October 09, 1986 - The Guns of AutumnThe Guns of Autumn
By PAUL STOUTENBURGH
Out in back I hear the booming of
air guns that the farmer in the
nearby vineyard is using to scare
away the "blackbirds." This is har-
vest time for the grape industry and
the battle is on to see who will har-
vest the grapes first, the farmer or
the birds. This booming can be tough,
not only for the birds, but also for
some of the neighbors who live in the
immediate area. It's a difficult situa-
tion and one that needs cooperation
and understanding on both sides.
Most of us realize that farms and
vineyards help keep our area in open
space and give the East End its rural
character and add much to the eco-
nomy. Therefore, we want to encour-
age the farmer in his endeavors, yet
the booming in some cases just about
shakes some neighbors right off their
back porch. The farmer has every
right to protect his crop, but at the
same time being a good neighbor re-
quires that he carefully monitor the
operation and placement of the air
guns he uses to scare away the birds.
We've all seen the flocks of
blackbirds flying across the roads as
we drive by. Sometimes there seems
to be no end to them and, like the
locusts that swoop down on the Mor-
mons' fields, they can devastate a
crop. On close examination we can
see these flocks of birds are made up
of grackles, red -wings and starlings
with a sprinkling of other fruit -lov-
ing species.
Grackles Resemble. Crows
The grackles are frig black birds
that sometimes are mistaken for
young crows and in some parts of the
country are known as crow
blackbirds. They usually spend the
winter months down south where a
more plentiful food supply is availa-
ble. About the middle of March and
early April we start to see them
around sheltered spots of our woods
and creeks. Shortly after arriving,
they settle in their nesting sites
which are, in this part of the country,
cedar or pine groves.
Now in the fall, when the young
and old birds are flocking for migra-
tion, they look for the best and
easiest supply of food. Sometimes it's
the neighbors' grapes, while other
times flocks of their chattering black
forms swarm through our woods in
pursuit of acorns. To hear them is
like hearing the rustle of a thousand
leaves as they chatter while hunting
acorns in the trees and on the
grounds, and if they're startled,
you'll hear a whirl of wings that
sounds like the trees themselves tak-
ing off.
I know it is hard for the farmer to
realize that these birds actually do
some good, but the truth of the mat-
ter is, except for this time of year,
their diet consists of worms, beetles
and insects. The trouble is the
grackle has this bad habit of also in-
dulging in the farmers' crops. It's a
conflict that's been going on as long
as man and birds have been around.
Red -wings Like Grapes Also
Another one of the "blackbirds" is
the red - winged blackbird. Often
people don't recognize this bird be-
cause the female and young are not
as handsome as the red - epauletted
male. I always think spring's not far
ayvay _ when _I see red=wings on- or
Focus on
Nature
about St. Patrick's Day. The males
move in first, with the female arriv-
ing two or three weeks later. Their
nesting sites are usually near water,
which provides cattails or associated
marsh plants for their woven nests
to be built in.
The female does all the incubating
while the male stands guard at the
top of a nearby tree or bush to ward
off any intruders. They are prolific
breeders, usually having more than
just one brood a year. Like the
grackle, they eat insects mostly, in-
dulging occasionally on the farmers'
prize grapes, cherries, peas, corn or
other tender crops.
Starling introduced
Our third blackbird is the aggres-
sive starling -- a bird from central
Europe that was introduced into this
country 90 years or so ago and has
prospered so well that it's now found
throughout the United States. I
think of it as the largest flocking bird
on Long Island. This is particularly
true on the south side, where they in-
vade the duck farms to share in the'
feed put out for the Pekings. Clouds
of these swarming birds roost in the
phragmites found in some of the
more isolated sections of the south
These clouds of birds have to be
seen before you can truly appreciate
the magnitude of the flock. Just this
year when Barbara and I were sail-
ing, we saw a stream of birds in a
continuous flock that looked like
some huge smoke cloud weaving and
banking as one solid unit. We were
offshore and could see this amazing
phenomenon probably two to three
miles away.
Starlings never seem to rest. On
the ground they run nervously, al-
most erratically, in pursuit of insects
or seeds. When they move across a
field, they look like an invading
army, covering every inch of the
area. The ones in back leapfrog over
the ones in front to gain advantage
in the search. Each is out for himself.
I can only imagine the destruction
they bring to a ripened vineyard.
There are other robbers of the
fruits of the farmer. Robins in migra-
tion, which we all seem to love, think
nothing of stopping off in flocks and
attacking the vineyards. These and
other birds think Mr. Grape Grower's
grapes are just like fruit in the wild
and there for the picking.
Years ago when birds weren't pro -
tected, they were shot by the thou-
sands, but in an enlightened world
we found that it actually did no good.
There were always birds to replace
the fallen ones. Today we hopefully
scare them away by the booming of
guns until the harvest is in. In this
way the birds can live to do good in
keeping down the hoards of insect
pests that they consume throughout
the year. Let us hope that this dif-
ficult problem of control can be
worked out so that both the farmer
and his neighbors can live in har-
mony. There are two sides to every
.Story----------------------
1171e Suffb k tim66 /Oc1666r 9,'198b/� ge 9A
Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
PURPLE GRACKLE - -We see a few of these large "blackbirds"
through the summer months but the problem comes when they, along
with other birds, invade the farmers' corn, grapes and other crops on
their migration south.
Main Road, Southold + 765 -1242
New Hours: Friday and Saturday 11 -9, Sunday 11 -8.
,B NNI E SJ
NEW FALL
ItY -`I'll E -1t AY FOURS:
Thurs. 5 -10, Fri.
Route & Sat. 6 -10,
_ Cutcho ue. Sundays
Cutcho ue.
g continuous 2- 9.
Right (south) at
traffic light. Left
1 • , r. at blinking light.
Left at First
Street.
RESTAURANT • BAR
725 FIRST STREET. NEW SUFFOLK, NY
We'll be closing for the
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