Winter Songbirds Common in the Northland

by Kevin Strauss

Despite cool and cloudy weather as we move into December, winter birds are still common, especially on sunny December days. Despite all of the press that bird migration gets, only about half of our bird species migrate south to warmer climates. The other half of the species, those who can subsist on seeds and insect grubs, remain here.

Based on last year's Christmas Bird Count in the Ely area, black-capped chickadees, goldfinches, evening grosbeaks and purple finches are our most common winter songbirds.

Other common winter birds include the common raven, blue jay, pine grosbeak, bohemian waxwing, and the red-breasted nuthatch.

The best way to see a lot of songbirds is to put up bird feeders and keep them full. If you want to see several kinds of birds, you should be sure to supply several kinds of bird feed. Black oil sunflower seeds are the best “all-around” bird food. It will attract chickadees, grosbeaks, finches and bluejays. Hanging suet will bring in the nuthatches and woodpeckers. Niger (thistle) seed is good for goldfinches.

If you want to see more birds than those who will come into a feeder, try a winter hike or trip on snowshoes or skis. It is easier to seed birds in the woods now that the deciduous leaves are down. Winter songbirds seem most active during warmer weather in the middle of the day, and on the balmier winter days. Keep in mind, if it is cold and windy, we don't want to be outside and birds will take shelter in spruce and fir thickets.

Getting out into the woods will make it easier to see gray jays, who don't come in to feeders and bluejays and ravens who are often too big for many feeders. Listen carefully as you hike and you might hear the tap-tap-tap of a black and white woodpecker searching for grubs in tree bark. The most common woodpeckers in this area are the small downy (7-inch) and hairy (9-inch) woodpeckers. But we also have the “monstrous” pileated woodpeckers in our older woods. These 16-inch woodpeckers leave those huge rectangular holes in the bark of old, rotting pines.

You may also want to give wildlife a “present” this year. It is a holiday tradition in Germany to decorate outdoor evergreen trees for with slices of orange, cranberries and dried apples on strings for the wildlife. Some theorize that this tradition goes back hundreds of years and may explain our tradition of decorating and putting presents under a Christmas tree.

If you choose to hand fruits on trees or bushes for the wildlife, be sure to use cotton string. It is biodegradable and birds are less likely to get entangled in the white string. If you live in the country, your “holiday tree” may attract deer, pine martens and other wildlife.

Enjoy the season of light.

The Ely Timberjay