Monthly Archives: May 2020

Region’s two oriole species make their spring return

Leave a reply

Photo by MillionPM/Pixabay.com • Oranges, as well as offerings of grape jelly, are often successful at luring Baltimore orioles to feeders.

Earlier this spring, Kaylynn Wilster, who resides in Jonesborough, Tennessee, emailed me for information about orioles.

“Do you know when the orioles return to our area?” Kaylynn asked. In her email, she also shared that she had a female Baltimore oriole gathering nesting materials in her yard last summer.

“I put out an oriole feeder this year,” she added. So far, she noted, only chickadees have discovered the grape jelly.

In addition, Brenda Hickman Dishner, who lives near Holston Dam in Bristol, Tennessee, contacted me through Facebook to ask if I have seen orioles in the area.

Brenda added that she has put out oriole feeders for the past three years with no luck.

Photo provided by Gloria Blevins • A male Baltimore Oriole visits a feeder at the Blevins home in Damascus, Virginia.

It seems many people are hoping to welcome these bright orange and black birds to their feeders. In my reply to Kaylynn and Brenda, I told them to expect orioles to arrive in late April and early May. I’ve found orioles uncommon visitors to my home, but my prediction on timing proved more or less correct.

Gloria Blevins shared a photo of the Baltimore orioles that have been visiting her home in Damascus, Virginia. In a Facebook message, she shared that the orioles have been feeding on grape jelly that she had provided them since May 2.

Although she no longer lives locally, Kathy Noblet has been seeing lots of Baltimore orioles at her home in Mount Vernon, Ohio, since late April. Her photographs of these colorful birds have been nothing short of amazing. She has shared new photographs on Facebook on an almost daily basis for the past couple of weeks.

“The orioles continue to come to my deck and pig out on grape jelly,” Kathy posted on May 6. “They are fun to watch!”

I also heard back from Kaylynn on May 15. “There was a male oriole getting a drink at my pond about four days ago,” she informed me in an email.

Photo by USFWS • Baltimore orioles, like this male, are members of the blackbird family, making them relatives of species such as Eastern meadowlarks, brown-headed cowbirds, common grackles and red-winged blackbirds.

The Baltimore oriole, despite its bright plumage, is a member of one of the blackbird clans, known in scientific circles as the Icterus genus. In his book, “Birds of Forest, Yard, and Thicket,” John Eastman notes that there are 26 species in the genus, eight of which nest in the United States.

In the eastern United States, there are only two orioles — the Baltimore oriole and its smaller relative, the orchard oriole. The western half of the nation is home to a half dozen orioles, including Bullock’s oriole, Scott’s oriole, Audubon’s oriole, hooded oriole and Altamira oriole. I saw several gaudy, noisy Bullock’s orioles during a trip to Utah in May of 2006.

Tall trees are an essential part of the Baltimore oriole’s favored habitat. Baltimore orioles are well-known for their colorful appearance, but their fame also rests with a sack-like nest that Eastman describes as a “durable marvel of tight-woven plant fibers” in his informational book. Eastman also notes that during another era in America, the Baltimore oriole often built its marvelous nests in American elms before Dutch elm disease almost eradicated these trees from the landscape. He reports that maples, willows and apples have served as nesting trees in the absence of elms. Once the hard-working female oriole sets to work, she may spend eight days or longer weaving plant fibers into a strong pouch suspended from the outer ends of drooping branches. The durability of the nest means that other birds, including house finches, may occupy the old nest once abandoned by the original inhabitant.

Orioles are present in the region from April to October, retreating to the American tropics for the winter. There they may live on plantations that produce such much-coveted crops as bananas, coffee and cacao, which is the essential ingredient for chocolate.

George Calvert, Lord Baltimore

The Baltimore oriole is named in honor of one of the founding fathers of the state of Maryland. George Calvert, or Baron Baltimore, was an influential English colonist instrumental in establishing the colony of Maryland. His servants wore orange and black uniforms, which inspired early American naturalist Mark Catesby to name the bird the Baltimore oriole. The bird’s association with the the city of Baltimore and the state of Maryland have continued to this day. The bird is also famous as the namesake of one of America’s professional baseball teams.

