Gone fishin’ with a Green Heron

Posted on by farlane
Green Heron and Frog by John Heintz

GREEN HERON by John Heintz, Jr.

The entry for Green Heron (Butorides virescens) at All About Birds says (in part):

From a distance, the Green Heron is a dark, stocky bird hunched on slender yellow legs at the water’s edge, often hidden behind a tangle of leaves. Seen up close, it is a striking bird with a velvet-green back, rich chestnut body, and a dark cap often raised into a short crest. These small herons crouch patiently to surprise fish with a snatch of their daggerlike bill. They sometimes lure in fish using small items such as twigs or insects as bait.

Some Fun Facts…

  • The Green Heron is one of the world’s few tool-using bird species. It creates fishing lures with bread crusts, insects, earthworms, twigs, feathers, and other objects, dropping them on the surface of the water to entice small fish.
  • Like many herons, the Green Heron tends to wander outside of its breeding range after the nesting season is over. Most of the wanderers stay nearby as they search for good feeding habitat, but some travel long distances. Individuals have turned up as far away as England and France.
  • Green Herons usually hunt by wading in shallow water, but occasionally they dive for deep-water prey and need to swim back to shore—probably with help from the webs between their middle and outer toes. One juvenile heron was seen swimming gracefully for more than 60 feet, sitting upright “like a little swan,” according to one observer.
  • The oldest Green Heron on record was 7 years, 11 months old.

Read on for more, with various Green Heron calls including the attack call. The Michigan Bird Atlas shows Green Heron distribution in the state.

FYI John is no longer on Flickr, but he has some awesome pics on Michigan in Pictures!

Many more Michigan birds on Michigan in Pictures.

Three Little Birds

Posted on by farlane

Little Birds

Little Birds, photo by Lance Springer

Want to have a good day? Consider starting it with one of the most upbeat songs I know: Three Little Birds by Bob Marley.

View Lance’s photo bigger and see more in his Great Lakes slideshow.

More Michigan birds on Michigan in Pictures.

Chillin’ with the Wood Ducks

Posted on by farlane

Wood Duck

Wood Duck, photo by Dan Lockard

The All About Birds listing for Aix sponsa (wood duck) says in part:

The Wood Duck is one of the most stunningly pretty of all waterfowl. Males are iridescent chestnut and green, with ornate patterns on nearly every feather; the elegant females have a distinctive profile and delicate white pattern around the eye. These birds live in wooded swamps, where they nest in holes in trees or in nest boxes put up around lake margins. They are one of the few duck species equipped with strong claws that can grip bark and perch on branches.

Wood Ducks thrive in bottomland forests, swamps, freshwater marshes, and beaver ponds. They are also common along streams of all sizes, from creeks to rivers, and the sheer extent of these make them an important habitat. Wood Ducks seem to fare best when open water alternates with 50–75% vegetative cover that the ducks can hide and forage in.

Some wood duck facts:

  • Natural cavities for nesting are scarce, and the Wood Duck readily uses nest boxes provided for it. If nest boxes are placed too close together, many females lay eggs in the nests of other females. (click for info about building a nest box)
  • The Wood Duck nests in trees near water, sometimes directly over water, but other times up to 2 km (1.2 mi) away. After hatching, the ducklings jump down from the nest tree and make their way to water. The mother calls them to her, but does not help them in any way. The ducklings may jump from heights of up to 89 m (290 ft) without injury.
  • Wood Ducks pair up in January, and most birds arriving at the breeding grounds in the spring are already paired. The Wood Duck is the only North American duck that regularly produces two broods in one year.

View Sherri & Dan’s photo background big and see more in their Animals slideshow.

Many (many) more Michigan birds on Michigan in Pictures.

Red-Tailed Hawk (buteo jamaicensis)

Posted on by farlane

Red Tailed Hawk

Red Tailed Hawk, photo by David Marvin

Sometimes the photos I link to go away, so here’s an old post with a new face!

