[TN-Bird] Re: Cedar Waxwings
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "TN-birds" <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 9 May 2004 20:23:15 -0400
Nat Winston III:
One of the enjoyable and admirable traits I hold for any bird student is for
those who think about the distribution of Tennessee birds and how breeding
populations are expanding their ranges and others are decreasing ranges. It
goes on here in the mountains all the time. This is an observation skill
and a knowledge level for which most birders in the state know very little
and even more are not willing learn. It requires experience and
lots of thinking and reading. Much of what we suspect is not as it is.
This is an effort you have to undergo before you learn.
Tough birders with great skills, great enthusiasm and keen minds go beyond
the twitching and begin to learn. Never was this more widesprad and
valuable than when many TOS birders joined for the fieldwork leading to the
"Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Tennessee," compiled and authored by Chuck
Nicholson (Charles P. Nicholson if you are hunting your own copy online).
For instance. I know that I have seen the nests of Cedar Waxwings with eggs
in Shady Valley, Johnson Co., in Northeast Tennessee -- 40 years ago. I had
no idea of how widespread this species is in the breeding season in
Tennessee. So I turned to Chuck's book. Nat, you made me do it ;-)
"The Cedar Waxwing is present in Tennessee throughout the year, usually in
nomadic flocks of a few dozen birds that feed primarily on berries," Chuck
wrote. "Its numbers are greates during the fall and spring, when it occurs
in flocks of up to a few hundred birds. Waxwing numbers decrease during May
and are lowest during the summer. Nesting waxwings are most common from the
Cumberland Plateau eastward. Prior to Atlas fieldwork, nesting had been
reported once from each of 3 Middle Tennessee counties and from 15 East
Tennessee counties. During Atlas fieldwork, confirmed breeding was reported
from an additional 23 counties across the state, probably the largest
increase in the known breeding distribution of any Tennessee bird."
Any true Tennessee bird student has a copy of this book handy or will get
it. And there is so much to be learned and understood about the birds of
Tennessee. We have a wealth of knowledge between the covers of several
wonderful state publications. If you go to sleep under a big shade tree
during the breeding season and have little understanding of the distribution
of breeding birds, you are a twitcher looking a pictures in your field
guide and really don't give yourself a chance to appreciate Tennessee's
diverse breeding bird population.
But if a twich here and a twich there is what you love and enjoy then that
is OK. No harm done. Someone should remind us that there is so much more
to learn and so many more dramatic and exciting discoveries waiting for each
of us.
Take the dusty copies from your bookshelf and get involved this summer. If
you don't have them, put that on your to-do-list or wishlist.
Thanks to Nat Wilson III for opening our eyes one more time by venturing out
into this exciting world of birds to suggest how he saw the breeding
distribution of Cedar Waxwings in Tennessee. Many fine bird students have
gone there before. Thanks Nat !
Let's go birding......
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
----- Original Message -----
From: <Thornius2@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, May 09, 2004 12:01 PM
Subject: [TN-Bird] Cedar Waxwings
> Thanks for the help, folks. It now appears that Cedar Waxwings have now
> extended their year-round range into Tennessee and further south. Just
this
> morning I ran into a small flock 10 miles from my house.
> Nat Winston III
> Hermitage, TN
> thornius2@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> http://www.freewebs.com//thornsbirds
>
>
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> ========================================================
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=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with
first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation.
-----------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
-----------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
endorse the views or opinions expressed
by the members of this discussion group.
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
========================================================
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