Baltimore orioles eat insects and fruit, but these adaptive birds have also developed a fondness for sweet nectar. Orioles no longer have to raid sugar water feeders meant for hummingbirds. Many manufacturers of bird-feeding equipment now produce affordable sugar water feeders specifically designed for use by orioles. Many bird enthusiasts also use orange slices and grape jelly to lure orioles into their yards. I’ve tried these tricks, but I’ve attracted more gray catbirds and scarlet tanagers than I have orioles. In my book, that’s not a disappointment. I happen to like catbirds and tanagers.

With orioles, I’ve had better luck by refraining from a bit of pest control. Back in the late 1990s, I observed a male Baltimore oriole visiting a large caterpillar tent in the branches of a cherry tree. The bird methodically plucked the caterpillars from the silken tent, eating them one after the other. I’ve since learned that this is not an odd occurrence for Baltimore orioles. While many birds avoid spiny and hairy caterpillars, orioles actively seek them out and do a great service by reducing the damage these hungry caterpillars can inflict on the environment.

If you’re wanting to see orioles, I can share some area “hot spots” for these colorful birds. The waterfront at Winged Deer Park in Johnson City, Tennessee, has fewer tall trees than it did a few years ago, but the remaining trees still attract orioles. Warriors Path State Park in Kingsport, Tennessee, has long been a place that local birders depend on for sightings of Baltimore orioles. I also had some impressive sightings of both orioles at Hungry Mother State Park a few years ago. Although those birds could have been spring migrants, this park in Marion, Virginia, certainly offers habitat that orioles would find attractive.

Want more details on how to attract orioles to your yard using specialized feeders? Check out this helpful article from Birds and Blooms. https://www.birdsandblooms.com/birding/attracting-birds/bird-nesting/how-to-attract-orioles/

Photo by Bryan Stevens • In the western part of the United States, the Baltimore oriole is replaced by Bullock’s oriole.

Migrating rose-breasted grosbeaks thrill observers with recent visits

3 Replies

Photo provided by Shannon Stimson • A male rose-breasted grosbeak checks out some well-stocked feeders.

They’re not as dependable as ruby-throated hummingbirds, but they are every bit as impressive. Of course, I am referring to rose-breasted grosbeaks, which have been delighted people across the eastern half of the United States for the past couple of weeks.

Among these grosbeaks, it’s the male that wears the exquisite apparel. Males have a black head, wings, back and tail, with a bright splash of rose coloring across the front of their breast. Males and females exhibit marked sexual dimorphism, which is simply a scientific way of saying that males and females are quite different in their appearance.

The female rose-breasted grosbeak lacks the male’s showy plumage. She could easily be mistaken for a large, chunky sparrow with her brown, streaked feathers. She does have the large beak in common with the male. In fact, the term “grosbeak” is derived from German and simply means “big beak.” Incidentally, I’m told by bird banders that rose-breasted grosbeaks can give a nasty nip with that sizable and sturdy beak.

My email in-box and my Facebook page have been active this migration season with reports from people eager to share observations of these showy songbirds.

Carla Honaker sent me an email on Monday, April 27, about visiting rose-breasted grosbeaks.

“Two days ago I ran out of bird seed and changed from a mix to a black oil seed,” Carla reported. “I had heavy bird traffic yesterday and this morning my mother went over to open the blind that faces the front yard where the bird feeder hangs on a limb in a dogwood tree. To her surprise, there was a rose-breasted grosbeak sitting on the feeder eating the sunflower seeds.”

Understandably, Carla and her mother were very excited to see this unknown visitor at the feeder. Curious about the bird’s identity, Carla used the app Cornell Lab Merlin and made the identification.

Photo by Paintspreader/Pixabay.com • Male rose-breasted grosbeaks provide a jolt of excitement during migratory stopovers in yards and gardens throughout the eastern United States every spring.

Carla said the grosbeak stayed around for a few more minutes, long enough for her to take a picture of the side of his wing and back and tail.

She also had a question, asking if there are many rose-breasted grosbeaks in this area and whether there is a chance he will be a regular at her feeder.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male rose-breasted grosbeak perches in a tree on Roan Mountain in Tennessee.

