toukokuu 28, 2021

WFB 195 - Field Journal 5

5/28/2021, 6:40 – 10:40 am, Hillside Environmental Education Park, Mansfield, CT. The weather was clear skies and sunny, with a slight breeze. I first walked down a gravel path (which acted as a connecting let out point for all of the trails) where I heard Common Yellowthroat, Blue-winged Warbler (6:40 am), Veery, and Tufted Titmouse (6:45 am). I then got to a part in the gravel path where it lined a small pond. At this part, I saw a Red-shouldered Hawk and heard a Least Flycatcher and Mourning Dove (6:50 am). Further down the gravel path, I then took a trail into the forest (flat, plenty of trees, ground covered in ferns, no water running through, edge habitat right next to a housing development as well as UConn campus) where I heard a Red-bellied Woodpecker, Warbling Vireo, American Robin (7:00 am), Blue Jay, Eastern Wood-Pewee (7:05 am), Wood Thrush (7:10 am), and Ovenbird (7:40 am). I then got to a portion of the forest that had shallow dips that were muddy, some even still had water in them. Here I heard Great Crested Flycatcher (7:45 am), Downy Woodpecker, Belted Kingfisher (7:50 am), and Red-eyed Vireo (8:00 am). I saw two Turkeys walk by as well (8:10 am). I then got back onto the main gravel path and heard a Rose-breasted Grosbeak (8:15 am). I continued down the path until I walked the rest of it, which lead me to the edge of UConn campus next to a little pond. There I saw and heard a Northern Cardinal (8:20 am). I also heard a Black-capped Chickadee (8:20 am), Barn Swallows, a Red-winged Blackbird. I saw a Common Grackle (8:25 am) and heard a Song Sparrow (8:30 am) as well. Since the entire gravel path and forest were right nearby developments, when construction really picked up at around 9:20 am, most birds either got scared away or were drowned out by the noise of the machines. When walking back from the small pond, I saw a Chipping Sparrow on the gravel road (9:30 am) and a Brown Creeper (9:45 am). I also heard a Gray Catbird (9:50 am). I went into another forest trail, however all I heard were the same few birds (Warbling Vireo, American Robin, Black-capped Chickadee). The construction noise died down around 10:00 am, but by then it was late enough where the only birds that were still making any noise where the American Robins.

Julkaistu toukokuu 28, 2021 07:46 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 29 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

WFB 195 - Field Journal 4

5/27/2021, 6:50-11:00 am, Fenton Ruby Park, Willington, CT. The weather was clear skies and sunny, with the occasional breeze. The night before there was a thunderstorm with heavy rain, so the ground, trees, and grass were very wet. This Park consisted of a large pond (located right at the entrance next to the parking ground), an open grass area (located right across from the pond), and a forest spanning the rest of the area (with a gravel dirt road running through the entire park that acted as a let out point for all of the small individual trails). I first took the Weigold trail which was a short forest trail, where the ground was covered in ferns with many tall thin trees, that looped back around to the road. On this trail I heard a Hairy Woodpecker (6:50 am), Black-capped Chickadee, Red-eyed Vireo, American Redstart (6:55 am), Eastern Wood-Pewee, Black-and-white Warbler, Veery, Pine Warbler, House Sparrow (7:00 am), Ovenbird, Mallard (7:05 am), American Crow, White-breasted Nuthatch (7:20 am). Once I was back onto the road, I went to the large pond by the parking ground. There I saw Baltimore Orioles, Red-winged Blackbirds, Black-throated Blue Warblers, a Great Egret, and Northern Waterthrushes flying around. There I heard a Mourning Dove and Marsh Wren (7:30 am). From the large pond, I walked over to the open grass area which had a few nesting boxes. I saw a House Sparrow resting on a nesting box as well as a Tree Swallow (on a different box). I saw a white egg broken on the ground nearby by the nesting box the Tree Swallow were inhabiting, so I assume it was one of theirs. I also saw a Black-throated Green Warbler fly by. I also heard a Yellow Warbler (8:00 am). Next, I took the Taylor Pond trail which was another forest trail (same habitat as the Weigold trail, except there were small creeks running through it and part of it ran parallel to the previously mentioned pond). There I saw a Common Yellowthroat and continued to hear the songs of Red-eyed Vireo, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Veery, and Black-capped Chickadee (8:30 am). After that, I took a connecting trail inside the forest (Julia’s trail) which was the same type of forest except it ran parallel to a large creek. There I heard continued to hear the songs of Ovenbird, Eastern Wood-Pewee, and Red-eyed Vireo (8:40 am). Following that trail, I took another connecting trail (Ruby trail) which was a forest with the ground covered in grass instead of ferns and no creeks running through it. This part of the forest was generally quieter than the rest, though this may have more to do with the time as I got on this trail at 9:10 am and around 9:00 am almost all bird calls lessened. After finishing the Ruby trail, I looped the trails again. Most of the trails I didn’t hear anything new, but the second time I went through the Taylor Pond trail I heard a Blue Jay and a Great Crested Flycatcher (9:20 am). I also saw an American Robin when I re-emerged on the gravel path (10:10 am). The frequency of calls lessened so much that portions of this trail were completely silent. There may have been some cross over of songs from water typical birds when I was in the forest sections because the forest sections were very small and wrapped around the pond.

