Welcome to our blog!
It's all about our discoveries in our private Shady Oaks Sanctuary for birds, pollinators and wildlife. We gauge our success by the diversity of species we observe and document with our photography.
We hope you are inspired to create your own refuge!
7-13-23 How well do you know the Thrushes?
A rare Varied Thrush was seen at our bubbler back on 1/23/03, only for a few minutes. It was gorgeous! This sighting was just the tenth record for Missouri. This bird convinced me to begin documenting birds here with my photography, and I have never looked back.
Another rare thrush for our area, the Townsend's Solitaire was found on the Meramec campus of St. Louis Community College by my friend, Anne McCormack. She first saw it on December 28, 2005, and it was seen by many observers through February 28, 2006. Yes, it stayed for two months. These rare birds will show up sometimes in late fall and winter, arriving on a strong cold front from the northwest.
Most people, even if they're not really bird enthusiasts, will recognize our Eastern Bluebird and American Robin! They are plentiful this year in our yard, successful in raising their young. This is the first time we've had two broods of Eastern Bluebirds.
These are the thrushes that migrate through our area. The first four are related and are in the same genus, Catharus. They are confusing unless one learns their specific ID traits and behaviors. Even then, without a photo it can be tricky to identify them! I've certainly made some mistakes with this bunch. One of them is seen mid-September through April, a rare but possible winter resident. The other three are just arriving as it moves north so timing can help with identification.
The fifth bird is a bit bigger and more strongly marked. It also has the most beautiful song of them all! So, let's take a closer look at these birds.
The Swainson's Thrush is the most common Catharus thrush during migration, typically arriving in late April. The second photo is part of my documentation of the earliest record date of April 10, 2017. They frequent a wide variety of woods, including residential areas. Thrushes love the water and prefer having the place to themselves!
#1 Swainson's Thrush: "Olive-backed thrush", buffy eye-ring, buff cheeks and upper breast. On first spring birds, the eye-ring may be narrow.
The Gray-cheeked Thrush is an uncommon transient, much less common than the Swainson's Thrush. It is typically not seen until the last week of April in woods and forests, including residential areas. All thrushes eat insects and fruit.
#2 Gray-cheeked Thrush: Dull grayish brown with grayish cheeks and a less conspicuous eye-ring.
The Veery is also a thrush. Its song is like its name, a liquid, descending "veer-u, veer-u, veer-u". This is the least common of the thrushes to be seen in our area in the eastern part of Missouri. This year was exceptional in that on a couple days I had three, maybe four Veeries. Usually, I'm lucky to see one. This last photo had me scratching my head and checking the Cornell website to look at more photos. I believe it's a 'brownish' Veery.
In the Fall, the majority of these birds make an overnight flight of the state. This bird visited our bubbler on 9-25-03. In researching for this post, I now realize how rare it was to see one in the Fall!
#3 Veery: The least spotted of the Catharus thrushes, it has a warm cinnamon brown color to the head and back. The spots are often indistinct. It may have a dull whitish eye-ring.
The Hermit Thrush is a winter resident some years. It is very like the Gray-cheeked Thrush except for its distinctive rusty red tail. When perched, it has a habit of cocking its tail and slowly lowering it.
There are two groups, differing in plumage and their breeding locations. The Western Mountain Group will nest in trees, whereas the Eastern Group nests on the ground. Usually, the Hermit Thrushes are rare here by late April when the other Catharus thrushes begin to arrive.
#4 Hermit Thrush: Grayish to warm brown with dark spots on the breast, distinctive rusty tail that it cocks when perched, then slowly lowers. An uncommon transient and uncommon winter resident in south and central Missouri, usually moving north by mid-late April.
#5 Wood Thrush: It has an ethereal, flute-like song that echoes through the woods. This bird is smaller than a robin, and a bit larger than the Catharus thrushes with a rusty head and rusty brown color to its back and wings with dark, rounded spots on the breast. It is a summer breeding resident in mature, relatively continuous woodland and forest areas in Missouri, most common in the eastern Ozarks. It is on the Watch List, and I feel so fortunate whenever I see one.
Provide native habitat and support our beautiful thrushes!
6-22-23 Another report for Spring Migration
Birdcast 5-10-23
Look at that spike! It was remarkable, the birds were just held back and then burst upon the scene all at once. It was definitely a strange spring in that regard. Some males dropped by to feed and kept on moving north. Others...well, there is a story here to tell.
