Author Archives: Margo Mercer

Have You Seen a Pine Warbler?

Posted on February 16, 2017 by Margo Mercer

Pine Warbler © Andy Morffew

“The Pine Warbler is the gentle, modest minstrel of the pines…Its sweet monotonous song harmonizes well with the sighing of the summer wind through the branches, while shimmering heat-waves rise from the sandy soil.”—Edward Howe Forbush, 1929

As its name suggests, the Pine Warbler typically shuns deciduous woods or high-altitude stands of spruce and fir. Rather, it goes where the pines are, and pre-Colombian Massachusetts certainly had plenty of pines. Tall White Pines, intermixed with resinous Red Pines, covered large portions of the state. Gnarled but venerable Pitch Pines dominated the sandy forests of Cape Cod and the Islands. Of course, after the arrival of colonists, homes and farms sprang up as the trees went down. Even as acres upon acres of pine forest disappeared across the state, Pine Warblers persisted for many years on Cape Cod.

Trend in Massachusetts

The Pine Warbler has had extraordinary success in Massachusetts since our first Breeding Bird Atlas in the late 1970s. Pine Warblers persisted on the Cape and significantly increased in almost all of the rest of the state. The Breeding Bird Survey also indicates an increasing population of this short-distance migrant.

Pine Warbler change in presence between Breeding Bird Atlas 1 and Atlas 2.

Did You Know?

Pine Warblers are one of two warbler species that regularly stick around in Massachusetts in the winter. They can often be seen at suet feeders, so keep an eye out!

Attend our Birders Meeting on March 19 to learn more about warblers.

Please consider supporting our bird conservation work by making a donation today. Thank you!

Did You Know? The Ovenbird is a Warbler!

Posted on February 9, 2017 by Margo Mercer

Ovenbird ©John Harrison

“Among them all, the most common and conspicuous was the Oven-bird. Its staccato song with its crescendo ending rang through the woods, seemingly the loudest of them all, and when I saw the pretty bird walking with its alert air along a log, putting its little head forward at each dainty step in a manner of a diminutive chicken, I was utterly captivated.”—Edward Howe Forbush, 1929

Though it looks and sometimes acts like a spotted thrush, the Ovenbird is a warbler. Its loud and oft-repeated call is a familiar backdrop in the spring woods, and, where many males all sing in close proximity, the din can be impressive. Like other birds of mature mixed forest, Ovenbirds were likely plentiful in the time before European ships landed on the shores of the “New World.”

As the forests began to fall before the fire and axes of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the majority of Ovenbirds retreated to the remaining forests of the western part of the state until the widespread agricultural period was over. As large areas of contiguous mature forest have gradually returned, Ovenbirds have been quick to recolonize them.

Habitat

Ovenbirds build their oven-shaped nests in mature forests.

Ovenbird nest

Trend in Massachusetts

Like the Prairie Warbler we posted about last week, the Ovenbird is what we refer to as a “whispering bird”, because it’s breeding footprint in Massachusetts (according to our Breeding Bird Atlas 2) is stable or increasing, but the Breeding Bird Survey is showing significant declines for the species in the state.

Fun Fact

Ovenbirds will often sing together with their neighbors, though they do not sing as a chorus. One male will sing, followed shortly thereafter by another male without overlap between the two. They may repeat their successive songs up to 40 times.

Attend our Birders Meeting on March 19 to learn more about warblers.

Please consider supporting our bird conservation work by making a donation today. Thank you!

Who Was Edward Howe Forbush?

Posted on February 7, 2017 by Margo Mercer

In ornithology, as in most disciplines, there are inevitably “giants” whose profiles stand taller than those of their peers. Such a figure was Edward Howe Forbush, a prominent Massachusetts ornithologist living from 1858–1929.

Born in Quincy, most of Forbush’s adult life was spent in Worcester in the county that today hosts a bird club bearing his name. Once established in Worcester, at the early age of 16 he was appointed Curator of Ornithology at the Worcester Natural History Society.

