Mimic Birds

As you walk through the Nature Preserve, you may hear a veritable flock of different birds singing at the same time.  Sometimes you truly are hearing different birds, such as House Wrens, Bluebirds, Carolina Wrens, House Finches, Cardinals and Chipping Sparrows.  However, if all those birds seem to be singing from the same branch in the same tree, you may be listening to a concert by the Northern Mockingbird.How can you tell if one bird is making all those sounds or not?  Count how many times the song is repeated.  If you hear the same song three or more times, then switch to another song three or four times, you have a Mockingbird.  These birds also sing at night, but it's just the young bachelors having an all night party.  As soon as they find mates, the females will make them stay home at night!  I intended to have sound for each bird, as well as photos, but ran into some serious technical difficulties when trying to get the it to work in Blogger. Sorry 'bout that. If you would like to hear the song anyway, when you finish reading this post, go to eNature.com and search for the bird by name.  They have terrific resources.

If you have Mockingbirds at home, you know they can be quite aggressive.  Mine will chase all the other birds away from the feeder when he's hungry, or even if he isn't hungry.  After all, it's a matter of territorial rights!  Occasionally a Mockingbird will stand on the ground, and raise his wings up for a bit, then put them down again. I call it the Batman move, as if Batman is holding his cape out.  The theory for this behavior is that the shade under his wings fools insects into coming out to be eaten. It's a good opportunity for the bird watcher to see the bold white wingbars while the bird stands still.  Mockingbirds have also been know to imitate cell phone rings, so don't be surprised to answer your phone and have no one there.

Another mimic bird is the Brown Thrasher. Brown Thrashers may be confused with thrushes but are larger, have longer tails, and are streaked (not spotted) below. They belong to the same family as the Mockingbird but, unlike that species, are retiring and secretive. They often feed on the ground, scattering dead leaves with their beaks as they search for insects. In recent years they have become scarce in much of their range; no one knows why. When it sings, it repeats a phrase only twice.

The Gray Catbird gives a long, irregular succession of musical and mechanical notes and phrases, but listen for the cat-like mewing. Sometimes it seems to mimic other birds. This bird is often seen in suburban gardens where It forages mainly on the ground, gleaning insects from litter and low bushes and eating fallen berries during late summer and fall. It does not uncover litter with its feet like a sparrow but pokes with its bill, turning leaves and twigs to find the food underneath. Formerly known simply as the "Catbird," this bird has had its name changed officially to Gray Catbird because there is an all-black species, the Black Catbird, in southern Mexico. (After all, we don't want anyone in Kentucky to get confused, now, do we?)  It often announces its presence by a harsh, cat-like whine issuing from a dense tangle of vegetation; the bird responds to an imitation of this call, popping suddenly into view for a better look.

Although sometimes disliked because they chase smaller birds away from feeders, Blue Jays are among the handsomest of birds. They often bury seeds and acorns, and since many are never retrieved they are, in effect, tree planters. They regularly mob predators, and their raucous screaming makes it easy to locate a hawk or a roosting owl. Although seen all year, they are migratory and travel in large loose flocks in spring and fall. They make raucous jay-jay, harsh cries, and a rich variety of other calls. One is almost identical to the scream of the Red-shouldered Hawk, and suckers me in every time! I remember the more musical tweedle-dee call from my grandmother's farm as a child.

Naturally yours,

~denapple

Leaves of Three

Hopefully, most people are familiar with the saying, Leaves of three, let it be. That's Poison Ivy. Poison Ivy is native to North America and tends to grow along the edges- edges of forests, edges of roads, edges of streams and lakes, and edges of lawns are where you will see huge amounts of Poison Ivy. Poison Ivy can grow in many ways also. It can creep along the ground, growing new roots as it spreads. It climbs trees growing large hairy vines. It can be a small plant or large shrub. In dense forests, it doesn't get enough sun to grow well, and in open fields, the grasses tend to crowd it out. Poison Ivy has very tough roots, and once established, it is quite difficult to get rid of.  Visit Poison-Ivy.org for terrific information about this troublesome plant.

