edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com (Ed Matthews) (07/16/90)
Some interesting things I've seen recently: While I was wading the James River in the middle of Richmond, VA (the capital) fishing for smallmouth bass, an OSPREY dove into the water not fifty feet from me and grabbed a large carp. The osprey got the biggest fish of the day. Wonderful how it circled very gracefully, barely flapping, then suddenly folded its wings and plummeted into the water -- disappeared from view momentarily. ------ A visit to Huntley Meadows County Park this past rainy Saturday (14 July - Bastille Day) was slow, but rewarding in several regards: YELLOW CROWNED NIGHT HERONS were everywhere in all stages of plumage. I saw at least 5 five adults, 2 second year birds, and a first year bird. All birds were within 15 yards of me. Peterson only shows the plumage on the first year birds; the second years lose the spots. Many birds side by side for easy comparison from the boardwalk. Feeding heavily on the abundant crawfish. The place was crawling with GREEN HERONs and I was able to get within ten feet of the normally skittish GREAT BLUE HERON. Excellent views of a young but very large, warm brown, AMERICAN BITTERN on a beaver dam. RED WING BLACKBIRD female trying to eat a praying mantis as big as she was while keeping off a swarm off young birds. Two skulkers were out in the rain for good viewing: RED-EYED VIREO and YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO. Also two immature, very downy GRAY CATBIRDs fighting loudly and flittering up into the air while wrestling with each other. Five BELTED KINGFISHERS were out and about and the males were busily and noisily chasing each other about. While watching two RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS working the trumpet vines, a snake at my feet caught my eye, especially when it slithered between the legs of an immature VIRGINIA RAIL no more than two feet from me. The rail seemed unconcerned that I was there and proceeded to have a bath and preen itself. EASTERN KINGBIRDS are nesting right off the boardwalk, a little late now. The ACADIAN FLYCATCHERs, our only breeding Empidonax, are off the nest now and weren't visible. The nest is a beautiful cup of woven marsh grasses about 2 1/3 - 3 inches in diameter suspended from the bottom of a beech limb over one of the paths through the park. Several EASTERN PEEWEEs were finding good morning meals out on the marsh despite the rain. Saw a doe with two small fawns and an EASTERN PHOEBE picking bugs off the doe's back. The abundant BLUE GRAY GNATCATCHERs had oodles of young and were quite noisily feeding them. Other birds of interest were a RED SHOULDERED HAWK and COMMON YELLOWTHROAT. If you're in the DC area, a quick visit to Huntley Meadows and a trip through the marsh on the boardwalk is in order. ------ A quick trip this weekend to see how the local BALD EAGLEs are doing was very rewarding. We quickly spotted both adults and both youngsters. One of the adults flew up to a tree within seventy-five yards of us. They usually stay a couple hundred yards away. Both the young baldies are showing a fair amount of white at the base of the neck and while one is very dark underneath the other resembles a spotted skunk underneath. Both of the young eagles are on their own and are staying away from the parents which we caught sitting right next to each other on the same branch. They were shoulder to shoulder. Would have made a fabulous photo if they weren't three hundred yards away. ------ From the homefront, the pair of RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS that frequent my salvia and coral bells were caught in the act of procreation while on the wing over the salvia around my patio. This is really late in the year -- maybe they're working on brood number two. The female hummer really likes her perch on top of a small white pine and so does the dominant male AMERICAN GOLDFINCH. Was quite a sight to see the tiny (much smaller than the male) female hummer poke the goldfinch in the rump until he left her perch. The second brood of HOUSE SPARROWS has fledged -- I'm afraid that we're in for round number three. They've already taken all the EASTERN BLUEBIRD nesting sites. The bluebirds have moved out to the fields around the drainage ponds. ------ Lifer for me Sunday on the C&O canal along the Potomac River was LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH. -- Ed Matthews edm@verdix.com Verdix Corporation Headquarters (703) 378-7600 Chantilly, Virginia
mjm@oliven.olivetti.com (Michael Mammoser) (07/20/90)
In article <35577@vrdxhq.verdix.com>, edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com (Ed Matthews) writes: > From the homefront, the pair of RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS that frequent my > salvia and coral bells were caught in the act of procreation while on the > wing over the salvia around my patio. You may want to carefully document this incident. If I'm not mistaken, the currently accepted ornithological theory is that copulating on the wing is unique to the swifts. A well-documented case of its occurrence in another family might be of scientific interest. Mike
wvenable@spam.ua.oz (Bill Venables) (07/21/90)