Alas, rose-breasted grosbeaks are usually only spring and fall migrants unless one lives in the higher elevations of some of our local mountains. Visit area mountains in summer if you want to see these birds away from your feeders. They’re still fairly common in the region, but sadly, their numbers have declined overall.

I also let Carla know that grosbeaks are very fond of sunflower seed, so changing the mixed seed to black oil sunflower was probably helpful in attracting the visitor.

Elizabeth “Liz” Wynacht, who lives outside Atlanta in the town of Roswell, Georgia, also shared her own rose-breasted grosbeak story in an email she sent to me on Wednesday, April 29.

Elizabeth provided some interesting background to preface her story. “A few years ago, I looked up and saw this bright red “kiss” on this creamy colored breast of a bird,” she wrote. “I ran in to get my camera but he was gone when I got back. After researching what I thought I saw, my guess was a grosbeak. I have been looking for him ever since.”

Photo Provided by Byron Tucker • A male rose-breasted grosbeak squares off with a red-bellied woodpecker in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia.

After a couple of years, her wait ended. “This past Friday, while sitting on my porch, I looked up from my phone, and I saw that beautiful red kiss coming toward the feeder,” she wrote. “Of course, my movement startled him and he flew away.”

Once again, she fetched her camera and waited. Liz reported that the male grosbeak showed up again along with his little wife. They visited for three days.

“He was a wonderful surprise in the midst of this crazy pandemic,” Liz wrote. “Really lifts the spirit to see such a beautiful bird.”

Shannon Stimson sent me an email on Monday, May 4, with some attached photos of male rose-breasted grosbeaks. “I had three males at my feeders two days ago followed by one female,” Shannon wrote. “One male that looked less mature stayed on for two days gorging on nuts and seeds for hours and engaging in a slight disagreement with a red-headed woodpecker over possession of the feeder.”

Sadly, Shannon reported that the grosbeaks moved on, but noted that their visit brought a great deal of cheer in this isolating time.

Photo by Bryan Stevens
A rose-breasted grosbeak finds a meal of sunflower seeds at a feeder.

Kaylynn Wilster, who lives in Jonesborough, Tennessee, emailed me on Thursday, April 30, about her own rose-breasted grosbeak sighting. “He was not afraid of me and let me walk around the yard,” she wrote.

The very same day that Kaylynn saw her grosbeak, I looked out my window and saw one at my feeders. There had been a storm the previous night, so I suspect that helped “persuade” the bird to visit.

I posted on Facebook about my sighting and several friends shared their own.

“I was just reading an old article of yours about rose-breasted grosbeaks and, lo and behold, I have a flock of them hanging out on my feeders for the first time ever,” wrote Mary Ragland in a Facebook message to me.

Carolyn Grubb in Washington County, Virginia, reported seeing one.

Amy Wallin Tipton, who lives in Unicoi County, Tennessee, reported that her parents had been hosting a male and female rose-breasted grosbeak for the past two days.

James and Pattie Rowland, of Erwin, Tennessee, also reported on Facebook sightings of rose-breasted grosbeaks.

Keep the reports coming. If nothing else, sharing bird sightings is a way to feel less socially distant from others.

Photo Provided by Elizabeth “Liz” Wynacht  • A male rose-breasted grosbeak visits a feeder in a suburban area near Atlanta, Georgia.

Stunning summer tanager a lesser-known relative of scarlet tanager

2 Replies

Photo Provided by Helen Whited • A male summer tanager visits a feeder during a migration stop in southwest Virginia.

Helen Whited, a resident of Richlands, Virginia, recently emailed me a photo of a feathered visitor in her yard asking for help with identification. She had already narrowed down the possibilities. “I’m thinking a tanager of some kind,” Helen wrote in her email.

When I opened Helen’s attached photo file, I recognized the plump, red bird perched on her feeder near a suet cage. I wrote an email back, informing Helen that her visitor was indeed a tanager. The summer tanager is not rare, per se, but these birds do not seem as common in the region as the related and better known scarlet tanager. Farther south, summer tanagers are much more prevalent in the spring and summer months.

