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WINTER
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
by KAT
FARRES
Here
a Bird, There a Bird,
EVERYWHERE
A NEW BIRD!!!
Yes,
migrants are coming through the plains area like crazy.
Waves of warblers are being reported, and the T. Rex of the
bird world, the Eastern
Kingbird, along with his relatives, the Western Kingbird and Scissor-tailed
Flycatchers are here now to eat bugs!
Brown Thrashers are
also showing up in numbers.
Lay
in a supply of grape jelly. Baltimore
Orioles are back, along with Gray
Catbirds. Sparrows of all sorts, including Lark, White-crowned, White-throated, Lincoln and Harris are being
seen around town and in the County.
Upland Sandpipers and
Common Nighthawks are
arriving daily.
Look
closely at large nests, and you just might see a baby Great Horned Owl peeking over the top at you!
Also, the Red-tailed Hawks are nesting now.
We have some Eastern
Bluebirds nesting at The Pond, and we’ve seen numerous Purple
Martins and Tree
Swallows out there too.
One night we had Tree,
Barn, and Northern Rough-winged Swallows all on the same fence line.
Some
lucky people have been seeing
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds too.
Time
to also consider doing some planting to attract those “flying
flowers” aka butterflies, which in turn feed the birds.
Parsley, fennel and dill will attract Swallowtail
Butterflies and also Monarchs, which lay their eggs on these types
of plants.
Summer
is a good time to introduce young people to the wonders of
critters and birds.
Numbers are up, so attracting birds is easier and they are
easier to see and ID.
Remember, that “boring old robin” is fascinating to a
kid to watch as it works over the yard for worms.
Encourage them to watch, explore, and with supervision,
examine things up close.
With their superior eyes, they oftentimes see things us
“older- eyed” people miss and you can share the experience,
along with a little education.
They are the future…..and an investment in kid-sized
binoculars will pay off!
Along
with summer comes baby birds and other critters who appear
abandoned…….most times they are not, and if left alone, mom
and dad will come back to care for their young.
However, if you find an injured critter, Lakewood Discovery
Center (under Salina - Parks & Recreation Dept. in the phone
book) is the place to call or take things like that.
They have an “in” with a local vet who will work on
wild things.
We recently picked up an injured Franklin’s Gull and took
it to Lakewood.
If
you have a critter emergency “after hours” you can try
to catch me at home though and I will do my best to help you out.
785-825-4247 days or 785-825-8172 evenings.
Take
care and have a WONDERFILLED summer!
Kat
and the OZ Birdwatching BelgianZ
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