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March 02, 2000 - (Black)birds of a feather ...GA • The Suffolk ,Times • March 2, 2000 (Black)birds of a feather ... I've been getting telephone calls all week about flocks, big flocks, of black- birds. I thought perhaps they were like the flock that had visited my feeder last week, but no, these birds, I was told, numbered in the thousands. Now that's a whole new ball game. Still hobbling with my new knee and not being able to jump up and get out to check Foc V $ on these "huge flocks," I had to ON be satisfied with NATURE just hearing about them. But by Paul all that changed Stoutenburgh last Wednesday as I sat in the living room reading. I started to see shadows of birds move by, first a few, then hundreds and then, believe it or not, thousands. It was just as my callers had reported. First they were on the ground in the woods, then something would scare them and they'd fly up in a mass into the trees. The branches literally sagged under their weight. All this time there was a continual chattering of birds going on. From the trees in back of the house a dozen or more starlings dropped down on our suet feeder. This signaled to the rest to join in and in no time our feeder, the ground around it and later the whole back yard were covered by blackbirds of one sort or another. Seeing they were so close to the house, it was no problem to make out just who these black invaders were. The small trim blackbirds with the brown- ish heads were male cowbirds. Then there were the long - tailed iridescent grackles, who were the largest of all. A good one -third of these blackbirds were male redwings. They could easily be picked out of the whirling group when they flew. You could see their yellow- orange wing bars that stood out in the mass of flying black. When the flock landed, whether it was in the woods or in the yard or fi- nally in the pasture, they immediately set to work seeking out food. It was something to see. Half or more of our winter pasture immediately turned black as they settled in. Why they were here is anyone's guess. It's my belief that they travel in huge flocks for protection from predators, mainly hawks. The theory is that a whirling mass of birds confuses the hawk, who in turn has difficulty picking out a sin- gle individual to attack. Instinct tells the birds — whether they be starlings, redwings, cowbirds or grackles — that there is safety in numbers and so the reason for these huge flocks. Being slowed down with my new knee limits my activity to short trips to the car and back. Even there I keep my eyes open for any activity in the natural world that is worth noting. Back when the snow covered the ground, it pretty well wiped out the playing field for most, yet from past experience I knew there was a world of activity going on below the snow. Voles, mice and shrews were tunneling to new pastures for food. Deadly stalking games were being played out beneath the snow in these tunnels, all out of sight from those of us above. Proof of these goings -on can be seen as the snow melts. It is then the tunnels and feeding areas are re- vealed. Probably the pioneers in the art of tunneling would be the meadow voles. These mouse -like little crea- tures, with their short tails, little eyes and ears, are always on the go. Their enemies are everywhere: the owl or hawk from above, the fox or cat from nearby. These predators, plus others, spell short lives for the meadow vole. Once a system of tunneling has been cut through the grass under the snow, others take up the trail and travel at will, enjoying the new frontiers now open to them along the way. These tunnels in the snow that re- semble the tunnels made by ground moles in your lawn but much smaller, are very visible when the snow is about an inch deep. Then you can plainly see where they have been. There doesn't seem to be any plan to metabolism, which makes them a fierce adversary. Eating almost con- stantly, they can consume almost three times their body weight daily. If man's appetite were compared to that of the shrew, he would have to eat 500 pounds of food each day to keep up with the shrew's ravaging appetite. Easily recognized by their soft, velvety, dark -gray fur, tiny ears and pointed snouts, shrews stand out in their minia- ture world that we humans are seldom privileged to see. They eat mainly insects and worms but, as mentioned before, they'll attack rodents twice their size and usu- ally win out. Occasionally we'll come across a dead shrew on a pathway or in the garden. Its fate was probably due to a cat or other predator catching: it, but because of the shrew's large musk glands that give off a rank odor, the cat is compelled to drop it and leave it uneaten. Some shrews have poi- sonous saliva that helps them in subduing their Suffolk Times photo by Barbara Stoutenburgh This short tailed mouse -like little creature, the vole, Is an expert tunnel builder. After the