Field Journal 2: Ecological Physiology

March 8, 2021
Start: 1:00 pm
End: 2:30 pm

Location: Redstone woods
Weather: Clear and sunny
Habitat: Woods between campus and golf course (now used as snowshoe/ski trail)

Species List:
Black-capped Chickadee- 10
American Crow- 4
Hairy Woodpecker- 1
White-breasted Nuthatch- 1

For this field journal I observed birds along the path through the Redstone woods. Behavior-wise, I mainly saw birds foraging for food. This was first noticed with the chickadees, which I saw pecking at small branches and stalks near a pond. Similarly, I distinctly heard two woodpeckers attacking some trees. I was only able to find one to confirm it was a Hairy Woodpecker based off of how high up in the tree it was. The nuthatch also looked to be searching for food, as I saw it travelling around a large tree's branches and pecking at the bark. Other birds, such as the crows and a few unidentifiable gulls were seen flying overhead.

I also noticed, specifically with the crows and chickadees, that the birds were very talkative during my walk, perhaps to warn others of my presence.

I did not see any specific behavior related to retaining heat. It wasn't too cold today (around 30) and there was little to no breeze. It seems as though most birds were using this time as an opportunity to find food.

(Mini Activity- Snag Watch)
There were many snags in the Redstone woods, and many had between 5-10 cavities that I could spot. Cavities usually were found near the top of large tree. I would guess most of them, due to the size and texture of wood around them, were from woodpeckers. I did not see too many small snags, but cavities found in them were proportionally smaller (although large snags also contained smaller cavities as well as large ones). I tried to hit a few of the dead trees with a stick but didn't see any birds emerge. I did, however, disturb a sleeping squirrel from its nest (sorry!).

While some snag holes are likely used as nests for cavity nesters, I would also assume that many are due to woodpeckers (and others that peck at wood) looking for food.

Posted on March 8, 2021 09:43 PM by