By the turn of the 20th century, Forbush’s awareness and passion for the developing need for increased bird protection resulted in his appointment as Ornithologist to the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture, where his duties included determining which bird species at that time were deemed detrimental or beneficial to agriculture. By 1896 he became one of the founders and supporters of the Massachusetts Audubon Society, and in 1908 he was named the first Massachusetts State Ornithologist.

As a lifelong champion of bird protection, Forbush ultimately undertook the project for which he is best known today: the publication of Birds of Massachusetts and Other New England States (1925-1929), a spectacular three-volume set of books magnificently illustrated by artist luminaries Louis Agassiz Fuertes and Major Allan Brooks. In addition to their famous collection of paintings, the species accounts and accompanying essays about the birds in these books are still considered among the best ever compiled on the birds of Massachusetts.

Sadly Forbush never lived to personally complete his magnum opus, yet his many essays and species accounts about birds will forever linger on as richly informational and engaging accounts of the bird species found in the Commonwealth today. The world lost a true hero and a giant in the bird conservation movement with the passing of Edward Howe Forbush.

To get a glimpse of his essays on birds, look for our Warbler of the Week postings, which feature a quote from Forbush for each bird.

Can you spot the grey morph of the Screech Owl in the below Fuertes watercolor?

©Louis Agassiz Fuertes – Plate 47 of Birds of Massachusetts and Other New England States: Hawk Owl, Screech Owl, Richardson’s Owl, Saw-whet Owl.

Please consider supporting our bird conservation work by making a donation today. Thank you!

Meet the Prairie Warbler

Posted on February 3, 2017 by Margo Mercer

“The handsome little Prairie Warbler is remarkable only for its song. Dr. Elliott Coues likens this to the ‘plaint of a mouse with a toothache,’ because of its thin wiry quality.”—Edward Howe Forbush, 1929

Natives of more western states than Massachusetts might scoff at the scrubby clearings that we Easterners call “prairies,” but such areas provide perfect habitat for the Prairie Warbler. This species abhors forests, and breeds in shrubby clearings and only the most open woodlands. Both human-caused and natural disturbances have created plenty of Prairie Warbler breeding habitat in the Commonwealth over the past several centuries. However, as forests reassert themselves, Prairie Warblers stand to lose habitat as a result of this natural succession.

Though Forbush complimented the Prairie Warbler only on its song, our own Wayne Petersen, Director of Important Bird Areas, favors this “spectacled” warbler for both its song and its looks.

In addition, Wayne believes that the Prairie Warbler is a good “signature” bird for Massachusetts because we have some outstanding habitat for it on Cape Cod, in southeastern Massachusetts, and along many powerlines throughout the state.

Habitat

The Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor) breeds in early successional habitats in the eastern U.S.

Trend in Massachusetts

The Prairie Warbler is what we refer to as a “whispering bird”, because it’s breeding footprint in Massachusetts (according to our Breeding Bird Atlas 2) is stable or increasing, but the Breeding Bird Survey is showing significant declines for the species in the state.

Did you know?

Male Prairie Warblers sing two different—though similar-sounding—songs during the breeding season. He sings one song, the faster of the two, to serenade his mate in courtship and strengthen their pair bond. The other, he sings to declare to other rivaling males that his territory is claimed.

Check out the updated Bobolink Project website!

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Margo Mercer

Hi all,

We are pleased to announce that we have finished updating our website for the coming 2017 Bobolink Project season. Check out the new information at www.bobolinkproject.com. The farmer applications are live and donations are very welcome.

We will be accepting farmer applications until March 20.

IMPORTANT: We have changed some of the criteria for eligible farms and clarified a few other things so we highly recommend that you thoroughly read through the For Farmers page.

We also encourage donors to donate before April 1 when we will begin selecting farms for the program. The reason why only donations before April 1, 2017 will be applied to the 2017 season is because the number of farms and which farms we accept into the program depend wholly on how many donations we have pooled up to that deciding date when we start creating the contracts. Any donations that come in after April 1 will be saved for the following 2018 season.

We are looking forward to a new season of The Bobolink Project!

