Birdsters! 'Februrary FIRSTS' Pls. Post Here!

boojum!

How exciting that you got a pic of the first BlueBird! and of course you casually mentioned 'a small flock' of them, which just killed me! quite an understatement to me who is dying to see even one, ever! lol

I did see three black crows today in a tree by our house. Nasty looking things that kind of scared me. First time I've seen them. Hope they don't come back.

Thanks for posting all the good sightings...we have one more day for a 'Feb. first', then we are into March and the glorious avian harbingers of spring, (at least here in Southwestern Ohio I hope early spring is just ahead...knock on wood.)

Again, thanks for posting the pics. So much fun for me, and I hope you too. t.

(*yall ol show offs you!*)

Wows folks!! .. All of you have some wonderful pics posted and shared with us!

The Masked/Spur-winged Lapwing .. is one fascinating bird!! That spur looks to be one particularly odd 'weapon' for a bird to possess .. there, on their wing!! Ken, makes me wonder if there are other birds with such monstrous 'weapons' as this feller!?! Hope you see this inquiry .. fer I'll be lookin' to see what you come up with .. if others do exist! Tis a new'un on me. But then, SOOO much, generally is!!! .. ha!

Se_eds .. your Canadian geezers are some of my favorite! It always reminds me of my 'babies' (ol domestic white geese) I raised back in Louisiana .. and the neighbors pedigreed cockers got loose, and managed to get to them thru the geese cage wiring - and pluck and eat their backs raw! The neighbor has no clue as to jes how close his prized doggies, were to meeting their saints! He finally heard and recognized the ruckus takin' place and came runnin' jes as Sophies' barrel was goin' up!!

Way to go, Boojum ... some mitey dandy shots of those beautiful BBs!!! Especially the first two - those are some ideal dimensions!! (fer ol finicky 'me'!!) The pair on the branch jes wins my ol grubby heart! hee

- Magpye

This message was edited Feb 27, 2005 7:01 PM

Magpye there is at least one other lapwing with a spur on its wing, the Spur-winged Plover Vanellus spinosus from Africa: http://www.kenyabirds.org.uk/spur-winged.htm
There is another very strange bird that has a claw on its wing and the young birds use this claw to help them scramble among the branches near their nest. This bird is the Hoatzin Opisthocomus hoazin from the Amazon basin in S.America. Here is a site that describes this strange bird http://www.lastrefuge.co.uk/data/articles/hoatzin_p1.html
and here is my own picture taken in Ecuador just before my Galapagos trip:

boojum, you are so lucky to have an early flock of BB's. The only new birds I've seen are the lighter colored finches. They look odd among the dark ones.

People are divided on the Canada geese. They are messy, but I hold them dear as I used to raise geese when I lived on a farm. (Embdens and Toulouse). I had not been down to the river this winter so wanted to check them out.

I was happy to see the BBs a bit early. Especially since we are predicted to have a foot of snow tomorrow night. Unfortunately, my bluebird nesting boxes were not used by bluebirds, but the house wrens that took over the boxes were wonderful, too. They sang all summer. There is a local cemetary where they do hang out for weeks. They hop from the gravestones to the ground and back and they seem content to be there.

Tabasco, you must come and visit and I'll show you lots of birds. Last year there were yellow throated warblers and black and white warblers in the bushes right outside the windows of the house and a Baltimore oriole in the crabapple. Robins, bluejays, house sparrows, phoebes, european starlings, and house wrens nest around the house and barns. Babies everywhere. Always lots of crows though!! Turkey vultures and sharp shinned hawks, too.

Boojum! WOW! That's a ton of birdie babies! May I ask how much land you're referring to when you mention these nesting sites? Surely, this is not your average suburban yard :) How wonderful for you!

I live on 3.3 acres-a former farm. The birds have been here a lot longer than we have!! (2 years) I love it here.

LOL - I guessed it wasn't my 1/3 of an acre lot :) That's terrific, boojum... we'd love to see pics of your nests this Spring. How about starting a "birdie nest" thread or something when they begin setting up house? :)

This has been a great thread, Tabasco :) Only 24 hours and 15 minutes left in February, though...
I'm going to stick my head out the window every 5 minutes tomorrow and try to get just one more February 1st :)

Good night,
Hugs :)

Last year I wasn't a subscriber till August, so I had no one except my DBF and a few friends interested in all the nesting. I videotaped a few for the sounds. But this summer I will post a thread for sure!! Thanks for your encouragement, hugahosta!

