for members of the Carolina Bird Club, Inc., ornithological society of the Carolinas
Volume 43 January/February 1997 Number 1

Carolina Birders on Line

by Will Cook

Springtime in
the Upstate

Bob Maxwell reports on
preparations for the
spring meeting

Welcome to Clemson for the spring
1997 Carolina Bird Club meeting April 25-
27. Work on field trips and the recruiting
of leaders is well underway. Planned trips
include Clemson, Townville, Table Rock
State Park, Beaverdam Creek Waterfowl
Management Area, Sassafras Mountain
and Rich Mountain. We are hoping for
butterflies at the Clemson Botanical
Gardens.

Our headquarters for the meeting will
be the Ramada Inn on US 123 in Clemson.
The room rate for 1 -4 persons is $44.00
plus 9% tax per night. For reservations
call the Ramada Inn at (864) 654-7501 or
use the reservation form in this newsletter.
Be sure to mention CBC to insure the
special rate.

The Saturday evening program will be
presented by Dr. Sid Gauthreaux a CBC
member who is well known among the
membership. Sid will be coming to us
from the field site on the Texas Gulf coast
where he and his wife Carroll are
continuing their research into bird
migration sponsored by the Department of
Defense-. He will show us how this
research using NEXRAD is leading to the
detection of hazardous concentrations of
birds for pilots.

As many of you who are familiar with
e-mail know, groups such as Birdchat can
be a great resource for birding knowledge.
Recently, many regions of the country
have formed their own mailing lists
specializing in birds and birding in their
specific region. Louisiana, Texas,
Colorado, Oregon Washington state and
the Delmarva peninsula are just a few of
the regions with their own list. But not the
Carolinas— until now. •

On December 6,1996, 1 was browsing
Duke’s web page and decided to check to •
see whether Duke has an e-mail list server,
such as ListServ or Majordomo, available.
Sure enough, I found that they have
Majordomo installed. They even have a
form on their web page for requesting new
lists. So, on a whim, 1 filled out the form
requesting a new mailing list called
Carolinabirds as a forum for birders in the
Carolinas. A week later, after 1 had
almost forgotten about it, 1 received word
that Carolinabirds had been set up. I
announced the new group on Birdchat and
started getting the first Carolinabirders on
December 13.

It’s easy to join— send a message to
majordomo@acpub.duke.edu with no
subject and with the message text
“subscribe carolinabirds” (without the
quotes). You will receive an automated
confirmation containing instructions for
posting messages and getting off the list, e-
mail addresses of CBC officers, and instr-
uctions for signing on to other bird groups.
If you have trouble getting on the list or
have other questions, e-mail me at cvvcook
@acpub.duke.edu.

The purpose of the list is to foster
communication among birders in the
Carolinas, providing a place where you
can find out about and report rare birds, .
ask questions about bird ID, get Carolina
Bird Club news, make observations on
bird behavior and much more. The main
rules are that subjects must relate to wild
birds in the Carolinas and that posters ■
must tell us who and where they are.
Topics such as cats, politics, general cons-
ervation issues and other marginally
related topics that tend to dominate
Birdchat at times are not welcome here;
even though they may be important. There
are numerous other newsgroups and
mailing lists where they would be more
appropriate.

After one week of operation we had 69
members. After one month we’re up to
about 100. We have had some good topics
so far, including daily updates on rarities,
Christmas Bird Count results and a
mystery sparrow in Durham that even has
Mike Tove stumped! I hope you all enjoy
it.

if* SIDE

Backyard Birding 1 2

Chip Hates 3

Mystery Bird _ 4

Sometimes it's what you don't see in
the backyard that counts, and until rece-
ntly 1 had not seen a case of tick par-
alysis in my yard birds in three years... •

December 1993 I found a dead
female House Finch on my front porch.
On her head was an engorged tick. A
few days later, a live male House Finch
was also on the porch (apparently a
warm spot). He had two ticks above one
eye. I contacted a number of wildlife
representatives, who referred me to
specialists in Georgia. A researcher
there said it was the first report of tick
paralysis from my area in several years.

