How could I forget the American Tree Sparrow?

Identifying sparrows can be tricky, especially when you've an uncooperative subject, like this one hiding within a sapling white birch, face strategically hidden. I could easily see his red-brown cap, which significantly narrowed the possibilities. But being somewhat lazy that day, I couldn't be bothered to pick up my Peterson's field guide to make the necessary comparisons. Instead, I posted the image to Facebook and waited for someone else to do my work. (Yes, I am embarrassed about that.)

Soon enough a birding friend and naturalist posted the following response: "Rusty cap at this time of year narrows it down to tree sparrow, field sparrow, or swamp sparrow. Prominent white wing bar suggests tree sparrow. Two-toned beak (black upper mandible, yellow lower mandible) is indicative of tree sparrow."

Of course--the American Tree Sparrow! How could I have so easily forgotten this winter visitor? (I've even posted on the Tree Sparrow before: 2/05/08). Too, I had earlier been watching a pair of rusty-capped sparrows at my feeder, each with a dark central spot on his breast, another identifying mark of the Tree Sparrow.

There's a lesson to be taken from this tale of muddled thinking and laziness: Never take birds (or birding) for granted or you may forget the avian friends you once knew, and what a shame that would be!

Till next time . . . Keep birds in your heart!

Georgia Anne

One, Two, Three Goldfinch: Project FeederWatch Pictorial Story

A Cooper's Hawk Crashes the Party

Wherever small birds congregate, their predators will likely follow. And so it was two days ago, when a Cooper's Hawk swooped into my yard in pursuit of a mid-day snack (public domain image courtesy of NBII).

Alerting all to the hawk's arrival were a group of blue jays, who called out in alarm--jay-jay-jay! Since jays (and crows) are always squawking for some reason or another, I didn't first attend to their distress. Only after a few dozen finches took collective flight from a locust tree (where they wait to take turns at the feeder) did I glance skyward. Swiftly gliding into sight was a sleek accipiter or "bird hawk," so called because these hawks prey upon other birds.

To catch another bird unaware, you must be crafty and quick, and so--meet the Cooper's Hawk. These long-tailed, round-winged hawks can maneuver around and through trees without an instance of hesitation. Unlike the larger, bulkier buteos (for example, the red-tailed and red-shouldered hawks) that soar over open pastures searching for small mammals, accipiters chase their prey in and around trees. And they're good at it.

From below, I could see the hawk's creamy under wings and the reddish bars of his belly and chest. But from my angle, I couldn't see his blue-gray back. I watched as he banked, circling the locust and then heading toward a tall spruce, from which a large flock of mourning doves suddenly flushed, totally surprising me with their numbers! By then the hawk was behind the massive spruce, so whether or not he caught a dove, I cannot say.

I can say that the following day I saw the Cooper's Hawk sailing overhead. I suspect he's around more often than I know.

Till next time ... Keep birds in your heart!

Georgia Anne