Archives

OUR MOST BEAUTIFUL COCKROACH

Jun23

           If there was ever a contest to crown Georgia’s most beautiful cockroach, I am certain that the winner would be the pale-bordered field cockroach (Pseudomops septentrionalis).  I never thought that it is impossible to describe a cockroach is being beautiful.  Then a few days ago, I just happened to find a pale-bordered field cockroach.  When I first looked at it, it appeared to be a bauble that had fallen of a necklace or bracelet.  Upon closer examination, I saw the object had six legs and was adorned with a distinctive pattern that was far different from any cockroach I have ever seen.

            This cockroach is small (1/2 to 5/8 inches long).  Unlike the cockroaches we are familiar with,  it rarely ventures into our homes.  Instead, it remains outside living its life in the thick cover found in our backyards, gardens, and natural areas.  It is particularly fond of mulch, and woodpiles.  It is a scavenger that spends the daylight hours feeding on the juices of low-growing plants and flowers.  Fortunately, it does not damage plants nor is a garden pest.  In addition, unlike other cockroaches, they are not known to carry any diseases that can infect humans.

            This insect is not native to the United States.  Instead, its home range includes Mexico and Costa Rica.  Interestingly, some experts believe it was accidentally brought here in shipments of bananas.

            If you spot a pale-bordered field cockroach in your backyard, I suspect that you might exclaim, “It is the most beautiful cockroach I have ever seen!”  

 

ODD MOCKINGBIRD BEHAVIOR

Jun9

        It is easy to believe that researchers fully understand the behavior of birds.  Such is not the case, however.  Last week my daughter, Angela Dupree, watched a mockingbird doing something she had never seen before.

        It seems that, as she walked to her car parked in the large parking lot adjacent to her workplace, she noticed a mockingbird placing small sticks atop the left rear tire on the passenger side of her car.  When she looked around, she found the bird had apparently done the same thing atop 4-5 cars parked nearby.

      The next day the bird did the same thing.  In fact, it acted perturbed when she watched it at worked.  She also noted small piles of sticks on the ground near the tires on several cars parked nearby.  It appeared these sticks had fallen off the tires when the drivers had moved their vehicles the previous afternoon.

       When she asked me if I had any idea what was going on, I told her that perhaps the bird was attempting to build nests.  I based this interpretation on the fact that mockingbirds sometimes build several nests in an area before selecting the one they use as their nesting site.  However, that does not explain why a mockingbird was choosing the tops of tires as potential paces to build nests.

       I have done a little research on the subject and found that, while the behavior has been seen before, nobody seems to know exactly what is happening.  Some suggest the birds are just marking their territory.  Who know!

       If you have seen have witnessed this behavior or can explain it, please let me know.

       My daughter’s experience demonstrates we have a lot more to learn about the behavior of even common birds such as the northern mockingbird.

USE CAUTION WHEN TRIMMING SHRUBS IN SPRING

Apr13

       The beautiful spring weather we have been enjoying in my neck of the woods apparently prompted many homeowners to take on any number outdoor jobs.  One of these projects was cutting shrubbery. In truth, shrub pruning should have been accomplished much earlier in the year.

       When I brought a load of household garbage and recyclables to a nearby recycling center, the huge amount of shrub clippings piled in one of the huge recycling bins at the center told me a lot of folks took on this particular chore this weekend.  That prompted me to wonder how many bird nests their well-meaning activities disturbed.

       Whenever we talk about providing nesting habitat for our backyard bird neighbors too often we only think about birds that nest in nesting structures.  Consequently, too little thought is given to providing nesting sites for birds that routinely nest in the thick shrubbery growing in our yards.  The shrub-nesting birds I most often encounter in my yard are northern cardinals, mockingbirds and brown thrashers.  They will nest in thickest shrubs. Since these birds begin nesting in the spring, it is best to avoid trimming shrubs at this time of the year.

       There is nothing worse than to trim a branch off a shrub and find that nestled deep within the shrub an active bird nest.  When a nest exposed it becomes more vulnerable to nest predators and the weather.  Often nesting birds will abandon such a nest.   Birds are more prone to do prior to their eggs hatching.

       If, for some reason, you just have to trim your shrubs right now, before you begin, carefully search for nests.  If you don’t find any, go ahead with your job.

       When I think about the recycling bin that I saw this weekend, I wonder if the folks that created pile of trimmings took the time to ensure that their shrubs were being used by the bird neighbors to build their nests and raise their young.

SUET SUCCESS STORY

Apr9

      Recently Becky sent the following that describes the fantastic success she is having attracting birds to her yard with suet.  Wow! I wish I could attract as many different species as possible to my yard.

I use Wild Birds Unlimited cylinder suet—Hot Pepper No Mess. It’s kind of expensive, but it brings birds to my feeders year-round and the squirrels have never bothered it. This year I had a Hermit Thrush visit, which was a first. I also have an occasional Catbird visit. Regulars are White-breasted and Brown-headed Nuthatches. Several years ago when there was an eruption of Red-breasted Nuthatches, they also visited my suet. Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Downy, Hairy, Carolina and House Wrens and sometimes the Eastern Bluebirds. Love my suet feeder.

A TRULY AMAZING HUMMINGBIRD STORY

Mar2

        One of the things I most enjoy about writing The Backyard Wildlife Connection is fellow bloggers share with all of us a wealth of information regarding ways to enhance backyards for wildlife as well as stories regarding experiences with their wildlife neighbors.

