Mockingbird and Barn Swallow fledged - Benton - Unity Rd

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AMF

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Jul 19, 2023, 11:22:31 AM7/19/23
to Maine Birds
Greetings lovers of birds,

I have had the pleasure of listening to a mockingbird sing for hours the
last week.  This is the first mockingbird I have seen in Benton at my
farm.  Global Warming??

We had a large number (>30) of barn swallows jetting around this
morning.  The baby birds from a number of nests must have fledged the
last few days.   The barn swallows have nests in the carriage house,
barn and shed.  They are a delight to watch and listen to as they
chatter to each other as they circle around between the house, carriage
and barn.  I noticed a large number of barn swallows flying around the
field yesterday scooping up bugs and landing on the grass not cut
because it has been so wet.

Allan

chr...@myfairpoint.net

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Jul 19, 2023, 1:03:18 PM7/19/23
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Mockingbirds have been in central Maine for decades.  We used to get more of them on the Waterville Xmas count in the past than we do now.  There were 2 along the River Road in Benton for several weeks in April and May, right near where Wyman Road intersects.  They  nest in at least one of the cemeteries in Skowhegan, and have for years.  And I have a suspicion that they're nesting along the river in downtown Waterville.  I had one in Aroostook County 40 years ago, along with one in New Brunswick during the same time period.

So, no, it has nothing to do with "global warming."

Wally S.

Jennifer Miller

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Jul 19, 2023, 2:23:16 PM7/19/23
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The earth’s average temperature has been slowly rising since the 1800’s. You can’t rule out global warming because of a few of decades. 

Jennifer 

Jennifer Miller
Lubbock, TX

(o,o)
 /)_)
  " "

Blog: 

On Jul 19, 2023, at 12:03 PM, chr...@myfairpoint.net wrote:



Ian Lynch

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Jul 19, 2023, 2:33:22 PM7/19/23
to chr...@myfairpoint.net, maine...@googlegroups.com
If the Mockingbirds are not nesting at Head of Falls, they are just jerks since they are so aggressive when you walk by certain trees :) There is also almost always one in the area of Pleasant and Main Street, which may be the one I occasionally hear from my home on Heath St. While not quite common, Mockingbirds seem to be firmly established in the area.

Peace שָׁלוֹם سلام

Ian
he/him/his


To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/maine-birds/1689786194.9792rzpcr4cos0oc%40webmail.myfairpoint.net.

chr...@myfairpoint.net

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Jul 19, 2023, 2:43:16 PM7/19/23
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My point was that the presence of Mockingbirds has nothing to do with climate change, since they've been  present since before the "global warming" hysteria began, like back when Congress was holding hearings on the upcoming ice age.  Mockingbirds can handle cold weather.  The one I first observed in Northern New Brunswick 40 years ago was in the middle of a harsh winter.

Wally S.

Charles Duncan

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Jul 19, 2023, 4:35:10 PM7/19/23
to chr...@myfairpoint.net, maine-birds Google Groups, Phil Hoose
Perhaps these two outtakes from Vickery, P. 2020, The Birds of Maine, will give some context about NOMO’s in Maine:

--------------------

HISTORICAL STATUS:

Knight [1908] considered most Northern Mockingbird reports from ME likely to be escaped cage birds, despite the fact that the species bred, at least occasionally, in MA in the late 19th century (Griscom and Snyder 1955). Knight did consider a mockingbird in Portland Jan–Feb 1897 a likely natural vagrant. 

Palmer (1949, 406) rejected the escaped cage bird theory, reporting that this species was “resident, of regular, though rare and local occurrence.” He further noted there were >80 records from 1871–1947, with at least three nesting records: Leeds, Androscoggin Co., 1885; Bangor in 1930; and Corinna, Penobscot Co., in 1944. Interestingly, though probably a matter of inadequate reporting, there were apparently no observations of nesting in southern Maine at this time. Wright (1921) documented an increase in mockingbirds along the northern edge of the range in ME, n. New England, and Maritime Provinces in 1900–1920. 

————————————
And this, analysis of more recent data:
——————————————

While I’m at it, let me plug prize-winning Portland author Phillip Hoose’s newest: “Duet: Our Journey in Song with the Northern Mockingbird.”  Hoose talks extensively about mockingbirds being kept as cage birds for the beauty of their songs, something I never knew before.

Good birding to all!

—Charles

Charles D. Duncan
76 Emery Street
Portland, Maine 04102, USA



chr...@myfairpoint.net

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Jul 19, 2023, 7:14:22 PM7/19/23
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A fantastic book!  Every serious Maine birder should have one.

Thanks for posting that info.

I do miss Peter, though . . .


Wally S.

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AMF

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Jul 19, 2023, 8:01:38 PM7/19/23
to Julia Hanauer-Milne, Maine Birds List Serve
Hi Julia and others,

Thanks for all the comments and info about mockingbirds.  I saw a mockingbird along the roads in Tidebrook Preserve in the spring.  That is the first one I think I saw in Maine.  My mockingbird sure looks and sounds like he is seeking a mate.  He is doing a little dance of shooting up about 20 feet and fluttering down to the roof peak flashing his feathers. 

Allan


On 7/19/2023 12:49 PM, Julia Hanauer-Milne wrote:
I meant to say that we had a mockingbird stop by here for the very first time this year-- in Sidney.

On Wed, Jul 19, 2023 at 12:49 PM Julia Hanauer-Milne <windyri...@gmail.com> wrote:
I always enjoy your reports about the birds at your place. The barn swallows near me are on the same schedule. I noticed all the fledgies wobbling on their new wings or begging from the electric wires today. 


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Raven Watcher

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Jul 21, 2023, 1:53:25 PM7/21/23
to Maine Birds
I see them only or mainly  where there is multiflora rise which freezes to the ground at about -20. That used to prohibit blooms and fruit bearing because they bear on two year sprouts. This kept them in very southern Maine or urban warm spots. Now they are able to thrive in a far greater area. 
Dan Nickerson

On Wed, Jul 19, 2023 at 1:03 PM <chr...@myfairpoint.net> wrote:
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Dan's Natural History Blog:
Ravenwatcher
"An Eye on the Natural World"
http://ravenwatcher.blogspot.com
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