Introduction to Our Bird Friends, Volume 1

Part 1

INTRODUCTION TO OUR BIRD FRIENDS

Text by L. B. Carson Illustrations by Orville O. Rice

Copyright, 1954 BY CAPPER PUBLICATIONS, INC.

Printed in the United States of America

Published August 1954 Second Printing (Revised), December 1954 Third Printing, April 1955 Fourth Printing, January 1956 Fifth Printing, May 1956 Sixth Printing, May 1957

FOREWORD

More and more people are turning to the outdoors and the enjoyment of nature. Many great Americans have been students of wild birds. This is not accidental, for few forms of outdoor recreation offer so much pleasure.

The season of the year will in some cases determine what birds are in your area. Color is important in identifying species. Look carefully at the silhouette or shape; is it slender or chunky, is the tail short or long? Compare its size with a bird with which you are more familiar. Habitat is important, too. One learns to look for Red-winged Blackbirds in wet marshes; for a meadowlark in pastures and fields. Behavior is a clue. Does it walk or hop; does it soar, does it walk headfirst down a tree, as is the habit of the nuthatch, or scratch among leaves like the towhee? Listen to the bird’s song and call note. With a little experience, distinctive songs may be identified. Each bird has its characteristic song.

Bird study can be pursued with as much effort as the watcher cares to exert. Birds need food, water and protection from their natural enemies. You can provide these in your own yard. Some birds will be attracted and you can study them at your leisure. Other species, those which live in swamps, for example, must be searched for aggressively.

A bird guide is a splendid investment, considering the hours of pleasure it will bring you. Binoculars are a help, too, in studying the size, shape, beak, legs and color pattern.

Make written notes of what you see and hear, or a dated list of species and numbers of each. Records will add to your own pleasure and add to the sum of knowledge on birds in general.

This is the first of two booklets on common birds of the United States published by Capper Publications, Inc. Each of the two volumes illustrates and describes 50 different species. Additional copies (specify whether volume I or II is desired) may be ordered for 25 cents each as follows:

Bird Book Department 1-6 Capper Publications, Inc. 8th and Jackson Streets Topeka, Kansas

Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps

It makes little difference to this bird whether you call him “Water-witch, Hell-diver, Dabchick or Pied-billed Grebe,” for these are only a few of the names by which he is known. His only concern is finding a pond, lake or other water, well supplied with crayfish, minnows or insects on which he feeds. Leeches are a favorite morsel.

The short, thick bill of this grebe is distinctive, even in winter when the black encircling band from which it gets its name, is missing. General appearance is brown, being brownish-black above, lighter brown and white below. On water the short tail usually is carried high enough to show the white under-tail coverts.

This grebe is perfectly adjusted to water and can swim, dive or lower his body in water just as far as desired with little effort, often showing only bill and eyes above the surface. This protects him from predators or hunters who might mistake him for a duck. Even his nest is a floating structure so placed that he can gain the safety of his natural element.

Wet pavements are hazardous for they resemble water and if the Pied-billed Grebe lands there, he is helpless. His legs are placed too far back on his body for walking and he finds it difficult to regain the air except by skittering over water.

He sinks or dives Without a care, For water hides His daily fare.

Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias

Altho protected by the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty, this heron often finds himself the target for thoughtless hunters. Not that he would make a tasty dish, but any bird which stands 4 feet high with a wing spread of almost 70 inches is in constant danger. His favorite feeding grounds are wet meadows or pastures, ponds, lakes or streams. Most of his food consists of rough fish which he catches expertly, either standing patiently in shallow water until a fish appears, or walking slowly along the edge of some shallow pond until he discovers his prey. Snakes, frogs, insects, mice, eels, or even small birds are not safe from a hungry heron.

Unlike cranes, which fly with necks outstretched, herons fold their necks back as if resting their heads on their shoulders. Their flight is a slow, measured beat which carries them to their destination. These birds seem to prefer tops of tall trees, such as sycamores or cottonwoods, either in isolated locations or on islands. Favorite sites are used year after year and nests often cover as much as 3 feet in space and are placed well out on limbs. A colony of Great Blue Herons is frequently joined by herons of other species. Such a colony of fish-eating birds is both noisy and odorous.

If, when he flies He folds his neck, The heron is The bird to check.

Snow Goose Chen hyperborea

This medium-size goose is the most abundant member of the family and can be identified by white plumage and black wing tips. He is often called “wavy,” in the northern part of his range, while southern hunters refer to him as a “white brant.” His Latin name describes him as “a goose beyond the north wind.” We see him only as a migrant, either going to nesting grounds in Northern Canada or returning to his winter home on the coast of Louisiana and Texas. A somewhat larger relative known as the Greater Snow Goose, nests in Northern Greenland and winters along our Atlantic coast.

This bird feeds on roots and bulbs of water plants found in his wintering area. Grasses, grains or other vegetation bring huge flocks where they can be seen grazing like tame geese. Feeding flocks are not welcome to the wheat grower who has fields near lakes which are used as resting places for migrating birds.

Snow Geese often travel with their near relatives, the Blue Geese. The gray body and white head of the latter give a color contrast which is apparent in a mixed flock. These birds interbreed frequently and their offspring are confusing but usually show more white on the breast than the Blue Goose parent.

Like mammoth flakes of drifting snow We see you come, we watch you go We hear your call like trumpet’s blare Which guides the flock in upper air.

Part 2

Common Mallard Anas platyrhynchos

The Mallard drake with green head, purple chestnut breast, reddish feet, white collar, black and white tail with a curled feather, combine to make a colorful duck. The female, more in keeping with her motherly duties, is content to wear a trim suit of buffy gray, streaked with brown. The orange to greenish-olive bill and pale orange-red feet give perfect clues to her identity.

Any pond, puddle, lake or stream is not overlooked by this bird and he is especially fond of shallow water where he can secure food by tipping up and extending his neck to muddy bottoms. These ducks are good divers but if not closely pressed, seem to dive only for pleasure.

The Mallard is not a good father, but leaves his mate soon after she has started to incubate her eggs. Her nest is well hidden and often found some distance from water. Her downy young soon can travel and the proud mother leads them to the nearest body of water as soon as possible. These trips are hazardous, for predators relish such dainty morsels. Turtles and fish also take their toll.

Hunters look forward to the fall flight of these ducks for they furnish a major portion of the annual duck harvest. They soon learn that guns are dangerous and often feed at night.

Oh, green-head, with your yellow bill, Your rapid flight gives us a thrill And when we hear your mate’s loud quack We’re always glad that you are back.

Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura

Vultures play an unusual part in nature’s drama. They, along with Sexton Beetles, other insects and animals, form the sanitary unit. When we consider the heavy toll of wildlife along our highways, we can appreciate the usefulness of such a unit. Lacking talons, vultures are not equipped to catch their prey, but feed on whatever nature provides.

This vulture is almost eagle size, with a wingspread of 70 inches and can be identified by his long tail, small head, 2-toned wings, and habit of soaring, the wings forming a dihedral or open V-shape. On close inspection, you will find the head bare and a reddish color. The young have blackish heads which is one of the marks of the Black Vulture, but the latter is smaller with a square tail and shows white spots under the wing when flying. This is a southern cousin.

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