More Spotted Sandpiper Chicks

More Spotted Sandpiper Chicks - Actitis macularia

Now that I have some sense of what to look for, Spotted Sandpiper chicks are relatively easy to spot (pun intended). They blend in very well with either river-rock or with shore-side brush. Movement is what gives away their presence.

I watched this chick for about 15 minutes on a newly-created river-rock-surfaced bend in the Elbow River. On one side was a peaceful "lagoon" of sorts with minimal current. On the other side was a major arm of the river with a strong current. These chick swim well, but I doubted their ability to do well in the main river. I stayed a good distance away and moved to the left or right to determine how the chick might react to moving towards the side with the stronger current. The chick always moved in the opposite direction to me, except when close to the side with the stronger current. In this situation, the chick moved towards me along the shore, with the safety of the minimal current water close at hand. How might a chick determine whether the current is safe enough to enter? Perhaps the sound of the water triggers some inherent safety signal?

These chicks have very large feet and while on rocks, they routinely step high, as if to anticipate the rise, but they seem to commonly over-judge the obstacle. Perhaps their depth perception at this age is not yet fine tuned. 

Notice that there is a partial web (semipalmation) between only the first (outer) and second (middle) anterior digits. What advantage might this arrangement confer? The lack of full palmation implies that swimming is not the primary method of movement. 

References

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Cornell University eBird. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/spotted_sandpiper/lifehistory. 2013.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Birds. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2000.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Northern Rough-winged Swallow - Stelgidopteryx serripennis 

The species name means "saw feather" and refers to curved barbs along the outer edge of the primary wing feathers. The barbs are present only on adult males and the function of these 'hook-like" structures is not understood. 

Northern Rough-winged Swallows and Bank Swallows often nest in similar locations, but the Rough-winged species nests singly and Bank Swallows colonially. 

There was a solitary Northern Rough-winged Swallow nest on the bank of the Elbow River west of the Bank Swallow colony before the flood. Within a week of the flood a Northern Rough-winged Swallow family established a nest in Curly Creek, a quiet side arm of the Elbow River about a kilometer east. I suspect this is the same family that lost their nest in the flood. 

This photograph taken on June 26, 6 days after the flood, shows the swallow taking some nesting material to the new tunnel in Curly Creek. 

The photographs above and below were taken on July 27, a month later, about 20 or 30 meters away from the nest hole. The swallow is perched on a branch over Curly Creek. 

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Birds. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2000.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Playing Hide and Seek with a Common Yellowthroat

Playing Hide and Seek with a Common Yellowthroat -
Geothlypis trichias

Walking back along Blackbird Marsh, I heard a call that was not familiar. The bird was in a stand of bushes about three meters high, and within ten meters of my position. So, I moved to a position with the sun a bit behind me and stood still.





















Most birds will not remain close to a human and will move off in their own cautious way to a more distant and safer spot. This bird did not, so I knew my patience was likely to be rewarded.

When I saw the leaves in the middle of the bush move, I raised my camera and was rewarded with some glimpses of a male Common Yellowthroat. 

Sibley describes these birds as "a rather secretive denizen of marshy or brushy vegetation," but I often find yellowthroats moving from one bush to another, oblivious to me while feeding with a mission, or singing in springtime from the outside branch of a tree.






















References

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley DA. The Sibley Guide to Birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. 2000.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Spotted Sandpiper Chicks

Spotted Sandpiper Chicks - Actitis macularia


Spotted Sandpipers incubate eggs for 20 to 25 days and finding at least two and perhaps three families with one or more chicks in the last week, which is only five weeks after the flood, surprised me. 

The first four photos are from July 25 and are from a family with at least two chicks. I knew a nest or chicks were close based on the display of the adult. The adult flushed from some low willow brushes about 5 to 10 meters inland from the Elbow River.

Willow bushes survived fairly well in the raging flood waters, which implies they have tenacious roots. Lower brushes up to one meter look normal. Higher brushes over two meters are alive but bent over. The brushes in this location were all less than a meter high.

