Birding in Columbia Locally headquartered Environment for the Americas, best known for International Migratory Bird Day, is taking a birding trip to Columbia in October. This will be a fantastic trip. Please click for more information  |
Wild Bird Center of Boulder Saturday
Bird Walks
bird watchers (that's us)
From 7:30 am (promptly)
to 9:45 am (approximately)
Every Saturday year-round. Every last Saturday of the month we travel further afield than normal
and return a little later.
Call for more info: 303-442-1322
Birdwalks
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Bald Eagle © Steve Frye
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Wild Bird Center
of Boulder
Quick Links
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Xcel Energy
Bird Cams
One fun way to participate in the lives of local birds is by viewing Xcel Energy's
Web Cams
owl cam
Osprey Cam
from Earth Cam
Osprey Cam
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Birding Community Bulletins
 National Wildlife Refuge Association
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Saturday Morning Birders List
A strange thing happened to my Saturday Morning Bird Walk list. Recently, several hundred people who receive the bird walk list every week were dropped from my email group. That means many of you have not been  getting the bird walk list every week over the last few months. If you think you have been dropped or would like to receive the weekly list of birds we saw,
please send me an email at WBCBoulderCO@aol.com
and ask to be put on the bird walk list. Thanks, and sorry for the inconvenience.
Please put me on the Bird Walk list
--Steve
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Contact Information
Steve Frye, Owner
Wild Bird Center of Boulder
1641-28th Street
Boulder, CO 80301
(303) 442-1322
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Common Grackle
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The Backyard Bully
by Steve Frye
This summer, on Father's Day, I found myself at a family picnic in Sterling, CO. To set the scene I will tell you it was 100°F with 20 mph winds, sunny, 2:00 in the afternoon, and we could see and smell the smoke from the High Park Fire. In my wilted state, I was watching the irrigation ditch where a common grackle was walking along with its beak full of army cutworm moths (i.e. Miller Moths). It walked up to the water's edge and dunked its beak, held it there for a few seconds and then flew off. A few minutes later it was back doing the same thing. What a clever way to deliver some water to its nestlings! I have seen other bird species participating in this same practice. As it turns out, not all grackles have this behavior, it is a learned practice. I can image that on this day its nestlings were grateful that at least one of their parents knew about soaking food before delivering it.
On Father's Day it was easy to anthropomorphize about what a good parent this grackle was. Aren't grackles wonderful? Many would say 'NO', but that is the answer with birds that have bad reputations. I can think of many others with a bad rap; crows, jays, magpies, ravens, starlings, and house sparrows to name a few. Is it a coincidence that many of these birds are black? I don't think so, but that is a subject for another time. What do grackles do that irritate some so?
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Common Grackle - Juvenile
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The biggest complaint we field at the store has to do with both their appetite and abundance. When a flock of grackles descend upon your yard and feeders they can eat a lot and their presence is so strong and aggressive that other birds are excluded. People often mistakenly attribute the lack of other smaller birds when the grackles are around as meanness on the grackles part. To be sure, there is some aggressiveness attributed to this situation, but any larger or more dominant bird will displace a smaller bird at the feeder. When a flock of grackles show up, the smaller birds like house finches do not run away in fear, they simply realize it's better to search for food elsewhere when the grackles are hogging the feeder. As 'Bird Feeders' we like to see variety in our yards. So regardless of how you feel about grackles, you still might not want to be dominated by their presence (and appetite) at your feeders. The solution to this dilemma is a caged feeder with a big gap between the tube and the cage. There are some other solutions like diversion feeding, but these have limited success. A caged feeder will not rid your yard of grackles, but it will reduce their presence and allow some of the smaller birds to cohabit your yard with the grackles. This solution usually will suffice for people who are upset with the grackles.
However, there are others who just don't want to even see them around. The solution to this situation requires heavy equipment. The grackles are attracted to our backyards, not only for food, but for shelter from trees especially spruce, lawns for grub foraging, and water. So for the person who really doesn't even want to see a grackle on their property, they will have to cut down all their trees and remove any grass or water features (including puddles). They will have to do this not only for their property, but for at least a quarter mile radius surrounding their property! I don't think many will use this sure-fire method.
