Bird Tracks
Audubon Members make
a difference
INTERPRETIVE
SIGN AT MICA BAY
Kris Buchler
Coeur d’Alene
Audubon has partnered with two Lake City High School students to produce an educational
sign about wetlands for display at Mica Bay.
We began the project in the spring of 2003 when Erik Fenenbock was a
senior and Larina Helm was a junior.
Larina and Erik have worked together to produce a stunning artwork
depicting many species of the native plants and wildlife of the Mica Bay
wetlands. The Education Committee
developed the text which conveys the value of this vulnerable habitat.
On February 16, at this month’s meeting,
our chapter was proud to present honorariums of $250.00 each to Larina and Erik
for their efforts and talents. Erik
graduated in June of 2003 and Larina will graduate in June of this year. We wish them both the best in all future
endeavors.
The interpretive sign will be dedicated
May 8th, as part of our celebration of International Migratory Bird
Day. Check future newsletters for more information.
PROJECTOR NEEDED
Our chapter is
looking for a used slide projector for use in giving educational programs. It
should accommodate Kodak Carousels. If you have one you would like to sell or
donate, please call Kris at 664-4739.
EAGLE WATCH WEEK
Another Successful Coeur d'Alene Eagle Watch Week
Scott Robinson
The BLM (Bureau of
Land Management) has been counting Bald Eagles around
Wolf Lodge Bay since 1974.
This year, Audubon's Corinne Cameron counted 143 Bald Eagles on December
29, which was our all-time greatest number of eagles. We think our eagles moved down from Pend Oreille Lake where the
kokanee population has taken a nose dive as a result of pool level
management. Coeur d'Alene
Lake's kokanee salmon appear to be slowly recovering from the 1997 floods that
flushed many fish down the Spokane River.
The BLM is examining the current data, however.
The BLM recently
completed its 13th annual watch week.
We have asked our eagle watchers to record their mailing zip code in one
of two register books since 1994.
Nearly 38,000 people have come to watch eagles during these nine weeks
of viewing. To date, 49 American
states, Washington D.C., 3 military zip codes, and 29 foreign countries have
been represented. We continue to wait
for Rhode Island to come on over and sign in!
Although people
watched eagles before and after our designated week, about 4,800 people came
during Christmas and New Year. This
number beats the 4,700 people that came in 2001, but was short of the 7,800
eagle watchers in 1994. Residents from 36 States registered their zip code with
us in 2003. Seventy-one percent of this year's eagle watchers came from 52
nearby communities in Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Behind Washington and Idaho, California contributed the next
greatest number of eagle watchers.
If we count the
number of zip codes, then California represents the greatest geographic
distribution of all eagle watchers.
Many of these people
were visiting family and friends during the holiday season. For example, people came from Stow,
Massachusetts in 2001, 2002, and 2003; Dana Point, California every year since
1994: and Beaverton, Oregon in 1994, 2002, and 2003. Some people, such as one family from Indiana who saw our event in
an AAA magazine, came on a skiing vacation.
People from Canada, China, Mexico, England, Denmark, the Philippines,
South Africa, and Zimbabwe also saw our eagles this year. Some, but not all of these foreign folks
were exchange students.
The BLM appreciates
the help of local Auduboners Jenny Taylor, Kris Buchler, Maribel Mogilefsky,
and Nancy Mertz Prichard for helping with this
year's Coeur d'Alene Eagle Watch Week. Thanks for the help, and we'll do it all again next year.
2003
YARDLIST CHALLENGE
Fuertes' Eastern Bird Collection
Lisa Hardy
This year we had 8
households report a total of 109 species. The median list size was 46 species. The
challenge in 2002 yielded 121 species. Ten species were reported this
year from all 8 participants (Canada Goose, Calliope Hummingbird,
Northern Flicker, Black-capped Chickadee, American Robin, Song Sparrow,
Dark-eyed Junco, Cassin's Finch, House Finch, Pine Siskin, and Evening
Grosbeak). And 31 species were reported from only a single household.
As usual, the largest
lists came from yards on or near the water. Highlights were Common Loon
(Shirley), American White Pelican (Lori), and Harlequin Duck (Lisa).
Tweety-bird highlights
included Kris' American Redstart, Lori's American Tree Sparrow, and Janet's
Black-c. Chickadee.
