Song Sparrow

I took this first Song Sparrow photo on 30 September in Carleton College’s Upper Arboretum. The second was taken at Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge in Washington on 20 Sepember. I am always surprised by how dark Song Sparrows are in the Pacific Northwest. Up to 52 races have been proposed for this variable sparrow; the American Ornithologists’ Union recognizes around 38. 

My Minnesota bird is probably the eastern Melospiza melodia melodia. This race is small, brown, and black streaked. Western Washington Song Sparrows should be Melospiza melodia morphna, which is more brownish than other western races, but darker than eastern ones. The largest of the Song Sparrow races is found on a couple of Aleutian Islands and is dark, gray, and the size of a towhee.

Red-tailed Hawk

On 28 October I head a cacophony of jays and nuthatches in the backyard. Erika spied a Red-tailed Hawk quietly perched in our woods. We knew the species’ identity even before we saw the red tail. Note the streaks across its lower breast.

Red-tails generally prefer more open areas, but we have noted this raptor in our woods on a number of occasions. This hawk is common and its populations are increasing. The species survives in urban disturbed settings if prey and perch sites are available (Preston and Beane 2009).

American Coot

Back at the Jefferson Parkway Wetlands here in Northfield, on 27 October, I photographed this American Coot. Standing on one foot, definitely stretching or practicing for a synchronized swimming performance. Brisbin and Mowbray (2002) simply list stretching among “comfort movements” noted in captive coots. 

I am surprised that primary feathers appear to be absent. The authors cited above report that coots lose primaries, secondaries, and all wing coverts almost simultaneously. The result is that coots are probably flightless for about four weeks. Primary feathers take a few more days to be replaced than the secondaries. This difference, however, probably does not explain the lack of primaries in this bird since the secondaries are long.

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Herons were common during our 20 September 2016 hike in the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. Although we had just seen one take a frog, thier main prey is fish. Other amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are also taken. They occasionally scavenge carrion.

This heron is showing typical hunting technique—waiting and ambushing prey. Other strategies are reported, including using bread crumbs as fish-bait. Great Blue Herons are found in a number of habitats, both in and near fresh and salt water. They can also hunt on dry land. Consequently it is one of the most common of the North American herons and egrets (Vennesland and Butler 2011).

Bad Frog Day

American Bullfrogs still inhabit the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. I have previously written about this invasive species. This year, we visited the refuge on 20 September. The grandchildren enjoyed seeing the frogs, but, happier yet, was this hungry Great Blue Heron.

American Dipper

My color-blind Dad was a trooper with his birding sons. He laughed at us, however, when he read that American Dippers bob “spasmodically” in rushing mountain streams. In 1965, we found one in western Mexico. Spasmodic is an odd word, but this thrush-sized aquatic songbird does body-pump its way from rock to rock, sometimes even disappearing under the water. There they are carnivores, eating aquatic insects, invertebrates and even small fish and fish eggs (Wilson and Kingery 2011).

Whenever I visit the Rocky Mountains, I am on the lookout for Dippers. Years ago I read that Dippers can be found at Tumwater Falls next to Olympia. I immediately accepted my son’s offer on 19 September for a family outing to Tumwater Falls Park. Erika found this dipper when she noticed the water splashing strangely in the creek. Dippers feed in nearly freezing water. To survive this habitat, dippers have a low metabolic rate and, compared to other birds, are able to store more oxygen in their blood. Their feathers are exceptionally thick and water resistant (Wilson and Kingery 2011).  Even under water, as you can see in the final photo, the dipper does not appear to be getting wet! (Our bird’s yellow bill indicates this is an immature.)

California Scrub-Jay

California Scurb-Jays were common along with Steller’s Jays in Olympia, Washington. This jay is a relatively new bird to my life-list. Only recently have ornithologists concluded that California Scrub-Jays are a distinct species, separate from other scrub-jays. These birds differ in habitat and are brighter blue than are inland scrub-jays (now known as Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay). They do not, however, vary greatly genetically and they interbreed in narrow hybrid zones where their ranges overlap.

Our scrub-jays fed on fruit trees. Elsewhere they are opportunistic feeders, taking arthropods, lizards, fruits and seeds. They will eat ticks off of deer. They are not adverse to eating carrion. We watched the jay below cache his fruit under some bushes along a sidewalk. This behavior is well-known. Most caching is done in the fall and their buried bounties are consumed from mid-winter until spring.

Steller’s Jay

We saw many Steller’s Jays during our Olympia visit. These photos were taken over several days in September. This species is usually found in coniferous forests, but is also to be expected in tree-filled urban areas. (Coincidently, I posted an account of this jay just before we embarked on our trip.)

Steller’s Jays are closely related to the Blue Jays of eastern North America. They share the same genus. The two species are known to hybridize where their ranges overlap. Hybrids are intermediate between Blue and Steller’s jays. One hybrid between a Steller’s Jay and a California Jay is reported (Walker et al 2016).

Talk about a Bad Hair Day. The wind blew this jay’s crest way out of kilter—especially when the bird turned its head. We found one Steller’s Jay feeding on sunflowers. Judging by the yellow at the corner of the gape, this bird is probably an immature.

Steller’s Jays take a wide variety of food items. These jays eat many plants and animals, including arthropods, nuts, seeds, berries and fruits. They consume small vertebrates, even other birds’ nestlings. They often visit bird feeders or clean up the left-overs after human picnics (Walker et al 2016).

Mallard

During our swing through the ponds below Washington’s capitol, I photographed a feral, female Mallard. Not that I have that much to say about Mallards—this just seemed like a pretty picture. Mallards are the most common North American Duck. Feral Mallards inhabit the cites of the world, where they survive because people feed them. These ducks are the evolutionary source of almost all our domesticated ducks (Drilling et al. 2002).

Glaucous-winged Gull

In my last post, I wrote about the hybrid swarm of Western x Glaucous-winged gulls in Puget Sound. Seeing pure parental types of birds is not impossible, especially in the fall when young birds of either species may wander into the area. In the northern Capitol Lake in Olympia, I believe we had several immature Glaucous-winged Gulls. These birds are told from the other gulls in the area by their relatively pale wing tips. The dark tail band probably indicates that this bird is approaching its second winter.