Bird Call

OK. Now This is a Trick Question.

It’s not an American Crow.

But it looks like one. Sounds like one…mostly. Acts like one. Lives where they do.  

(And no one much likes them either.) : )

So how can you tell them apart? Well, it’s hopeless. :) At least from just a photo.

So I’ll help. (Remember I was there.) : )

They only hang out on the east coast--near water. They nest in the tops of evergreens. And they holler Uncle

(They caw too. Like they have a cold.) :)

And when they do, they're polite enough to scruff up their necks (American Crows aren't).

 

Boring Fact. These birds are protected by international treaty. Oh well. Some states have reserved the right to have them hunted as pests anyway. Even birders aren’t all that crazy about them. They wreak havoc on heron's eggs.

  What the heck is it? (Hover to find out.)

 

E-Z I.D. Friday Free I.D. Day—American Crow

On E-Z I.D. Friday crow is good enough.  : )

But technically it’s an American Crow. There are other types, but who’s counting? : ) 

Common.  More common than they used to be.  And in more places.  They’ve adapted to us so well, they’re a familiar sight.

And…familiarity breeds contempt...and cliches.  : )  Eating crow, crow’s nest, crow’s feet, hoarse as a crow, shoot the crow. We measure distance “as the crow flies”—I guess because they fly straight. Good thing. If they flew like butterflies just imagine how much farther everything would be.  : )

And they’re the only bird I know with a whiskey and a bar named after it. : )  

As for contempt, apparently the ubiquity, proximity, audacity, and cacophony are enough to drive some people into wanting…well…to turn them into crow bait. : )

Distinguishing Marks: one way to tell a crow from a Raven is crows have a rounded tail like this one. Raven's have a wedge shaped tail.

E-Z I.D. Friday

First things first. No trick questions on E-Z I.D. Fridays. That would spoil the whole generous impulse thing. :)

In case you forgot or never saw the rules…here; Official Rules :)

Distinguishing Marks: Black feathers. Black Bill. Black eyes. Black legs. Black feet. Overall impression: generally black. Rounded tail in flight.

Click to Enlarge

Now how about a little dirt on this bird?

1) They're marauders. They eat eggs and fledglings. (Well so do Roadrunners, but we forgive them because they also eat the occasional rattlesnake.) : )

2) They croak. A lot. A really lot. :) Not only that, they may find a few friends to croak with... often outside your bedroom window at 5:00 a.m.

3) They sometimes roost communally in thousands. Tens of thousands even. Ok I'm  going out on a limb here :) (I did read it somewhere): hundreds of thousands. That’s a lot croaking.

4) They lay green eggs.

On the other hand....

1) They are considered intelligent.

2) They like to soar and dip and dive in the wind.  To all appearances, they're having fun.

3) They mob hawks and owls. Now maybe you really like hawks and owls and don't think that's cool. I like hawks and owls too. I especially like to see them. And an easy way to do that is to follow the sound of a bunch of these guys going crazy in the distance. (Technically, that bunch is called a "murder." No joke.)

4) Their interactions can be complex and interesting.

So they have their admirers.

But most of the people I know pretty much want to kill them.

      What the heck is it? Hover to find out.

Boring Fact: These birds have at times been such a problem in agricultural and natural areas, efforts have been made to control them. With dynamite. At communal roosts. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I have admit it would cut down on the croaking. :)

Short Read on Red

Ever wonder why hummingbird feeders are red? 

Me either.  

Then my neighbor asked me the other day why I didn’t use red nectar. I told him it was a very complicated question and like a dope, offered to explain the whole thing. : )

      What the heck is it?

Click to Enlarge

We see the world in color of course. Birds and insects do too. But they also see ultraviolet light. That means they see a whole lot more of the world than we do. They see intricate patterns on butterfly wings and flowers that we can’t. Birds even see us different...and well. After we do the wash (especially if the detergent has a brightener) our clothes--even camos--might as well be flashing neon.

So we know the ultraviolet light is there. We know they see it.  But how it looks to them? No clue.

Well that’s not entirely true. I think I have a pretty good idea how I look to mosquitos:

  What the heck is it? Hover to find out.

:)

But I was saying: we see colors.  Birds see all the colors. Insects see all the colors except one at the very bottom of the spectrum. Red. And since bugs can’t see red flowers they tend to overlook a few. That means there’s usually more nectar in them.

Hummers may be little, but they’re not dumb. :) They keep score.

So there you have it. Hummingbirds are attracted to red because it’s where the food is.

Which is exactly what you would have thought in the first place if you had given it any thought. Right? :)

What the heck is it?

Oh, and my neighbor’s question about red dye in the feeder?

Well not to be rude, but the fact is red nectar is so 2013. : )

 

 

Savannah Sparrow

I received a comment about the sparrow in my last post which I thought I should pass along to clear up any misconceptions. A woman asked if the birds pictured were female since they had on eye shadow. No joke.  Eye shadow?  Pardon me for saying so, but that’s ridiculous.

They were sparrows--Savannah Sparrows. Hello. Everyone knows males and females  both wear eye shadow. : )

Boring fact: This species sometimes tries to lure predators away from the nest by imitating a small rodent. It fluffs up its feathers, stays low to the ground and scurries away back and forth through the weeds doing its best to look like a mouse. With eye shadow. :)

 

Savannah Sparrows have several subspecies, but here is the non-specific range map for them: ebird

Once on the site, you can zoom in to see where and when they have been seen near you.