Field Journal #3

March 7, 2021
Start: 1:09 pm
End: 3:04 pm
Location: Intervale
Weather: Sunny, 25 degrees fahrenheit, 4 mph wind NNE, no precipitation
Habitats: Trees, power lines, open field

While most of the birds I observed were flying by me, there were a few notable observations. The European Starlings and House Sparrows I observed were in bushes or trees in groups and were looking for food on the ground (House Sparrows) or resting in the trees (European Starlings). The Northern Cardinals I saw were flying around between trees and it was hard to keep track of any one of them, but they seemed to be looking for food. I could hear their calls and songs to each other and the males seemed to be much more active than the females. The European Starlings, House Sparrows, and Northern Cardinals all went to the ground to eat a few seeds before jumping to their perch. The two Red-tailed Hawks I saw were circling over the highway by the Intervale together searching for food. Finally, the Mourning Doves I saw were resting on power lines next to each other.

All of the birds I saw seemed to have very little concern for the cold temperatures outside, which indicates to me that these birds are well-adapted for a cold climate and their body heat combined with the insulation of their feathers seems to be sufficient for the climate. The Mourning Doves I saw seemed to be making a point of sitting in the sun which they may have been using to absorb heat, but they could also simply have perched there as a vantage point to scan for food. It seems to me that most, if not all of these birds come here for food, because I'm starting to notice that when I come to the Intervale closer to dusk, I don't see many birds other than American Crows and perhaps European Starlings. This suggests to me that none of these birds overnight here and if they do, they do so in the very distant trees I don't have access to. Due to the cold climate, I think most of these birds subsist on seeds, as there doesn't seem to be much insect life available this time of year. The Red-tailed Hawks, however, were probably looking for small rodents such as voles, rats, squirrels to eat.

I had a hard time finding any significant snags in the Intervale and the few I did find were lacking any significant cavities. The lack of snags with cavities here is probably a good part of the reason why birds don't seem to overnight here. Snag cavities are important micro-habitats for many bird species to overnight in because they provide shelter from predators and the elements which can make spending the night in the open dangerous. I haven't paid enough attention to the presence of snags here in the past, and if I were to repeat this observation day, I would go somewhere I know has more snags so I can get a better understanding of their relationship to bird activity.

Posted on March 8, 2021 08:34 PM by jonsolomon