All About Birds page on the Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) says:

This is probably the most common hawk in North America. If you’ve got sharp eyes you’ll see several individuals on almost any long car ride, anywhere. Red-tailed Hawks soar above open fields, slowly turning circles on their broad, rounded wings. Other times you’ll see them atop telephone poles, eyes fixed on the ground to catch the movements of a vole or a rabbit, or simply waiting out cold weather before climbing a thermal updraft into the sky.

A couple fun facts:

The Red-tailed Hawk has a thrilling, raspy scream that sounds exactly like a raptor should sound. At least, that’s what Hollywood directors seem to think. Whenever a hawk or eagle appears onscreen, no matter what species, the shrill cry on the soundtrack is almost always a Red-tailed Hawk.

The Red-tailed Hawk is one of the largest birds you’ll see in North America, yet even the biggest females weigh in at only about 3 pounds. A similar-sized small dog might weigh 10 times that.

Courting Red-tailed Hawks put on a display in which they soar in wide circles at a great height. The male dives steeply, then shoots up again at an angle nearly as steep. After several of these swoops he approaches the female from above, extends his legs, and touches her briefly. Sometimes, the pair grab onto one other, clasp talons, and plummet in spirals toward the ground before pulling away.

Red-tailed Hawks have been seen hunting as a pair, guarding opposite sides of the same tree to catch tree squirrels.

The oldest known Red-tailed Hawk was 28 years 10 months old.

Click through for more info, photos and hawk sounds. Also see Buteo jamaicensis (red-tailed hawk) from the ADW, Red-tailed Hawk on Wikipedia and Red-tailed hawk for Kids (also ADW).

View David’s photo background bigtacular and see more in his Birds slideshow.

More Michigan birds from Michigan in Pictures!

Fancy Feathers, Fashion and the Dawn of Bird Conservation

Posted on by farlane

Spring Arrival Egret

Spring Arrival, photo by Cowboy*

How the Great White Egret Inspired Bird Conservation in the Smithsonian says:

One particular group of birds suffered near extermination at the hands of feather hunters, and their plight helped awaken a conservation ethic that still resonates in the modern environmental movement. With striking white plumes and crowded, conspicuous nesting colonies, Great Egrets and Snowy Egrets faced an unfortunate double jeopardy: their feathers fetched a high price, and their breeding habits made them an easy mark.

To make matters worse, both sexes bore the fancy plumage, so hunters didn’t just target the males; they decimated entire rookeries. At the peak of the trade, an ounce of egret plume fetched the modern equivalent of two thousand dollars, and successful hunters could net a cool hundred grand in a single season. But every ounce of breeding plumes represented six dead adults, and each slain pair left behind three to five starving nestlings. Millions of birds died, and by the turn of the century this once common species survived only in the deep Everglades and other remote wetlands.

This slaughter inspired Audubon members to campaign for environmental protections and bird preservation, at the state, national and international levels. The Lacey Act passed Congress in 1900, restricting interstate transport of wild fowl and game. In 1911 New York State outlawed the sale of all native birds and their feathers, and other states soon followed suit. Passage of the Weeks-McLean Act (1913) and the Migratory Bird Act (1918) took the protections nationwide and mirrored legislation in Canada, Britain, and Europe, effectively ending the fancy-feather era.

More about Great Egrets on the UM Animal Diversity Web.

You can view Cowboy’s photo from last May background big and see more in his Animals & Wildlife slideshow.

More birds and more Spring wallpaper on Michigan in Pictures!

White Christmas dreams will come true in Michigan!

Posted on by farlane

I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas!

I’m Dreaming Of A White Christmas!, photo by Spring Noel

mLive meteorologist Mark Torregrossa makes the question of whether we’ll have a white Christmas or not pretty simple, saying: “If you will be in Michigan this Christmas, your dream of a white Christmas will come true – wherever you are.” Read on for his detailed forecast.

