Showing posts sorted by relevance for query for the birds. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query for the birds. Sort by date Show all posts

For the Birds: Red-breasted Nuthatch - Our local tin-horn player

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Red-breasted Nuthatch belting out its
tin-horn sound. Photo by Craig Kerns
By Christine Southwick

There’s a small blue-slate colored bird with a striped head moving quickly along the trunk of my cedar tree - sometimes headfirst, then zig-zagging sideways then downward again. 

It repeatedly stops and energetically pokes into crevasses looking for bugs. The tree and the bird like each other - the bird finds its meals while helping to keep the tree healthy.

The Red-breasted Nuthatch is sort of a noisy bird - its contact calls sound like a tiny tin-horn. It doesn’t really have a song as most people think of bird songs. When it gets excited it makes a series of yank-yank calls.

Female feeding nestling. Note the resin around
 the nest hole. Photo by Craig Kerns
Their nest is exceptional. They peck their own eight-inch-deep nest holes - one of the few non-woodpecker birds to do so and the only local non-woodpecker bird. 

They try to find softer or dead parts of trees for their excavations (you can help by creating a wildlife tree from a dying tree). 

After lining the nest with grass, pine needles, fur and feathers, for some reason the pair will smear tree pitch around the opening.

These birds have been known to use a piece of bark to spread this resin - crows aren’t the only birds that can use tools. The adults fly directly into the nest during brooding to avoid contact with their applied nest protection.

The male feeds the female while she sits on the eggs
Photo by Craig Kerns
The pair are usually monogamous, with the male feeding the female while she sits on the 5-8 eggs for about 2 weeks. 

Both feed their young for the 18-21 days in the nest, and then for the first two weeks after they fledge.

When the female is on her nest she is mostly silent. When the nestlings fledge, those tiny tin- horn sounds abound. A person can locate the newly hatched brood by following their calls.

In the wintertime these short-distance flyers join chickadees and other small birds for successful winter foraging. These nuthatches eat seeds and insects (like spiders and earwigs) and will store winter supplies in bark crevices.

Male eating suet. This is a typical pose.
Photo by Craig Kerns
They readily come to seed feeders and suet. They love black oil seeds and mealworms.

They will use nest boxes but are fussy about size and aging. It is better to put out a nest box in the fall so that it will age over the winter (and local birds can use it for winter shelter). 

A preferred nest box mimics a cavity like the nuthatch would excavate.

See previous For the Birds columns by Christine Southwick HERE



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For the Birds: Got Nest Houses?

Friday, March 30, 2012

Violet-green Swallows feeding young
Photo by John Riegsecker
By Christine Southwick

Wanted: House, 1 bedroom, with view, nearby water, food and shelter. Will remodel as needed.

Our backyard birds are looking for a place to lay their eggs and raise their young. Many birds use dead or dying trees (snags) to make their nest cavities. As these snags are cut down, there are fewer nesting sites.

Chestnut-backed Chickadee house with nearby branches
Photo by Christine Southwick
You can help by buying or building the right box for the species you want to help. Black-capped chickadees, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Bewick’s Wrens, and Violet-Green Swallows readily use nest boxes; ground nesters like Dark-eyed Juncos, Spotted Towhees, and Song Sparrows do not.

A good nest box is made out of rough, unpainted wood with ventilation and drainage holes, and the right size entrance hole. The right size entrance hole will attract the birds you want, while keeping out House Sparrows and European Starlings. House Sparrows and Starlings are two non-native, non-protected species that actively eject native birds and their eggs.

Bird House with hole adapter by Craig Kerns
If you have a house with too large a hole, go to Wild Birds Unlimited and buy a hole adapter. It will also deter predators by adding depth to the entrance hole. And get rid of any ‘cute’ perches—native birds don’t use them; predators do.

Placing them in the right location is also important. Fortunately there are a number of good guides to help you. The Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife has great information.  The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has lots of great resources and directions.

Bird houses should be placed with a clear line of flight to the entrance. Placing them with trees or shrubs just a quick wingburst away is required by chickadees and Bewick’s Wrens. They have learned to be cautious going to the nest, and will often come from different branches and directions before entering.

After the season, clean the nest box and leave the side open. If you have wasps in your yard, lightly coat the inside of the roof with soap or wax, and you won’t have to worry about that issue.

Think of snags as Habitat Trees
Pileated Woodpeckers nesting in snag
Photo by John Riegsecker


Once you have your nest boxes up, watch for birds to start investigating. It may take a while, or not. My friend had Chestnut-backed Chickadees within the week of putting up a house, and they’ve been back every year.

Think of snags as Habitat Trees. If you don’t have any, put up a bird house. You and the birds will both be glad.