The Warings had both
Blue Jay and a Steller's X Blue hybrid. Cooper's Hawks made an appearance in
town in Lynn's and the Waring's yards, while Jan recorded the only Merlin.
Lori had all three
nuthatches, and Jan and Kris had all three chickadees. Janet had a clean sweep
of the finch family. As a group, we tallied a respectable seven species of
ducks, and nine birds of prey.
This is the fourth
year of the annual Yardlist Challenge, and we added 6 new species never
reported before: Harlequin Duck, Gray Partridge, American Redstart, American
Tree Sparrow, Lazuli Bunting, and Yellow-headed Blackbird. This brings our
grand total for four years to 156 species. Of those, 95 have been seen every
year, but only 2 species have been recorded by all participants every year
(Northern Flicker, American Robin). Of our 156 species grand total, 30 have
been seen in only one year, or about 19%. Some of these "singletons"
are due to one-time participants who represent
different habitats.
This year's
participants: Kris & Ed Buchler, Janet Callen, Lisa Hardy, Lori Stackow,
Jan & Herb Severtson, Lynn Sheridan, Shirley Sturts, Judy & Phil
Waring.
Look at the tables on
the web page for the complete data.
2004 YARDLIST CHALLENGE
Sign up for
the 2004 Yard list Challenge with Lisa Hardy - call 682-4808. She will send you a "Check List" of
bird species to help you keep track of what you see or hear in or from your
yard. Also, having this "Check
List" is a good reminder to write the date down each time we see a new
bird species for the year.
KOOTENAI
COUNTY
BIG
YEAR
Shirley Sturts
In the year 2000
Steve Lindsay compiled a checklist of all the bird species that have ever been
observed in Kootenai County. On January
1st of 2001, he set out to do a Kootenai County Big Year. His goal was to find 200 species in
Kootenai County in one year. On
December 31, 2001 he was up to 199.
Driving to the Harrison area instead of out on the Rathdrum Prairie to
look for number 200 proved to be fatal
to his plan. That 200th bird
was seen a day later, January 1, 2002 on the Rathdrum Prairie.
This effort by
Steve inspired me to start a Kootenai
County Big Year for our Chapter. I
thought with all of us working together we could find 200 birds during
2002. We were off to a good start with
Steve Lindsay coming up with our first bird for the year, the Snowy Owl. However, we didn't get out in the field as
much as Steve did and we ended with 195 birds for 2002 and our efforts for 2003
netted us even fewer, 192.
This year Steve is
doing a Big Year for the 5 northern counties and we are going to make a real
effort to reach the magic number of 200 for Kootenai County. We are not including Steve's sightings on
our list. Instead, we are having a
"just for fun" contest to see if we can come up with more species
than he does for Kootenai County.
. We are off to a
good start with 80 species as of February 17.
Steve has only 59. Being the
first to see a bird species is another part of the contest. Of the birds we
have both seen, he is ahead of us, 23 to 14.
We saw 19 species on the same date as he did. We have 21 species that he had not found yet and he has 3 species that we have not found yet.
One thing that makes
me hopeful that we will reach our goal this year is the fact that of the 80
species we have found so far, several of them are difficult to find birds. Kris Buchler had a Common Redpoll at her
feeder on January 1st. Then
Janet Allen called in a Northern Goshawk near her Hauser Lake home on January 8th
and Nancy Mertz added a Blue Jay at her feeder on January 12. Lisa Hardy and Kris Buchler came up with a
Red-breasted Merganser on the IBA count in Wolf Lodge Bay on January 20th. Eula Hickam came up with a possible Snowy
Owl on Rathdrum Prairie on January 20 and a few days later Corinne Cameron
confirmed her sighting by seeing a Snowy Owl close to the same area as Eula saw
hers. We are assuming this was the same
bird.
Lynn Sheridan and
her Brown Bag Birders found a Thayer's Gull at Independence Point January 20th. Not to be out done, the birders on the January 25th
Chapter field trip added a Mew Gull and an American Tree Sparrow. The reporting of two rare gulls, the Mew and
the Thayer's, attracted Gina Sheridan, a birder from Spokane. On February 1, instead of finding the Mew
and Thayer's Gull which she had come to seek, she added another rare gull, the
Glaucous-winged Gull.
With a start like
this, how can we not reach the goal of 200 species! Spring is just around the corner and the migrants are going to
start showing up. Cindi Langlitz already
reported the first returning migrant when one Red-winged Blackbird came by her
house on February 1st.