Alert readers will note the first back-to-back owling in Michigan in Pictures history. What can I say? This shot of a barred owl is simply perfect!!

View Spring’s photo bigger and see more in her Birds of Prey slideshow.

More birds on Michigan in Pictures.

The Turn of the Tern

Posted on by farlane

Turn of the tern

Turn of the tern, photo by MI photographer

The Michigan DNR says that the common tern (Sterna hirundo) is a small colonial waterbird and one of four breeding species of terns in Michigan (Caspian, black, common, and Forster’s terns):

Common terns are white with a black cap, and pale gray back and wings. Their bill is red orange with a black tip. The tail is deeply forked and dark along the outer edges. Immature common terns and adults in their winter plumage have only a partial black cap. It can be distinguished from its close relative the gull by a smaller body size and longer wings. The common tern’s call is a rolling ter-arr and rapid kip-kip-kip.

Common terns are frequently seen hovering in the air over a school of fish. With a sudden plunge downward into the water, they seize fish with their bills. Sometimes they will dive entirely below the surface of the water. Terns eat small fish such as shiners, chubs, and other minnows. They will also eat crustaceans and occasionally, insects such as dragonfly nymphs.

Their winter migration takes these birds to the Atlantic coastal areas in Florida, the Caribbean, and South America. They return to their nesting sites in early spring.

Arriving on their breeding grounds in May, common terns nest in colonies of 10 to 1,000 breeding pairs. They prefer sandy, well drained areas away from mammalian predators and human disturbances. Currently, common terns are using natural and human made islands in the Great Lakes with a few nesting on inland lakes. Common terns construct their nests by creating a depression in the sand with their feet, smoothing and shaping it by sifting in it and turning their bodies. Egg laying and incubation lasts until late June or early July. Both adults take turns sitting on the nest. The adults defend the eggs and young fiercely, diving at intruders, and even striking them with their bills.

Once numbering over 6,000 breeding pairs in Michigan, common terns were found on every Great Lakes shore. Data from 1992 suggest that the population has decreased to an estimated 1,400 breeding pairs. Several factors have contributed to this decline including loss of habitat, competition with gulls, predation, and effects of contaminants. As a result of these factors, the common tern was officially listed in Michigan as a “threatened species in 1978 and has recently undergone a status assessment by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes for possible listing as Federally endangered.

You can read on for more including information about the huge breeding colony on Lime Island. Also see the Common Tern Sterna hirundo from the Audobon Society andCommon Tern at All About Birds.

William caught this photo off the coast of Mackinac Island in Lake Huron. Check it out bigger and see more shots of this beautiful bird his Mackinac Island slideshow.

Many more Michigan birds on Michigan in Pictures.

Pond Boss: The Red-winged Blackbird

Posted on by farlane

Pond Boss

Pond Boss, photo by MichaelinA2

I grew up by a marsh that was filled with Red-winged Blackbirds, and their song has always felt like lazy summer days to me. All About Birds entry for Red-winged Blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus says:

One of the most abundant birds across North America, and one of the most boldly colored, the Red-winged Blackbird is a familiar sight atop cattails, along soggy roadsides, and on telephone wires. Glossy-black males have scarlet-and-yellow shoulder patches they can puff up or hide depending on how confident they feel. Females are a subdued, streaky brown, almost like a large, dark sparrow. In the North, their early arrival and tumbling song are happy indications of the return of spring.

Male Red-winged Blackbirds do everything they can to get noticed, sitting on high perches and belting out their conk-la-ree! song all day long. Females stay lower, skulking through vegetation for food and quietly weaving together their remarkable nests.

Read on for more including video and blackbird calls. The Red-winged blackbird entry on Wikipedia has more, including a photo of the aforementioned red wing blackbird nest which I have to admit looks very cool!

Check this out bigger and see more in Michael’s 2013 birds slideshow.

More birds on Michigan in Pictures!

