Here's more about Cardinals than you probably care to know

Northern Cardinal

The name “cardinalis” (the bird’s scientific name) was chosen by Swedish botanist Linnaeus because it reminded him of the red robes of the Cardinals of the Catholic Church.  Few people care, but technically it’s a “Northern Cardinal”. 

In the 1800s, the Northern Cardinal occurred naturally in North America only as far north as southern New York and west only to wooded portions of the Great Plains.  Back then, it could be seen only rarely in north Texas.

In the 21^st century, the Cardinal is almost everywhere in this country (except large chunks of the West) and is one of the birdwatchers’ favorites. Its popularity is probably due to its bright color. Cardinals aren’t native to the Western states but were introduced on several occasions, beginning in 1880. It didn’t take well, but by the 1920s there was finally a self-sustaining population in Los Angeles County. There were several introductions on the Hawaiian Islands, between 1929 and 1931.  Today the Cardinal is a common backyard bird on many of the larger islands. Cardinals were also introduced, successfully, to Bermuda “a long time ago” (nobody kept records).  The Cardinal (or “redbird”) has been introduced into several other places, with varying degrees of success.

The original population has expanded too. Thanks largely to the birds’ adaptability, and the increasing number of people who feed birds and provide habitat. Backyard bird-feeding became popular at the start of the 20^th century, enabling the birds to survive cold, harsh winters and hot, dry summers.  Today, their range extends north into southern Canada, and their numbers are growing from the Rocky Mountains, east to the Atlantic seaboard. By the way, the Arizona Cardinals of professional sports is

Pyrrhuloxia

actually a similar-looking Pyrrhuloxia, native to the southwest (when the team was in St. Louis, the name made sense); the Cardinal isn’t native to Arizona. 

Centuries ago, Cardinals only lived naturally along rivers and steams, and at the forest edges occurring naturally (such as were created by fires or floods). However, as man cleared small spaces for homesites, more and more “forest edge” was created. Humans even grew and stored lots of Cardinal-food such as wheat and corn.  If humans had set out to create habitat for Cardinals, we couldn’t have done much better.

Due to Cardinals’ casual proximity to humans, we have plenty of opportunity to observe their behavior. For instance, the female Cardinal seems to do all the nest construction.  She also sits on the eggs, while the male makes trip after trip - bringing food to the female and (when the eggs hatch) to the 2 to 5 fledglings. The nest is usually less than 10 feet from the ground (often lower). They’re concealed within dense vegetation however.

Male and females escort fledglings (just-out-of-the-nest youngsters) to the vicinity of birdfeeders. The parents will bring seeds to the fledglings, with the adult male doing most of the work. The adults soon tire of this, and the clumsy fledglings (now knowing where the feeder is) come by themselves. You’ll recognize them by their black bills, gaping mouths, short tails, and wing-quivering. This “teaching by example” happens often at backyard birdbaths too.  Watching them try to take a bath is amusing (any birdbath deeper than 2 or 3 inches, by the way, is too threatening to almost all birds). 

By late summer, the fledglings will have matured. Then all Cardinals, start to get ready for the winter ahead, and molt their feathers, often looking unkempt in the process. Sometimes, most of the head feathers will be gone at the same time leaving a bare-headed bird (looking sort of like a vulture).  Don’t worry, it’s not diseased - and winter feathers will soon grow in.

During the winter, Cardinals often join informal flocks and visit

feeders (and the ground below them) in large numbers. This is when you can see them almost every day - especially just after dawn and near dusk They appreciate feeders with “cardinal rings” or other perches that don’t require them to bend their necks (not easy for a Cardinal, anatomically). They eat a large variety of seed and, sometimes, even suet; preferring a seed blend that’s heavy on fresh sunflower seeds. If their finely-tuned senses tell them a seed is stale or dried out, they’ll just drop it and go to another yard.
 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

 

What's the benefit of having building lights on all night? Dead birds?