The researcher said it was possible to
save the birds by removing the ticks,
unless the bird was too far gone. I
removed the tick from the male finch,
but the bird died the next morning.

After I mailed the tick to the researcher,
she sent back a report confirming tick
paralysis. Several more birds (juncos,
cardinals) showed up with ticks over the
next several months, but then I saw no
more of them — that is, until this past
November. Imagine my dismay, after
all this time, when I spotted a female
House Finch with a tick on her head! So
far, I've only 'seen this one case this go-
round.

In late November I received a very
nice note from Mark E. Johns, Cary,
NC, who is NC Coordinator' for Partners
in Flight. Mark verified that the owls I
heard in October were no doubt Barred
Owls. He said the owls were giving
their call notes as they were beginning
to set up territory areas for spring. They
are calling as they feed/patrol, or indi-
vidual owls might be looking for prosp-
ective mates or rivals. Mark enjoys the
owls' nightly "talks" all through October
and November — the time of year they
are most vocal except for spring — from
his yard in Cary.

November 16 was sunny but very
cold, with a fine crop of White-throated
Sparrows, one American Robin, and one
Red-tailed Hawk.

December 6 Bob came in from
walking Scooter, our chocolate Labrador
Retriever, and said there was something
in the yard I needed to see. There, high
in a swinging platform feeder and eating
sunflower seeds, was a fat 'possum, who
wouldn't be shooed. Every night for the
next week, he climbed up and settled in,
just swaying and eating.

Backyard Birding

with Martha K. Brinson

December 7 out in the cold, driving
rain, I was picking up pine cones for
holiday decorations when I heard som-
ething above me in the pines. I looked up
to see two Brown-headed Nuthatches; who
followed me wherever I went with their
cheerful little twitter-squeaking. The bird
numbers picked up a bit today after weeks
of some of the slimmest bird pickin's in
some time. Carolina Wrens busied the-
mselves yvith hopping around in the woo-
dpile, and a Brown Thrasher flicked large
chunks of my homemade suet to the
ground. A Red-bellied Woodpecker pair
ate suet all morning then sunflower seeds
all afternoon.

Christmas Eve; after several days of
17 -degree weather, was almost balmy. I
filled feeders and replenished suet, then
sat awhile on the wooden bench under the
pines. A White-throated Sparrow hopped
onto a low branch of the plum tree while
two Brown-headed Nuthatches inched
down the Russian elm towards the cedar
feeder. Chickadees and Tufted Titmice
zoomed back and forth from the redbud
tree to the long tube feeder, and two
downies grabbed sunflower seeds from the

log cabin hopper. It was pleasantly quiet
except for the mesmeric sound of a dozen
birds tapping and cracking open the seeds.
A Carolina Wren poised on a thin branch,
aiming for the feeder named Tweetie's
Diner. It hesitated, leaning forward then
back, like a little kid mustering nerve to go
off the high-dive.

Feeder placement makes for interesting
experiments. Birds will completely ignore
a feeder in one spot, then swarm it when it
is moved two feet away. Strategic plac-
ement of feeders can create good traffic
patterns. By having feeders completely
encircle the yard, I get nice, long zoomings
past the windows. And by placing feeders
some distance away from each other, but
still in the same line of vision, I get to
watch the birds fly straight towards me,
which offers an exciting view of the swoo-
ping, dipping, and landing.

December 26 at 2:00 p.m. a male
Purple Finch — the first I'd seen in a long
time — landed on the Orient Pear tree. He
perched in one spot for 1 5 minutes,
looking bewildered as he surveyed his
surroundings. Shortly afterwards, what
appeared to be three Fox Sparrows landed
on the Jasmine vine, but they were gone
before I could grab the binoculars.

December 29 I watched a Tufted
Titmouse cling valiantly to an upside-
down thistle feeder and take a seed. He .
did not return for another. I guess it's like
a pistachio or crab leg. Tastes great, but
it's a tiny thrill for the trouble.

January 4 Herman Lankford,
Raleigh, NC, had a Golden-Crowned
Kinglet, and a few days before he had a
flork of SO or more G edar Waxwin'os;
clamoring for space on the cedar trees.