Christine Southwick is on the Board of the Puget Sound Bird Observatory and is their Winter Urban Color-banding Project Manager. She is a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat Steward, having completed their forty hour class. We're happy that she is sharing her expertise with us about the birds in our backyards.

For previous For the Birds columns, click on the link under the Features section on the main webpage.



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T-birds top the Seagulls 30-13, as Shorewood improves to 4-1 on the year

Sunday, September 30, 2018

#31 Brandon Main #71 Cameron Whitehead #8 Kevin Hirohata plug the gap
Photo by Lisa Hirohata


Everett Veterans Memorial Stadium, Friday, September 28, 2018
As of Game Final - record for next week:
Shorewood (4-1 Overall / 3-1 WesCo South)
Everett (1-4 Overall / 1-3 WesCo South)


School
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
F
Shorewood
0
7
16
7
30
Everett
6
7
0
0
13

Going into the game this week versus the Everett Seagulls, Shorewood coach Brandon Torrey knew the game would be won or lost at the line of scrimmage.

“Everett has a lot of tough kids that never give up. It’s extremely important that we take care of the ball and create a new line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.”

#22 Kaden Graves sacks the Everett QB
Photo by Lisa Hirohata
Shorewood has a fairly experienced offense line, anchored by senior Tres Zeigler, but they are extremely undersized when compared to other schools. Same story on the defensive side of the ball - the T-birds often lineup a nose guard who weighs around 190 pounds.

With a smaller line, success will come by blocking angles and pulling lineman in order to create running lanes for the back - seldom will you be able to stuff it down someone's throat in smash mouth football.

Speed becomes the defining factor on the defensive line - you take your quicker lineman and seek to use explosiveness off the ball to avoid getting locked into a block and seek to disrupt the run behind the line of scrimmage.

At the end of the first half - Shorewood was losing the battle at the line of scrimmage. Everett had a cadre of talented and disruptive offensive and defensive lineman and were winning the battle at the point of contact - pushing the T-bird defensive line back a few yards, and overpowering the Shorewood offensive lineman while the Seagulls bull rushed into the backfield.

Coach Torrey is a former offensive lineman, having played at Western Washington University and he must have put something in the halftime gatorade, or truly invoked the need to win the battle upfront, for both the offensive and defensive line came out in the second half and gave the T-birds the spark needed to turn the game around and record a solid victory.

#18 Alex Lim kicks off after a SW touchdown
Photo by Lisa Hirohata
In the 3rd quarter - Everett lined up for a punt around their own 25.

The snap sailed high over the punter's head and rolled to the end zone - the punter, in a moment of panic, tried to cover the ball, but then inexplicably decided to try and kick the ball off the ground.

Safety Shorewood and the score was now Everett 13 - Shorewood 9.

Offensively in the 2nd half - the T-birds went to the air, with senior quarterback David Snell hitting his cadre of sure-handed receivers - putting two TD’s onto the board to include a great catch by junior Spencer Osborn who leaped into the air between two Seagull defenders - brought down the catch and scampered in for a 30 yard touchdown.

Defensively - the T-birds adopted a swarm mentality, with the defensive line getting great pressure on Everett as they fell behind and were forced to go to the air. The Seagull running game which shredded the Shorewood front seven in the first half - had no answer in the second, as the white jerseys and blue numbers of the defense showed yet again, a bend, but not break attitude and nose for the ball.

#15 Kody Carpenter gets a pick six Photo by Lisa Hirohata
The night was capped by a Shorewood secondary pick 6 - their second in the last two games, as junior strong safety Kody Carpenter took the interception back for a 30 yard score.

The Shorewood Thunderbirds are on a roll and won the battle of the birds - as the victory soured Everett’s homecoming celebrations.

A few notes:
  • Shorewood has not started 4-1 since 2002 - also the last time they made it to the week 10 preliminary state play-in game;
  • In Shorewood's 4 victory’s to date - Shorewood has outscored its opponents by 114 points - with an average victory margin of 28 points;
  • Through 5 games - Shorewood has scored more points than they did in their 3 previous full seasons - total points scored for 2017 - 150 / 2016 - 98 / 2015 - 150;
  • Since 1997 - Shorewood is 13-5 against the Lynnwood Royals - next week’s opponent - but have dropped the last 3 meetings - including a 52-6 loss in 2016.

#1 Shorewood fan Nicole Nelson
Photo by Lisa Hirohata
The battle for the top spots continue to shake out at the mid-way point in the season. 

Snohomish sits atop the WesCo 3A South standings after a thrilling 33-27 overtime victory over Shorecrest. 

Snohomish is now 3-0 in league play followed by Shorewood at 3-1.

Shorewood plays Lynnwood next Friday night - October 6, 2018 at 7pm at Shoreline District Stadium.

Lynnwood comes into the game 0-5, but should not be overlooked - the Royals have played competitively all year.

