Rusty Blackbird

Rare Blackbird Visits St. George

Rusty Blackbird in Winter Plumage

The Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) is an uncommon summer breeder here in New Brunswick and rare in winter.  A few have been seen at feeders this winter, like the two individuals I saw in St. George recently.  The Rusty Blackbird shares the Icteridae family with other blackbirds and orioles.  Other members of the family that occur here include the Common Grackle, the Red-winged Blackbird, the Brown-headed Cowbird, Bobolink, Eastern Meadowlark, and the Baltimore Oriole as well the occasional rarity.  

The Rusty Blackbird shown above is in winter plumage.  It is black with a cinnamon colour on its supercilium (eye stripe) and malar (throat stripe).  The feathers covering its wings and rump are edged in cinnamon.  These colourful edges wear off as spring approaches and the bird eventually becomes completely black.  The Rusty Blackbird always has a yellow iris.  Although in spring and summer it is a 'blackbird' it can be distinguished from the Common Grackle by its smaller size, its shorter tail and it is not nearly as glossy.  It can be told from the Red-winged Blackbird by its lack of wing patches even though it is nearly the same size.  The Brown-headed Cowbird is also similar but has a much thicker bill and the male shows dark brown on its head and neck.

Rusty Blackbird in Winter Plumage

The Rusty Blackbird inhabits swampy forest habitats.  It prefers spruce trees near bogs in the boreal forest to breed.  In winter it is found in wooded swamps especially along floodplains.  Its nest is bulky, woven from twigs and lichens and lined with grasses.  Its eggs are pale blue-green with brown and gray spots.  Incubation lasts 14 days.  They feed on insects, snails, small fish, waste grain and seeds, walking along the ground while feeding.

Rusty Blackbird in Summer Plumage

The Rusty Blackbird has a wide range.  The summer breeding range includes most of Canada except the Arctic region.  They winter in the eastern US southward to Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and northern Florida.  I have seen them in South Carolina in winter where they associate with Boat-tailed and Common Grackles.

The Rusty Blackbird population has experienced a steep decline since 1960.  Some sources estimate a 90% drop.  The Breeding Bird Surveys and Christmas Bird Counts indicate an 85-95% drop.  This is a drastic population drop for which we have no confirmed cause.  Habitat loss due to clearcutting in the boreal forest would certainly be one cause.  Competition from the increase in other Icterid populations due to intensive agriculture of grain crops would be another.  But certainly more work needs to be done.  Seeing a few here in the province this winter is encouraging.  I hope their population is on the incline.  

Snow Goose Blue Morph

Blue Goose Visits Back Bay

Snow Goose Blue Morph Adult

An adult Snow Goose blue morph has been visiting Back Bay for the last 2 to 3 weeks.  The Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens) is a common goose species of mid-North America.  It normally breeds in our high Arctic islands and winters in south central US.  A small population winters in California and Mexico.  Snow Geese are uncommon here but usually a few pass through during spring migration.  Having one here during the winter is rare and having it a blue morph is even rarer.  The blue morph is a genetic variation of the Snow Goose which occurs in a small percentage of Snow Goose populations.  

The Snow Goose population is divided into different geographical and genetic groups.  The Lesser Snow Goose inhabits the central part of North America and the Greater Snow Goose uses the Atlantic Flyway and Atlantic Coastal Plain.  Those migrating along the Atlantic Flyway and Coastal Plain are seen in the thousands along the St. Lawrence River on their way to the Arctic to breed.  Many of this group come to northeastern New Brunswick near Campbellton to feed on their way north.  In 1998 there were 1000 individuals at Atholville, for example.  

In the mid-20th century the Snow Goose population fell into a steep decline.  Since then their numbers have increased dramatically.  Since 1973 their population has tripled and the central Arctic population has multiplied by a factor of 25!  This huge increase has caused significant damage to Arctic tundra from the feeding flocks.  This has placed a negative stress on other species.  The large flocks are causing much damage to crops in the central part of the continent.  As  a result, governments have legislated increased hunting permits to try to reduce numbers.  Now about 400,000 Snow Geese are hunted annually in the US and Canada.

Shown above is the Blue Goose (Snow Goose Blue Morph).  It basically shows a blue body and a white head.  Technically it has a brown body much of which is covered with blue wing feathers  which are long and beautiful.  The tail feathers are gray with a white border.  Important identifying features are the pink bill and legs and the black 'smile line' on the bill.  This helps distinguish it from the Ross's Goose.  The white domestic goose has an orange bill and legs.  The white head of the Snow Goose is often stained red or brown by the iron oxide in the soil as it grubs for roots and tubers.  

Snow Goose White Morph Adult

The much more common white morph Snow Goose is shown above.  Note the pink bill and legs and the black smile line.  The white morph has black primary wing feathers which show here above the tail.  These show well on birds in flight.  

Snow Goose with Canada Goose

The Snow Goose is smaller than the Canada Goose as shown above.  It is a Chen goose (its genus) which it shares with the Ross's Goose and the Emperor Goose.  It migrates in huge numbers and usually flies very high in large arc formations or very loose 'V's.  They rest at night usually on water.  They can sleep while afloat or while standing on one leg or sitting.

