A Northwoods Almanac for Jan. 6 – 19, 2017
Evening Grosbeaks
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| evening grosbeak range map |
Four evening grosbeaks appeared at
our feeders on Jan. 1, a wonderfully “birdy” way to begin our new year.
Two
weeks earlier, we were unable to find any evening grosbeaks on our Manitowish
Waters Christmas bird count, nor were any seen during the Minocqua Christmas
bird count.
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| female evening grosbeak |
The decline of evening grosbeaks over the last two
decades is well-documented. Checking statewide Christmas bird counts for
Wisconsin from 1980-1981 to 2015-16, the highest count was in 1980-81 with
10,471 birds. The rest of the decade provided good numbers as well, while ups
and downs illustrate the irruptive nature of the species.
81-82: 8,387
82-83: 1,707
83-84: 8,173
84-85: 1,245
85-86: 9,257
86-87: 4,178
87-88: 6,962
Then the evening grosbeak numbers started to
decline. The last year in which just over a thousand evening grosbeaks were
counted was in 2001-02. A decade or so later in 2013-14, only 21 were found in
the whole state. Last winter, the count reached 101.
The overall North American population of evening grosbeaks has
declined by 91% since 1967, with estimated numbers dropping from 17 million 40
years ago to less than 4 million currently. Statistics from the
North American Breeding Bird Survey show populations have dropped precipitously
particularly in the East, where numbers there have declined by 97% from 1966 to
2015. In addition, Audubon Society’s
Christmas Bird Count has also shown nearly an 80 percent decrease in
population. Evening
grosbeaks are now #2 on Audubon’s list of Common Birds in Decline, second only
to the northern bobwhite. Evening grosbeaks are also now listed on the 2016 State of North America Birds Watch List, which
includes bird species that are most at risk of extinction without significant
conservation actions to reverse declines and reduce threats.
The reason for the decline remains elusive with
fingers pointed at increased pesticide use to control spruce budworm, tar sands
exploration which has destroyed swaths of boreal forest breeding habitat,
climate change, forest management favoring fast-growing softwood trees rather
than slow-growing hardwoods, and disease outbreaks like salmonella and West
Nile virus.
Evening
grosbeaks primarily nest in boreal forest regions of Canada. Their southernmost
range dips down just barely into the far northern counties of Wisconsin – in
the past, we had a pair nesting on our property in Manitowish. They eat mainly
seeds, insects, and berries with a bill that can exert over 100 pounds per
square inch. Comparatively, humans can exert about 70 pounds per square inch with
our back molars. “Grosbeak” comes from the French gros bec, meaning thick beak, and indeed, these birds can crack
cherry and olive pits with their bills.
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| male evening grosbeak |
Gray Jays to be Canada’s National Bird?
The Royal Canadian Geographical
Society (RCGS), publisher of Canadian Geographic magazine, recently set
the Canadian bird world abuzz with their official recommendation that the gray
jay be Canada’s national bird as part of the celebrations for the country’s
150th year of existence. RCGS selected the gray jay, a bird also commonly
called Canada jay, after an online popular vote by Canadians. The problem is
the gray jay placed third in the popular vote, behind the common loon and the
snowy owl. A panel of experts then debated which of these birds was most worthy
of the national honor, and they chose the gray jay.
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| gray jay range map |
The
bird was first named Perisoreus canadensis (Canada jay) in Latin in 1766 by Linnaeus. This name was used for
the next 191 years, but was changed in 1957 by the American Ornithologists’
Union to “gray jay,” giving it an American spelling that Canadians still
resent. They want the spelling to be “grey.”
Most
Canadians best know the bird by its moniker “whisky jack,” which comes from the
Anglicization of the Cree-Ojibwa name Wisikejack
(or Wisakedjak), meaning “mischievous prankster.” In some traditional Ojibwa
stories, the trickster Nanabozho
takes the gray jay’s form. The Cree people believe the Wisakedjak is a shape-shifter who frequently appears as the gray
jay, a benevolent trickster, teacher and messenger of the forest. To many
western First Nations, the appearance of a gray jay in the morning is a good
omen. Its chattering and whistles are considered an early warning to hunters of
nearby predators.
The
Canadian federal government has the final say as to whether the “grey” jay will
be designated as the National Bird, and given some of the vitriol I’ve seen on
the Internet, whichever bird they choose will be seen by opponents as
bird-brained.
Since the gray jay nests in temperatures as cold as -30°F, and as early as late February, their hardiness seems to be consistent with the people of Canada who also tolerate some truly fierce winters.
