Archive for June, 2007
elibrary.unm.edu
52 The Wilson Bulletin-March, 1928 13. November 14, 1927. A flock of eight or ten Starlings flew south, flying low over the fields west of Bondville, Champaign County. Record by A. S. Hyde. 14. November 16, 1927. Two Starlings in with a flock of about twenty Bronzed Grackles were seen in the residence district of Urbana. Record by A. R. Cahn. 15. November 19, 1927.
Three Starlings were seen flying south over the Brownfield woods region. Record by A. S. Hyde. 16. December 3, 1927. Three Starlings were seen separately in the forestry preserve. The birds were very tame and were approached to within twenty feet and examined for over ten minutes with high power binoculars. Record by A. R. Cahn. The only previously published records from the territory covered in this note are those of Prof. Frank Smith (Illinois Audubon Bulletin, Spring, 1322), who reported seven Starlings from Urbana on February 19, 1922. There were no Starlings seen by anyone connected with the University between this date and the first of the records offered herewith, in spite of the fact that bird students were constantly in the field. The note by Mr. Hunt (Auk, xliii, p. 239) reporting four Starlings from Oak Park, Illinois, for December, 1925, is the most recent record for the state which the writer has come across. It would seem, then, as if the Starlings were beginning a more determined effort to extend their range into Illinois, the results of which should be carefully watched by bird students.- A. R. CAHN, University of Illinois, Urbana, lil. The Fall ; Bird Migration in Ohio.-The high tide of the fall migration in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. is between September 15 and October 1. With a sparrow wave in October, any night between the above dates the call notes are to be heard, unless we have a night wind in the S. E. to S. The most favorable nights follow several warm days, with S. E. to S. S. W. winds changing to cooler N. W. to N. wind; and if cloudy the birds fly much lower and their call notes are more distinct. On some of the more favorable nights there are but few in- tervals in which call notes are not to be heard. The call notes of the birds, and the few occasions when we have seen them transit the moon, indicate their traveling in groups. Can we judge the numbers in these groups by the numbers we find in groups in the fields and woods, after an all night flight? The line of migration in Tuscarawas County, with some exceptions, is N. W. to S. E. for the fall migration, and from S. E. to N. W. in the spring migration for the ducks, geese, swans, herons and the shore birds. For the land birds we have not sufficient data to check their course. The well marked exceprions to the S. E. movement in the fall are the Nighthawks, Crows, Red-winged Blackbirds, Bronzed Grackles and Robins. Their line of migration is S. W. in the, fall and N. E. in the spring. In Delaware County, one hundred m/les west, they hold to the S. W. and N. E. line. The land, water, and shore birds hold to a North and South line, and seem to follow the Scioto Valley.-CHARLES R. WALLACE, Dela- ware, Ohio.
A Durable Barn Swallow’ s Nest.-There is a nest of the Barn Swallow (Hirundo erythrogastm) in my barn. It is plastered onto a cross-beam two inches below the hay loft floor, just out of reach of my hand and entirely impossible for cats. It was built there in May, 1915, and has been occupied and a brood of swallows has been raised in it every year since then. In 1926 two broods were raised in it by the same pair of swallows. It has never beerr’ possible to General Notes 53 catch the birds on the nest, and so they have not been banded, therefore it is not possible to be certain that the nest has been occupied by the same birds each year, although the birds have seemed to be the same, judged by appear. ante and actions and habits. Th e only thing done to the nest each year is a renewal of some of the lining. No new mud has ever been put on it. When the Barn Swallows first come to this region this nest is visited and inspected, and two birds come and go occasionally until nesting time arrives, when they take possession and resent intrusion in the barn. Even though