Powderhorn Birds Quiet In July

by John Karrigan
published August 4 '08

As usual bird and other critter activity is somewhat quiet in July and may be quieter than usual this July with the very dry hot weather. The usual Mallards, Wood Ducks, and Canada Geese are around. The geese often leave for a while in July and August, but they have not so far this year. And, as sometimes happens, at least one litter of Mallards and one litter of Wood Ducks were born in July, very late for both species. A Double-crested Cormorant is occasionally on the lake on warm afternoons, Cormorants going from being regular visitors some years to very irregular this year.

A Black-crowned Night Heron has continued to show up, at night naturally, on some (and maybe most) nights in July, and the Great Blue Heron is almost a constant presence. Chimney Swifts, from a few to a lot, are often over the lake, and on at least one occasion, Barn Swallows were busy catching insects over the water. But I think the lack of rain is affecting the flying-insect-eating birds and bats. There are still very few Night Hawks in the area but you can often hear, and sometimes see, them over the lots at Target and Rainbow, and at other more suburban areas.

The most consistent interesting park bird-watching for me in late July has been the Cooper's Hawk family (of four, like last year). Most any evening, you can see and hear some or all of them in the general area of the evergreens, just south of the lake. Sometimes, they are in plain sight, 20 feet from you and sometimes they are very difficult to spot with their excellent protective coloration. If last year is any indication, they will be very active during the Art Fair. Some attendees will enjoy watching the hawks and lots of others will never notice them.

For some good observers and regular park walkers, seeing up to six Saw-whet Owls has been their park birding highlight for July. I have gone at all hours of the day and night and not seen a trace of the owls But the people reporting them know what they are talking about and there have been other Saw-whet Owl reports from the park quite a few years back. Oh well, I will keep trying.

Still no Kingbird or Oriole reports that I know of, and I just realized after reviewing previous years' columns, that I have not seen or heard any Cicadas this year. Dragonfly numbers and varieties are down somewhat, and butterfly numbers and varieties are down a lot so far, but that could all change as summer continues.
Something new this year, to me anyway, is a troll or gnome or some other little creature living in a cozy-looking dwelling at the bottom of one of the trees in the pine grove. If I see the little inhabitant out and about, I will try to get an interview and report back to my many loyal readers.

Speaking of trees, it is once again a very bad year for neighborhood and park elm trees. The park has lost some and will lose more, and my immediate small neighborhood has had a tremendous loss of large trees in yards and boulevards. The short and long term effects are very troubling to me personally and probably to birds, animals, utility bills and lots of other things. Lesson learned last year: When losing a boulevard tree, homeowners can request a replacement tree that is other than the "assigned" species for their block. Contact the Park Department arborist this fall to make your request.

The backyard has been quiet and normal for July, with most of the usual birds and baby birds but no Crows or young Crows this year, and no Raccoons or Rabbits, large or small.

A Sacred Story

I attended the annual pow-wow at Prairie Island in early July, as I often do, and this really is related to birds. Near the end of the afternoon, one of the male dancers lost an eagle feather from his regalia. The feather fell to the ground in the pow-wow circle. An eagle feather is a very sacred item to the Native American dancers, and having one fall to the ground is somewhat akin to dropping an American flag on the ground. The pow-wow schedule was put on hold and I was able to witness the complex and sacred ceremony that followed. The ritual cannot be recorded or photographed. I have seen this a few times before but this one was the best-explained and most moving eagle feather ceremony I have seen and included noting some of the differences in the ritual among different North American tribes. Shortly after that, during a tribute dance to Native American armed forces veterans, a mature Bald Eagle flew right over the pow-wow. I don't know why I am relating this story. I guess to point out that our relationship to nature is very critical and we should recognize that, just as Native Americans and many other people do.

No Seagulls
And now for something completely different: To a true birder, there are no sea gulls. There are many kinds of gulls, but none are called sea gulls. But for this story to work, I have to call them seagulls. Do you know why seagulls fly over the sea? If they flew over the bay, they'd be called bagels.

Comments and observations are always welcome. Send them to me, in care of the Southside Pride. Thank you.