Habitattowns and Cities, Parks, Farmlands, and Open Country

*American Kestrel

Male female

Description9-12" W. 21". A jay-sized falcon, often seen hovering. Recognizable in all plumages by rusty tail and back. Adult male has slate-blue wings. Female has rusty wings and back, narrow bands on tail. Both sexes have 2 black stripes on face.

HabitatTowns and cities, parks, farmlands, and open country.

Nesting4 or 5 white or pinkish eggs, blotched with brown, placed without nest or lining in a natural or man-made cavity.

Voice Shrill killy-killy-killy.

DiscussionPreys chiefly on House Sparrows. In the countryside it takes insects, small birds, and rodents, capturing its prey on the ground rather than in midair like other falcons.

*Bald Eagle

Male (mature) immature(left)

Description30-31". W. 6-7' 6". A large blackish eagle with white head and tail and heavy yellow bill. Young birds lack the white head and tail, and resemble adult Golden Eagles, but are variably marked with white and have a black, more massive bill.

Endangered StatusOur national bird suffered a dramatic decline caused by DDT, which was sprayed on crops to control pest damage. The main effect of DDT poisoning on birds was that it interfered with eggshell production, and the resulting shells were not strong enough to sustain incubation.

HabitatLakes, rivers, marshes, and seacoasts.

Nesting2 or 3 white eggs in a massive nest of sticks in a tall tree or, less frequently, on top of a cliff.

Voice Squeaky cackling and thin squeals.

DiscussionBald Eagles are fish eaters. Where Ospreys are common, the eagles obtain much of their food by stealing it from the smaller "fish hawk."

Baltimore Oriole

Male female

Description7-8 1/2". Male has black head, back, wings, and tail; orange breast, rump, and shoulder patch. Female olive-brown, with dull yellow-orange underparts and 2 dull white wing bars.

HabitatDeciduous woodlands and shade trees. Before the tree's decline, the American elm was a favorite nesting site for the eastern bird.

Nesting4-6 grayish eggs, spotted and scrawled with dark brown and black. Nest a well-woven pendant bag of plant fibers, bark, and string, suspended from the tip of a branch.

Barn Owl

Description18". W. 3' 8". Crow-sized. Buff-brown above and white below, with heart-shaped face and numerous fine dark dots on white underparts; dark eyes, long legs.

HabitatOpen country, forest edges and clearings, cultivated areas, and cities.

Nesting5-10 white eggs on bare wood or stone in buildings, hollow trees, caves, or even in burrows.

DiscussionIt hunts its food, almost entirely rodents. Owls do not digest fur and bone but periodically rid themselves of these in the form of regurgitated pellets. Barn Owls depend on keen hearing to locate their prey. When food is scarce they lay fewer eggs or may not breed at all.

*Belted Kingfisher

Male female

Description13". A pigeon-sized bird, blue-gray above, white below, with bushy crest, dagger-like bill. Male has blue-gray breast band; female similar, but also has chestnut belly band.

HabitatRivers, lakes, and saltwater estuaries.

Nesting5-8 white eggs in an unlined chamber at the end of a tunnel up to 8' long, dug in a sand or gravel bank.

Voice Loud, penetrating rattle, given on the wing and when perched.

DiscussionIn addition, it may eat crabs, crayfish, salamanders, lizards, mice, and insects. When flying from one perch to another, often a good distance apart, it utters its loud rattling call.

*Blue Jay

Description12" (30 cm). Bright blue above with much white and black in the wings and tail; dingy white below; black facial markings; prominent crest.

HabitatChiefly oak forest, but now also city parks and suburban yards, especially where oak trees predominate.

Nesting4-6 brown-spotted greenish eggs in a coarsely built nest of sticks, lined with grass and well concealed in a crotch or forked branch of a tree, often a conifer.

Voice A raucous jay-jay, harsh cries, and a rich variety of other calls.

DiscussionThey often bury seeds and acorns, and since many are never retrieved they are, in effect, tree planters. They regularly mob predators, and their raucous screaming makes it easy to locate a hawk or a roosting owl.

Coopers Hawk

Adult immature juvenile

Description14-20". W. 28". A crow-sized hawk, with long tail and short rounded wings. Adult slate-gray above, with dark cap, and finely rust-barred below. Immature brown above, whitish below with fine streaks. Tail tip rounded, not squared-off. See Sharp-shinned Hawk.

HabitatDeciduous and, less often, coniferous forests, especially those interrupted by meadows and clearings.

Nesting4 or 5 dull-white eggs, spotted with brown, on a bulky platform of sticks and twigs, usually more than 20' (6 m) above the ground.

DiscussionCooper's feeds mainly on birds, it also takes small mammal, and snakes..