the barn is in constant use they never seem to become accustomed to the presence of people, stock, dogs or cats. After the young have left the nest the parents remain in the vicinity, and make frequent visits into the barn and to the nest; but by the middle of August they are gone from the immediate vicinity. During the past summer, 1927, four young were raised, and there was one infertile egg, or at least one did not hatch. Never before has there been an unhatched egg. It will be interesting to see how long this nest will last. It must have been fashioned by master builders. I would like to have the recipe for the glue that holds it to the beam.-LYNDS JONES, Oberlin, Ohio. Some Bird Notes from the Badlands of North Dakota.-During part of the summer of 1918 I was doing field work in North Dakota. I was much inter- ested in the region north of Dickinson, in the hadlands of the Little Missouri Valley. The Ferruginous Rough-legged Hawks were quite common, and sat around on rocks and fence posts near a gopher burrow or a prairie dog town, waiting for an opportunity to catch one of the small animals. Marsh Hawks were also common, and hehaved in the same way as they do in Iowa. Sparrow Hawks were the most common of the hawks, and fed almost exclusively upon grass- hoppers, which were quite abundant. I saw only one Short-eared Owl, but hun- dreds of Burrowing Owls. The latter have the curious habit of sitting up on a mound in such a posture that they closely resemble the prairie dogs at a distance. Among the smaller birds McCown’ s Longspur and Sprague’ s Pipit were very interesting to me. I saw an occasional Raird’ s Sparrow that I could identify, and probably dozens that I could not. The Lark Bunting was very common, and the flocks of young and old were a familiar sight. There were a good many Magpies along the rivers, and I shot at several, but seemed to be unable! to get one without blowing all his tail feathers out. The Sharp-tailed Grouse was another interesting bird. and it was still quite common in thei badlands. Coyotes were also common. The badlands country is most interesting, but is hard on the temper to try to drive a car through it. Roads are practically non-existent, and one wanders about jumping creeks and climbing hills at random. These badlands are quite heavily timbered, in places, with such trees as ash, elm, cottonwood, burr oak, birch and aspen; while the buffalo berry (Shepherdia) fills the river bottoms with a dense tangle of brush, or low trees. The only bush growing on the hill is the “buck bush” (Symphoricarpos). Some of the “coulees” are filled with the Red Cedar, but it seems to be rather lOCal.–IRA N. GABRIELSON, Portland, Ore. The Last Days of a Certain Great Horned Owl. -Many great Horned Owls (Bubo virginianus virginianus) that have been shot or trapped near my home reach my hands. On October 22, 1925, a live female of this species was brought to me. The last days of this bird are interesting, as they show the fierce
June 14th, 2007
CBC New Brunswick, Canada - Jun 5, 2007
The Canadian Wildlife Service is investigating the possible destruction of a woodpecker nest in Lorneville by a utility crew last week.Â
Destroying an inhabited nest is a violation of the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act, and Craig Smith, head of maritime wildlife enforcement, said it can carry a stiff penalty.
“If the person were charged by indictment, which is a more serious offence, they could be fined up to $1 million or one year imprisonment,” Smith said.
A Saint John Energy crew blocked a hole 10 metres up a utility pole where the woodpecker is thought to have had a nest. The crew say it was empty at the time, but birders disagree.
Merv Cormier says he’s been watching the pileated woodpecker nest for three springs.
“This year, every time I’ve checked there’s been a pileated woodpecker in that hole.”
He showed up one day last week, and found the hole had been filled and covered with tape.
Cormier says the hole may have been empty when it was plugged that afternoon, but that doesn’t mean it had been empty in the morning.
Smith says he wants anyone who may have seen the birds in the Lorneville area to contact the Wildlife Service office in Sackville.
