Eastern Wild Turkey
Change in nature usually comes about in thousands or even millions of years, not in months or years. Quick and easy doesn’t seem to have a place when it comes to Mother Nature. Everything moves slowly and deliberately. But make no mistakes about it, nature does change. In fact, it is changing all the time, no matter if we notice it or not. So, I wanted to write about a change in nature that I have personally witnessed over the past 40 plus years and that change is the Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo). When I started out in the nature business back in the late 1970’s I never saw a turkey. I lived in areas where the turkey had been killed off and were nonexistent. Then while leading some birding tours in the late 1980’s and early 90’s I saw a small flock of turkeys along a highway in far Southeastern Minnesota. I was so excited to see these birds, I pulled the van over by the side of the road so my group of bird watchers could get out and see this rare bird. It was truly remarkable. A life list bird for everyone. That memory burns bright for me. It was estimated that turkeys numbered in the millions upon European arrival. They were found all across the United States in many different habitats. With the clearing of forests, and over hunting, the number of turkeys dropped to as low as 30,000 by the 1930’s and 40’s. At this point they were completely eliminated from Canada and only survived in localized pockets in the eastern United States. Early attempts to raise and release turkeys into the wild failed miserably. It wasn’t until efforts to trap and transplant wild turkey across the eastern half of the country did the numbers start to increase. By the 1970’s there were an estimated 1.3 million birds. In the upper Midwest, turkeys were reintroduced in the 1980’s. Small flocks of turkeys where trapped in areas that had healthy populations and released in areas that didn’t have turkeys and had suitable habitat. Over the next 30 years populations have increased dramatically and now they are stabilized. Even though turkeys are large and heavy birds, they are fast and powerful fliers. While most of the time they are seen on the ground and they walk almost everywhere they go, they fly up into trees each evening to roost for the night. In addition, they have the ability to fly at high speed, upwards of 50 mph in level flight, for upwards of a quarter of a mile, which would be plenty far and fast to out-pace a pursuing predator. Turkeys have excellent color eyesight, as do all birds, which they use to find food and watch out for predators. Their eyes are on the sides of their heads, so they have a wide view of their surroundings to watch for predators. There are 6 subspecies of turkey across the United States and Mexico. Subspecies are classified by subtle differences in plumage, coloring, habitat and behavior. It is important to stress that subspecies are defined by people for people and the birds really don’t play by our rules, if you know what I mean. The most dominant is the Eastern Wild Turkey which occurs in the eastern half of the country. The Osceola Wild Turkey also known as the Florida Wild Turkey, is only found in Florida. The Rio Grande Wild Turkey which ranges through Texas up into Colorado and west to northern California. The Merriam’s Wild Turkey which ranges through the Rocky Mountains and into South Dakota. The Gould’s Wild Turkey which is found in the mountains and valleys of Mexico and reach up into Arizona and New Mexico. The last is the South Mexican Wild Turkey and is found in southern Mexico and doesn’t range into the United States. As I write this column, I look out my office window into my wooded backyard. I have 4 large Tom turkeys and at least a dozen hens that visit two or three times a day. I really enjoy seeing them as they scratch the ground looking for insects or seeds. They are a daily occurrence in my yard, and it really feels like my relationship with the Wild Turkey has come full circle, from non-existent to first sightings, to occasionally seeing them to ultimately hanging around in my yard. Until next time… Stan Tekiela is an author / naturalist and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and capture images of wildlife. He can be followed at www.facebook.com and www.instagram.com. He can be contacted via his webpage at www.naturesmart.com.
