Field Journal 4: Social Behavior and Phenology

Date: 3/20/21
Time: 3:30-5:00 pm
Location: Centennial Woods Natural Area
Weather: Sunny, Clear Skies, Slight breeze, 40 degrees F
Habitat: Mixed... Pine stands, open fields with staghorn sumac, hardwood stands

This birding trip was the trip so far where I have heard and seen the most interactions between birds. There was barely a moment of silence, with bird calls and songs coming from all around, namely from Black-capped Chickadees. The first bird I spotted was a Black-capped Chickadee, and I observed from a distance for a while as the bird foraged. I continued my walk, and shortly later stumbled upon four more Black-capped Chickadees, all of which were again foraging. Foraging is a large part of both the circadian and circannual rhythm for these birds, and I wondered if these birds were preparing for their breeding season. I made some pish calls, and one of the Chickadees ended up getting very close up to me (all of them were close, but this one was within a couple feet). The birds surprisingly did not seem to mind my presence, and I was able to observe them at a very close distance for a good amount of time. This spishing seemed to work, and I wondered why the sound was so enticing to these birds. One thought I had was that the noise sounds similar to noises that could be made by smaller insects, giving the birds incentive to look for prey. This would make sense because the Chickadees were actively foraging, so hearing this sound may have prompted them to look closer to where I was standing. I heard what I believed to be a song sparrow song while observing these Chickadees, but it was not returned by another bird, and I wondered if the Song Sparrow was perhaps singing in the hopes of finding a mate. Shortly after walking away from the Chickadees, I came across a group of 5 American Robin, all of which were perched on staghorn sumac trees. The plumage of these Robins allowed them to blend in very well with the trees, and when I spotted the first one, I thought that it was just a fruit cluster on first glance. The birds seemed to be resting, and I observed them for a few minutes before another hiker came along the trail and scared them off. I wondered if the Robins had intentionally been resting in this spot because they were concealed from potential predators. This prompted me to think about the plumage of the Black-capped Chickadees, and I wondered how their plumage could benefit them in similar situations. The first Chickadee I saw on my hike blended in really well with its surroundings, as it was in a snowy area filled with lots of twigs, allowing the white parts of the bird to blend in with the snow and the darker parts to blend in with the twigs and sticks. I wondered again if the area the birds were in was intentional, and if the Chickadees intended to blend themselves in with their surroundings while foraging. I also heard two distinct American Crows throughout my walk. The first Crow I heard was making very aggressive "caw" sounds, and I wondered if it was mobbing a predator to try and scare it off. I have seen Barred Owls recently in Centennial, so I thought that a barred owl could be a potential predator to this crow. I again heard a crow later in my walk that was making much less aggressive calls, so I thought perhaps it may have been searching for a mate or attempting to socialize with other crows. I also spotted a brown creeper on my walk, but it did not make any calls. Finally, as I was leaving the woods, 10 Canada Geese flew over my head, concluding my birding trip.

Posted on March 22, 2021 07:42 PM by tjkeegan tjkeegan

Observations

Photos / Sounds

What

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

Shortly after seeing a singular Black-capped Chickadee alone, I came across a group of four of them that were foraging. This occurred at about 4:15 pm.

Photos / Sounds

What

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

Found a group of five American Robin in a stand of staghorn sumac. The birds blended in well with the sumac and were difficult to spot at first.

Photos / Sounds

No photos or sounds

What

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

Heard two distinct American Crows throughout my walk

Photos / Sounds

What

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

A flock of 10 Canada Goose flew over my head as I was exiting the woods

Photos / Sounds

No photos or sounds

What

American Brown Creeper (Certhia americana)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

Spotted a brown creeper on a large Eastern White Pine but was unfortunately unable to get a good picture.

Photos / Sounds

No photos or sounds

What

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)

Observer

tjkeegan

Date

March 20, 2021

Description

Heard the song of a song sparrow but was unable to spot it.

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