Field Journal #4

Date - March 20, 2021
Start time - 4:00
End time - 5:30
Location - North Ferrisburgh, VT
Weather - 52° F, 5 mph wind out of the North West, very sunny, no cloud cover
Habitat - Deciduous forest in addition to edges of hay and corn fields. Woods consist of shagbark hickory, bitternut hickory, red maple, green ash, white ash, American elm, Eastern cottonwood, and one solitary pear tree.

Different birds that I encountered on this week's excursion interacted in varying ways. The Canada geese that I saw, for example, were resting by the edge of a pond together. One of the birds was curled up sleeping while the other stayed standing and almost seemed to be standing watch for the other. The American Crows that I noticed interacted by by calling back and forth to each other and then flying off in a group.
While different species have many different sounds or calls that they use to communicate, most birds seem to use vocalizations for similar reasons. Males will use songs to attract mates or some birds will use vocalizations as a sign of distress. Additionally, body language is one major way that birds can communicate. Birds can use the plumage on their head to signal that they are nervous or threatened, interested, excited, etc. Some birds (like Turkeys) use their tail feathers to communicate as well.
This week I saw Killdeer for the first time this season! I find Killdeer plumage very distinct: they have a brown back, white belly, and black and white stripes on their chest and head. This plumage has the evolutionary advantage of helping these birds blend in with the ground where they nest as a way of avoiding predators. Another bird that I have been seeing a lot this week is the American Robin. This bird also has very distinctive plumage: dark head and back with a bright reddish-orange breast. I imagine the advantage of the American Robin's distinct plumage may have to do with breeding and/or territory disputes among males.
Looking at the behavior of the two Canada geese that I noticed in my observation this week, I believe that this may have been a display of early courtship behavior. As I mentioned earlier, one bird was curled up resting while another stayed alert and seemed to keep watch over the other. This would fit in with the circannual rhythm of the birds as they have just recently migrated back to their summer homes.

Mini-activity: I think that "spishing" may be particularly interesting to many birds because it is similar to a bird call but it is not the call of any species of bird. This particularly human noise sounds like it could be a bird, but it is not a bird that they have heard before and that makes it interesting to them.

Posted on March 22, 2021 08:44 PM by