As I carefully advanced, two chicks suddenly scattered in different directions. I kept a close eye on one chick and this eventually allowed the following photos.

Several days earlier I saw another solitary chick in a different location but I turned my gaze away for a few seconds to raise my camera, and the chick was long gone. These chicks can run very fast through the underbrush. Keeping my eye on the photographed chick was quite a challenge in the underbrush and the photos were only possible when the chick fortuitously turned towards the water. The shoreline had much less cover. 

Once out of the underbrush, this chick scurried straight for the water, and without a moments hesitation, swam away from shore. There was only a modest current because the water was separated by a land bar from the main flow of the river, and I suspect the family was in this location by deliberate choice. A shoreline with willow underbrush adjacent to water with a modest current is likely an ideal location for food, security, and water training. 

I walked away from the area and stood and watched. The chick swam around for perhaps a minute and then swam back to shore and headed towards the original area where I saw the adult and chicks.

The picture above and the following three photographs are from July 27 and show a solitary and older chick from a different location about a kilometer away. 

This chick is larger, has browner tones, and the feet are much larger and yellowish-red. I suspect this chick is at about one week older. The chicks leave the nest as soon as the down is dry and are able to fly by 16 to 18 days. Neither of the chicks in the photographs have flight capability and are therefore less than this age. Remarkable growth and development over the first few weeks of life!

Presuming the first chick is about 3 days of age and the second chick is 10 days of age, and adding the incubation of 20 to 25 days, implies the eggs were laid for the first chick 23 to 28 days ago and 30 to 35 days ago. Since the flood was 35 days prior to the first photographs, this implies the eggs were laid after the flood. This makes sense, because the flood-waters likely destroyed the existing nests and eggs, which are typically on the ground and within 20 to 30 meters of shore.

When I originally did the math after seeing a solitary chick on July 24, I presumed the mother was "fortuitously pregnant" at the time of the flood and had not laid the final egg of a typical 4-egg clutch on June 20th (Flood Day) and laid the egg on higher ground the next day. Finding two families and therefore two "fortuitously pregnant" mothers in the small area where I hike suggested I needed to do some more thinking and research.

Spotted Sandpiper females are polyandrous. They might mate with more than one male in a season. If so, the male of the first clutch takes care of the eggs. Males are reported to have higher prolactin levels than usual and this fits with more post-hatch nestling care behaviour. Females are reported to have higher testosterone levels than usual and this fits with observations of courtship and nesting behaviour.

Females are reported to "store" sperm for up to a month. At the time of the flood all female Spotted Sandpipers likely had "stored" sperm. Spotted Sandpipers are usually single brooded, polyandrous behaviour notwithstanding. Faced with the loss of the first brood to the flood-waters, perhaps the females, inherently driven to breed each year, promptly fertilized one or more eggs with the "stored sperm" and expedited a clutch with only one or two eggs. This would explain why there are so many Spotted Sandpiper chicks in a limited geographic area so soon after the flood. 

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Cornell University eBird. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/spotted_sandpiper/lifehistory. 2013.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Gosling Growth

Gosling Growth 

One personal goal for this spring and summer is to observe and understand the general, nesting, and parenting behaviours of adult geese, and the growth and development of the goslings hatched in the region where I routinely hike. I kept notes of my observations.

In the 2.5 months from May 11 to July 23, I observed Canada Geese with goslings on 21 days. I saw a single family on nine days, two families on six days, and three families on six days. I was not always able to photograph the families. The distance or the lighting prevented photographs on most days. However, I was able to take photographs that show gosling growth and development on six days. The photographs below tell a story.

The photos are likely from six different families, but based on the location photographed and the number of goslings noted, the first and third photos might be the same family. Based on the dates and sizes, the goslings hatched at various times from late April to mid May.

Five to six eggs are usual, incubation is by the mother for 25 to 30 days, the goslings are swimming in the water and walking on land within a few days after birth, and they can fly by about 9 weeks. Both adults tend the goslings, which stay with the parents until the following spring.

 May 17 - Estimate only a week or so old.