Julkaistu toukokuu 28, 2021 12:12 AP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 27 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

toukokuu 27, 2021

WFB 195 - Field Journal 3

5/26/2021, 6:50 – 11:10 am, Boston Hollow, Ashford, CT. The weather was sunny with clear skies and no wind. This Forest was primarily a hardwood stand, with rocky inclines that lead to high plateaus overlooking the rocky ridges then followed by rocky declines that lead to shallow depressions filled with stagnant water. This pattern repeated several times throughout the entire trail I walked on. At 6:50 am, right before I started on the trail I heard the calls of a Warbling Vireo, Black-capped Chickadee, and Ovenbird. Once I was on the trail, I heard the calls of a Red-eyed Vireo, Black-throated Green Warbler, Winter Wren, and Eastern Phoebe at about 7:00 am. At about 7:20 am, I heard the calls of a Black-throated Blue Warbler, Eastern Wood-Pewee, and Scarlet Tanager. At about 7:25 am, I heard the calls of a Rose-breasted Grosbeak and a Black-and-white Warbler. At about 7:30 am, I heard the calls of a Chestnut-sided Warbler and Blue Jay. At about 7:40 am, I heard the calls of a Gray Catbird. At about 8:05 am, I heard the calls of a Great Crested Flycatcher. At about 8:15 am, I heard the calls of a Veery. At about 8:25 am, I saw a Sparrow though it flew by too fast for me to identify what type. At about 8:35 am, I heard the calls of a Hermit Thrush. At about 8:45 am, I heard the calls of a Great Horned Owl. At about 8:50 am, I heard the calls of a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. On my way back out of the forest, about midway through the trail I found a nest on the ground next to the side of the trail with two blue eggs covered in brown spots. The parent flew away as I approached so I couldn’t see what type of bird it was, but going off of the eggs as well as the mostly stick nest I would say it could be a Hermit Thrush nest. There was no variety (ie: distinct groupings of bird species in different areas) throughout the entire forest as everything was present at every location in the forest, with the exception of the Great-Horned Owl which I only found on the highest ridge point. Almost of these calls started around 6:50 am (the later start times I recorded were only once I could distinguish the bird call) and continued on past my end time of 11:10 am.

Julkaistu toukokuu 27, 2021 12:11 AP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 22 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

