Photo by Chris Bosak A downy woodpecker eats a homemade Christmas-themed suet cake, December 2018.
Most birdwatchers I know have a self-reliant, practical side. They don’t necessarily long to live off the grid in a small cabin in the wilderness, hunting for their food and cutting down trees to stay warm, but there is a hint of that spirit in a lot of us.
Luckily, there are many do-it-yourself projects for birdwatchers that may be done in the comfort of our heated, electrified, and well-stocked homes. The projects will save a few bucks (no pun intended) and result in that satisfaction only a good DIY activity can deliver.
The easiest project is making your own hummingbird food. It is inexpensive and requires almost no skill. In other words, perfect for someone like me.
Simply mix four parts water with one part sugar and you’ve got hummingbird food. I usually double the recipe to eight cups of water and two cups of sugar so it lasts longer. I like to bring the water to the point at which it is about to boil then turn off the heat and add the sugar. Most of the sugar will dissolve itself in the hot water, but a minute or two Continue reading →
Here’s a For the Birds column I wrote a few years ago. Seems appropriate with a cold, gusty wind blowing today.
Photo by Chris Bosak
An American Tree Sparrow perches near a feeding station during the snowstorm of Feb. 13, 2014.
One of my favorite times to watch birds is when the snow is falling. Not a driving snow with icy temperatures and high winds, but an otherwise rather pleasant day with frozen crystals falling from the sky and covering everything with a fresh coat of white.
I do not shy away from taking walks to look for birds when the snow is actively falling, in fact I thoroughly enjoy walks at such times. But I also enjoy very much watching the activity at the feeders during snowfalls.
As long as the snow is not falling at too fast a rate, the birds will continue coming to feeders. Indeed, during light and moderate snowfalls the birds may be seen at higher-than-usual numbers at backyard feeders.
I will often grab my camera, open a window, pull up a seat and capture images of the hungry birds as snow falls and collects around them. I could do that for hours. Heating bills be damned. The usual suspects such as Northern Cardinals, Downy Woodpeckers, Black-capped Chickadees, Tufted Titmice and White-breasted Nuthatches are typically seen in high numbers during snowfalls. It’s also a great time to see birds such as Carolina Wrens and Dark-eyed Juncos.
But what about when it’s a heavy snowfall? I mean, right in the middle of the worst of it? Birds are scarce then. Wouldn’t you be, too?
Where are the birds then? Most humans are holed up at home or work or some other place of shelter. Birds do pretty much the same thing. Whether their shelter is an evergreen bough, a patch of thick brush, a bird house, an old nest hole in a tree, or even under the snow, birds do their best to stay out of the harsh weather.
Birds don’t have the luxury of a thermostat to crank up during these times. They don’t need artificial sources of heat, however. They have several natural defenses against the cold. One such defense is to puff up their feathers to trap warm air within their down feathers. This keeps the cold air away from their bodies. It’s the same principle as us putting on a jacket (especially a down-filled one.)
Depending on the species, they may also huddle together for warmth, often holing up together in a birdhouse. That’s why it’s important to keep your birdhouses up all year and to clean them out after the nesting season. Some birds, such as grouse, will even use the snow to their advantage by burying themselves into the snow for shelter. Those birds are insulated by the snow and out of the elements. The danger with that strategy is sometimes snow will turn to ice and a hard surface may form on the top of the snow.
Birds also know beforehand when a storm is coming. Sensing a change in air pressure, the birds build up their fat reserves to use as energy during the storm. That, obviously, makes the time leading up to harsh weather a good time for us to watch feeders, as well. Food, eaten beforehand, is important to birds’ survival of storms.
So make sure your feeders are well stocked this winter and offer a variety of foods in different feeders. I’m sure more snow is coming before too long.
Photo by Chris Bosak
A male indigo bunting eats seeds from a platform feeder in Danbury, Conn., in May 2018.
My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 2 and 1. This is the finale!
Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.
Photo by Chris Bosak
An indigo bunting visits a feeder in New England, spring 2018.
2. Indigo bunting at feeder. I had two visit, actually. One was a male in a blotchy transition plumage and one was an adult male in its splendid bright blue coat. I knew these sought-after birds visited feeders, but this was a first for me.
Gray jay on snowy bough in Pittsburg, N.H., Nov. 2018.
1. Gray jays. An early November trip to Pittsburg, N.H., yielded some interesting bird sightings, such as bald eagles, ruffed grouse, and an evening grosbeak. The highlight for sure, however, were several small groups of gray jays that ate seeds right from our hands.
Of course, the big highlight of the year was continuing to be able to share my outdoor adventures through this column and my website. Thanks for your support in 2018 and I can’t wait to see what 2019 has in store. Also, feel free to share your nature highlights of 2018.
Photo by Chris Bosak
Male rose-breasted grosbeaks chase each other at a feeding stating in Danbury, Conn., May 2018.
My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 4 and 3.
Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.
Photo by Chris Bosak A Bald Eagle flies over Little Merganser Lake in Danbury, Conn.
4. Rise of the bald eagle. I continue to hear of several new bald eagle nests throughout New England. My own personal sightings have greatly increased as well. The comeback is not on par with the osprey success story yet, but it’s nice to see that our national symbol appears to be trending upwards.
Photo by Chris Bosak A Rose-breasted Grosbeak visits a feeder in Danbury, Conn.
