Field Journal Assignment 3
On March 2 I started bird watching at around 11:40 am and stayed out until 12:50. I was bird watching on Redstone Campus as there are usually plenty of birds around there to observe. It was not terribly cold today at around 34°F. The habitat was suburban-like since there were dorm buildings and busy roads nearby. I could hear and see many birds out today. The three species that I could distinguish were 5 American Robins, 3 Black-capped Chickadees, and at least 20 European Starlings, though there were too many to count.
The robins and chickadees were mostly sitting in a tree and singing their songs. The robins would sometimes fly back and forth between the tree and the ground and the chickadees would jump around the tree branches picking with its bill. I assume the chickadees were looking for little bugs and other things to eat off the branches since it was a warmer day and they didn't spend as much energy on staying warm. I assume the same for the robins, except they were probably finding things to eat off the ground instead. The European Starlings were displaying much different behavior. Down the middle of the open area is a path of grass with no snow that I assume forms from some sort of pipe or heat running underground between buildings. The starlings spent most of their time all together in the grass, but when one flew away into the tree they all followed. They did this a few times, sometimes without me even noticing. I would look away for a second and when I looked back they had vanished.
All three of these species were probably spending their energy today on foraging and eating since they didn't need to conserve as much for heat. But on a colder day I'm sure you would find them nestled away somewhere, like in a snag or in a tree, sleeping and conserving energy. As it gets warmer they will probably start to spend more time out looking for food and soon start mating. Their diet right now probably consists of a few bugs, but mostly things like nuts and seeds. In the spring it probably is reversed and they eat more bugs.
Since I wasn't really out in the woods for my bird watch I didn't come across any snags, but there were a few trees that had some sort of bird made nest/structure at the top. Snags are important for birds, especially in the winter, because they can use them as shelter from the weather and predators. They can safely sleep there or hideout and be protected. Smaller bird species that don't really live with others probably utilize this more as they can fit in more spaces and are the most vulnerable.
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