Add the Valencic horse barn to the Junco artificial nesting environments.
They nest in the loft between the bales of hay near the back door. I leave
that door open about 12" starting early April and we typically have three
clutches of young each year. The second batch just 'fell' into the lower
barn last Friday and were encourage outside by the anxious parents who get
them into the bushes and shrubby plants at the edge of the woods.
We also have a family of Barn Swallows in the lower part of the barn and
these young will probably leave their nest (above a light fixture) in a week
or so. This moves us to leave the main barn door open about 12" to permit
the adults easy entry and exit.
Outside we can see a Downy Woodpecker entering its nest hole in a dead tree
repeatedly throughout the day. Babies can be heard as she enters. The
Bluebirds do the same and a Flicker is nesting nearby as well. All in
cavities of standing dead trees (mostly Ash).
The final, noisy baby of this summer is a Great Horned Owl! It screams all
night long, letting its parent(s) know where to bring the shrews, mice,
voles and pieces of Crow they gather.
It's great to live in the country!
Matt Valencic
S. Russell, OH
Fox Meadow Farm
-----Original Message-----
From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Dan
Best
Sent: Monday, June 24, 2013 11:09 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [Ohio-birds] Nesting Juncoes
Haans' and Barbara's observations, along with Mary Ann's testimonial,
pretty much tell the story of the dark-eyed junco's nesting population
expansion.
As said, they started out in the hemlock ravines of extreme NE Ohio's
Snowbelt. In recent years, they have busted out of the hemlocks to become
backyard birds in Geauga County anyway.
I've known them to nest in hanging baskets, dried flower door wreaths,
garage shelves, under the grassy lips of drainage ditches, etc. While
southern birds such as the N. mockingbird continue to expand populations
north following the global warming trend, seems that juncos - and, to a
lesser, but notable extent, yellow-bellied sapsuckers - seem to be bucking
that trend with a population expansion in and beyond NE Ohio's Snowbelt.
Dan Best, Senior Naturalist - Geauga Park District
On Jun 24, 2013, at 9:38 PM, maryann sedivy wrote:
> There is a Dark-eyed Junco nesting in a hanging basket on my front porch.
I think we were equally startled when I watered the flowers the other day.
> This is interesting. It seems in the past few years that more Juncos are
year round residents. It used to be that they could be found in cool
woodland ravines in our area; places like Stebbins Gulch in Lake County or
the West Woods in Geauga County. Yet I've noticed them for about the past 5
years or more year round on my property--which isn't entirely typical
habitat for a junco-although there are woods nearby. This year is the first
time to have the actual nest right at my door! A friend told my that her
neighbor also has Juncos nesting in a flower basket on the porch.
> What's going on with the Juncos? Anybody else have them nesting?
>
> Mary Ann Sedivy
> Newbury
> Geauga County
>
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______________________________________________________________________
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Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.
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