Wrentit November 2019 - January 2020
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE RENTIT W Founded 1904 Drawing by Pasadena Audubon Society Guy Coheleach A Chapter of National Audubon Society To bring the excitement of birds to our community through Volume 68 — No. 2 birding, education and the conservation of bird habitats. November 2019 - January 2020 Townsend’s Warbler - A Study in Motion ooking up at an oak tree, I caught a glimpse of some yellow. With the help Lof fellow birders, I located a warbler flitting around amongst the branches. It hung around long enough for me to snap a few quick pictures before foraging deeper into the foliage. Constantly in motion, this colorful bird continued to go about its day seemingly paying us no mind. The Townsend’s Warbler (Setophaga townsendi) is a winter resident in our area and likes to spend its time among oaks, conifers, chaparral and in parks. This sparrow-sized bird breeds in coniferous and mixed forests of the Pacific North- west, from Washington all the way up to Alaska. It is a winter resident in Cali- fornia, though its wintering territory also includes parts of Mexico and Central America, and it migrates across western North America. Sporting a yellow body with black streaks and a white belly, males have a stark black Townsend’s Warbler © Fletcher Friesen cap, throat and stripe along the side of their face, apart from a spot of yellow directly beneath their eyes. Females and juvenile birds have a less intense shade of black and more yellow on their head and throat. Luckily for us, both sexes retain their colorful plumage year-round. Its call is a soft chip, while it sings songs consisting of either a ‘weazy weazy weazy weazy twea’ or ‘dee dee dee-de de.’ Being insectivorous, it gleans larval insects from branches and sallies to snag insects from the air. Less often, it feeds on berries, nectar and honeydew in Central America. The Townsend’s Warbler is named after the naturalist John Kirk Townsend, who was the first to describe this species of bird. It is a member of the Setophaga genus, more commonly known as wood warblers, colorful warblers that spend most of their lives among the treetops. Genetically, its closest relative is the Hermit Warbler (Setophaga occidentalis) with which it can and does hybridize where their ranges overlap. During the breeding season, females build cup nests after scouting several locations while males sing to defend their territory. A clutch size from three to five eggs hatch after an incubation period of about twelve days, with both parents feeding their young as they develop. Story and photos by Fletcher Friesen President’s Perch lant an oak. Or if you can’t do that, plant a ceanothus. Or a buckwheat. Plant something that will feed caterpillars so that Pthe birds will have something nutritious to feed their young. Autumn is the best time to plant native plants. Go for it. Take a child birding. Show them how to use binoculars and how cool birds are so they can get excited too. Once they care about birds, which takes about a minute, show them how bad trash is for birds and how important it is that we clean it up. Model being a good steward of the earth by using less plastic. Have them help you plant your native plants. Write to your city or state legislator. Ask them to introduce legislation that will protect birds. Ask them to ban the widespread use of rodenticide because that kills a lot of raptors. Ask them to avoid trimming street trees in the spring and summer and to plant trees that feed birds. Let them know that you care about birds. If you have a cat, keep it indoors. Cats kill many birds, so if we want to protect birds, we need to keep our cats indoors. Don’t use pesticides in your garden. They kill the insects that birds eat. No insects = no birds. Poisoned insects = poisoned birds. Join our Birds and Beans coffee club. It’s good for the planet and good for birds. And it’s delicious! This all may seem like blunt talk. I know it is. But birds are in crisis so there is no time for gentility and politesse. We’ve lost 2.9 billion (that’s with a B) in the last 50 years, and the newly released report from National Audubon on the effects of climate change (or climate crisis or even climate catastrophe) shows that we will lose far more unless we do something NOW. So do something. Find a way to help birds. You’ll be making positive change, and you’ll feel better for it. Find a way to help. And if you don’t know what to do, ask me. Pasadena Audubon is here to help. We’re Pasadena Audubon, and we are bringing back birds. Laura Solomon pasadenaaudubon.org 2 The Wrentit November 2019 - January 2020 MONTHLY CHAPTER MEETINGS: UPCOMING PROGRAMS North