Photo by ronin2435/Pixabay House wrens are small birds, weighing no more than two nickels, but they live life large and in charge.

Some new spring arrivals have kept things interesting at home. New warblers — common yellowthroat and black-and-white warbler — have brought my warbler yard total to six species for the season. I’m also enjoying visits from ruby-throated hummingbirds and ruby-crowned kinglets. The most recent bird to return has made my bedside alarm clock redundant.

For several recent consecutive mornings, a male house wren has erupted with its bubbly, incessant song outside my bedroom window. House wrens are small birds, reaching a length of about five inches and weighing about 10 grams. To put that in perspective, two nickels in your pocket would weigh the same as a house wren.
For such a small creature, the house wren has a powerful voice that they use with unbridled enthusiasm. The bird’s song penetrates walls and glass windowpanes with ease. The bird’s song has even inspired  a pop song by the group Owl City:

Nevertheless, I’m not begrudging the return of these little birds. There’s a definite joy to their song. If only their other habits matched.

Nature’s not always neat and tidy. In fact, nature operates with rough-and-tumble mechanisms that, all too often, put some of our favorite birds at odds with each other. Like any other living creature, birds compete for resources — food, water, prime nesting real estate and even mates. Some of those pretty and entertaining birds at your feeder or bird baths have a dark side that isn’t often glimpsed.
When some insight is gained into these behaviors, it’s only human to feel discouraged, disenchanted or dismayed by some of our more aggressive species. Although they have their fans, blue jays, various hawks and even the Tennessee state bird, the Northern mockingbird, have attracted plenty of detractors due to their aggressive natures.

Like all of the aforementioned, the house wren is a native bird. I also happen to like house wrens. They have such perky, happy songs, and they’re good parents. They can raise as many as 10 young in one nest box.

Unfortunately, wrens engage in some ruthless behavior when it comes to nesting. House wrens will evict other cavity-nesting birds from next boxes. They will even destroy eggs and young. Our other native birds are not defenseless. For instance, Eastern bluebirds can and do fight back, but despite their small size, house wrens are feisty and they can be quite stubborn.

House wrens like brushy habitat that offers a lot of cover. For anyone who prefers hosting bluebirds, open space is crucial. Of course, chickadees and nuthatches also like brushy habitat and woodland edges, just like the house wrens.
It’s complicated, but I come down on the side of our native birds. House wrens have their place. Non-native birds like the introduced European starling and the house sparrow cannot legitimately claim a place in North America. These species should never have been brought to this country in the first place.

To discourage competition, it’s probably best to not crowd a number of boxes in a small location such as the backyard. If possible, don’t place any other boxes close (at least not within easy view) of each other. Wrens are territorial and their concept of their domain basically extends to whatever they can see.

House wrens have a few other relatives in the region, including Carolina wren, marsh wren, sedge wren and winter wren. The common Carolina wren is a slightly larger relative of the house wren and is probably the most visible of the area’s wrens.
A bird memory from childhood involves a pair of Carolina wrens that built a nest in an old apron my grandmother used as a bag for her clothespins. My grandmother gave up the bag to the birds for the duration of their nesting. At the time the identity of the nesting birds was a mystery, but all these years later I realize these birds were in all likelihood Carolina wrens, which are known for their love of nesting in unusual nooks and crannies.

In more recent years, I’ve hosted Carolina wrens that have nested in plastic shopping bag hanging from a nail in my garage. Another pair once tried to nest in the exhaust vent for my clothes dryer. I’ve also found nests in porch lamps and a flower planter on the porch of the Unicoi County Heritage Museum.

Worldwide, there are about 80 species of wrens. All but one of the world’s wrens are confined to the New World. A variety of common names describe the various species with some creativity, including such monikers as rufous-browed wren, tooth-billed wren, flutist wren, white-headed wren, sepia-brown wren, fawn-breasted wren, ochraceous wren and moustached wren.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Ruby-throated hummingbirds such as this male are returning to the region.

I thought I’d give a timely progress report. I wrote recently about a vision problem that has afflicted my left eye. During my most recent visit to my doctor, he noticed the same improvement that I had already been gradually detecting.

He was surprised and admitted he had not expected any improvement. He also noted, perhaps jokingly, that the better vision was not due to anything he had done or prescribed. I contemplated asking, jokingly, if that meant I shouldn’t have to pay for the multiple visits.

Without any more undue digression, I wrote back in February that my goal was to be able to see a ruby-throated hummingbird once they returned in April.
I saw my hope fulfilled when I had a brief glimpse of one on Sunday, April 9, but it was one of those speedy “blink-and-you-missed-it” affairs.
On the next evening. my mom and I watched a male ruby-throated hummingbird feeding at one of her feeders.

