Are there many species of birds that nest here in the winter? I guess I
knew that Owls start in winter.. maybe Ravens and Crows? Do others?

Lila

On Sat, Feb 11, 2012 at 10:39 PM, Chris Rimmer <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

> Kent McFarland, Ed Hack and I had a great outing in the white pine stand
> above Prosper Road parking lot in MBR National Historical Park this
> morning.  Red Crossbills were very vocal, with at least 12 birds present.
>  One male called and sang persistently over about an hour from a fairly
> small area, but we were unable to come up with any evidence of nesting.
>  Several birds, mostly females or first-year males, were feeding actively
> on pine cones, in flocks from 4-9 individuals.  We were unable get many
> clear views, so it was difficult to count or identify ages and sexes of
> most birds.
>
> Given that a female was observed carrying a twig here on Jan. 22, it seems
> reasonable that active nesting may be underway.  With incubation periods
> averaging 14 days and fledging 15-25 days later (according to the Birds of
> NA account), the next couple of weeks could be a good time to confirm
> breeding at this site, as adults feed nestlings.
>
> Ed Hack and I later ran into a dispersed flock of American Robins along
> Royalton Turnpike in Royalton that we conservatively counted as 475, with
> another of 150 or more on Gilman Road 15 minutes earlier.  It was
> reminiscent of early or mid-April!
>
> Finally, in early afternoon we found a flock of 200 Bohemian Waxwings with
> 10 Cedars moving between fruiting trees and tall sugar maples on both sides
> of Rt. 12 about one mile north of Barnard village.
>
> Chris
>
> --
> Chris Rimmer
> Vermont Center for Ecostudies
> P.O. Box 420
> Norwich, VT 05055
> 802-649-1431 ext. 1
> http://www.vtecostudies.org
>