The Project FeederWatch Top 20 feeder birds in the North Pacific - PDF document

The Project FeederWatch Top 20 feeder birds in the North Pacific region Based on the reports of citizen scientists from across the region. Spotted Towhee by M. Woodruff Do you like to watch the birds that visit your backyard bird feeder? Perhaps you even keep a list of these birds. Although keeping track of the birds at your feeders may seem like nothing more than a relaxing hobby, you are actually collecting important information. By sending your counts of feeder birds to Project FeederWatch, you can help scientists learn more about the distribution and abundance of birds. Project FeederWatch is an annual survey of North American bird populations that visit backyard bird feeders in winter. Since 1987, thousands of bird watchers across the United States and Canada have participated in Project FeederWatch. The following show is a countdown of the 20 species that were the most frequent visitors to the backyards of Project FeederWatch participants in the North Pacific region. 1

PROJECT FEEDERWATCH REGIONS What is a FeederWatch region? If you travel across the continent from west to east, you will encounter different types of birds at different locations along your way. For example, you might see Western Scrub-Jays in California, Gray Jays in the Canadian Rockies, and Blue Jays in Virginia. Therefore, to interpret FeederWatch data in a meaningful way, we divide the continent into fifteen FeederWatch Regions. Each region includes a group of states and provinces that share similar geological and habitat features. You are in the North Pacific region, which includes Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. 2

Red-winged Blackbird Regional Rank #20 • Seen at 31% of feeders • Average flock size = 5.2 Continental Rank #21 M. Read Male (left) and female (right) Food Preferences • Mixed seed In the countdown that follows, all species will be featured in a slide similar to this one. The slides provide a map, based on FeederWatch reports, of where the species can be seen in the winter. The slides also highlight a few key statistics telling us how common the birds are in the region. For instance… 3

This species was the 20 th most Regional Rank #20 commonly reported • Seen at 47% of feeders bird in your region • Average flock size = 2.6 Continental Rank #13 This same species was the 13 th most commonly reported bird in North America The Regional Rank refers to how common the species is at feeders in your region. The Continental Rank refers to how common this species is at feeders when considering all of the United States and Canada. 4

This species was Regional Rank #20 seen at 47% of • Seen at 47% of feeders the FeederWatch • Average flock size = 2.6 count sites Continental Rank #13 When present at a site, an average of 2.6 birds were reported Also included on each bird slide is information on the percentage of feeders visited and average group size . The percentage of feeders visited tells what percentage of FeederWatchers in the region reported this species at least once during the winter, thus describing how widely a species is distributed. The average group size indicates the average number of individuals of a species seen at one time in a feeder area. This tells us how abundant a bird is when that species is present at a count site. 5

Red-winged Blackbird Regional Rank #20 • Seen at 31% of feeders • Average flock size = 5.2 Continental Rank #21 M. Read Male (left) and female (right) Food Preferences • Mixed seed Preferred feeder: •Ground •Platform Winter behavior: •In winter, Red-winged Blackbirds can form huge flocks in the evening and spread out each morning. Some individuals may travel as far as 50 miles between their roosting and feeding sites. Cool fact: •The Red-winged Blackbird is a polygynous species, with up to 15 different females nesting in the territory of a single male. In some populations 90% of territorial males mate with more than one female. However, up to half of the young in the territorial male’s nests are not his genetic offspring. Instead they have been sired by neighboring males. 6

Bushtit Regional Rank #19 • Seen at 34% of feeders • Average flock size = 11.0 Continental Rank #55 L. Schwab Food Preferences • Suet Preferred feeder: suet feeder •At about 1/5 of an ounce, a single Bushtit weighs only as much as a quarter, ranking them among the world’s smallest songbirds. Small size generally leads to high energy costs, and Bushtits are no exception. They eat up to 80% of their body weight daily during cold weather. •Bushtits may also roost together at night to conserve energy. Huddling at low temperatures can reduce overnight energy expenditure by about 20%. •This species is well known for its “confusion chorus”: When a predator is detected – usually a hawk – a Bushtit gives an alarm note similar to that of most flocking species to alert the rest of the flock. Once warned, however, Bushtits do something special. All the birds in the flock immediately make a monotonous trilling sound that makes it very difficult to pinpoint the location of any individual bird. 7