May 30 - Estimate two or three weeks of age. 

June 4 - Estimate about a month of age. 

June 4 - Estimate 6 weeks of age. 

May 29 - Estimate 6 to 8 weeks of age. 

July 23 - Estimate 2.5 to 3 months of age.

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Empty Robin's Nest

Empty Robin's Nest - Turdus migratorius






















On June 19. 2013, I saw a Robin's nest in the rafter of the shelter at the Elbow River Constructed Wetland site. There were two eggs in the nest. I monitored the nest and noted 4 eggs on June 21 and 5 eggs on June 29. Likely the mother laid a single egg each day on June 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24. There are usually an average of 4 eggs with a range of 3 to 5. 

I was away from home for over a week and did not check the nest again until July 13, by which time the eggs had hatched and there were two chicks. I saw two chicks again on July 14 and July 16. The usual incubation period is 11 to 14 days. On July 13, the chicks looked large enough to be at least a week old. 

On July 24 the nest was empty. Robin chicks usually leave the nest 14 to 16 days after hatching.

If the incubation range (11 to 14 days) is added to the time-to-fledge range (14 to 16 days), a chick might fledge as early as 25 days or as late as 30 days after the egg is laid. 

Based on my observations and the math, the two chicks who hopefully fledged, could have been from any one of the five eggs.

I never tried to take photos of either the eggs or the chicks. The mother always flew off when I entered the shelter and I only permitted myself a quick glimpse at the nest contents. 

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Spotted Sandpiper Chick

Spotted Sandpiper Chick - Actitis macularia

On July 24, 2013, on the shore of the Elbow River by Kingfisher Island, I heard and then saw nesting Spotted Sandpipers in two different locations. Both sandpipers tried to lure me away from the nest. I carefully searched for the nests but did not find any eggs.

However, at the second site, I saw a tiny Spotted Sandpiper chick scurry away from under a Willow bush. The chick looked like a two-inch grey fur ball running on tiny legs. By the time I had my camera up the little bird was gone and notwithstanding 10 patient minutes of watching and searching, I never saw the chick again.

The flood was 25 days ago. The area where I saw the chick was likely still underwater 20 days ago. Since Spotted Sandpipers incubate eggs for 20 to 24 days, the mother must have laid the egg for this chick within days of the flood on higher ground. Since most Spotted Sandpipers had finished egg laying by mid June, and since all those eggs were likely lost in the flood, this late pregnancy was fortuitous for the mother. Usually there are four eggs. Perhaps the mother laid fewer eggs in the post flood turmoil, or perhaps this chick is the only survivor of a larger brood.

 References

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Savannah Sparrow Fledged

Savannah Sparrow Fledged - Passerculus sandwichensis

Early in the spring I usually see a Savannah Sparrow sitting on the fence around the Glenmore Runoff Reservoir. Since late June I have seen newly fledged Savannah Sparrows in the same area. 

Savannah Sparrows nest on the ground. There is a grassy hill that leads up from the walking path to the fence around the reservoir. I commonly see the Savannah Sparrows fly to or from the fence from this grassy hill, and I presume this is were the nest is located. 

There are usually 4 to 5 eggs, incubation is for 8 to 12 days, and the young are fledged at 8 to 14 days of age. Savannah Sparrows are double and even triple brooded and the bird in the photo above taken on July 16th was from the first brood.

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Calliope Hummingbird

Calliope Hummingbird - Stellula calliope
At 3.25 inches and 25 grams, the Calliope Hummingbird is the smallest bird in Canada. There are three hummingbirds who regularly visit my garden. The Rufous (3.75 inches) and the Ruby-throated (3.75 inches) are noticeably bigger.

In Greek mythology, Calliope (pronounced ka-LIE-o-pee), the daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne, was the muse of epic poetry and the inspiration for Homer's Odyssey and the Iliad.
Louise and I enjoyed several days of active Shuttle Display in the garden last weekend. These hummingbirds fly back in forth in a shallow horizontal curve at various heights up to 30 to 40 meters. We witnessed short shuttles at modest heights toward the top of a tree and wider shuttles well above the tree tops.

