Barred Owl Visitor

                                                                        Barred Owl

On Saturday night we were at a camp on Mactaquac Lake near Fredericton.  At dusk we began to hear a Barred Owl hooting nearby.  This was not unusual because my daughter had also heard it in the same area recently and it is the season for owls to be vocalizing to mark their territory and support their mates.  

We stepped outside to listen and heard a Hermit Thrush singing its beautiful evening song just a few trees away from us.  This is the first we have heard the Hermit Thrush this spring.  I think this is the most beautiful bird song we have from our native birds.  What a concert that was!

I made a hoot with my own voice and cupped hands and the next thing we knew an owl was looking at us from the large hemlock above.  He looked down at us but mostly spent his time looking for who/what had made that funny noise.  He appeared totally comfortable with us and even allowed us to fetch the camera.  Getting a photo was a huge challenge because it was almost dark, way too dark for a decent exposure.  I used everything I knew to increase the light into my Nikon P900 and got a few decent exposures out of the 30 or so that I took.  No flash was used because that would perhaps injure the owl's eyes and would be unethical.  We watched the owl for as long as we wanted and went inside the camp.  The owl remaining on the same perch for some time afterwards.

                                                                        Barred Owl

Barred Owls seem to prefer different habitat from Great Horned Owls.  In my years of birding we seem to find one or the other but not often both.  An exception to that is experience gained from doing about 15 years of nocturnal owl surveys.  Yes, we usually got one species or the other at a stop but sometimes we got both.  If we did get both, the Barred Owls were usually in close and very vocal and the Great Horned Owls were usually far off and single.  That probably reflected the different habitat and each species stayed more-or-less in their own habitat.  Or, it may mean that the Barred Owls are more responsive to a call or to unusual goings on in their territory.  

Whatever the reason for the responsiveness of the Barred Owl, we enjoyed watching this individual watch us as the Hermit Thrush finished his nightly song and with light from the full moon filtering through the hemlock to backlight the owl.  Nature can provide wonderful experiences!

For more information on Barred Owls, search this blog for 'Barred Owl'.

Red Fox Family Near By

                                                                                Red Fox

We are fortunate to have a family of Red Foxes living near by our house.  This has been the usual thing since we moved here a few years ago.  Our area is good fox habitat because we have an open field, woods, shrubbery, a gully and a small bluff overlooking the river where they prefer making their dens.  They have become semi-accustomed to our comings and goings so we see them often.

This year the fox has made its den in the bluff just downriver from our house dug deeply into the gravel hill and out of sight from our house.  We know where it is because we see her travelling to and from regularly.  The entrance to the den is hidden in a tangle of bushes and shows a small pile of gravel where she has put the tailings from her digging.  We avoid that area of our property, giving her privacy.  There is no need to go peeking at her den because she comes out often and does not seem too afraid of our discreet presence at our house. 

For a short time now we have been seeing a groundhog digging up our field.  This happens some years when they can get away with living here and staying safe from predators.  The groundhog we saw recently was a large one, obviously it had wintered very well.  Its presence is easily seen from the mainly glass front entrance of our house.  Our dogs have been very aware of its presence and enthusiastically let us know whenever it is visible.  

That all changed last week.  Mrs. Fox (assumed it is Mrs. but I might be wrong) was seen in the field below the bluff lying down in the grass for an extended period.  With binoculars I watched her and she seemed to be very busy with something.  After about 15 minutes I realized she had caught the groundhog and was working hard at subduing it.  She remained over it up to 30 minutes and gave me good opportunity for photos although at a distance.  After it was obvious the groundhog was dead, she lay there panting for a considerable time.  After that she went on up the river bank for unknown duties, later to return.  I saw her when she came back and she grabbed that big groundhog and trotted up into her den.  I was surprised at how easily she managed to carry it since it was a big groundhog.  

                                                                        Red Fox with Prey

Shown above is the fox with the groundhog.  Note the panting after the big effort at killing the groundhog.

                                                            Red Fox with Subdued Prey

We have 3 species of foxes in Canada: the Red Fox, the Arctic Fox and the Gray Fox.  We have only the Red Fox here and its range covers most of North America.  It is found everywhere in eastern Canada in good abundance.  There are 3 basic colours recognized for the Red Fox: red morph, cross morph, and silver/black morph.  We all are familiar with the red and silver/black morphs but the cross morph is named for a fairly distinct cross on the shoulders and back and this morph is more brown than red.  All morphs have the black feet, legs and outside of the ears.  They have white tail tips and varying amounts of white on the underparts.  

Foxes are smaller than most dogs, 95-117 cm long (37-46 inches) and they weigh 3-7 kg (6-16 lb).  Their legs are a bit longer proportionately than canines and they are very agile and intelligent creatures.  They can live in many different types of habitat and have learned to live close to human habitation.  All they need are a food source, some cover and a suitable place to build their dens.  