toukokuu 26, 2021

WFB 195 - Field Journal 2

5/25/2021, 7:00-11:00 am, Valley Falls Park, Vernon, CT. The weather was sunny with clear skies and intermittent high winds. This Park consisted of a large pond in an open field surrounded by trails that went into woody/shrubby areas. The first trail I took ran alongside the highway initially, then curved around the pond, and then ran parallel to a river inside the woods (muddy around river and lined with ferns, a few trees and bushes). At about 8:20 am, I started on a more interior path uphill path that was just woody/shrubby (ground covered in ferns with an interspersing of tall thin trees). I stayed on this path the rest of the time (forwards and back), which eventually lead me to Bolton Notch State Park (this was the same habitat type) that I walked the hiking trail of until it brought me back to the Valley Falls interior path. Initially, I walked by the large pond on my way to the forest trail and saw two Canada Geese and some American Robins on the open field. I also heard the calls of Rose-breasted Grosbeak (7:00 am) and Yellow Warbler (7:03 am). On the trail I heard the calls of a Scarlet Tanager (7:14 am) and a Carolina Wren (7:30 am). When I rounded by the pond, I saw a Downy Woodpecker and a Mourning Dove. I heard the calls of a Blue Jay, American Raven, Eastern Kingbird, and Great Crested Flycatcher as well (7:33-7:44 am). Following alongside the river, I heard and saw a Gray Catbird and a Louisiana Waterthrush (7:55 am). I also found a bush where I saw four different birds calling from (a Blackpoll Warbler, Chipping Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, and a House Wren) at about 8:05 am. When I merged onto the interior path, I saw an American Red-start and heard the calls of a Veery and Black-capped Chickadee (8:25 am). At about 9:05 am, I heard the call of a Tufted Titmouse. 9:15 am, I heard the calls of Common Yellowthroat, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and Northern Cardinals. At about 9:30 am, I saw a Black-and-white Warbler and heard an Ovenbird. When I got to The Bolton Notch part of the trail, I saw a Common Grackle (9:50 am). On my way back, on the interior Valley Falls path I saw an Eastern Towhee (10:10 am). Once I got out of the forest path, I was in a small open field where I saw Song Sparrows, Field Sparrows, and Savannah Sparrows flying around (10:50 am). When I returned to the large pond, I saw a couple Barn Swallows taking up residence in the ceiling of a pavilion (11:00 am). Most bird calls started dying down around 9:00 am and continued to decrease in frequency until there was only about four different species still singing by 11:00 am.

Julkaistu toukokuu 26, 2021 12:34 AP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 33 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

toukokuu 24, 2021

WFB 195 - Field Journal 1

5/24/2021, 7:25-11:25 am, Hockanum Linear hiking trail, Willington, CT. The weather was sunny with clear skies and slight wind. I started at Martin park (paved park with a few trees lining a pond) and then took the meadow hill trail down to a large pond (the trail overall is riparian with small creeks running through shrubby and woody areas, it eventually runs parallel to a large pond nearby a highway). I then backtracked this trail in the other direction, past martin park, to find a similar habitat expect a river was running parallel to the trail. The first birds I heard and saw were located at the pond in Martin park, it was there I heard the calls of what sounded like two individuals, but I couldn’t identify them, at about 7:25 am. I also saw two Red-winged Blackbirds perched on a nearby tree and two wood ducks swimming in the pond (one was male, the other female). I heard some birds, such as American Robins, House Sparrows, and Blackpoll Warblers, in the surrounding trees and saw a some type of hawk (it was tan, looked like it could have been a dark morph Red-tailed Hawk) perched on a tree as well. I heard turkey gobbles behind the pond and when I went to start the meadow hill trail I saw a group of three turkeys walk by (7:40 am). Once I got onto the trail I immediately heard the calls of a Northern Cardinal (7:42 am). At 7:43 am, I crossed a small bridge that went over a creek and saw a male mallard swimming with a female mallard. I heard the calls of a Tufted Titmouse, Eastern Wood-Pewee, and two Wood Thrushes. Walking further along, I came across a small pond filled with tall reeds, from which I could heard more of the unknown species. A little further down, the trail dumped out to a paved road where I saw two Canada Geese walking as well as some more American Robins. I walked down the paved road towards another let-in point to continue down the trail (this was the start of the shrubby area with small creeks). Walking down this trail, I heard and saw more American Robins, as well as Song Sparrows (8:30 am). At about 8:50 am, I saw a Blue Jay perched in a tree, as well as thumbing from a woodpecker hitting a tree. However, I wasn’t able to see or hear anything else from the woodpecker so I was unable to identify it. At about 9:14 am, I heard the call of an Ovenbird. Towards the end of the trail, I reached a large pond where I saw more mallards and Canada Geese. I started backtracking, where I heard a Chipping Sparrows (9:30 am) and Black-capped Chickadee (9:40 am). After backtracking, I took the rightmost part of the meadow hill trail which was past Martin Park. Right as I started the trail, I saw a single Mourning Dove perched on a tree branch (9:50 am). While walking parallel to the river along this trail I saw two Purple Martins on the marshy ground right alongside the river at about 10:20 am. I also saw some Common Grackles perched on branches that loomed over the river at various times (10:23-11:20). At about 10:30 am, I saw a Blackburnian Warbler perched on a tree branch above the river. I also saw a small grayish tan bird which I assume was a Gray Catbird and a sparrow with black and white striping on its head that I believe was a White-crowned Sparrow. At about 10:40 am, I saw a small orange-ish bird fly by which I believe was a Carolina Wren. I saw two Brown-headed Cowbirds sitting on a branch together at about 10:50 am. At about 11:00 am, I saw some more Northern Cardinals as well as a single Yellow Warbler. When I returned back to the pond at Martin Park (11:25 am), I saw another Mourning Dove sitting on a tree branch alongside some Red-winged Blackbirds. From 7:25 am – 9:50 am, there was a constant background noise of sparrows, American Robins, Red-winged Blackbirds, Northern Cardinals, Blue Jays, etc. The amount and frequency of calls started to slow down around 10:00 am and continued to get progressively slower until about 11:00 am when there was only a few remaining birds calling (Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, and Red-winged Blackbird).

