Central Texas’ December bird forecast

  

Bird Forecast December 2024

What to watch for in December: People Counting Birds and Crowd-pleasing Bluebirds

Here’s the Central Texas bird forecast for the month, courtesy of Travis Audubon. Learn more about Central Texas birds and bird-related events for all ages at travisaudubon.org or by calling 512-300-BIRD. Follow us at www.facebook.com/travisaudubon

When mid-December rolls around, bird watchers get out and count birds, participating in one or more Christmas Bird Counts. The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is one of the longest running citizen science wildlife censuses in the world. This year marks its 125^th anniversary! Administered by the National Audubon Society, the data collected by CBC participants for 125 years are among the largest resources informing ornithologists and conservation biologists about how the birds of the Americas are faring over time. Last year there were counts in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Central America, South America, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands.

A little history: CBCs got their start as a variation of hunters’ traditional Christmas side hunts where teams competed at Christmas to see who could shoot the most birds and mammals. Frank Chapman, an ornithologist, proposed doing a Christmas Bird Census instead and the idea caught on.

Whether you are a relatively new birder or an expert, you can participate in a CBC and contribute important data – all you have to do is join a CBC. Participants are divided up into sections to cover the 15-mile diameter count circle, counting every bird they see or hear all day. What if the day is cold and/or rainy? The bird watchers will be outside anyway, but if you live within the count circle and have a feeder or bird bath you can participate from the warmth of your home by counting your birds. Travis Audubon has a list of central Texas CBCs. All CBCs are conducted from Dec. 14 to Jan. 5, 2025.

Bluebirds of Happiness

One species that can brighten everyone’s day in December is the Eastern Bluebird. You’ve probably seen the photos of the “mad bluebird” that is featured on greeting cards, coffee mugs, t-shirts, and other gift items. It’s a beautiful puffed up male Eastern Bluebird looking right at the camera. Our bluebirds don’t usually need to be as puffed up as their famous relative who was photoed in Maryland where it is chillier. In Central Texas we have bluebirds year-round, but we see more bluebirds in the winter. That’s because Eastern Bluebirds have a large geographic range, with year-round populations in the southeastern and south central U.S. and summering populations further north, which retreat for the winter.

Male Eastern Bluebirds with their royal blue backs, wings, and heads, and earth-toned breasts and throats are memorable, and fairly easy to identify. Henry David Thoreau said they carry the sky on their backs. The adult females can be either drab or bright with more gray tones on their heads and backs. Look for blue in the wings and tails to identify them. Immature birds look a lot like females. Juvenile birds just out of the nest are very spotted. The Eastern Bluebird’s mellow song like a husky warbling whistle, and calls resembling “toodle-oos” or “tu-a-wee” are an audio treat. Both sexes sing.

Eastern Bluebirds are small, plump birds that like open grassy areas with scattered trees. Look for them on golf courses, in parks, pastures and orchards including pecan groves. Bluebirds are primarily sit-and-wait predators; 80% of the time this is their foraging strategy according to research. Watch for small upright birds dropping from trees, fences and telephone wires to the ground to catch insects which are often eaten on the spot. They will occasionally forage by hopping along the ground, and also glean and flycatch. In winter they eat a lot of berries from plants like native sumacs and junipers.

Bluebirds are dependent on cavities for nesting. Competition for natural cavities in trees is fierce, but bluebirds respond well to human-provided nestboxes, and some bluebird landlords even construct bluebird trails on their properties. This has helped bluebirds bounce back from declines stemming from aggressive European Starlings and House Sparrows that take over their nest sites.

The Texas Bluebird Society is an organization whose slogan is “Bluebirds across Texas – one nestbox at a time.” They have a wealth of information on nestbox construction, placement and management. Since the way to a bluebird’s heart is through its stomach, the Bluebird Society also has information on popular plants to attract these attractive insect and fruit loving birds.

Did you know?

Eastern Bluebirds may have three broods in one breeding season. Out at Hornsby Bend in eastern Travis County, the adults fledged young in August this year.

Mountain and Western Bluebirds also occur in the U.S. but are rare in central Texas. In the winter of 2020-2021 there was an irruption of Mountain Bluebirds in western Travis, Burnet and Williamson counties, thrilling bird watchers. An irruption occurs when there is a lack of food in the birds’ typical wintering range. The male Mountain is a sky blue all over. In November this year Roy Guerrero Park has had two to three Western Bluebirds mixed in with the Eastern Bluebirds. The males have blue throats and dark chestnut backs which help distinguish them from Eastern Bluebirds.

There are many places in town to look for Eastern Bluebirds. One really active spot at the end of November is just west of the playground area at Roy G. Guerrero Park, 400 Grove Blvd. The birds are eating berries along the black fence line and also moving in sycamores directly across the street in the open grassy area. On the west side of town at Commons Ford Ranch Metro Park, the bluebirds may be around the barn (that’s where their nestboxes maintained by Travis Audubon are), or down by the open mowed field along Lake Austin. Emma Long Metro Park has a good number of bluebirds in trees on the east side of the park, but also along the road. The Onion Creek Doggy Park area off Pleasant Valley Road is another place to look and listen for these birds guaranteed to raise your spirits.

Upcoming Travis Audubon Events – Check the events calendar for field trips. Most require registration. There is a class on building an owl nestbox on December 14 and a January class on common winter birds of Commons Ford Ranch Metro Park. Either class would be a fun holiday gift for your favorite bird enthusiast.

Compiled by Jane Tillman, Travis Audubon Volunteer

Resources: All about Birds, Birds of the World, The Sibley Guide to Birds, The Crossley ID Guide Eastern Birds, and the Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America.