LOCALadk Magazine

Spring 2017 LOCALadk Magazine 19 LOCALadk habitat. Mature spruce-fir forest with no understory is the pre- ferred territory of Cape May warblers. Bogs are the breeding home of palm warblers and Lincoln's sparrows. Yellow-bellied flycatchers prefer spruce-fir forests with mossy ground found in both high tand low elevation boreal forest. For Philadelphia vire- os, search out second growth aspens near water! Understanding habitats of bird species is a great way to learn more about them and to know where to search. Winter to Spring Transition Toward the end of winter, gray jays are already nesting. As sea- sonal migrants are just beginning to return, gray jays are busy feeding their nestlings. They nest early so they can spend the vi- tal summer months caching food for winter, remembering thou- sands of hidden locations! Gray jays are members of the Corvid family, known for their remarkable intelligence. They are one of the most fascinating and engaging bird species found in the northern Adirondacks. They easily feed from an outstretched hand, and readily make eye contact with humans. One of their nicknames in Canada is "camp robber" for their habit of stealth- ily stealing food! I regularly feed about 15 gray jays at four lo- cations in Long Lake. It is always delightful to interact with this clever bird. March is a transitional month. Year-round black-capped chick- adees, brown creepers, and golden-crowned kinglets begin to sing, heralding the coming seasonal changes. Male ruffed grouse display in the roadways with their Elizabethan black collars, and American crows return and compete for territory against resi- dent common ravens. Bald eagles are observed carrying large sticks for their nests. Ice begins to melt off the lakes. After a long, cold, winter season, the world appears to come alive during the thaw. Spring Birding In spring, the Adirondack landscape fills with the beautiful, me- lodious songs of male songbirds as they defend their territories and attract mates. Waterfowl, raptors, flycatchers, vireos, thrushes, warblers, spar- rows and many more have flown in. Most species migrate at night, and each morning holds the exciting possibility of new ar- rivals and more songs emanating from the forest. Warblers begin to arrive in mid April and continue through May. The first two species to show up are the bog-dwelling palm war- bler (misnamed in the nineteenth century on its winter grounds in Florida) and the pine tree-dwelling pine warbler. Massawepie Boreal Chickadee Hermit Thrush Gray Jay Bicknell's Thrush Joan Collins Larry Master Larry Master Larry Master

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