In article <62571@oliveb.atc.olivetti.com> mjm@oliven.olivetti.com (Michael Mammoser) writes: |In article <35577@vrdxhq.verdix.com>, edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com |(Ed Matthews) writes: |> From the homefront, the pair of RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS that frequent my |> salvia and coral bells were caught in the act of procreation while on the |> wing over the salvia around my patio. | |You may want to document this incident carefully. If I'm |not mistaken, the currently accepted ornithological theory is that |copulating on the wing is unique to the swifts. A well-documented |case of its occurrence in another family might be of scientific |interest. ..especially since the swift and hummingbird families are usually placed in the same order. You would want to be very sure, though, that it was indeed copulation and not something else, like aggression. What do the members of the AOU have to say? -- Bill Venables, Dept. Statistics, | Email: wvenable@spam.ua.oz.au Univ. of Adelaide, South Australia. | Phone: +61 8 228 5412
edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com (Ed Matthews) (07/23/90)
In article <347@spam.ua.oz> wvenable@spam.ua.oz (Bill Venables) writes: >In article <62571@oliveb.atc.olivetti.com> mjm@oliven.olivetti.com >(Michael Mammoser) writes: >|In article <35577@vrdxhq.verdix.com>, edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com >|(Ed Matthews) writes: >| >|> From the homefront, the pair of RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS that frequent my >|> salvia and coral bells were caught in the act of procreation while on the >|> wing over the salvia around my patio. >|You may want to document this incident carefully. If I'm >|not mistaken, the currently accepted ornithological theory is that >|copulating on the wing is unique to the swifts. A well-documented >|case of its occurrence in another family might be of scientific >|interest. > >..especially since the swift and hummingbird families are usually >placed in the same order. You would want to be very sure, though, >that it was indeed copulation and not something else, like aggression. I'm not sure how one documents such an act, but I'm satisfied that it was an act of copulation. Here's what I saw: The male and female, both facing me, were buzzing over the salvia when the male moved over the female from the left and slightly behind. The male was riding lightly on the female, both beating their wings. They stayed like this, moving slightly to and fro for perhaps two to three seconds. I didn't conclude that this was an act of aggression. When these guys want to be aggressive, they go in beak first. They flew off into the trees afterwards. . . . . . . . . -- Ed Matthews edm@verdix.com Verdix Corporation Headquarters (703) 378-7600 Chantilly, Virginia
mjm@oliven.olivetti.com (Michael Mammoser) (08/01/90)
In article <36065@vrdxhq.verdix.com>, edm@vrdxhq.verdix.com (Ed Matthews) writes: > I'm not sure how one documents such an act, but I'm satisfied that it was an > act of copulation. > > Here's what I saw: The male and female, both facing me, were > buzzing over the salvia when the male moved over the female from the left > and slightly behind. The male was riding lightly on the female, both > beating their wings. They stayed like this, moving slightly to and fro for > perhaps two to three seconds. I didn't conclude that this was an act of > aggression. When these guys want to be aggressive, they go in beak first. > They flew off into the trees afterwards. Here are some references that I found on the subject: THE BIRDER'S HANDBOOK "If copulation is observed in the field, the habitat, time of day, position used, duration, and any associated behavior should be recorded." "Onithologists think all swifts are aerial maters. In fact, they assume that swifts are the only birds that do so on the wing. But they cannot be certain of either point... That's why the authoritative Dictionary of Birds says, 'swifts are apparently unique in copulating in the air.' " This passage states the point that I made originally and introduces the uncertainty that would make an observation of its occurance in another family of some interest. Then: HUMMINGBIRDS, THEIR LIFE AND BEHAVIOR "Nonetheless, copulation probably takes three to five seconds and occurs with the male mounting the back of the perched female..." This was a statement about hummingbirds in general, and seems to indicate a lack of mid air mating. However... LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN HUMMINGBIRDS "When first observed, the birds were playfully chasing each other about and suddenly swooped down to within about eighteen inches of the ground where the leading bird, which proved to be the female, stopped and faced about. The male approached and the mating was consummated in the air, the birds breast to breast and with the male somewhat under the female." This observation was made by Leroy Arnold in 1930 of a pair of Anna's Hummingbirds. Has it since been discredited? But... ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS "...copulation may be in the air, reported of a pair of Rufous Hummingbirds in flight and of a pair of Anna's Hummingbirds..." Is the reference to Anna's Hummingbirds the same as the one above? Perhaps. It seems that there is some evidence of aerial copulation in birds other than swifts (at least in hummingbirds). But it also seems that it is darn infrequent, as evidenced by the fact that there are only two references in the encyclopedia. Additional observations of aerial mating in hummingbirds may be of great interest to the ornithological community. Mike