Scotts Mountain Hawkwatch on October 5

Looking for an ideal opportunity to see Sharp-shinned and Cooper's hawks? The Lehigh Valley Audubon Society invites you to take part in the Scotts Mountain Hawkwatch at Merrill Creek Reservoir in New Jersey on Saturday, October 5. 

Meet at the Park & Ride lot at the William Penn Highway exit off Route 33, just south of Route 22 in Bethlehem Township. Starting time is 7:30 a.m. Dave DeReamus, of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, will lead the trip. The rain date is October 6. For information, call Dave at 610-252-0893.

Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 27

Here are the Lehigh Valley bird sightings for the week ended September 27. The list was compiled by Dave DeReamus, of the Eastern PA Birdline, which is sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society.

Merlin

Jacobsburg State Park, Northampton County
Merlin and White-crowned Sparrow

Williams Township, Northampton County
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 23

Village of Little Gap, Carbon County
Rusty Blackbird, 3 on September 25
Also, White-crowned Sparrow

Bake Oven Knob, Lehigh County
Bald Eagle,18 on September 22
Northern Goshawk, 1 on September 22
Merlin, 8 on September 25
Peregrine Falcon, 2 on September 25
Red-headed Woodpecker, 1 on September 26
Also, Common Raven

Whitehall Parkway, Lehigh County
Winter Wren

Trexlertown, Lehigh County
Sandhill Crane, 1 fly-by on September 21

Peace Valley Park, Bucks County
Olive-sided Flycatcher, 1 on September 15
Philadelphia Vireo, 1 on September 17
Also, Blue-winged Teal, Hooded Merganser, Lesser Black-backed Gull, and several warblers (Cape May, Blackpoll, Bay-Breasted, Blackburnian and Tennessee

Merrill Creek Reservoir, New Jersey
From Scotts Mountain Hawkwatch
Golden Eagle, 1 on September 26

Birds seen at several sites this past week included Yellow and Wilson's warblers, and Lincoln's Sparrow.

Directions to many of the birding sites listed in this week's report can be found in "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," a guidebook published by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society and available for sale at The Bird House. Also at the Bird House, you can obtain a list of programs being sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society from now until the spring of 2014. There are lot of interesting opportunities to learn more about birds and other aspects of nature. Be sure to stop by for your free copy.

Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 21

Broad-winged Hawk

The week ended September 21 was a great time for seeing migrating Broad-winged Hawks. Thousands were spotted at various locations in the greater Lehigh Valley region. Bake Oven Knob in Lehigh County and the Merrill Creek Reservoir in New Jersey seem to have been the hot spots. Migrating Bald Eagles have also been seen at Bake Oven Knob.

Dave DeReamus of the Eastern PA Birdline, a project sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, compiled the following list of bird sightings for the week ended September 21.

Upper Mount Bethel Township, Northampton County
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 14 along National Park Drive

Jacobsburg State Park, Northampton County
Philadelphia Vireo, 1 on September 12, 15 and 17
Mourning Warbler, 1 on September 14 to 16
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 16 and 18
Also seen: Lincoln's Sparrow, and Wilson's, Blackpoll, Blackburnian and Tennessee warblers

Bethlehem Township, Northampton County
American Golden Plovers, 1 on September 13 and 2 on September 14, all at the intersection of Bethman and Church roads

Lincoln's Sparrow

Williams Township, Northampton County
Connecticut Warbler, 2 on September 17
Also seen: Blackpoll Warbler and Bobolink

Little Gap (village area), Carbon County
Mourning Warbler, 1 on September 18
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 18

Beltzville State Park, Carbon County
Lincoln's Sparrow

Bake Oven Knob, Lehigh County
Bald Eagle, 22 on September 13, and 15 on September 16
Broad-winged Hawk, 1,269 on September 16 and 1,875 on September 17, and 1,648 on September 20
Common Ravens, 27 on September 13
Olive-sided Flycatcher, 1 on September 15