Helen also reported seeing her first ruby-throated hummingbird of spring on April 25. “It’s later than usual, but they’re here,” she wrote in an email.

She added that several neighbors in Richlands, Virginia, reported seeing hummingbirds as early as April 21, but they seemed to be shunning her until the morning of April 25.

Since the last couple of columns have been about hummingbirds, I want to shift the focus this week to Helen’s other visitor.

If the casual birder or nature enthusiast is aware of the summer tanager, it’s usually as the less showy cousin of the more fiery and vibrant scarlet tanager, one of the most striking birds inhabiting woodlands in the eastern United States.

That’s a shame, for many reasons.

Photo by Ronald Plett/Pixabay.com • A male summer tanager perches in the leafy canopy.

First and foremost, the summer tanager holds one unique distinction. The male summer tanager is the only completely red bird in North America. Other birds known for their red plumage — Northern cardinal, house finch, vermillion flycatcher — show other colors in their feathers besides red.

The strawberry-colored male summer tanager is often difficult to spot due to a propensity to keep hidden against the green leaves of the forest canopy. The website “All About Birds” describes the female as “mustard yellow” in her coloration, which is rather apt. Female summer tanagers are usually less greenish than female scarlet tanagers. The female is even harder to spot than the male, though both sexes have a very distinctive chuckling call note.

Over the years, different local spots have proven reliable for finding summer tanagers. Large trees near the Steele Creek Park Nature Center in Bristol, Tennessee, used to be a fairly dependable location for these tanagers during late spring and summer.

Early American naturalist and artist John James Audubon painted this work featuring a family of summer tanagers.

The summer tanager is classified in the genus Piranga, which includes the scarlet tanager as well as the western tanager of the states west of the Rocky Mountains. This genus also includes the flame-colored tanager, white-winged tanager and red-headed tanager. Experts now classify this genus with members of the cardinal family and have separated the Piranga tanagers from other New World tanagers.

The song of the summer tanager has been described as similar to that of the American robin. Like the scarlet tanager, the summer tanager is fond of fruit and berries, but it also eats insects, often catching them on the wing.

Confined mostly to the eastern United States during the nesting season, the summer tanager doesn’t range as far north as the scarlet tanager, making its stronghold in the Gulf and southern states.

The summer tanager’s scientific name, Piranga rubra, translates as “red bird.” It’s not really clear why this tanager acquired the word “summer” in its common name. After all, both the summer tanager and scarlet tanager are only present in North America for a brief nesting season from late April to early September.

Other birds besides tanagers are on the move as spring migration continues. Get outdoors and see what wanders into your yard or garden. To share your own observations, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. I’m also on Facebook.

Photo Courtesy of Jean Potter • The summer tanager is the only all-red bird in North America. It is less common in Northeast Tennessee than the related scarlet tanager.

Sandhill crane adopts grocery store parking lot during migration stop

1 Reply

I felt certain I’d misheard when fellow birder Brookie Potter phoned me and reported a sandhill crane in the parking lot of the Food City grocery store located in south Johnson City. Plagued with a bad connection, it took a second call to clarify his remarks. “Did you say there’s a sandhill crane in the parking lot at Food City?” I asked him when I called back and established a better connection.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The sandhill crane walks toward a flooded field behind the grocery store.

Early naturalist John James Audubon painted this work depicting a sandhill crane.

He confirmed that I’d heard correctly, which launched a quick trip to the aforementioned grocery store. I’m familiar with the store and knew that there are large fields surrounding this particular Food City and an adjacent section of stores. When I arrived, I began scanning the field. A sandhill crane is a fairly tall bird and should stick out. No luck. I called Brookie back and told him I was at the Food City but saw no sign of a crane.

“It’s here,” he said. “In the parking lot.” He gave me specific directions. Moments later I arrived in my car and saw a sandhill crane taking careful steps as it moved through the aisles of parked cars. 

The crane first attracted the notice of John Neth, a resident of the Milligan College community, who notified other area birders. When I arrived I found Brookie and his wife, Jean, who had her camera and was taking photos of the crane as it ambled tamely through the parking lot. 