--Aaron Bert



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Royals dethroned - T-birds surge to 5-1 behind Senior QB Snell and 6 passing TD’s

Sunday, October 7, 2018

#2 Jaro Rouse stiff arms a defender


Shoreline District Stadium - Friday, October 5, 2018 - 7pm
Record as of Game Final:
Shorewood (5-1 Overall / 4-1 WesCo South)
Lynnwood (0-6 Overall / 0-4 WesCo South)


Story by Aaron Bert
Photos by Lisa Hirohata

It was Senior Night for the Shorewood Thunderbirds and as students and parents gathered to cheer on a group of individuals who hadn’t seen a lot of winning in their high school career - everyone was anxious for a statement win.

When a football program is rediscovering winning - at the end of the night a win is a win. But, as the final whistle blew for the WesCo South league game between the Shorewood Thunderbirds and the Lynnwood Royals - this is one win the T-bird coaching staff would surely soon forget and get ready for the next game.

Although the score does not reflect the level of play - bottomline on this game - it was ugly with a capital U. Sloppy game play and mental mistakes marred the opening drives of both teams, as each committed 4 penalties and set the tone for the remainder of the game.

As the night progressed - it almost seemed like the green turf of Shoreline District Stadium had turned to yellow as so many penalty flags littered the playing field and completely broke down any sense of rhythm in game play.

The first quarter was scoreless, with both teams trading punts and Shorewood lost starting junior wideout and cornerback #12 Spencer Osborn (6’1/165) to a minor leg injury.

#20 Noah Keys and #53 Tres Zeigler defend a Lynnwood PAT


At the 1:58 mark in the 1st, Shorewood held Lynnwood to a 4th and 2 and the Royals punted from their own 38. The ball sailed deep to junior return man #21 Dashawn Alexander (6’0/175) who then broke left, dancing and juking the Royal defenders and sprung down the left sideline for an apparent 65 yard punt return for six.

As the T-birds celebrated in the end zone it would all be for naught, as the T-birds were called for a blindside block and the touchdown was negated. Alexander also had an interception return for 6 called back after another blindside block in the 2nd quarter.

Both efforts by Alexander were electrifying as he moved around the field avoiding defenders like a character out of a Madden video football game.

#31 Brandon Main catches a pass for one of Shorewood's six touchdowns

Shorewood took over on their own 40 and with some hard nosed running by senior running back #3 Robert ‘Money’ Banks, when senior quarterback #4 David Snell (6’3/175) connected with senior running back #31 Brandon Main (6’2/190) for a 28 yard touchdown strike. The PAT snap was botched and Shorewood was up 6-0 with 11:44 remaining in the 2nd quarter.

Lynnwood answered on the next drive, starting on their own 37 after a 26 yard kickoff return by Lynnwood returner #5 Daniel Tran. The Royals marched the length of the field, helped by defensive penalties and scored on a 21 yard touchdown run by #9 Nate Killen. Lynnwood took the lead 7-6 but would not hold it for long.

On both offense and defense Shorewood struggled to gain a sense of consistent momentum as mental mistakes and some questionable calls stymied the effort to dominate the Royals and seal the game.

#4 QB David Snell throws though traffic to his receiver #5 Joseph Williamson

Yet, even with the struggles - quarterback David Snell set the tone for a focused passing attack - finding his fleet of sure handed and speedy receivers for 6 passing touchdowns.

  • Quarter 2 - Snell to senior wide receiver #2 Jaro Rouse (6’2/185) 21 yard touchdown pass (2-point conversion good) SWH 14 / LHS 7.
  • Quarter 2 - Snell to senior wide receiver #5 Joseph Williamson (5’9/165) 38 yard touchdown pass - SWH 21 / LHS 7.
  • Quarter 2 - Lynnwood fumbles the punt snap, Shorewood recovers on the Lynnwood 1 with 3 seconds remaining in the half. Snell to #2 Rouse for a 1 yard touchdown pass - SWH 28 / LHS 7.
  • Quarter 3 - #2 Rouse takes the opening kick off back for a touchdown, but it is called back due to a blindside block. Shorewood regroups and marches down the field - as Snell connects with #5 Williamson for a 35 yard completion, which then sets up a 23 yard touchdown pass from Snell to Williamson - SWH 35 / LHS 7 with 9:10 remaining in the 3rd.
  • Quarter 4 - with 3:59 remaining - Shorewood started on their own 39 and moved the ball down the field for the final touchdown pass, with Snell connecting with Main for his second touchdown reception of the night - SWH 42 / LHS 21.

On a positive note - Shorewood only had one turnover, and had 3 interceptions - junior free safety #15 Cody Carpenter (5’7/135) and backup senior linebacker #34 Jordan King (5’8/155) coming up with picks.