Most people know that, at night, lit buildings cause migrating birds to crash into them. Thousands and thousands die (in every city in the country) from flying into usually-empty buildings. All because the inside lights are left on. Many are owned by or leased by the State, hence a partial solution:  

In Minnesota, the governor signed a law directing that the 5,326 state-owned or state- leased buildings turn off interior lights after midnight, during spring and fall bird migrations. This happened with leadership by several local birding organizations. Not only does this save birds, but it reduces CO2 emissions, saves energy and saves taxpayers’ money.

North Texas is on the central flyway, along which millions of birds migrate twice each year. Why am I writing about this now? Well, we all know how long it takes for a bill to get agreed on and signed into law.

 

 

Yellow-breasted Chat

The largest warbler there is:

The Yellow-breasted Chat is seen fairly commonly in north Texas, although often called by an inconclusive name such as “What’s That?” 

It’s a warbler – at 7-inches long the largest warbler there is. It's most identifiable by the white "goggles" around the eyes.

 

Nestlings (out of the egg, but still in the nest) eat only insects. Out of the nest, the juveniles add fruits and berries to their diet - never seeds. The curious habit of some juvenile Chats is to wander northward after the late spring breeding season, instead of to their traditional wintering grounds in far south Texas and Central America, down to Panama.

 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Getting started in birdwatching & gardening (on the cheap)

 

 

They’re a lot alike. Both birdwatching and gardening can be done at home, cost very little and take a minimum of effort. They sort of feed off each other too. Birdwatching, like gardening, can be done quite well at almost no cost. "Unless you want to" is the key phrase; there are no books you absolutely need to have, no clubs to join, no trips to take, no special clothes etc. Unless you want to do these things.

 To start from a standstill in birdwatching, just read this blog. No “expert” quotes from it because it deals with the basics – like where to put birdbaths, what our local birds eat,  what their nests look like and so. These are things we all had to learn at some point, but were too intimidated to ask. Our blog deals with north Texas birds and local situations, like our super-hot summer. 

Birdwatching is like gardening since you “learn by doing” – like riding a bicycle.  Nobody can do it wrong, but every single person can do it better.(Right now in north Texas, any birdwatching should be done early, early in the morning or from behind glass. Almost all gardening activities can simply be put on hold until about mid-September)

 Showing your grandchildren things like a bird pecking its way out of an egg, a mother bird teaching juveniles how to bathe or a seedling sprouting and twisting to catch the sun, is enlightening to everyone!

 

 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

 

 

Variety in birdfeeders attracts a whole lot more birds to your yard!

Variety is the spice of life.

Most of my fellow bird-fanciers have more than one birdfeeder (we have nine). That way, of course, you can attract more than one kind of bird. Birds are a lot like people in that they prefer a wide variety of foods, and places to eat. Some birds prefer sunflower seeds, some prefer safflower, some like nuts, some like mealworms, some like a feeder height of 4 ft., some won’t come to a feeder that’s close to a house, some prefer a feeder at roof level and on and on.  They’re picky aren’t they?

So if you have more than one feeder, vary the height and kinds of food used to entice the widest variety of birds. And always have native flowers and a birdbath nearby. Then see who drops in!

 

 

A life or death conundrum             Clearly, birds need to be light enough to fly. But they also need to put on energy-producing fat for a long flight like a migration.  What to do?  On average, putting on enough fat for a non-stop flight across something like the Gulf of Mexico reduces the distance a bird can fly by about half.

 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Are you nurturing Super Weeds?

GMO’s and RoundUp Cause Super Weeds
(And many more problems)

Think globally,  act locally

Research shows that herbicide-resistant weeds are aggressively taking hold in much of the U.S. and threaten U.S. crop production, as well as residential yards. More than half of U.S. farms are battling glyphosate resistant weeds. A survey by Stratus Ag Research shows glyphosate resistant weeds were found in 33 million acres in the U.S. in 2010. The acreage jumped to 61 million in 2012. Today, more than half of U.S. farms are battling the problem.