Calliope Hummingbirds migrate up to 8900 km every year!

The wings beat 55 to 75 times per second and without excellent light to allow a very fast shutter speed, the wings are usually just a blur.

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Common Raven

Common Raven - Corvus corax








Ravens are intelligent. In one experiment a Raven was presented with some meat hanging from a long string tied to a high perch. There was no convenient place to access and eat the meat. The Raven solved the problem by lifting the string onto the perch, placing a foot on the string to hold it in place, then lifting more string, and again securing the string under the other foot, and then repeating this process until the meat was pulled up to the perch and accessible to eat.


In non-verbal experiments, Ravens have been shown to "count." The Ravens in the experiment recognized groups of different sizes up to a total of seven.

Juvenile Ravens that come across a carcass in winter recruit other juveniles to share in the food. This altruistic behaviour is thought to be necessary to secure the food source from the resident adult Raven in the neighbourhood. 

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.


Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

House Wren

House Wren - Troglodytes aedon 


The species name reflects the similarity of the call of the House Wren to a nightingale. In Greek mythology, Zeus transformed Aedon, the Queen of Thebes, into a nightingale.

Wrens are primarily insectivores and this series of photos confirms that the House Wren does choose this bird "food group." The wrens often feed in the bushes beside my chair while I read in the garden. The enter into the thick of the bush, and in less than a minute the emerge with an insect in the bill. They often enter crevices, where they know that insects like to hang out. 

A House Wren has nested in one of the boxes on the back fence every year for the last five years. There are usually two broods a year with 6 to 8 eggs. There are more wrens around this year than I have ever noticed, which might imply that many of the fledged wrens have returned to nest in the area.

House Wrens sometimes go into other nests (same or different species) in the immediate neighbourhood and puncture the eggs. Presumably this somehow increases survival chances, perhaps my minimizing competition for food for the young wrens.

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

American Goldfinch

American Goldfinch - Carduelis tristis

Goldfinches enjoy thistle seeds and since the hill behind my garden is filled with these obnoxious weeds, the finches return every year to this area. I put thistle seeds out for them but mostly these birds choose the sunflower seeds.
























The thistle is so important a food resource that the Goldfinch delays breeding such that the nestlings will hatch when the thistle seeds are maximally prevalent. These birds are double and sometimes triple brooded.

References

The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Alberta. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. 2007.

Baicich PJ, Harrison CJO. Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds. Princeton UP. 2005.

Beadle D, Rising J. Sparrows of the United States and Canada. Princeton UP. 2003.

Fisher C, Acorn J. Birds of Alberta. Lone Pine Publishing. Edmonton. 1998.

Sibley David A. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. Alfred A Knopf, Inc. New York. 2001.

Dam Damage

Beavers After the Flood

There is a family of beavers in Elbow River along my customary hike. This year I have seen both adults, a second year, and a new kit. 

An average of two to four baby beavers are born from March to early June. Louise and I saw a baby on June 10th, ten days before the flood. A parent was pushing the kit on his nose through the water to the shore.

Kits are capable of swimming from four days of age and they can dive and remain submerged by two months. The fur is fully water-repellent by 5 to 8 weeks of age.

The lodge for this family is on Kingfisher Island and the entrance is on the north side. I have seen the adults come and go from the entrance on numerous occasions.

After the flood I could not reach Kingfisher Island until the second week. The water was too high and the mud and debris was not easily passable. Once I managed to reach the area I discovered that Kingfisher Island is no longer an island. Two river stone banks of land now connect the west end of the island to the shore. I was able to walk up to the beaver lodge entrance, which I suspect is not ideal for the family. 

What happened to the kits? The island and the lodge must have been totally submerged. Lodges are constructed to allow air flow in through the top and this means the lodge was flooded and the structure, however well built, otherwise damaged by the raging waters. My guess is that the kits drowned or were swept downstream amidst river stones the same size as the babies.