snow melts their grassy paths can be plainly seen. They do not hibernate during the winter but keep busy exploring new pastures for better grazing. lee oil It e their wanderings, just a maze of turn - nels going this way and that. As the snow melts away the top part of the tunnel, their paths along the ground are revealed. As mentioned earlier the meadow vole is the master builder of these grassy tunnels. Others take advantage of this easy access. This is particularly true of the shrew, one of nature's most ferocious little mammals. Most shrews are smaller than a mouse but that doesn't discourage them from attack- ing and often subduing creatures larg- er than themselves. They have a raging GIANT 24TH ANNIVERSARY SALE r'► ANTIQUES SOLD LACE Everything in our shop 0% to 50% off- ,v March 3 through 13 Open daily 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. 31935 Route 25, Cutchogue 734 -6462 TABLES, CHAIRS, DRESSERS, CHESTS, ROLL -TOP DESKS, FLAT -TOP DESKS, " .. SLANT -FRONT DESKS, BOOKCASES, CHINA CLOSETS, BEDS, WASHSTANDS, ,�„ GLASS, CHINA, STERLING, COLLECTIBLES AND MUCH, MUCH MORE. prey. No discussion of small mam- mals would be complete without mentioning the common house mouse and the most abundant of all, the deer mouse. These two are proba- bly the most common and easily rec- ognized for we find them invading our garages and homes as fall sets in. The little gray house mouse is found wherever man eats and it seems to delight in the same sort of atmosphere that man carries with him. Originally from Europe, it became a world trav- eler, crossing the oceans and following the prairie schooners across the great western plains. It hid in man's para- phernalia but always close to a food source. You will see its calling cards on the shelves of your pantry or on your computertop in the form of little black droppings. This little fellow loves to be around people and their food, biting holes in bags of flour, invading the sugar barrel — this little fellow can be a real problem. A prolific breeder, it can produce from five to 14 litters a year, each litter producing three to 12 young. I particularly dislike poisons and prefer the old- fashioned snap traps to do them in. It's a problem we all are faced with sooner or later. Since the deer mouse is the most widespread of all our small mammals, it won't be long before we find this "cute" little mouse invading our food bins as well. Again the signs of drop- pings tell us it's time for action and the snap traps come into use. The deer mouse with big, beady eyes, large ears, beautiful white underparts and deer - like coloring above has no place in our homes. In the woods it is in con- stant motion throughout the year. In the winter it survives mainly on its stored -up food, such as hickory nuts and acorns that it has cached away. It, too, will travel in the tunnels of the meadow vole and be wary of the fero- cious little shrew. 6A • The Suffolk Times • March 2, 2000 (Black)birds of a feather Suffolk Times photo by Barbara Stoutenburgh This short - tailed mouse -like little creature, the vole, Is an expert tunnel builder. After the snow melts their grassy paths can be plainly seen. They do not hibernate during the winter but keep busy exploring new pastures for better grazing. I've been getting telephone calls all week about flocks, big flocks, of black- birds. I thought perhaps they were like the flock that had visited my feeder last week, but no, these birds, I was told, numbered in the thousands. Now that's a whole new ball game. Still hobbling with my new knee and not being able to jump up and get out to check FOCUS on these "huge flocks," I had to ON be satisfied with NATURE just hearing b pawl about them. But $toutenburgh all that changed last Wednesday as I sat in the living room reading. I started to see shadows of birds move by, first a few, then hundreds and then, believe it or not, thousands. It was just as my callers had reported. First they were on the ground in the woods, then something would scare them and they'd fly up in a mass into the trees. The branches literally sagged under their weight. All this time there was a continual chattering of birds going on. a dozen or more starlings dropped down on our suet feeder. This signaled to the rest to join in and in no time our feeder, the ground around it and later the whole back yard were covered by blackbirds of one sort or another. Seeing they were so close to the house, it was no problem to make out just who these black invaders were. The small trim blackbirds with the brown- ish heads were male cowbirds. Then there were the long- tailed iridescent grackles, who were the largest of all. A good one -third of these blackbirds were male redwings. They could easily be picked out of the whirling group when they flew. You could see their yellow- orange wing bars that stood out in the mass of flying black. When the flock landed, whether it was in the woods or in the yard or fi- nally