Summer Orchard Doe

The EYES

Father Blue Bird

Although I don't have any kids, I like to say I'm the proud "father" of a successful, breeding, bluebird box, right in my own backyard.

The contemporary looking bird-box was made by none other than my Dad.

Thanks Dad! And happy Father's Day!

This is a tribute to my dad, the avid bird lover who gifted me the same passion, as well as the father bluebird, diligently and devotedly bringing home food for the two hungry chicks inside.

Although it looks as though he may selfishly be keeping that bright green grub for himself, he's actually trying to lure out the adolescent young birds whose time has come to fledge.

Happy Father's Day

It all starts somewhere.

More Kestrel

More Osprey

Here's our Osprey taking off with his cargo in the old Georgia Pacific lot.

If the Osprey returned again this year to nest in the lot, I was going to name them Georgia and Pacific.

If you click on this photo and look closely, you'll see our Osprey has been banded.

This is a watched bird.

False Hopes for Osprey

Cruising my neighborhood looking for red-tail hawks, I spied this Osprey dipping down into the old Georgia Pacific lot on E. Michigan Avenue, picking something up. My first thought was prey, but soon realized it was picking up sticks. It was a rare sighting and momentarily raised my hopes.

Drawing my camera, I snapped some prime photos as he/she flew almost directly overhead, perhaps checking me out.

I was hoping that it was repairing the nest on the telephone pole across the way for a forthcoming brood. Two Osprey settled in on top of that pole last year and become a local attraction, drawing periodic crowds right off Kings Highway.

But the nest has been vacant all Spring, making it highly unlikely the Osprey would be returning.

My hopes for a late nesting on the pole were dashed when the Osprey flew off in the opposite direction.

I'm guessing it has a nest further up stream, probably near Morrow Pond.

I had a feeling the Osprey would not return this year, or maybe ever, because of the constant onlookers gathering outside the fence only about 50 yards away. The give-away for me were the constant cries from the female, uneasy with the sudden traffic. And well meaning and excited fans thought the fence barrier kept them at a respectable distance. They also couldn't interpret the females anxiety coming from her cries.

What happened was the birds found the old Georgia Pacific lot to be an island of isolation, void of almost any foot traffic. The property was not only fenced off, but a no-man's land ever since the paper mill was razed years ago. Although the chosen telephone pole was next to Kings Highway, people would just drive on by.

Little did the Osprey know that they were setting the stage for a perfect drive-up viewing opportunity, like a drive in movie. Once people started seeing what they thought were eagles nesting right out in the open, cars started pulling over into the old driveway and checking out the widlife. It was perfect for us, but the Osprey's anonymity and isolation was completely blown. Despite all the sudden paparazzi, the Opsrey were committed to the location with three eggs.

The complications of that location were further compounded when a meth bust just east of the lot drew swarms of local media who were let into the old lot at the gate right next to the nest. The media and the gatekeepers were oblivious to the Osprey. The Osprey, however, were stressed.

That same day, a local township officer who'd been keeping an excited and close eye on the birds sadly found two of the fledglings dead at the foot of the pole. He later saw the parents and one successful fledgeling working the Kalamazoo River, which was only twenty yards away from the pole.

Why the two others died is still unclear, but one out of three is still a success story in my book.

I doubt we'll ever have the Osprey back in that zone again, but it was a rare treat for an amazing cross section of people to watch and appreciate. It's also an apt parable for the fleeting nature of good habitat. Urban wildlife, in particular, is always seeking that special zone, often dab smack in the middle of things, where no one ever goes. Then suddenly, a bulldozer enters the picture, or a path might emerge, or in this case, an animal blows it's own cover. Then, it's over.

Falcons

I don't think this bird got as much attention as the yellow headed blackbird that was on a long layover at the Wolf Lake Fish Hatchery last month, but it certainly created a buzz.

It's one of the lesser known falcons - the Merlin. Smaller than the infamous and bulkier Peregrine, and slightly larger than the miniature Kestrel, the Merlin is also known as the pigeon hawk. This was a lifer for me.

There were actually two of them. And eyewitness accounts report attempts at breeding, raising the hopes of a resident pair. Unfortunately, no such luck. Merlins only frequent Michigan during migration and perhaps this inexperienced young couple were suffering from wander-lust.

