19 Mar 2004

19 Mar 2004

19 Mar 2004

On Friday, March 19, 2004, Andy Boyce and I birded Pine Log WMA for Red Crossbills. The weather was clear and warm. We arrived at the first gate on Stamp Creek Road and parked at the gate. As we began our walk in, we heard crossbills almost immediately, within 100 yards of the gate. We heard the flight call coming from the right side of the road deep in a stand of loblolly pines. The birds soon came toward the road and then crossed it. We were able to get a good look at three of the four birds present. There was a pair in adult plumage and two other birds, one of which is pictured in the attached photographs. The photographed bird took a high perch and sat there until he heard the flight call nearby. He then flew away from the road toward the call. The vocalization the birds used is of interest. They were mostly using the familiar flight call that is a series of "jip" notes. They are often spaced so that they sound like "jip, jip jip" repeated. Obviously there is variation in the spacing of the flight call notes. At one point, the birds disappeared, and I gave a Screech Owl call. The birds almost immediately responded, and the adults came in giving a rapidly repeated series of trills that I have never heard before. The vocalization must be one they use when excited. The four birds acted like a family group, although such a conclusion is highly subjective.

I would like to solicit opinion about the age of the bird pictured. Most of us have limited experience in aging crossbills because they are somewhat elusive in Georgia. Eran Tomer provided the best clue to the age of the bird, which indicates that it is a sub-adult male. He provided excerpts from Finches and Sparrows: An Identification Guide by Peter Clement, et. al. (Princeton University Press. 1993). The plates show a "first year male" that closely resembles the photographed bird. The pertinent text reads as follows:

"The red of the adult male is not acquired until at least the second winter or early second summer, and even then may not be as intensive as in older birds; up to that time there is considerable variation among immature males, from very bright yellow or orange to seemingly full adult plumage but for immature wing and tail feathers. Breeds while in late-immature or sub-adult plumage; in North America has been known to breed within its first year of life.

"First winter and first summer males vary in colour from greenish-yellow to yellowish orange or orange-red or a mixture thereof on head and body, most prominently on crown, nape, mantle and underparts; the buff tips to median and greater coverts and greenish or olive edges to flight feathers and tail are retained from juvenile plumage, as are streaks on flanks and belly; in first summer most streaks are lost through abrasion."

This sighting is not direct evidence of nesting at Pine Log, although previous sightings of juvenile birds and a female with a brood patch have been taken as evidence of breeding there.

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27 Mar 2004

27 Mar 2004

27 Mar 2004

27 Mar 2004

On March 27, 2004, Andy Boyce and I birded Pine Log WMA in search of Red Crossbills. We were specifically looking for evidence of nesting. We were lucky enough to find two juveniles and one sub-adult bird feeding in a stand of Virginia Pines near the main road. We heard the familiar flight call located the birds high in a nearby tree. They were actively feeding on the open cones. It is heartening to see the crossbills feeding on the cones of Virginia Pine because the mature loblolly pines are being aggressively harvested from the property. There were long periods of time when the birds did not vocalize, but when they moved from one tree to the next, they gave the flight call.

It would be easy to pass up feeding crossbills unless you should see the movement in the branches or see the pine mast falling as they feed on the pine seeds. It is interesting to see their parrot-like positions as they hang upside down to get at the pine seeds, using their crossed bills to pry the cones. According to crossbill experts, the birds use their tongues to get the seed into their mouths, but this phenomenon is somewhat difficult to observe.

As we got the crossbills in good view, Andy noticed that one of the birds was streaked below and immediately identified it as a juvenile. We then noticed a second juvenile in the adjacent tree. They were feeding with a sub-adult bird that appeared to have little or no red or orange in its plumage. This led us to the possibility that it was a sub-adult female, although sub-adult females sometimes show orange in their plumage.

After we observed them for about ten minutes and snapped a few photos in the unfavorable light, they flew off, away from the road, giving the flight call. During the course of the morning, we had fly-overs in two other locations that we believe were different birds. The fly-overs at Pine Log are often birds flying very high that are heard and then searched for. Sometimes they are out of sight before you can get on them. The one fly-over that I was able to get a look at was an adult female.

The significance of finding and photographing juvenile Red Crossbills is that few records of juveniles exist in the state. There is a record from Cedartown of juvenile birds at a feeder, and Giff Beaton has a sighting from Pine Log of a juvenile or juveniles with adult birds. There may be others of which I am unaware. To my knowledge, these are the first photographs of juvenile Red Crossbills from Pine Log WMA, and among the few on record in Georgia.

(Note: I have called the pines in which the birds were feeding Virginia Pines (Pinus virginiana). I would solicit comment as to whether I have identified them correctly. It is the tree that I know as Virginia Pine, but I have much to learn about trees and other things.)

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