American Black Bear
We could see it moving through the tall, dull green grass of late summer, and it is moving in our direction. I told the group that we better move back and get our cameras ready. It looks like it will be walking directly towards us, and it was a big one. Next, I told the group, “For this image to work, we will need to get down low and switch from horizontal to vertical format”. Only a minute later, my prediction was correct, it was walking straight at us. Using a very long lens so we could keep a distance, the group was able to capture some very impressive images of a male American Black Bear (Ursus americanus). This particular bear was well over 500 pounds and was getting ready for hibernation. The American Black Bear, usually just called Black Bear, are called “American” because they are endemic (found only) in North America. Of the three bear species found in North America, it is the smallest but the most wide spread bear species. The Black Bear evolved from another bear species around 4 to 5 million years ago. Since that time, based on fossil records,the Black Bear has become smaller. Historically, the American Black Bear roamed most of North America but today is restricted to most of the Northeast, going down the Appalachian Mountains, the northern states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. They are also found all across Canada and down the Rocky Mountains and down the west coast well into California. Adult male Black Bears average between 200-500 pounds. Adult females are smaller and are between 100-375 pounds. Black Bears found in northern states and Canada are larger than ones found in southern states. This is a good example of the Bergmann’s rule, which is a biological rule that states the larger the animal’s body the easier it is to stay warm in the cold of winter and the smaller the animal’sbody the easier it is to keep cool in the heat of summer. I find Black Bears utterly fascinating. These critters are perfectly adapted to living in North America. Bears can do things that other animals can’t. For example,the Black Bear mating season was back in June (spring) and even now, at the end of summer, the females are still not pregnant. The bears reproductive system holds the egg and sperm in a suspended state of animation and won’t become implanted in the female’s uterine wall until Oct. It is the females over all health in autumn that determines how many fertilized eggs will go on to become cubs and will be born in Feb after only about 4 months gestation. At this time of year, bears are eating as much as they can to build up enough fat to last them through winter. Hibernation can only be described as amazing. Here in the northland a bear can hibernate for upwards of 7 months. During this time, the bears metabolic activities are suppressed and in some cases such as the digestive system, comes to a complete stop. Other systems such as thermal (body core temperature) only slow down. Respiration and heart rate also suppress and lower. Combined, when all of these systems are slowed down or stopped the bear saves enough energy to last until spring. Think of it as gasoline in your car, the more you conserve the longer it will last. I think many people envision a hibernating bear as being unconscious, mouth open, tongue hanging out and snoring loudly. The reality is bears are often awake and looking around and taking care of what needs to be done. They move around regularly, and the pregnant females give birth during hibernation. After the cubs are born, she takes care to keep them warm and will also nurse the young. Also, during hibernation, bears who have any injuries often heal up nicely and by springtime are often well healed. In addition, if you and I were to lay down for 7 months, our muscles would atrophy (muscle loss) so bad that we would need to learn how to walk again. Bears lay down for the same amount of time and don’t have any issues with muscle loss. As you can see, bears are amazing creatures and have the ability to do things other mammals are unable to do. Until next time… Stan Tekiela is an author / naturalist and wildlife photographer who travels extensively to study and capture images and video of wildlife. He can be followed at www.instagram.com and www.facebook.com. He can be contacted via his website at www.naturesmart.com.
