TENNESSEE ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY http://birdmemphis.org December 2020 Aਭ Uਭਤ਷ਯਤਢਲ਼ਤਣ Rਤਵਤ਱ਲਠਫ ਮਥ Fਮ਱ਲ਼਴ਭਤ It all started with a family trip to look for Barn Owls in Fayette County. We piled into the vehicle and drove one hour to the known roost of Tyto Alba. Having seen fresh evidence of occupancy before, we hoped to catch a glimpse of the resident at home. When we arrived, all we saw were two hunters in their vehicle using the place as a shelter. Slightly dejected, we headed home. As we turned onto Gardener Road, we decided to look and listen for owls. We scanned the tree lines but there were no great horns silhouetted against the darkening sky. We listened intently, but there was no “who cooks for you” wafting through the cool air. But out of the corner of our collective gaze we saw movement. Who could it be? It was too dark for hawks to be about. As we leveled our binoculars, we discovered a bird with buoyant, bouncy flight. The bird wheeled and as it did we saw the pale underside and dark carpal markings that confirmed our gathering suspicions. They are back! The Short-eared Owls are back! At the time of writing this article, there are three owls. Many have already come out to see them. If you have not yet, they are truly striking to watch. The best time to see them is right before sunset. Over the past week, they have been getting up around 5pm. They are also active at sunrise but it is colder and they are less active. If you do come out, please observe from the edge of the road and resist the urge to venture into the field for a better picture. These birds depend on this habitat and we do not want to disturb it or them. If you have time, drop a line to Shelby Farms and thank them for not mowing this area this year. -Cliff VanNostrand OCTOBER 25: W.C. JOHNSON PARK We had 12 participants and 39 species. We had seven species of warblers. -Martha Waldron NOVEMBER 6: SHELBY FARMS On Friday November 6th, 2020, four of us birded a section of Shelby Farms along the trail that starts at the small parking lot at the end of the one-way road at the top of the hill and winds its way past three ponds and lakes and ends at the fields bordering the east side of Farm Road. Accompanying me were David and Betty Blaylock and Sue Ferguson. The weather was clear and 50-70 degrees with only a light occasional breeze. It was very birdy this day due to a high number of Robins working the trees. We did record 37 species in the limited habitat we covered and were pleased to see the variety that we identified. A good number of kinglets were seen with an especially good view of a Golden-Crowned. A few ducks were on one of the lakes, mostly Ruddy Ducks with singles of Shoveler, Gadwall, Ring-necked, a few Mallards and a couple Pied-billed Grebes. GBH (2), Great Egret (1), the usual Belted Kingfisher, some Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers and Sapsuckers. Eastern Phoebe was represented two or three times as were Brown Thrashers and Northern Mockingbirds. Warblers were limited to Yellow-rumps, but sparrows showed up in better numbers including White-throated, Chipping, and Field along with a few Juncos and one Eastern Towhee. The usual crowd of Black and Turkey Vultures was there. By noon we were tired and the birds were resting as were the Buffalo, so we called it enough on Great Blue Heron this beautiful day. Photo: Chad Brown -Chad Brown NOVEMBER 21: SHELBY FARMS The 21 November field trip at Shelby Farms was a success. The mild temperatures attracted 12 birders. Four groups covered the area on both sides of Walnut Grove Road. A total of 61 species was reported. Interesting species were a Dark adult/Black-phase Red-tailed Hawk, a Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawk, eight species of waterfowl, a Great Egret, eight species of sparrows, and Pine Siskin. - Martha Waldron AWARD TO BRANDON GILBERT AT WRWMA Wolf River Wildlife Management Area Manager Brandon Gilbert recently received the 2020 Firebird Award by the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative. The award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to habitat restoration. As the name implies, prescribed fire is a key management tool to maintain suitable habitat for Northern Bobwhite quail. Last year, more than 400 acres were burned Photo by: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency on the Wolf River WMA. The full-time management staff at Wolf River consists of only Brandon and Tony Duncan. They have continued to maintain and create usable quail habitat despite being at ground zero for chronic wasting disease (CWD) among deer in Tennessee. Brandon has successfully used TWRA’s volunteer program to assist in management