Many people across the country are asking questions about odd behaviour in robins. The robins appear to be trying to get into the houses, flying at the windows and sitting on the sills, looking into the rooms. This is normal behaviour for robins at this time, as well as many other birds. The birds are simply seeing their reflections in the windows, and trying to chase that "other bird" out of their territory. Did someone say "bird brain"? One can try hanging bright reflective streamers in front of the windows, which may work for a time. (At least until the birds get used to them.) One of the reasons that birds do this may be that many people have plants hanging in front of the windows, and the bird sees an extension of the normal environment through the window. It is a bad idea to hang a hummingbird feeder in front of a window with flowering plants inside. By the way, the hummers are back in many areas, so it is time to hang out your hummingbird feeders now. Remember, you can make your own nectar, with 1 part of white sugar and 4 parts boiling water. Red food colouring is NOT necessary! Mix it up well, and cool it off in the refrigerator before filling the feeder! Change it every 4 days, or oftener if the weather is very hot. The sugar solution will start to ferment in the feeders, if left too long. These tiny birds need all the help they can get in our Canadian spring weather, and besides, they provide some wonderful entertainment!

A while back, we looked at some of the interesting courtship behaviours in birds, and zeroed in on dancers. This time, we will look at "sky dancing". The sky dancer that most people run across is the Common Snipe. This bird is seldom seen, but often heard. The snipe male flies around his territory, usually quite high up, and dives towards the ground repeatedly. As he pulls out of his dive, his tail feathers vibrate, causing that spooky sound in the sky. This "wu-wu-wu-wu-wu" sound, increasing in pitch and rapidity, then stopping, is often attributed to the nighthawk. The Common Nighthawk does make a sound, but that sound is more of a "whoomp" or a "vrroom". This sound is made at the bottom of a dive, by the wing feathers, and is a short sound. I can guarantee that if you hear a winnowing sound from the sky, lasting several seconds, it is a snipe. If the birds are seen, the snipe is a short, dumpy looking bird, with a beak nearly as long as his body, while the nighthawk is a more slender bird with white patches near the wingtips, and a short, broad beak.

Recently, I saw a performance of "Sky Dancing" that left me breathless! While I was watching a pair of bluebirds in courtship, they vanished. I soon saw the reason for this, as a male Northern Harrier zipped past the tree the bluebirds had been sitting in. The harrier rapidly climbed high again and repeatedly dived towards the ground, banking steeply from side to side. It was hard to see how he could possibly pull out in time to keep from hitting trees and shrubs, but he managed. At the top of his climbs, he would flip over on his back, and dive again. I soon saw what had precipitated this display, as a pair of harriers flew over. My "Dancer" was just trying to convince the female above that she should abandon her choice of mates for this new suitor! Obviously, a great dancer like him would be a far better choice than the somewhat laid-back fellow she was flying around with! Sadly, I will never know if he was successful in breaking up the relationship above us, as they all drifted away with the wind. Besides, it was time to get back to work checking out the bluebird trail, and duty called.

Enjoy the season, and let me know about some of your experiences. Questions or suggestions are always welcome.

Carl Grosfield
5105-51 Ave.
Vegreville, AB
T9C 1M1
wildscape@telusplanet.net