King Vulture
The passing of one year into another is often filled with many meanings and feelings. But really the new year is just the first day of the civil year in the Gregorian calendar, which is used by most countries. But somehow, we still attach so many meanings and traditions to this first day of the calendar year, either right or wrong. Many people look back and try to remember last year’s achievements but often only remember the failures. They look towards the new year with hopes of a new beginning and changing attitudes or make promises to themselves that you’ll do better. As a naturalist and wildlife biologist perhaps I look at things slightly differently. I see changing daylight. Just before Christmas on December 21 we had the winter solstice, when the earth’s northern hemisphere reaches its maximum tilt away from the sun. As a result, we have the shortest daylight and the longest nights. At the first of the year the days are now getting longer. Longer days is how I look at the new year. So, this year perhaps you can add an additional New Year resolution. It’s not difficult to do. Just open your mind to new ideas and things. For example, most people don’t like vultures. Yep, you read that correctly, think differently about vultures. But first let’s take a closer look at these amazing birds. Vultures are a group of birds that make a living by scavenging on carrion (dead animals). There are 23 different species of vulture, including the condors of the world. Here in the United States, we have two vultures, the Turkey Vulture and the Black Vulture and the California Condor for a total of three species. Many of the vultures have bare or naked heads and necks which often puts people off on their looks right away. Bare skin is thought to help the birds maintain a cleaner head especially when you consider they are sticking their heads into bodies of rotting flesh. And this makes some sense because they can reach with their beak most of their body to preen and clean their feathers but would be unable to reach their own head to preen. The bare head and neck also help the bird to thermoregulate their body temperature. On cold days they pull their head down tight to their body reducing the bare skin to outside temperatures and on hot days they stretch out their necks to expose the skin to allow for cooling. Recently while photographing King Vultures (Sarcoramphus papa) I was once again reminded that vultures are amazing birds. The King Vulture lives primarily in tropical lowland forests from southern Mexico down through Central America into northern Argentina. I was staying in a lodge in the lowland tropical forests of Costa Rica. The days were hot and extremely humid. Temperatures during the day were in the high 80’s and it rained on and off throughout the day driving the humidity through the roof. There was just no way to stay cool in these hot and muggy conditions. To photo the King Vultures, we had a short hike down a very muddy road. The last part of the walk was up a small hill. Not terribly steep but steep enough to make the muddy adventure challenging. The last thing you want to do is drop all your camera gear on the ground, let alone in the mud. Successfully navigating this last part led us to a well concealed blind with a narrow window across the front so we could put our camera lens out. Out in front of the blind was a small clearing in the forest jungle. It was early in the morning and there was already about 30 Black Vultures and 3 King Vultures visible. I couldn’t believe my eyes, right in front of us, not 75 feet away was the king of all the vultures. This magnificent looking black and white bird with a stunning yellow, red, blue, orange head and a bright white eye encircled with a red ring was right before my lens. This is something I have dreamed about many times. For the next 3 hours over 20 King Vultures flew into the clearing. I took thousands of images of these amazing looking birds and thought about their natural role in this jungle forest habitat. How these birds are the front line of recycling and reducing the waste in a natural ecosystem. How they are able to find food by following the scent of rotting flesh. How they can eat things so putrid that it would kill you and me and I could go on and on about the virtues of the vultures. Vultures in general are birds that fill an ecological niche that really is a thankless job but extremely important. So, this year let’s make a resolution to start to accept any and all things that may look or act differently from others and let’s start with the vultures of the world. Happy New Year. Until next time… Stan Tekiela is an author / naturalist and wildlife photographer who travels the world to study wildlife. He can be followed on www.instagram.com, facebook.com and twitter.com. He can be contacted via his web page at naturesmart.com.