Haven't heard recently from the
western parts of SC and NC but would like
to. 1 look forward to hearing from more of
you about the birds in your backyard.

— Martha (1/8/97)
4300 Green Level Road
Apex, NC 27502

More Backyard Birding . . .

(The following letter did not reach Martha
for inclusion in her column. Editor)

December 24 Charles II. Jewson,
Southern Pines, NC, says that “a big
(continued on next page)

Notes

Sancfuray Clean-Up Day

Carolina Bird Club members are invited
to four the CBC sanctuary property in
Tryon, NC, on Saturday, February 15.
We will also spend a couple of hours
cleaning up the property! This 82 acre
tract has been basically undisturbed for the
past 30 years. It supports a diverse habitat
of riverine thickets, meadows,a stream and
dense woodlands.

We will meet at 10:00 a.m. at the Bi-
Lo’s parking lot on Exit 36 of 1-26
towards Tryon. Bring your work gloves
and clippers or pruning shears. The clean-
up should only take an hour or so and
we’ll spend some time clearing out a trail
and doing some birding. Simon
Thompson, FENCE Nature Director, will
lead us on a tour of the property. Bring a
picnic lunch.

. For addition mformation contact John
Huggins (704) 877-3843, Fax (704) 883-
4358, e-mail Woodbridge@citcom.net.

A Reminder

The Carolina Bird Club Membership
Directory recently mailed to all CBC
members contains the following statement
on the back side of the front cover: “This
directory is for the personal use of
members of the Carolina Bird Club. Re-
publication or re-use of this directory for
solicitation or any other commercial
purpose is prohibited.” This is a policy
adopted by the C BC executive committee
and is the only reason many members
allowed their names to be published. It is
up to CBC members to prevent then-
copies of the Directory being used for
mailing lists or commercial solicitations.

They should also resist the temptation to
use addresses of fellow members for their
own personal business ventures. A
complaint about such use has already been
received by the headquarters secretary.

The executive committee has on rare
occasions allowed other organizations to
use our mailing list where such mailings
were considered appropriate. However,
application for executive committee app-
roval should always be obtained prior to
use.

While none of the. Carolina Bird Club
publications accept advertising, the CBC
Newsletter has a fairly liberal policy of
carrying announcements of tours,
availability of lodging and products of .
general interest to CBC members. Such
announcements should be sent to the
editor by the published deadlines.

FENCE Ventures

FENCE (Foothill Equestrian Nature
Center) is in the process of completing its
1997 Ventures program. This program,
under the leadership of FENCE Nature
Director and CBC member, Simon R. B.
Thompson, has both domestic and
international trips of interest to birders. In
addition to day and weekend trips in both
Carolmas, longer trips are planned to the
Rio Grande Valley in Texas, March 21-29,
Mt. Rogers Virginia, May 16-18,

Michigan for the Kirtland’s Warbler, June
1 -7, England, May 26-June 9, Scotland,
June 11-24 and Costa Rico in November.

For more information contact Simon
Thompson, Nature Director, FENCE, 500
Hunting Country Road, Tryon, NC 28782,
(704) 859-9021.

Piping Plover info
Needed

Joshua Long, a senior at Lees-McRae
College in Banner Elk, is doing his senior
research project on the Piping Plover. He
has requested any information that might
be helpful in this project. His e-mail
address is joshua.long@mtemetMCI.com
or you can reach him at P.O. Box 3459
LMC, Banner Elk, NC 28604, tel.. (704)
898-8632.

Birder’s Guide to Georgia

The Georgia Ornithological Society has
recently released the 5th edition of
Birder ’s Guide to Georgia. The 222 page
compilation of information on when and
where to see birds in Georgia was edited
by Joel R. Hitt and Kenneth Turner
Blackshaw. Giff Beaton did the bar charts,
which are new to this edition, depicting
frequency of occurence, per physiographic
region, per month of year for each species.
The volume is spiral bound, a welcome
featurewhen trying to drive with one hand
and follow directionswith the other.

