sitting on a Nest Box

Northern Rough-Winged Swallow flying over water

Purple Martins in and out of Gourds

Bank Swallow over a River

Wild Bird Wednesday - Link Here

Nesting Season

ETHICAL DISCLOSURE: These nests were minimally disrupted.  I did not touch the tree with the nest nor move and nor harass the nest or birds.  If Parent Bird was close, I did not approach.  When Parent approached, I ceased my activities and left the scene.  In short, I aimed to respect the space of the birds and their chances at breeding.

Birds breeding powers their migration, courtship rituals, and plumage.  While we may dream about seeing the amazing breeding grounds of the tundra or the rainforest, our local birds aren't too shabby.  We just need to know where to look and how to look.  Finding nests is kind of like finding a pot of gold.  You can get a real intimate view of the bird.  But here are some thoughts on the ethics and moral dilemmas of looking at and photographing Nests.

#1 - Do Not Anger Mom and Pop - Pissing off parents can be a dangerous proposition.  You don't want to scare them off their nesting duties and you don't want to draw attention to the nest.  If you have to make too much motion or commotion, you might really endanger the nest

#2 - Do Not Disturb the Tree/Shrub/Ground - Different birds have different nesting strategies and its important to know them so you don't disturb them.  Knowing where birds like to build their nests also makes it easier to find them!

#3 - Take only Memories - Don't gather a memento of your encounter with a bird nest.  It is against the Migratory Bird Act to take nests and also detrimental to the birds themselves.  

Enjoy the many activities of our breeding feathered friends!  What are your favorite encounters with a nest and breeding birds?  Share in the comments below and until next time!

Northern Flicker in Nest

American Redstart on the Nest

Yellow Warbler Nest

Eastern Phoebe Nest

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday - Link here

Wren on Alert

I found a Carolina Wren.  Wrens are among my favorite birds and this one was particularly active. Turns out he was defending his nest.  But his behavior was interesting to watch and observe.  Before I tell you why he was on alert, let me wax poetic on bird behavior.  I am constantly amazed by bird behavior.  This little bird, smaller than an robin, was causing a real cacophony of noise to alert and distract others.  Other birds flew in as well.  Willow Flycatchers, Grackles, Cardinals, and other wrens came to check out the noise.  This would have made it more difficult for a predator in the area to go unnoticed.  As you may have guessed, I was not the predator, but there was danger.

People were being loud, throwing garbage and rocks about the site.  They were the danger.  Of course people have caused any number of problems for birds, global warming, habitat loss, and other things.  But these people were down right stupid.  Harassing animals shows a real disrespect for the rest of the natural world.  I am still pondering how can people, anyone, treat others in that way?  I have no good answer.  I take a little solace in that when I showed up, the said people left immediately.  When we do something simple as care for the world around us, we make a little better.  Then we can work on the next steps...

Nests, Eggs, and Hatch-lings!

While I write up my report on my recent visit to San Antonio and sites there, I'd like to dedicate a special page to the work going on at the San Antonio Botanical Garden (http://www.sabot.org/).  While visit the San Antonio region, I paid a visit to the gardens to learn more about local flora but also about the local environment and birds.  To start, it was a fantastic place to visit.  Good Signage (not always the case at botanical gardens) and the exhibits were clearly designed with care and thought.  I was a big fan of the section dedicated to conversing water.  Being in a most arid environment, water conservation is key and the botanical gardens illustrated with great information, creativity, and ecological value, how the use of native plants doesn't mean your landscape will be an ugly mess of oddly shape cacti and succulents, but how the diversity of native plants can help you create a comfortable environment and help the local ecology, wildlife, and lower your water usage.

One of the highlights of the visit though was running into a volunteer who worked the purple martin nests.  I didn't know much about Purple Martins to be sure, other than they were North America's largest swallow.  I learned that almost all of Purple Martin Nests, east of the Mississippi River, are man-made and that Martins began to live near people for protection.  Interestingly enough, People wanted martins close for protection as well.  Martins would eat dangerous bugs, chase away crows and ravens, and their "chatter" was believed to be a sacred part of nature by Native Americans.  The leader of the program showed how the nests were made and Martins tolerate human behavior.  He showed us some nests and we got some great views of the birds.  It was a marvelous program and the San Antonio Botanical Garden are being great stewards of their environment and local ecology and history!

The Purple Martin Houses

The nest!

Young Hatch-lings!

Martin-lets with pin Feathers

An Adult happy the nests were returned and cleaned out