POTD 1/20/23
WINTER TACTIC - Turkey standing on one leg. Birds' legs have an adaptation called "rete mirabile" that minimizes heat loss. The arteries that transport warm blood into the legs lie in contact with the veins that return colder blood to the bird's heart. The arteries warm the veins. Because the veins also cool the arteries, the bird’s feet are closer to environmental temperature and thus don’t lose as much heat as they would if they were at body temperature. And by standing on one leg, a bird reduces by half the amount of heat lost through unfeathered limbs.
POTD 1/19/23
BUSYBODIES - David Allen Sibley calls Chickadees the busybodies of the forest, peering into crevices, exploring tangles, studying twigs and pine cones and constantly chattering about it. When they aren't nesting, chickadees are quite social, and travel in small groups of up to ten birds.
POTD 1/18/23
BIRDS OF A FEATHER - We have enjoyed the flock of Evening Grosbeaks in our yard this winer. They are not common visitors to our area and their irruption this year is, according to our friend, naturalist Meade Cadot, tied directly to the current outbreak of Spruce (and fir) Budworm in Canada and northern Maine. Lack of food in their usual territory has Evening Grosbeaks in southern New Hampshire this year.
POTD 1/17/23
OH SUNSET - Cherry tree in the yard makes a familiar foreground for a spectacular sunset. According to Google search: As the sun dips down over the horizon, sunlight has to pass through a thicker layer of the atmosphere compared to the daytime. This causes the blue light that is seen during the daytime to be scattered away from our eyes, allowing more orange and red light to pass through. I'll take a little purple with mine, thank you! ;-)
POTD 1/16/23
TITMOUSE - Titmice are closely related to Chickadees and share feeder behavior with them of carrying food from the feeder to be consumed on another perch. It is common to see them fly to a feeder, sort through the seeds for a second or two, then select one and fly back to the woods to eat it or hide it. While sorting they are judging the weight, as a way of guessing the fat content to get the one with the most nutrition for the effort.
