Feeder Watch! What’s in This Bird Monitoring Program For You?
©Bert Gildart: When not on the road (as we often are), throughout the year one of our greatest sources of enjoyment at home is derived from our bird feeder. In fact, our guests at our bird feeder have often been the source of our posts. Janie is the one who gathers most of the tabulations and she has recorded about 30 different avian species.
An infrequent visitor to our bird feeder, this red squirrel grew quite use to me and within an hour I was approaching it close enough for my 80-400mm Nikon zoom lens. (Hunger overcame fear of humans.) To fill in the shadows, I added an SB800 Nikon flash. The photo is uncropped and illustrates the range of visitors we receive year 'round.
Most typically, species include the nuthatches, a variety of woodpeckers, crossbills, juncos, yellow warblers, and grosbeaks. More rarely, and sometimes not always wanted, huge turkeys have gathered on the railing near our feeder and tried to empty it of its contents. Once a bald eagle swooped in, but it was probably more interested in grabbing one of the song birds as a meal rather than feeding on the suet or grain we provide.
And once, too, three raccoons visited our feeder. But they left so much damage in their wake that they’re are not welcome back.
TYPICAL GUESTS
This past week, in addition to the usual species of birds, visitors have included a red squirrel (above) and two pileated woodpeckers. This species is one of our favorites and Janie enjoys them so much she has given them names. Our male has a red moustache, and she calls him “Hector.” Our female is not so endowed and we call her “Hortense.” Though we often see them singly on our feeder, never before have I seen them together. My picture here is not the best, but then it is a photograph of two pileated woodpeckers–and that I thought was unusual enough to post it.
We love our feeder, and this year I’ve learned of a program that could enhance our enjoyment. It would be of immense interest if we were not going to depart soon in our Airstream on another trip to gather story materials and photographs.
FEEDER WATCH
The program is called FeederWatch, and I obtained the information in the form of a press release, something those of us who are members of the Outdoor Writers’s Association of America receive lots of. Essentially, FeederWatch asks participants across the country to create periodic tallies of birds that visit their feeder. From this information scientists at the Cornell Ornithological Labratory create a picture of winter bird abundance and distribution. But it can’t be done without the help of those who have bird feeders.
This is one of the few photographs I've posted that I've modified extensively. Because it's rare that we get a single pileated woodpecker, much less two, I grabbed my camera when light was poor, upped the ISO to 1200, then cropped the image almost in half. Only moments before both had been feeding from the suet container, and that would have made a much better photograph.
For more complete information about FeederWatch I’m providing a link, but in short, and to borrow from their press release here’s what they’re all about:
FeederWatch data shows which bird species visit feeders at thousands of locations across the continent every winter. The data also indicate how many individuals of each species are seen. This information can be used to measure changes in the winter ranges and abundances of bird species over time.
With each season, FeederWatch increases in importance as a unique monitoring tool for more than 100 bird species that winter in North America. It has been used in all states and is a tool often used by school teachers to stimulate interest in student for science.
POPULATION MAPS
Importantly, FeederWatch data tell us where birds are as well as where they are not. This crucial information enables scientists to piece together the most accurate population maps.
Because FeederWatchers count the number of individuals of each species they see several times throughout the winter, FeederWatch data are extremely powerful for detecting and explaining gradual changes in the wintering ranges of many species. In short, FeederWatch data are important because they provide information about bird population biology that cannot be detected by any other available method.
As I said, if we were going to be here this winter, this is a program in which we’d definitely ourselves. In the meantime, why don’t you try it and then tell me later down the road how you like it.
TWO YEARS AGO ABOUT THIS TIME:
Great Smoky Mountain National Park
NOTE (6/11/2018): For more about bird feeders follow this link offered by an acquaintance: https://hobbyhelp.com/bird-watching/
4th ed. Autographed by the Authors
Hiking Shenandoah National Park
Hiking Shenandoah National Park is the 4th edition of a favorite guide book, created by Bert & Janie, a professional husband-wife journalism team. Lots of updates including more waterfall trails, updated descriptions of confusing trail junctions, and new color photographs. New text describes more of the park’s compelling natural history. Often the descriptions are personal as the Gildarts have hiked virtually every single park trail, sometimes repeatedly.
Big Sky Country is beautiful
Montana Icons: 50 Classic Symbols of the Treasure State
Montana Icons is a book for lovers of the western vista. Features photographs of fifty famous landmarks from what many call the “Last Best Place.” The book will make you feel homesick for Montana even if you already live here. Bert Gildart’s varied careers in Montana (Bus driver on an Indian reservation, a teacher, backcountry ranger, as well as a newspaper reporter, and photographer) have given him a special view of Montana, which he shares in this book. Share the view; click here.
$16.95 + Autographed Copy
What makes Glacier, Glacier?
Glacier Icons: 50 Classic Views of the Crown of the Continent
Glacier Icons: What makes Glacier Park so special? In this book you can discover the story behind fifty of this park’s most amazing features. With this entertaining collection of photos, anecdotes and little known facts, Bert Gildart will be your backcountry guide. A former Glacier backcountry ranger turned writer/photographer, his hundreds of stories and images have appeared in literally dozens of periodicals including Time/Life, Smithsonian, and Field & Stream. Take a look at Glacier Icons
$16.95 + Autographed Copy
