Reported
Sightings
Ø
Gerry
Gartland related an unusual story on March 13th.
Two weeks earlier he was driving
along
Main Street. When he reached
Jackie William’s home he saw a seabird on the road.
Being
a good Samaritan, he stopped to render assistance.
As he tried to pick up the bird it pecked
at his ankles, flopped around in panic, and tried to bite his hand.
Needless to say,
Gerry’s
finer instincts did not survive the attack and he left the bird to fend for
itself.
Looking
in the Peterson Guide to Eastern Birds Gerry identified
a Thick-billed Murre.
Ø
Bill
and I saw 10 Common Loons in the open water near Lemoine’s wharf.
The rest of that
end
of the harbour had pack ice. Numerous
reports during the next few days showed that the number
of loons was decreasing. Bald
Eagles were taking advantage of these trapped birds.
Ø
Gary
Peck, Darryl Peck, and Henry Paige all reported watching the Bald Eagles
sitting on the
ice
beside the open water at Albert Bridge. As
the Cormorants surfaced from their dive they were
neatly picked off as lunch by the waiting Eagles.
Ø
Ian
Harte reported a Pileated Woodpecker on Route 22 on March 15th.
Ø
Many
of us saw the male Mallard Duck who decided to go for a stroll on Main Street
about 1
p.m.
on a sunny March 15th. Jackie
Williams viewed it with surprise as he came out of the Town
Dairy. The Mallard continued toward the Royal Bank and then
back-tracked down the middle of Main Street halting traffic as he headed
toward the Grubstake Restaurant. A
couple
of days later he was swimming below the home of Bobby Burke on Havenside Road.
Ø
Pauline
Kelly watched a Mallard below her
home on Wolfe Street earlier that week
Ø
Michael
MacDonald from “the other” regional municipality stopped me on St.
Patrick’s Day
to
point out that I omit mentioning Herring Gulls and Crows in For the Birds.
He reported seeing
both of these species while visiting our fair former town.
People born on the coast never
forget.
Ø
Henry
Paige reported 2 mature & 4 immature Eagles catching ducks at Mira on
March 17th..
Ø
I
watched 9 Cormorants flying overhead in their ragged V formation as I drove
along the
highway
at Albert Bridge on St. Patrick’s Day.
Ø
Geneva
Pond had a pair of Black-capped Chickadees darting through her yard from tree
to
tree
late that day.
Ø
Pat
Holland watched 2 mature Bald Eagles tumbling in the air with their talons
locked on
March
20th.
Ø
Sheila
Fudge reported 2 Mature Bald Eagles at the Havenside Barachois on March 22.
One
was
on the shore and another on a log. There
were also 6 Buffleheads.
Ø
Pearl
Magee called to report the arrival of her first Fox Sparrow at 10:45 a.m.
March 26.
She
said Susann Myers had one in the yard on March 23rd.
Cyneth and Gordon Hutt had the earliest
arriving and longest staying Fox Sparrow—see February and March issues.
Ø
Ambrose
Campbell still has 3 Canada Jays visit him daily at the service gate to the
Fortress.
Ø
Lester
Swain reported 3 Osprey at Albert Bridge March 27th.
March
26th SIGNS OF SPRING. Crows
were eating worms in the lawn at the Administration Building and Wooly Bear
caterpillars were on the sidewalk between Victor Hanham’s and Mattias’
cottage. Pearl’s Fox Sparrow arrived in the morning and mine appeared that
afternoon.
March
29th Pearl Magee reported 2 Pine Grosbeaks eating cones from the
ground in her yard. She had up to
9 Fox Sparrows, 4 Song Sparrows, 6 White-throated Sparrows, increasing numbers
of Pine Siskins. She had 2
over-wintering Common Grackles.
At My
Feeders
Thirty-three
Pine Siskins was the maximum number counted on March 28.
By April 6, I had 6 Fox Sparrows and 2 Song Sparrows.
One is pale and thin while the other is dark and plump.
They
have to fight for ground-feeding rights with more than 40 Juncos and numerous
American Goldfinch. Some of the
male Goldfinch are quite bright yellow and their black caps are appearing.
Two pair of Purple Finch dine daily.
The males are brilliant raspberry and the immature male has rusty
patches at the throat and upper chest although the rest resembles a female
with the brown and cream markings. On March 15th I had a pair of Red Crossbills eat
and run in mid-morning. The female Hairy Woodpecker has hacked huge chunks
from the suspended pole with the holes filled with suet. NEXT YEAR IT WILL BE A FOCAL POINT SINCE IT WAS SO
SUCCESSFUL. A pair of Red-breasted Nuthatch visit several times daily to pick
up sunflower seeds.
Around
the Harbour
6
Ring-billed Gulls were on the beach beside a pair of Herring Gulls on
Havenside near the mailboxes on April 7th. Driving past the
entrance to the Visitor Centre on March 16th I watched a Red-tailed
Hawk fly overhead. Gordon and
Cyneth Hutt were stopped up the road watching the same magnificent display.
My
latest purchase is the Birder’s Handbook ( National Audubon Society, by Stephen W.
Kress, Ph.D. Dorling Kindersley Limited, London, 2000 ).
I began leafing through this book looking at some of the
interesting facets of birding. It
tells how to count groups of birds, what to observe, binoculars and scopes,
and mentions birding hotspots.
Feeding
Strategies. “Most birds consume
a surprising variety of food, frequently switching feeding strategies
depending on what foods are available or their nutritional needs for a certain
season.” ( pp 38-43)
The
feeding strategies include HAWKING (Waxwings, Flycatchers), PROBING
(Woodcocks, Sandpipers), LEAF TOSSING (Fox Sparrows, Ruffed Grouse), CHISELING
(Woodpeckers), SWEEPING (Swallows), SHELL SMASHING (Gulls, Crows, Eagles),
POUNCING (Owls, Hawks), PLUNGING (Gannets, Kingfishers, Osprey, Terns), DIVING
(Loons, Diving Ducks, Cormorants, Grebes), STALKING (Herons, Gulls, Robins),
FOOTRAKING AND STAMPING (Herons, Egrets), GRAZING (Canada Geese), SCAVENGING
(Vultures, Crows, Gulls), DABBLING (Mallards, Black Ducks), NECTAR HOVERING
(Hummingbirds), PECKING (Sparrows, Juncos, Geese, Pheasants), PLUCKING
(Goldfinches, Purple Finches, Waxwings, Robins).
In
Closing
Watch
for courtship, nesting, new arrivals, and changes in plumage.
Clean
the ground around your feeders, scour your winter feeders, and prepare to
greet the hummingbirds when they arrive around the first part of May.
I
look forward to hearing from you with your sightings so we can all share our
joy in the spring.
Helen O’Shea
Extracted from © The
Seagull, Helen O'Shea, For the Birds