Peace Valley Park, Bucks County
American Avocet, 1 on September 13
Short-billed Dowitcher, 1 on September 14
Caspian Tern, 2 on September 13
Mourning Warbler, 1 on September 12
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 12
Also seen: Wilson's Snipe, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Winter Wren, Swainson's Thrush, Lincoln's Sparrow
Also seen were these warblers: Cape May, Canada, Worm-eating, Bay-breasted, Blackburnian and Tennessee

Broad-winged Hawk

Merrill Creek Reservoir, New Jersey
At Scott's Mountain Hawk Watch:
Broad-winged Hawk, 1,557 on September 16; 1,343 on September 18; 2,797 on September 19; 3,814 on September 20
Peregrine Falcon: 3 on September 24
Red-headed Woodpecker, 1 on September 13
Also seen: Cape May and Tennessee warblers

To report bird sightings, send an e-mail to beard@rcn.com with the word "Birdline" in the subject heading.

Directions to many of the sites in this week's report can be found in "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," a guidebook published by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society and available for sale at The Bird House. The guidebook also tells which birds to expect at various times of the year. The information is based on years of sightings in the Greater Lehigh Valley region.'

Nyjer seed

Nyjer, a small black seed, is favored by goldfinches and other finches for its size and high oil content. But what is it, and where does it come from?

The seed is sometimes called "thistle," but actually it's not related at all to the pink- or purple-flowering thistle weed sometimes found locally. Nyjer, pronounced "NYE-jerr," is the seed of the yellow flower of the Guizotia abyssinica plant.

Nyjer is an oil seed crop that is cultivated in Burma, India, Nepal and Ethiopia. The plant is 4 feet tall on average but can grow as high as 7 feet under the right conditions. It is harvested while the flower buds are still yellow, then stacked to dry. The seeds, loosely held in the flower head, are black, club-shaped and narrow.

It is the only major wild bird feed imported from overseas. It's been marketed for wild bird seed for about 40 years. In 1985, the U.S. Department of Agriculture ruled that the seed must be heat-treated as a condition for entry into this country. In 1997, the treatment temperature was set at 250 degrees for 15 minutes to "devitalize" any weed seeds present. As a result, Nyjer will not sprout on lawns beneath bird feeders. But the finches still love it!

Killdeer

A shorebird that you can see without going to the beach, Killdeer are plovers commonly found locally on lawns, golf courses, athletic fields or parking lots. The tawny colored birds have the characteristic large round head, large eyes and short bill of all plovers. They are slender and lanky with long pointed tails and long wings.

Killdeer in its urban habitat

Killdeer are brownish tan on the top and white below. The white chest is barred with two black bands, and the brown face is marked with black and white patches. The bright orange rump is conspicuous in flight.

Typically you can see these birds running across the ground in spurts, quickly stopping to check their progress or to see if they startled any insect prey. Near the shore, they inhabit open areas such as sandbars, mud flats and grazed fields.

Killdeer feed primarily on invertebrates such as earthworms, snails, crayfish, grasshoppers, beetles and aquatic insect larvae. They also follow farmer's plows looking for unearthed worms or insect larvae.

Killdeer nest; note the speckled eggs

The nest of the Killdeer is a shallow depression scratched into the bare ground. In the photo to the right, if you look carefully, there are two speckled eggs seen under the bird; also notice how plain the nest is. After the eggs are laid, Killdeer will add rocks, bits of shell, sticks and trash to the nest for camouflage.

Killdeer distract predators by running away, calling loudly and bobbing up and down. They are one of the best practitioners of the "broken-wing display," an attempt to lure predators away from the nest by feigning injury. After the predator follows the adult  bird away from the nest, the adult then flies off. This broken-wing display does not prevent cows or horses from stepping on eggs. In cases like these, the Killdeer fluffs itself up, displaying its tail over its head and charging the beast in an attempt to get it to change its path.

Killdeer's "broken-wing act"

Typical brood is four to six eggs which are incubated for 22 to 28 days. Chicks can walk as soon as their feathers dry.

Killdeer get their name from the shrill, wailing kill-deer call. Eighteen-century naturalists used to call them "Chattering Plovers" or "Noisy Plovers."

Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 13

Philadelphia Vireo

Dave DeReamus of the Eastern PA Birdline, a project sponsored by the Lehigh Valley 
Audubon Society, compiled the following list of bird sightings for the week ended September 13.

Saylorsburg, Monroe County
Cape May, Canada, Tennessee and Blackburnian warblers

Jacobsburg State Park, Northampton County
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, 1 on September 11
Philadelphia Vireo, 1 on September 9
Also seen: White-eyed Vireo and warblers that included Wilson's, Blackpoll, Bay-breasted, Blackburnian, Canada and Tennessee

East Allen Township, Northampton County
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, 1 on September 8

Bake Oven Knob, Lehigh County
Bald Eagle, 10 on September 9
Broad-winged Hawks, 529 on September 9
Olive-sided Flycatcher, 1 on September 7
Also seen: Common Raven and Cape May Warbler

Poole Wildlife Sanctuary, Lehigh County
Connecticut Warbler, 1 on September 6

Peace Valley Park, Bucks County
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, 1 on September 7
Also seen: Red-shouldered Hawk, Lesser Black-backed Gull, and Bay-breasted, Blackburnian and Tennessee warblers

Merrill Creek Reservoir, New Jersey
Bald Eagle, 10 seen on September 8 at the Scotts Mountain Hawkwatch

To report bird sightings, send an e-mail to beard@rcn.com with the word "Birdline" in the subject heading.

Directions to many of the sites in this week's report can be found in "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," a guidebook published by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society and available for sale at The Bird House.

One important note as migration begins: The book tells which birds to expect at various times of the year. The information is based on years of sightings in the Greater Lehigh Valley region.

Broad-winged Hawk

Plant your garden with birds in mind

You can do a lot for birds in your own backyard, beyond putting out seed and a bird bath. By diversifying the plants in your backyard and providing resting and nesting places as well as food during all seasons, you can attract many species of birds.

There is a symbiotic relationship between birds and plants that is revealed in the wild and in the garden. Plants depend on birds to pollinate their flowers and have large blooms to attract them.

Serviceberry trees provide lots of fruit for birds

Plants that depend on birds to disperse their seeds have brightly colored fruit as seed-eating birds have a good eye for color. Most trees and shrubs bear small fruits, no more than three-fifths of an inch in diameter, which make it easier for birds to eat.

Now is a good time to plant trees, shrubs and perennials in your backyard. Nurseries are eager to sell off their plants so they won't have to carry their inventory over the winter. You'll see large discounts on plants. The plants may not look as good as they do in their summertime glory but that's to be expected. They're winding down for the colder months. But be sure to get your new plants in the ground right away. That way they'll have time to extend their roots before the ground freezes so they'll flourish in the spring.

Here are some guidelines in establishing a bird garden:

• Re-create layers of plant growth found in woodlands--canopy, understory, shrubs and ground layer.
• Select plants so that there is food in all seasons.
• Plant small trees and shrubs in same-species clumps to boost cross-pollination and fruit growth.
• Plant some evergreens which birds use for cover during storms.
• Plant vines for fruit or perching.
• Leave a dead tree for birds to perch on, to use as a singing post, or for woodpeckers to carve out nesting cavities.
• Supply a source of water for drinking, bathing or cooling off.
• Provide nesting boxes, which are good substitutes for increasingly scarce natural tree cavities.
• Leave lots of leaf litter under trees and shrubs for robins, towhees and juncos that pick through the mulch for worms, insects and spiders.

Don't use pesticides which can harm birds directly or contaminate insects that birds eat. (A lawn company was none too pleased when I told them that pesticides did not fit into our natural habitat philosophy.)

Lady bugs devour aphids on perennial plants

Beneficial insects devour or destroy many garden pests. In the latter case,  insects called parasitoids develop an egg or larvae inside a host, ultimately killing it.

Studies suggest that native "composites," members of the wide-ranging aster family, have the best blossoms for attracting beneficial insects. Composites with daisy-like blossoms consist of tiny flowers packed together on a central disk surrounded by colorful ray flowers. Examples of these flowers are aster, coneflower and tickseed (coreopsis).

Many of these plants are directly beneficial to birds due to the seeds that develop in the coneflowers and coreopsis.