#9 Ray Davis sacks and strips the Lynnwood QB

Further, the Shorewood 2nd string showed tremendous heart and fire in the second half, as the defensive substitutes did not let up on their pressure of the Royals offense. Senior linebacker #9 Ray Davis (6’0/180) had several great defense plays - including a sack and several pressures where he pursued the opposing running back and quarterback half way across the field.

#29 Nelson Tardie makes the tackle

A few notes:
  • Shorewood is 5-1 for the first time since 1998 when the team finished 6-3 and this is only the second time since 1977 when the T-birds finished with their best record ever at 8-2
  • Shorewood has outscored their opponents by 107 points through 6 games.
  • Shorewood plays Edmonds-Woodway next week in their final WESCO South League game - if Shorewood wins - they will lock a 2nd place finish and be guaranteed a spot in the week 10 state play-in game.
  • Shorewood has not beaten Edmonds-Woodway since 2003 and in the 9 loses since that time, has lost by an average of 32 points per game. Edmonds-Woodway is 1-5 overall this year, but dropped a heartbreaker to league leading Snohomish 41-35 in overtime Friday night. Suffice it to say, they will be hungry for a win against Shorewood.
  • Shorewood did not give up an offensive sack all night - a definite improvement over last year, when the line gave up an average of 4 sacks a game.

Next game: Friday, October 12, 2018 - 5PM, Edmonds District Stadium -
Shorewood 5-1 vs. Edmonds-Woodway 1-5




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Shorewood rolls to victory on the play of DaShawn Alexander, 35-7 over Sultan

Saturday, October 14, 2017

#21 DaShawn Alexander goes up for the touchdown pass
(left, background) Photo by Lisa Hirohata
Shorewood Thunderbirds 35 - Sultan Turks 7
Friday, October 13, 2017, Shoreline Stadium
T-birds overall record: 3-3

On a clear and cool Friday the 13th, the only thing scary afoot at Shoreline Stadium was the outstanding effort by Shorewood’s #21, Sophomore DaShawn Alexander.

Taking the field for only the second time this season, Alexander proved to be the spark the T-birds needed to get their offense into high gear and cruise past the outmatched Turks of Sultan from the 2A Cascade Conference.

Shorewood, playing an all non-league schedule as part of a rebuilding process, took the lead early and never looked back.

After trading punts to start the 1st quarter, Shoreline quarterback Skylar Hammer connected with DaShawn Alexander on a go route down the right sideline for a 52-yard touchdown pass, putting the T-birds up 7-0.

Shorewood has struggled this season in establishing a consistent passing game, but the prior play was a 26-yard completion by Hammer which got the drive rolling.



#31 Brandon Main runs the ball up the sideline
Photo by Lisa Hirohata

Sultan struggled all evening with turnovers and their drive stalled out with a fumble on the Shorewood 16. The Turks had been driving and a score looked imminent as they started their drive on their own 31 and had reached the T-bird 11. The fumble would be the first of three turnovers in the first half alone.

Coach Torrey of Shorewood showed an element of trickery, bringing in Hammer on 4th and 12 on the T-bird 41. Hammer converted a fake punt, throwing down the right sideline for a 16-yard conversion. Shorewood’s efforts were for naught, as they then fumbled the snap the next play and turned the ball over on the Turk’s 44.

#7 Skylar Hammer punts the ball away
Photo by Lisa Hirohata
The next two Sultan drives were stopped by interceptions from the T-bird defense. The Shorewood defensive line was able to get pressure on the Sultan QB for the majority of the game, which caused some poor passing decisions.

#31 Brandon Main (Jr, RB/LB) had his first interception of the year, and #23 Colin Anderson’s (Sr, WR/DB) stopped another promising Sultan drive.

Shorewood ended the half when quarterback #4 David Snell (Jr, QB) connected with Alexander for his second touchdown by lofting a fade into the right corner of the endzone from the 6.

Alexander leaped into the air and hauled the pass down to put the T-birds up 14-0.

#4 David Snell throws the ball downfield
Photo by Lisa Hirohata


The second half opened with Hammer connecting with #10 Matthew Bangsbert (Jr, WR/DB) for a 32-yard touchdown pass at the 9:48 mark in the 3rd.

Sultan did get on the board in the 4th quarter as their drive was kept alive by Shorewood penalties on 3rd down - roughing the passer on 3rd and long and then a questionable pass interference which moved the ball down the Shorewood 12. Sultan pounded the ball in for a score 30 seconds later bringing the game to 28-7.

#28 Ibrahim Benzina runs the ball
Photo by Lisa Hirohata

The Thunderbird effort was capped off by a 52 yard run over the right tackle by #28 Ibrahim Benzina (RB/DB). Shorewood’s offensive line showed elements of consistency tonight, opening up running lanes for Shorewood’s slashing running attack. Following RG #54 Phil Ball (Jr, OL/DL) and RT #52 Tom Bert (Fr, OL/DL), Benzina took the handoff from Hammer, read the pressure from the left side and then cut right, finding the crease and streaking for the touchdown.