       When I read the blog found below, I knew I just had to share it with you.   The piece was written in response to a   Backyard Secret regarding how hummingbirds recognize human faces.

       I hope you will enjoy this story as much as I did.

Thu, Feb 27 at 10:08 AM

I found a baby hummingbird a couple years back in blackberry bushes. Her wing was pierced, and I took her home and syringe fed her sugar water until she could fly again and let her go. I named her hummer and she would always fly back to our apartment and say hi, even bumping the window to get our attention. We moved and I thought I wouldn’t see her again. Fast forward a couple years and we moved into the apartments right next to the ones we lived in when I found her. We were outside and she hit my fiancés leg to get her attention and flew off, I thought it was her but I wasn’t quite sure until about a week later I saw a hummingbird from our balcony. I called her name, “Hummer” and she flew straight at me and my fiancé, like, she got about 2 feet away from us, hovered for a bit, and flew off. I thought it might’ve been a fluke but about 5 minutes later I saw her again a little further back than before and I called her name again, “Hummer” and she flew straight at us again! I know she recognizes me for sure and she even comes to her name! My fiancé tried as well to call her and she went to her too, even though she wasn’t around hummer that much, maybe 2 days. I just wanted to share.

Lucian W

MOURNING DOVES ARE BIG EATERS

Jan16

       Over the years, I have met some big eaters.  For example, I know a fellow that ate six-foot long hotdogs in less than 15 minutes.  However, this fete does not compare with how much a mourning dove can consume.

       A biologist that obviously that was blessed with a lot of patience counted all of the grass seeds found in a mourning doves’ stomach.  Remarkably, the final tally was 17,200.  Wow!  I am impressed.

BACKYARD SECRET – BROWN THRASHERS WERE ONCE RARELY SEEN AT FEEDERS

Dec24

       The brown thrasher was rarely seen at feeders at the turn of the 20th century.  Today, however, they are now regularly visit feeders throughout Georgia.

       It is thought that this change in behavior is related to the proliferation of feeders and birdbaths.  During the winter 95% of the brown thrasher‘s diet consists of small insects and other critters uncovered by scratching  among dead leaves beneath trees and shrubs.

       If you want to try to attract a brown thrasher to a feeder, place a feeder near thick shrubs.  Although the brown thrashers that visit my yard do so primarily to drink and bathe in water offered in birdbaths, they will also eat suet. Thrashers will sometimes eat scratch feed, dried fruit, crumbs, shelled corn, and birdseed beneath feeders.

WHERE DO TUFTED TITMICE CACHE SEEDS?

Dec12

       If you regularly read this blog, you know that I am fascinated with bird behavior. I have found one of the best places to watch feeding behavior is at my feeders.  One of the birds I enjoy watching at my feeders is the tufted titmouse.

       These perky birds fly to and from my sunflower feeders countless times every day.  Each time they carry off a single seed.  Sometimes, they will land close enough for me to watch them hull and devour a seed.  In many cases, though, they fly out of sight.  When this happens, I assume that they are going to store (cache) a seed.  While I have never witnessed a tufted titmouse cache seeds, many others have.

       Based on their observations, we know that tufted titmice cache seeds within 130 feet of a feeder.  Some 46 percent of the time seeds are stored beneath the loose tree bark.  They will also wedge seeds between the burrows found on the trunks of trees.  If a tree has broken limbs, they also will store seeds in a limb’s rotting wood.  They will even bury seeds in the ground.

       Titmice will also cache seeds in odd places.  One of the most unusual spots used by the birds is a camellia blossom.  Since I learned that the birds use such beautiful locations to hide sunflower seeds, I often check camellia blooms around my house. Much to my dismay, I have never found would that held a sunflower seed.

       If you have seen tufted titmice storing seeds in odd places, please let me know.

ARE WOODPECKERS ATTRACTED BY THE SOUND MADE BY HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES?

Dec6

       Every so often people ask me if woodpeckers are attracted to the sounds generated by household appliances.  Supposedly, the faint buzzing sounds made by electrical appliances mimic the sounds made by insects.  If a woodpecker detects these sounds, it excavated holes attempting to feed on the hidden bounty of insects.

       Whenever I am asked this question, my answer is, “NO!”    I have never seen any evidence that this is the case.

         Many other factors appear to play a role in why woodpeckers damage certain houses. According to Cornell University, a study involving more than 1,000 houses in Ithaca, New York revealed that the type of siding used on a house plays a significant role in whether or not woodpeckers damage a home.

       The study found the siding that is most susceptible to woodpecker damage is grooved plywood.  In addition, researchers found that earth-toned homes stand a greater chance of sustaining woodpecker damage than those painted in brighter colors.

REPORTS OF MONARCHS WINTERING IN THE SOUTHEST NEEDED

Nov27

          For unknown reasons, in recent years thousands of monarch butterflies have been found overwintering throughout the Southeast In an effort to learn more about this phenomena, a consortium of universities, state wildlife agencies such as the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and other conservation groups like Monarchs over Georgia have banded together to form an organization called Monarch Overwintering in the Southeastern United States or MOVERS.  The group is requesting the public’s involvement in reporting sightings monarch in the Southeast during the winter.

         One of the goals of MOVERS is to determine how monarchs that over winter as adults in the Southeast affect future the size of future monarch populations.  The study also hopes to document how winter breeding in the Southeast might affect the monarch’s annual migration to Mexico.

       If you would like to take part in the effort to document monarchs in the Southeast this winter, contact journeynorth.org/surveys or www.inaturalist.org.