Photo by Bryan Stevens• The sandhill crane looks more natural after retreating to a wet field behind the grocery store.

I saw my first sandhill crane in a harvested corn field in early 1999 In Shady Valley, Tennessee. Since that first sighting, I have observed sandhill cranes near Musick’s Campground at Holston Lake in Bristol, Tennessee, as well as along the Tennessee River in Knoxville. I also saw dozens of these majestic birds during a trip to Utah in the spring of 2006. I’ve also seen sandhill cranes in Florida. Many of the cranes living in the Sunshine State are quite tame, ranging into private yards and onto airport tarmacs. My theory is that the bird at the Food City is a Florida visitor based on its trusting nature toward humans and its level of comfort in the artificial environment of an asphalt parking lot.

A sandhill crane stands over four feet tall, with a wingspan stretching more than six feet, making it one of the largest birds found in Tennessee. Every winter, thousands of sandhill cranes migrate to the 6,000-acre Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge located on Chickamauga Lake at the confluence of the Hiwassee River with the Tennessee River. In the more mountainous areas of northeast Tennessee, western North Carolina and southwest Virginia, sightings of these cranes are considerably more rare.

In December 2011 and January 2012, a hooded crane made headlines by appearing with the sandhill cranes gathered at Hiwassee. Hooded cranes normally winter in southern Japan, as well as locations in South Korea and China. On occasion, endangered whooping cranes have also mingled with the large flocks of sandhill cranes at Hiwassee. 

My observations of a whooping crane are confined to a single occasion about 20 years ago when a migrating individual made a brief stop at a field in Greene County. The whooping crane is a continuing success story for the Endangered Species Act. A March 2018 Fish and Wildlife Service report estimates that the total current population of whooping cranes is about 800 individuals, which is a dramatic increase from the low point for the species in 1938 when the world’s whooping cranes numbered only 15 adult birds in a single flock.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A snapshot of the first arrival among male ruby-throated hummingbirds in 2020.

Readers continue to share hummingbird sightings

People have continued to report their first spring sightings of ruby-throated hummingbirds with me. 

•••••

John Whinery reported that his first hummingbird of spring was a female ruby-throated hummingbird on the morning of April 19.  “I saw her just southwest of Fall Branch along Highway 93 a mile in Greene County,” he wrote in a Facebook post.

•••••

Rhonda Eller reported her first hummingbird of the season on April 19. “So happy to see my first hummingbird at the feeder this morning,” Rhonda wrote on Facebook.

•••••

“Got our first sighting of a hummingbird this morning about 10:30,” Russ MacIntyre wrote in an email on Monday, April 20. “We put our feeders out on April 4 or April 5.” Russ lives on Hazelnut Drive in Jonesborough, Tennessee. 

•••••

Tom McNeil in the Piney Grove community of Hampton was pleased to announce on Facebook the arrival of a hummingbird at his home. “Finally! A male arrived at 4:20 p.m. on April 20.”

•••••

Phyllis Moore shared on Facebook that she saw her first hummingbird at home in Bristol, Virginia, on the morning of April 20.

•••••

Anita Clemmer reported on Facebook that she saw her first spring hummingbird on April 22. “I got my first ruby-throated hummingbird today in Deep Gap, North Carolina,” she posted.

••••••

Felicia Mitchell, Emory, Virginia, share the news of her first sighting in a Facebook message. “First hummingbird at my feeder on April 24 at 7:10 p.m.,” she wrote. 

•••••

I appreciate all the responses I received this year from people glad to welcome their hummingbirds back. 

•••••

Here are a few more photos of the sandhill crane during its April visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Missing the Low Country during the days of the pandemic

1 Reply

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A Black-bellied Whistling Duck (foreground) and a Fulvous Whistling Duck (background) share space within an aviary at Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina.

In the face of Covid-19, I’ve had to forego my usual spring trip to coastal South Carolina for 2020. I usually head to Fripp Island or Pawleys Island.

When my destination is Pawleys Island, I always make sure to schedule plenty of time for visiting Huntington Beach State Park, Brookgreen Gardens and even my brother and sister-in-law.

These two aforementioned attractions, Brookgreen and the state park, actually share mutual history.