#8 Kevin Hirohata recovers the fumble
Photo by Lisa Hirohata
Next Friday is Homecoming for Shorewood, as they play Seton Catholic of Vancouver at 8pm at Shoreline Stadium.

Shorewood has not scored 35 points in a game since a victory over Squalicum in November 2011.

The margin of victory is the largest for Shorewood since a victory over Lakeside in October 2010 when they won by 35.

The last season with three wins in a season was in 2007 when they went 3-7. With two games remaining, they should be able to surpass that number.


--Aaron Bert




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10th Annual Hoopapalooza - girls' varsity was the game of the day

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Shorecrest girls' varsity basketball team
Photo by Lili Teh Hosn
Saturday, January 19, 2019 marked the tenth annual celebration of all-day local high school basketball games between Shorewood and Shorecrest, known by the catchy name, Hoopapalooza.

Games were played at Shorecrest and included every basketball team from each school.

The freshmen and JV teams squared off during the afternoon, then the girls’ varsity game was played at 5:00pm.

Scots took the Thunderbirds 45 to 26, mostly on the strength of the Scots’ persistent defense. The score suggests a closer match than was the case.

With the win, the #6 ranked Scots saw their record climb to 8-1 in WesCo, 14-1 for the season. The T-Birds fell to 2-7/4-11.

Shorewood brought a full complement of fans, teams and cheerleaders to the event. The Scots contributed a comparable contingent, along with the Vince Caruso-directed band, and the Linda Cobb-led flag team.

The gymnasium was full; there was a food truck at the entrance, and the campus lawn serviced as auxiliary parking. The mood was festive, the crowd well behaved, as has become the Hoopapalooza custom.

The Scots bolted to a 21-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. The T-Birds narrowed the gap to nine in the third quarter, but couldn’t pull any closer than that. The Thunderbirds simply could not match the speed and skill of the Scots and the point spread continued to build throughout the final quarter.

With a 19 point lead and 5.9 seconds to go in the game, the Scots got a little lax and the T-birds stole the ball and drove down the court for what appeared would be a layup just before the final buzzer. 

Out of nowhere came junior Sydney VanNess for the Scots, as competitive as any player to ever wear the Green and Gold. She sprinted the length of the court, went high in the air and slammed the ball back on top of the opponent. The resounding thud could be heard all over the gym. Hard to tell a kid to stop competing.

Scots fans roared for the exclamation point on a big win over their arch-rival. Hard to tell a kid to stop competing.

Scots’ second year coach Carlos Humphrey substituted liberally, getting all the girls on his roster meaningful playing time before the playoffs start in February.

Senior Audrey Dietz led the way for the Scots with 12 points, while junior Amanda Lee chipped in with 9.


Aubrey Dietz dazzled on the court
as a player and a Flagger.
Photo by Linda Cobb
Dietz, not content to just play the game, surprised many when she joined her Flag team at halftime to perform their well-choreographed routine while still wearing her basketball uniform. There’s no truth to the rumor that the tall post player helped sweep out the gym at the end of the night.

Afterwards, Dietz reflected on her last Hoopapalooza. “Although to many it’s just a simple game of basketball, it means so much more than that when you’re out there. 
"It’s my last rivalry game, it meant I was heading toward the end of my rigorous journey as a high school basketball player, a hard goodbye to be saying. 
"While we didn’t play our best, give Shorewood credit for playing hard and putting up a great fight. They’ve really gotten better.”


As for her decision to twirl her flag at halftime: 

“I decided to go out with a bang. If I’m going to be “performing” basketball, I might as well “perform” with my flag. As a senior, it seemed like the right thing to do. And although I missed a few moves, I’d do it again! It was so much fun to run back onto the court at the end of the half with my gloves on, flag in hand, sweating in my basketball uniform. It was truly a Senior Experience.”

The Scots are in a virtual tie for first place along with Snohomish, Arlington, and Archbishop Murphy, all with only one league loss. Key games ahead see the Scots travel Tuesday the 22nd to play Murphy, and their home game on Tuesday the 29th against the always dangerous and superbly coached Edmonds-Woodway Warriors will go a long way to determining seeding slots for Districts.

Senior Amanda Kagarabi analyzed the team’s success. “We’re just taking things one game at a time. We’ve got a HUGE one coming up Tuesday, and from here on out it’s all pretty good matchups. Our playoffs, honestly, start right now. Team chemistry is good and everyone’s ready to work hard and keep winning.”

SC schedule can be found HERE.

