Temperatures have repeatedly been below freezing this past week, which changes a bird’s behavior. These changes are most apparent at your feeders because the birds are usually closer.
Birds appear larger in colder temperatures. Feathers provide excellent insulation (remember down coats?) and feathers are adjustable. Moving feathers outward makes the bird appear larger and puts more air under the feathers; the extra air gets heat from the birds’ body and keeps the cold air further away.
Bird’s legs also seem to get shorter in cold weather. No feathers normally insulate the birds’ legs so they lose body heat in cold weather. The raised feathering described above encloses part of their legs, but they also hunch down, keeping more of their legs within their feathers. Sometimes they may even pull their legs completely into their feathers. I watched a Carolina wren throw a bunch of seeds from the feeder onto the deck, then sit next to the seeds and stretch head and neck to gather and eat the seeds.
Despite the cold I heard a very welcome sign of the coming spring. Early on the morning of Jan. 9 I heard a tufted titmouse belting out its song, loud and clear. On Jan. 13, I heard a Carolina wren singing. What? Winter is just starting! But the winter solstice is the shortest daylight of the year. Now daylight is increasing, which triggers some birds to start singing. As January progresses we will hear more bird song — listen for it. Laura Lennihan saw the first Barrow’s goldeneye of the winter along the West Chop shoreline near Grove avenue on Dec. 22, but it was not seen again until Jan. 9 when Wendy Culbert and I spotted one near the drawbridge. One has been seen there every winter going back to 2021. Most likely it is the same male returning every winter. Others who saw this bird include Nancy Weaver on Jan. 9, Janet Woodcock on Jan. 10 and Nancy Nordin on Jan. 11. If history is any precedent, it will stay there into late February.
In other waterfowl news, both the Eurasian wigeon and the northern shoveler have moved since Crystal Lake was covered with ice. The Eurasian wigeon was last seen at Crystal Lake on Jan. 1. Nancy Nordin spotted it (undoubtedly the same bird) at Tashmoo Springs on Jan. 11 and Nelson Smith saw it there the next day. The shoveler returned to Crystal Lake now that there is a narrow band of open water. Nancy Weaver, Nelson Smith and Sharon Simonin each spotted it there on Jan. 12.
Gadwalls have appeared — Nancy Weaver observed one at Tashmoo Springs on Jan. 8, Nelson Smith watched two in Mattakesett Bay on Jan. 11 and Nancy Weaver had one at Sepiessa Point on Jan. 11.
Janet Woodcock found two wood ducks at Tashmoo Springs on Jan. 12.
Town cove is a great place to find ducks when the great pond is open to the ocean. Between Bob Shriber’s and my observations, we found wood duck, gadwall, mallard, black duck, northern pintail, green-winged teal, bufflehead, hooded merganser and ruddy duck.
Our winter resident shorebirds (black-bellied plover, sanderling and dunlin) are around in fairly small numbers across the Island. John Nelson reports three lingering killdeer in the park next to Sunset Lake on Jan. 10 and Bob Shriber found two killdeer, two greater yellowlegs and four Wilson’s snipe at Town Cove on Jan. 8.
Nancy Weaver observed one greater yellowlegs at Sepiessa Point on Jan. 11. Charles Morano spotted two lingering American oystercatchers at Little Beach on Jan. 10, and Parker Fyfe-Kiernan saw four purple sandpipers at Philbin Beach on Jan. 12.
A snowy owl had been seen and photographed twice —both in Edgartown. One sighting was during the Christmas Bird Count, and more recently Gary Look saw one. Both sightings were in the early morning.
Multiple observers have spotted eastern bluebirds this week, mostly in West Tisbury yards. Lynn Buckmaster-Irwin has up to 18 of them, Daisy Kimberly counted nine on Jan. 9, Maggie Bresnahan has two pairs on Jan. 9, Nancy Nordin has at least nine bluebirds, and Janet Woodcock, Nancy Weaver and Shea Fee counted eight bluebirds at Long Point on Jan. 10.
The following observers have spotted over-wintering hermit thrushes: Lynn Buckmaster-Irwin, Lanny McDowell, Jennie Kang, Thaw Malin and Cynthia Bloomquist.
Other waterbirds seen this week include razorbills. I saw three off West Chop while on the ferry to Woods Hole on Jan. 7 and Bob Shriber found one razorbill and two horned grebes in Aquinnah on Jan. 11.
Nancy Weaver found one black-crowned night-heron, one great egret and one great blue heron at Tashmoo Springs on Jan. 8.
Tim Simmons, Suzan Bellincampi and Jane Varkonda spotted a short-eared owl flying near Atlantic avenue on Jan. 6. At nearly the same time, Chris Scott spotted and photographed a barn owl at Norton Point as it was getting dark.
Less than common finches include purple finch, tree sparrow and Ipswich sparrow. Nancy Nordin spotted a purple finch at her West Tisbury feeders on Jan. 6, Chris Scott found a tree sparrow in Katama on Jan. 8 and again on Jan. 10, while on Jan. 10 and Bob Shriber located one near Norton Point. Bob Shriber also found an Ipswich sparrow (a pale form of Savannah sparrow) in Aquinnah on Jan. 9.
Finally, the warblers. Yellow-rumped warblers are the most common, with many sightings Island-wide. January 6 was a good warbler day as there are two observations of pine warblers at feeders: Nancy Nordin had six and Cynthia Bloomquist and Thaw Malin found two.
Nancy Nordin found a palm warbler at Dogfish Bar on Jan. 6, while Nancy Weaver spotted a palm warbler along Edgartown Bay Road on Jan. 12.
Please email your sightings to birds@vineyardgazette.com
Robert Culbert is an ecological consultant with Nature Watch living in Vineyard Haven.
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