efforts. Four of Brandon’s former interns are now TWRA employees, and two others work for Agency partners. A donation from Safari Club International allowed Brandon to hire additional seasonal staff. The other staff, plus Brandon’s use of many tools such as aerial herbicide applications, the Fecon mulcher, and growing-season fire, increase quail habitat every year. -Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency https://www.facebook.com/tnwildlife/photos/a.1429337780427145/4015595408468023/?type=3 We were delighted to learn that Brandon Gilbert, manager at the Wolf River Wildlife Management Area in La Grange, TN, has just received a national award for his work in trying to rebuild the population of the beleaguered Northern Bobwhite in our area. Dick Preston and I have been working closely with Brandon during the past two years on Bluebirds and Barn Owls, and salute his strong commitment to the conservation of both game and non-game species. Northern Bobwhite -David O. Hill Photo: David O. Hill With a coat as crimson as Santa Claus’s and a penchant for feeders, what bird could be a better symbol for Christmas? Featured on many a holiday card, cardinals are perhaps the birder’s best friend, cheering the dreary days of winter with bright feathers and boisterous song when other colorful birds are sunning themselves in the tropics. In fact, some western birders travel to the east just to see cardinals. Scientific name: Cardinalis cardinalis Range: Cardinals are year-round residents throughout their range, which extends east and south of the US Rockies. Habitat: They live in any habitat that is relatively open, with many bushes and shrubs for cover. The average backyard is good habitat for this versatile bird. In fact, the growth of suburbia has expanded the cardinal’s range. Diet/feeding: Cardinals feed on seeds and fruit, including buckwheat, grasses, corn, blackberry, mulberry, and wild grape. They also eat a small number of insects. Their favorite feeder food is sunflower seed but will take most seeds, as well as some fruit and suet. Although they forage on the ground in the wild, cardinals will use platform, hopper, and tube feeders. Behavior: Cardinals love to sing and preen on a prominent perch, but they forage furtively in shrubs or on the ground. In a courtship display, males may perform a “dance”, hopping from side to side and flicking or fluttering his wings while a female watches. Males also feed their mates to strengthen their bond. During the breeding season, both sexes attack their reflections in windows or mirrors. The female looks for a fork in a branch of a shrub or small tree in which to build her nest. Males may bring nest material to the female, who uses sticks to shape the foundation of the nest. Then, she lines the cup with material she finds such as: bark, grass, and pine needles. Each nest has approximately 3-5 eggs, which hatch in 11 to 13 days. After hatching, the young fledge in about a week. When, where, and how to see: Cardinals are common year-round in eastern North America, occupying almost any suburban or rural habitat. Other than a black patch or “face mask” around a red bill, males are clad in brilliant scarlet feathers. Females have brown body feathers, with the same face mask as males, but crest, wing and tail feathers are tinged with red. Juveniles lack the flamboyant colors of adults, resembling dull females with gray beaks. Cardinals avoid flying for long distances. The cardinal’s trademark song is a series of loud, upturned notes followed by faster, descending notes (sounds like a-wheep, a-wheep, a-wheep, shubody, shubody, shubody). Their call is a short, metallic chip note. Conservation: The expansion of suburbs that is hurting other bird species has enlarged the cardinal’s range. The population increased from 1966 to 2014. Fun facts: The Northern Cardinal’s range extends into Hawaii! In 1929, because a cardinal escaped from its cage, its mate was released as well. Later, the Hui Manu society (dedicated to introducing colorful songbirds to Hawaii) and other groups released another 300-350 cardinals. This was part of a 40-year effort to repopulate the islands with beautiful birds, as the native ones had become extinct, or had retreated into the mountains. Birds from all over the world were shipped and introduced to Hawaii, including two other cardinal species: the red- crested and yellow-billed, both native to South America. The Hui Manu turned to conservation projects when the government began putting restrictions on songbird introductions. Although rare, yellow Northern Cardinals do exist (however, do not confuse with the separate species Yellow Cardinal, Gubernatrix cristata, which is native to South America).