Wood Ducks and Bluebirds
It’s that time of year again. Time to clean out your Wood Duck and Bluebird boxes. In just a few short weeks the first Wood Ducks and Bluebirds will be returning to the northland and right now is the time to get ready for their arrival. Cleaning out your nest boxes sounds easy enough but there are a few things to consider before jumping out of your Lazy Boy and running out to clean your boxes. You will need the following items before heading out. Gloves, ladder, plastic bag, dust (particulate) mask, and a 3 inch putty knife. I start by using my ladder to carefully climb up to the Wood Duck nest box. Most nest boxes are located over or near water, so getting to them now before the ice melts make it a lot easier. Always use a dust or particulate mask to avoid breathing in the dust when removing the contents of the nest box. Mice often use these boxes during winter and these four footed creatures can carry several airborne nasty diseases. Position yourself upwind so when you are pulling out the nest material any dust and debris blows away from you. Gloves serve well to keep your hands warm and protected. I often find one or two infertile eggs remaining from last season. Be extra careful when removing these. If you’ve ever had one of these eggs break, you know what I mean. The smell of the rotten contents can be overwhelming. Handle these eggs with caution. This is where the plastic bag comes in handy. Remove and dispose of the eggs away from the nest box. You don’t want to attract raccoons and other predators with the rotten eggs. In addition to removing the infertile eggs, I always remove the soft downy feathers that line the nest box. The female woody will replace the feathers to cover her new clutch of eggs. If the woodchips at the bottom of the box are soiled, I often remove and discard the top layer. I have never found it necessary to remove all of the wood chips. Consider replacing all of the chips if they are wet or moldy. Before adding any addition wood chips I use my putty knife to scrape off any spider egg casings. The egg casings are the white fuzzy balls stuck to the inside corners of the box. Also make sure the wire that the young ducks use to climb out of the box is secured before adding the extra chips and closing up the box. Also, now is the time to make any necessary repairs to the box. Bluebird boxes tend to be a bit easier to clean out. First of all, you don’t need a ladder to reach the box and they rarely have any leftover smelly eggs to remove. However, if you left the Bluebird box closed all winter you might have to deal with mice. You’ll know if you have mice because you’ll find a large round ball of plant material for a nest and it will have a strong odor of urine. Don’t be surprised if a mouse jumps out at you either. All the same rules apply when cleaning out the Bluebird box as the Wood Duck. Wear a dust mask and gloves. I clean out all nesting material from my Bluebird boxes. I also remove the nesting material from the area near the nest box. The discarded nest material can attract predators to your Bluebirds boxes. I have lost too many baby Bluebirds to domestic cats and raccoons to loose any more. If your bluebird box is urine soaked from mice, I recommend leaving the door open for a couple weeks to dry out before closing. Also, consider installing a predator guard at this time. You don’t want to install these wire guards after the birds have moved in. This is also the time to consider adding some new nesting boxes. Why not greet your favorite birds this spring with some brand new nest boxes.
Bird Vision
I am often asked how birds find food. Or another great question is, if I put up a new birdfeeder, how will the birds know it’s there or find it. The answer is simple—eyesight. Eyesight is very important to birds. In fact, that might be understating the roll of vision in birds. It is darn right critical for survival. It is thought that the birds have the best vision among all animals. And not just some birds, nearly all birds have excellent eyesight. This excellent vision comes from large eyes. A bird’s eyes are so large that in some species the weight of their eyes is equal or more than the weight of its brain. In many species the eye accounts for about 15 percent of the mass of the birds entire head. Human eyes by comparison account for less than 2 percent of the head and weight a fraction of the brain. The largest eyes of any land animal are those of the Ostrich which are nearly two inches in diameter. All of this space allows for more photoreceptors called “rods and cones” in the back of the eye. The human eye contains about 10,000 cones per square millimeter while many of our songbirds have up to 12 times this amount or 120,000 cones per square millimeter (650 million per square inch) which gives them the sharpest vision in the animal kingdom. The Golden Eagle for example exceeds the visual acuity of humans by two or three times allowing them to see movement of small prey from more then a mile away. All of these extra receptors in a bird’s eye allow many species the ability to see in specific light