Tag Archive | Backyard Secrets
BACKYARD SECRET: CLUES TO BIRD MIGRATION ARE BEING UNLOCKED
We have certainly come a long way in our understanding of bird migration. For example, it is hard to believe that during the early days of the founding of the United States it was popularly believed with the onset of winter, hummingbirds “migrated” only as far as a nearby tree and impaled its bill in the plant’s trunk. Here it remained immobile until the land thawed the following spring.
Nowadays, through the hard work of many ornithologists, we have a far better understanding of how birds fly from their breeding grounds to their winter homes and back with unbelievable accuracy. This research has reveal birds employ a number of environmental clues such as polarized light, the stars, the sun and even magnetic fields to steer the their course on their epic migratory journeys.
Have we answered all of the mysteries of bird migration? Many of us believe we have much more to learn. I, for one, cannot wait to see what future research will reveal.
BACKYARD SECRET – CAROLINA WRENS ARE CHAMPION SONGSTERS
If you live in Georgia, it is next to impossible not to hear the cheery vocalizations of the Carolina wren. I hear them throughout the year. In fact, the song of a Carolina wren is often the first sound I hear when I step outside in the morning. This has made me wonder how often a wren calls in day. 
Recently while conducting research on backyard wildlife I found an answer to this perplexing question. It seems that it has been documented that a captive male Carolina wren actually sang 3,000 times in a single day!
I must admit, I had no idea a Carolina wren could accomplish such an impressive fete.
BACKYARD SECRET: BLUEBIRDS EAT MONARCH CATERPILLARS
Most of us have been taught that birds do not eat monarchs. In fact, if a bird just happens to try to make a meal out of a monarch, it gets sick from ingesting the poisonous compounds that course through the monarch’s body. After living through such an experience most birds do not try to dine on a monarch again.
Eastern bluebirds are an exception to the rule. These gorgeous backyard favorites eat monarch caterpillars laden with poisonous chemicals obtained when they chomp on milkweed plants without showing any ill effects.
The bluebird can devour this toxic food because it uses a technique to prepare a caterpillar before it tries to consume it. Once a bluebird grabs a monarch caterpillar it flies to a branch and squeezes the large, juicy caterpillar time and time again. This process forces much of the juicy innards of the caterpillar out both ends of its body. Once the caterpillar has been flattened, the hungry bluebird then proceeds to eat the hapless insect.
BACKYARD SECRET: FEW NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS HAVE BLUE FEATHERS
Blue jays and eastern bluebirds are undoubtedly the two most common blue birds seen in Georgia backyards. In addition, from time to time we also spot indigo buntings, blue grosbeaks, and other birds that display varying amounts of blue feathers just outside our backdoors.
Since we regularly see birds that display the color blue you might be surprised to learn only two percent of all of the species of birds found in North America have blue feathers.
BACKYARD SECRET: RED-BANDED HAIRSTREAKS NECTAR ON BRONZE FENNEL
For quite some time I have been documenting butterflies nectaring on a wide range of cultivated and native plants. This effort has helped me gain a better appreciation of which species of butterflies use which plants. Every so often, I encounter a butterfly nectaring on a plant I never realized they visited.
For example, a few days ago my wife and I checked our bronze fennel for black swallowtail eggs and/or eggs. Much to our chagrin, we did not find either. However, my wife did make a fascinating discovery. When she called me over to look at what she had found, I was surprised to see six red-banded hairstreaks nectaring on a bronze fennel’s pale yellow blossoms. 
Although we have been growing bronze fennel in our garden for a number of years, we never considered the well-known black swallowtail host plant a source of nectar for butterflies. Oh sure, we routinely see the blossoms routinely visited by sweat bees and other native pollinators, but never a red-banded hairstreak other butterfly. Yet, here were half a dozen beautiful red-banded hairstreaks so engrossed in sipping nectar they never attempted to fly away in spite of the fact we were standing only a few feet away from them.
A quick check of the literature and Internet failed to uncover any mention of red-banded hairstreaks using the plant as a source of nectar. In fact, most authors simply mentioned it was visited by a number of pollinators; however, none said it was source of nectar for butterflies.
While my wife’s sighting may not be an
important scientific find, it was important to us. It
advanced our understanding of the unbelievably
complex relationships that exist between the plants
and animals that live just outside our backdoor.
BACKYARD SECRET – THE FALL BIRD MIGRATION IS HUGE
Have you ever stopped to wonder how many birds migrate in North America each fall? If so, chances are more birds are on the move each fall than you ever imagined. Those folks that make their living studying birds estimate that some five billion birds migrate across our continent each autumn.
Some of these birds nest, feed, or pass through our yards. With that in mind, keep your eyes peeled for the appearance of some of these long-distance travelers in your yard. One way that you can attract these birds is by operating a mister. Misters have the reputation of attracting a wide assortment of birds that are otherwise rarely seen in backyard settings. 
Since the migration is well underway, now is a great time to set up a mister in your yard.
BACKYARD SECRET: THE WITH THE GREATEST VOLUME OF NECTAR MAY BE GROWING IN YOUR YARD
Can you name the plant that displays flowers that contain the greatest volume of nectar? It is not Mexican cigar, red hot poker, Turk’s cap or one of the scores of other alien plants we plant in our gardens to attract hummingbirds and butterflies. You might be surprised to learn it is a native woody vine known as trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans).
The woody vine’s orange blossoms are so popular with hummingbirds it is often sold in the nursery trade as hummingbird vine. 
This plant commonly grows in yards across the state. However, in many cases it is considered a weed and not recognized as a valuable hummingbird food plant. The reason for this is it will climb on houses and other manmade structures. However, if you plant it alongside an arbor, trellis, or fence away from a building, it can be an asset instead of a liability. Trumpet creep can also be trained to take on the form of a small tree.
BACKYARD SECRET: GRAY SQUIRRELS HAVE A UNIQUE WAY TO SHADE THEMSELVES FROM THE HOT SUN
The gray squirrel uses its tail to help to help balance itself as it climbs and jumps from limb to limb, an even break its fall when is tumbles from a limb high above the ground. Unbelievably on bright sunny days, the gray squirrel flips its bushy tail over its back 
and utilizes it as a parasol to keep the rays of the sun from overheating its body.
BACKYARD SECRET: BIRDS ARE FANS OF POKEBERRIES
Pokeweed is one of the many plants homeowners often refer to as weeds. These objects of our distain try to grow in alongside our precious cultivated plants, invade our lawns, and are generally viewed of as nuisances. However, some of these plants may be more valuable than you think. One such plant is pokeweed.
Other than the few folks that dine on the plants tender shoots in the spring, pokeweed is not a plant most people allow to grow in their backyards. This is unfortunate because, if allow to grow in the right spot it produces a bounty of dark purple berries that are relished by more than 50 species of birds. Among the backyard favorites the devour pokeberries are cardinals, mourning doves, mockingbirds, and bluebirds. The berries also provide nourishment for fall migrants such as thrushes and vireos that pass through our backyards on their fall migration.
Although pokeberries are often considered a fall food, 
they are just beginning to ripen in my backyard. This event caught the attention of a mockingbird. Although the vast majority of the pokeberries in my backyard are still green, as soon as one turns dark purple the mockingbird gobbles it up.
I must admit I remove pokeberries from some of my flower gardens. Meanwhile, I let me grow in idle spots and in the shrubby borders that define the north and south sides of my yard.
If a pokeberry takes root in a similar spot in your yard, I urge you to let it grow. It will provide your avian neighbors with an important source of food later in the year.