Sense of Place

Tag: birding

  • Why Does the Junco Flash Its Tail and Other Notes

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    A winter storm approaches. Light flakes of snow dance in the air, and the birds forage and feast, fighting to fill their bellies before snow blankets their food source and enforces a period of fasting. The Ruby-crowned Kinglets are acrobats, flipping and bouncing through the trees. The Cardinals are confident, their size and boldness allowing…

  • Differentiating Local Hawks: Red-shouldered Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, & Sharp-shinned Hawk

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    This morning, as I emerged from the Eno River woods onto a residential street, I saw a hawk flying towards a Mourning Dove in flight. In the Piedmont woods, we often see one of three hawk species perched on a branch at the ready to grab a meal, the Red-shouldered Hawk, the Cooper’s Hawk, and the Sharp-shinned Hawk;…

  • Piedmont Birds in November

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    By November, the song of the wood thrush has disappeared, replaced by the melodic tune of the hermit thrush. Juncos and a number of sparrows, including tree, fox, white-throated and white-crowned sparrows have returned. Brown creepers will start showing up on tree trunks, along with winter wrens (smaller and more shy than our year-round Carolina…

  • Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers & Tree Damage

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    The yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius), also referred to as the red-throated, squealing, and whining sapsucker (McAtee 1911), is a species of woodpecker found across eastern North America. This migratory species breeds in the hardwood and coniferous forests of Canada, the upper Midwest, and the northeastern United States. In winter, yellow-bellied sapsuckers reside in the southeastern…

  • Pettigrew State Park (Creswell, NC) & Pocosin Lakes NWR (Columbia, NC)

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    Each Spring, I make my way to Pettigrew State Park (Creswell, NC) to explore the rich vernal wildlife around North Carolina’s 2nd largest natural lake, Lake Phelps. Lake Phelps is one of the Carolina bay lakes – elliptical lakes aligned on a northwest-southeast axis of uncertain origin, hypothesized to have been carved out by ocean currents,…

  • Braving the Bitter Cold for the American Bittern

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    On my birthday, in mid-December, I dragged my entire family — parents, husband, and 4-year-old son — to find an American Bittern. We drove to Prairie Ridge Ecostation in Raleigh, NC, following a trail of eBird and list-serv sightings of this bulky brown and tan bird in the Heron family (Ardeidae). On a crisp, clear winter’s day, we slowly…

  • What is the coldest environment birds can tolerate?

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    A Triangle Naturalist reader recently asked: “Is there a temperature limit past which birds can no longer withstand the elements?” While many bird species migrate to avoid to the chill of winter in temperate climates, some species, like the Emperor Penguin live year-round in frigid Antarctica, where temperatures can dip below -76°F and winds roar…

  • Where do birds go when it snows?

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    On days like this, when the snow drifts down steadily in large, dense clumps, where do all the birds go? Many birds species spend the winter in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Some species, like Carolina Chickadees and Tufted Titmice, spend their time in mixed foraging flocks, searching for food sources as a group. Other…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: September in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in ,

    BirdsSeptember brings an early pulse of winter residents back to the Piedmont, including Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, occasional Red-breasted Nuthatches, and a suite of wrens (Winter, Sedge, and Marsh) and sparrows (Swamp and White-throated). Ruby-crowned Kinglets—tiny olive-gray birds with a bright red crown patch (usually hidden)—also return this month after spending the summer in conifer forests of…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: April in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in ,

    BirdsApril launches spring migration in earnest, and the next couple of months can bring a steady stream of northbound travelers. Watch for wood-warblers (including Golden-winged, Nashville, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Bay-breasted, and Blackpoll), along with herons (such as Little Blue Herons, Black-crowned Night-Herons, and Cattle Egrets), thrushes (Veery, Gray-cheeked, and Swainson’s), and sandpipers…