On June 21, the day after the flood, I saw two adults on the river. One was far from the lodge and in a flooded area of the forest. The beaver was swimming slowly between the submerged bushes and trees. My sense was that the adult was searching for a kit.

The photo above, three weeks after the flood, shows an adult carrying a branch towards Kingfisher Island. Once I was spotted, the beaver turned and headed back downstream so that I would not see the animal enter the den.  

The three photos above show an adult in the river by Kingfisher Island. The same day I saw another adult swim with some branches to the area of the lodge but on the south side of the island, which is the opposite side of the pre-flood entrance. Perhaps the family has redesigned the lodge with a different entrance.  

Flood Aftermath - Three Weeks Later

Flood Aftermath - Three Weeks Later

The flood on June 20, 2013 devastated wildlife families in the flood plain along the Elbow River. 

Those birds that nested in the shallow grass by the sides of the river or on land adjacent to the river (Mallard, American Widgeon, Gadwall, Spotted Sandpiper), in trees within about five meters of the river (Yellow Warbler), or in the banks of the river (Bank and Northern Rough-winged Swallows, Kingfishers) were severely affected.

Bank and Northern Rough-winged Swallows lost all their nests. Bank Swallows are usually double brooded, and after making a new nest, might have a new clutch this year. However, since the third day after the flood I have not seen a Bank Swallow. The hundred or so Bank Swallows that were nesting have relocated somewhere else. 

Northern Rough-winged Swallows are reported to be only single brooded but I have seen several new pairs nesting in a different location along the Elbow River.

The Kingfisher mating pair lost their nest. These birds are usually single brooded, but are reported to fashion a new nest and replace the clutch if the first is lost. However, similar to the Bank Swallows, I have not seen or heard a Kingfisher since the third day after the flood, which implies these birds have relocated.

Yellow Warblers nest 1 to 3 meters up in Willows and many nests were lost. Based on call-identification, less than a third of the nests survived. However, some did. I saw a Yellow Warbler feeding a Cowbird (parasitized nest).

Spotted Sandpipers nest on the ground by the river and these birds lost all their nests. This is the most common bird on the river. I usually see or hear at least ten each time I do my customary hike. Lately I have seen or heard zero to two birds. 

Birds who nested higher up or who nested inland were less affected. Larger birds with young that hatched in May and early June (Canadian Geese, Common Merganser) were affected less than the smaller birds who hatched later in June. 










These three young Mallards were alone without a mother, which implies that the mother was lost, perhaps in the flood, or alternatively to other causes. These birds are larger and likely hatched in early June and their size is a survival factor.

Geese arrive and nest early and these goslings were likely hatched in May and able to walk inland or otherwise survive when the flood waters started to rise.





These six larger Mallard young likely hatched in late May or early June and were in the runoff reservoir, which suffered only a modest rise in water. Their size and the nesting location allowed survival. On the same day as this photo, I saw a 8 chicks with a mother on the reservoir. These chicks were still in the egg at the time of the flood, and had this mother nested on the river, these chicks would not be alive today. Similarly, I saw a Ring-necked Duck family with chicks about two weeks old. Ring-necked Ducks choose marshy ponds rather than rivers to nest, and were therefore at much less risk.  

These five larger Gadwall young hatched in late May or early June and were in the runoff reservoir, which suffered only a modest rise in water. Their size and the nesting location allowed survival.

This photo shows four of six young Common Mergansers . Mergansers, like Geese, are larger and nest earlier, and these youngsters were older and strong enough to survive the turbulent flood waters. However, I also saw one Merganser family that was not so lucky. Over the last few days I saw a solitary female Common Merganser in the same location that I saw a female with a solitary chick on June 17, three days before the flood. This adult was sleeping on the shore across the river two days ago but the next day I heard the Common Merganser alarm call from the adult. This call usually implies the presence of chicks, but I only saw the solitary female.  I suspect this female lost her chick in the flood. 

There was an American Widgeon pair nesting on land close to the Elbow River before the flood and these ducks have disappeared. I presume their nest was lost.