frequencies, including ultraviolet that humans cannot see. Humans have three types of cones, each sensitive to different wavelengths of light or colors—red, green or blue. This is called trichromatic color vision. Birds have an extra cone for quadchromatic color vision (some have five cone types) that allows them to see the ultraviolet light frequencies. In addition bird eyes contain specialized oil droplets that act as filters, altering color sensitivity in the same manor as sunglasses. Human eyes don’t have these oil droplets. Seeing in ultraviolet light helps birds in all sorts of ways. Many birds have feathers that reflect ultraviolet light. It is thought this is used to communicate a bird’s species, gender or perhaps its social standing. Seeing in ultraviolet light allows some birds of prey to locate their food by looking for visual clues left behind such as mouse urine, which reflects a bright yellow when seen in UV light. The bird just follows the trail of urine to the mouse. Most birds can see well in low light conditions. We humans rely on photoreceptors called “rods” to help us see in low lighting. We have about 200,000 rods per square millimeter. Some birds such as owls have up to 1 million rods per square millimeter allowing them much greater vision in the dark. Rods don’t help in seeing colors but allow for amazing black and white vision after dark. Nearly all of the ten thousand species of birds in the world have in addition to the familiar upper and lower eyelids, a third eyelid called a nictitating membrane. It moves from side to side across the eye at right angles to the regular eyelids. This third eyelid cleans the eye’s surface and keeps it moist. In many aquatic birds such as the Common Loon, the nictitating membrane has a special window-like area in the center that presumably lets the membrane act like swim goggles to improve their underwater vision. The act of focusing on an object is termed accommodation. It is accomplished by muscles changing the curvature of the lens in your eyes. At the same time, the amount of light entering the eye is regulated by changing the size of the pupil. In birds both of these processes occur very quickly. Much faster than the human eye. This allows birds to quickly focus on objects near and far and to change from light to dark situations in the blink of an eye. A Peregrine Falcon diving (stooping) for example can keep focus on its prey even while traveling up to 200 mph and a songbird can see well enough ahead to avoid hitting tree branches while flying through a forest with pockets of light and dark. As you can see (pun intended) most bird species see in the full range of color like humans and much more. Birds see the world very differently than humans but not because of their excellent eyesight but because of the placement of their eyes in the head, and that is what I will talk about next time. Until then…
Bird Vision Continued
I was recently asked how birds find a new backyard birdfeeder. This simple question has a complex answer. So, this week we are continuing our look (pun intended) at bird vision. Because the answer to the question is vision. Indeed birds and other mammals see the world very differently than we humans. Some of this is due to the structures within a birds eye which allow them to see better, further, focus faster and see in a wider range of light conditions. Believe it or not, the position or location of a bird’s eye in its head is also a large factor in how well a bird sees. We humans have eyes positioned close together in the front of our heads. This gives us nearly equal field of view with both eyes allowing stereoscopic vision known as binocular vision. Many birds have eyes positioned on the sides of their heads leaving them with unequal field of view from both eyes. This is called monocular vision. At first you may think that having monocular vision is inferior to binocular vision and for the human species that may be true but if you are a small bird looking for tiny insects deep within cracks or crevices or watching out for aerial predators such as hawks and falcons it would be far superior to have eyes located on the sides of your head. Monocualar vision has many advantages because it results in a wide field of view, sometimes as much as 340 degrees which can allow a bird to see both in front and behind at the same time. This would be like having the proverbial “eyes in the back of your head”. Very handy when fast flying predators are in the neighborhood and they are looking for YOU! Some birds do have binocular vision. Owls for instance have large eyes close together in the front of their head. Both eyes see the same thing at the same time giving them binocular vision. Consequently they only have a field of view of up to 70 degrees (all in front of them). These birds don’t need to see behind them because generally they don’t have to worry about being someone’s lunch because they are the predator not the prey. In addition, birds such as snipe and woodcock not only have their eyes on the sides of their head, their eyes are placed near the top of their head giving them excellent vision