Poison Ivy can be very difficult to identify though. The only constant is its three leaves, but since many other plants have three leaves as well, this may not always be relied on.  Sometimes the leaves of Poison Ivy are notched, and sometimes they aren't.  Same for shiny leaves and red stems. Sometimes the leaves are small, and sometimes they grow to enormous size.  In the spring, newly sprouting leaves may be red. In the autumn, the leaves turn beautiful colors, but please don't add them to you fall arrangements!

The rash that Poison Ivy causes humans is from the sap, which has an oil called "urushoil" in it. Urushoil only comes out of the plant where it is damaged; however, Poison Ivy is very fragile and breaks easily. Wind, animals, or chewing insects can cause urushoil to be released. When urushoil gets on your skin, your skin absorbs it slowly. Your skin will then have a reaction, resulting in a red rash with blisters. If urushoil gets on your dog or clothes, it can later transfer to you! If you burn wood with Poison Ivy vines on it, the smoke will carry the oil to your lungs, and a trip to the hospital will probably be necessary. Not everybody is allergic to Poison Ivy, and some people are more allergic than others. If you know you've been exposed, wash the area with cold water as soon as possible.  Hot water opens your pours so the oil can enter easier.

It grows small flowers which produce white waxy berries that many birds love.

Animals do not react to the oil as humans do, but your pet might get the oil on its coat, to be transferred to you when you pet him. Many animals can eat Poison Ivy without harm, thank goodness!

Virginia Creeper is often mistaken for Poison Ivy since it also climbs trees, but it you look carefully, you will see that it has five leaves, rather than three.  From some angles you may only view three and this leads to the confusion.  Virginia Creeper does not cause any skin reactions.  Jack in the Pulpit, a wildflower, also has three leaves as it grows close to the ground.

Since it is a native plant, Poison Ivy has developed relationships with other native plants and animals over the ages. Click this picture for a larger more readable version, and count up the animals that use it for food or shelter. You won't find this with invasive plants! So watch where you step or grab as you walk around the Preserve.

Naturally yours,

~denapple

April Showers Bring...

Remember the Disney movie Fantasia? One part of this animation set to classical music has little mushrooms dancing around to the Nutcracker Suite as Chinese characters . Louisville’s monthly rainfall total of 13.97 inches for April 2011 easily topped the record for 1970 April rainfall total of 11.10 inches, and as I walked up the drive at the Preserve, all the mushrooms were having a growth spurt. My mind started seeing fairies using the mushrooms as umbrellas during the downpour.

Other mushrooms make good wash basins for the fairies who don't care about staying dry. The more water these catch the better. Or perhaps these were the fairy umbrellas blown inside-out by a wind gust.

But it looks as if some of the mushrooms themselves want to shelter beneath their neighbors' overlapping caps.

The fairies might use these mini-mushrooms as dinette tables.

Reproductive spores are produced from the gills on the underside of a mushroom, although they are too small to be seen with the naked eye. The main body of a fungus is usually hidden underground.

Jelly fungi have a gelatinous to rubbery feeling when moist, then shrivel in dry weather. This one is called Witch's Butter.  Next time you see some, go ahead and touch it.  You will be surprised at its texture!

Identifying fungi is just as hard as learning to identify flowers or birds, but maybe more so since an entirely different set of terms is required to describe fungi.  This one may be a cinnabar polypore, but for now I'll just think of it as a red shelf fungus.  People who study fungi are called mycologists. Current estimates put the number of species in this kingdom at 1.5 million, compared to 250,00 species of flowering plants. Maybe when I get to be an expert at birds, wildflowers, butterflies and dragonflies I can take on the study of fungi.  Until then, I'll just marvel at them, and appreciate their role in the food web. And as fairy houses!

Naturally yours,

~denapple

What's in a Name?

Prairie Warbler

For a birder, or a person who loves wildflowers, it's hard enough learning the name and appearance of the bird or flower so you can recognize them in the field. There are so many, and often they tend to resemble each other in many ways. But the actual name of the bird usually doesn't help at all in identifying the bird.  For example, this Prairie Warbler doesn't live in the prairie, but can be found in brushy pastures, low pines, and mangroves.  How in the world did these birds receive the names we struggle so to learn?  And why, for heaven's sake, are they so confusing?