For the T-Birds, Mark Haner is a superb coach and his squad showed a lot of improvement since the teams first met on December 5th, a 61-16 SC win. Back then the ball handling was crude, and they seemed a bit unsure of what to do or how to do it. Saturday they showed dribbling and passing skills, an understanding of their offensive plays and defensive styles, and most importantly, a desire to win. Love to see great adult leadership for our children.

SW schedule can be found HERE..


SW  4 9 8   5 26
SC 21 6 8 10 45

--From the Sports Desk



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For the Birds: Birds need tree canopy; and so do we

Monday, January 23, 2012

Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Photo by Christine Southwick
By Christine Southwick

Our backyard birds evolved using the canopies of trees. Their feet are made for perching on tree limbs, landing and sleeping on branches, finding bugs on leaves, or for launching from tree perches. Indeed, these birds form the world’s largest group of birds, called Passerines, or perching birds.

Sure trees give birds places to rest, raise their young, and find food, but why do we need tree canopy in our neighborhoods? What exactly is tree canopy anyway?

Varied Thrush, female, February 2011
Photo by Christine Southwick

Tree canopy is the layers of leaves/needles, branches, and stems of trees that cover the ground when viewed from above. Tree canopy is not only pretty, it is functional. Tree canopy delays rainwater from reaching the ground during storms, thus slowing runoff. This allows sediments to settle and stay out of our creeks and lakes; and reduces, sometimes even prevents, flooding. Tree leaves/needles also filter our air, making the air cleaner and healthier for us to breath. In the summer tree canopy helps keep houses and roads from over-heating, and in the winter helps keep these areas warmer. Studies have even found that cities with more tree canopy are safer places to live.

Evergreens, like our Western Cedars, Douglas Firs, Yews, and all those pines and spruces provide year-round filtering protection for the birds and for us. A sentinel force, if you will. Evergreens are long-lived, grow tall, offer multi-layered canopy per tree, and increase the value of your property, and the neighborhood’s.

Band-tailed Pigeon
Photo by Christine Southwick

Dark-eyed Juncos, Varied Thrushes, and Townsend’s Warblers huddle under/in evergreen branches during snows, ice storms, and cold windy weather. Anna’s Hummingbirds often build their nests under an overhanging evergreen branch before deciduous trees leaf.

Many birds depend on evergreens: Chestnut-backed Chickadees need, and are found in, yards and forests with evergreens. Downy, Hairy, and Pileated woodpeckers find their food in the bark of evergreens—their bills and tongues have evolved to access specific bugs, and excavate their nests. Red-breasted Sapsuckers drill sap-wells in evergreens for year-round feeding. Red-breasted Nuthatches and Brown Creepers are also evergreen aficionados. Merlins and Band-tailed Pigeons need tall evergreens for their roosts and their nests—lack of these large trees is one reason for the decline of our native Band-tailed Pigeon.

Deciduous tree canopy, especially from fruiting trees, is certainly valuable to birds, and our own sense of completeness; but it is the evergreens that work year-round protecting our environment and those who live here. Maybe that’s why Washington is, “The Evergreen State”.

Christine Southwick is on the Board of the Puget Sound Bird Observatory and is their Winter Urban Color-banding Project Manager. She is a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat Steward, having completed their forty hour class. We're happy that she is sharing her expertise with us about the birds in our backyards.



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For the Birds: Birds attacking innocent humans

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

American Crow dive-bombing Bald Eagle
Photo by Bill Anderson

By Christine Southwick

Now is a time that people find themselves under attack from crows and other local birds, seemingly for no reason at all.

Birds don’t go around attacking larger-than-life entities for fun. Life is hard enough for birds, without expending energy trying to drive away something that can possibly end their lives. So why would neighborhood birds, especially crows, owls, and even smaller birds, suddenly rise up and start warring with their neighbors, which they mostly ignored, or hid from before?

American Crow chasing Red-tailed Hawk
Photo by Craig Kerns

It is breeding time, and the parents are protecting their territories where the nests and nestlings are being fed and raised. Some species start protecting and driving off interlopers in their territories as soon as the eggs are laid, but most become vociferous when nestlings emerge from the eggs, and start making noises that predators recognize. Nests can be dangerous for survival, so many birds, especially crows and owls, have evolved to nestlings climbing out onto limbs or onto the ground, and finding a variety of hiding places. Crows often leave the nest before they can fly, so the parents scare away anything that might think a baby crow is fair game.

American Crow strafing Raccoon
Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz
The parents’ main job then is to feed them, and keep them safe. Anything that potentially will eat their babies must be driven off before the babies are harmed. Humans have historically hunted and eaten birds (I don’t know exactly which birds are in a “five and twenty blackbird pie”, but crows are quick learners).

Crows and owls are large enough and strong enough to hurt any one walking or running in that bird’s family territory, so we pay attention to these “random acts of aggression”. No one likes to have scrapes on their heads from an avian attacker.