Using binoculars, I was able to see the bird fairly clearly. The image is still soft around the edges, but I clearly saw the gleaming red throat when the light hit just right.
By the way, mom had already seen two hummingbirds dueling around her feeders, but that evening’s visitor was solo. We also watched Northern cardinals, Eastern towhees, red-winged blackbirds, song sparrows, and white-throated sparrows, Carolina chickadees, tufted titmice and Carolina wrens.
I’m not where I want to be in regards to having an “eagle eye” for birding, but I’m thankful to have reached this stage and remain optimistic improvement will continue.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A ruby-throated hummingbird lifts its wings to shake water droplets off its back.

In the meantime, readers continue to share their own first hummingbird sightings of spring.
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“I had my first hummingbird April 18 at 6:58 p.m. in Richlands, Virginia,” wrote Helen Whited.
She also shared some other exciting spring sightings.
She reported that she has already seen a rose -breasted grosbeak and a Baltimore oriole.

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“I had one ruby-throated hummingbird this past week,” Jeri Layne wrote to me on April 19. “It stopped at the feeder and I haven’t seen any since. Usually I have several by now.”
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I saw my first hummers in Roan Mountain April 11,” wrote Cherie Beth. “They were the male ruby-throats.”
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“Our first little guy showed up April 15 at 4:30 p.m. here in Stoney Creek near Elizabethton, Tennessee,“ wrote Mary Beierle. “I’m so excited! Can’t wait for a mate to show up also.”
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“Saw first ruby-throated humming bird on April 8 at 11 a.m. in Fancy Farm, Kentucky,” wrote Olif Perkins.
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Felicia Mitchell in Emory, Virginia, messaged me on Facebook. “First hummingbird spotted at feeder at 6:58 p.m. on April 14,” she wrote.
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Rhonda and Randal Eller their first sighting of a male hummingbird on April 19 at their home on the outskirts of Chilhowie, Virginia.
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Cheri Miller in Roan Mountain, Tennessee, shared that she saw her first spring hummingbird on April 16.
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Nancy Vernon in Bristol, Tennessee, shared that she saw her first hummingbirds (three of them) on April 17. She reported she had only put out the feeder the day before the sightings took place.
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Janice Frasier Martin reported her first hummer on April 20. Formerly of Bristol, Tennessee, Janice now lives in Shepherdsville, Kentucky.
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Hummingbirds and other migrants are arriving daily. To share sightings, ask questions or make comments, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Despite a perceived disadvantage of size, ruby-throated hummingbirds are quite capable of thriving in a giant world.

Photo by Pixabay  • Holding a precious clutch of eggs, this American robin’s nest is anchored on a foundation of mud. The nest itself is made from twigs and lined with finely woven grass and other plant material.

We’ll celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 9. This holiday has long been associated with eggs due to the symbolism of the egg with such concepts as life and renewal.
The nesting season is ready to go into full swing for most of the bird species that breed in eastern North America.

Although they may employ a variety of strategies to ensure nesting success, they all start off their attempts with a clutch of eggs.
It’s the egg that separates birds from most mammals while still linking them to their reptilian kin. Let’s leave the question of which came first, the prototypical chicken or the proverbial egg, to philosophers and instead take a look at the differences birds employ when it comes to the precious life-giving egg in its fragile yet protective shell.

A few birds devote an enormous investment of time to a single egg. For instance, the American flamingo lays only a single egg, which is incubated for about a month atop a nest made from a mound of mud. This flamingo breeds extensively through the islands of the Galápagos, coastal Colombia, Venezuela and nearby islands, Trinidad and Tobago, along the northern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula, Cuba, Hispaniola, the Bahamas, Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands. While other flamingo species are common attractions at zoos, the American flamingo was considered extinct in the United States by 1900. However, recent research indicates that wild birds still make their way into southern Florida. As recently as 2014, a large flock of about 150 wild American flamingos spent time in the Sunshine State.

While there are more than 300 species of hummingbird distributed throughout the New World, the offspring of these tiny birds all emerge, just like all other birds, from an egg — albeit a very small one. Most hummingbirds are “twins,” hatched with a single sibling that will share their nest and the care of a dutiful mother. The female ruby-throated hummingbird lays two eggs. A female hummingbird gets no assistance from the male and has to find enough food to fuel her own body and help her young in the nest grow and thrive.

Most birds lay multiple eggs, although the number in a clutch may vary dramatically from species to species. A female American robin will usually lay three to five eggs in a nest that she builds in the fork between tree branches. The size of her clutch of eggs is fairly typical for many songbirds.

Some songbirds are even more prolific. A female house wren, although a rather small bird, may lay as many as eight or nine eggs. Likewise, the golden-crowned kinglet is one of North America’s smallest songbirds, but the female kinglet may lay as many as 11 eggs in a small nest woven of moss, spider’s silk, lichens and strips of bark. By comparison, the female blue-gray gnatcatcher, while similar in size to a kinglet, attempts to lay no more than three to five eggs.