Fox Sparrow Regional Rank #18 • Seen at 35% of feeders • Average flock size = 1.7 Continental Rank #30 N. Drumheller Food Preferences • Mixed seed • Millet Preferred feeder: • Platform • Hopper Winter behavior: • Fox Sparrows are two-footed scratchers like towhees. Their main foraging method consists of clearing away leaf litter by hopping and scratching to expose hidden food, a process that sometimes sends showers of dirt or snow flying. • The seeds that Fox Sparrows eat are small for the size of the bird. At feeders, Fox Sparrows often ignore sunflower seeds in favor of millet or cracked corn. 8

American Goldfinch Regional Rank #17 Winter plumage Summer male • Seen at 36% of feeders • Average flock size = 4.9 Continental Rank #5 L. Worthington C. Ray Food Preferences • Nyjer seed • Black-oil sunflower seed Preferred feeders: •Tube •Hopper •Platform Winter Behavior: •Goldfinches rely on storing food in their crops each evening to provide energy during the night. •Goldfinches will hang upside down to eat, but experiments with specially designed feeders have shown that they prefer to dine upright if possible. Cool Fact: •The bright yellow plumage of summertime is replaced by a dull-green winter plumage—often confusing new bird watchers. This winter coat features a dense layer of soft feathers to provide extra insulation against cold temperatures. 9

Varied Thrush Regional Rank #16 • Seen at 46% of feeders • Average flock size = 1.8 Continental Rank #61 T. Murray Food Preferences • Mixed seed • Fresh fruit Preferred Feeders: • Platform • Ground Winter Behavior: • Varied Thrushes visit feeders far more than other species of thrush. In winter, up to 70% of their diet is composed of vegetable matter. Fruit and weed seeds are often consumed, and even acorns are eaten after being opened through vigorous pecking. Cool Facts: • Populations of Varied Thrush noticeably change every two to three years. These cycles are likely related to food supplies, although a connection has yet to be documented. • A few Varied Thrushes may roam over vast areas in the winter. In fact, individuals are routinely found as far east as the Atlantic coast each year. 10

American Crow Regional Rank #15 • Seen at 48% of feeders • Average flock size = 3.2 Continental Rank #13 Food Preferences • Meat scraps Preferred feeder: •Ground •Platform Winter Behavior: •American Crows congregate in large numbers in winter to sleep in communal roosts. These roosts can include several thousand crows. Some roosts have gathered in the same general area for well over 100 years. Cool Facts: •The American Crow is highly susceptible to West Nile virus, a disease recently introduced to North America. Crows tested in the laboratory generally die within one week of infection, and few seem able to survive exposure. Recent declines in crow populations in many areas are likely due to mortality from West Nile virus. •Most crows nesting in the United States are permanent residents. Each family maintains a large territory, shared by the adult pair and several of their offspring from previous years. Young crows may remain with their parents to help raise their younger siblings. 11

House Sparrow Regional Rank #14 • Seen at 51% of feeders • Average flock size = 6.9 Continental Rank #11 L. Elliott Food Preferences • Mixed seed Preferred feeder: •Platform Winter Behavior: •House Sparrows are year-round residents, and their distribution is closely associated with human habitation. They are found in agricultural, suburban, and urban areas, although they tend to avoid woodlands, forests, grasslands, and deserts. •In winter, the size of foraging flocks of House Sparrows is correlated with both the amount of food available and time of day (with feeding activity increasing in the late afternoon). Foraging in flocks is highly beneficial due to the protection against predation that is afforded by larger, more vigilant, flocks. Each bird within the flock can spend less time looking up for danger and therefore forages more efficiently. Cool Fact: •The House Sparrow was introduced into Brooklyn, New York, in 1851, partly as a means to control insect pests. By 1900 it had spread to the Rocky Mountains. Its spread throughout the West was aided by additional introductions in San Francisco, California, and Salt Lake City, Utah. 12