above them without having to moving their head to see above. Remaining still is an import aspect since these birds relay on camouflage feathers to remain hidden from a predators view. If they had to move their head around to watch for predators the movement of their head would give away their location to a sharp-eyed hawk or falcon. Their eye placement also helps them watch for predators while probing in the mud with their long bills during feeding. Binocular vision is important not only for owls but also for many of the fast flying predators such as hawks and eagles. Binocular vision gives the bird good depth perception, thus determining distances and spatial relationship easily. This is very important when it comes to capturing prey while traveling at high rates of speed. For example a Cooper’s Hawk often ambushes small birds at a feeder by quickly darting out of the shadows of the woods. The hawk is traveling so fast that in an instance it needs to determine what bird it can catch without running into the birdfeeder, your house or a tree branch. Although monocular vision doesn’t allow for instant depth perception it doesn’t mean birds with monocular vision can’t judge distances very well. The head-bobbing and weaving movements of the Rock Pigeon or even a barnyard chicken allow the bird to get a series of different views or snapshots to help determine spatial relationships of objects on the ground. When the head moves rapidly forward, objects closer to the bird appear to move across the visual field faster than those at a distance giving them clues to the objects three-dimensional position. If you want to see monocular vision working you only need to watch an American Robin hunting for worms in your lawn. The bird rapidly runs forward, stops and cocks it head to one side or the other. Many people mistakenly believe the bird is listening for worms when in fact it is looking with one eye. The robin often cocks its head back and forth to gain a prospective on its food before quickly grabbing the worm. Until Next time…
Rodents
As a naturalist I am sometimes confused when I hear someone uses the term “rodent” to describe an undesirable person or animal. Since when was being a rodent such a bad thing? So, let’s take a look at the rodents and find out what exactly they are and why they have such a bad reputation. And then we can decide if calling someone a rodent is a good thing or bad thing. To start with, there are over 4,500 species of mammals in the world. In order to be a mammal you need to have some basic traits, such as being warm-blooded and have fur or hair on your body. Females must have mammary glands that secrete milk to feed their young. That is all that is needed to be in the mammal club. There are 10 orders of mammals in North America, with rodents being the largest. The rodent order is called (Rodentia) under the Mammalia class. In fact there are nearly 3,000 species of rodents, which means that about three quarters of all the mammals in America, or the world, are a kind of rodent. In North America, rodents range from tiny mice and shrews which may weigh a fraction of an ounce to the Beaver which can weigh up to 90 pounds. So what makes a rodent a rodent? As varied as these animals are, they all share some common traits, such as having two pairs of incisor teeth. The incisors are the sharp front teeth on the top and bottom used for gnawing. In addition to the incisors rodents don’t have any canine teeth, which leaves a gap between the incisors and the molars. Also, the incisors are enameled on the front surface. Enamel strengthens the tooth and gives it a yellowish appearance. The incisors of a rodent grow continuously throughout the animal’s life. The action of the upper incisors working against the lowers wear away the teeth in a characteristic chisel-like beveled edge which is how these animals are able to snip right through things like wood with a single clean bite. If the teeth fail to wear down the incisors will grow too long and a malocclusion may occur, which means the teeth fail to wear down properly. These teeth will grow out of the mouth and prevent the animal from eating, resulting in death. This also explains why rodents are constantly gnawing on hard surfaces. They are wearing down their incisors. Also to be a rodent you need bulging eyes on the sides of the head, enabling them to see forward and behind at the same time. In addition rodents have four toes on the forefeet and five toes on the hind foot. Most rodents are nocturnal and are active year round. Some will hibernate during winter while others become less active during the hot days of summer (estivate). Rodents also reproduce faster than other mammals. Many rodents become sexually mature in less than 60 days of age and reproduce up to 3-4 times a year. However since just about every large predator eats these rodents they need to reproduce quickly or not survive. So there you have it. When you call someone a rodent you are basically calling him or her a small furry animal with sharp teeth, bulging eyes and that reproduces often. Come to think of it, I have a cousin like that.
