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The Chat The Buchanan County Bird Club meets the 2nd Monday of each month at the Buchanan County Public Library at 6:30 PM Volume 1 Issue 12 December 2002 |
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November 11th Meeting:
At this meeting Ed Talbott III and Roger Mayhorn showed video of different species of sparrows and identification field marks were discussed. Bob Riggs, president of the Russell County Bird Club, was in attendance, and added his expertise to the discussion. A decision was made to buy the lumber needed for building bluebird nestboxes, and it was agreed that the club would get together in January to put the boxes together. Grayson Perkins had already agreed to cut out the nestboxes in his home work shop. Some members at the meeting decided to participate in the Thanksgiving Day Bird Count, where birds are counted within a 15 foot circle for one hour on Thanksgiving Day. It was also agreed that on Dec. 14, 2002, the day of the Breaks Park Christmas Bird Count, that the club members would get together at the Breaks Park Restaurant at 5:00 P.M. for a Christmas celebration. Everyone also took a look at some video taken by Roger Mayhorn on Sept. 1st of a Peregrine Falcon that had made a flyover of the Mayhorns’s yard. It was a new yard bird for his list. Notice – There will NOT be a club meeting on Monday, Dec. 9. The Christmas celebration on Dec. 14 will count as our Dec. club meeting. The next club meeting will be on Monday, Jan 13, 2003 where next year’s dues will be collected and elections for club officers will be held. Dues are $5.00 per person or $10.00 per family. |
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 This adult Sharp-shinned Hawk has been making regular flights through the Mayhorns’ yard occasionally making a meal of one of the song birds at the feeders. This could possibly be the same immature Sharp-shinned that frequented the yard last winter. Since this hawk is rather small it is probably a male. The females are usually larger than the males. |
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Ed Talbott III and Roger Mayhorn saw one on 11/25/02 on the Compton Mountain strip site while birding there. |
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Interesting
Events:
Several club members have been keeping their eyes open for unusual birds this fall at their feeders and in the area. Dave Worley would probably get the prize this month for the most unusual bird. He got to see a beautiful western male Rufous Hummingbird at a feeder in Lebanon. The bird showed up there Nov. 26. Each year a few of these western hummers are seen in the Southeastern U.S. That’s why it’s a good idea to leave at least one hummer feeder out into December. Dave has also been seeing House Finches, Juncos, Tufted Titmice, and the aforementioned Fox Sparrow at his seed feeder. Shirley Justus has been seeing her share of birds on Guesses Fork near Hurley. While on a walk on the mountain near her house she found 4 Ruby-crowned Kinglets and 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets. On the same walk she also found 3 Pileated Woodpeckers. More recently near her house she saw a couple more Ruby-crowns. She has also been seeing a Northern Mockingbird, Downy Woodpeckers, White-throated Sparrows, Song Sparrows, Carolina Wrens, Carolina Chickadees, a couple of Red-bellied Woodpeckers and a couple of Red-winged Blackbirds. Last year Shirley was lucky enough to have a Red-headed Woodpecker come to her feeder. This is a rather rare bird for Buchanan County. Congratulations Shirley. Ed Talbotts II and III birded Burkes Garden 11/30/02. They didn’t find any Golden Eagles or Rough-winged Hawks that are usually seen there in winter, but they did find 3 American Kestrels, 4 Gadwalls, 3 female Hooded Mergansers, a couple of Mallards, 30-40 Canada Geese and 4 Great Blue Herons. Ed & Michelle Talbott are also seeing a Great Blue Heron on the Levisa river behind their house. Recently Michelle saw it fly directly over their house. Ed & Michelle also have a couple of Carolina Wrens that are roosting in a ceramic nest container near their back door. This may be the same pair that nested there back in the summer. The wrens look for warm places to get away from the winter wind and cold so maybe the rest of us should look to see if we have something they might want to roost in as well. Ed & Michelle should have lots to report when they return from their trip to VA Beach this week-end. This week-end is the VSO (Virginia Society of Ornithology) meeting and birding trips at VA Beach. Ed & Michelle are scheduled to take a Pelagic (seabirds) boat trip on Saturday. They will probably pick up several lifebirds that they would not be able to see on shore. Ed & Mary Talbott are seeing the regulars at their feeders, which include Carolina Wrens, Carolina Chickadees and Tufted Titmice. Jeff Boardwine and his mother, Avanelle, have lots of Mourning Doves, 40 or more coming to their feeders. They also have 3 or 4 White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpeckers, Northern Cardinals and Tufted Titmice. On 11/30/02 Avanelle saw a Pine Warbler at her feeder, and on 12/3/02 she also saw 2 Yellow-rumped Warblers in her yard. Jeff also reported seeing a Great Blue Heron on the Levisa near Riverview School and one on the creek on Leemaster. David Raines on 12/4/02 had 17 Northern Cardinals at his feeder. He also had 6 Blue Jays, 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, 3 Eastern Towhees, 4 Rusty Blackbirds, 4 Brown-headed Cowbirds, 35 European Starlings, 5 Tufted Titmice, 2 White-breasted Nuthatches, 4 Mourning Doves, 5 Tufted Titmice, 6 White-throated Sparrows, 2 Song Sparrows, 4 Dark-eyed Juncos and a Carolina Wren. Recently he had an immature White-crowned Sparrow. He has also had 10 Red-winged Blackbirds.
