Bird of the Week - XVl

This week's "Bird of the Week" is the White-breasted nuthatch. The "upside down" bird is a common bird of deciduous forests and wooded suburbs. The White-breasted Nuthatch can be seen hopping headfirst down the trunks of trees in search of insect food. It frequents bird feeders and takes sunflower seeds off to the side of a tree, where it wedges them into a crevice and hammers them open. In winter, the White-breasted Nuthatch joins foraging(feeding) flocks of Chickadees and Tufted titmice. This behavior helps protect the flock of birds from predators.

The White-breasted nuthatch is about 5 -6 inches long and has a mass of between 18 - 30 grams. It's upper parts are blue-gray with a bright white face and underparts. It's long bill is straight or slightly upcurved. The males and females look alike with the male having a black cap and the female having a grayer cap. They eat insects, seeds, and nuts.

A similar species is the Brown creeper.  Brown Creepers move along tree trunks like nuthatches, however, they most often travel up the tree trunk while the White-breasted nuthatch usually climbs headfirst down the trunk.  The Brown creeper is also brown instead of gray, with a much longer tail.

Bird of the Week - Vll

This weeks "Bird of the Week" is the This week's "Bird of the Week" is the European starling. The Starling is not native to North America. All the European Starlings in North America descended from 100 birds released in New York's Central Park in the early 1890s. Today, European Starlings range from Alaska to Florida and northern Mexico, and their population is estimated at over 200 million birds. Its successful spread is believed to have come at the expense of many native birds that compete with the starling for nest holes.

The Starling is a stocky, black bird with a short, square-tipped tail. It is about 8 - 9 inches long. It has pointed, triangular wings and has a long pointed bill which is yellow in the breeding season (spring and summer). It has shimmering green and purple feathers in the spring. The male and female birds look very similar.


While many Starlings migrate, some do winter over in our area. Starlings eat many kinds of invertebrates, fruits, grains, seeds, and garbage. They forages(look for food)in open, grassy areas. They feed in large flocks, often with blackbird species. Starling nest in cavities (holes) in trees.

Photos taken from All About Birds.

Bird of the Week - Vl

This week's "Bird of the Week" is the Mourning dove. Believe it or not, the Mourning dove is one of the 10 most abundant birds in North America. This medium sized, pigeon like bird is about 9 - 13 inches long with a wing span of approximately 15 - 18 inches. It has a small head with a long pointed tail and a light grayish-brown body. There are black spots on its wings. The sexes similar in appearances, but the males are slightly larger and slightly more colorful, with a bluish crown and pink chest.

Mourning doves feed mostly on ground, especially on relatively bare ground, where they eat seeds. Mourning doves usually feed in pairs or flocks.
In many states in the country, the Mourning dove is a game bird, meaning that it can be legally hunted.

To hear a two minute radio program about the Mourning dove, click here and then click on Play MP3
Photo taken from All About Birds

Bird of the Week - V

This weeks "Bird of the Week" is the Downy woodpecker. The Downy woodpecker is the smallest and most common American woodpecker. It is found throughout most of North America from Alaska to Florida. It lives in a variety of habitats from wilderness forests to urban backyards, and comes readily to bird feeders. This small woodpecker is about 6 - 7 inches long. It has a black and white plumage and a small, pointed bill. The male has a small, red patch on the back of its head while the female has a black patch. Can you tell which photograph is of the male?

They eat small insects found on the branches of trees and the stems of weeds. They nest in the cavity (hole) in a tree or tree branch.

Photos taken from Cornell's All About Birds.

Bird of the Week - lV

This weeks "Bird of the Week" is the Northern Cardinal.  This medium-sized songbird has a large crest on it's head and a heavy, conical bill. The face is surrounded by black and the male is entirely a brilliant red while the female is grayish-tan with a red tail and wings.

This common bird is a winter fixture at snow-covered bird feeders throughout Massachusetts in the winter and is very popular. The female Northern Cardinal sings, often from the nest. The song may give the male information about when to bring food to the nest.

