UVM Ornithology Journal Post 6
Date: 04/22/2024
Start time: 5:58
End time: 6:59
Location: Burlington Country Club, VT
Weather: Sunny, Beaufort scale 1, 40ºF or so
Habitat: Open fields, farm area nearby, golf course (ew), sparse trees
I heard the ring-necked gulls, American crows, chickadees, and northern cardinal more overhead, but I saw the song sparrows in more stationary settings in the brush. The chickadees were very vocal, making the "chicka-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee" call from some far-off trees, whereas the song sparrows chattered a bit at me but didn't really move from their shrubby hideout. These behaviors are to signal against any rival birds, especially at this time in the year. Song sparrows typically nest in taller grasses, much like what will be in the fields that I passed by on my way to the sit spot. Song sparrows need these clearings and grasses to nest, whereas other species like the chickadee need snags and trees to nest. Song sparrows won't go for the woods, and chickadees won't go for the fields so this base habitat requirement separates the two. The song sparrows that I heard singing and chirping were defending some pretty bad territory, as I was right on the edge of a golf course with small farm fields being the only real nesting habitat. This could indicate a lesser fitness of these individuals, and it could also indicate a later migratory return when they couldn't get better habitat. The black-capped chickadee is a cavity nester, so the main resource for nesting it requires is a tree. They have to nest where there are trees, and they line the cavities that they find or create with moss or animal hair. These can come from anywhere- moss is common in most places and animal hair isn't too hard to find if moss doesn't pan out- dogs shed, deer get fur stuck in thorns, etc.. Chickadees don't have to outsource much.
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