Julkaistu toukokuu 24, 2021 11:57 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 28 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

toukokuu 10, 2021

WFB 130 - Field Journal 7

5/8/2021, 7:50-9:20 am, Redstone Green (consists of open green space with a few clusters of trees/bushes lining walking paths), the temperature was high 50’s, and clear skies. At about 7:50 am I heard the calls of what sounded like three American Robins. At about 7:52 am, I heard the calls of one Northern Cardinal. However, at about 8:20 am I heard the calls of a different Northern Cardinal (the pitch was lower) and at about 8:50 am I heard yet another Cardinal (the pitch was in between the previous two and the frequency was a bit quicker). At about 7:56 am, I heard the call of a single Common Grackle. At about 8:00 am, I heard the calls of what sounded like four Ring-billed Gulls. At about 8:35 am, I heard the calls of a White-breasted Nuthatch. At about 9:00 am, I heard the calls of what sounded like two Ruby-crowned Kinglets. At about 9:10 am, I heard the call of a Black-capped Chickadee. The calls of the American Robin persisted throughout the entire time (7:50 – 9:20 am), with the Northern Cardinal coming close as well (7:52 – 9:00 am). The Common Grackle was simply passing by as it was only audible from 7:56 – 7:58 am. The Ring-billed Gulls stay was also brief, but it was a bit longer as their calls started at 8:00 am and persisted until about 8:20 am. The White-breasted Nuthatch’s call stated at 8:35 am and ended around 9:15 am. The Ruby-crowned Kinglets’ calls started around 9:00 am and persisted throughout the ending time (9:20 am), as well as the Black-capped Chickadee’s call (though it started from 9:10 am, not 9:00am).

Julkaistu toukokuu 10, 2021 06:45 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 7 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 26, 2021

WFB 130 - Field Journal 6

4/23/2021, 8:20-9:50 am, on the Redstone campus green (which consists of open fields with a few clusters of trees/bushes along walking paths), the temperature was high 50’s, clear skies, and slightly windy. At about 8:25 am I heard the call of American Robins (what sounded like 4 individuals), I also saw an American robin looking for food at about 9:11 am. At about 8:40 am I heard the calls of Ring-billed Gulls (what sounded like 3 or 4 individuals), and I saw a Ring-billed Gull looking for food at about 9:30 am. At about 9:00 I heard the call of Chipping Sparrows (what sounded like about 2 individuals), which were located in a cluster of trees towards my left (near the dining halls). At about 9:10 am, I saw a House Sparrow resting on a bush near the same cluster of trees the Chipping Sparrows were in. The pattern on its’ head definitely indicated it was a male House Sparrow, but its wings were a light tan color rather than a brown color. At about 9:20 am, I heard the calls of Ruby-crowned Kinglets (what sounded like about 2 or 3 individuals), which were located in a cluster of trees towards my right (towards the Redstone pines). I heard the American Robins’ calls throughout almost the entire time (8:25-9:45 am), as well as hearing/seeing Ring-billed Gulls flying over head. I heard the calls of the Chipping Sparrow and Ruby-crowned Kinglet for about 9:00-9:40 am. The House Sparrow was the least vocal, as I only heard its call from about 9:10-9:30 am.
I saw behavior related to nest selection, mate selection, and territory selection centered around wherever there were clusters of trees. Some of this behavior consisted of mating songs, territorial songs, and choosing the tallest tree to nest on. For nesting behavior, I saw one sizable American Robin nest per tall tree on the campus green (which was primarily made out of dead leaves). This material would have been easy to acquire as it looked like it was the fallen leaves from the tree itself, and there are plenty of other smaller trees clustered around these tall trees as well. The birds I observed, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, that were singing (defending territory) were located in these clusters of trees, which may indicate that those spots were the best territory on the campus green compared to the open fields. Compared to the other birds located on the campus green, these birds were defending the best territory, but compared to other members of its species who inhabit nearby woods (like Centennial Woods) these birds are defending poor territory as the cluster of trees is quite small and is surrounded by open field. This may indicate that birds of a lower fitness tend to gravitate towards the campus green, where there is not as much competition.
For the mini activity, I sat on a bench nearby a cluster of trees for about 10 minutes from 9:40-9:50 am. Most of the sound I heard came from this cluster (American Robins and Ruby-crowned Kinglets), but there was one bird (Chipping Sparrow) I heard coming from another tree cluster in the opposite direction. I also heard one bird call (Ring-billed Gull) that wasn’t coming from either tree cluster, which sounded softer and further away than the others. I depicted the Chipping Sparrow as squiggled lines with soft curves, the Ring-billed Gull as stars, the American Robin as circles, and the Ruby-crowned Kinglet as squiggled lines with sharp curves. The amount of lines/shapes depicts the frequency at which I heard these calls and the size of the lines/shape depicts the loudness at which I heard these calls. Through this picture, it is apparent where the road/walking path is as no bird calls come from this direction (in the picture this is left half of the circle).