The neat thing was that they were practicing being a couple and predictably residing in a big fir on the corner of Kenwood and Campbell in the Westwood neighborhood. Two avid bird watchers, Sue Weaver and Tim Tesar, live right across the street and were delighted to find this rare bird right outside their windows.

I was only able to get these so-so pictures on a cloudy evening. When I returned on a clear blue

eve, the birds had moved on, most likely north.

Roughly a week later, driving down East Michigan Avenue, my ever-searching eyes spotted an unfamiliar silhouette perched on a wire in front of Sergeant Energy. Thinking it might be the Merlin, I pulled over, only to spook the bird over towards McKenzie Bakery where I managed to track it down and discover it was another falcon, the Kestrel.

Cool.

He was eyeing the ground for unsuspecting prey. And had it not been for me and my ridiculously large lens aimed at the bird, probably not a soul (except for another birder) would have noticed this animal living among us.

I recently found one of these guys hunting over at the BTR Park just off Parkview Avenue.

Well within their territorial range, Kestrels are relatively common in Michigan, particularly the country. Their signature hunting behavior is to hover in one spot over open country, rapidly beating their wings, as they zero-in on prey, and eventually dive bomb for a kill. You can't mistake it.

More and more common to the city-scape is the Peregrine Falcon, nesting atop sky scrapers and hunting the cliffs and canyons of big cities.

They're spotted periodically in downtown Kalamazoo. I personally witnessed one in town last year, atop the SkyRise building on Burdick Avenue.

It may have been one of the off-spring of the nesting pair in Grand Rapids, or perhaps Detroit, looking for a home. The question is whether Kalamazoo is big enough for a Peregrine. Although I personally like to think of Kalamazoo as a small city, this one time I hope we're "big" enough for a Peregrine.

Perhaps if we're lucky, they'll build a nest on Peregrine Towers, down on the Kalamazoo Mall.

Tallamy DVD's Have Arrived!

If you've ever been up in a jet, flying over the land, looking down on the patchwork quilt of crazyness down below, and wondered what on Earth is this doing to wildlife and habitat, then you need to see this video.

GARDENING FOR LIFE is a DVD of a presentation by Douglas Tallamy, award winning author of Bringing Nature Home, on how we can actually play a part in the restoration of habitat for insects, birds and wildlife by gardening with native plants. It's nothing short of a micro-revolution in landscaping.

The Wild Ones of Kalamazoo contracted HorsePower Pictures to document Tallamy's presentation at an all day conference produced by Wild Ones at the Kalamazoo Nature Center in 2008. The DVD includes the panel discussion that followed Tallamy's presentation. The panel features Steve Malcolm, chemical ecologist at Western Michigan University, Tracey Kast from Kellogg Biological Station, and Tom & Nancy Small of the Kalamazoo Area Wild Ones.

"Douglas Tallamy maintains that our nation lacks enough habitat to support its present diversity of native plants and animals. If we want to preserve our wildlife we must change the way we landscape our yards. We must replace our vast lawns and non-native ornamentals with the native plants that plant-eating insects such as caterpillars greatly prefer. Why? Because these insects perform the crucial task of transferring the sun’s energy up the food web to other creatures, including birds.

In GARDENING FOR LIFE, Tallamy brings his funny, informative and engaging power-point presentation to a Southwest Michigan audience. Whether you’re a novice or veteran to native gardening, GARDENING FOR LIFE is sure to enlighten and inspire."

If you're interested in a copy of the DVD, contact the Kalamazoo Chapter of Wild Ones. The video will also be broadcast on Public Media Network in the Fall of 2010.

That Which is Rare is Exotic

This is a bird that sent tremors throughout the Southern Michigan rare bird alerts.

If you look at a range map for the yellow headed blackbird, you'll see that Michigan doesn't seem to suit their fancy. They just don't venture over this way. So why exactly this wayward male braved it's way over to the Wolf Lake Fish Hatchery on M43, will forever remain a mystery.

But aren't we lucky.

There is something tropical about this bird. Something that rekindles an expanding sense of awe for the fauna of North America. Something that reminds me that what we have here in the U.S. is equally as compelling as anywhere else in the world. No need to venture to the tropics; no need to go on a safari to Africa (although I wouldn't pass either one of those up if I had the chance). The splendor of it all is right here in the palm of the planet: Michigan - especially when we're lucky enough to have a "stranger" come to town.