Boojum, those are some absolutely lovely sharp pics of your little bluebirds! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for making the extra trip inside and back out again to share these pretty birds with us! :-)

-Julie

Any more posts for today? Was hoping someone might have seen a hummingbird before Feb closes--but maybe their postings all go to the Hummers Forum...

Nice pics this last week...especially liked the BBs and the studies of the Lapwing. Now I will know what to keep my eye out for--

So, now, Class, we all must turn to the Warbler, Oriole and Robin pages of our Peterson Guides, for March will bring some fresh i.d.'s (I hope). Except for Kennedy, of course, who is in 'Advanced Placement', and Salvia who is doing 'Special Studies'. They will find their own chapters and report back to us!

Did you know that there are at least Seven Sub Species of Robins?! So that i.d. will not be so easy as you first may have thought! lol

Let's study up! And I hope we have some new 'first' posters joining in next month. We can always use fresh material.

Look for a new thread tomorrow. And I have to get new bifocals to see those hummingbirds. Have fun. t.

I had a first today! I had a first today! (raising hand and waving furiously so the teacher will notice ;-)

I saw about a dozen Jackdaws Corvus monedula when I was in Tel Aviv this afternoon. This link sure doesn't do them justice http://www.birdguides.com/html/vidlib/species/Corvus_monedula.htm , but they were pretty. Their heads were all shimmery smokey silver in the sun. And they looked so cute and friendly...have no idea if they really were as I didn't exactly try to go make friends with them LOL.

Edited to add a better link for the Jackdaws :-) http://www.geocities.com/robbinknapp/romdap/rcmonede.htm

We've got 2 pretty robins here too :-)

Robin Erithacus rubecula WHAT a sweet little guy this one is! http://www.birdguides.com/html/vidlib/species/Erithacus_rubecula.htm

Rufous Bush Robin Cercotrichas galactotes http://www.birdguides.com/html/vidlib/species/Cercotrichas_galactotes.htm Looks completely different, so I'm not sure why it's also called a Robin. In any case, I'm pretty sure this one is one of the "little brown birds" that hides in my climbing vines and refuses to be positively ID'd LOL

-Julie

This message was edited Feb 28, 2005 8:21 PM

Oh, Salvia, you are too funny! and to spy the robins (2 kinds!) in the last minutes of February-(or is it already March there?!) when I was sure that everyone would have to work for the full month of March to find more than the regular American style Robin! Very clever. To the head of the class you go (although, no 'A' until you put up the yellow ribbon and plastic flowers and show us pictures!)

Nevertheless, your robins are very cute ones and your Jackdaws are interesting--kind of like the scary crows visiting us yesterday--cousins I think!

p.s. I like your 'Bird Guide' link. Nice graphics there. Thank you for posting. t.

No no no, I didn't SEE the robins....I was just bragging that we also have them here in Israel. I only saw the Jackdaws today :-). LOL I guess I didn't make that clear....although when I was writing it, it seemed clear LOL. Oh well....sorry.

I do have a pic of the Rufous Bush Robin though....went through all my pics of those "little brown birds" I've shot hiding in my climbers. I'm sure this one is the Rufous Bush Robin....of course, I won't be offended if someone tells me I'm wrong and corectly IDs it as something else ROTFL! I've got the bird in 7 diffrent poses. None of which are great shots, but each shows a different bit of detail and they all add up to the Rufous in my view. Here's one that shows the black markings on his tail

-Julie

And here's one that shows more of the bird than any of the other shots I have.... LOL

Loved the jackdaw. Not sure why you think crows are scary, tabasco. I've always related to them (dark and raucous). That rufous bush robin did indeed remind me of your LBJ (birder for little brown jobs) in a pic you posted Salvia that I looked at for a while. His tail was up and wings drooped down below the wings if my memory serves me... Don't remember his eye stripe though.

Well, your robin's a cutie, in any case!

