Birdsong, Translated

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 17 May 2013 04:00:00 +0000

With birds tuning up for the breeding season ahead, here are some memory tricks to help you recognize a few of the more common songs.

Robins can be heard in just about all habitats across the state and the nation. Their whistled song is often translated as, "Cheer-up. Cheerily. Cheerio."

Another song easy to "translate" is the flight song of goldfinches. Someone somewhere interpreted it as, "Potato chip! Potato chip!"

If It Sounds Like A Duck...Might Be A Frog

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 04:00:00 +0000

How Many Birds?

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 04:00:00 +0000

How many bird species might an attentive backyard birdwatcher, or "birder", find?

The term "backyard" means any nearby open space, such as a stream corridor or an open field with forest edge. The more habitat types a backyard has, the better.

Don and Lillian Stokes, of Hancock, NH, have a backyard that includes the Contoocook River, a distant ridgeline, open field, wetlands, and forest, not to mention many birdfeeders and birdhouses to attract their feathered friends. Like many active birders, they keep a backyard list of their sightings from over the years.

Unique Nests

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 04:00:00 +0000

A bird can be identified by the different splashes of color on its feathers, or its distinct call, but did you know that you can also tell a bird by the way it builds its nest, even if it's empty?

Just as birds in all their variety evolved from the very first species, their nests have evolved in equal variety over millions of years. Every bird builds a nest unique to its species.

High Perch: Peregrines Nesting In The City

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 05:00:00 +0000

The peregrine falcon: Fierce, fast, high cliff dweller, symbol of the wild. All true, but increasingly peregrines can be found inhabiting urban canyons of concrete and steel.

The Maligned Fisher

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 14:11:26 +0000

The "fisher cat": ferocious predator of house cats whose bloodcurdling screams pierce the dark of night. Facts about this one wildlife species have mutated a long way into fiction. For starters, fishers are members of the weasel family—not feline. Properly referred to, they're "fishers," not "fisher cats."

New Study: Cats Kill Birds, A Lot of Birds

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:59:17 +0000

There's new and unsettling information about domestic cats. A study just published (full study here) estimates cats kill between 1 and 4 billion birds each year in the U.S. That's an average of over three million birds each day.

Ravens Are Playful And Smart

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:14:18 +0000

Among the many stories about the intelligence of ravens, and their playfulness is one from Mount Monadnock. As the sun was setting a hiker shared the mountaintop with a gang of ravens taking turns leaping into a strong updraft, tumbling up, then circling around to leap again.

The Common Raven Is Exceptional

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 05:00:00 +0000

The stately Raven has garnered many connotations over the years, chief among them are for the bird’s intelligence. Additionally, this largest of songbirds is also known for is aerobic alacrity - flying upside down, doing barrel, etc - and playful proclivities.

Stories of their intelligence abound, including one that involves Cheetos. A wildlife biologist was attempting to trap and band ravens. To lure them in, he spread Cheetos on snow and the bright orange color soon attracted several ravens, which were then snared by leg traps under the snow.

Crossbills Coming to NH?

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:00:00 +0000

A poor cone crop in Canada this year is driving crossbills south of the border in search of food.

As volunteers fan out across the state for the annual Christmas Bird Count, they’re likely to see two noteworthy species down from the north this year. Both are named "Crossbills" for unique bills that actually do cross, all the better to pry seeds from a conifer cone.

Gifts for the Budding Naturalist

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 05:00:00 +0000

As the year draws to a close, it's a great time to reflect on Rachel Carson's Silent Spring once more. 2012 marks the books 50th anniversary. The book encouraged many young naturalists and, with the holidays approaching, we've come up with two gifts to further one's love of nature: a pair of binoculars and a bird guide.

Birds of a Feather

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Taxonomy is the attempt to place all plant and animal species in a logical order based on relationship. Two thousand years ago. Aristotle classified birds by appearance and behavior, such as birds that swim, birds of prey, and birds that sing.

Wild Cranberry Relish

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 05:00:00 +0000

For the forager of wild foods, November brings cranberries, crisp and tart to suit the season. Cranberries are a wetlands obligate, meaning they grow in wetland soils, so keep a watch for these low, trailing plants when you're out exploring river edges and soggy lowlands. And then return in November for the harvest. Many berries survive through the winter freeze to provide a spring snack.

What's Good for the Goose

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 04:00:00 +0000

November's gray skies carry the last of the migrating Canada geese, graceful ribbons of true wild Canadians on a long-distance flight. These aren't the New England locals, flying low from golf course to cornfield.

The northerners are vocal in flight. Geese are highly social, vocal year-round as they maintain relationships both within the family grouping and the greater flock. Vocalizing by young begins within the egg before hatching, and helps build a strong family bond that lasts a full year.

Thoreau Remembered

Chris Martin and Francie Von Mertens — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Henry David Thoreau's death 150 years ago has inspired memorial events in Concord - the Massachusetts Concord - but Thoreau passed through our Concord on a trip by boat and foot that led to his first book.