June 13th, 2007
entc.allenpress.com
Neil M. Burgess1, Katherine A. Hunt2, Christine Bishop3, and D.V. (Chip) Weseloh3
1. Canadian Wildlife Service–Environmental Conservation Branch, Environment Canada, Box 1590, Sackville, New Brunswick E0A 3C0, Canada, 2. Department of Environmental Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA, 3. Canadian Wildlife Service–Environmental Conservation Branch Environment Canada, Canadian Centre for Inland Waters, 867 Lakeshore Road, Box 5050, Burlington, Ontario L7R 4A6, Canada
Apple orchards occupy approximately 12,565 ha of land in Ontario, Canada, and are treated with the greatest number and applications of pesticides among all agricultural crops within the province. The potential for exposure to wildlife from frequent organophosphorus (OP) spray applications is therefore considerable. This study investigated the impact of agricultural spray applications of azinphos-methyl, diazinon, phosalone, and phosmet in apple orchards on the cholinesterase (ChE) activity of wild birds nesting in orchards. These four OP pesticides ranked among the most widely used insecticides used on all fruit crops in Ontario in 1988. Tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) and eastern bluebirds (Sialia sialis) were chosen as monitor species because they commonly breed and forage within apple orchards, utilize different feeding strategies, and are readily attracted to nest boxes. Brain and plasma ChE activities were determined for nestling bluebirds and swallows, and plasma ChE was measured in adult swallows for comparison with nestling data. In adult tree swallows, mean plasma ChE levels were significantly inhibited 41% compared to controls 12 h after a second application of azinphos-methyl. Mean plasma ChE activity in another group of adult tree swallows dropped by 21 and 19% following a multiple phosmet application. In nestlings, brain ChE activities obtained postspray often fell below predicted activities calculated from control siblings. This trend was especially apparent in the younger nestlings, less than 6 d old. However, for bluebirds the rates of increase of brain ChE with age in nestlings from treated sites was significantly lower than in nestlings from control sites. Brain ChE activity of two nestlings found dead following a phosalone application gave no indication that insecticide exposure was responsible. No other dead or moribund birds were discovered during the course of the study. Sequential plasma sampling of siblings, before and after OP application, was beneficial in reducing the required number of nests sampled by one half, but plasma ChE was less reliable overall than brain ChE in indicating exposure. Results of depressed ChE levels in tree swallows and eastern bluebirds inhabiting apple orchards are consistent with avian species in other orchard monitoring studies. No indication was found that OP exposure due to agricultural spraying in apple orchards adversely affected the survival of the birds we monitored.
Keywords: Cholinesterase, Tree swallows, Eastern bluebirds, Apple orchards, Organophosphorus insecticides
June 12th, 2007
San Francisco Chronicle, USA - Jun 9, 2007
Lynette Evans
Saturday, June 9, 2007
The juvenile barn owls are coming out of their house in the late dusk. Not yet ready to fly, they thrust their flat cat-faces out of the round entrance hole before emerging to strut up and down the perch, flapping their wings as their parents swoop overhead or perch atop the pole and on an adjacent wire, watching their almost fledging offspring.
For several weeks, we’ve heard the chicks rustling about in the owl house, 15 feet up the utility pole over the raised bed from which we were harvesting garlic and planting peppers, but the house seems too small for the birds to really stretch wings, which in the moonlight appear as large as those of their parents. Soon they will fly, but for now, they preen and stretch and make skittering sounds from 9 to 11. By midnight they are silent, back in their house, presumably asleep (I can’t tell about the latter because the parents moved in before we could install the remote camera in the house last winter).
Spring and early summer is the time for songbirds, too. By midsummer, the bird calls will be reduced to the rat-a-tat-tat of a woodpecker signaling its kin on the side of the utility pole and the soft cry of the mourning doves that indelibly link in my mind this farm in the dry heat of the San Joaquin Valley with the humid jungle that surrounded the Kona condo where we vacationed for so many years with my parents in their prime. I don’t know why there are mourning doves in places so distant in miles and climate — but they are here now, haunting my afternoon weeding sessions with memories of Hawaiian holidays long past.
As usual, we’ve done the unthinkable — by our fastidious neighbors’ standards — and let the barn swallows nest under the eaves of the front porch. (It does no good to explain to a neighbor who complains about the mosquitoes that accompany warm weather that swallows and tree frogs and other animals that leave a mess also gulp down thousands of the pesky — not to mention risky — insects. I wonder what the neighbors will say when we put up the bat house I sent away for recently.) This spring a lone swallow has been resting nightly in the nest that we can see from inside the house, but no chicks have appeared yet. In past seasons she (or, given the short lifespan of birds in the wild, her other-year incarnation) has had a mate crowded in the mud nest alongside her, but not this year. We’re hoping she’s not waiting in vain for her brood.
E-mail Home&Garden Editor Lynette Evans at levans@sfchronicle.com.