Writing in the GOSHAWK editor Hite
states: “there is something else special
about our state’s Birder’s Guide. It is, like
none other I have seen, an anthology of
regional birders' notes, on the roads, the
paths, and the places they have found to be
the best birding spots, and who want to
make this information available to others.”

Copies may be ordered from the
Georgia Ornithological Society, P.O. Box
1684, Cartersville, GA 30120, at a cost of
$ 1 2.00 postpaid.

Backyard Birding (continued)

Yellow-Shafted Flicker landed on the
solidly frozen bird bath and I imagine it
sait to itself ‘It looks like water, let’s try it’
and gave a series of rapid jabs. ‘Well,
what can be the problem? Try again’ jab,
baj, jab, He then gave up and drank from
the goldfish pool right below.

“The last few days have seen a heavy
return to the feeders Qf all the regulars. . .
And for the scraps on the ground below
the feeders the other set of regulars. . .
Then there is the daily spread of leftover
popcorn which at first attracted the crows
but now the other ground feeders join in.”

Mr. Jewson appreciates all his birds,
although some are a nuisancebecause they
kick the seeds out of his feeder— he even
appreciates the visitmg squirrels!

I I

CBC Rare Bird Alert
(704) 332-BfRD

Mystery Bird Puzzles Birders

by Clyde Smith

As Rob Gluck, Chapel Hill, NC, says
“everyone loves a mystery (bird).” It all
started innocently enough. Will Cook,
Durham, NC, posted a note on
Carolinabirds (see article on front page)
stating that “the highlight bird of the
(Chapel Hill) count was the ‘mystery
sparrow’ that’s been coming to Roger
Kohri’s feeder for the last two winters.

This bird has totally stumped everybody
who’s seen it so far.” He also included
Mike Tove’s description of the bird which
had been posted to birdchat.

Size and general shape of a Fox
Sparrow. Likely an adult male (it’s
been coming for 2 years now and the
colors are VIVID).

Ground color of the entire bird:
upperparts and underparts rich
cinnamon-brown, roughly the color of
that of a male Orchard Oriole. Head,
face, throat black with densely packed
vertical streaks of black chevrons
extending from the black “hood” onto
the chest and upper belly in a “U”
pattern, i.e., most extensive in the mid-
belly region, and not along the flanks.
The center of the back is unmarked but
the scapulars and wing coverts adjacent
to the scapulars of the folded wing have
broad, black vertical streaks. The bill is
hom gray and the feet are flesh.
Behavior-wise the bird does NOT act
like a Fox Sparrow and appears to have
some Towhee in it. The iris is brown,
but distinctly lighter than that of a
White-throated Sparrow (by direct
comparison). There is NO white on the
bird anywhere. Plumage-wise (ONLY),
the color pattern is closest to a Chestnut
Mannikin - and almost that bright
(that’s a comparison, NOT an
identification).

Mike knew of no species which it could
be. The first responses were directed
toward exotic species: Red Siskin,
Chestnut Weaver and Grey Bunting. Will
Cook discounted these suggestions and
added the following to the description:

It’s a sparrow-type bill. The bird also
acts like a sparrow. I don’t know about
this bird being “towhee-like” except
that it is a large sparrow, like a towhee,
and has rich brown and black colors,
like a towhee.

Enter Roger Kohn and his wife, Ramona
Conyers, the caretakers, of the mystery
bird. They graciously posted an invitation
on Carolinabirds for birders to join them
on New Year’s Day morning for coffee
and a look at the mystery bird. 1 arrived at
their home off NC 75 1 in Durham at 9:30
a.m. and joined Kent Fiala, also from
Raleigh, in watching the large shelf
feeded on Kohn’s back deck. Roger and
Ramona had seen the bird at 7:30 a.m.
before we arrived, but it hadn’t been seen
since. I got acquainted with their dog,
Homer, and scanned a nice variety of back
yard birds for anything unusual. More
birders began to gather until around 20
were present including Will Cook, Liz
Pullman and Derb Carter. Around
1 1 :00 a.m. I joined Roger, Homer, a
restless two-year-old birder and her
mother on a walk to the wetland at the end
of their street. Liz also left to return
home. We hadn’t walked a block when
Ramona rushed out of the house waving
her arms at Liz’s retreating car. THE
BIRD had been seen—not on the feeder,
but in a bush in the yard. Trotting back to
the house I found the bush empty. For the
next half hour I walked from window to
window scanning the back yard. By
1 1 :45 a.m. I had to leave in order to get
back to Raleigh in time to watch the Gator
Bowl (my blood runs Carolina blue). No
sooner had I gotten out of sight than the
bird put in another appearance. I always
knew I was a bird jinx.