Goldfinches love coneflower seeds

And don't forget reddish-colored perennial plants such as bee balm, cardinal flower, red-hot poker plant and trumpet vine. Their flowers contain nectar which attracts hummingbirds.

Planting bird-friendly trees, shrubs and perennials now will make your backyard more inviting for birds when warm weather returns next year.

Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 6

Sora

Dave DeReamus of the Eastern PA Birdline, a project sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, compiled the following list of bird sightings for the week ended September 6.

Jacobsburg State Park, Northampton County
Bobolink

Williams Township, Northampton County
Brewster's Warbler, 1 on August 31

Bethlehem, Northampton County
Peregrine Falcons, 2 on August 31 near the Sands Casino

Hanover Township, Northampton County
Merlin, 1 on September 1

Little Gap, Carbon County
Sora, 1 on August 31
Oliver-sided Flycatcher, 1 on August 31

Bake Oven Knob, Lehigh County
Bald Eagles, 40 on September 5
Merlins, 7 on September 5
Also seen: Common Raven

Jordan Creek Parkway, Lehigh County
Canada Warbler

Allentown, Lehigh County
Common Nighthawks, 45 on August 29 over Muhlenberg College

Golden-winged Warbler

Peace Valley Park, Bucks County
Peregrine Falcon, 1 on August 30
Caspian Terns, 3 on August 28
Golden-winged Warbler, 1 on August 30
Also seen: Black-billed and Yellow-billed cuckoos, Common Nighthawk, Worm-eating and Blackburnian warblers, and Bobolink.

To report bird sightings, send an e-mail to becard@rcn.com with the word "Birdline" in the subject heading. 

Directions to many of the sites in this week's report can be found in "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," a guidebook published by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society and available for sale at The Bird House. One important note as migration begins: The book also tells which birds to expect at various times of the year. The information is based on years of sightings in the greater Lehigh Valley.

The Lehigh Valley Audubon Society will host a program on September 13 at 7 p.m. at the Wildlands Conservancy in Emmaus. Scott Burnet will discuss "The Nocturnals: Creatures of the Night."

Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 1

Common Nighthawk, seen at Muhlenberg College

Dave DeReamus of the Eastern PA Birdline, a project sponsored by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, compiled the following list of bird sightings for the week that ended September 1.

Echo Lake, Northampton County
Snow goose, 2 during the weekend of August 24-25

Jacobsburg State Park, Northampton County
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, 1 on August 24

Lower Nazareth Township, Northampton County
Ruddy Duck and Pied-billed Grebe, both found at the Gremar retention ponds

Bethlehem Township, Northampton County

Short-billed Dowitcher, 1 on August 23 and 24 at the retention pond of the Anderson Campus of St. Luke's Hospital 

Freemansburg, Northampton County
Olive-sided Flycatcher, 1 on August 24
Also seen: Cape May Warbler

Moore Township, Northampton County
Olive-sided Flycatcher, 1 on August 25

Bake Oven Knob, Lehigh County

An Egyptian Goose, far from home

Bald Eagle, 35 on August 23
Also seen: Common Raven

Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Lehigh County
Common Nighthawks, 32 on August 27

Green Lane Reservoir, Montgomery County
Egyptian Goose, 1 on August 27 (an escaped bird)

Peace Valley Park, Northampton County
Black-crowned Night Heron, 1 during the past week
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, 1 on August 23
Prothonotary Warbler, 1 on August 23
Also seen: Lesser Black-backed Gull, and Blackburnian and Bay-breasted warblers

To report bird sightings, send an e-mail to becard@rcn.com with the word "Birdline" in the subject heading. Dave compiles updates every Friday, or more often when necessary.

Directions to many of the sites in this week's report can be found in "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," a guidebook published by the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society and available for sale at The Bird House. 

One important note as migration season begins: "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity" also tells which birds to expect at various times during the year. The information is based on years of sightings in the Lehigh Valley, plus northern areas such as Beltzville State Park in Carbon County and southern locations such as Peace Valley Park in Bucks County. The book is one of the handiest reference guides for birders in our region.