June 11th, 2007
ingentaconnect.com
Authors: Nakagawa, Hiroki; Hama, Yoichiro; Sumi, Toshihisa; Li, Su-Chen; Maskos, Karol; Kalayanamitra, Kittiwan; Mizumoto, Shuji; Sugahara, Kazuyuki; Li, Yu-Teh
Source: Glycobiology, Volume 17, Number 2, 1 February 2007 , pp. 157-164(8)
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Abstract:
Despite their wide occurrence, proteoglycans (PGs) have never been isolated from the saliva of higher animals. We found that the Collocalia glycoproteins isolated from edible birds’-nests (the dried forms of regurgitated saliva of male Collocalia swiftlets) were rich in a PG containing nonsulfated chondroitin glycosaminoglycans (GAGs).
We have devised a method to isolate a PG from the water extract of the white nest built by Aerodramus fuciphagus (white nest swiftlets) with a yield of 2-mg PG per gram nest. This PG contained 83% of carbohydrates, of which 79% were GalNAc and GlcUA (D-glucuronic acid) in an equimolar ratio. By using chondroitin AC lyase, the structure of GAGs in this PG was established to be chondroitin ( → 4GlcUAβ1 → 3GalNAcβ1 → )n chains. The average molecular mass of the chondroitin chain was estimated to be 49 kDa by gel filtration. We have isolated a linkage region hexasaccharide, ΔHexUAα1 → 3GalNAcβ1 → 4GlcUAβ1 → 3Galβ1 → 3Galβ1 → 4Xyl, from this PG by chondroitinase ABC digestion to show that the GAGs in this PG are also linked to the core protein through the common tetrasaccharide linker, GlcUAβ1 → 3Galβ1 → 3Galβ1 → 4Xyl, found in various PGs. As water was not effective in extracting uronic acid-containing glycoconjugates from the black nest built by black nest swiftlets (A. maximus), we used 4 M guanidium chloride and anion-exchange chromatography in the presence of urea to extract and isolate about 30 mg of a chondroitin PG preparation from 10 g of the desialylated black nest. As the biological significance of chondroitin is still not well understood, bird’s nest should become a convenient source for preparing this unique GAG to study its biological functions.
Document Type: Research article
June 8th, 2007
By Lerrina Collins
ezinearticles.com
By the time the snow has receded, and the grass is beginning to color under the sun’s gentle caress, the birds which herald the new season have arrived at our Western Montana Lodge. Like leaves caught in a whirlwind, they twirl toward the sky flashing light and dark, then swoop toward the ground, aerial daredevils again. The white-bellied swallows, commonly called Tree Swallows, often arrive as early as late March. While the ground is still cold and snow-covered, they begin their search for perfect nesting sites. In fact, so reliable is their return, April 15 is traditionally considered “Swallow Day” in England.
Scandinavian tradition tell us the name ’swallow’ was given to this bird because it hovered over our Lord’s cross crying “Svala! Svala!” which translated means, “Console! Console!” The Tree Swallow is a medium-sized bird. Males average 5 1/2 inches long with a 10 inch wing span. Pure white on their underparts with slightly forked tails, adult males in their breeding plumage have glossy metallic blue upper parts tinged in green. Females are similar in size and coloration although they are often slightly duller and may have brownish foreheads.
In Montana’s Centennial Valley the Tree Swallow is most similar to the Violet-Green Swallow, both often sighted during the summer months in open areas on Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. They prefer willow plantations and reed beds to large trees, and are frequently seen skimming over meadows and along stream banks. Unlike other swallow species, the Tree Swallow does not nest in tight colonies. In fact, the male is very territorial. Resembling winged sword fighters, these feisty little guys feint and dip, then charge aggressively. They defend up to a 15 yard radius around their nest against other Tree Swallows, and often against other hole nesting species as well.
Poetry in motion, these acrobatic birds put on an endless aerial show - twisting, turning, and diving. A delight to watch, they can be seen sailing, circling, turning, and winding through the air in their endless search for food. In fact, Tree Swallows so enjoy flying, they have been observed playing catch with a feather, dropping and then retrieving it as it floated on the air.
Rarely settling on the ground, Tree Swallows feed on the wing, unceasingly pursuing breakfast, lunch, dinner, and nearly non-stop snacks. At speeds ranging from 19 to 25 miles per hour, they sweep across meadows, ponds, rivers, and lawns, seizing their prey with a snapping noise which may be heard at some distance. Using their uniquely shaped tail as a rudder, they can easily stall midair to snatch an insect which didn’t quite get away.