Warbler of the Week

Posted on January 27, 2017 by Margo Mercer

Hi all,

In anticipation of our warbler-themed Birders Meeting, we’ll be posting about a featured warbler species every week.

This week’s warbler is…

Black-and-white warbler (Mniotilta varia)

“In the last days of April or in early May, when the buds on deciduous trees are swelling and when tiny, light green leaflets appear on the shrubbery, in sheltered sunny spots we may find a little black and white striped bird hopping along the lower limbs in the woodlands, turning this way and that, searching over the branches from one side to the other, often head downward, closely scanning the bark, silently gleaning the insect enemies of the trees. This is the Black and White Warbler.” – Edward Howe Forbush, 1929

Breeding habitat: partially open mature or second-growth hardwood and mixed forests.

Most warblers are in constant motion, hopping from branch to branch in their search for invertebrates to eat, which makes identifying many species by their behavior alone usually quite difficult. The black-and-white warbler stands apart from its fellows since it forages by creeping along the bark and larger branches of trees, much like a nuthatch. Although the black-and-white warbler remains widespread in Massachusetts, it is beginning to show the first signs of decline. Check out our Breeding Bird Atlas 2 account for more information on this warbler in MA.

The biggest threat to black-and-white warblers is fragmentation of its forested habitat. When forest patches become more and more fragmented there is increased incidence of “edge effects” such as increased chance of predation, brood parasitism by the brown-headed cowbird, and disturbance. “As nocturnal migrants, Black-and-white Warblers are a frequent victim of collisions with glass, towers, and wind turbines; as insectivores, they are vulnerable to pesticide poisoning.” (American Bird Conservancy)

New Director of Bird Conservation: Jon Atwood

Posted on January 25, 2017 by Margo Mercer

We are very pleased to announce the appointment of Jon Atwood as our new Director of Bird Conservation. Jon joined Mass Audubon as our Bird Conservation Fellow for grassland birds in 2014, and we were lucky to land him.

Jon received his Ph.D. from UCLA and has been a practicing ornithologist and conservation biologist for 30 years, specializing in integrating behavioral studies of rare and endangered bird species with habitat conservation planning.

While working at Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences during the early 1990’s he collaborated in the analysis of the first 30 years of Manomet’s landbird banding effort, and spearheaded federal protection of the California Gnatcatcher under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. From 1998-2011 he directed the Conservation Biology Program at Antioch University, New England, teaching classes in Ornithology, Ecological Research Design, and GIS, and mentoring over 70 graduate students working on various wildlife studies. During 2011-2013 he worked as Science Director at Biodiversity Research Institute in southern Maine.

As a Bird Conservation Fellow, Jon has focused on grassland birds, one of the most-rapidly declining groups identified in our State of the Birds reports. Jon led a review of grassland management on the sanctuaries, transitioned the Bobolink Project from an academic experiment to a dedicated bird conservation program, and co-authored our booklet on Best Management Practices for Nesting Grassland Birds. In addition to that work, he has made important contributions to our upcoming State of the Birds report focused on climate change and to analysis of Coastal Waterbirds Program data.

In his new role, Jon will be responsible for setting the overall direction of our bird conservation program, continuing the current momentum on State of the Birds recommendations, leading the bird-related priorities of the Strategic Plan 2020 and the Master Plan for Conservation Science, and identifying and pursuing partnerships and funding opportunities to advance our work.

New RCPP Grant Will Help Protect Southern NE Heritage Forest

Posted on January 23, 2017 by Margo Mercer

As we celebrated the holidays with fellow Mass Audubon staff, Jeff Collins received an email announcing that a large Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) grant that our team and partners applied for had been approved!

About $6.1 million will be used to protect and manage forests in the Southern New England Heritage Forest. The area is bounded by Hartford and Springfield in the west, Providence in the east, and runs from the Long Island sound north to the Quabbin reservoir. This region contains a critically important continuous corridor of high-priority forested wildlife habitat.

Over 70% of these woodlands are privately owned, so this grant will focus on engaging

landowners and helping them maintain their forests as forests through sound management and— whenever possible—permanent protection.

