Date: 5/6/26 8:06 am From: Carol <saltbird456...> Subject: Re: [NHBirds] Why No Phoebes?
I’m glad to report we have our usual pair of Phoebes beginning to nest in
their usual eave corner.
We also had a large influx of Blue Jays that dropped in yesterday afternoon
before the rain. They stayed nearby overnight and were back at the feeders
this am.
Carol McCluskey
Gilmanton
On Wed, May 6, 2026 at 10:49 AM Brian R <reillybj49...> wrote:
> Just adding to the conversation. Single Phoebe here in Keene for a few
> days about 2 weeks ago. Have not seen since.
>
> Brian
>
>
> On May 6, 2026, at 10:16 AM, Pam Hunt <biodiva63...> wrote:
>
> Bruce raises an interesting question. I feel like there are fewer phoebes
> than there "should" be in my new digs in South Concord, and attribute it to
> the weather this past winter. It was colder than usual, including a couple
> of major chilling events, in the southern US where phoebes winter, and this
> likely affected food supplies and/or survival. Other "half-hardy" species
> like Winter Wren and Hermit Thrush are known to show population dips on the
> breeding grounds in years following southern cold snaps, and I was
> predicting fewer wrens this spring as a result. But wrens are secretive
> little critters while phoebes are pervasive, and thus more likely to be
> noticed in absentia.
>
> Might not be the whole story, and there's certainly going to be spatial
> variation in where declines are observed, but its as good a working
> hypothesis as any.
>
> Pam Hunt
> Concord, NH
>
>
>
> On Wed, May 6, 2026 at 9:24 AM 'Bruce Boyer' via NHBirds <
> <nhbirds...> wrote:
>
>> Ever since I’ve lived here (about 17 years), Phoebes have nested
>> somewhere on my house, and I have heard other Phoebes calling in the
>> neighborhood. This year, I thought I saw one, but since then, there have
>> been no signs of Phoebes.
>>
>> I suspect that hawks ate them. Sitting out in the open on a branch, the
>> way they do, would seem to make Phoebes easy targets.
>>
>> Bruce Boyer
>> Jaffrey
>>
>> --
>> To Change your e-mail delivery settings (digest, daily, no mail) visit:
>> https://groups.google.com/group/nhbirds/subscribe?hl=en >> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "NHBirds" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to nhbirds+<unsubscribe...>
>> To view this discussion visit
>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/nhbirds/<4F4308D9-D97D-46B6-93E1-F3F8860838EF...> >> .
>>
>
> --
> To Change your e-mail delivery settings (digest, daily, no mail) visit:
> https://groups.google.com/group/nhbirds/subscribe?hl=en > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "NHBirds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to nhbirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/nhbirds/CAPZ2PUs4x7efhuSDuF%2BwfLtXUepoSA-Zqu1cY6KT4FPm%<2B7PCkw...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/nhbirds/CAPZ2PUs4x7efhuSDuF%2BwfLtXUepoSA-Zqu1cY6KT4FPm%<2B7PCkw...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
>
> --
> To Change your e-mail delivery settings (digest, daily, no mail) visit:
> https://groups.google.com/group/nhbirds/subscribe?hl=en > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "NHBirds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to nhbirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/nhbirds/<4A08A3EE-A4B8-4E57-AFC5-068BF90EEB98...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/nhbirds/<4A08A3EE-A4B8-4E57-AFC5-068BF90EEB98...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