American Woodcock (Scolopax minor)

Posted on by farlane

Woodcock

Woodcock, photo by lomeranger

This weekend while morel hunting I stumbled upon a woodcock. Yesterday while riding my bike home from work, I stumbled upon my friend Jason. On a whim, I checked his photos and found this picture. All About Birds entry for American Woodcock Scolopax minor says that this superbly camouflaged bird is difficult to discover on the forest floor where it probes for earthworms. Some facts:

  • The flexible tip of the American Woodcock’s bill is specialized for catching earthworms. The bird probably feels worms as it probes in the ground. A woodcock may rock its body back and forth without moving its head as it slowly walks around, stepping heavily with its front foot. This action may make worms move around in the soil, increasing their detectablity.
  • The American Woodcock is one of the few shorebirds that is regularly hunted for sport.
  • The male American Woodcock has an elaborate display to attract females. He gives repeated “peents” on the ground, often on remaining patches of snow in the early spring. After a time he flies upward in a wide spiral. As he gets higher, his wings start to twitter. After reaching a height of 70-100 m (230-328 ft) the twittering becomes intermittent, and the bird starts chirping as he starts to descend. He comes down in a zig-zag, diving fashion, chirping as he goes. As he comes near the ground he silently lands, near a female if she is present. Then he starts peenting again.
  • The male American Woodcock gives no parental care, but continues to display long after most females have laid eggs. Some males display at several, widely separated singing grounds and will mate with several females. A female may visit four or more singing grounds before nesting, and she may keep visiting even when she is caring for her young.
  • Unlike many birds that leave their nests at hatching, newly hatched woodcocks cannot feed themselves. They are dependent on the mother for food for the first week. The chicks start to probe in dirt at three or four days after hatching.

See Jason’s photo bigger and view more in his Beaver Island slideshow.

Many (many) more Michigan birds on Michigan in Pictures!

Great Blue Heron Rookeries

Posted on by farlane

Great Blue Heons adding sticks to their nest

Great Blue Herons adding sticks to their nest, photo by ellenm1

The Michigan Natural Features Inventory entry for Great Blue Heron Rookeries explains:

The great blue herons in Michigan are largely migratory, with almost all leaving the state during the winter months. Most leave by end of October and return in early to mid-March.

The great blue heron is mostly a colonial nester, occasionally they nest in single pairs. Colonies are typically found in lowland swamps, islands, upland hardwoods and forests adjacent to lakes, ponds and rivers. Nests are usually in trees and may be as high as 98 ft. (30 m) or more from the ground. The platform like nests are constructed out of medium-sized sticks and materials may be added throughout the nesting cycle. Nests are usually lined with finer twigs, leaves, grass, pine needles, moss, reeds, or dry gras. The same nests are refurbished and used year after year. Nest size varies; newer nests may be 1.5 ft. (0.5 m) in diameter with older nests reaching up to 4 ft (1.2 m) in diameter (Andrle 1988). Nests can also be used by Canada geese (Branta canadensis), house sparrows (Passer domesticus), and great-horned owls (Bubo virginianus)…

Most great blue herons return to southern Michigan heronries in mid-March although a few may remain through the winter if there are areas of open water. Courtship and nest building commences from early April in southern Michigan to early May in the extreme northern portions of the state. Both sexes are involved in the nest building process with males primarily gathering sticks from the ground, nearby trees, or ungarded nearby nests. Males pass sticks to females who then place them on the nests. Between 3 and 7 (usually 4) greenish blue eggs are laid in April and May in Michigan. Both sexes take a turn at incubation with females incubating mostly at night and males during the day. The incubation period lasts from 25-29 days. In Michigan hatching occurs in the first week of May in the south while parents are still incubating nests in the far northern part of the state. For the first 3-4 weeks post hatching, one parent remains on the nest with the young.

Check this photo out big as the sky and see more in Ellen’s Kensington Metropark slideshow.

More herons & birds on Michigan in Pictures, and also check out this photo of a Heronry on Absolute Michigan.