Snow Geese feed on plants, eating most parts of the plant.  They feed heavily on grasses, rushes, sedges, forbes, horsetails, shrubs and willows.  

Snow Goose White Morph Juvenile

The juvenile white  morph can sometimes be mistaken for the blue morph.  We don't see these often so need to carefully observe to make an identification.  This form varies but always shows a dingy gray colour.  The juvenile blue morph is much darker, a dull brown on the head and neck and dark gray-brown overall.  (Sorry, no photo).

Snow Geese mate for life and usually choose a mate of the same colour morph as their parents.  They will choose another morph, however, if the preferred morph is not available.  Offspring will then be of either morph.  The goose in Back Bay is hanging out with a Canada Goose.  Will they mate come spring?  Not likely.  They will fly north and find mates of their own species.  In the meantime, it is good for them to keep company with one another.

Dovekie

Our Smallest Auk

Dovekie [Mark Morse Photo]

The Dovekie (Alle alle) is the world's smallest auk, family Alcidae.  They breed in summer in the high Arctic islands and winter along the Atlantic coast of Labrador, Newfoundland and down the eastern seaboard sometimes to New England.  The photo above shows the Dovekie in non-breeding plumage and was taken recently off Grand Manan. 

The Dovekie is very small, 21 cm (8.8 in) long, about Starling size.  On the vast ocean, that looks pretty small!  It has the clean black and white plumage of Alcids, black on the back and head and white below.  The breeding plumage shows a black hood covering the head, neck and throat.  In winter white appears on the throat and sides of neck, forming an incomplete neck band.  The bill is exceptionally short.  When it sits on the water it appears neckless as it pulls its head in close to its body.  In flight it is very football-shaped.  It often flies close to the water dodging the waves. 

Dovekies (known as Little Auks in Europe) are a holarctic species.  They inhabit the oceans of the north of the Earth.  Although they breed in northern Canada, the largest colonies are in Greenland, Spitsbergen (Norway) and a smaller colony in Iceland.  They come to land to breed in rocky crevices on scree slopes and mountains along the Arctic Ocean.  The rest of the year they spend at sea.  While in the breeding colony they are very vocal with a high-pitched chattering and screeching sound.  They feed on fish, molluscs, and plankton. which they catch underwater by using their wings and strong feet and legs.  They actually 'fly' under water.

Occasionally in heavy winter storms with strong easterly winds Alcids can be blown inland.  Because they are physically designed for life on the ocean they find it nearly impossible to walk on land.  Their feet are placed well back on their bodies making it difficult to balance in an upright position.  So, if they get blown inland they are stranded.  Without the aid of humans they would soon die or get killed by a predator.   The bird in the photo above was blown in during the storm of January 13 and 14.  It was returned quickly to the ocean where it swam away happily!  

Harris's Sparrow

A Rare Sparrow Spends the Winter

Harris's Sparrow

The Harris's Sparrow (Zonotrichia querula) is an unusual sparrow to see in New Brunswick, normally spending its winters in the mid-southern-states and its summers in our far north (northern Manitoba, northern Saskatchewan, Nunavut and Yukon).  There has been one wintering happily in the St. George area this year.  

The Harris's Sparrow is our largest sparrow (19 cm/ 7.5 in long).  It is a Zonotrichia sparrow (the genus) so it resembles closely our other Zonotrichia sparrows, White-throated, Yellow-crowned and White-crowned Sparrows.  That means its colouring, its shape and its behaviour are much like its close relatives.  

The Harris's Sparrow has a distinctive pink bill and an extensive white belly.  It shows pale gray or brown cheeks and in breeding plumage has a black crown, face and bib.  In the non-breeding plumage, as shown above, it loses most of the black from its crown, bib and chest.  All plumages show a postocular black spot.  Notice the black streak behind the eye which often shows just as a spot.  Both genders are similar.

Harris's Sparrow

This species breeds in the far north in mixed forest-tundra areas.  It likes low bushes, willows, and open spruce areas.  It lays 3 to 5 white to pale green eggs with brown markings in a nest built on the ground.  It eats seeds, berries, insects, spiders and snails which it catches mainly on the ground.  It readily adapts to bird feeders in winter.  

Harris's Sparrow [Janice Harmon Photo]

The photo above readily shows the pink bill and the remnant of the black face and crown.  Note the brownish cheek and the postocular spot.

Although the Harris's Sparrow is a mid-continent species vagrants (wanderers) do occasionally occur both to the east and to the west.  There have been a handful of sightings of this species in New Brunswick.  There were 5 sightings noted up to 2003 and there have been a few since.  Certainly this is one we could only see every few years at best.  

Harris's Sparrow

The Harris's Sparrow is Canada's only endemic breeding sparrow.  That means it is the only sparrow that breeds solely in Canada.  It was named by Audubon after an American amateur ornithologist, Edward Harris, who accompanied him on his 1843 trip up the Missouri River.  It was first collected and described by Thomas Nuttall in 1834.  

Although we don't get to see the social interactions of this species, they are quite interesting.  In breeding plumage the males have large black bibs and the male with the largest bib is usually the most dominant.  'Jump fights' are common among males to establish dominance of both females and breeding territory.  The males face off and jump up in the air and claw at one another while beating each other with their wings.  We would have to go to northern Canada in spring to see this!