There are some warblers that are renowned for their tendency to hide in cover, to skulk about, foraging for insects and to be just plain difficult to see. They are also just plain difficult for me to photograph.
The common Kentucky Warbler is one of these and it kindly obliged me this year by hopping through the violets and coming out in the open for a brief view.
Another noted skulker is the Common Yellowthroat. It also found safety in the cover of gooseberry and dewberry brambles, poppies, bluebells and violets. This male was here for several days and got comfortable enough to get into the bubbler to bathe.
It's so fulfilling to be able to show you the eyes of these bright and beautiful birds. It's also rewarding to know that they're finding enough insect food to boost their energy reserves so they can be on their way. Yards with habitat like ours are crucial to the survival and recovery of the populations of these birds.
If you follow this blog, you may remember that there is one species that I've often called my nemesis, the uncommon Mourning Warbler. Every year around Mother's Day, I anticipate its arrival. Some years, no bird arrives. One year, in 2006, it actually got into the bubbler to bathe. Last year, it popped out briefly, surveying the bubbler area.
Well, on Wednesday, 5-10-23 there was a lot of activity with birds around the bubbler. I was enjoying the time until the inevitable man-made machinery made it unbearable for me. I moved inside, though the birds continued coming to the bubbler, their safe place. Keeping an eye on things with the camera nearby, to my surprise, a Mourning Warbler came out of cover, bold as brass!
Well, knock me over with a feather!! It got out, it got back in, it got in with other birds like the Nashville Warbler and White-throated Sparrow.
What a striking specimen!! It was gorgeous!! I mean, I've only waited 17 years for this!!
It certainly gave the American Redstart a look, but kept on bathing. The longer it stayed, the longer it imprinted our location and the bubbler into its genes. How cool is that!!
There are so many more birds to talk about, but for today, enjoy the Mourning Warbler. I sure did!!!
6-6-23 Finally, out of the woods!
"Life is what happens when you've made other plans."
So many birds, my friends, and I'm still catching up. Finally, I can share the highlights from the first full week of May!
Both of the first two birds are Orange-crowned Warblers. A first spring female is duller blue-gray and the adult has more yellow plumage
Yellow Warblers are next, male and female.
A female Northern Parula found a tidbit on the waning bluebells.
These photos are of Pine Warblers. The first two photos are of a female, still in late winter/first spring plumage. I had never seen this plumage before and the bird didn't sit still long! The last image is a male, taken last year.
The Palm Warbler in the first image was soon joined by the Northern Parula and a Yellow-rumped Warbler.
An interesting thing about this spring is that males have been heard, some seen but they have been in a hurry to get to the breeding grounds since they got a late start. As a result, I haven't photographed as many of the males as usual.
Next is a female Golden-winged Warbler followed by a Blackpoll in the swampy puddle, and a Black-throated Green Warbler near the bubbler.
A female Blue-winged Warbler visited the bubbler often. A Wilson's Warbler and a female Black-and-white Warbler were also seen several days.
A Common Yellowthroat spent quite a bit of time in hiding, but it got more comfortable the longer it stayed around. More images next time.
An American Redstart is often challenging to photograph because it's so dark. It was joined in a splash fest at the bubbler with the female Blue-winged and three Tennessee Warblers.
Scarlet Tanagers are so striking! The male is bright red, the female more yellow-green with darkish wings.
Another plumage I had not seen before was this red morph female Summer Tanager in the first image, brownish with patches of red feathering. Typical females are orangey-yellow, like the female from 4-30-21. The young males remind me of Neapolitan sherbet! The plumage transitions to the deep orangey-red of the adult male in the last of this series.
Orioles! Baltimore male and female are in the first two images, then a female Orchard Oriole is in the third photo.
This is the only image I managed to get of a Wood Thrush. I heard the lovely singer several days. More thrushes will be shown next time.
We all need a little cool relief on days like today!
Stay well in this heat, we wait for a significant front to move out the unhealthy air mass!
To see all the photos, begin here:
Meet some of the migrants! 4-30-23
This is a screenshot from BirdCast showing the current migration status for St. Louis County, Missouri as of 4-30-23.
It seems that birds have come in fits and starts, and we're seeing migrants, but not as many species as we've
typically recorded by now. Southerly winds later this week will be a welcome change and help bring in the birds.
Ruby-crowned Kinglets have been regular visitors, note the insect leg poking out of the bird's mouth in the first photo! They love to get in the bubbler.
