Robert A. Culbert
The annual Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. There was a tremendous effort from the 91 participants; 54 people were divided into 13 field teams, each with an assigned part of the Vineyard to cover and count all the birds that they could find, and 37 others counted the birds that came to their bird feeders.
Can you believe it is November already? And it is dark at 5 p.m.? The latter certainly does not affect birds as it is unlikely that they know what Daylight Saving Time is. But they certainly know it is November, and their southward migration is still in full swing. Sparrows and other finches are moving through, and our winter resident waterfowl are showing up. Their numbers will continue to swell as the season progresses. A lot of the ducks only come south when the more northern waters freeze over, which may not happen until December or even January.
Feeding birds is a great way to draw birds close to your house, at least in theory. I add that last phrase because several observers have commented that there are not many birds and that the seed in their feeder is not being eaten.
One of my favorite sights of the fall is about to occur. I have not yet heard reports of snow buntings, but they will be here soon. These buffy brown, white and black birds will be observed on the beaches as they walk and run around beach grass plants. Woe be to any small bug that accidentally makes itself visible to these birds! They also will land on a stalk of beach grass to eat the seeds, their weight bending the grass-blade almost all the way to the ground in the process.
Indigo buntings must be the deepest and brightest blue of all the birds we are likely to see on the Island. A close-up view of a male in good lighting will inevitably invoke a gasp or a “Wow!” from the viewer.
Their song is quite spectacular too. Books describe it in various ways: a musical series of warbling notes, with each phrase given in pairs, or as a lively, high, sharp, strident urgent warble with phrases at different pitches. Of course these verbal descriptions do not do the song justice.
The ability of pigweed to grow cannot be denied. It grows just about anywhere and may grow to be six feet tall. Last May we discovered it in our community garden plot at the Farm Institute, which is not too surprising since it is a common garden weed.