Still, grackles can be aggressive at times and people don't like that (unless it's a raptor). Many customers have reported grackles attacking a songbird and killing it. Sometimes grackles just kill it and leave, and at other times they eat the brains and leave the rest. They also will eat nestlings (along with many other species). I have witnessed all these gruesome events also. I'm not sure why grackles do this (leaving the bodies, that is). Less than 1% of their diet is eggs, nestlings, or adult passerines. When they attack a fledged bird or adult, their victims are in close proximity to the grackle so they are obviously not too fearful of the grackle. The grackles tend to not pursue their victims, they just reach over to a nearby bird and attach seemingly without threat or warning. This situation has always puzzled me, but that is the way of the world. | |
Common Grackle
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Grackles return to Boulder County in March from their close by wintering grounds. They have increased their population in Colorado over the last 50 years mostly due to habitat alterations like increasing riparian vegetation and suburbs. However, nation-wide populations have declined slightly due to control measures (i.e. killing them) from agriculture. Some feel that the combination of habitat alterations and climate change will make the common grackle a year-round resident in eastern Colorado. Grackles are a more common sight in eastern Colorado compared to the western slope. After their return in March, the grackles go about the job of nesting and establishing territory. It is common to see grackles give the 'ruff-out' display during this time. It is a threat posture used mostly by males where the bird puffs all its feathers out and stands up tall making it look huge and giving a screeching vocalization. Also in the spring, the males hold their tails in a V display with the outer tail feathers held high and the middle feathers low giving it the shape of a boat hull. Grackles will defend their nest sites aggressively from any perceived threat including crows, squirrels, cats, dogs, and occasionally humans.
In Colorado, grackles usually only have one brood which both parents feed. The bulk of a grackle's diet consists of seeds, nuts, and fruits. However, they will also feed readily on many agricultural pests, lawn grubs, all kinds of insects, spiders, snakes, mice, lizards, eggs and nestlings, and adult birds especially house sparrows. They have been documented chasing and eating bats and wading into water to catch crayfish and minnows. Feeding of grackle young takes place from late May into early July. After a parent bird visits the nest with a prey delivery, the nestling will turn around and expel a fecal sac which is feces enclosed in a membrane almost like a dog poop inside of a newspaper sleeve. The parent takes this sac in its mouth and flies away, dropping it away from the nest on its way to forage for more food deliveries. This strategy keeps the nest clean and makes the nest harder for predators to locate. They seem to have a preference for dropping the fecal sacs in water, which is fine unless you own a pool.
The young grow quickly and fledge usually in June. You will know exactly when because the noise of begging young is hard to ignore. As with all begging, the sound is not pleasant. The parents will continue to feed the young outside the nest for several days until they are cut off. Then the begging really kicks in.
Perhaps this is why the parents abandon the young soon after they have stopped feeding them. They will leave suburbia and travel to riparian and agricultural areas leaving the young to figure life out in civilization. This happens about the end of June or beginning of July according to Boulder County data. When the young fledge, they have a dun colored juvenile plumage. Over the next few weeks they will molt into their shiny iridescent blue and bronze adult plumage. As the grackles go through this 'teenage' phase they look rather unkempt. As soon as they have completed their transition to adult plumage, they too leave suburbia to join the other adults in huge flocks. So in late July and August you may not see any grackles in your backyard.
However, in September and October you will see huge flocks coming through on their way south. The fall sees large flocks travelling in loose lines streaming by from horizon to horizon amid constant 'chuck' calls. Some days you won't have any in the yard and the next you might have a hundred. Depending on our fall weather, the grackles leave or linger during this time. Anecdotally, we have noticed that since the store opened in 1989 the grackles seem to be leaving later in the fall and showing up earlier in the spring. So the grackles are here to stay and we have to find our peace with them. Who Knows? You might just end up finding them a beautiful and fascinating bird to watch and have in your yard.