Mass Audubon’s role in this grant is to assist project partners’ efforts by providing bird habitat recommendations for forest management plans, training more technical service providers (TSPs) to incorporate birds in their work, increasing TSP registration numbers, and conducting wildlife monitoring on managed sites. Our team will also teach landowners about bird-friendly forest management.

The project will begin in the spring of 2018 and run for five years.

The Bobolink Project 2017 Season Is Ramping Up

Posted on January 19, 2017 by Margo Mercer

The Bobolinks are starting to plan their trip back north and we’re busily working to welcome them home by ensuring we conserve as many acres of grassland habitat as we can.

As many of you already know, The Bobolink Project is an innovative solution to a complicated problem. We use donated dollars to give farmers the financial assistance they need to protect grassland birds on their hay fields. We were thrilled with the success of the project under its new leadership of Mass Audubon and partners in 2016, and know that we can do even better this year!

Last year we raised about $42,000 that enabled us to help farmers protect over 500 acres. Based on past data, we estimate that our Bobolinks raised 450 young on those acres. That’s 450 more Bobolinks than would likely have existed had The Bobolink Project not been in existence! We thank you for your help in that.

The more donations The Bobolink Project receives, the greater the number of Bobolinks and other grassland birds we can protect and help fledge. Only with your help can we use this innovative solution to directly and effectively conserve grassland birds.

Please make a donation before April 1, when we will start enrolling the farms in the program.

Breeding Bird Surveys going strong on Mass Audubon Sanctuaries

Posted on November 15, 2016 by Margo Mercer

People have been observing and counting birds at Mass Audubon sanctuaries for as long as these properties have existed. In order to provide a focus for these observations and to insure that data are collected in a similar fashion, Mass Audubon initiated a program of breeding bird surveys on our sanctuaries in 2004 and has been carrying out these surveys ever since. We use standard point count methodology where observers stand in the middle of a 50 meter (forests) or 100 meter (salt marsh, grasslands) radius circle for 10 minutes three times in June and record all the birds they see or hear. The goal of the program is to track the birds that occur on our sanctuaries during the breeding season, determine the habitat characteristics that support different species of birds, evaluate the impact of any ecological management, and examine long term trends, such as those that might be caused by climate change. Since 2004 staff and volunteers have logged over 30,000 records of birds in 315 counting circles on 48 sanctuaries. We typically carry out surveys at each sanctuary for three years every ten years, but at a number of sanctuaries, enthusiastic staff and volunteers have made observations every year.

We have recorded 149 species of birds during these breeding bird surveys of which 25 are considered conservation priorities. Sanctuaries harboring the most of these high priority conservation species are Allens Pond, Wellfleet Bay, and Ipswich River. Not surprisingly, sanctuaries in central and western Massachusetts, such as Pleasant Valley, Wachusett Meadow, and Rutland Brook and are notable for the number of wood warblers and other species associated with forest interiors that have been recorded in these sanctuaries. Vegetation data we have collected on our counting circles have shown that many of these wood warblers species have an affinity for forests containing a high percentage of evergreens.

The breeding bird surveys will enable us to track changes in a number of birds that are conservation priorities. Salt marsh sparrows are considered vulnerable to the effects of sea level rise associated with climate change. After ten years of monitoring, the numbers of

Saltmarsh Sparrow by John Sill

saltmarsh sparrows seems to be holding its own at Allen’s Pond and Rough Meadows wildlife sanctuaries. Data from other surveys carried out over a longer time period indicate a steady decline region-wide, so it is important for us to continue these surveys on our sanctuaries. We are also tracking the responses of bobolinks to ecological management measures that create improved grassland habitats at Daniel Webster and Drumlin Farm. Neotropical migrants whose numbers are declining nationally, such as wood thrushes are also priorities for our monitoring. As permanently protected lands, the sanctuaries at Mass Audubon enable us to evaluate changes in the populations of these and other birds over long periods of time and allow us to take actions that will serve to maintain and enhance their populations in the future.