{BIRD NOTES} ~ August 7, 2011

 

Bird Notes

 

Got Turkey?

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Biologists are extremely happy with the increase in the wild turkey population. They have been surprised at how they’ve successfully expanded throughout the state and how well they have adapted to current habitat conditions. But they are still interested in determining just how well that population is faring. With that in mind the department has established a website they are calling The Wild Turkey Brood Survey and are asking volunteers to record all sightings of wild turkeys including young turkeys, or poults. The brood survey will help them track trends in the reproduction success of the turkey population.

 

Simply go to the department’s website at www.vermontfishandwildlife.com and click on Wild Turkey Brood Survey. The Vermont Fish & Wildlife welcome and invite people to participate. It helps with the management efforts to be able to track turkey populations better. The website will be up and ready on August 1 and will accept and collect data until August 31.

 

We have a lot of turkeys in our area of Windham County. Lets do our share to help with the survey.

 

Retreat Meadows (8/6)

This morning from our vantage point along the West River on Springtree Road, we watched a Great Egret skulking along the grassy shoreline of the large island in search of a meal. While a second egret was standing high on the bare limb of a fallen dead tree on the far side of the sandbar. And still a third egret was wading in the shallow water of the pool beneath the radio tower on the east side of the road. In that same pool a Belted Kingfisher sat motionless on a dead snag patiently waiting for its breakfast to appear. Up river a Great Blue Heron flew in toward the sandbar and joined up with another on the mud flats.  Soon the migrating sandpipers will be showing up in the county, and this is a good place to observe them. Keep a watchful eye.

 

Katydids

Have you heard them yet? Here at Chipmunk Crossing we heard the first one on August 4^th. According to fable, it predicts the first frost will be in 6 weeks. That would make it about the 15^th of September. What do you think?

 

 

Who’s Making All That Racket After Dark?  The Birds That Sing At Night

 Is something (or someone) keeping you awake these summer nights?

Many questions come to eNature about night birds calling and other weird and incessant noises in the dark.  It seems that there’s a lot of activity taking place when most of us expect our birds to be resting. What’s going on?  And who’s making all that noise in the dark?

Depending on the kinds of calls, and the location in North America, they could be any of at least four bird species. Whip-poor-wills and their relatives are famous for calling their names, over and over again, sometime into the thousands of times without stopping. Unless you like to fall to sleep to the call of the whip-poor-will, it can become annoying. Northern Mockingbirds are well known night callers, especially if there is a full moon. Enthusiastic mockingbirds can stay up ALL night, mimicking every bird song in the book as well as other sounds such bells, whistles, and sirens. These are birds that can try the patience of the most committed bird-lover! If the call is coming from a wetland, it is probably one of the two night-herons, the Black-crowned or Yellow-crowned. They make squawks and cackles, and sometimes scary noises that will wake the heaviest sleeper.

Owls make another kind of noise in the night, which can range from the hooting of Great Horned Owls to the whinnying of Screech-owls.

All of these birds are protected by state and federal laws, and nothing can or should be done to disturb them, no matter how annoying they are. The best solution is to either enjoy them, or to put plugs in your ears.  ---eNature

 

Note: I don’t want to belabor this too long, but after the pot luck dinner we found a flat clear glass dish lid that was left on the table by someone.  Let us know if it is yours. At the same time we found that our casserole dish was missing its lid.  It is a round, dome shaped, clear glass Corning Ware casserole lid with a knob on top.    Anyone?  802-254-4820 or chpmnkx@sover.net

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Please share your birding news with us.

What have you got coming to your feeders?

Are there any birds nesting in your yard?

What have you seen while on a trip?

Drop us an e-mail chpmnkx@sover.net

 Al Merritt

W. Brattleboro, VT

Check out our website:   http://sevtaudubonbirdnotes.blogspot.com/

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A friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart.