Journal Entry #2
Time: 5:00 pm
Date: Tuesday 5 March, 2019
Location: Lone Rock Point, Burlington, VT
Weather: Cold at dusk, low to medium wind speeds, about 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Light snow started at 6:15
Habitat: Mixed hardwood and softwood forest. Some human-developed areas with buildings and roads and many trail systems. Parts of Lone Rock are on the cliff face looking out onto Lake Champlain. Other parts are sloped and heavily wooded. Some areas are flat and meadow-like with small stands of softwoods. Some invasive species occupying much of the understory in areas.
Narrative: The paths were slick with ice, the wind got stronger, and snow started to fall at an angle onto my face and hands as I stood as still as I could 20 meters from a thick grouping of evergreen trees in the middle of a meadow. I thought I heard the sounds of a Northern Cardinal from within its branches, and I was pretty sure trees in that kind of formation would be great for a resident bird in the winter, but I was not seeing any sign of movement.
I kept peering in between the branches, debating whether or not I should get closer (the snow was very crusty and every step was accompanied by a big crunching sound, and the bird might have been hiding from me anyway). I started looking around and noticing the little orange shells of oriental bittersweet berries on the top of the snow and even a big bunch of bright red berries within the patch where I thought the Northern Cardinal might be. It felt like it was getting colder, windier, and snowier with every minute passing, and my hands felt frozen solid, but I thought I heard the songs getting louder and maybe closer.
I finally saw one Northern Cardinal burst between two stems within the patch and disappear behind a tree again. I felt satisfied with the spotting and looked up and behind me into the larger and taller trees beyond the meadow I was standing in. Almost immediately, I saw two Northern Cardinals hopping among the branches and fly quickly out of the tops of the trees and away from the meadow. I stood as quietly as I could and listened all around me. There were soft cheer, cheer, cheers all around me. I knew, at this dusk hour, the cardinals might be settling down for the night and their bright red colors would be come more and more obscured by the darkness setting in around me, so I settled with the three sightings and the songs from all around before I turned back down the path to go home.
Physiology journal:
Northern Cardinals buff out their feathers to conserve heat. The one I saw was also taking cover in a well-protected clump of trees, where the wind is low and the exposure to the cold might be minimized. I also noticed it in a patch that looked like it was abundant with berries. Even though oriental bittersweet might not be the preferred food of cardinals, it might be the best option as winter is coming to a close. Cardinals mostly eat seeds and fruit, but these resources might be compromised at this time of year. Northern Cardinals frequent bird feeders, so maybe they get most of their food from feeders in the human developed parts just outside the bounds of Lone Rock Point. I read that this species flocks more commonly in the winter, so maybe all the individuals I heard were calling to one another to come to their common overnight resting spot.
Mini Activity: (this was a table but it did not copy correctly)
Species Number of Holes Size distribution When whacked?
Red pine ~10 holes 2 large (15 cm) and rest small Nothing
Arborvitae 3-5 holes All small Nothing
Red oak ~4 holes All small Nothing
The relationship between snag size and cavity size was not noticeably correlated, but the arborvitae was small and thus, the cavity holes were small. The red oak was pretty large, but the holes were all small. The red pine was very large and there were 2 large holes, but the rest were small. Bird abundance was low around the cavities I saw and there were no animals poking their heads out when I hit the snags with a stick. Snags are important because species can nest in them without being exposed to harsh winds and can probably maintain their body heat a lot more efficiently. Some species that are likely to use them are woodpeckers and Tufted Titmice.
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