There are 120 bird
species left for us to find. All of you
can help in this effort and get credit for having the first sighting. Check the Observation Post in the February,
March and future newsletters for a list of birds observed to date. For the most up-to-date list go to Kootenai
County Big Year. I will be updating
this list at least once a week. Also,
you can pick up a Kootenai County Check List at the March meeting.
The
Birdhouse Network
The Birdhouse Network
seeks bird enthusiasts to help monitor the impact of invasive species.
In the mid-1800's,
little brown birds called House Sparrows were introduced into the United States
from Europe, reportedly to promote the birds mentioned in Shakespeare plays and
because they were believed to control insect pests. Since then, these little
brown birds have made themselves quite comfortable here - spreading their wings
across all of North America in vast numbers. Their surging populations have
resulted in fierce competition with native birds for nesting sites.
According to 2003
data collected by The Birdhouse Network (TBN), a citizen-science
project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, House Sparrows account
for 43 percent of all competitor species, i.e., species that take over nest
boxes intended for native birds. And
while most nest box monitors discourage nesting by House Sparrows, they still
comprise ten percent of all reported nesting attempts, where at least one egg
is laid.
"What effect is
this having on North America's bluebirds, swallows, and other native
cavity-nesting species? We don't know," says TBN project leader Tina Phillips.
There are no long-term studies showing the effect of competition between House
Sparrows and our native cavity-nesters. This is one reason why we're asking
everyone across the continent to become part of our nest-box monitoring
project. The only way to get answers is to get data, which can only be provided
by people who monitor nest boxes.
TBN participants
monitor activity inside nest boxes, also known as birdhouses, and keep track of
data such as egg laying dates, numbers of eggs and nestlings, and fledging
dates. They send their observations to researchers at the Cornell Lab of
Ornithology, where they are combined with observations from across North
America, to determine the annual nesting success of cavity nesting birds.
In the middle of the
last century, things were not looking so good for bluebirds. Their populations
were seriously declining due to pesticide use, habitat loss and competition
with non-native species, such as House Sparrows.
Today, bluebird
populations are rebounding thanks to bird enthusiasts who provide nest boxes in
their yards, fields, and neighborhoods. Bluebirds benefit greatly from this
simple act because, like most secondary cavity nesters they are physically
incapable of creating their own nesting holes, and must rely on pre-existing
nest sites in order to raise their family.
Phillips points out
that simply putting up nest boxes isn't enough. In order to ensure the
long-term future of native cavity-nesters, nest box owners need to monitor and
report what's going on inside their boxes. Only
then will scientists have a truer picture of the current status
and factors influencing breeding success of native cavity-nesting species.
One thing is known
for sure. In head-to-head competition, House Sparrows readily out-compete
native species for nesting sites. They will do whatever is necessary to acquire
and keep prime real estate, including evicting other nesting birds, destroying
their eggs, killing nestlings, and sometimes even killing the incubating female.
Adding to the competition is the fact that once a male House Sparrow
establishes a territory, he remains there year-round, and starts defending that
territory early in the season, often preventing later-arriving species such as
bluebirds and swallows from nesting.
House Sparrows are
also prolific breeders, raising up to four broods per season (compared to just
one or two for bluebirds), and each brood averages four to five eggs. They are expert
nest builders, building and rebuilding nests at a rapid rate. For these
reasons, TBN is collecting data for a new Nest Box Competitor Study, which
examines the effect of nest box
competition from invasive species on native cavity nesting birds.
Participants collect information about the competitor species using the nest
box, the type of interference, if any, by monitors, and the final outcome of
the nesting attempt.
In addition to
collecting data, is there anything else nest-box monitors can do? Since House
Sparrows are not federally protected, TBN recommends several tips to discourage
them from nesting. These tips include avoiding the use of filler grain such as
milo, millet, or cracked corn at bird feeder stations, all favored foods of
House Sparrows. Since House Sparrows can be common around human habitation, TBN
recommends placing nest boxes away from heavily trafficked areas. Another
strategy is to plug the entrance hole of nest boxes until the desired species
arrives for
breeding in the hopes that House Sparrows in the area have
already set up house-keeping elsewhere. Experienced monitors also will remove
nest or eggs and deploy traps.
