April 27, 2006 - Seeking the best nest, part 3The Suffolk Times • April 27, 2
Seeking the best nes
WE ARE CONTINUING our series on
rd nests, which come in all sizes and
gapes, some high in the treetops, oth-
•s down on the
•ound; all can
found right FOCUS
-re on our East ON
nd. Some are
asily found, N AT U R E
ke that of the
ouse wren, by Paul
fhich takes over $toutenburgh
,ne of your bird
Like other members of the wren
mily, the house wren builds more
an one nest, so if you have a small
-own bird that is always on the
chances are you have a house
i — a wonderful bird to have
ind. It eats insects of all sorts, as
can see from the accompanying
A Carolina wren calling under our
bedroom window awakened us to-
day. She had picked the window box
for this year's nest. The trouble was,
we didn't know it, and, cleaning out
the flower boxes for spring, we were
pulling -all the evergreens and holly
out when we came across this ball of
fluff. It was a Carolina wren's nest
complete with the tunnel entrance
on the side that hides her as she
enters the nest. We carefully placed
it back Where it was. I think she's
scolding us for disturbing her nest.
Out on the marsh we occasionally
11)
-p
4,
art 3
find the marsh wren
building its nest. It
lashes strong grasses
to standing reeds and
rushes. The male of-
ten builds a series of
dummy nests (up to
10). It goes to all that
trouble and only uses
one. We don't know
why. Perhaps to tell
other wrens, "This
area is mine. Keep
out."
Another bird out
on the marsh not as
easily found as the
long - billed marsh
wren is the sharp-
tailed sparrow. Its nest is probably
one of the hardest nests to find and
when you do find it, it's almost im-
possible to photograph, for it is deel
in the marsh grass. This little, ener-
getic sparrow is difficult to follow,
for when it drops onto a lush green
mat of salt hay, it quickly disappears
and takes to the grasses to hide and
travel. Not many other birds inhabit
the salt marsh, so if you happen to
flush a little fellow up you can be
pretty sure it's got to be a sharp -
tailed sparrow.
Blue -gray gnatcatcher. How do
you like that for a name? This tiny
bird builds a nest similar to our ruby -
throated hummingbird. Plant fibers,
such as what you find on the stems
of ferns, make up the main part of
the nest, which is usually
located on a branch of
a tree. It's then camou-
flaged with bits of lichen
that are held on by spider
webbing. When finished it
looks like part of the tree.
When the bird sits in
the nest she sinks down
with only her head and
tail showing. Let me
tell you, it takes some
searching to find one of
these works of art. The
best way to find any kind
of bird nest is to follow
the bird when it is feed-
ing; look for one with
food in its bill and follow
it to its nest.
ue -gray gnatcatcher.
thrush.
Suffolk Times photos by Paul
Red - winged blackbird.
i ne rnrusn iamuy is
noted for its songs., and I
can vouch for this wood
thrush's (see photo) mel-
ody of songs, for it nes.tec
ears ago in my dad's
ack woods. We not only
ad this perfect songster
to enjoy as it courted a
mate but we were able to
watch the nest being buill
in the nearby woods. It
fledged four young, and
we watched them grow
until the day they left the
nest. The most noticeable
thing about this brownish
songster is the bold spot-
ted breast that sets it off
from other thrushes.
Everyone knows what a red -
inged blackbird is, but few know
here they nest or what the nest
oks like. The typical place that red -
ings nest is in wet areas, such as
ttail marshes, bushes, sedges, and
-eferably near water. The nest itself
made up of sedge leaves, rushes,
asses, etc., all bound together in
e surrounding vegetation. All the
irk in creating these well- hidden
>sts is done by the female alone.
ie male sits around calling and
.asing any other blackbirds that
ight wander into its territory.
It has been fun digging out the old
Aachrome slides that tell the story
some of the nesting birds we have
;ht here on the East End — some
;ht in your own back vard.