Red-winged Blackbird chasing American Crow
Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz
So what is the answer? People need to stay out of the territory of the attacking bird, until the babies have flown away. That can be 10 to 28 days, depending upon the species. Crows often build nests high in street trees or yards, and this may mean detouring, for a period of time. As inconvenient as that may seem, being willing to regard this behavior as a sign of good parenting by detouring, acknowledges that birds have a right to live in our city too.

To avoid being “dive-bombed” by protective crow parents, here is a link where you can report “Crow Attacks”, and thus know where to avoid walking or running for the next couple of weeks.


For previous For the Birds columns, see Features on the main webpage.


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For the Birds: Baby Birds are still a Happen’ Thing

Friday, July 1, 2022

American Robin. by Elaine Chuang --
notice the gape (colored area at base of bill)
newly fledged - still begging for food
By Christine Southwick

Three Dark-eyed Juncos just hatched in my hanging fuchsia plant just a week ago. Oh, Happy Day!

Many local birds have second broods. This year because of the cool wet spring which made bugs and caterpillars scarce, many of our birds are trying again if their first brood didn’t make it, or not all the nestlings survived.

Chestnut-backed Chickadee by Craig Kerns
gape still showing--first bath?
Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees routinely have second broods. 

So do our local birds like juncos, Song Sparrows, Spotted Towhees, and Red-breasted Nuthatches. 

Our native woodpeckers, and raptors do not.

When birds leave their nest, they are the full size of their parents, unlike ducks and waterfowl. 

Indeed, most fledglings appear a little larger because their fresh feathers are fluffy, whereas their harried, overworked parents are somewhat bedraggled.

Now is the time to be watching for nests in tall weeds, young birds with extra color at the base of their beaks, and fledglings that have awkward flying, especially after taking their first couple of baths.

Dark-eyed Junco feeding fledgling
photo by Christine Southwick
It is so fun to watch the newly fledged babies following their parent, fluttering their wings, and loudly begging for food.

That only happens for the first few days. Then the parents start teaching their young how to feed themselves, often bringing their young to feeders, and suet.

Northern Flickers, Downy, and Hairy and Pileated Woodpeckers will bring their offspring to my suet feeders. 

The parents start out hanging on the suet, getting a bill-full and flying over to the waiting youngsters, sticking the suet into their mouths. 

This is repeated until the parent thinks that they have had enough instruction, where upon they wait for the youngsters to come get their own suet. As with most youngsters, some “get it” sooner than others.

What are these birds? Juvenile junco on left,
juvie Spotted Towhee on right
Photo by Christine Southwick
The three leading causes of bird demises are:
  1. Loss of Habitat; Keep tall trees, plant native shrubs, trees and flowers-native plants support the bus that our birds need.
  2. Death by cats; Keep your cats inside, or build/buy them an indoor-outdoor run. Ground nesters, like Juncos, Towhees and Song Sparrows nest in tall grass, bases of ferns, or weeds until early August.
  3. Window collisions and other objects; Position your feeders either within three feet of your windows, or more than ten feet away. If you have a window that gets hit, put up window cling-designs, visual distractors, anything to break up the reflection of an inviting habitat.
See previous For the Birds columns here



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For the Birds: Tipsy Birds?

Monday, November 7, 2022

American Robin eating old berries Fermented? maybe....
Photo by Craig Kerns
By Christine Southwick

Have you ever seen a drunken robin or two, or perhaps a flock of impaired Cedar Waxwings? Quite comical. They wobble, they weave, they lay down, sometimes they hang upside down. And they sing off-key. As long as no loose cats find them, and said birds don’t fly into windows, the birds recover well.

A result of our wet spring was the loss of many early fruits. I had lots of serviceberry and crabapple fruits set, only to die from all the wet. And then the long hot dry spell caused the blackberries (which many people try to eliminate, but which local and migrating birds depend upon) to shrivel up and dry out. Fruits that robins, juncos, song sparrows, towhees, chickadees, wrens, and nuthatches depend upon are hard to find now. 

Band-tailed Pigeons eating berries while upside down--who knew?
Photo by Craig Kerns

The birds may eat any fruit they find. Mountain Ash, which bloomed a little later here, seem to have had successful crops. What fruits are still hanging could become fermented, especially after the first frost, so watch for drunken birds. Apples may also be suspect.

The main reason that our local birds delayed nesting this last spring was that the wet cold weather resulted in few bugs, especially very few caterpillars.

Fox Sparrows come to our milder winter area, and find
delectables in the leaves. Photo by Craig Kerns
This had a snowball effect-late babies, combined with the dry heat and smoke meant that parent birds were still tending some of their young into September, which meant they were catching bugs for their young and not coming to the feeders as often, which also caused the adults to change (molt) their feathers later, traditionally a time when they don’t come to the feeders much. 