in the pasture, they immediately set to work seeking out food. It was something to see. Half or more of our winter pasture immediately turned black as thev settled in. Why they • • • were here is anyone's guess. It's my belief that they travel in huge flocks for protection from predators, mainly hawks. The theory is that a whirling mass of birds confuses the hawk, who in turn has difficulty picking out a sin- gle individual to attack. Instinct tells the birds — whether they be starlings, redwings, cowbirds or grackles — that there is safety in numbers and so the reason for these hu a flocks. Being slowed down with hiy new knee limits my activity to short trips to the car and back. Even there I keep my eyes open for any activity in the natural world that is worth noting. Back when the snow covered the ground, it pretty well wiped out the playing field for most, yet from past experience I knew there was a world of activity going on below the snow. Voles, mice and shrews were tunneling to new pastures for food. Deadly stalking games were being played out beneath the snow in these tunnels, all out of sight from those of us above. Proof of these goings -on can be seen as the snow melts. It is then the tunnels and feeding areas are re- vealed. Probably the pioneers in the art of tunneling would be the meadow voles. These, mouse -like little crea- tures, with their short tails, little eyes and ears, are always on the go. Their enemies are everywhere: the owl or hawk from above, the fox or cat from nearby. These predators, plus others, spell short lives for the meadow vole. Once a system of tunneling has been cut through the grass under the snow, others take up the trail and travel at will, enjoying the new frontiers now open to them along the way. These tunnels in the snow that re- semble the tunnels made by ground moles in your lawn but much smaller, are very visible when the snow is about an inch deep. Then you can plainly see where they have been. There doesn't seem to be any plan to their wanderings, just a maze of tun- nels going this way and that. As the snow melts away the top part of the tunnel, their paths along the ground are revealed. As mentioned earlier the meadow vole is the master builder of these grassy tunnels. Others take advantage of this easy access. This is particularly true of the shrew, one of nature's mos ferocious little mammals. Most shrews are smaller than a mouse but that doesn't discourage them from attack- ing and often subduing creatures larg- er than themselves. They have a raging metabolism, which makes them a fierce adversary. Eating almost con- stantly, they can consume almost three times their body weight daily. If man's appetite were compared to that of the shrew, he would have to eat 500 pounds of food each day to keep up with the shrew's ravaging appetite. Easily recognized by their soft, velvety, dark -gray fur, tiny ears and pointed snouts, shrews stand out in their minia- ture world that we humans are seldom privileged to see. They eat mainly insects and worms but, as mentioned before the 'll attack rodents twice their size and usu- ally win out. Occasionally we'll come across a dead shrew on a pathway or in the garden. Its fate was probably due to a cat or other predator catching it, but because of the shrew's large musk glands that give off a rank odor, the cat is compelled to drop it and leave it uneaten. Some shrews have poi- sonous saliva that helps them in subduing their of small mam- mals would be complete without mentioning the common house mouse and the most abundant of all, the deer mouse. These two are proba- bly the most common and easily rec- ognized for we find them invading our garages and homes as fall sets in. The little gray house mouse is found wherever man eats and it seems to delight in the same sort of atmosphere that man carries with him. Originally from Europe, it became a world trav- eler, crossing the oceans and following the prairie schooners across the great western plains. It hid in man's para- phernalia but always close to a food source. You will see its calling cards on the shelves of your pantry or on your computertop in the form of little black droppings. This little fellow loves to be around people and their food, biting holes in bags of flour, invading the sugar barrel — this little fellow can be a real problem. A prolific breeder, it can produce from five to 14 litters a year, each litter producing three to 12 young. I particularly dislike poisons and prefer the old - fashioned snap traps to do them in. It's a problem we all are faced with sooner or later. Since the deer mouse is the most widespread of all our small mammals, it won't be long before we find this "cute" little mouse invading our food bins as well. Again the signs of drop- pings tell us it's time for action and the snap traps come into use. The deer mouse with big, beady eyes, large ears, beautiful white underparts and deer - like coloring above has no place in our homes. In the woods it is in con- stant motion throughout the year. In the winter it survives mainly on its stored -up food, such as hickory nuts and acorns that it has cached away. It, too, will travel in the tunnels of the meadow vole and be wary of the fero- cious little shrew. 