Red-bellied Woodpecker

 The Red-bellied Woodpecker is a classic example of a bird with a misleading name. Most of us only see the black and white back and red on its head.  Where is the red belly it is named for? In the early days of ornithology, say the 1700's and 1800's, naturalists had no binoculars or spotting scopes to take into the field.  Instead, they "collected" the birds they wanted to study with a shotgun!  John James Audubon, artist, early ornithologist, and now synonymous with bird conservation, said, "I wish I had eight pairs of hands, and another body to shoot the specimens."  He often shot 50 or more individuals of the same species so he could make comparisons of them.


Red belly visible on Red-bellied Woodpecker

When a dead Red-bellied Woodpecker is laid on its back, the pale wash of red on the belly becomes immediately apparent, but since woodpeckers normally clutch the bark tightly we don't often get to see their bellies. These early ornithologists were crack shots, and also did their own taxidermy.  Audubon would pin the bird to a board marked with grid lines to pose it in a lifelike position for his drawings. These collectors donated their collections to museums which still have them.  It's not very attractive though, to me at least, to look at rows of dead birds lying on their backs with their little feet all curled up. 

 

Lincoln's Sparrow



The Lincoln's Sparrow was named by Audubon for his assistant Thomas Lincoln.  He wrote: "But if the view of this favoured spot was pleasing to my eye, how much more to my ear were the sweet notes of this bird as they came thrilling on the sense, surpassing in vigour those of any American Finch with which I was acquainted, and forming a song which seemed a compound of those of the Canary and Wood-lark of Europe. I immediately shouted to my companions, who were not far distant. They came, and we all followed the songster as it flitted from one bush to another to evade our pursuit. No sooner would it alight than it renewed its song, but we found more wildness in this species than in any other inhabiting the same country, and it was with difficulty that we at last procured it. Chance placed my young companion, THOMAS LINCOLN, in a situation where he saw it alight within shot, and with his usually unerring aim, he cut short its career. On seizing it, I found it to be a species which I had not previously seen; and, supposing it to be new, I named it Tom's Finch, in honour of our friend LINCOLN, who was a great favourite among us. Three cheers were given him, when, proud of the prize, I returned to the vessel to draw it, while my son and his companions continued to search for other specimens. Many were procured during our stay in that country."

Baltimore Oriole

Those early ornithologists had another problem as they wandered through the American wilderness looking for birds.  They didn't seem to realize that these birds migrated around the country, so they named the bird for the first place in which it was found. Thus, the Baltimore Oriole, the Kentucky Warbler, or the Nashville Warbler, can be found in many other areas of the country.

Carolina Chickadee

Sometimes we birders get lucky and birds are named for the sounds they make. Chickadees rattle chick-a-dee-dee-dee as they hang upside down on the branches searching for the tastiest bugs. Blue Jays call their harsh jay-jay-jay sound along with other melodic songs, as well as mimicking hawks and other birds. The Northern Mockingbird was named for its ability to mimic just about anything it hears.  Now they can be found singing like cell phones, so some day we may need to rename them! 

During the middle 1800's, naturalists included many Army officers and doctors who explored the western part of the country.  Gambel named this cute little quail after himself, while Swainson has a thrush and a hawk named for him. Harlan, Baird, and Bewick all have birds named for them. As more new species were found, more and more naturalists recognized the need to classify American birds and what to call them. In the early 1880's the publication of dueling, and contradictory, bird lists led to the foundation of the American Ornithologists' Union in 1883. By 1886 the first official checklist was published. Gone was the welter of local and colloquial names.  Now someone was in charge of naming the birds, and applying scientific names as well. Modern DNA testing has led to the reclassification of many birds. So when you can't remember if it's called the Northern Oriole or the Baltimore Oriole now, since they keep changing the name of this bird, now you know who to complain to! For the current official checklist of North American birds, just click here.

 Naturally yours,

~denapple