BirdingGirl

I have some exciting news to report- the Northern Mockingbird that lives in the shrubs of our side yard has hatchlings! I've posted about and referred to this mockingbird several times, and recently I've formed quite the relationship with her. I would often see her on the fence and in the fruit tree on the border of our neighbor's lot, but lately she's been hanging out in the shrub right next to where I park my car. One day I was on the front lawn going through the low bushes and picking up trash that blows into the yard and I saw her there inside one of the bushes. She didn't budge and just watched me intently as I picked up the papers caught in the leaves and branches. That's when I realized her nest must be inside of there. In the weeks since I've watched her hang out at the bush, guarding it carefully. In the morning she'll usually be sitting right on top of it and won't move, even as I open the doors on my car adjacent to the bush. One morning t...

I am continuing with part three of my interview with Dave Scarpitti , an Upland Game Bird Biologist with MassWildlife. Dave will be speaking about habitat management at the Mass Audubon Birders Meeting Saturday March 15th at Bentley College. Describe edge habitat in relation to grasslands. Edge habitat is where grassland and forest meet. This area enhances biodiversity because it boasts the characteristics of two different structures. However, there are benefits and minuses. They support wildlife like foxes, and can be good for plants and various insects. However, a negative edge effect for birds is that predators like foxes and raptors lurk there since they have cover and then can sneak out and grab them. What types of native grasses grow in Massachusetts? Warm season grasses are most abundant, used in places like horse pastures, but they're not native. They give more homogeneous ground cover, and are most palatable in the middle of summer. Cool season grasses on the other hand, a...

This is a continuation of my interview with Dave Scarpitti , an Upland Game Bird Biologist with MassWildlife who will be speaking about habitat management at the Mass Audubon Birders Meeting Saturday March 15 th at Bentley College. There are three primary types of land conversation for birds, breeding habitat, wintering habitat, and migratory corridors. Can you give examples of birds in Massachusetts requiring these types of habitat. Breeding Habitat : A lot of different groups breed in Massachusetts- hawks, owls, warblers and sparrows breed in forests, while the Massachusetts coastline is very appealing to shorebirds and wading birds like herons, and egrets. Wintering Habitat : There are many wintering birds in Massachusetts, such as black ducks and eiders attracted to Nantucket Sound. The type of wintering habitat requiring management is earl successional habitat- maintaining open tracts of land. Migratory Corridors : Most birds migrate; the ones in Massachusetts that require ma...

Thanks to Bennet and to Andrea for their help in identifying my mystery bird from last weekend at Drumlin Farm. I naively thought it could be one of several thrushes, but Andrea set me straight that the most likely thrush to be seen this time of year is the Hermit Thrush.

I had the good fortune to sit down with wildlife biologist Dave Scarpitti and discuss his topic for a break-out session at the Mass Audubon Birders Meeting. Dave is an Upland Game Bird Biologist with MassWildlife and will be speaking about habitat management in Massachusetts and how birders can play a role in this conservation effort. Many birds have learned to adapt to their urban surroundings. Can you give some examples of birds going through such a transition right now? Red-tailed hawks and turkey vultures can be seen circling around highways- this is something that we've seen within the last 100 years. These are birds that have been around for thousands of years so they have learned to adapt to their current environment. The highway provides an open space for hawks to hunt small prey and it provides roadkill for the turkey vultures. Humans have altered every square inch of land so everything has learned to adapt. What are the types of birds in Massachusetts requiring large tra...

Today was the inaugural day for my Mass Audubon membership- I got a membership for myself and my boyfriend yesterday and today the cards were in action! It snowed last night into this morning and I really wanted to get out there and enjoy the snow before it's too late! Yes, unlike everyone else in Boston I am not sick of the snow. Ok, I'm a little tired of shoveling but I truly love having snow on the ground since it's been a rarity in recent years. I threw on my Tretorn rubber boots and we headed off into the slush. At the point we got to Drumlin Farm it was lightly sleeting, and the overall temperature was pretty mild today so the snow had gotten very wet. The boots help up great- my feet were completely dry and warm- I highly recommend them. We explored the farm yard for the first time, now that we did have to pay for admittance. We checked out the Drumlin Underground, which allows you to view various animals' dens through glass panes from within a basement of s...