Sometimes the best
strategy for dealing with House Sparrows is to not put up a box at all,
especially if you aren't willing to discourage their nesting in favor of native
species, says Phillips. She adds again, that to really make a difference for
the birds, becoming part of TBN and sharing your observations with researchers
is essential. So far, the project has received more than 41,000 nesting records
for over 40 cavity-nesting species. Information however, is still badly needed
for the new Nest Box Competitor Study.
Serious birders,
beginners, families, classrooms, youth groups, everyone is invited to become
part of The Birdhouse Network. A registration fee of $15 ($12 for Lab members)
helps offset the cost of running the project. Participants receive a Welcome
Packet that includes a beautiful poster of cavity-nesting birds, access to
private and public listserve, an annual subscription to the Lab's quarterly
newsletter, BirdScope, and access to an online database where participants can
submit, organize, share and store their nest box observations. People can sign
up by calling the Lab toll-free at 800/843-2473 (outside the U.S.,
607/254-2473) or at The
Birdhouse Network web site at
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/birdhouse
Nest Box Cams, a Peek Inside the Mysterious Lives of
Cavity-nesting Birds
Since 1999, TBN has
provided live images of cavity-nesting birds to viewers around the world. Using
a system of Nest Box Cams—small cameras placed inside nest boxes, Internet
viewers can follow species such as bluebirds,
swallows, Barn Owls, American Kestrels, and chickadees, as they
build their nests, lay eggs, hatch, feed the young, and much more. Developed
and managed
by the TBN staff, the cams have attracted nearly half a million
viewers.
The cams are a great way to get a
close-up-and-personal look at what goes on inside a nest box, something that
just wouldn't be possible without the cams, says Phillips. To get a peek,
visitThe Birdhouse Network's web site at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/birdhouse
To become a sponsor
of the cams, contact Tina Phillips at the above address.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology
is a membership institution interpreting and
conserving the earth's biological diversity through research,
education and citizen science focused on birds
"If I were to make a study of the
tracks of animals and represent them by plates, I should conclude with the
tracks of man"
Henry David Thoreau
Top
of Page
Rathdrum Prairie
Sunday,
February 9
Lisa Hardy
Criss-crossing the Rathdrum Prairie from
noon until dark did not find us the elusive Snowy Owl, but we tallied a large
number of buteos, and a single Northern Harrier. The buteos were either
Red-tailed or Rough-legged Hawks, and several excellent views allowed us to
appreciate the diagnostic, diminutive bill of the Rough-legged. Most of the
Red-tails were unexceptional adult birds, but we had a brief glimpse of one
dark-fronted individual, possibly the Harlan’s Hawk that has been reported from
the prairie this winter. Harlan’s are a race of Red-tailed Hawk that breed in
Alaska. We revisited the site on Atlas
Road where we saw three species of gallinaceous birds on our trip two weeks
ago. On this day, we saw only California Quail and (nine!) Ring-necked Pheasant.
We deduced that the residents of a house on Bean Street, a short road on the
west side of Atlas, were feeding the birds.
As the sun set in a wash of color, we
located several flocks of Canada Geese feeding in the snowy fields around
Greensferry and Hayden. And a final highlight was the lone Horned Lark that
Janet spotted in the fading light on the railroad tracks west of Highway 41.
Trip participants:
Janet Callen, Roland Craft, Bill Gundlach, Lisa Hardy, Shirley Sturts.
Trip list:
|
Canada Goose
|
311
|
|
Northern Harrier
|
1
|
|
Red-tailed Hawk
|
10
|
|
Rough-legged Hawk
|
7
|
|
American Kestrel
|
1
|
|
Ring-necked Pheasant
|
10
|
|
California Quail
|
10
|
|
Rock Pigeon
|
41
|
|
Mourning Dove
|
75
|
|
Northern Flicker
|
1
|
|
Horned Lark
|
2
|
|
Black-billed Magpie
|
3
|
|
Common Raven
|
6
|
|
European Starling
|
210
|
|
House Finch
|
6
|
|
House Sparrow
|
66
|
Top
of Page
BIRDING WITH A BROWN BAG
FEB 17
Lynn Sheridan.
Meeting at Independence Point, Laura
Bayliss, Roland Craft, and myself found 3 Ring-billed Gull, 1 California Gull,
3 Mallard, 1 Red-necked Grebe and 6 Rock Pigeon.
Walking through City Park and along W.