In particular, I have found my previous visits to Brookgreen Gardens particularly fascinating. Brookgreen Gardens is a sculpture garden and wildlife preserve, located just south of Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.

The thousands of acres in Brookgreen’s Lowcountry History and Wildlife Preserve offer a rewarding opportunity to admire native plants and animals of the South Carolina Lowcountry as well as the huge rice plantations of the 1800s.

Of course, Brookgreen Gardens is probably more famous for its sculpture displays and art galleries. A combined sculpture garden and wildlife preserve, the 9,100-acre property includes several themed gardens with American figurative sculptures placed in them, as well as the Lowcountry Zoo, and nature trails through several ecosystems in nature reserves on the property.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • This captive Red-shouldered Hawk was rehabilitated after suffering an injury and now works in an educational program at Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina to teach the public about raptors, other birds, and various types of wildlife.

I also learned from the website that Brookgreen Gardens is one of the few institutions in the United States to earn accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, as well as being designated a National Historic Landmark and being listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

One of the attractive aspects of visiting Brookgreen Gardens is the fact that garden admission tickets are good for seven consecutive days. A one-time admission cost meant that I could return each day for seven days after my ticket purchase.

Parking is free and the facility also operates a free shuttle service. There are a few additional costs, including a pontoon boat tour and admission to the butterfly house.

In total, about 1,445 works of American figurative sculpture are on display at Brookgreen Gardens. The bird life is also quite diverse. During previous visits, I have observed such birds as Little Blue Heron, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Prothonotary Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Pileated Woodpecker, Osprey, Hermit Thrush, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Eastern Bluebird, Barred Owl, Red-tailed Hawk, Great Crested Flycatcher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and much more.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A Wild Turkey forages in the gardens at Brookgreen Gardens.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A Turkey Vulture on display in the Lowcountry Zoo.

Elsewhere in the zoo, some non-releasable raptors, including Great Horned Owl, Bald Eagle, Red-tailed Hawk and Turkey Vulture, are on display. The zoo also features fun displays of Gray and Red Foxes, River Otters, American Alligators, White-tailed Deer and a few other examples of native fauna. The attraction’s naturalists also give daily wildlife shows to allow the public to get to know some of the wild residents of South Carolina. The focus shifts each day, so visitors never know whether they will be meeting an owl, a skunk, or some sort of reptile.
If you’re able to enjoy an extended stay in the Low Country, this is a must-see attraction. I visited for a few hours every day of my most recent trip and saw different things every day. In addition to birds, I saw plenty of beautiful wildflowers, as well as butterflies, dragonflies and lizards. Brookgreen Gardens is also home to an abundance of Southern Fox Squirrels, which are truly charismatic members of the rodent family.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A Black-crowned Night Heron makes identification easy for aviary visitors at Brookgreen Gardens.

Of course, with the ongoing pandemic, Brookgreen Gardens has had to make adjustments. According to the attraction’s website, the following areas are currently closed: Azalea Restaurant, the Gardener’s Cottage Ticket and Information Center, the Children’s Discovery Room, the Butterfly House. The Children’s Storybook Forest, Children’s Sensory Trail play areas, and the outdoor Children’s Reading Room are also closed. Public programming and classes are postponed until a later date. All excursions (Creek, Trekker, and The Oaks) and the shuttle are not currently running. The Courtyard Café and the Old Kitchen are open for take-out snacks and light meals. Picnic areas are closed. Keepsakes Museum Shop is open. The Jennewein Gallery and Bleifeld Gallery are reopening, May 1. Guests, staff, and docents must wear masks and observe social distancing inside the galleries and only five guests may be in the galleries at a time. The galleries are open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Restrooms are open at the Welcome Center, the Lowcountry Center, and the Campbell Sculpture Center in the Lowcountry Zoo. The Bruce Munro at Brookgreen: Southern Light exhibit public opening is planned to open on May 15.

The virus and its effects won’t last forever. Once life resumes a recognizable pace, I hope to return to Brookgreen. For more information, call (843) 235-6000 or visit http://www.brookgreen.org.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • One of the beloved Southern Fox Squirrels resident at Brookgreen Gardens.