25 January - 31 January 2022

Dear fellow flock of birders,

So what are the birds doing in the Arboretum or around the periphery of the Arboretum?

Today I will start with the best bird first rather than saving it for the last. A new arrival appeared and was first reported in Dane County on Friday, Jan. 28th by Kathy Kershaw on her property. The birds were in the Norway Spruce Trees prying open the scales of the pine cones to retrieve the seeds between the scales. The birds’ beaks are crossed to facilitate the opening process. By now you should have guessed the name of the bird described. If not it is called a crossbill and the specific type that has just arrived is called a White-winged Crossbill. Kathy saw 60 of them. They come from way up north. I saw them the next day, Saturday, Jan. 29th at Kathy’s place and only saw 40 which put me on my way to the moon. On Sunday, Jan. 30th several of us saw a few, 8-9, in the Pinetum at the eastern end of Longenecker Gardens. That finding pushed me “over the moon”. I’ve been looking for them in the Pinetum for at least a month and now they are there. The downside is that they don’t stay long and move around quite a bit. Look for them in the tall Spruce Trees with lots of pine cones. A photo of three rosy red, male White-winged Crossbills with black wings and two white wingbars perched at the top of a Spruce Tree is included. Also a photo of a female with yellowish coloration and dark gray streaks on both the upper and lower sides is included.

Also in the Pinetum are the Red-breasted Nuthatches. On Sunday Andrew Maher and I were treated to 2 active nuthatches in a pine tree right next to us crawling all over the pine cones. They also look for food around the cones but don’t have the beaks like the crossbills to open the scales. They still find the food. Included is a photo of a Red-breasted Nuthatch that we saw.

Again another northern bird, that seems to be quite numerous this year around the state of Wisconsin, in Dane County and in the Arboretum, is the Common Redpoll. I’ve even had 12 of them coming to my nyjer seed or thistle seed feeder daily for over the past week. They are voracious eaters but drop a lot of seed on the ground. They sometimes feed on the seeds that have fallen of top of the snow. In the Arboretum they feed on the seeds inside female catkins of the Whitespire and Sweet Birches near the Crab Collection and the European Alders that encircle Icke Boardwalk marsh and Teal Pond. I’ve also seen them feeding on seeds in the Arborvitae. Included are photos of a male Common Redpoll with a blurry red breast and a female with an all-white breast and belly. Both sexes have a red patch on the top of the head and streaked sides.

Last week I said I was surprised by the lack of American Robins in the Arboretum. Today I took my bird walk in the Arb in the late afternoon. When I went down to the Big Spring to see if the Great Blue Heron was there, uncharacteristically it was standing in the open in the middle of the outflow. What really got my attention were the many (23) American Robins feeding near the spring. They were tossing leaves to uncover food under them. I’ve seen this activity many times in past years but this is the first time this winter. I concluded that the robins are in the Arb but I was looking for them at the wrong time. I was looking for them in the morning but in the winter they are apparently more active in the late afternoon. Included is a photo of an American Robin in the leaves next to the spring.

Also on Sunday Andrew and I found the Barred Owl perched in a Juniper on Juniper Knoll. This owl always finds a limb that is completely enclosed by tons of branches making good photographs of it impossible. Other years the Barred Owls are much more cooperative. They perch on branches that are mostly clear of surrounding branches. Included is a photo of one of those cooperative types. It appears to be itching its chin. However it may be warning me not to take a step closer. Those talons look like they could do some damage.

For my last two photos let’s make a stop at the Spring Trail Pond. This part of the Arboretum has lots of birds especially Mallards. There are at least 100 Mallards in the pond and a few days ago I counted 160.  When it gets really cold, like we’ve had a couple days this past week, the water in the pond put out a lot of steam. The Mallards often fly in large flocks over the road and feed in the backyard of a generous family. When they get their fill the large flock flies back and land splashing in the pond water. A photo of this return is included. 

Also at Spring Trail Pond are a couple species that normally leave the Arb for the winter but since the food is so good across the street they stay the winter. Included is a photo of a White-throated Sparrow and a Fox Sparrow eating some food from the snow on the ground.

That’s the bird report for this past week in the Arb.

I wish you all good health and good birding in 2022,

Chuck