www.thebirdstoreandmore.com

Mid Winter Blah’s Sale Sunday, February 24, 2019 • 9am-5pm. See inside for details.

VALENTINES DAY IS COMING. Don’t forget your sweetie! We have loads of gift ideas for your special Valentine.

February 2019, Volume 11, Issue 1

Newsfrom the bird store

20% offeverything in the store

(Excludes Optics and Bear Proof Poles)

Anticoagulant Rodenticide Exposure in Birds of Prey in Massachusetts Anticoagulant rodenticides are used to control rodent populations in various settings, including urban, suburban and agricultural areas. These rodenticides disrupt blood- clotting pathways, resulting in excessive bleeding and death. While effective in controlling rodent overpopulation, these poisons can also cause mortality in non- target species of mammals and birds that ingest the bait (primary exposure) or ingest poisoned animals (secondary exposure).

Brodifacoum is a second-generation anticoagulant rodenticide that is currently available for household use in a variety of forms, including bait blocks and pellets. This compound presents a high risk for unintended poisoning of wildlife due its long persistence time in liver tissue. Brodifacoum is the rodenticide that has been identified in birds of prey suffering from anticoagulant rodenticide toxicosis that have been treated at Tufts Wildlife Clinic.

Where have all the birds gone? It seems that this year has been particularly slow at the feeders. We can tell by our seed sales, which have been slowing through the winter months. While we haven’t had that much frigid weather, the birds are not abundant in many areas. Our own Sturbridge Christmas Bird Count held on December 18, 2018 yielded the second lowest bird count number in the 22 years that this count has been in existence. All of the reports from around the country are sent to National Audubon to be tracked. You can view results on the link below.

(____________).....1 1 9 t hCount and Great

Backyard Bird Count

Christmas Bird

netapp.audubon.org/CBCObservation/ The annual Christmas Bird Count Summaries can be found at:

audubon.org/content/american-birds-annual- summary-christmas-bird-count

Ongoing, the Great Backyard Bird Count will take place from February 15 - 18, 2019. Anyone can participate, and you can find out more at:

It is suspected that the lack of natural food in the area has caused the birds to move out. Hopefully we will see some changes as the spring season arrives. The colder weather lately has brought a small uptick to the feeders. Some people have reported many birds at the feeders, while others have had few. Our own store feeders have not been busy at all this season. Time will tell.

I

Continued on page 3

gbbc.birdcount.org/

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Myrh and Alf’s ANNUAL

Sunday, February 24, 2019 Special Hours 9am-5pm

The sale is Sunday - The Bird Store will open EARLY at 9:00amParking is also available at Sturbridge Veterinary Clinic next door.

The Veterinary Clinic is closed on Sundays and they have graciously allowed us the use of their parking lot. Please do not park across the street.

20% offeverything in the store

(Excludes Optics and Bear Proof Poles) No other Discounts or bucks apply. Seed Saver Cards cannot be used

in conjunction with the sale. In store items only no web orders.

Be an early bird like Myrh and Alf, and join us for our annual Mid Winter Blah’s 20% off everything in the store Sale.

One day only, Sunday, February 24, 2019.

Here’s the rules!• Doors open at exactly 9:00am not earlier

• Save 20% on your purchases (Excluding Optics and Bear Proof Poles)• No coupons, bucks, or other discounts apply today

• Seed Saver Cards cannot be used in conjunction with the sale• No special orders, rain checks, internet orders, or phone orders

• Sale is on in stock merchandise only; once it’s gone it’s gone! • You have to be here to get the goods!• Sale is Sunday, February 24, 2019 only!

Not Friday, Not Saturday…Just Sunday 9:00am till 5:00pm.

Get rid of the mid winter blah’s and think spring!

Funny BIRD FACT

Bassian Thrushes find food by farting! This bird has found an effective way to toot! These worm eating thrushes, found

predominantly in Southeastern Australia and Tasmania, have been known to dislodge their prey from

the leaf litter by directing their farts at them. The gas shifts the leaf litter around and provokes

the worms to move around revealing their location.

Small Business SHARING

Every now and then someone stops at The Bird Store to inquire about a memorial for a pet. We would like to share information about a beautiful way to memorialize your pet. Ryan Jacque is a local wildlife and portrait pencil artist. His work is phenomenal. What a way to capture the heart and soul of your pet. You can view Ryan’s website at ryanjacque.com

Customer TipKeep the mice out of your car and other places you don’t want them by using Bounce Drier sheets. You

have to replace them often, apparently the mice don’t like the smell and will stay

away. And an added bonus, it smells nice!

Everyone knows abut the Audubon Society, Sanctuaries and Bird Counts, but do you know about the man?

John James Audubon was an American ornithologist, artist and naturalist known for his studies, drawings and paintings of North American birds. He was born in 1785 in what is now known as Haiti. He

was the illegitimate son of French plantation owner Captain Jean Audubon and his Creole servant Jeanne Rabin. Audubon was given the name Jean Rabin at birth. However, when his mother died shortly after his birth, he and his sister were sent to Nantes, France, where they were raised by the captains wife Anne Audubon, The Audubon’s adopted the children in 1794 and gave Jean a new name: Jean-Jacques Fougère Audubon. Audubon was given an education worthy of a wealthy merchant’s son, which included lessons in art, music and natural history. Audubon began to develop an interest in the natural world. He grew particularly fascinated with birds, and began to sketch them on a regular basis.

