NWA 1/9/15

A Northwoods Almanac for January 9 – 23, 2015

Bald Eagle Watching

In 1969, Wisconsin was one of the first states to ban DDT, which scientists had clearly linked to massive eagle deaths, helping to trigger a national ban of DDT in 1972. The eagle population had crashed to only 487 nesting pairs in the continental U.S. from an estimated 100,000 nesting pairs in 1782, when America adopted the bald eagle as its symbol.

It’s been an amazing turn-around. Bald eagles were removed from Wisconsin’s endangered list in 1997 and from the federal list in 2007. In 2013, a record 1,343 occupied eagle nests were documented in 67 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties. 

In winter, most of Wisconsin’s eagles migrate to where the food is, and the best restaurants are near dams and power plants, which provide open water for the eagles to fish. Because so many eagles congregate at these sites, eagle watching events are now held in Cassville, Prairie du Chien, and Ferryville on the Mississippi River, Sauk Prairie on the Wisconsin River, and the Fox Cities along the Fox River between Neenah and Kaukauna.

Here’s the lineup of events: “A Day with Eagles along the Fox River” will be held on January 17. The Fox Cities have identified 16 prime viewing spots in Kaukauna, Combined Locks, Little Chute, Kimberly, Appleton, Neenah, and Menasha. Sauk Prairie’s 28th annual “Bald Eagle Watching Days” also takes place on Jan. 17, while Cassville’s is on Jan 24-25, Prairie du Chien’s on Feb. 28, and Ferryville’s on March 7.

Snowy Owl Update

There are now an estimated 226 snowy owls across Wisconsin – see the eBird map at http://bit.ly/1Hi9NWL. There may be some duplication in the count, so the number is truly an estimate. However, using the same counting techniques, we had 173 snowy owls as of this date last year, making this the record winter for snowy owls in Wisconsin.

Across the U.S., this year’s snowy owls, compared to last year’s birds, arrived earlier, have a lower proportion of juvenile birds, are located more in the central/western Plains and less in the Northeast, and have stayed further north aside from a couple pioneering birds that have been seen Kansas and Oklahoma.

There’s been some heated discussion about folks getting too close to the owls. For the ethical way to view these birds, see http://wsobirds.org/about-wso/code-of-ethics.

If you do see a snowy owl, telling the males from the females is as much an art as a science. Males are usually much lighter, but not always. And snowies tend to get lighter with age, but not always. As a generality, the whitest birds are usually adult males, while the darkest birds are usually immature females. But if you see a bird with moderate markings, the jury is out. The key points to look for are the extent of the white bib on the chest (larger in males), the darkness at the nape of the neck (dark in females, mostly white in males), and the barring of the tail (some complete, or nearly complete bars on females; males with mostly broken bars, or nearly complete at best).

Locally, Sarah Krembs in Manitowish Waters heard that there were owls in the Antigo area, so she and her father took a drive. They found two snowies in the fields just north of Antigo – see Sarah’s excellent pictures! She noted, “One was just outside of Antigo on a telephone pole on Hwy 64. That was the dark one, a female, right? Then, the other one I spotted on our way back home just as we were leaving Antigo on Hwy 47. This owl was perched on the irrigation sprinkler system way out in the middle of the field. We pulled over and watched it for a bit. Then it flew closer to the highway and sat on the snow for a minute or two. I couldn't tell if it was eating anything. And then he went and flew to the very end sprinkler, which was the one closest to the highway. I got to take pictures and watch him for a long time. When he would look at us with those yellow eyes and I was seeing him through the binoculars . . . wow . . . blood-chilling. Very impressive. This guy was much whiter...male, correct?”

Sarah’s gender ID’s were spot on, given the best generalities we can go by.

There are no birds locally to observe, at least that I’m aware of. But a road trip like Sarah’s could turn up a number of owls – that’s where the adventure comes in.

Minocqua Christmas Bird Count Totals

The Minocqua Christmas Bird Count, which took place on 12/20, tallied 1,418 birds. This ties for the record high over the 17 years that this CBC has been conducted. Counters also recorded a total of 28 species, the record high. Another first was a report of a Cooper’s hawk. The total number of species recorded over all Minocqua CBC’s now stands at an impressive 53 species of birds. However, during any given count, the Minocqua CBC averages 644 birds of 20 species.