Since the gray jay nests in temperatures as cold as -30°F, and as early as late February, their hardiness seems to be consistent with the people of Canada who also tolerate some truly fierce winters.
In
the meantime, a pair of gray jays are making quick work of the peanut suet at Randy
and Debbie Augustinak’s home in Land O’Lakes, an uncommon sighting these days
in our northern counties.
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| gray jays photo by Debbie Augustinak |
Audubon Christmas Bird Counts
On 12/21, eleven birders drove very
slowly around and around the count circle in Manitowish Waters, stopping and
walking here and there in search of birds. And along with seven folks watching
their feeders that day, we tallied 25 species, an average number for our area
in winter. The highlight of the count goes to Art Foulke who has an Eastern
towhee visiting his feeder, a first for our count over its 24-year history.
Eastern towhees winter well south of here, typically from central Illinois down
to Florida and Texas. They definitely do not belong here in winter, but the one
visiting the Foulke’s home apparently hasn’t seen its range map.
Another highlight was a common
goldeneye photographed during the count week on an open portion of the Turtle
River, which is another first for our count. Goldeneyes can tolerate extreme
cold as long as water stays open somewhere. Goldeneyes are relatively common in
counts along the Great Lakes where shorelines often stay open during warmer
winters.
The Minocqua Christmas Bird Count tallied 21
species in extremely cold conditions on 12/16. Kudos to them for even being out
there!
The northern winter woods
is simply a very difficult environment for birds. Ryan Brady and Tim Oksiuta,
two excellent birders, participated in the Clam Lake CBC, a deep northwoods
count in southern Ashland County. Their top three species of the day were 154
common redpolls, 64 black-capped chickadees, and 37+ white-winged crossbills.
Aside from these, they only tallied an additional 34 individual birds of 13
other species in 8+ hours, which included 5 hours of walking nearly 4 miles.
Snowy Owl Update and Project
Snowstorm
The 2016-17 Wisconsin winter continues to
produce a very average, low number of snowy owls. As of
December 27, only 22 individuals have been reported in Wisconsin, compared to
110 by this date in 2015, 211 in 2014, and 159 in 2013.
The exceptionally high numbers of snowy
owls recorded over the last few winters spawned an organization effort called
Project Snowstorm. Beginning in
2013, researchers have tagged 43 snowy owls in 10 states, as far west as North
Dakota, north to Maine and south to Maryland. They’ve tracked those owls across
more than 50,000 miles of total distance, while collecting more than 160,000
precise, three-dimensional GPS fixes that provide latitude, longitude, altitude
and flight speed. This effort represents by far the most detailed movement data
set for this species and the largest snowy owl telemetry project in the world.
I recommend following their website (http://www.projectsnowstorm.org).
Sightings and Upcoming Events
We
continue to have a large flock of bohemian waxwings visiting our crabapple
trees in Manitowish. We also consistently have three robins vying for the same
crabapples.
The
2016 bald eagle aerial surveys confirmed 1,504 occupied nests, 39 more nests
than the previous year, according to the WDNR's 2016 Bald Eagle and Osprey
Survey Report.
The
30th annual Sauk Prairie Eagle Watching Days will be held January 13-14.
The 13th Annual Wintering Golden Eagle Survey
will take place on January 21. Last year, more than 180 observers covered 60
survey areas from Hastings, MN to southern Iowa and across nine counties in
western Wisconsin. They documented 147 golden eagles along with a very high
number of Bald Eagles (1,509), all in the bluff country well away from the open
water areas of the Mississippi River.
Celestial Events
After dusk, look for brilliant Venus
in the southwest, shining at -4.5 magnitude. Mars is also visible to the upper
left of Venus in the southwest twilight, and sets by 9 p.m.
Jupiter (magnitude –2.0)
rises around 1 a.m. and shines brightly high in the south by early dawn. Saturn
(magnitude +0.5) is emerging from the glow of sunrise – look for it in early dawn
very low in the southeast.
On 1/8, the sun will rise
one minute earlier for the first time since June 10. Yahoo for that!
The full moon occurs on
1/12 and will be the year’s highest full moon. Variously called the “Wolf Moon”
or “Frost in the Teepee Moon,” this should be a brilliant night to bundle up
and take a walk to enjoy the moonlight reflected off the snow.
On 1/13, we will hit 9
hours of daylight and start gaining two minutes of light every day.
Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: call
715-476-2828, e-mail at manitowish@centurytel.net,
snail-mail at 4245N Hwy. 47, Mercer, WI, or see my blog at www.manitowishriver.blogspot.com.
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