Date: 3/28/26 8:14 am From: Galveston Ornithological Society <galornsoc...> Subject: RE: [NFLbirds] ducks
I did notice, when up there in winter, that the vast majority of ducks I saw were large ducks, primarily wild Mallards and Common Goldeneye. Of course, while large birds retain heat better than smaller ones, it is also true that there are tiny tits in the Interior of Alaska that are residents throughout the harsh winters (like 60 below) [and I don’t mean that stupid wind chill confusion).
OK, like my last sentence, I’ve got to run on…
Jim in Galveston
From: 'Carol Magnusen' via NFLbirds <nflbirds...>
Sent: Saturday, March 28, 2026 9:38 AM
To: <nflbirds...>
Subject: [NFLbirds] ducks
My sister lives in Ohio in a place called Roaming Shores (way up in Ohio) on a nice lake. One day when I was visiting there in Jan., I looked out over her back porch and saw about 50 ducks all lined up close to each other in the middle of the lake on the water. Couldn't figure out what they were doing. Every now and then one duck would wiggle.
I called to my sister to come and look. She did, laughed, and said "Oh, they're trying to keep the ice from forming, and if it does, trying to break it off at the edge." If I lived up there on that lake I would spend a LOT of time watching those ducks! Very enjoyable. . .
Subject: FWD: RE: [NFLbirds] End-of-season, re Loons, more
I meant to send the following to nflbirds, not just to Don.
Just a note from the Great Lakes about C Loons. This winter has been colder, snowier, and with heavier ice cover than normal, but even so, plenty of open water is available all winter for out of season loons. Many of the big inland rivers, Great Lakes harbor mouths, and the connecting waters between the GLs (St. Marys, St. Clair, Detroit, Niagara, and St. Lawrence rivers) remain ice free. Most of the Great Lakes never freeze over. A smattering of early loons have shown up this spring, and they are rare in winter, but open water is not a limiting factor for loons in winter around the Great Lakes. But the places where loons nest, inland lakes with marshy borders are still mostly frozen in northern Michigan. The southern half of the state has been much warmer and may have open water on inland lakes. Matt Johnstone
I went walking at Phipps Park this week and watched a Blue Jay high in an oak. All winter long, I have been watching jays fly into oak canopies, searching for acorns. This time, however, the jay fluttered in the air and grabbed a caterpillar off a leaf. Yellow-rumped Warblers were also moving among the oak branches. Last month these warblers were hunting for the last of the wax myrtle berries. Today, they were hunting for insects feeding among oak catkins, the dangly yellowish worm-like male flowers that attract caterpillars, wasps, and spiders.
We are at the end of the fruiting season when avian usage offruits, nuts, and seeds drops off sharply. By late March any tree that hasn’tdied over winter from the effects of drought has at least started leafing out.Leafout brings bugs out. Newly emerging caterpillars, spiders, flies, bugs, andbees are now a rich source of nutrients for birds.
I enjoy going beyond identification to take note of birdbehavior and have been tracking which plants they feed on for several years. Iusually have only a handful of feeding observations in April, May, and June. Bythen, the acorns, seeds and fruits of oaks, pines, and cabbage palms that haveprovided large volumes of winter food, have been mostly exhausted and the main summerfruiting plants, black cherry, swamp dogwood, grape and peppervine are justbeginning their year. Their fruit won’t be available until July, when it willprovide an additional source of mid-summer food for newly-fledged birds.
My morning walk that day had a mix of birds. The seasons inNorth Florida overlap with no sharp boundaries. This time of year, it can behard to determine whether some species are winter birds or migrants. A maleBlack-and white Warbler that I saw was likely a migrant from further south. Iam not sure about the yellow-rumps and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. They could beleftover winter birds or migrants passing through. Both are boreal nesters andsnow still covers most of Canada. Inmid-morning, I had three Common Loons fly over heading due North. They aredefinitely migrants and are headed for the Great Lakes and Canada. This istheir normal migration period, but I am not sure how they’ll deal with icedover lakes when they get there.
I had only a single feeding observation; a female EasternBluebird eating the desiccated fruits of a winged sumac. Occasionally in lateSpring or early summer I find a Red-bellied Woodpecker eating a greenbrierfruit or a Cardinal munching on a blueberry, but insects are the preferredfoodstuff at this time of year. The fruiting season is essentially over.
There are, however, always things to watch and note as youwander through the world. Yesterday, Isaw a female Northern Parula make repeated trips to a hanging clump of Spanishmoss. In the southeast parulas nest in Spanish moss. Further north they useUsnea lichens, also known as old man’s beard. She wasn’t carrying nestingmaterial, but was obviously investigating possible nest sites. I’ll keepchecking on her to see what happens.
It’s Spring. Go outside. There’s always something going on.
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