Julkaistu huhtikuu 26, 2021 03:40 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 6 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 19, 2021

WFB 130 - Field Journal 5

4/18/2021, 7:15-8:45 am, on the Redstone campus green (which consists of an open green area with a few trees and bushes around walking paths), the temperature was in the high 40’s and it was cloudy. From 7:15-7:20 am, I saw a flock of Ring-Billed Gulls resting on the soccer field for a few minutes and then take off westward. At about 7:22 am, I heard the calls of House Sparrows but I didn’t see them. At about 7:24 am, I heard the calls of a Red-winged blackbird. At about 7:27 am, I heard the call of a Black-capped Chickadee. At about 7:37 am, heard the calls of an American Robin. At about 7:40 am, I heard the calls of what sounded like two Common Ravens, of which one flew overhead towards the west. At about 7:50 am, I heard the calls of a Tufted Titmouse. The Ring Bill Gulls’ and Red-Winged Blackbirds’ call was consistent over the entire interval, only slowing down in frequency around 8:20 am. On the other hand, the Common Raven’s was low in frequency at the start and then picked up the later it got. The House Sparrows’ call stopped at about 7:50 am, as well as the Black-capped Chickadee. The American Robin’s call stopped at about 8:35 am. The rest of the interval (8:35-8:45 am) was generally quiet, with little to no auditory or visual activity from the birds.

(as a side note: At about 7:50 am, I heard the calls of a Tufted Titmouse. For whatever reason, the audio file for this bird was corrupted and I could not figure out how to fix it. So, I was unable to make an observation for this bird which is why it’s not included in the paragraph above.)

Julkaistu huhtikuu 19, 2021 07:08 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 5 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