All About Birds (Cornell Lab of Ornithology): Common Grackle ( make sure to view the sound and video tabs)
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Candace Stuart In July, Denver Wild Bird Center owner Candace Stuart was involved in a car crash and died. She was struck by a car being chased by police. Candace  had her store for 18 years and I will miss her very much. She had a great and light-hearted personality and she always made me laugh and feel better about things after I was with her or talked to her. Her store is closed right now, but there are hopes that it will reopen once all the legal issues are worked out. Candace was a good friend and a great resource for me and my store. We love you Candace. . |
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Shade Grown Coffee
Better for the Birds!
Fair Trade - Shade Grown - Organic
$3.00 Off any of our
Shade Grown Coffee Varieties
Shade Grown Coffee Products Mention this Coupon to redeem or visit our store.
Call (303) 442-1322
Not to be combined with other offers.
Offer expires 10.31/12.
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What's Good for the Beans
Is Good for the Birds
Real Birders drink shade grown coffee because they know that coffee beans grown in the shade of trees helps protect habitat for neotropical migrants and other birds. The big bonus to drinking shade grown coffee besides helping the birds is that shade grown coffee is the best, richest, most complex, and the smoothest coffee. Even our decaf varieties are rich and smooth. The choices we make are important; they are the votes that shape our world. So if you are a bird watcher and a coffee drinker, choose shade grown coffee.
Coffee and Conservation. Are Your Beans for the Birds: What is Shade Grown Coffee
Grounds for Change: Why Shade Grown Coffee Is Important
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Bird Photos Bring Joy to All This summer we changed our bird walk email sent out every week to include photographs of birds. These photos are almost always taken on the walk itself which adds a great dimension to our postings. I need help getting more (and sometimes better) images, so if you are coming on the bird walk please bring your camera and send me your images. After the walks please send the images as soon as possible so I can get them out in the emails. The address for sending images is WBCBoulderCO@aol.com. Please include your name so we can give you proper credit. To see some of the fantastic images from the summer go to our archive or check out our facebook page. Again, thanks to all who have shared their images. I know that many have enjoyed them. . |
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 Ask Steve
Q: What is a migrant trap?
A: To a birder, a migrant trap is a small patch of habitat that seems to catch the attention of passing migratory songbirds. Locally, I can think of several including Doudy Draw especially in the spring, the CU Campus along Boulder Creek, Apple Valley and Old St. Vrain Roads in Lyons, Sawhill/Walden Ponds, and Golden Ponds in Longmont to mention a few. It's always a good idea to check your local trap just after a change in the weather. In the fall always look for big cold fronts pushing south to bring in a new load of migrants.
The Wild Bird Center is always trying to help customers turn their yards into migrant traps. It all starts with habitat improvements to your yard. The more bird friendly a space you have, the more birds will be there, of course. One great improvement to attracting migrating birds is the addition of water, especially the noise of water. Fountains, ponds, and streams are great when it comes to attracting all kinds of birds. Most of the migrants coming through are not seed eaters, but all birds need water to drink and bathe in.
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Hummingbird Bathing
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Although most of the migrants that people want to attract are not seed eaters, your bird feeders can still help attract non seed eating birds. The birds are constantly watching other birds, what they are eating, if they are alert and giving warnings, and where they are resting. The commotion of your bird feeder will attract all kinds of birds curious to see what's up. Remember, there is safety in numbers so even if they are not interested in the food; they might just stay for the company.
Safety is another concern for the birds. Make sure your yard is cat-free and your problem bird-crash windows have decals on them to prevent collisions. Also, adding some shrubs will improve your habitat and give the birds an escape route from predators including other birds. For more help with cats or bird collisions come see us at the Wild Bird Center.
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Thank you for all of your support from all of us at YOUR Wild Bird Center!
We couldn't have done this without you! Twenty-three years is a long time in anyone's book and we owe our success to you -- our customers, compatriots, fellow birders, and friends. A hearty thank you to you all!
Steve, Wendy & Bill
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