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Re: Brewer's vs. Rusty habitats



Thanks to all of you who wrote about the
Brewer's/Rusty Blackbirds. He was also seen yesterday
feeding in the compost pile, and vocalizing as well.
He is a Rusty. Got great looks in better light.
We live near the Haw and have a creek and pond on our
land, which is pretty deep forest(mixed) I have not
seen him or Hermie today, but had our first song
sparrow under the feeder yesterday.
Kate
--- Harry LeGrand <Harry.LeGrand@ncmail.net> wrote:
> I've birded North Carolina for 35 years and have
> seen Brewer's
> Blackbirds only twice! It is a very rare bird here.
> Rusty Blackbird is
> uncommon to locally fairly common.  I saw Brewer's
> about 4-5 times in
> the Clemson area, in only 8-9 years there, so the
> species is more
> numerous in GA and the extreme western parts of the
> Carolinas than
> elsewhere.
> 
> Brewer's: I've seen all but one in cattle pastures
> or cattle feedlots.
> Basically, this is the same habitat where one would
> expect large flocks
> of cowbirds. I have seen one in a flock of other
> blackbirds in a plowed
> field. This is secondary habitat, and most of us
> checking those large
> blackbird flocks in the plowed fields come up empty,
> though the
> occasional Yellow-headed Blackbird does show up
> there.
> 
> Rusty: They can occur about anywhere, but they favor
> areas near water. I
> often see them in swampy woods, in the treetops, or
> feeding on the
> ground. I've seen them in feedlots also, but
> especially in muddy areas
> or closer to trees. They can feed on the ground in
> residential areas, as
> well. They often feed on berries of hollies, etc.,
> feeding with robins
> and waxwings. They often feed on mudflats inland,
> around lakes. Thus,
> their primary habitat would be swampy woods, but
> they can occur in a
> wide variety of places.
> 
> Over the years, Brewer's have been reported on quite
> a few occasions in
> the Triangle area, especially on the Chapel Hill
> bird count. I would
> personally question most of those reports. I
> carefully check the flocks
> of blackbirds, especially cowbirds at the NCSU dairy
> farm south of
> Raleigh quite a bit, and I still have never seen a
> Brewer's there, or
> anywhere else in Wake County or the Triangle area. 
> My two NC sightings
> were the large flock that wintered at the Open
> Grounds Farm, around
> cattle feedlots, in Carteret County, and one in
> Tyrrell County on a CBC
> Field Trip, in a plowed field.  Certainly, I could
> overlook a Brewer's
> in a flock of 1000 grackles and cowbirds, but still
> ---, in 35 years
> ---.
> 
> Thus, until proven otherwise, birds in yards and
> around feeders in NC
> are Rusty Blackbirds.  Brewer's like wide open
> spaces, generally far
> from trees. I've never heard of a Brewer's in a yard
> in the Carolinas,
> but I suppose it could happen, if the yard is full
> of cattle.
> 
> Harry LeGrand
> 
> --
> Harry E. LeGrand, Jr.
> N.C. Natural Heritage Program
> Division of Parks and Recreation
> 1615 MSC
> Raleigh, NC 27699-1615
> 
> Office: (919) 715-8687
> Home: (919) 832-3202
> FAX: (919) 715-3085
> e-mail: harry.legrand@ncmail.net
> http://ils.unc.edu/parkproject/nhp/index.html
> 
> 
> 

=====
Kate Finlayson
N. Chatham Co.,N.C.
katefin@yahoo.com
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