The consensus of those who saw the
bird on January 1 was that it was a White-
throated Sparrow. Will commented “We
saw the mystery bird in close proximity to
a White-throated and noted that shape,
size, and bare parts were almost identical.
This bird may appear to be slightly larger
than it actually is because it’s all dark.”
This prompted Mike Tove to summarize

his thinking that the bird was not a vagrant
species; was an adult male, the size and
shape of a North American sparrow, most
closely that of a Fox Sparrow; and not a
hybrid. He commented further: “Except
for COLORS, the pattern of a dark solid
head grading into coarse chest streaking is
typical of the Western form of Fox
Sparrow whereas the warm colors are
associated with the Eastern form. Western
Fox Sparrows have a horn-gray bill;
eastern have yellow.” He rejected the
suggestion that it was a White-throated
Sparrow because when he saw it in the
feeder it was distinctly bigger than nearby
White-throats and ’’the shape was not
quite right.” He concluded that “the bird
is likely a melanomorphic Fox Sparrow
from who knows where, but possibly
western.”

I ran into Roger and Ramona at Jordan
Lake on January 4 where we all saw the
Snow Bunting at Crosswinds Marina, and
Roger questioned the Fox Sparrow id
because none of the other Fox Sparrows
which frequent his back yard have ever
come to his feeder.

There the matter rested until the photos
taken by Norm Budnitz were posted on
the New Hope Audubon web page by
Patrick Coin. Coin commented:
“Incidentally, I vote for a melanistic or
otherwise aberrant eastern towhee. The
bill, head shape, tail length, and long
robust legs (? metatarsals?) all say towhee
to me. If you take a normal female towee
and color all the white brown, I think
you’ll get something like the color scheme
of the bird. Juvenile towhees are a bit
streaky, so maybe that is where the bird
gets its streakiness.”

There was quick agreement.

Franchesca Perez: “I agree with the
towhee choice. Look at the size of its
head. Towhees have HUGE heads., I
banded them this summer, and their heads
were always getting caught in the mist
nets!” Greg Dodge: “Looks like towhee
to me— handled a few in the past— on all
points mentioned by P. Coin, as well as
tail shape.” Evelyn Dabbs, Sumter Co.,
(continued on next page)

Mystery Bird (continued)

SC: “The silhouette, to me certainly
appears to be that of a towhee’s and the
added indication of a silvery bill
convinces me.” Liz Pullman, Durham,'
NC: “Nice little towhee.”

However, Will Cook cautioned: “Not
so fast! As far as I know, few to none of
the 20+ people who have seen this bird in
real life thought it was an E. Towhee. . .
The mystery sparrow is significantly
smaller than an E. Towhee, about the

same size as or slightly larger than a
White-throated Sparrow. . . One
interesting behavior hasn’t been
mentioned before: the mystery sparrow
‘behaved very aggressively toward White-
throated Sparrows that came to the
feeder’.” Roger Kohn adds: “This bird
is tough to size, it’s hard to compare
mystery bird with white-throateds directly
since he runs them off rather promptly.
And we’ve never-seen him in conjunction
with a fox sparrow. . .This bird puffs up a
lot. . . Mystery bird has a distinct brown

iris which shows up well against his black
head. The white-throated seems to have a
similar eye but it doesn’t stand out as
well.” Mike Tove: “The bird is NOT a
towhee. Period.” He believes it is a Fox
Sparrow.

What is it? It’s a mystery. To view the
photos access the New Hope Audubon
web site http://www.rtpnet.org/~nhas/
bird/inyst/ index.html or the site set up
by Lois Schultz which has photos of
White-throats and towhees for comparison
http://www.lib.duke.edu/bes/mystery/.