Evening Grosbeaks
Nothing in nature ever stays the same. This is a fact that seems to be easily overlooked by the average wildlife watcher or hunter. We tend to look back at the “good old days” and remember how great things were and lament of how things are now. This innate human behavior manifests itself in unrealistic expectations in regards to wildlife populations. We want peak numbers of wildlife all the time. All the good and none of the bad. Nature is dynamic and is in a constant state of flux. It’s a good thing and more it importantly it is how nature works. Think of it as the ebb and flow of life. As one part of nature contracts or reduces there is always something else to expand and increase. Take the recent invasion of owls into some of our northern states. A change in the population of prey species (presumably the Red-backed Vole) has lead to a major movement of Great Gray Owls out of their normal range into areas where they have never been seen before. Due to the shortage of food and the rigors of winter some of the owls will die. A reduced number of owls relieve the hunting pressure on the voles allowing the remaining voles to quickly repopulate. Eventually the owls will return home to start the cycle all over again. That is how nature works. On the other hand there are some species that have increased or decreased without such a clear reason. The Red-bellied Woodpecker is a good example of a species that has really expanded. Twenty years ago this bird was not very common. Now it inhabits most backyards throughout the eastern half of America. Why that is, is hard to say. On the other side of the coin, the Red-headed Woodpecker (a very similar species) has declined dramatically in all regions. In fact in many parts of the country the red-head has completely disappeared—a term called extirpated. Areas where I use to see and photograph red-heads haven’t had a woodpecker in many years. Again, why this is, isn’t clear. You might be tempted to say it’s a loss of habitat, but how does that explain the ever increasing Red-bellied Woodpecker that lives in similar habitat. The reasons for a bird’s sudden decrease or increase are not a simple one. I don’t believe you can point to just one reason for the decline of a given species. We people are always looking for something or someone to blame. Rarely in nature does anything happen due to just ONE reason. Usually it’s a combination of many factors and when a certain unseen threshold is reached the trigger is tripped. One species of bird that has a well documented decline over the past 20 years is the Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes vespertinus). This bird use to be a common winter-time visitor to feeders throughout much of America. Now feeders that use to host hundreds of these birds now may see only a handful every couple of years or so. The decline of this finch has been well documented in the National Audubon Society’s 100-year-old Christmas Bird Count (CBC) results. See http://www.birdsource.org/Features/Evegro/index.html for more information. Here is a synopsis of the report on the decline of the Evening Grosbeak: The Evening Grosbeak nests in remote regions but spend the winter in areas that are more accessible. Since much of the breeding range of the Evening Grosbeak is inaccessible, winter surveys like the CBC provide the best indicator of the health of the species. Evening Grosbeak numbers were stable or increased until 1980 when their numbers began to decline significantly. The decline of Evening Grosbeak numbers between 1980 and 1998 was significant which indicates that there is less than one chance in one thousand that the decline in Evening Grosbeak numbers was due to random fluctuations in abundance. Also the rate of decline has increased between 1990 and 1998. Some states or province exhibited the most significant declines in Evening Grosbeak between 1980 and 1998. What is clear is that the Northeast and Great Lakes region show the steepest declines in Evening Grosbeak numbers. The cause of the decline in Evening Grosbeak numbers is unknown, but there are several possibilities. The most obvious is that Evening Grosbeaks may simply not be moving as far south during the winter due to the hemispheric trend in warmer winter temperatures. The declines might also be related to food availability. Hardwood tree seeds, a favorite natural source of food of Evening Grosbeaks, may be less common due to broad-scale changes in forestry practices in Canada. Finally, one thing is for sure, the decline of the Evening Grosbeak is something that many people have noticed simply by watching the birds in their backyards. Until next time…
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