American Sparrows CBC Dinner On the road: Wednesday, November 20, 2019 Saturday, December 14, 2019 A “Dirtbag” Big Year 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm his summer, I had the amazing opportunity to visit the Andes Mountains in Peru with a Wednesday, January 15, 2020 group from my school, learning about Peru’s history and modern-day culture and ultimately Presenter: Rick Wright T Eaton Canyon Nature Center 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Renowned sparrow authority Rick Wright Presenter: Jon Fisher Eaton Canyon Nature Center will discuss his recently published book, While this wasn’t strictly a birding trip - I was the only birder present - I was incredibly excited After the count, we join together to cele- ‘Peterson Reference Guide to North Amer- Presenter: Taylor Paez to see Peru’s birdlife while there. Although fairly small, Peru has the second-most recorded bird brate with a catered dinner and drinks. ican Sparrows’ and provide some insight A big year is a personal challenge species of any country in the world, including many endemic species. Much of Peru’s incredible You’ll also hear about what turned up into the world of these ‘little brown jobs.’ among birders who attempt to identify biodiversity is due to its range in habitats: the coast is dry while the eastern edge of the country and how it compares to past years. The as many species as possible by sight or is part of the Amazon rainforest, and the Andes mountains alone provide everything from alpine dinner is $20 per person. Please RSVP sound within a single calendar year and tundra to isolated, wet, intermontane valleys. In fact, through- by December 9th by sending a check to within a defined geographic area. In out the Andes, individual species may be endemic to a single Pasadena Audubon Society, 1750 N. 2017, Taylor Paez did just that, travers- river valley. Altadena Drive, Pasadena, CA 91107, or ing the lower 48 United States looking We spent the first half of the trip in Cusco, a city located make an online payment on our website. for birds while living out of her 2002 11,000 feet high in the Andes that was built as the capital of the Inca Empire. While exploring Be sure to mention CBC. Ford Ranger. She birded 44 states, drove the ruins of Saqsaywaman, an Incan religious site built of massive boulders fitted precisely over 50,000 miles, and ultimately saw together without any mortar, I saw some of my first Andean birds: Rufous-collared Sparrow and 643 species of birds by the end of 2017. Andean Lapwing. Andean Lapwings are odd, grayish and brown shorebirds with flashy black Join us as Taylor recalls the highs and and white wings. In the same genus as White-crowned Sparrows, Rufous-collared Sparrows are lows of life birding on the road: from most distinctive for their orangey collar and were quite common at all the places we visited. “dipping on mega-rarities”, to the great Rufous-collared Sparrow. After a few more days of exploring the Cusco area and acclimatizing to the high altitude, our successes of a life well-traveled. ATaylor Rufous-collared Sparrow hanging out at Machu Picchu Fox Sparrow ©Javier Vazquez group was excited to finally start hiking the Inca Trail. is from just down the street in Monro- We hiked the trail over four days, starting at about 9,000 feet, climbing up to 14,000 feet CBC Prep via and is the Publicity Chair of PAS’s and finishing at Machu Picchu. It was a great chance to see Peruvian birds because the trail Board. Wednesday, December 11, 2019 also goes through many distinct ecological zones, including rainforest, alpine cloud forest and puna, a kind of scrubby Andean habitat just below the tundra. During those four days, 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm I saw (and heard) many incredible birds. Some notable species were Inca Wrens singing Presenter: Jon Fisher their robotic-sounding song, a Giant Hummingbird - the largest hummingbird species in The traditional pre-count meeting will the world - and many Moustached Flowerpiercers (whose calls reminded me of bushtits) introduce the Christmas Bird Count to new- along the trail. At the Machu Picchu ruins themselves, I saw Blue-and-white Swallows, comers and alums alike. Jon will present an Mitred Parakeets and more Rufous-collared Sparrows. overview of the count methods, procedures One of my favorite birds of the trip was a and checklists. Count areas will also be Mountain Caracara. Among birds, I espe- assigned. Black Oystercatcher ©Kathy Degner cially love raptors, so I had been looking forward to the trail’s many vistas as chanc- Monthly chapter meetings are held the third Wednesday of the month at Eaton Canyon Nature Center (1750 N.