At 18 Audubon’s father, in an attempt to keep him safe as war broke out, sent him to his estate in Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. Audubon changed his name to John James Audubon in route to America. In his new environment Audubon focused his attention on birds, he continued his careful observations of their behavior, determined to depict them more accurately than his contemporaries did.

Through the 1820s Audubon continued to build on his talents as an artist and credentials a naturalist, amassing a huge collection of drawings that distinguished themselves for their dramatic and life-like qualities. He was a merchant, salesman, teacher, hunter, portraitist, artist and scientist. John James Audubon was a contradiction of terms. He was as comfortable sleeping on the forest floor as in his own bed; he could play the violin and flute, but just as easily tell off color stories to the fur traders. He could live in the wild and hunt bear and be just as comfortable quoting Shakespeare. It was if he had dual personalities.

His book, The Birds of America, was printed in 1827. It was a book of 435 images, all of the birds known in the Americas at that time. Accompanying it was Ornithological Biography, which featured text about the lives and behaviors of his subjects as well as highlights about Audubon’s adventures.

In 1848 he suffered an incapacitating stroke, Audubon died in his home in 1851. He is remembered as one of the most important naturalists of his era. In 1886, the first bird-preservation society, the National Audubon Society, was named in his honor.

www.thebirdstoreandmore.com February 2019, Volume 11, Issue 1

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Continued from cover

Anticoagulant Rodenticide Exposure in Birds of Prey in Massachusetts

The most frequent species treated at Tufts Wildlife Clinic for anticoagulant rodenticide toxicosis is the red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), which predominantly feeds on small- to medium-sized mammals but will also consume birds. Affected hawks present extremely anemic and weak with evidence of profuse bleeding from minor lacerations or extensive bruising with no evidence of serious traumatic injuries such as fractures. If these birds are not found and treated they will die due to blood loss. However, if they are found in time and receive aggressive medical treatment for blood loss and the antidote for the rodenticide (vitamin K-1), they can recover and be released back to the wild.

Sometimes old fashioned is better. If you have a rodent problem be responsible and use a snap trap, or a live trap to remove them.

A Glimpse of the Man

Who is

Rodenticides – Information Worth RepeatingOur Hawks and Owls, as well as other wildlife are in danger from

the use of rodenticide. Rodents, such as mice and rats are a staple of these raptors and when a rodent makes its way

back outside for water after feeding from a poison bait trap it may fall prey to a hawk or owl and in turn poison these

highly beneficial creatures. In a Tufts Veterinary study examining Massachusetts Red-tailed

Hawks, Barred Owls, Eastern Screech-Owls, and Great Horned Owls that had been admitted to the Tufts Wildlife

Clinic between 2006 and 2010 of 161 birds, 139—a disheartening 86 percent tested positive for anticoagulant rodenticides.

These birds and animals die a horrifically cruel death. The following information is excerpted directly from the Cummings School

of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University website.

4 Cedar Street, (Route 20, Cedar Street Intersection)

Sturbridge, MA 01566www.thebirdstoreandmore.com

Phone: (508)-347-BIRDMailing Address: P.O. Box 736, Fiskdale, MA 01518

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT NO. 65

SOUTHBRIDGE, MA

Bird Store Hours:10:00am-6:00pm Monday - Saturday11:00am-5:00pm Sunday

Mid Winter Blah’s Sale Sunday, February 24, 2019 • 9am-5pm. See inside for details.

www.thebirdstoreandmore.com February 2019, Volume 11, Issue 1

Harlequin Ducks The day after Christmas is our Christmas day. Bill and I decided to go to Sachuest Point in Rhode Island to get outside after a hectic holiday season.

Sachuest Point is one of my favorite places to go in the winter. It’s brisk, sometimes downright cold, but it’s a place to see Owls, Northern Harrier, Common Eider, Great Cormorant, and Harlequin Ducks. I have to admit the Harlequins are my favorite; they make me laugh with their bobbing, diving and running along the water. I think they are one of the most beautiful ducks. The Harlequins only come south in the winter and Sachuest Point is one of the places they can easily be seen.

Harlequin ducks winter in the crashing surf along the rocky coastline. More than half of eastern North American population of Harlequin Ducks winters in coastal Maine, particularly outer reaches of Penobscot and Jericho bays. Their breeding territory is along the fast flowing streams of the far north.

The Harlequin Duck is a small sea duck that takes its name from Harlequin, a colorfully dressed character in Commedia dell” arte. (A form of theater acting that emphasized ensemble and improvisational comedic acting)

The species name comes from the Latin word histrio, which means actor. Adult breeding males have a colorful and complex plumage pattern, hence the Harlequin imagery. The head and neck are dark slate blue with a large white crescent marking in front of the eye, a small round dot behind the eye, and a larger oval spot down the side of the neck. A black crown stripe runs over the top of the head, with chestnut patches on either side. A black-bordered white collar separates the head from the breast. The body is largely a lighter slate

blue with chestnut sides. A black-bordered white bar divides the breast vertically from the sides. The tail is black, long and pointed. The speculum feathers are metallic blue. The inner secondary feathers are white and form white markings over the back when folded. The bill is blue-grey and the eye is reddish. A very colorful bird indeed, and well worth the trip.

Nancy

Did You KnowMost birds not only sleep

standing up, they do it while perched on a thin tree branch.

Why don’t they fall off? The flexor tendons in their legs make an involuntary contraction when they settle in, keeping their feet

locked in place during sleep.