On the other hand, some birds adjust clutch size depending on the resources available to them. In years when their food — a type of caterpillar often injurious to spruce trees — is abundant, the Cape May warbler may lay as many as nine eggs. In years when the aforementioned spruce budworms are scarce, the female warbler may reduce her clutch size to a mere four eggs.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • American robin sitting on its nest in the shelter of a side of a bridge spanning the Doe River in Elizabethton, Tennessee.

Eggs look fragile, but are actually surprisingly strong. Egg-shaped or “ovoid” objects are considered to be among the strongest shapes in nature. However, strength is no guarantee against a host of hungry predators. Many birds rely on camouflage to protect their eggs. For instance, the female ruffed grouse will usually lay 9 to 14 eggs in a no-fuss nest constructed of leaves in a basin on the forest floor. While incubating her eggs, the grouse hen’s mottled brown plumage makes her almost invisible.

In a similar fashion, the female Eastern whip-poor-will does not build a nest and invariably lays only a pair of eggs, which are placed directly on the forest floor. Her plumage helps her blend with her surroundings, making it extremely difficult to discover a whip-poor-will incubating her eggs.
Many species of ducks are prolific layers of eggs. The wood duck hen may lay as many as 16 eggs in her nest, which may be in a natural tree cavity or a human-made nesting box.

However, not all waterfowl lay a large clutch of eggs. The common loon usually lays only one or two eggs. Once young loons hatch from their eggs, the parents are devoted caregivers, providing food and protection for the one-month period required for young loons to achieve a degree of independence.
Most of our common birds lay eggs that are significantly smaller than the egg of a chicken. Wild turkey hens lay eggs — as many as 17 eggs in some cases — that are noticeably larger than an average chicken egg.

Who takes the prize for largest egg? That distinction, not surprisingly, goes to the world’s largest bird. Africa’s common ostrich hen, which can weigh as much as 220 pounds, lays the largest known bird egg. Furthermore, a female common ostrich will usually incubate about 20 of these large eggs, which can reach a diameter of six inches and weigh three pounds.

Whether a bird’s eggs are small or large, these fragile shells — when all goes well — break open to release some amazing miracles. I think anyone who enjoys sitting on the porch and listening to owls call after dark or watching the antics of birds visiting a feeder will readily agree.

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Remember to share your first spring sighting of hummingbirds by emailing me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. Please include the date, time and any other details.

Photo Courtesy of Jim Kroll • Cedar waxwings form large flocks that are capable of stripping berries off trees in a matter of hours when these hungry birds descend on berry-producing trees and shrubs.

Jim Kroll emailed me awhile back to share an observation he made when he and his wife visited Garden City, South Carolina. According to Jim, while riding their bicycles they had the good luck to see a flock of cedar waxwing feasting on berries in a large tree.

“This tree was probably 20 feet tall, and loaded with blue berries,” he wrote.

He also shared a photo of the flock. “There are around 30 waxwings plucking berries,” he said in describing the photo.

He estimated that the flock numbered well over 100 waxwings.

“They left the tree top several times, as if startled, but they would return within a minute and continue their feast,” Jim wrote. “The thing that first caught our attention as we rode under the tree, is that my wife noticed a lot of small pieces of green limbs laying in the road directly under the tree. We turned around to see why the road had so many green limbs and noticed the waxwing flock feasting.”

They made it a point to ride by the tree again on the following two days, hoping to see the waxwing flock again, but did not see them again.

They also discovered that no berries remained on the tree’s branches. The waxwings had consumed all of the berries.

“I looked at an article on the South Carolina Public Radio website that said this is the time of the year that waxwings were migrating south through South Carolina,” Jim wrote.

I replied to Jim’s email and shared an account of an observation I made several years ago at Erwin Fishery Park.

On that occasion, my mom and I watched a couple of mockingbirds wage a losing battle to keep a flock of at least 100 waxwings out of a holly tree laden with berries. The mockingbirds might chase off a dozen waxwings, but there were always a few dozen ready to swoop in and take their place. That tree, too, was stripped of berries. The next time I stopped by I could not detect a single berry still on the tree.

After I shared my waxwing story, Jim replied with some more observations.

“I can see the mockingbirds that you mentioned trying to protect their berry stash,” he wrote. “We regularly see mockingbirds, seemingly being aggressive.”

Jim said that he has also re-named blue jays that visit his bird feeders.

“I call them ‘bully birds’ because they swoop in intentionally trying to scare off the other birds at the feeder,” he wrote.

I thought it interesting that my brother, Mark, told me about a flock of waxwings that he and his wife, Amy, saw at their home in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina. His story was similar to the one Jim shared.

Mark said a flock of waxwings arrived in his yard and swiftly stripped a berry-producing tree of its berries.

