cjclark6's Journal

Date: 3/7/20
Time: 11:45-12:45 at first location, 12:50-1:20 second location
Location 1: Round Pond Natural Area, South Hero, VT
Location 2: Bird House Forest/ South Hero Beach
Weather: Sunny day with temperatures in the low 20s and little to no wind
Habitat: Round Pond has wooded areas with a few open fields/clearings and Bird House Forest is a marshy area with trees right near Lake Champlain.

To start, I went to the Round Pond Natural Area in South Hero and walked on the path towards a marshy area. I walked through wooded areas that occasionally opened up into open fields. Along the way I heard some Black-capped Chickadee and White-breasted Nuthatch calls in the distance, but I did not see them. However, I did see a few snags and documented one of them with cavities in it (in the google drive link). The tree was large, but the cavities were not all that big. I didn’t see other trees with cavities to compare with though. Since I only encountered Black-capped Chickadees and White-breasted Nuthatches at this location I would assume these species are most likely to use snags as shelters. These snags seem like a good place for birds to get protection from the elements and a place to raise young in the warmer weather.

After I turned around and headed back, I heard some Black-capped Chickadees that were close. I eventually found them on the edge of a wooded area and an opening. There were about 4 of them hopping between branches. When one would rest on a branch, it seemed like it would huddle up into a ball to stay warm. I would guess that this allows more air into their down to create more warm air on their body. In terms of evolution, I think the differentiation in feathers through changes in hair follicles gives birds the warmth they need in winter. Also, these open areas were noticeably warmer because of the sun so maybe they take advantage of these areas to stay warm too. Another way birds survive the winter is through their diet. I would think that birds would try to consume food higher in calories and fat to sustain themselves and to create fat for warmth. The last thing from this location was some pecking I heard which I thought would be a woodpecker, however I discovered it was two White-breasted Nuthatches.

Right when I pulled up to the Bird House Forest, I saw a Red-tailed Hawk swoop down from a tree and land on a tree farther away. I saw its bright tail when it slowed down to land. After walking around for a bit, I saw a Pileated Woodpecker land on a large tree. I recognized it from its size and red head. Also, when it flew away it was white underneath. I also found a black and white feather on the ground (picture in google doc).

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1b20viZrWY3i2dHzeIacimDI4RWXPJl4ikvR9vNw55lg/edit?usp=sharing

Date: 3/21/21
Time: 3:00-4:30
Location: Niquette Bay State Park, Colchester, VT
Weather: Sunny day, temperature around 58 degrees F, 2 mph wind from the north
Habitat: heavily wooded area, mostly thin trees, occasional creek/stream, elevated above shoreline of Lake Champlain

For this bird watching session I took a walk through the Niquette Bay State Park in Colchester. The start of my walk through the park was rather uneventful. I was surrounded by so many trees, but it was extremely quiet. After some time and walking, I did find a sunny area that had quite a bit of activity going on. The first specie I spotted was 2 or 3 White-breasted Nuthatch on some skinny, light colored trees. They were pecking at the bark and I also heard a few more calling in the distance. I also heard and saw a couple Black-capped Chickadees.

At one point the chickadees flew to a tree above me. They were kind of chirping back and forth to each other. I am not entirely sure what this communication was about because they were just hanging out together in the tree. It almost seemed a bit playful because they were also hopping around on the branches. I decided to try doing some spishing while they were near me. I noticed after each time I made a “pshhh” their chirping and hopping around was more energized like they were excited by it. They didn’t get any closer to me because of the spishing. I feel the “pshhh” sound is similar to the chirping calls these small birds make and this grabs their attention. Considering how quite the area I did this was, I feel the spishing worked well.

After I was done spishing, I noticed a pair of what I think were Downy Woodpeckers. From what I could see, the bill of woodpecker was on the shorter side which makes me believe it was a Downy Woodpecker as opposed to a Hairy Woodpecker. The one that I got the closest to was a male with the red patch on its head. This individual was foraging on a birch tree. The other individual was foraging on a near by tree. The black and white speckled plumage definitely gave some camouflage for the woodpecker on the white, striped birch tree. As I mentioned before about the White-breasted Nuthatch, they were foraging on more gray trees which makes me believe that the patterns and coloring of the plumage of these birds helps them blend into their surroundings.

Since most of the birds I observed where foraging, I began to think about both the time of day and year. Since it was late afternoon and the sun was still shining, these diurnal birds where still alert and awake due to their circadian rhythm. Also, since it was late in the afternoon and only a few hours before sunset, maybe they were getting their last bit of nutrition before both their body temperature and metabolism decreased for the night. In terms of their circannual rhythm, they most likely are soon about to go through two energetically costly activities, molting and breeding, which would require more foraging behavior now to prepare.