Julie, I don't think your pictures are of the Rufous Bush Robin. Your bird has too many markings on its back, while the robin has a very smooth unmarked back. I suggest yours is one of the Warblers. I have had a bit of a browse and it looks quite close to the Graceful Warbler, Prinia gracilis, which seems to be found in your area.
http://my.ort.org.il/holon/birds/bf3.html
http://www.birdsoman.com/GracefulPrinia.htm
Ken

Julie..... .:-)

Boojum, yep, that eye stripe is the one thing making me stake any money on my claims LOL. He's a shy guy (or gal) and rarely faces my direction when I'm trying to snap a photo. I've got one shot of him/her semi facing the camera but it turned out too blurry to be any good for n ID. In any case, s/he's a cute one and I enjoy seeing them dart in and out of the branches of my climbers :-)

I also saw lots of Hooded Crows, mourning doves, a dove/pigeon cross of some sort (lovely result of white with brown speckels....truly lovely bird :-), house sparrows, Sunbirds, some sort of white gull type bird flying too high above to ID and a Jay today....but none of those were "firsts" LOL.

Tabasco, my son is down with the flu, but when he's all well again, I'll spend more time searching for colorful tape to attract the birdies to my feeders. If I can't find tape perhaps non-toxic paint will do. Also, the camera repair people said to call on Wednesday morning to find out about my camera and whether or not the damage is too extensive to warrant a repair. So, good or bad, I'll know then how long it will be before I'm "with camera" again LOL :-)

-Julie

Crows aren't really scary. They are hard working birds. I watch them make their labored way across the sky in the mornings, calling to each other along the way. The three crows we have had here this winter are "Bird Guardians". They find the highest tree around and guard the place. The little birds at the feeders seem to know that when they are aroused and squawking there is danger in the area, and they all leave!

I have also seen two crows harrassing a hawk from his position.

Take a close look at a polished up crow sometime, and see that they are beautiful in their own fashion.

I guess this is what I was trying to say when I said crows were 'scary':

"Ravens and Crows represent magick, mystery, and sacred law as well as battle, and the mysteries of the Crone and Matron (warrior goddess). A gathering of ravens is called an "unkindness"while a group of crows is a "murder". They are highly intelligent birds, and have been known to follow armies for many miles.

In Native American Myth, Raven is a Creator/Trickster god. In Celtic lore, the raven is sacred to Badb (whose name means "Battle Crow"and the Morrigan as well as Bran and Lugh. In Greek lore it is sacred to Hecate, and Apollo among others.

In Norse tradition,, the two ravens that sit on the shoulders of Odin are called Huginn and Muninn (Mind and Memory). As guardians through the cycle of death and rebirth, the scintillating rainbow colors in their dark wings remind us that even in the midst of darkness we have the power to touch the light."

From "tween the shadows--magick and symbols" website

I hope the unkindness of ravens and the murder of crows in our woods relocates to Pennsylvania. lol

I'll take a good ol' bunch of robins or flock of bluebirds any day!

Here's some more on our friendly neighborhood crow murder:

from the 'Coven of the Raven's Eye' Website:

"The symbolism of the Crow

In the christian culture, the crow means nothing good. But you'll be surprised to see what he symbolizes in other civilisations.

A BAD BIRD

The crow is seen as a negative omen only recently and mostly in Europe.
For the Celts, the crow was sacred and meant the flesh torn by fighting. As he eats carrion, the welsh poetry uses the metaphor "the crow pierced you" to say "you have died". They thought crows escorted the sun during his nocturnal path, that is to say in Hell. So they were a symbol of evil, contrary to swanns, symbolizing purity....." end of quote

so you get the picture...'nuff said about our crows....for today, anyway! They really are nice birds but they get a bad rap and I think they're scary!

Ugh, tabasco... stop going to those websites!!!!!!!!!! LOL :)

Well you certainly explained it! Never scared me, but I never could relate to the witch/superstition stuff-must be the scientist in me. We have tons of crows here and I talk to them daily ("Caw, caw yourself!"). They're just part of life in New England. I like the fish crows I got to chat with in NC-they have a southern accent, if you listen to them!

If you send them all to PA, you prolly would miss being scared! Lol.