6A • The Suffolk Times • March 2, 2000 (Black)birds of a feather Suffolk Times photo by Barbara Stoutenburgh This short - tailed mouse -like little creature, the vole, Is an expert tunnel builder. After the snow melts their grassy paths can be plainly seen. They do not hibernate during the winter but keep busy exploring new pastures for better grazing. I've been getting telephone calls all week about flocks, big flocks, of black- birds. I thought perhaps they were like the flock that had visited my feeder last week, but no, these birds, I was told, numbered in the thousands. Now that's a whole new ball game. Still hobbling with my new knee and not being able to jump up and get out to check FOCUS on these "huge flocks," I had to ON be satisfied with NATURE just hearing b pawl about them. But $toutenburgh all that changed last Wednesday as I sat in the living room reading. I started to see shadows of birds move by, first a few, then hundreds and then, believe it or not, thousands. It was just as my callers had reported. First they were on the ground in the woods, then something would scare them and they'd fly up in a mass into the trees. The branches literally sagged under their weight. All this time there was a continual chattering of birds going on. a dozen or more starlings dropped down on our suet feeder. This signaled to the rest to join in and in no time our feeder, the ground around it and later the whole back yard were covered by blackbirds of one sort or another. Seeing they were so close to the house, it was no problem to make out just who these black invaders were. The small trim blackbirds with the brown- ish heads were male cowbirds. Then there were the long- tailed iridescent grackles, who were the largest of all. A good one -third of these blackbirds were male redwings. They could easily be picked out of the whirling group when they flew. You could see their yellow- orange wing bars that stood out in the mass of flying black. When the flock landed, whether it was in the woods or in the yard or fi- nally in the pasture, they immediately set to work seeking out food. It was something to see. Half or more of our winter pasture immediately turned black as thev settled in. Why they • • • were here is anyone's guess. It's my belief that they travel in huge flocks for protection from predators, mainly hawks. The theory is that a whirling mass of birds confuses the hawk, who in turn has difficulty picking out a sin- gle individual to attack. Instinct tells the birds — whether they be starlings, redwings, cowbirds or grackles — that there is safety in numbers and so the reason for these hu a flocks. Being slowed down with hiy new knee limits my activity to short trips to the car and back. Even there I keep my eyes open for any activity in the natural world that is worth noting. Back when the snow covered the ground, it pretty well wiped out the playing field for most, yet from past experience I knew there was a world of activity going on below the snow. Voles, mice and shrews were tunneling to new pastures for food. Deadly stalking games were being played out beneath the snow in these tunnels, all out of sight from those of us above. Proof of these goings -on can be seen as the snow melts. It is then the tunnels and feeding areas are re- vealed. Probably the pioneers in the art of tunneling would be the meadow voles. These, mouse -like little crea- tures, with their short tails, little eyes and ears, are always on the go. Their enemies are everywhere: the owl or hawk from above, the fox or cat from nearby. These predators, plus others, spell short lives for the meadow vole. Once a system of tunneling has been cut through the grass under the snow, others take up the trail and travel at will, enjoying the new frontiers now open to them along the way. These tunnels in the snow that re- semble the tunnels made by ground moles in your lawn but much smaller, are very visible when the snow is about an inch deep. Then you can plainly see where they have been. There doesn't seem to be any plan to their wanderings, just a maze of tun- nels going this way and that. As the snow melts away the top part of the tunnel, their paths along the ground are revealed. As mentioned earlier the meadow vole is the master builder of these grassy tunnels. Others take advantage of this easy access. This is particularly true of the shrew, one of nature's mos ferocious little mammals. Most shrews are smaller than a mouse but that doesn't discourage them from attack- ing and often subduing creatures larg- er than themselves. They have a raging metabolism, which makes them a fierce adversary. Eating almost con- stantly, they can