Big January Wrap Up...Three!

A young student at the Nature Centre feeders

I have visited these feeders at Guelph Ontario twice in the past week and stayed until my feet and fingers were numb with cold. There was plenty of action both times, from the seed eating birds and their predators. This area in the country and is surrounded with farms. There were at least three feral cats prowling around. What a perilous place for the many smaller birds hanging out in the area.

I studied the placement of the feeders and the plantings around them. If you look at the picture above and to the left, you can see heavy brush as well as a stand of cedars adjacent to the feeder. Other than the Chickadees, most of the birds rested in the thickets and darted back and forth to the feeders. I did not see a single House Sparrow or Starling in the area.

The first day I was there, a young Sharp-shinned Hawk made three passes at the feeders in an effort to get a meal. While it looks much like a Coopers Hawk, especially when mature, this hawk is smaller, about the size of a dove. In fact, I wondered why a dove was flying so quickly toward the feeders until I realized it really was a hawk.

Young Sharp-shinned Hawk, bird #60

I felt sorry for this young bird as it needed a meal too, but was hoping it did not target the lone Eastern Towhee or the Red-bellied Woodpecker. However, the Towhee never came out of the brush and has likely survived this far into the winter because of its caution. The placement of feeders and plantings around them do need to be carefully considered to provide safety for the birds. I think we often put feeders out for our enjoyment and viewing rather than considering what is best for the birds.

White-crowned Sparrow, bird #61

I went back yesterday hoping to get a better view of the Towhee. There were about 50 students visiting from a local school who were involved in outdoor winter activities. They were trying to find items on a list and had been assigned little binoculars. I loved watching them interact with nature. One 6th grade girl shouted, "Look at the red bird!!" She didn't even recognize a Northern Cardinal but will remember that now. Other children seemed to have a better knowledge of the environment around them. They had an outdoor campfire lunch of hot dogs, hot chocolate and marshmallows in the minus 10C temperatures.


I was happy to find my 61st bird in spite of the activity. There was one White-crowned Sparrow and a couple of White-throated Sparrows, birds I usually don't see until May.

Another local birder, a college student named Josh, has counted 89 birds in Ontario this month. He is a avid and skilled naturalist and a contributor to our local birding forum. I know he will have more birds by the end of the month. He has scouted the Niagara River for gulls and water birds and also found more owls and raptors than I did. So I will have to set my goal higher for January 2010 and maybe brave the Niagara area. We will see!