I saw my first Townsend's Warbler on Christmas Day or the day before or after.
It landed for a few seconds on the grass outside our living room window on
Corvallis. I knew instantly what it was, but couldn't believe something that
brilliant would exist in the familiar gloom of my December home. My father's
failure to respond with like enthusiasm was unfathomable and still is."Little
birds don't interest me," was all he could offer. Haida Gwai, known as the
Queen Charlotte Islands by many for two recent centuries, remained ice free
during the last glacial advance. The redwoods of the north California coast,
Baja Oregon if you would, remained ice free through all the glacial advances of
the past 2.7 million years. Prior to the Pleistocene, "our" ice age, there were
Douglas-firs growing naturally in Europe. They only survived on the eastern
Pacific Rim from Prince George,BC south to Oaxaca and on parts of the western
Pacific Rim in Japan and China. I never cease to be amazed by Townsend's
Warblers in winter, even without knowing their prehistoric origins. When
Seattle and the boreal forests of Canada alike were under a mile of ice, no
place for a Hermit Warbler or Black-throated Green Warbler to call home, their
sibling species the Townsend's Warbler was moving unperturbed from Haida Gwai
to the redwoods and back for 100,000 years. Sent from my Verizon, Samsung
Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------From: Dan Gleason <dan-gleason@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: 12/24/21 11:56 AM (GMT-08:00) To: jeffandlaurettayoung@xxxxxxxxxxx Cc:
OBOL <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [obol] Re: Sweet Treat on Christmas eve I
sent the following reply but it didn’t go to the group so I’ll send it
again:Townsend’s Warblers are regular winter visitors to western Oregon in the
winter. They often tend to stay at elevations above about 500 ft but can
sometimes be seen in the lowlands. Until 2 years ago we lived in the south
hills of Eugene and regularly had 15-20 visiting our suet everyday from fall to
spring. Now that we are on the flats we seldom see them unless we go higher.
Our winter population breeds around the Queen Charlotte Islands. The Townsend’s
Warblers breeding in the Cascades go to the mountains of southern Mexico for
the winter. They’re always a nice spot of color to see on cold winter days.
Since I’m sending again but to all I’ll add some interesting info some of you
may not be aware of. Our Townsend’s Warblers breeding here typically forage
high in the conifers, presumably taking insects. But it’s in the winter in the
highlands of Mexico where things get interesting. There, one of their main
foods is honeydew. Honeydew is a sweet liquid excreted by aphids. When they
poke into a plant cell to feed the pressure in the cell causes a drop of liquid
to be excreted from the anus. This is sweet and the warblers go for it. They
are careful not to kill the aphid so that more honeydew can be produced and
gathered. Some ants “herd” aphids to also get this honeydew. Dan GleasonOwner,
Wild Birds Unlimited of EugeneOrnithology Instructor, retired, University of
Oregondan-gleason@xxxxxxxxxxx> On Dec 24, 2021, at 11:25 AM, Jeff and Lauretta
Young <jeffandlaurettayoung@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:> > a single Townsend’s warbler
appeared at our feeders today ( Beaverton-Bethany area)> > had not seen until
today although my neighbor saw it yesterday two houses away so still around. >
did not see any others> > seems early for migrants… ?> > but maybe it knowsabout the upcoming storms..> > Happy holidays to the many people whoses posts I
did not see any others> > seems early for migrants… ?> > but maybe it knowsabout the upcoming storms..> > Happy holidays to the many people whoses posts I
