Be Not Idle

Early this morning, I woke to what sounded like a redwing blackbird’s trill. When I looked out the window, I saw all the snow that had fallen (and was continuing to fall).  I must have been dreaming of spring.

Late this afternoon, I saw that the juncos, chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers, and other regulars had eaten all the suetcake and all but a few inches of seeds in the birdfeeder. The snow was (and is) still coming down, so I decided to forego the trip to the shed for more food. Instead, I opened a bag that I had in the front closet. I filled a shallow baking pan and set it squarely in the snow on my deck. (Nothing says “bachelorette” like pouring a mix of seeds and freeze-dried beetle larva into a baking dish on one’s diningroom table. A hubby would have felt a bit ill, I’m sure!)

Almost instantly there was a large flock of dark birds covering the pan, some hopping high up and landing in a tight spot in their attempts to jockey a better position. The were at least 12 pairs: glossy black males and barred brown females. I’d never seen their like, so I got out the bird books and checked.

While I was peering out, I saw him: a male redwinged blackbird. He alternated between joining the crowd and perching aloof on the nearby shepherd’s crook. He must have gotten mixed in with the flock in more southerly climes and migrated north. He’s awfully early.

After a bit of searching, I found that the other birds are Brewer’s blackbird (named after Thomas Mayo Brewer, who studied eggs). From the Michigan birding book, I learned that it’s extremely rare to see them in Michigan - but sometimes they’re seen during their migration from mid-March onward. There are a couple of grackles with them, too, it seems.