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 Red-winged
Blackbirds like this male (above) and female (below) are regular visitors to
feeders during the winter.
They seem to prefer more open areas. As mentioned before David Raines sees them at his feeders in the Breaks, and Roger & Lynda Mayhorn have them at their feeders on Compton Mountain. Shirley Justus on Guesses Fork has had a couple at her feeder as well. The dominant males are black and have a bright red epaulet or shoulder patch, while the females and immature males are brown with streaking. |
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During the last week of November Ed Caudill
saw a Woodcock on Smith Branch of Slate Creek. The bird moved over to the
side of the road, but stayed there as the truck pulled along side it. It was
last seen still on the roadside. Ed also saw Blue Jays eating Sumac berries,
and Northern Flickers feeding on or around Poison Ivy berries. According to
Ed the birds and squirrels may have a hard time of it this winter. Natural
foods seem to be very scarce in the area. Ed & Barbara have been seeing 10 Cardinals at their feeder, 8 males and 2 females. 11/30/02 David Raines checked out Laurel Lake in the Breaks Park for waterfowl. He found one female Goldeneye, 2 Hooded Mergansers, a Pied-billed Grebe and 1 Wood Duck. Clarence Brown, along with a few other club members, participated in the Thanksgiving Day Bird Count. At his feeders in Hurley Clarence saw 1 Mourning Dove, 4 Blue Jays, 2 Carolina Chickadees, 6 Tufted Titmice, 2 White-breasted Nuthatches, 4 Northern Cardinals, 5 American Goldfinches, 1 Chipping Sparrow, 1 Song Sparrow and 1 Field Sparrow. Grayson Perkins on Deskins, saw 10 Wild Turkeys near his house. At his feeders he is seeing White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpeckers, Tufted Titmice, and Northern Cardinals. Grayson put out some left over Honey Graham crackers and some Raisin Bran cereal, which the birds made short work of. Todd Perkins on 11/28/02 got a new lifebird while
turkey hunting. He heard a high pitched call, then shortly after a small
brown bird flew to the tree in front of him. It was a Brown Creeper, a small
bird that climbs the trunks of trees while searching the bark for insects. |
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 This
Northern Mockingbird has been feeding on the berries from this Burning Bush
(Euonymous Alata) outside the Mayhorns’ bedroom window on Compton
Mountain.
Mockingbirds are not very common in the county. Shirley Justus saw one recently near her home as well. A flock of 10 -12 Wild Turkeys are regulars in their yard feeding on apples. One Gobbler is in the flock. On 11/21/02 Roger saw 5 Common Ravens flying over Compton Mountain. On 12/02/02 Roger heard a Barred Owl calling in the early morning hours. On 12/06/02 two Killdeer were seen in their neighbor’s field. |
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This heated
bird bath is a good way to keep water for the birds from freezing during
cold weather. The base is a terra
cotta flower pot with a hole in the bottom.
An electrical cord is run through the bottom of the pot to an outlet. On the other end is a socket with a flood lamp. The birdbath sits on top of the flower pot. The heat from the lamp keeps the water from freezing. As a safety measure the cord should be plugged into an outlet that is connected to a ground fault breaker. This eliminates the danger of possible electric shock. |
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 This male Purple Finch came to the Mayhorns’ feeder on 12/06/02. The first Purple Finches of the season, two females, showed up on 11/15/02. Another female appeared on 12/02/02, then finally this male made an appearance. The Purple Finch can be distinguished from the House Finch by its overall raspberry color, whereas the House Finch is an overall gray color on the back and wings, and is streaked underneath. The male House Finch has a reddish head and bib. The male Purple Finch often keeps the feathers on his head standing up, as in this photo. |
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 One way to attract woodpeckers like this male Red-bellied to your feeder is to put out foods containing peanut butter. These foods can be as simple as spreading peanut butter on the bark of a tree or pressing it into the crevices of large pine cones, then hanging the pine cones in a tree or shrub. If you want to get a little more creative you can make this suet recipe, which is on our web site at http://www.bcplnet.org/birdclub/data/suet.htm Then pour the mixture into containers, which are then put out for the birds. |
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 This chipmunk seems to have his seasons mixed up. Even though he should be sleeping away the cold weather in his burrow, he is out burrowing in the snow under the feeders in the Mayhorns’ yard. His other four friends, who were running about during the warmer weather have evidently gone to sleep. This fellow is competing with the birds and a couple of Gray Squirrels for the sunflower seeds and the cracked corn offered to help the birds make it through the cold weather. |
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Fox
Sparrows like this one are appearing at some of the feeders in the area.
David Raines has had one recently near his house in the Breaks community.
Dave & Diana Worley had one at their feeder near Rosedale a few weeks
ago. Roger & Lynda Mayhorn had two at their feeder 11/20/02. This was
the first time they had had two at once.