Saturday, May 19th Bird Walk

This weeks bird walk will be at Brooksvale Park in Hamden.  Last week we had some great migrants birds Tennessee Warbler and Black-billed Cuckoo.  The baby Bluebirds are starting to come to the meal worm feeder so hopefully we will get good looks at them on Saturday.  A Pileated Woodpecker has been heard and seen a number of days this past week, as well as Indigo Buntings, Great-crested Flycatchers, Blue-winged Warblers, Scarlet Tanagers and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks.  We never know exactly what we will find but we hope you can join us!  Call the store for details if you have any questions!  203-248-7068

Saturday May 12th Bird Walk Info

We will be heading back to Brooksvale Park in Hamden for this Saturday’s walk.  Weather conditions look great and migration should be near peak levels.  Today Jim and I had a Black-billed Cuckoo near the pond at the park, a bird not often seen.  We also had a number of migrant warblers.  If you want to meet us at the store, please be here between 7:30 and 7:40, we leave promptly at 7:45am.  If you know where to meet us at the park (in the usual spot), that is fine as well.  Bird walks are $2 per person, binocular rentals are available for $3.

Saturday May 5th Bird Walk & Optics Sale

Saturday’s bird walk will be at East Rock Park on the Hamden/New Haven Line.   If you are meeting us at the store, please be here by 7:40am, we leave promptly at 7:45.  Or you can meet at the park in front of the covered bridge (in front meaning the parking lot side).  We will get there right around 8am.  Walks are $2 per person  We will go even if there is a light drizzle, steady rain we cancel.  You can re-check this blog by 7:15 the morning of a walk for up to date info on weather cancellations.

Don’t forget, our optics sale starts tomorrow too!  Now through May 13th

Hummingbirds & Orioles and other Happenings!

It’s just about time for hummingbirds & orioles to show up.  Last year the first ones came on April 25th at our house and we had both a hummingbird and an oriole that day.

Our bird walks start Saturday April 28th, afterward we will have coffee and treats at the store plus some specials to help celebrate the return of HUMMINGBIRDS & ORIOLES among many other birds like Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Indigo Buntings.  Hopefully we will see some of these birds (and the many warblers that will be arriving) on our walk.  If you have any questions just give the store a call.

Early Spring Arrivals

Weather in most of the US has been abnormally warm.  This week in CT has been in the 70′s, about 20 degrees warmer than normal!  Some birds are returning earlier than normal although most birds migration is determined by the length of daylight, not by temperature.  My guess (which may not be correct) is that there is no weather holding the migrants back this year.  We have Tree Swallows in our yard and we normally don’t see them there for another two weeks.  Two weeks may not seem like a lot, but these birds are insect-eating birds and March is notorious for not being consistent in temperature.  We may still get a cold snap or even snow.  Some of the migrants will be just fine if this happens, others may not far so well.

Our Eastern Bluebirds are just about done nest-building.  This is on track with some other years but is on the early side.  People keep asking about the hummingbirds, I guess time will tell but they will probably be on the early side this year, my guess is around April1 5th people will start reporting them.

Note:  Our Bird Walks start the last Saturday in April!

Bluebirds at Nest Boxes

Over the past couple of weeks we have been getting reports of Eastern Bluebird activity at nest boxes.  Usually these birds pick their nesting sites in march, but with the warm winter we’ve had, it appears they are already choosing where they will nest.  If you’ve been thinking about putting up a nest box for bluebirds you should do it as soon as possible, the ground never froze deep this year so putting in a pole should be no problem.  The birds won’t actually begin nesting this early, but they may choose where they will nest a bit earlier than last year.

We will be having a special day at the store in mid-March to celebrate nesting season beginning, sign up for our e-mail newsletter at www.fatrobin.com!

Where are the Goldfinch?

Many people have been coming into the store and commenting about the lack of American Goldfinch at their feeders.  There are always some areas that seem to have this happen in the winter but this year it seems to be pretty widespread in the state.  The few really cold days we had last week did change that – at least at our house where we went from seeing a few to seeing a dozen or so, still far fewer than most winters (for us anyway).  But this does seem to show that there are more birds around, they just don’t need the feeders as much as in other years.  The record warm temperatures as well as the lack of any snow is making for fat and happy birds but unhappy birders!

It is bound to change but how long that will take is anyone’s guess.  The weather patterns in the near future don’t hold much hope for snow but even sustained cold temperatures make the birds need to eat more often so that always helps bring them to the feeders.

Painted Bunting visits Cove Island Park in Stamford

Wish I’d gotten to see this gorgeous bird, a male Painted Bunting in Stamford!  The bird was seen on Friday, then again at 9:15 yesterday morning. but has not been seen since.  This has to be one of the most colorful birds in the US.  The only males I’ve seen before were in south Florida.

It also appears this will be a decent year for an influx of Snowy Owls.  There have already been a number of reports but none of the birds seen have stayed in one place for very long.  Good places to look for them are along the coast and at airports.  They are birds of the open tundra and generally are found perched on sand dunes, buildings or near airports if you try looking for them inland.  You can go to www.ctbirding.org for more information on what rarities are being seen.

What to Feed in Fall?

If you are using a good quality bird seed mix, chances are you don’t need to change anything.  But some birds are unable to crack the shell on a sunflower seed so if that is all you normally offer, you may not be getting all the birds to your feeding station that you can.  This time of year we see a lot of sparrows, some will stay the winter, others just pass through and we may only see them for one day.  Many of the sparrows like to scratch in the leaves and find weed seeds, but they will also eat white millet that is scattered on the ground or into a tray feeder.  Other birds eat it as well, especially Mourning Doves but they will pretty much eat anything!

Sparrows can be difficult to tell apart, but by encouraging them to feed close to your house, you can study them to see the sometimes subtle differences between them.  One of our most common that has already arrived and will stay until late in spring is the White-throated Sparrow.  But even within the species they come in both a tan-striped and white-striped form.  As with anything, the more you see them, the easier it will be to tell them apart from other sparrows such as Song Sparrow or even White-crowned Sparrow, a bird we don’t get nearly as often as some of the others.

Migration and New Products

Had my first White-throated Sparrow of the season this morning, even though it was about 70 degrees and humid, the birds knew it is time to migrate!  Keep an eye to the sky also since we are getting into peak hawk migration.  There were a number of warblers on my walk this morning including Black & White, Palm and Common Yellow-throat.  I also had a Red-eyed Vireo eating Virginia Creeper berries, I love the olive-green color on their backs!

With fall comes many new items at the store so you never know what will show up next.  We now have Mad Bluebird T-shirts and ornaments available and the sun catchers are back in stock as well.  A new children’s book called Chippy Chipmunk Babies in the Garden arrived the other day plus new enamel jewelry.

Hope to see you all soon!