The male cardinal fiercely defends its breeding territory from other males. When a male sees its reflection in glass surfaces, it frequently will spend hours fighting the imaginary intruder.

Bird of the Week - lll

This week's "Bird of the Week" is the Tufted titmouse. This small, gray songbird has a short tuft on its head and and its black eye is prominent in its pale gray face. The male and female look alike. It's song is a loud, whistled "peter, peter, peter, peter" and is one of the first bird songs of spring. The tufted titmouse eats insects and seeds.

The tufted titmouse is a common backyard visitor, frequenting feeders in the winter and nesting in holes in trees.

First photo taken from Cornell's All About Birds and the second one is with permission of Barbara Miers.

Plum Island Bird Migration Field Trip

Today's field trip to the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge (Plum Island) and to Sandy Point State Park at the end of the refuge, was very successful!  The weather was super, the kids were great, and the birdwatching/beach combing was very good!
We slowly drove down the 6 mile Refuge road looking for the birds the kids researched in class.

In the morning we saw lots of Great egrets, several Snowy egrets, Gadwall (duck), Green-winged teal, and Double crested cormorants.  The morning crew also found a dead Harbor seal.

  The afternoon group saw the same, but also Sanderlings, Semipalmated sandpipers, Pergrine falcon, Short-billed dowwitcher, and a deer!

At Sandy Point State park, Gary Dow, the Park interpreter, gave the kids a great, short talk about migration.

  We them walked the beach looking for some of our birds and anything else we might discover.

  We ate lunch on the beach!

Bird Migration Research

The kids have been researching a bird they selected from a list of birds I gave them.  The list I gave them was of birds they would have a chance of seeing at Plum Island on Friday's field trip.  The students are researching basic facts about their bird including field marks, diet, problems or issues they face, and migration.  They are also filling in a migration map and obtaining a picture of their bird.

They are using books about birds including field guides as well as using the laptops to visit 4 bird identification sites I gave them.

http://sibley.enature.com/home.asp

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/search

http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/Infocenter/

http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/intermediate.asp?curGroupID=1

Bird of the Week - ll

 "Chicka-dee-dee-dee. Chicka-dee-dee-dee." This is the call of the Massachusetts state bird, the Black capped chickadee. This little bird is a back yard favorite and is easily recognized. It has a small, short bill with a black cap, black bib, and white cheeks.

The Chickadee lives in Reading all year round. They nest in cavities (holes) in trees and will also nest in nest boxes. They feed on insects, seeds, and berries. They love to come to back yard feeders, often hanging upside down to feed. In the winter, they will often gather in small flocks travelling around the neighbor hood looking for feeders and natural foods.


To learn more about the Black-capped chickadee and to hear it song and call as well as a short video of it, click on the link above.

Bird of the Week - l

This week's "Bird of the Week is the Blue jay. This is a very common back yard bird here in Reading and a frequent visitor to feeders. This large, showy, noisy, blue bird has a crest with white spots in the wings and tail. The upper parts of the the bird are various shades of blue. The male and female birds look alike.
While many Blue jays migrate, others live year-round in our area. Some people don't like Blue jays because they are loud and aggressive and occasionally eat the eggs and nestlings of other birds. Blue jays can mimic the calls of certain hawks.
To learn more about the Blue jay and to hear it's song, click on the link:

Bird of the Week XXXVl

The last "Bird of the Week" is the Eastern Bluebird. It is not a common bird in Reading. As a matter of fact, I saw my first Bluebird in Reading in April of 2008. We just don't have enough of the necessary habitat to attract a lot of Bluebirds. The Male Eastern Bluebirds are vivid, deep blue above and rusty or brick-red on the throat and breast. Blue in birds always depends on the light, and males often look plain gray-brown from a distance. Females are grayish above with bluish wings and tail, and a subdued orange-brown breast. Blue tinges in the wings and tail give the grayer females an elegant look. Eastern Bluebirds sing a fairly low-pitched, warbling song made up of several phrases.
You can find Eastern Bluebirds in open country with patchy vegetation and large trees or nest boxes. Meadows, old fields, and golf courses are good places. Bluebirds typically sit in the open on power lines or along fences, with an alert, vertical posture. When they drop to the ground after an insect, they make a show of it, with fluttering wings and a fairly slow approach, followed by a quick return to the perch. Eastern Bluebirds eat mostly insects, wild fruit and berries.
Eastern bluebirds nest in cavities (holes). These holes may be in old trees, old fence posts, etc. They take readily to nest boxes erected in the proper habitat. The male Eastern Bluebird displays at his nest cavity to attract a female. He brings nest material to the hole, goes in and out, and waves his wings while perched above it. That is pretty much his contribution to nest building; only the female Eastern Bluebird builds the nest and incubates the eggs.
Eastern Bluebirds typically have more than one successful brood per year. Young produced in early nests usually leave their parents in summer, but young from later nests frequently stay with their parents over the winter.

The best place to see Bluebirds in Reading is at the Bare Meadow Conservation land off of Pearl St. Last spring a pair raised 3 broods (families)! A pair is nesting there this year and have all ready raised one brood.

Another Unfortunate Bird vs. Building Accident

Our custodian discovered another victim of a building strike this morning. This time the unfortunate bird was a Ruby-throated hummingbird.

Bird of the Week - XXXlV

This weeks "Bird of the Week" is the Chimney swift. A "flying cigar," the Chimney Swift is rarely seen perched. Its high-pitched twittering is a familiar sound during summertime as it flies high above, catching small flying insects. The Chimney swift has a fast, erratic flight. They are among the most aerial of birds, flying almost constantly except when at the nest or roosting at night. The Chimney Swift bathes in flight, gliding down to water, smacking the surface with its breast, then bouncing up and shaking the water from its plumage as it flies away. Chimney swifts feed on flying insects by pursuing the flying insects and catches them in their bill. They feeds in flocks or alone. Chimney swifts can devour over 1,000 insects in a day!

It's nest is a half saucer of woven small twigs held together with saliva. It's glued with saliva to inside wall of chimney.

Parker Middle School Bird-A-Thon 2009 Results - Friday, May 15th

It looks like we'll end up with 33 species of birds seen/heard here on the grounds of the school. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and bring in the number of migrating birds I had hoped for. But, be that as it may, we still had a good time, saw lots of birds, and raised some money for the bird garden!

We found the nest of the mallard duck that has been seen here the past couple of weeks. The eggs are gone, so we hoped they hatched and their mother lead them to water.

Other highlights included up close looks at a House wren, a Yellow warbler, a Red-winged blackbird, 2 Gray catbirds, a Baltimore oriole, a Gray catbird flying right between Maddie and me, and great looks a Red-tailed hawk be mobbed by a mixed flock of Grackles and Red-winged blackbirds.

Parker Middle School Bird-A-Thon 2009 Results


Birds seen/heard on the grounds of the school through Friday, May 15th were:

1. Common grackle
2. Mallard duck
3. Red-winged blackbird
4. Mourning dove
5. Crow
6. Goldfinch
7. Phoebe
8. House wren
9. House sparrow seen on
10. Song sparrow Wednesday
11. Flicker
12. Robin
13. Yellow warbler
14. Yellow-rumped warbler
15. Chimney swift
16. Tufted titmouse
17. Black-capped chickadee
18. Chipping sparrow
19. Starling
20. Downy woodpecker
21. Gray catbird
22. Warbling vireo
23. Ring-billed gull
24. Fish crow
25. Blue jay seen on
26. Red-tailed hawk Thursday
27. Blackpoll warbler
28. Eastern kingbird
29. White-breasted nuthatch
30. Herring gull seen on
31. Baltimore oriole Friday

32. Tree swallow

33. Green-backed heron (2) flyovers