Each bird consumes up to 2000 bugs per day - feeding on flies, ants, beetles, bees, grasshoppers, wasps, and other pests. To wash down a meal, these graceful birds skim low over the water’s surface scooping drinks into their open mouths.
Somewhat unique among the bird species, Tree Swallows will often raise two broods per year. Their nest, located in a natural cavity or a man-made bird house, is globular. Fine grasses form the base which they abundantly line with various feathers. As May draws to a close the female lays four to six pinkish-white eggs. At this point, maybe to insulate her up-and-coming brood from the still cold nights, she will often add feathers, usually white, to her nest.
For the next 14 to 15 days the male and female trade off incubating the eggs. Once hatched, Mom and Dad are kept busy feeding their hungry young. Growing quickly, the juvenile swallows are ready to take to the air within three weeks.
Swallows have strong ties to tradition and superstition. Many people have heard it is lucky for a swallow to build a nest over their house door. This superstition finds its source in the ancient Roman belief that the swallow was sacred to their household gods. Thus these ancient people viewed a swallow’s nest above their house as a favorable sign.
Another fascinating swallow legend is held by the Bulgarian people. Many years ago in Bulgaria a new bride showed respect for her in-laws by abstaining from speaking in their presence for the first 40 days after her marriage. One extremely shy bride never uttered a word to her mother or father-in-law for three years. Believing her to be mute, her in-laws found their son another wife. Before the new bride could take up her position in the household, however, the shy bride spoke for the first time. Then she flew up the chimney. In trying to prevent her escape, her father-in-law reached out to catch her dress. He came away with only a handful of braiding. This accounts for the swallow’s tail being split in two. Now a symbol of renewal in Bulgaria, the swallow has changed tradition, and young brides no longer keep mute before their in-laws.
Also unique to the swallow family, through their close relation to the swift family, is the dessert delicacy, “Bird’s Nest Soup.” Although many imitations exist, the primary ingredient in true “Bird’s Nest Soup” is tiny swiflet nests found in caves in southeast Asia. These nests are made from the bird’s gummy saliva. Apparently this saliva is very sweet. Although I have heard the soup is an acquired taste, many Asians greatly desire it for its reputation as an aphrodisiac.
Deemed worthy of mention by the wisest of men, Solomon, these appealing birds are still often overlooked by those seeking a species more unique. I, however, delight in watching them as they rush together to chitter and chat, then scatter to the poles, only to repeat the process again moments later. And, I’d hate to imagine the bugs which would fill the air here at our Western Montana Lodge, were it not for these endless hunters with their insatiable appetites. With the sun winking off their jewel-colored feathers as they dip and sail on the breeze, these perky little birds sparkle like spring’s first treasure to me.
Lerrina Collins enjoys watching the Tree Swallows which soar around her home at Elk Lake Resort. Many is the morning she wakes to see them streaking like shadowy comets across the sunlight streaming through her bedroom room window. You have permission to reprint what you have just read. Use it in your ezine at your website or in your newsletter. The only requirement is that you include the following footer, “Centennial Valley Tree Swallows Return by Lerrina Collins. Visit http://www.elklakeresortmontana for more original content like this.”
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lerrina_Collins
June 7th, 2007
By Ann Mitchell (Contact)
Sunday, June 3, 2007
Charleston Post Courier (subscription), SC - Jun 3, 2007
Mockingbirds seem to be about as welcome around here as a cup of hot cocoa in August. Harold Perry of Walterboro recently asked for ideas on how to deter mockingbirds, which have been pestering the bluebirds trying to set up housekeeping in his yard.
In response to Harold’s request, I received a couple of not-so-humane suggestions — I’m sure you don’t need my help figuring out what they are — but readers also offered some live-and-let-live ideas and a few interesting stories.
“Mockingbirds are more than aggressive; they are the terrorists of the avian world,” writes Judith Lunsford of Mount Pleasant. “I live in Park West. I have had bluebirds nest for the last three years and, without fail, I have agonized over whether the parents, much less the babies, would survive mockingbird tyranny.”