Breeding season for foxes begins in deep winter.  Here we start to hear them howl and bark in January and February.  It is common to smell where they have scented at that time.  The gestation period for red foxes is 52-53 days and the young weigh about 113 g (4 ounces) at birth.  Litters can be from 1 to 10, with an average of 4 or 5.  Like canine puppies, fox kits have their eyes closed for the first 10 days.  They are a dark gray colour but usually show the white tail tip.  As soon as they can they climb around out of the den and play with one another like canine puppies.  They usually leave the den after one month and are weaned about 2 months of age.  They stay with the female until fall when they are hopefully prepared to make it on their own.  They are ready to breed at age 1 year.  Foxes are omnivores and eat mainly mice and hares but also insects, birds, frogs, snakes, carrion, berries and other vegetable matter.  

                            Red Fox Kits - Half Grown and Spending the Summer with the Adult

I'll end this post with a fox story from our experience.  One summer as my husband was mowing the field near the fox den with the tractor the female fox appeared at the edge of the field near the tractor.  She soon fell in behind the tractor and trotted along behind grabbing mice and voles which had been disturbed by the mower.  She packed her mouth full and trotted away presumably to give them to the kits hiding over the hill.  She soon returned to repeat the procedure.  For many weeks after that incident, whenever my husband took the tractor into the field the fox appeared and ran along side with very noticeable excitement.  We grew to love that little fox!  We hope that the female fox that has her den near our house is a descendant of that happy fox.

Red-winged Blackbird

                                                            Red-winged Blackbird Adult Male

The Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) is one of the most common species in North America including in New Brunswick.  Its arrival in the spring is one of the most welcome sights for me.  When it comes we know spring is here.  

The Red-winged Blackbird ranges over most of North America.  It spends summers and breeds over most of Canada except the very far north.  It is a permanent resident over most of the US and Mexico.  There is a relatively small area in northern Mexico where it is just a winter resident.  These birds would move to more southern or coastal areas of Mexico to breed.

As shown in the photo above this species is at home in marshes and brushy areas.  It tends to remain in small flocks and it even nests in areas of concentration.  During migration it moves in large flocks often with other blackbirds like the Common Grackle, Rusty Blackbirds, Cowbirds and sometimes European Starlings.  We have seen 3 of these large flocks this early spring, some as large as 200.  Often Red-winged Blackbirds will move in single gender flocks, the males usually arriving first.  Here in New Brunswick they usually arrive in early April and leave in November.  

The Red-winged Blackbird is a medium-sized bird of the family, Icteridae.  Adults are 22 cm (8.7 in) long.  The males are a very conspicuous black with scarlet epaulets which they often raise in short flights. The scarlet is bordered inconspicuously with yellow or white depending on the subspecies.  The bill is medium-sized, not as thick as the bill of the Cowbird.  The young males coming back in the spring often are still brown streaked rather than black but they show the red of the epaulets.  The female Red-winged Blackbird is a very streaked brown colour with no obvious epaulets, just a little reddish cast there.  She has an obvious rufous overtone and her throat shows a pinkish cast.  She has a white/buff supercilium (line over the eye).  

Red-winged Blackbirds usually perch in obvious places in trees often making a lot of noise with their enthusiastic 'pump-er-dee'.  The books sometimes interpret this as, 'kon-ka-reeeee'.  Wherever they are, they are noisy.  They usually feed on the ground on seeds and invertebrates.  

                                        Red-winged Blackbird Female   [Cornell Photo]

Red-winged Blackbirds are often regarded as pests because they gather in large flocks and feed in grain fields.  Farmers sometimes devise ways of killing or otherwise getting rid of these 'pests'.  I have seen them many times feeding on corn here in the Fredericton area.  They pick at the ends of the cobs until they have them riddled and torn apart either halfway down or the whole cob.  They do take a significant part of the crop.  

Red-winged Blackbirds nest in close proximity to one another in marshes or shrubby areas.  In marshes the nest is built on emergent vegetation and is a cup made of reeds and grasses.  Three to five blue-green eggs spotted with brown or purple are laid and incubated 11 to 12 days by the female.  Two or three broods are normal and each time they build a new nest.  This appears to be an adaptation in order to avoid mortality of the young from nest parasites.  The young resemble their respective parent.  Young males show rusty streaks and a buff supercilium.  Young females look much like the adult female without the reddish or pinkish touches.  

There are many subspecies of this species, 14 recognized in North America.  The Californian subspecies is quite different, showing much darker females and the epaulets in the males do not show the yellow border.  

Europe does not have our blackbirds.  They have starlings, jackdaws and various species of crows.  The European Blackbird is not an Icterid but a thrush and acts very much like a thrush.  When I watched them in Norway I was surprised at how quiet and secretive they were.  I expected them to act like our blackbirds!