huhtikuu 5, 2021

WFB 130 - Field Journal 4

4/4/2021, 10:00 am – 11:30 am, Redstone campus green (open green area with a few trees and bushes lined around the walking paths), the temperature was in the mid 40’s with clear skies with little to no wind. At 10:00 I heard House Sparrow calls, these calls persisted for the entire time (10:00-11:30) and sounded like there were at least 4 individuals though there may have been more. At about 10:11 I heard a Blue Jay call, though I didn’t see one. At about 10:12 I saw two male House Sparrows resting on a shared bush, both were being vocal until one of the house sparrows flew away about 5 minutes later. At about 10:14 I saw a single Common Raven flying to the south and heard the call of a White-throated Sparrow (it sounded like a female courtship call). At about 10:15 I saw an American Robin foraging for food in a bush and eat something off the ground (couldn’t identify what it picked up), this robin stayed in the bush for a few more minutes before flying off. At about 10:16 I saw a Ring-billed Gull fly in a wide circular pattern. At about 10:50 I saw another American Robin walking on the ground looking for food by the walking paths. At about 11:09 I heard Ring-billed Gull calls, it sounded like at least 3 individuals, and saw two resting on top of a dorm building. At about 11:26 I heard the call of a Common Raven, it sounded like there was only one individual.
Some of the birds I observed are year-round residents of Vermont, such as the Blue Jay, House Sparrow, American Robin, and Common Raven. These species might stay year-round in Burlington to cut energy costs (cost of flight and stopover areas) for better survival. For Blue Jays, to compensate for staying in Burlington year-round their diet is varied (from insects, seeds, small vertebrates, etc.) to allow these birds a greater chance at a steady food supply each season. For the House Sparrow, to compensate for staying in Burlington year-round House Sparrows tend to stay around people and cities so that they can get an ample food supply each season (from discarded food trash). For American Robins, to compensate for staying in Burlington year-round their diet consists of a large variety of small vertebrate and fruits to ensure this bird has an ample food supply each season. For Common Raven, to compensate for staying in Burlington year-round they have very adaptable diets (from bugs, eggs, berries, dung, etc.) to ensure they have a consistent food supply each season. Some of the other birds I observed are migrants, such as the White-throated Sparrow (this bird is seen as a year-round resident of southern Vermont, but a migrant to northern Vermont) and the Ring-billed Gull. The White-throated Sparrow may be migrating into Burlington at this time because their spring diet consists of buds and seeds from trees such as oak, elm, and maple (Northern Vermont’s trees are currently budding and the northern half of the state has a higher percentage of maple trees than the southern half where it may have resided before). The Ring-billed Gull uses Vermont as a stopover area to rest and refuel to build fat back up for the of its migratory flight. The Ring-billed Gull may have been coming from a southern state such as Florida (apart of its wintering range) and is trying to get to the Great Lakes (apart of its breeding range). This bird nests near freshwater sandy shores and eats fish, which is why this bird may be using Burlington as a stopover site (Lake Champlain may be a source of fish for the Ring-billed Gull to feed on to build its fat reserves back up for the rest of its migratory flight). Overall, the difference between the year-round birds and the migratory birds’ behavior towards their habitat is their diets (migratory birds have less adaptable diets that they have to change location for while year-round birds have very adaptable diets that they don’t have to change location for).
For the mini-activity, the migrants I observed were the White-throated Sparrow. The White-throated Sparrow migrates to northern Vermont in the spring, but its general wintering range can go all the way to Florida, so this bird may have traveled about 1470 miles during migration to get to Burlington. The Ring-billed Gull using Vermont as a stopover area in the spring, but its general winter range can go all the way to Mexico, so this bird may have traveled about 2509 miles during migration to get to Burlington.

Julkaistu huhtikuu 5, 2021 03:06 AP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 6 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

maaliskuu 21, 2021

WFB 130 - Field Journal 3

3/17/21, 4:30-6:00 pm, From UVM’s Redstone campus to church street (primarily walked along roads that were lined with a few trees, but once I got into town it was mainly just buildings), it was somewhat chilly and windy. The species I observed were the American crow and the Rock Pigeon. I saw one American crow perched on top of what looked like the very top of a tree at about 4:55 pm until 5:00 pm, the tree was right outside of the Agriculture frat house. I didn’t see any other crows, but I did hear what sounded like at least two other crows calling. As for the Rock Pigeons, I saw at least eight birds flying between buildings across from the store Home & Garden at about 5:15 pm until 5:55 pm. It seemed like a flock was perhaps scavenging food, as they seemed to fly back and forth between buildings as well as rest on the rooftops.
The Rock Pigeons’ behavior may stem from this group sharing a common winter territory, which they were still holding onto until now for the benefits of spring territorial breeding. So, some of the birds I observed may have not been actively looking for food, but rather patrolling/defending the area from potential intruders. The American crow was communicating with other crows through its call, perhaps looking for a potential mate since it was the first day of spring or it could have just been responding to a yell from a communal roost about a discovered food source. The American Crow has a dark, almost completely black plumage while the rock pigeon has a lighter gray color with some iridescence. Both of these birds don’t have a significant multi-colored pattern, which could be indicative of their tendency to group together (as color badges tend to lead to hierarchies).
For the mini-activity, I was too far away too try making a pisshing sound to disturb the birds, but it seemed like they were already getting disturbed from the sounds of cars passing by. It seemed that, with the Rock Pigeons at least, although they did in startle from the sound of cars they still remained in the area and returned shortly to the spot they were scavenging at before. This may be a behavioral adaptation the Rock Pigeons evolved since they are commonly found in heavily human inhabited areas. As for why this sound is so effective to small birds overall, I think may sound like an imitation of a bird call that could either drive them away (sounding like a larger bird claiming territory) or attract them (sounding like a small bird calling to share a food source).

Julkaistu maaliskuu 21, 2021 11:02 IP. käyttäjältä elizabethboulanger elizabethboulanger | 2 havaintoa | 0 kommenttia | Jätä kommentti

Arkistot