Lakeshore drive, we saw about 100 waxwings
swirling in and out of the tallest pines, as though fly-catching. We identified
both Cedar and Bohemian in the flock. Then along the road, we saw huge
flocks perched in bare deciduous trees,
estimating another 200. They flew down in groups of 30-40 to eat mountain
ash berries from a lawn. These were all Bohemian. Every car that passed
interrupted them, but they kept coming back, beautiful to see.
Out on the lake we counted 6
Bufflehead, 3 Common Merganser, and on piling #37, 4 Double-crested Cormorant
waited patiently.
Along Rosenberry Drive, 10 Mallard, 30
Canada Goose (3 of them honking on pilings - reserving a nest spot?), 25 more
Ring-billed Gull, and a flock of about 12 Pygmy Nuthatches scampering about
completed our list of birds for the trip.
This was a great birding outing, thanks
to the deity for no rain and a wonderful cloud of waxwings "swimming"
overhead.
Top of Page
Othello
Sandhill Crane Festival
Randy Hill, Othello
Planning is mostly
completed and the updates have been added to the website for the 7th annual
Sandhill Crane Festival. The dates are
March 26-28. We always have something
to top the last edition, and this year is no exception.
Three new field trips
were added on Sunday to follow the "theme" of the Coulee Corridor
Birding Trail and the WA ABA Birding Guide.
Birding trips down Lower Crab Creek, to the Potholes and Dodson Road
areas, and to the North Potholes and Moses Lake areas were added. Lower Crab Creek will also have a shortened
version Friday afternoon, and with Mike and Merry Lynn Denny leading both
Friday and Sunday trips you can expect something good.
In case you missed it
last year, "Winged Migration" makes a return to the big screen. By special arrangements there will be a
theater showing at 5 pm both Saturday and Sunday, and it includes all-you-can-eat/drink
popcorn and soft drinks.
This year's featured
speaker is Robert Bateman. Friday
evening he will do a Seminar on Art, and even with expanded seating we expect a
sell-out rather quickly. Saturday
evening he will be the banquet speaker, shifting from artist to
conservationist in discussing Cranes
and other Flagships.
With four lectures
every hour (including lots of new topics), 30 field trips of varying lengths, a
big children's program and associated displays, there is plenty to do, but popular
activities and times sell out quickly.
Visit the website at
www.othellosandhillcranefestival.org
and get
more details plus registration information
Top
of Page
observation Post
2004
Kootenai County Big Year. The chapter website list will be updated weekly
with the new birds being seen. Our total to date is 80
Glaucous-winged
Gull 1 , Independence Point , Coeur d'Alene
Lake (Gina Sheridan, birder from Spokane)
Red-winged
Blackbird 1 Near CDA Airport (her home) Feb. 1 (Cindi
Langlitz)
Northern
Flicker 1 Fernan Lake and Armstrong Hill feeders (Shirley Sturts and Kris
Buchler)
Pileated
Woodpecker Jan. 12 Mica Bay Survey
Cedar
Waxwing 30+
Arrowhead Road, CDA Feb. 16 (Theresa Potts)
Bohemian with Cedar Waxwing
300 + Brown
Bag Birding Field Trip - City Park/NIC (Lisa Sheridan, Roland Craft, Laura
Bayless)
Other
Species of Interest
Great Blue Heron 25 returned to
heronry on Fernan Lake Feb. 18 (GGOE)
Bald Eagle 2 Higgins Point Feb.
14 and 2 Mission Flats Feb. 16
Red-necked Grebe 1 Tubbs Hill Feb.
16 (JTAY)
Downy and Hairy Woodpecker Fairmont Loop Rd . Feb. 10 (JSEV)
Downy Woodpecker 1 California Quail 5, Northern Flicker 2, Red-breasted Nuthatch 5 Black-capped,
Mt. and Chestnut-backed Chickaddee 20 coming daily to feeder
in Twin Lakes (LBAY),
Observers: Laura Bayless (LBAY) Kris Buchler (KBUC), Roland Craft (RCRA),
Gary Goeke (GGOE), Cindi Langlitzm (CLAN,
Theresa Pott (TPOT), Jan Severtson (JSEV), Gina Sheridan (GSHE),
Lynn Sheridan (LSHE), Shirley Sturts
(SSTU), Jenny Taylor (JTAY), Phil Waring (PWAR)
Top
of Page
THE FISH HAWK HERALD