The toxic chemical glyphosate, the main ingredient in RoundUp and other herbicides, has been viewed as a cheap, effective way to grow weed-free plants. “But those days are over, weed resistance to glyphosate is becoming more widespread” warns Iowa State University  scientist Mike Owen.

“One of the greatest threats to yield loss and food security - on a local and global basis - is the development of herbicide-resistant weeds,” said Arlene Cotie, Bayer Crop Science. “It is a growing global problem that is changing agronomic practices and threatens the long-term viability of economical weed control and food production.”

This "super weed" problem isn't just happening on farms, it's occurring in parks and residential yards too. We hear more about it from agribusiness simply because researchers and big agricultural growers keep better records (especially year-to-year) than a typical homeowner.

“In the Midwest, we see new populations [of weeds] every season that demonstrate resistance to numerous herbicide classes,” said Aaron Hager, University of Illinois. “We find resistance is not necessarily limited to one herbicide, but in certain species we find resistance to multiple herbicides, effectively eliminating many of the options farmers would have to try to control these populations in their crops.”

“Herbicide-resistant weeds are an unconventional threat that we must fight with conventional and unconventional methods,” said Bayer’s Harry Strek. “Accumulated resistance to multiple herbicides complicates the matter. We recognize that chemicals are often only a short-term solution.”

As you see from the above quotes, the toxic chemistry industry is now acknowledging the drastic and expensive consequences of Genetically Modified Organisms and glyphosate, the key ingredient in RoundUp and other herbicides. The truth is that there are better (and often less expensive) ways to kill unwanted plants.

Where in the world did those green parrots come from?

 

Monk Parakeet

For several years, Denton has been home to groups of totally wild Monk Parakeets. They’re in several places in northeast Denton, and their range is slowly expanding to other parts of north Texas. It’s the most widespread parakeet (it's actually a parrot) in the country, and the only species that builds a large, communal nest (some weighing up to several hundred pounds). First-time viewers often think it's someone's pet that escaped. But it’s not native to the U.S., and probably escaped from a broken crate (or similar) when it was smuggled into a port somewhere (nobody knows for sure)  Actually, the only two parrot species native to this country are both extinct.

 

Pipevine Swallowtail

Yes we have no bananas       Butterflies love spoiled bananas – don’t ask me why. They also go for mushy fruit like over-ripe pears and peaches. (but don’t leave them outside too long or you may have other visitors). This is what becomes of fruit if nature takes its course – animals eat some and the rest nourishes the soil.

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

    

We need more owls around here

     North Texans are often surprised to learn that they have owls as neighbors. It's true, but there are fewer owls around than a decade ago. Our common owls range from the ±10” Screech Owl, through the mid-sized Barn Owl, to the large Great-horned Owl.

Barn Owl

Owls hunt at night, and feed on animals also active at night, including large insects and many species of rodents. An owl is one of the best rodent-control creatures on earth. One adult Barn Owl eats about 90g. of food a night – the equivalent of two rats.  A breeding pair and their chicks can eat about 3000 rats per year. Where rodents have been displaced by recent construction, owls (particularly Barn Owls) eat well.

     Unfortunately, the large, dead trees they like to nest in are frequently cut down and natural tree cavities are filled in, so good nesting sites can be hard to find.  Man-made nest boxes can help alleviate the problem. They can be put almost anywhere – even on the wall of a house. It should be in shade most of the day and, especially in Texas, shouldn’t face the hot, west sun.

Believe it or not I've been asked if owl droppings (“pellets”) carry disease. These are the undigestible bits and pieces of its prey, such as bones. According to the CDC, they transmit no known disease. Consequently there is no health reason for any preventive sanitation.

There's no 100% sure way to attract owls to your yard. Providing a good habitat, nest material and a nesting place are the best things you can do.
Since owls fly quietly at night, you may never know that they’re around, so they’re very good neighbors.

Great horned Owl (western)

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.