*Cowbird

Male female

Description6-8" (15-20 cm). Male black with glossy brown head; female plain gray-brown. Both have a finch-like bill.

HabitatAgricultural land, fields, woodland edges, and suburban areas.

Nesting4 or 5 white eggs, lightly speckled with brown, laid one at a time in the nests of other songbirds.

Voice Squeaky gurgle. Call is check or a rattle.

DiscussionCowbirds are brood parasites and promiscuous; no pair bond exists. The female searches for nests in which to lay her eggs. Upon choosing a nest, she removes one egg of the host's clutch, and deposits one of her own in its place. Some host species eject the unwanted egg, others lay down a new nest lining over it, but most rear the young cowbird as one of their own. The young cowbird grows quickly at the expense of the young of the host, pushing them out of the nest or taking most of the food

Crow

Description17-21". Stocky black bird with stout bill and fan-shaped tail. Smaller Northwestern Crow has hoarser voice; larger Common Raven has wedge-shaped tail.

HabitatDeciduous growth along rivers and streams; orchards and city parks. Also mixed and coniferous woods, but avoids closed coniferous forests and desert expanses.

Nesting4-6 dull green eggs, spotted with dark brown, in a large mass of twigs and sticks lined with feathers, grass, and rootlets, and placed in a tree.

Discussion An opportunist in its feeding, the American Crow consumes a great variety of plant and animal food: seeds, garbage, insects, mice. Its nest-plundering is decried, but in orchards and fields it destroys many injurious insects such as grasshoppers and cutworms.

Eastern Bluebird

Male female juvenile

Description7". Bright blue above and on wings and tail; rusty throat and breast; white belly and undertail coverts. Female similar, but duller.

HabitatOpen woodlands and farmlands with scattered trees.

Nesting4-6 pale blue eggs in a loose cup of grasses and plant stems in natural tree cavities, old woodpecker holes, fence posts, and bird boxes.

DiscussionBluebirds have become uncommon, competition for nest sites with European Starlings and House Sparrows is likely a critical factor.

*Eastern Screech Owl

Description10". A small, mottled owl with prominent ear tufts; yellow eyes. Both rufous and gray color phases occur, as well as brownish intermediates.

HabitatOpen deciduous woods, woodlots, suburban areas, lakeshores, old orchards.

Nesting3-8 white eggs placed without a nest lining in a cavity in a tree or in a nest box.

Voice A tremulous, descending wail; soft purrs and trills.

DiscussionThese common owls are fearless in defense of their nests and will often strike unsuspecting humans on the head as they pass nearby at night. When discovered during the day, they often freeze in an upright position, depending on their cryptic coloration to escape detection.

Great Blue Heron

Description39-52. W. 5'10". A common large, mainly grayish heron with a pale or yellowish bill. Often mistaken for a Sandhill Crane, but flies with its neck folded, not extended like that of a crane. In southern Florida an all-white form, "Great White Heron," differs from Great Egret in being larger, with greenish-yellow rather than black legs.

HabitatLakes, ponds, rivers, and marshes.

Nesting3-7 pale greenish-blue eggs placed on a shallow platform of sticks lined with finer material, usually in a tree but sometimes on the ground or concealed in a reedbed. Nests in colonies.

DiscussionAn adaptable bird whose large size enables it to feed on a variety of prey-from large fish and frogs to mice, small birds, and insects-the Great Blue has one of the widest ranges of any North American heron.

*Great Horned Owl

Description25". W. 4' 7". A large owl, varying in color from nearly white (in Arctic) to dark brown and gray. Mottled and streaked below, setting off the white throat; prominent, widely spaced ear tufts; yellow eyes.

HabitatForests, deserts, open country, swamps, and even city parks.

Nesting2 or 3 white eggs on the bare surface of a cliff or cave or even on the ground; in the East it most often appropriates the unused stick nest of a heron, hawk, or crow.

Voice Series of low, sonorous, far-carrying hoots, hoo, hoo-hoo, hoo, hoo, with second and third notes shorter than the others.

DiscussionThe largest of American "eared" owls, the Great Horned. The Great Horned Owls prey on grouse and rabbits as well as beetles, lizards, frogs, and birds, including crows, ducks, and other owls.

*House Wren

Description4 1/2 -5 1/4". A tiny bird with a short tail, often held cocked over the back. Dusky brown above, paler below, with no distinctive markings. Winter Wren is similar but smaller and darker, with shorter tail and pale eyebrow.

HabitatResidential areas, city parks, farmlands, and woodland edges.

Nesting5-8 white eggs, thickly speckled with brown, in a cup lined with feathers and other soft material contained within a mass of sticks and grass, placed in a natural cavity or bird box.