People kept asking why their birds weren’t coming to their feeders and suet; now that the rains have arrived, they are back.

Female Anna's hummingbird drinking much needed
 nectar during cold weather. Photo by Craig Kerns
Backyard birds depend upon bugs all year long to survive. Baby birds are fed instant-energy caterpillars, spiders, mosquitoes, and other available bugs. Without these bugs many birds, especially the young ones, would die. 

With winter coming, spiders and other delectables are found under leaves, so keep some leaves on the ground for hungry birds. 

Bugs are best but suet can help fill in the void.

Sudden cold weather (for this area) means that you should put out suet now, for instant warming energy, keep the seed in your feeders dry, and keep your hummingbird feeders clean and liquid.

And watch for those tipsy birds…



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Caring for our Environment, Urban Forests and Trees

Friday, October 28, 2022

Boeing Creek Park photo by Melody Fosmore
By Melody Fosmore

Whether it’s your own backyard, neighborhood or neighboring park, the first step is to become aware of the environment around you. 

Why should we care? Because we are a part of this ecosystem, we all call home. Imagine if we had not enough trees to provide shade or filter the stormwater which runs through our watersheds and into the Salish Sea which in turn provides nutrients to our local sea life - or imagine the loss of birds which keeps the insect population in check or provide bird songs? Even when weather is changing, make time to visit nearby woods alone and spend time in quiet observation.

Illustration courtesy 
https://www.traversotree.com/mature-during-drought/
Wildlife
: Get to know the wildlife that comes into your yard or neighborhood. What birds, squirrels and other larger mammals do you see? 

Do you live near a bog or water – do you observe otters, beavers, snakes, frogs, salamanders or fish? Do you see or hear owls? Bats? 

All of these animals and amphibians need the ecosystem to survive and our trees play a major role in their survival. And frankly, so do we. 

If you are lucky to have tall trees on your property you can help with habitat diversity in your yard. 

Suggestions include having a good ground layer including some downed wood for hiding and nests; a shrub layer for the birds to hide; and a strong overstory with mixed species of trees including broadleaf trees as they provide the most food and nesting value for birds and squirrels. 

Also, try not to rake up all of your leaves as that provides nutrients for the soil and hiding places for our wildlife.

Flagging on cedar trees
photo by Melody Fosmore
Trees and water
: During the fall you will see ‘flagging’ on our cedar trees. This is a healthy part of the cedar tree's life cycle. 

However, the heat waves of the past couple of years have affected the health of our tall trees and you can help by watering these trees during the warmer and dry spells. 

Once a week, about an inch of water to the soil, under the entire canopy diameter, is adequate. No need to overwater – and don’t let water sprinklers hit the bark of trees, they can physically damage the bark, causing fungus disease, and algae, inviting insect trouble.

Are you seeing signs of tree stress? Trees gain their growth from the crown, and so it’s at the top of the tree where you might see distress. No new growth, or the tip dying back is a warning sign. The heat dome of 2021 is really showing up now in our tree canopy. Even with the rain now here, continue to water just to re-saturate the water table. Monitor your tall trees for hazard branches that may require removal and always consult an arborist before you take a tree down. There may be hope!

 
Wildlife snag
photo by Melody Fosmore
A Wildlife Snag: Do you have a dead or dying tree in your yard? Ask the tree cutter to leave a 10-15’ snag. Bats, pileated woodpeckers, even raccoons love these snags for food and nesting. Bats love snags for their daytime sleep. Birds and bats help keep our insect populations in balance. 

The snags may not look ‘pretty’ but they provide an essential service to our local wildlife. I personally have enjoyed many moments of observing all the animals and birds enjoying a snag in my yard. The pileated woodpeckers are especially wonderful to observe.

Nesting boxes: Birds love nesting boxes in safe locations high enough off the ground from predators (including house cats). The boxes will need to be cleaned every year. See the attached resource in the list below for safe ways to hang a birdhouse.

Root damage
photo by Melody Fosmore
A kind note about dogs and our parks
: I am a dog lover so I understand the joy of walking your dog in our open woods. 

However, please bear in mind their impact - dogs running through salmonid bearing streams don't just spread disease to the water, they also tear up the reeds where the fish lay their eggs. 

And, they can expose tree roots which then become non-functional and compromise the health of the tree. 

Best to control their footprint and keep our woods healthy. 

Keeping on the trail and not creating new trails also protects nesting, trees and the entire ecosystem. Leaving no trace and a light footprint protects our parks for all to enjoy.

Enjoy the bounty of our environment and remember - everything works together and mankind benefits from the ecosystem, not the other way around!

Resources:
Melody Fosmore is the Co-Chair of Save Shoreline Trees



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