The Endangered Species Act (ESA) turned 30 years old. President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) into law on December 28th, 1973. Now some three decades later the ESA is at the center of controversy. Depending upon whom you talk to, the ESA is either the best legislation ever created to protect plants and animals or the worst piece of legislation in U.S. history. In 1967, the Secretary of the Interior listed 78 species as threatened with extinction under the pre-ESA Endangered Species Act. Today, the U.S. Department of Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) lists 517 animal species and 746 plant species as endangered or threatened, for a total of 1,263 species listed. Some biologist estimate there is about 36,500 species of animals and plants in the United States. So that means that about 3.5 percent of all species in the US are either endangered or threatened. Some of species include some very high profile animals such as the Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Manatees, Wolves and the Red-cockaded Woodpecker. Since the inception of the ESA, according to the FWS, only 15 species have been removed from the list due to increases in populations. Some of these animals include the American Alligator, and the Brown Pelican. So, lets take a look at one of the animals the ESA protects. There are twenty-one species of woodpeckers in the United States and the Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis) is the rarest of them all. It is listed as a federally endangered species. It ranges from the Carolina’s to Florida and west to the eastern border of Texas. Unlike other species of woodpeckers, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker excavates its nest cavities in live pine trees that are at least 60 years old. Most other species use dead trees to excavate their nest cavity. Presumably this is the reason the Red-cockaded woodpecker is on the decline. Current logging practices often start harvesting trees that are 50 years old, leaving precious few stands of old pines for the woodpeckers to find suitable nesting trees. The Red-cockaded Woodpecker lives in small social groups (clans) often composed of family members. A clan’s territory can be up to several miles square but mated pairs will nest within a couple hundred feet of each other. Pairs will remain together throughout the year, defending their food source and nest site. During winter they use their nest cavity to rest at night. This is also a very unusual behavior. Most bird species only use their nests to raise their young and never use it again. Efforts are now underway to help stabilize the decline population woodpeckers. Rectangle shaped artificial nest cavities with PVC entrance holes are installed into live pine trees of suitable size and age. So far, research shows the woodpeckers are taking well to their new homes. With continued protection and habitat preservation, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker may be one of those lucky few species that is removed from the endangered species list.
Key Deer
In commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the passage of the Endangered Species Act, (Dec, 1973) lets take a look at another animal that has directly benefited from this important legislation-the Key Deer. The Key Deer (Odocoileus virginianus clavium) is a subspecies of the familiar Virginia White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus). It is one of 28 subspecies of deer and is the smallest race of deer in North America. An average adult stands 2 feet tall at the shoulders. Bucks (males) average 80 lbs and Does (females) average 65 lbs. In all other respects these deer appear like the deer that visit your backyard, only much smaller. The Key Deer occur only on a few select islands or “keys” located in southern Florida. They require Pine Rockland habitat, which is composed of several species of pine tree on what amounts to be the highest elevation (several feet above sea level) of each island. Fresh water seems to be the limiting factor in where the deer thrive. After heavy rains, depression in the ground collect the fresh rainwater which is critical to the deer’s survival. I recently meet up with Shane Whisenant, the Key Deer Biologist at the National Key Deer Refuge on Big Pine Key, Florida. Shane is a man with a passion for the Key Deer. He explained to me that the National Key Deer Refuge was established in 1957 when it was discovered that the total population of the Key Deer had fallen to about 27 total animals. Unlimited hunting and habitat destruction were presumably the factors leading to the decline of this tiny deer. Today, nearly 50 years later, the Key Deer is on the rebound, thanks to specific habitat management such as prescribed burns to open the forest and thus providing a source of native grasses for the deer to feed upon and the restoration of freshwater pools. The biology of the Key Deer is similar to that of its larger counter part in the Midwest. The life span is around 7-8 years, with most females breeding at one or two years of age. Bucks don’t start mating until they are slightly older and have developed large antlers and are able to compete against the other bucks. The rut takes place in September through November. Gestation is about 7 months with most Does giving birth to twins in April or May. Hunting of the Key Deer is prohibited, however about 100-150 deer are killed each year. Most deaths are due to being hit by cars or killed by domestic dogs. In 2003, 137 deer were lost, 91 of them to automobile collisions. Both of these causes of mortality are something the staff at the National Key Deer Refuge is activity working to reduce. And I am sure, if the rest of the staff is as caring and knowledgeable as Shane Whisenant, the Key Deer are in good hands. Do yourself a favor. Next time you are visiting southern Florida. Make a trip to Big Pine Key (part of the chain of islands known as the Florida Keys) to see these wonderful animals. They come out along the roadsides late in the day and can be observed from your car. Please don’t attempt to feed or touch the deer. This only encourages the deer to come closer to the roads. And the last thing they need is to be closer to a collision with a car..