Birding Opportunities at the Park
North Mountain Park offers many birding activities throughout the year. Bird monitoring takes place every winter with a national bird-monitoring effort called Project FeederWatch. Each spring with the return of the Tree Swallows comes the excitement of North Mountain Park's Live Spy Cam and the kick-off of the Nest Box Monitoring season. In May there is a celebration of migratory birds at the annual Rogue Valley Bird Day celebration.
Project FeederWatch…
Count and identify birds that visit the feeders at North Mountain Park. Project FeederWatch is a nationwide bird-monitoring effort that takes place in the winter months between November and March. Birds are counted as they appear in an established count site to eat the food provided for them. A count site is an area where the birds can be consistently observed at the feeders throughout the project. The highest number of each species at a given time is noted. The information collected is submitted to the Cornell University's FeederWatch project. Scientists use the data to study broad-scale movement of wintering birds and long-term trends of bird abundance and distribution in North America.
Project FeederWatch is a great opportunity for all levels of birders to get acquainted with local birds and mingle with other birders. This free program is sponsored by the North Mountain Park Nature Center, the Rogue Valley Audubon Society and the Northwest Nature Shop of Ashland.
To learn more about this nationwide effort, visit www.birds.cornell.edu
and click on Project FeederWatch. You can take part in your own backyard!
Tree Swallow Spy Cam…
North Mountain Park's Spy Cam offers a close-up look at the nesting season of local Tree Swallows. Every spring the Tree Swallows return to this region as early as March to nest in standing dead trees or a nest box provided by North Mountain Park. They return to their nesting grounds earlier than other swallows due to their ability to use berries and seeds to sustain themselves during inclement weather when insects are not readily available. It is during this time in early spring, with breeding grounds often still cold, that the search begins for a suitable nesting site, one that will be aggressively protected by the male.
Nest boxes have enabled Tree Swallows to expand their breeding grounds in treeless areas, thereby increasing populations. They use feathers from other birds to keep the nestlings warm and help them to grow strong.
This breeding season will mark the fourth season that the Nature Center has monitored a Tree Swallow nest box via a spy cam! A live feed from the nest box allows you to watch the building of the nest, the laying and eventually hatching of eggs, and finally the fledging of juveniles. You can hear all of this as well — the wrestling of feathers and straw as the nest is being built, the whistles and twitters as the parents care for their young and share the duty of feeding.
Stop by the North Mountain Park Nature Center in the spring to experience the Tree Swallows. You can also view the Tree Swallows online each spring — please check back.
Nest Box Monitoring…
Each spring and early summer, volunteer birders help to observe and record nest box use at North Mountain Park. Monitoring surveys will take place once weekly between Friday and Monday. Approximately 1-hour is required to survey the boxes, at 10 minutes per station. For more information Email Linda Chesney or call 541.488.6606.
Rogue Valley Bird Day…
International Migratory Bird Day takes place each May. To learn more about this event visit www.RogueValleyBirdDay.net. You can also visit the national website at www.birdday.org