Christmas Bird Counts: One Difference between Madison and the Northwoods

What does being 250 miles south of our area mean to wintering birds? Well, Madison held its Christmas bird count on 12/20, the same day as the Minocqua count, and they tallied 92 species. Whereas Canada geese are a rare winter sighting up here, within Madison’s count area (a circle 15 miles in diameter), they counted over 15,000. They also tallied 2,438 mallards, 897 tundra swans, and 903 common mergansers, as well as birds we seldom see in the Northwoods like 46 tufted titmice and 223 red-bellied woodpeckers. On the other hand, they also had 4,217 starlings and 2,706 house sparrows, which we fortunately saw none of.

So, to state the ridiculously obvious, cold, ice, and snow matter a great deal to wildlife. If you want the real extremes, the Christmas count in Barrow, Alaska, typically turns up zero species, or, perhaps in good year, a raven. Of course, they have about two hours of semi-light in which to see anything, and the normal windchill is somewhere around -70°F. Try birding in those conditions some day.

On the other hand, the record number of species for the one-day Christmas count is 250 in the Matagorda County-Mad Island Marsh count circle around Matagorda, Texas. Counting along the Gulf Coast must be a magical experience. One counter in southern Florida talked about tallying 30 species before they even left the parking lot. Eighty degrees in December makes just a wee bit of difference!

Surviving Cold, Redpoll Style

            This week’s sub-zero cold spell is par for the course in a Northwoods January, though to listen to the hyperbolic news reports, you’d think we might die if we even stuck our noses outside. Mary, Callie, and I snowshoed three miles on Monday when it was -5° with a windchill of -30° and somehow survived. Granted, though, we wore a lot of clothes and came inside after an hour and half.

Wintering species of wildlife don’t possess those options. However, one tiny bird has winter all figured out and puts anything we humans can tolerate to shame. The common redpoll has just arrived from its northern breeding areas at many local feeders. This tiny bird breeds circumpolarly, meaning it circles the globe in far northern regions from Norway to Russia to Alaska to Greenland. They’re dapper little birds, distinguished by their red berets and their black goatees, while the male also washes his chest in raspberry juice.

Redpolls only weigh about ½ ounce and stretch out five inches. Staying warm on -20°F nights can be a profoundly difficult chore given how little fat and fuel there is in those little bodies to burn overnight. One survival strategy is to eat, and eat a lot. Redpolls eat the equivalent of 31–42% of their body mass each day, particularly foraging for the small, high-energy seeds of birches and alders, as well as conifer seeds, various grasses and sedges, and a wide range of weeds. We purposely don’t cut down our garden plants that have gone to seed in the fall so they provide food for winter birds like the redpolls.

Another winter survival strategy they utilize is to store seeds in their diverticula – laterally expandable sections of their esophagus – prior to further digestion. Redpolls gather seeds quickly in the open, storing them in their diverticula for later regurgitation, husking, and swallowing. This way they can shelter in dense conifer cover and save significant energy at times of intense cold.

Their diverticula holds up to two grams of seeds, or about 15% of their body mass. This amount gives them over 25% of their daily caloric requirements in winter. They also consume a lot of grit, which is why they’re often seen on the edge of roads picking up sand and gravel, presumably for minerals. They’re very social – flocks of up to 50 individuals aren’t unusual. One birder near Ashland recently reported seeing a flock of 250 redpolls. So, watch for them along the roads and slow down – they are not at all adapted to traffic and much too easy to hit.

Other strategies they employ for winter survival include retaining heat by fluffing their feathers, remaining inactive, seeking shelter, and allowing peripheral vasoconstriction. Their plumage structure apparently is also better for insulation than many other species, and they add feathers in the winter – wild Alaskan redpoll species had 31% heavier plumage in November than July. They also roost communally – flocks of approximately 1,000 birds have been seen roosting in spruce. Most remarkably, they also make roosting chambers in the snow. They can drop from the trees into the snow and make a tunnel 10 to 15 inches long and 2 to 4 inches deep, breaking the snowcap in the morning to begin feeding.

These birds aren’t just tough – they’re astonishingly hardy. From captive studies, common redpolls in Alaska are able to survive at temperatures of -65°F, while hoary redpolls can handle -88°F.

Celestial Events

            As of 1/10, our days will be growing longer by two minutes a day. As for cold, on average, January 16^th through the 20^th mark the coldest days of the year in our area. On 1/16, look before dawn for Saturn about 2 degrees south of the waning crescent moon.

Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: call me at 715-476-2828, drop me an e-mail at manitowish@centurytel.net, or snail-mail me at 4245N Hwy. 47, Mercer, WI 54547.