Membership Application and Order Form

Name ' Address

City State.

Enter/Renew Membership As Indicated

Individual

($15)

Affiliate Club ($20)

Family

($20) _

Contributing

($35)

Student

($10)

Patron

($50)

Library/Institution

($15) .

Life

($250)

Zip Tel.. ( ) ( )

(home) (business)

Send Materials Indicated

_CBC Cloth arm patch $1.50 ea., $1.25 ea. ui quantity

CBC Decals (vinyl stick -on) $2.00 ea., $1.75 ea. in quanity

Checklists 10/$1.75, 25/$4.25, 50/$8.25, 75/$ 12, 1 00/$ 1 5

Make check payable to Carolina Bird Club, Inc. and mail to PO Box 2955, Raleigh, NC 27626-0555

Kama da Inn Reservation Form
Carolina Bird Club
Spring Meeting, April 25-27, 1997

Name Address.,

City State Zip Telephone No. ( )

(Rooms are $44.00 plus 9% tax for up to 4 persons)

Please reserve room(s) for persons. My check for the first night’s lodging plus 9% tax is enclosed. .1 will

arrive . and depart .

Mail with deposit to ReservationDept., Ramada Inn, PO Box 1706, Clemson, SC 29633 or call 1-864-654-7501

Name(s).

Address,

Registration Form

CBC Spring Meeting, April 25-27, 1997

(list each name for name tags)
City

State Zip

Enclosed is my check in the amount of $ for member registrations at $6 each, nonmember registrations at $7

each. Registration at the meeting is $10 for members and $1 1 for nonmembers.

Mail with check payable to Carolina Bird Club, Inc., PO Box 29555, Raleigh, NC 27626-0555

— Welcome New Members

Michael & Janet Adams
Charlotte, NC

Jim & Marianne Clark
Lumberton, NC

Alma Lee Davis
Swan Quarter, NC

Mrs. W. L. Harrington, Jr.

Camden, SC

Tom Henson

Greenville, NC

Bill & Karen Johnson
Raleigh, NC

Roy & Betty Lindholm
Chapel Hill, NC

Tom Lorenzin
Davidson, NC

Edward Mills
Wingate, NC

CBC Newsletter is published bimonthly by Carohna Bird Club, Inc., the ornithological society of the Carolinas, with headquarters
at Raleigh, NC. CBC is a nonprofit corporation, founded in 1937, with membership open to anyone interested in buds, natural
history and conservation. Members are encouraged to submit items of interest to CBC Newsletter, Clyde Smith, Editor, 2615 Wells
Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27608, (919) 781-2637 (voice or fax), e-mail, Smith82534@aol.com. Submission deadline is the 10th of
January, March, May, July, September and November. Articles may be in the form of typed, hard copy or 3 1/2 “ computer disk.

P.0. Box 29555, Raleigh, NC 27626-0555

Nonprofit Organization
U.S. Post Office
Raleigh, NC
Permit No. 1654

Carolina Bird Club, Inc.

CB@

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION LIBRARIES

9088 01273 2707

Anita Myers
New Bern NC

Midge & Charlie Ogletree
Columbia, NC

Fred & Louise Robinson

Greenville, SC

Jerry & Christina Robinson

Rocky Mount, NC

Dennis & Sarah Ross
Winston-Salem, NC

Jerry & Patty Shrum

Spartanburg, SC

Sarah Stevens
Winston-Salem, NC

US Fish & Wildlife Service
Charleston, SC

Jo White

Hendersonville, NC

Life Members

John Daughtry

Greenville, NC

Len & Esther Pardue
Durham, NC

Nongame Wildlife Program
Manager, NC Wildlife Resources
Commission
Northside, NC

Deceased

Mrs. W. B. Knox

Statesville, NC

Carolina Newhall
Hilton Head, SC

’ - ' ■ ~ A

3000 E 0 142

SMITHSONIAN LIBRARIES
NHB 25-MRC 154
WASHINGTON DC 20560

}

CBC Newsletter is printed on 100$% recycled paper with 60% post-corns umer content