by Marilyn Lorenz photos by Chuck Lorenz
While walking on the boardwalk or at the beach, or even just living the good life on your patio you may have noticed that there seem to be quite a lot of birds lately. Back in May the birds were busy building nests and laying eggs, then in June most of those eggs hatched and the adult birds were very busy keeping all those hungry mouths fed. Now it is July and August and all those baby birds have fledged out and are trying out those wonderful new wings.
Families of young Golden-fronted Woodpeckers are very actively following their moms around and learning how to hunt bugs. Young Killdeer, in sets of four, are running all about the fields and vacant lots. They are so fast on their feet they hardly need to fly. There are whole squadrons of Purple Martins practicing their flying skills. They catch and eat mosquitoes in midair but you can often see them resting on telephone wires in town. Mother Whistling Ducks lead convoys of little stripey ducklings on the ponds where they learn how to tip themselves upside down to eat water plants.
Kingbirds, Flycatchers, Mockingbirds and Orioles are all busily teaching their youngsters the family businesses. Some of these have successfully raised one nest full and started a second brood. The Common Gallinules are a real family group with the older sibs helping to take care of the younger. The young Least Bitterns are already as big as their parents and quite independent.
There is a lot of activity going on out there and a lot of growth happens in a remarkably short time. Those Purple Martins will be leaving us all too soon and flying all the way down to Brazil, so they really have to hurry. All of the migrant birds are feeding as fast as they can, growing strong and putting on weight to make ready for their big trip. It is really impressive when you realize that many of these babies are about to travel thousands of miles to a place they have never been and start a totally new life when they are only a few months old. Talk about leap of faith.
New life is bursting out all around us and it is exciting to see the curious and highly energetic young birds discovering life with lots of enthusiasm. Once again Aplomado Falcons have chosen our area to raise youngsters, they were successfully hatched out at the hacking station on route 100. This has proven to be a most productive location and we give thanks to the Peregrine Foundation for their good work. These babies are not going anywhere but will live right here, eating tasty Grackles for breakfast, and inciting the envy of birders all over the country.
So enjoy the show. You have the privilege of living in one of the best birding areas in America and don’t forget to watch for the giant pink birds (Roseate Spoonbills) flying overhead.