For the first time, we've seen a female Eastern Towhee get in and bathe, and it's been back on half a dozen days now.
Sparrows include Swamp, Chipping and White-throated. It seems like everywhere I look I see the White-throated! They are the most numerous right now, singing their plaintive songs all day long.
A Hermit Thrush is occasionally seen, but Swainson's Thrush now predominate.
Migrating finches are well-represented. Female Purple Finches, Indigo Buntings and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks have been here for days.
Red-breasted Nuthatches can be seen again through mid-May since it was a good irruption year for this species.
They're back! Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have been seen at the feeders and checking out the coral trumpet honeysuckle.
Vireos love to splash-bathe, but this is the first time we've seen a Warbling Vireo enjoy this behavior. This bird hit the pond, the bubble and even dive-bombed a Cardinal that was in the basin!
NOW...for the warblers.
Yellow-rumped have been most numerous, male and female are in the second photo.
A Northern Waterthrush found tiny larvae in the algae, as the Swamp Sparrow had done.
Tennessee and Nashville Warblers typically show up about the same time.
Orange-crowned Warblers have been at the sump puddle and at the bubbler. It makes my day to see one show its crown!
Palm Warblers are attracted to our cypress tree and to the swampy thicket. There have been a couple of them around.
My breath caught when I saw this yellow-throated bird climb onto the bubbler rock from the cover of the Virginia creeper and celandine poppies. It slipped back into cover and hopped out onto the little path between the violets!
KENTUCKY WARBLER!
That, my friends, is the promise of Spring migration!
We just never know what might have dropped in the night before
and will surprise us in the morning.
To view all the images since the last post, begin here:
Mid-April, warm and windy. 4-14-23
April in Bloom!
So many beautiful natives are blooming now, here are a few.
Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) have been feeding bumble bees and offer nectar to butterflies, moths and hummingbirds. Some blooms are decidedly pink, a natural variation in color determined by a higher pH in the soil.
Red Buckeye blossoms (Aesculus pavia) are opening and beckon Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, due to arrive any day!
Eastern Redbuds are at their peak, attracting tiny pollinators.
This plant takes many forms, and though not blooming, it pays to be aware of it and give it a wide berth. Do you know it? Poison Ivy! (Toxicodendron radicans) "Leaves of three, let it be!" (Not good for us, however, it does attract insects and provides berries, both food for birds.)
Tiny native mining bees (Andrena spp.) are ground nesters and pollinators of Blue Violets. I finally took time to watch them go head first down into the flower to gather pollen, then back out quickly and fly to another.
One breezy day, I followed a small Black Swallowtail to where it landed and sheltered out of the wind, on a Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum).
An immature accipiter came into the woodland on 4/1/23 and stayed on this branch for just over an hour, likely digesting a meal. It gave me time to study it and identify it as a Sharp-shinned Hawk.
It is in the same family as the Cooper's Hawk, and this composite photo shows how similar and confusing they can be. The Sharp-shinned are migrating through in April, whereas the Cooper's are year-round residents. A pair has begun a nest in a white pine in an adjacent yard. Birds will need to be on alert now.
Eastern Bluebirds have been busy and now have five eggs in their nest. The female takes very quick breaks to come and get a drink while the male watches the nest box.
Carolina Chickadees also keep close to their nest box. Soon, they'll be bringing inchworms and tiny moths to feed their young.
We moved box #2 to a different location. There has been interest by another pair of bluebirds and this Downy Woodpecker.
This female Downy Woodpecker was not pleased with that male. "Mine!" We have at least two pair of this species around, there's always competition for food and nesting sites.
Mourning Doves display affection for each other throughout their courtship period, and they mate for life. They seem very comfortable here.
The first Ruby-crowned Kinglet of the year popped in at the bubbler on 4/7/23. It was a quick look around.
Just the other day on 4/13/23, our FOY #58 Yellow-rumped Warbler finally showed up at the sump puddle in the swampy thicket. It was not seen again. I've also heard Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and Northern Parula singing, but no photo opportunities as yet. Birds are in a big hurry right now! Here's a look at peak migration dates. Global Big Day is Saturday, May 13, 2023. Birds will be moving through for the next six weeks.
Migration Map courtesy Cornell Lab
Our sanctuary is feeding residents and ready to welcome the migrating birds! Is yours?
Thanks to everyone who watched my program in the Partners for Native Landscaping Series.
There are a few in-person events yet on the schedule.
Find a way to get more native plants into your landscapes, help regenerate diversity and get on the map!