Judith reports that she’s tried putting up a mockingbird feeder at some distance from her other feeder, but she says the mockingbirds just ended up feasting at both of them.
“The assertiveness of mockingbirds is not limited to bad manners at the feeder. This spring, I was home recuperating when the bluebirds began building their nest. Because I was immobile, I had a front-row seat as a bluebird couple meticulously gathered nesting material while mockingbirds swooped down and hissed at and pestered them. The male bluebird kept ‘watch’ while the female stuffed straw and twigs into the hole of the box. If the male bluebird left the rooftop and the female finished her nesting activity and wanted to escape from the house and the aerial attacks by the mockingbirds, the female would poke her head out the hole and wait for the male to return. He usually perched close by and would signal an all-clear. Even so, the bluebirds’ progress was frequently delayed when one or two mockingbirds sat on the roof of the nest box. It took six days of slow and steady building for the bluebirds to complete their task.”
She adds, “What I can offer Harold Perry is this: Bluebirds somehow survive mockingbird angst. Also, I observed that the mockingbirds feed quite early — 7 a.m. The bluebirds are early feeders, too, but the bluebird male always comes back around 8:30. If I spot the bluebird male, I immediately head out to the ground feeder, where I nestle four to six mealworms beside some large whole peanuts. The bluebird male nearly always spies the mealworms; often he takes a few back to the female, who is still brooding.”
Regina Ford of Wild Birds Unlimited in Mount Pleasant says some people have good luck with offering the mockingbirds their own feeder because the birds will protect it. “The key to alternative feeding is to locate the mockingbird’s feeder as close to her home as possible. If you can figure out which bushes she calls home, place a small open feeder on a shepherd’s crook. This will allow you to feed her a variety of seeds, dried fruit and occasional mealworms, which should keep her closer to home.”
If the mockingbirds are going after the mealworms you put out for the bluebirds, Regina recommends a cage to cover the mealworm feeder. The cages have a small mesh that lets the bluebirds in but keeps the mockingbirds and other big guys such as blue jays out.
Nest notes
Last Sunday’s column about whether to remove an old bluebird nest from the box to make way for a second brood drew a couple of notes.
Eddie McKnight, who lives in Cordesville and has numerous active bluebird boxes, writes, “Over 30 years of watching them nest, I have learned on my own (and read) that they almost always build a new nest on top of the old one. The problem is that multiple nests will rise up to the point that they will be near the hole, and the birds don’t like that because it’s easier for predators to reach in. They like to be at the bottom of the box. Therefore, I throw away the old nests immediately after they fledge.”
Albert Spung of Mount Pleasant says that about eight years ago, with the help of some other folks, he started building and putting up bluebird houses at Snee Farm Country Club. “At the present time there are 26 houses on the golf course. Last year 25 were used! Not all, however, by bluebirds — some by sparrows,” he writes. “Because no one monitors the houses on a regular basis, the nests are not removed until I do it in January prior to the nesting season. Many of the houses have two nests with one on top of the other. As a result of the number of houses now on the golf course and in the yards around the course, we are provided with a show of these beautiful birds when we play golf. Makes any kind of a game a good one.”
Strike one, two, etc.
Cardinals running into windows has been a problem for several readers. Dallas Ruark of Beaufort says cardinals have been running into the glass alongside his front door for several months, and Nancy and John Meyer of Summerville have had a similar problem. “We have tried a few things to deter her — hanging suncatchers, putting up a picture of a scarecrow, etc. Nothing works! Last year we had another smaller bird doing the same thing for about a month. It stopped as suddenly as it started. Just wondered why they do this and if anyone has tried anything to deter them that has worked.”
Barbara Spence of James Island has tried window decals and, like the Meyers, didn’t get good results. “Mr. Cardinal thinks he’s seeing another male cardinal and is protecting his territory by flying into the glass and trying to scare him off. I had the same problem with a male bluebird earlier this spring. I bought decals but I can’t say they did any good.”