Voice A gurgling, bubbling, exuberant song, first rising, then falling.

Discussion When competing for a nest site, the House Wren may throw out the nest, eggs, and even the young of other hole-breeding birds.

Indigo Bunting

Male female

Description5 1/2". Sparrow-sized. In bright sunlight male brilliant turquoise blue, otherwise looks black; wings and tail darker. Female drab brown, paler beneath.

HabitatBrushy slopes, abandoned farmland, old pastures and fields grown to scrub, woodland clearings, and forest edges adjacent to fields.

Nesting3 or 4 pale blue eggs in a compact woven cup of leaves and grass placed in a sapling or bush in relatively thick vegetation and within a few feet of the ground.

DiscussionIndigo Buntings have no blue pigment; they are actually black, but the diffraction of light through the structure of the feathers makes them appear blue. They are beneficial to farmers and fruit growers, consuming many insect pests and weed seeds.

*Killdeer

Description9-11". Our largest "ringed" plover. Brown above and white below, with 2 black bands across breast, long legs, and relatively long tail. In flight, shows rusty uppertail coverts and rump.

HabitatOpen country generally: plowed fields, golf courses, and short-grass prairies.

Nesting4 pale buff eggs, spotted with blackish brown, in a shallow depression lined with grass on bare ground.

Voice A shrill kill-deee, fill-deee or killdeer, killdeer. Also dee-dee-dee.

DiscussionIf a predator approaches, a nesting Killdeer performs a conspicuous distraction display, dragging itself as if mortally wounded, often on one foot, its wings seemingly broken and its rusty tail fanned toward the intruder. This feigning of injury is effective in luring the predator away from the eggs or young, at which point the bird then "recovers" and flies off, calling loudly.

*Mallard Duck

Male female

Description18-27". Male has a green head, white neck ring, chestnut breast, and grayish body; inner feathers of wing (speculum) are metallic purplish blue, bordered in front and back with white. Female mottled brown with white tail and purplish-blue speculum; mottled orange and brown bill.

HabitatFrom ponds, lakes, and marshes to small river bends, bays, and even ditches and city ponds.

Nesting8-10 light olive-green eggs in a down-lined nest often placed some distance from water, occasionally even in a tree.

Voice Male utters soft, reedy notes; female, a loud quack.

DiscussionThe Mallard is undoubtedly the most abundant duck in the world. Mallard courtship starts in the fall, and by midwinter pairs have formed. Mated pairs migrate northward, heading for the female's place of origin.

*Mockingbird

Description9-11". Robin-sized. A slender, long-tailed gray bird with white patches on wings and tail.

HabitatResidential areas, city parks, farmlands, open country with thickets, and desert brush.

Nesting3-5 blue-green eggs, spotted with brown, in a bulky cup of sticks and weed stems in a bush or low tree.

Voice A long series of musical and grating phrases, each repeated 3 or more times; often imitates other birds and regularly sings at night. Call a harsh chack.

Discussion Mockingbirds are strongly territorial and will attack their reflection in a window, hubcap, or mirror, at times with such vigor that they injure or kill themselves. Mockingbirds require open grassy areas for their feeding; thick, thorny, or coniferous shrubs for hiding the nest; and high perches where the male can defend his territory.

*Mourning Dove

Description12". Soft, sandy buff with a long pointed tail bordered with white. Black spots on wings.

HabitatOpen fields, parks, and lawns with many trees and shrubs.

Nesting2 white eggs in a loosely made nest of sticks and twigs placed in low bushes and tall trees, more rarely on the ground.

Voice Low mournful (hence its name) coo-ah, coo, coo, coo.

Discussion. The Mourning Dove is common in rural areas in all parts of the United States, as well as city parks and, in winter, suburban feeders. In some states it is hunted as a game bird while in others it is protected as a songbird.

*Northern Cardinal

Male female

Description8-9". Male bright red with crest, black face, stout red bill. Female buff-brown tinged with red on crest, wings, and tail.

HabitatWoodland edges, thickets, brushy swamps, and gardens.

Nesting3-4 pale green eggs, spotted with red-brown, in a deep cup of twigs, leaves, and plant fibers in a thicket.

Voice Rich what-cheer, cheer, cheer; purty-purty-purty-purty or sweet-sweet-sweet-sweet. Also a metallic chip.

Discussion Cardinals are aggressive birds that occupy territories year-round. Seeds form a main part of the diet, although insects are eaten in the breeding season.

Northern Flicker

Description12". A large brownish woodpecker. Brown back with dark bars and spots; whitish or buff below with black spots; black crescent on breast; white rump, visible in flight. Eastern birds ("Yellow-shafted Flickers") have red patch on nape and yellow wing linings; male has black mustache.