consume almost three times their body weight daily. If man's appetite were compared to that of the shrew, he would have to eat 500 pounds of food each day to keep up with the shrew's ravaging appetite. Easily recognized by their soft, velvety, dark -gray fur, tiny ears and pointed snouts, shrews stand out in their minia- ture world that we humans are seldom privileged to see. They eat mainly insects and worms but, as mentioned before the 'll attack rodents twice their size and usu- ally win out. Occasionally we'll come across a dead shrew on a pathway or in the garden. Its fate was probably due to a cat or other predator catching it, but because of the shrew's large musk glands that give off a rank odor, the cat is compelled to drop it and leave it uneaten. Some shrews have poi- sonous saliva that helps them in subduing their of small mam- mals would be complete without mentioning the common house mouse and the most abundant of all, the deer mouse. These two are proba- bly the most common and easily rec- ognized for we find them invading our garages and homes as fall sets in. The little gray house mouse is found wherever man eats and it seems to delight in the same sort of atmosphere that man carries with him. Originally from Europe, it became a world trav- eler, crossing the oceans and following the prairie schooners across the great western plains. It hid in man's para- phernalia but always close to a food source. You will see its calling cards on the shelves of your pantry or on your computertop in the form of little black droppings. This little fellow loves to be around people and their food, biting holes in bags of flour, invading the sugar barrel — this little fellow can be a real problem. A prolific breeder, it can produce from five to 14 litters a year, each litter producing three to 12 young. I particularly dislike poisons and prefer the old - fashioned snap traps to do them in. It's a problem we all are faced with sooner or later. Since the deer mouse is the most widespread of all our small mammals, it won't be long before we find this "cute" little mouse invading our food bins as well. Again the signs of drop- pings tell us it's time for action and the snap traps come into use. The deer mouse with big, beady eyes, large ears, beautiful white underparts and deer - like coloring above has no place in our homes. In the woods it is in con- stant motion throughout the year. In the winter it survives mainly on its stored -up food, such as hickory nuts and acorns that it has cached away. It, too, will travel in the tunnels of the meadow vole and be wary of the fero- cious little shrew. 6A • The Suffolk Times • March 2, 2000 (Black)birds of a feather Suffolk Times photo by Barbara Stoutenburgh This short - tailed mouse -like little creature, the vole, Is an expert tunnel builder. After the snow melts their grassy paths can be plainly seen. They do not hibernate during the winter but keep busy exploring new pastures for better grazing. I've been getting telephone calls all week about flocks, big flocks, of black- birds. I thought perhaps they were like the flock that had visited my feeder last week, but no, these birds, I was told, numbered in the thousands. Now that's a whole new ball game. Still hobbling with my new knee and not being able to jump up and get out to check FOCUS on these "huge flocks," I had to ON be satisfied with NATURE just hearing b pawl about them. But $toutenburgh all that changed last Wednesday as I sat in the living room reading. I started to see shadows of birds move by, first a few, then hundreds and then, believe it or not, thousands. It was just as my callers had reported. First they were on the ground in the woods, then something would scare them and they'd fly up in a mass into the trees. The branches literally sagged under their weight. All this time there was a continual chattering of birds going on. a dozen or more starlings dropped down on our suet feeder. This signaled to the rest to join in and in no time our feeder, the ground around it and later the whole back yard were covered by blackbirds of one sort or another. Seeing they were so close to the house, it was no problem to make out just who these black invaders were. The small trim blackbirds with the brown- ish heads were male cowbirds. Then there were the long- tailed iridescent grackles, who were the largest of all. A good one -third of these blackbirds were male redwings. They could easily be picked out of the whirling group when they flew. You could see their yellow- orange wing bars that stood out in the mass of flying black. When the flock landed, whether it was in the woods or in the yard or fi- nally in the pasture, they immediately set to work seeking out food. It was something to see. Half or more of our winter pasture immediately turned black as thev settled in. Why they • • • were here is anyone's guess. It's my belief that they travel in huge flocks for protection from predators, mainly