One more collective name for the Crow family is:
a congregation of rooks.
The Rook Corvus frugilegus http://www.mangoverde.com/birdsound/picpages/pic189-92-3.html is very like a crow, but has a bare area of skin around its face. They usually breed in large colonies 'rookeries' and are usually seen feeding in large numbers as well. There is a saying in England that if you see a Rook on its own it is a Crow and if you see a large flock of Crows, they are Rooks!

This is the weather the shepherd shuns,
And so do I;
When beeches drip in browns and duns,
And thresh and ply;
And hill-hid tides throb, throe on throe,
And meadow rivulets overflow,
And drops on gate bars hang in a row,
And rooks in families homeward go,
And so do I.
Thomas Hardy

I think there is a collective name for a group of Jackdaws but I cannot recall it at present, though in searching for it I found two more for the rook:
A building of Rooks
A parliament of Rooks

I like Jackdaws Corvus monedula http://www.mangoverde.com/birdsound/spec/spec189-78.html and was very pleased to see and hear a lot of them on my recent visit to England. They often live in and around old buildings and their chattering calls are much pleasanter than the coarse caws of the crows. The Jackdaw has a reputation (shared with the Magpie) of collecting shiny trinkets to decorate its nest such as rings. The Jackdaw of Rheims by Richard Harris Barham is a delightful poem story of a thieving jackdaw: http://www.bartleby.com/246/108.html

I think my favourite among the collective names for birds is:
An exaltation of Larks!

Edited to add:
and a Charm of Goldfinches!

This message was edited Mar 1, 2005 1:41 PM

I have found the collective name for a flock of Jackdaws. They are known as:
A Train of Jackdaws

I enjoyed reading all the superstitions and all the poetry and imagery from Ken. But the folklore around these birds is what makes me LIKE them all the more. I think they are just plain COOL birds....spooky and all :-). The Jackdaws can't be seen as spooky though....they are too roundish and cute for that :-). The second link I gave above has a sound file for Jackdaws. It's fun to listen to them....so give check it out :-) Here it is again: http://www.geocities.com/robbinknapp/romdap/rcmonede.htm

-Julie

Was that a duet?

Well, said! to end the Month of February with poetry and symbolism and even song (the duet!)! Now march on to March!

Look for the new 'March' thread for postings, we 'gaggle' of Birdsters have finished our 'Firsts' for February!

Ken, I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of your post and read The Jackdaw of Rheims aloud to my DBF who also found it in "The Ingoldsby Legends" that we had in our library. That Thomas Hardy is a gem. What fun!! I work with language learning disabled kids and teach them collective names (very basic) but I think I should sneak in "a charm of goldfinches" into my lessons, don't you? I think mostly what I'm doing is showing them the beauty of language to help balance their fear of it.

Salvia you are right, crows are COOL. They deserve all the folklore!!

Wallace Stevens, on the other hand, wrote Thirteen Ways of Looking at Blackbirds.

II
I was of three minds,
Like a tree
In which there are three blackbirds.

WOW Great poetry and traditions.

Most of all I have just inherited a "charm" of goldfinches.

My last name is Espeland - and I can easily relate to the Norse traditions about crows.

Hi -- the March 'Firsts' Thread is up for all new sightings, records, additions to your personal, backyard and life lists and any other Milestone of the Avian nature you may have to post during the Month of March!
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/488314/

Since we were really getting going on the Names of Groups of Birds, I set up a whole new thread for that which should be fun http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/488317/ I didn't post all the ones mentioned here, but when convenient you can add them up there to keep them all in the same place...

Do we need a thread on Wildlife/Avian Poetry, Symbolism and Folklore? Mmmm....could be interesting...with a special emphasis on Norse-ish literature...just kidding, Seeds. lol

I think we have lots of lurkers on this thread since I just looked at the number of 'views'--I wish we could see more 'posters' this month--everybody must have some first to report! And most of us are pretty new at this, anyway.

Well, thanks everybody for posting. It's been lots of fun and I, for one, learned a lot. Have a good Month of March. I think we'll all get lucky! t.

p.s. what do you call a flock of Eagles? Answer here http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/488317/ !

I know! I know! Pick me! Pick me! hehehehehe ;-)

-Julie

:-D