3. Two male rose-breasted grosbeaks at feeder. I’m happy enough when one of these beauties visits, but one day in early May two of them shared a hopper feeder. “Shared” is a bit of a stretch as they spend most of their time bickering and chasing each other around.
Photo by Chris Bosak A purple finch eats seeds at a feeder in New England, Nov. 2018.
My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 6 and 5.
Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.
6. Winter birds at feeder. They were really late fall sightings, but happened after the leaves had dropped so it felt more like winter. It started with a female purple finch, continued with several fox sparrows, and ended with a ton of pine siskins. There is still plenty of time left in winter to add to that list. Anybody want to send me their evening grosbeaks?
Photo by Chris Bosak Common loon on Long Island Sound during winter months.
5. Christmas Bird Count. It’s going on 20 years now that I’ve participated in the annual bird census. As usual, I did a count in southwestern New England that features varied habitat — from wooded areas to freshwater ponds to Long Island Sound. A few highlight species include: great egret; common loon; merlin; and red-breasted nuthatch.
Photo by Chris Bosak
A nothern bobwhite seen at Happy Landing in Brookfield, Connecticut, fall 2018.
My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 8 and 7.
Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.
8. First New England northern bobwhite. I saw one of these ground birds in Delaware many many years ago, but I finally got my first New England sighting this fall. It is a species in serious decline and would be nice to see them thriving again.
Photo by Chris Bosak Black-capped chickadee clearing out cavity for nest.
7. Breeding Atlas. Connecticut is undergoing an ambitious three-year survey of its breeding birds. The state is divided into more than 100 blocks that are covered by volunteers. My block features lakes, marshes, mountains, and woods.
Photo by Chris Bosak A male bobolink perches in a small tree and overlooks the fields at Happy Landings in Brookfield, CT.
My latest For the Birds column releases my personal top 10 birding moments for 2018. Recapping the previous year is my favorite column to write each late December or early January. This year, instead of blasting out the top 10 all at once I’m going to spread it out and reveal two each day, starting today (Jan. 1, 2019.) This post will include Nos. 10 and 9.
Feel free to comment or send me an email with some of your 2018 birding or nature highlights.
10. Bobolinks at preserve. Happy Landings is a huge, protected field in Brookfield, Connecticut, where bobolinks thrive. Fields and meadows are a critical and disappearing habitat so it’s nice to see some still exist and are maintained for the wildlife that depend on them.
Photo by Chris Bosak A luna moth clings to a screen in Danbury, Conn., during spring 2018.
9. Visit from a luna moth. May brought several bird surprises to my yard, but also a visit from another interesting creature. I went to refill the bird feeders one day and noticed a luna moth clinging to a screen. I’ve seen the large green moth only a few times previously. It hung around all day and was gone the next morning.
Photo by Chris Bosak A nothern bobwhite seen at Happy Landing in Brookfield, Connecticut, fall 2018.
I turned the corner on one of the many trails that cut through the expansive fields of Happy Landings in southern New England and headed straight into the mid-morning sun.
To the right was a long but narrow stretch of bushy habitat; to the left a large plot of a hay field, short-cropped after a mid-fall mowing. It was a perfect New England winter morning — sunny and cold — even if the calendar read fall.
The bird walk had been very slow up to that point, with a hairy woodpecker being the highlight of only three species spotted. Half daydreaming because of the lack of action, I noticed a large bird on the ground on the trail. It was inches from the brushy strip of land.
The sun was bright and in my eyes, too, so I was too late to identify the bird. It had stepped into the thick brush before I could raise and focus my binoculars. I assumed Continue reading →
Photo by Chris Bosak Pine siskins visit a feeder in Danbury, Connecticut, fall 2018.
A wise man once said: “The nature of a winter finch irruption, however, could mean a sizable flock of pine siskins can show up and empty out my Nyjer seed feeder at any moment.”
Just kidding. That was me writing two weeks ago about the hot start to the winter finch season. The wise man part is up for debate.
At the time of that writing, a female purple finch had been my only out-of-the-ordinary sighting at my feeding station. A week later a few fox sparrows showed up. I know fox sparrows are not finches, but they can fit loosely into the category of winter finches because of their sporadic visits to New England backyards.
Then last week, true to the sentence at the top of this column, the pine siskins showed up. It started out with two siskins sharing the tube feeder with a group of goldfinches. The next day, I counted three siskins. The third day, about 20 siskins showed up and occupied every perch on the tube feeder and a nearby hopper feeder. The spillover Continue reading →
Photo by Chris Bosak A fox sparrow perches on the snow in Danbury, Conn., Nov. 16, 2018.
Here is the latest For the Birds column:
Last week I wrote about winter finches and how birds that aren’t even finches can easily be lumped into that broad category.
I mentioned a few examples and, of course, as soon as I hit the “send” button, an example that I failed to mention showed up in my backyard. It was a fox sparrow. Well, more specifically, two fox sparrows.
Fox sparrows aren’t finches, naturally, they are sparrows, just as their name suggests. But because they are small (relative to all birds) and show up at feeders throughout New England sporadically during certain winters, I think they can be mentioned under the very broad and nonspecific category of winter finches.
Winter finches, just to review quickly, are the northern birds that show up at New England feeders some winters, only to not be seen again for several years. Pine siskin is the prime example and this year seems to be another good year for siskins. Continue reading →
Birds of New England.com 