Waxwings have a brown and gray silky plumage, a black mask and a perky crest. Some of the wing feathers show red tips. The similarity of these wing tips to melted drops of wax gives these birds the common name of waxwing.

The cedar waxwing has few relatives. Worldwide, there are only two other species: the Bohemian waxwing, of the northern forests of Eurasia and North America; and the Japanese waxwing, found in such northeast Asian countries as Japan, Korea and China.

Although it’s classified as a songbird, the cedar waxwing doesn’t truly produce a vocalization that anyone would contend qualifies as a song. They are, however, very vocal birds, producing shrill, high-pitched notes as they pass through the upper branches of tall trees.

As much as the waxwing has a fondness for fruit, it’s also a bird that would have made an excellent flycatcher. Flocks of these birds will often congregate in trees near the edge of a pond, garden or yard — anywhere winged insects might be found in good numbers — in order to hawk insects on the wing. A waxwing will sally forth from a branch, snatch its prey in mid-air, and return to its perch for a quick snack.

Waxwings are rather nomadic, coming and going with a maddening unpredictability.

Other birds are more dependable, arriving and departing at roughly the same time year after year.

Over the next few weeks, we can expect the spring arrivals of a vast variety of birds. To share a sighting, make a comment or ask a question, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The waxy tips to the wing feathers are evident in this photograph of a cedar waxwing.

Photo by Howard Walsh/Pixabay * A male red-winged blackbird guards his territory in the spring while attracting potential mates.

If it is March or April in Northeast Tennessee or Southwest Virginia or Western North Carolina, for that matter, some birds are making their return after a season-long absence.

On one recent morning, a loud, familiar “kon-ke-ree” sounded from the tops of the cypress trees at the fish pond. In an instant, I realized that the resident male red-winged blackbird was back for another nesting season.

Red-winged blackbirds return yearly every March and begin to seek out nesting habitat in local wetland areas, such as the cattail marshes near my fish pond.

Last year, my first returning male red-winged blackbird arrived on the evening of March 3. This year, the first red-winged blackbird arrived on the morning of March 6. I heard his unmistakable song from inside my house.

The showy and loud red-winged blackbird male that’s once again taken up residence at my fish pond and adjacent stands of cattails has made himself right at home.

Male blackbirds arrive ahead of the females. My recent spring arrival perches daily in the willows and cypresses by the pond and has been singing every day since his return, but he’s still waiting for his intended audience to arrive. Female blackbirds lag a week or so behind the males in returning to their familiar territory.

Any wet field or marsh, especially those offering a stand of cattails, is almost certain to attract red-winged blackbirds at this time of year. I’d almost wager on that certainty.

The blackbirds arriving in spring behave much differently than the quiet, furtive flocks that often make brief visits to feeders during late winter snowstorms.

“The kon-ke-ree song of the male red-winged blackbird is a sure indication that spring is on the way,” according to a profile located at the Tennessee Watchable Wildlife website.

At this time of year, the male red-winged blackbirds seek elevated perches to display and vocalize. Their loud antics are not designed solely to attract mates. Male red-winged blackbirds also sing to warn rival males from intruding into their territories.

The male red-winged blackbird is a very aptly named bird. Glossy black males sport red wing patches that are often trimmed with a narrow band of yellow feathers. By contrast, female red-winged blackbirds are mostly brown birds that could easily be mistaken for large sparrows. Both sexes have sharply pointed bills.

Red-winged blackbirds are fond of wetlands. Any marsh or even a damp field or flooded pasture is likely to attract a few resident red-winged blackbirds. Females choose nesting locations in cattails or other marsh vegetation. She usually lays three or four eggs. Although she does receive some help from the male, most of the responsibility for raising the young is left to her.

There is a reason that male red-winged blackbirds are not always quite as engaged as females in feeding and tending their young. Males are often polygynous, which means that males will often court multiple mates. His time is often occupied defending females and their respective nests from the advances of other male red-winged blackbirds.

According to the website All About Birds, male red-winged blackbirds spend much of the breeding season sitting on a high perch over their territories and singing almost without ceasing from dawn to dusk.

The website also notes that female blackbirds shirk the high profile of the males. They tend to skulk in wetland vegetation as they collect food or nest material.

Both males and females defend nests from intruders and predators. They take this duty quite seriously, as I know personally from being dive-bombed by parent blackbirds when I have gotten a little too close to their nests.

Other relatives of the red-winged blackbird in the United States include the tricolored blackbird found along the Pacific Coast and the yellow-headed blackbird resident in wetlands west of the Great Lakes. Rusty blackbird, common grackle and brown-headed cowbird are other species of blackbirds found in Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina.

Share a sighting, ask a question or make a comment by emailing me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Female red-winged blackbirds lack the splashy plumage of males.