hawks. The theory is that a whirling mass of birds confuses the hawk, who in turn has difficulty picking out a sin- gle individual to attack. Instinct tells the birds — whether they be starlings, redwings, cowbirds or grackles — that there is safety in numbers and so the reason for these hu a flocks. Being slowed down with hiy new knee limits my activity to short trips to the car and back. Even there I keep my eyes open for any activity in the natural world that is worth noting. Back when the snow covered the ground, it pretty well wiped out the playing field for most, yet from past experience I knew there was a world of activity going on below the snow. Voles, mice and shrews were tunneling to new pastures for food. Deadly stalking games were being played out beneath the snow in these tunnels, all out of sight from those of us above. Proof of these goings -on can be seen as the snow melts. It is then the tunnels and feeding areas are re- vealed. Probably the pioneers in the art of tunneling would be the meadow voles. These, mouse -like little crea- tures, with their short tails, little eyes and ears, are always on the go. Their enemies are everywhere: the owl or hawk from above, the fox or cat from nearby. These predators, plus others, spell short lives for the meadow vole. Once a system of tunneling has been cut through the grass under the snow, others take up the trail and travel at will, enjoying the new frontiers now open to them along the way. These tunnels in the snow that re- semble the tunnels made by ground moles in your lawn but much smaller, are very visible when the snow is about an inch deep. Then you can plainly see where they have been. There doesn't seem to be any plan to their wanderings, just a maze of tun- nels going this way and that. As the snow melts away the top part of the tunnel, their paths along the ground are revealed. As mentioned earlier the meadow vole is the master builder of these grassy tunnels. Others take advantage of this easy access. This is particularly true of the shrew, one of nature's mos ferocious little mammals. Most shrews are smaller than a mouse but that doesn't discourage them from attack- ing and often subduing creatures larg- er than themselves. They have a raging metabolism, which makes them a fierce adversary. Eating almost con- stantly, they can consume almost three times their body weight daily. If man's appetite were compared to that of the shrew, he would have to eat 500 pounds of food each day to keep up with the shrew's ravaging appetite. Easily recognized by their soft, velvety, dark -gray fur, tiny ears and pointed snouts, shrews stand out in their minia- ture world that we humans are seldom privileged to see. They eat mainly insects and worms but, as mentioned before the 'll attack rodents twice their size and usu- ally win out. Occasionally we'll come across a dead shrew on a pathway or in the garden. Its fate was probably due to a cat or other predator catching it, but because of the shrew's large musk glands that give off a rank odor, the cat is compelled to drop it and leave it uneaten. Some shrews have poi- sonous saliva that helps them in subduing their of small mam- mals would be complete without mentioning the common house mouse and the most abundant of all, the deer mouse. These two are proba- bly the most common and easily rec- ognized for we find them invading our garages and homes as fall sets in. The little gray house mouse is found wherever man eats and it seems to delight in the same sort of atmosphere that man carries with him. Originally from Europe, it became a world trav- eler, crossing the oceans and following the prairie schooners across the great western plains. It hid in man's para- phernalia but always close to a food source. You will see its calling cards on the shelves of your pantry or on your computertop in the form of little black droppings. This little fellow loves to be around people and their food, biting holes in bags of flour, invading the sugar barrel — this little fellow can be a real problem. A prolific breeder, it can produce from five to 14 litters a year, each litter producing three to 12 young. I particularly dislike poisons and prefer the old - fashioned snap traps to do them in. It's a problem we all are faced with sooner or later. Since the deer mouse is the most widespread of all our small mammals, it won't be long before we find this "cute" little mouse invading our food bins as well. Again the signs of drop- pings tell us it's time for action and the snap traps come into use. The deer mouse with big, beady eyes, large ears, beautiful white underparts and deer - like coloring above has no place in our homes. In the woods it is in con- stant motion throughout the year. In the winter it survives mainly on its stored -up food, such as hickory nuts and acorns that it has cached away. It, too, will travel in the tunnels of the meadow vole and be wary of the fero- cious little shrew.