Mike Stiles
Contact Mike
Photo by Scottie of RampantScotland.com
Townsend's Warbler
Rufous Hummingbird
|
What Is My Favorite Bird?
by Mike Stiles
People often ask me what my favorite bird is, and it always stumps me. I've always felt awkward not being able to answer that question (after nearly four decades of birding), so I thought I would sit down this month and try to figure it out in front of you.
Of course, there are obvious contenders. The sleek, sexy raptors have to be right up near the top of anyone's list. I've watched and marveled at a Red-tailed Hawk sitting in an updraft, motionless, save for subtle movements of a few wing and tail feathers, and conversely, watched a Peregrine Falcon suddenly fold its wings against its body and stoop at well over 100 miles per hour, knocking its unsuspecting prey into a puff of feathers. I've been backpacking in the Santa Barbara backcountry, and had California Condors just several feet from my face as I walked along a ridge line, the wind singing through their enormous wingspan.
I've always marveled at the owls, those denizens of the night that hunt virtually by sound, and can pinpoint the smallest rodent scurrying over dead leaves in total darkness from great distances. The Gadwall is a (seemingly) much drabber relative of its brightly colored duck cousins, but when seen at close range in good light, makes one realize that subtle coloring on the edges of feathers is all that is necessary for beauty.
Warblers, those active little nuggets of color, could be my favorite, especially the male Townsend's Warbler, its bright yellow and black colors flashing through the trees as the bird searches for food. And of course, who doesn't like the hummingbirds, the only bird that can fly backwards. Even the most hardened birder will take a second look at the iridescent gorget of the males shining in the sun. The male Rufous Hummingbird is essentially a one gram bulldog, chasing off every bird that happens near “its” feeder, no matter what size the other bird is.
I like the drab but very vocal birds of the dense chaparral, the Bewick's Wren, Wrentit, and the California Thrasher. The Bewick's Wren will sit atop one of the shrubby plants in its habitat with head thrown back, bill wide open, in a loud boisterous song that can be heard for a very long distance. It's a curious bird too. I have pished and squeaked at one until it came so close it was standing on the tops of my boots. The Wrentit, on the other hand--only found on the Pacific coast from southern Oregon to Northern Baja, so it naturally is a “target bird” for many visiting birders--is such a shy and retiring bird that it often goes unseen. Its song though, ringing notes on the same pitch, speeding into a trill, is well known in the chaparral.
The California Thrasher, like the Wrentit, is limited in its range to California and northern Baja. It is a large, jay-sized bird, with a bold decurved bill that they use to dig through the leaf litter for their food. They too like to sing from the tops of trees and shrubs, but to see their labored flight to get there on stubby wings, their tail drooping behind them, it's a wonder they don't shake themselves apart. Once on the perch though, their song is a collection of rich, bubbling warbles, squeaks, and imitations of other birds and sounds. I have read that they can even do an excellent coyote. When done singing, they'll glide down on set wings, hit the ground running, and disappear at a rapid clip under the shrubs, their tail thrown high over the back.
Wrentit
|
California Thrasher
|
I thrill at the sight of a rare bird, the addition to my life list, like the recent White Wagtail that was found in Santa Maria that conceivably could be the only time I'll ever see that bird…but I also greatly enjoy the birds I see every day in my yard, the sparrows and the towhees, the titmice, the bushtits and the chickadees, and especially the Nuttall's Woodpecker who wants to use one of the nest boxes in the yard, so he's making the entrance hole bigger.
So what is my favorite bird, you ask? Heck if I know.
In April most birds are busy singing and carrying nest-building material. Spring migration is certainly under way for our western species, and keep an eye out the next two months for the off-course ultra rarities. Feel free to let me know what your favorite birds are.
Burrowing Owl on banner by Cleve Nash. |