Reader Laura Kunze of North Charleston recently passed along the name of a Web site devoted mostly to bluebirds, and it has a section on “window strikes.” The site, www.sialis.org/windowstrikes.htm, says that according to a March 2004 article in Audubon magazine, window strikes kill between 100 million and 1 billion birds in North America each year.
Among the reasons birds collide with glass, according to the site, are that they can’t see the glass at all because it’s transparent, or they see their own reflection and react territorially. The site also notes, “Bluebirds, cardinals and robins typically do this. Territorial window strikes are more common in springtime, but may occur year-round.” They can also happen in the fall when males birds get “a second flush of testosterone.”
There are quantities of ideas at the site for trying to deter window strikes, so check out that page online if you’re in need of a couple of ideas to try.
Purple martins
Eddie McKnight, who shared some advice above about moving bluebird nests, is also a purple martin landlord and had some interesting news to share about these favorite birds.
“I have more nesting martins this year than ever before, and I have heard the same from other landlords. The biggest issue this year (and many others) is the predation by European starlings and house (English) sparrows raiding the nests. There is a new entrance hole designed by a veteran landlord that allows purple martins to enter by clinging and rolling in, as opposed to the 2-inch-round holes recommended for years. It’s called a ‘clinger’ entrance, and the starlings pretty much cannot enter because of long legs, and the martin glides right in.” Eddie shared a photo of a homemade martin house with clinger-style entrances being easily used by a martin.
“Riding around the Lowcountry, you can see numerous setups for martins where they are infested with starlings and sparrows (both of which are not native, and are legal to exterminate). The problem is mainly that inexperienced landlords may not realize that starlings and sparrows are invading purple martin nests, killing babies (and) adults and tossing out eggs. I used to have the attitude to live and let live if the starlings are present, but they don’t have that same philosophy. They will actively seek out and kill native species. That’s one reason they are so active and thriving in the United States.
“(I) just would like to make an appeal for some attention to be paid to this wonderful, amazing native bird, so that we can help it thrive and prosper in the future. In the Eastern United States, they pretty much only nest in manmade housing or gourds, so they are dependent on us to help them — not to mention the pleasure and grace they bring to backyards of bird lovers.
“The most helpful information about them can be found at
www.purplemartin.org.”
>I’d welcome any stories or photos from other readers who have experience with martins.
Thought for the week
If you’re fighting crabgrass in your yard the way I am, you’ll appreciate this from humor columnist Dave Barry: “Crabgrass can grow on bowling balls in airless rooms, and there is no known way to kill it that does not involve nuclear weapons.”
What’s the news from your backyard? If it’s blooming, chirping, growing, visiting a feeder or otherwise getting your attention, let us know. Photos of backyard birds and critters are welcome. Reach Ann Mitchell at 937-5557, amitchell@po
June 6th, 2007
publish.csiro.au
MK Tarburton
Abstract
The White-rumped Swiftlet Aerodramus spodiopygius chillagoensis was studied during a good and a poor season at Chillagoe, Queensland. Most of the nests were in totally dark sections of caves where a single nest and colonies containing 4-264 nests were visited.
The clutch of one was incubated for an average of 26.6 days during the better season when 64% of eggs hatched successfully. Lost clutches or young broods were usually replaced within 14 days. Fledging success in the good season was 69% giving a breeding success of 44% or 0.9 young fledged from the two broods of a breeding pair. In the poor season incubation took 27.8 days, hatching success was 60%, fledging success was 50% and the nestling period had increased from 46.1 days in the better year to 51.0 days in the poor year. While the fledging rate for the single-egg clutch of chillagoensis is well below that of the two-egg clutch of A. s. assimilis, the unique practice of laying a second single-egg clutch for the first chick to incubate, increases the breeding rate in good seasons to almost that of arsimih. There is no sexual dimorphism and both sexes share in incubation and feeding nestlings. Chicks were fed an average of 5.2 times a day. Most chick mortality resulted from the chicks falling from their nests, while the major ectoparasites (louse-flies) are thought to be unimportant to survival. Even though immediate energy demands were increased by synchronising moult and breeding, the length of time to complete the moult of primaries was as short as any apodid studied so far and is shorter than some that moult independently of breeding.
Emu 88(4) 202 - 209
June 4th, 2007
Next Posts