A problem with Pine Siskins

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 09 April 2009 11:12

^{BirdNotes has been full of reports of Pine Siskins this winter and early spring. The incredible irruption of these northern birds into southern territories is like none in recent years, and siskins are still here in early April.}

^{But this big crowd of birds has brought with it a problem — aside from breaking our birdseed budgets with their gluttonous consumption. Siskins may be prone to disease.}

More concern over the future of birds: National report

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 02 April 2009 10:27

Nearly a third of the nation’s 800 bird species are endangered, threatened or in significant decline due to habitat loss, invasive species, and other threats, says a new report on bird populations.

“Just as they were when Rachel Carson published Silent Spring nearly 50 years ago, birds today are a bellwether of the health of land, water and ecosystems,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar in releasing The U.S. State of the Birds, the most comprehensive study of its kind.

Hawks and squirrels together: Not always bloody

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 26 March 2009 12:29

Hawks and their habits have always fascinated people and, lately at least, readers of this column have been contributing many hawk observations — perhaps a sign of their growing numbers. Among the most interesting report comes from Bernd Klopfer, a longtime Ridgefielder who now spends most of his time in Las Vegas.

Wooing Ms. Nuthatch with treats: Spring sighting

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 19 March 2009 11:12

Bird watching can be a lot more than just identifying what shows up in the yard. A good bird watcher also notices what the birds are doing.

Nine-year-old Blythe Filaski is a good bird watcher.

Those hungry eyes in the sky: What’s at risk?

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 12 March 2009 12:49

The striking photographs last week and this of a Red-tailed Hawk consuming a crow are dramatic examples of why hawks and other raptors were once hated and hunted.

Supermarket in the trees: More there than meets the eye

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 05 March 2009 14:23

John R. McGinley of Wilton has an interesting question.

“I watched for ten minutes or so at a Black-capped Chickadee working the bare branches of one of my apple trees. He inspected all around, up and down along many of the twigs and branches. What can he have been doing?

Finding — and not finding — backyard birds

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 26 February 2009 14:21

Some 85,000 checklists from the Great Backyard Bird Count were turned in to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as of Saturday, Feb. 21.  They covered a counting period of Feb. 13 to 16. Here is a sampling of results:

A season of plentiful siskins and unhappy hawks

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 19 February 2009 16:14

The irruption of Pine Siskins in our area has been nothing short of spectacular this winter, and as might be expected, the Great Backyard Bird Count last weekend confirmed this.

Snuggling bluebirds and backyard bird counts

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 12 February 2009 13:19

Betty Flavin of Fieldcrest Drive in Ridgefield reports a remarkable example of birds’ dealing with the cold.

Berries and the winter birds

Written by Sally Sanders
Thursday, 05 February 2009 13:44

Diana Gray of Wilton noticed the recent BirdNotes about Carolina Wrens sometimes succumbing to winter snows.  “I was so worried about mine, because I hadn’t seen it in weeks. But work and travel may have blunted my sights, because there it was today!