spring has sprung. titmice, chickadees, cardinals and mockingbirds are at
the nest.
The Carolina wren gave up on nest building in my kitchen exhaust fan and is
about done as she spends a lot of time re-arranging the furniture.
And the barred owl people are out making kissy-face by 4:30 in the pm.
Should be on the nest but no looking until the young fledge.
Coming home from the store and stopped in traffic near wilcrest and briar
forest, a single broad-winged hawk hurried north. And several red-tails
went by the house last week.
Yellow-rumped warblers left me on Thursday and night but lots of new people
showed up on Friday. By today they could land on the rail and the feeder
like the oldtimers.
Around 2 pm on Friday goldfinches were going north way up there. I could
only catch a bit of a chicory not but no specs in the binoculars. They were
moving for more than an hour.
I had one goldfinch for a minute last week for the only down low bird since
they all left a week earlier. Usually new birds come in to replace the old
group.
A flicker is very territorial across the bayou and a cooper's hawk is up
doing circles over the area of last years nest. Local red-tails still come
by but are not doing anything looking like nesting yet. And the pileated
woodpeckers are very much paired and hollering.
Munias are crowded out of the feeder by a horde of white-winged doves. 21
on the platform at one time beat the old record although one did not have
its feet on the deck but was held up by the other birds. Doves dominate now
that the peregrines left and the local coopers have not moved back. Two
separated feeding flocks now stop by at the same time coming from different
directions.
Have been doing some experiments on the doves. One loud clap or other noise
will get all moving. A second use of the same stimulus moves most but some
stay. And a third try and almost all ignore the noise. They totally ignore
peregrine and cooper's calls. Sometimes movement panics them but waving
ones arms nearby only annoys a few.
And the first bronzed cowbird showed up for a bit yesterday until it was
moved off by the doves so they do some good. The ones under the feeder also
chased it but they chase everything.
--
Joseph C. Kennedy
on Buffalo Bayou in West Houston
Josephkennedy36@xxxxxxxxx
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