Here in a series of photographs are just a handful of the reasons why the land stewards at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area and other properties where conservation and propagation practices are employed delay the mowing of fields composed of cool-season grasses until after August 15 each year.
Eastern Meadowlarks, birds of large pastures, hay lots and other meadows of cool-season grasses, build their nests and raise their young on the ground. In the years since the early twentieth century, loss in the volume of acreage maintained in the lower Susquehanna Valley as grassland habitat types has dramatically reduced the prevalence and abundance of this and other birds with similar nesting requirements. During the most recent fifty years, early and frequent mowing and other practices introduced as part of agriculture’s Green Revolution have all but eliminated ground-nesting grassland species from the region.Like the meadowlarks, Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum) nest on the ground in fields of cool-season grasses. Mowing prior to the time the young leave the nest and are able to fly away can obliterate a generation of grassland birds. Because their life span is short, widespread loss of an entire year of reproduction can quickly impact overall populations of native sparrows and other small birds. Delayed mowing can improve numbers of Grasshopper Sparrows as well as Savannah Sparrows, Vesper Sparrows (Pooecetes gramineus), and the very rare Henslow’s Sparrow (Centronyx henslowii).The Bobolink, like the meadowlark, is a member of the blackbird family (Icteridae). It too requires grasslands free of disturbances like mowing for the duration of the nesting season which, for this particular bird, lasts until mid-August in the lower Susquehanna region. In places lacking their specific habitat requirements, Bobolinks will seldom be detected except as flyovers during migration.Ring-necked Pheasants were introduced to the lower Susquehanna basin, and their populations were maintained thereafter, by stocking for the purpose of hunting. But throughout the middle twentieth century, there was a substantial population of ring-necks breeding in fields of cool-season grasses in farmlands throughout the region. High-intensity agriculture with frequent mowing eliminated not only nesting habitat in grasslands, but winter cover in areas of early successional growth. Populations of Ring-necked Pheasants, as well as native Northern Bobwhite, crumbled during the late 1970s and early 1980s due to these changes. For these resident birds that don’t migrate or routinely travel great distances to find new places to live and breed, widespread habitat loss can be particularly catastrophic. Not surprisingly, the Northern Bobwhite is no longer found in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed and has been extirpated from all of Pennsylvania.At places like Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area where a mix of grasslands, early successional growth, and even some cropland are maintained, the Blue Grosbeak has extended its range well north of the Mason-Dixon and has become a regular nesting species during recent decades. Good habitat management does pay dividends.
Right now is a good time to visit Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area to see the effectiveness a delayed mowing schedule can have when applied to fields of cool-season grasses. If you slowly drive, walk, or bicycle the auto tour route on the north side of the lake, you’ll pass through vast areas maintained as cool-season and warm-season grasses and early successional growth—and you’ll have a chance to see these and other grassland birds raising their young. It’s like a trip back in time to see farmlands they way they were during the middle years of the twentieth century.
If you’re like us, you’re forgoing this year’s egg hunt due to the prices, and, well, because you’re a little bit too old for such a thing.
Instead, we took a closer look at some of our wildlife photographs from earlier in the week. We’ve learned from experience that we don’t always see the finer details through the viewfinder, so it often pays to give each shot a second glance on a full-size screen. Here are a few of our images that contained some hidden surprises.
We photographed these Blue-winged Teal and American Black Ducks as they were feeding in a meadow wetland…
..but upon closer inspection we located…
…a Common Green Darner patrolling for mosquitoes and other prey. The Common Green Darner is a migratory species of dragonfly. After mating, they deposit their eggs in wetland pools, ponds, and slow-moving streams.We photographed this Water Strider as it was “walking” across a pool in a small stream that meanders through a marshy meadow…
..but after zooming in a little closer we found…
…a mosquito coming to deposit its eggs had been seized as a mid-day meal. Look at how the legs of the Water Strider use the surface tension of the pool to allow it to “walk on water”, even while clutching and subduing its prey.We photographed these resident Canada Geese in a small plowed cornfield in an area managed mostly as a mix of cool-season and warm-season grassland…
..but then, following further examination, we discovered…
…a hen Ring-necked Pheasant on a nest.
THE BAD EGG
We photographed this small group of migrating Red-winged Blackbirds while it was feeding among corn stubble in a plowed field…
…but a careful search of the flock revealed…
…three female Brown-headed Cowbirds among them (the unstreaked brown birds, two to the far left and one among the “red-wings” to the right). Cowbirds practice nest parasitism as a means of putting their young up for adoption. Red-winged Blackbirds and numerous other species are the unknowing victims. The female cowbird discreetly deposits her egg(s) in the adopting party’s nest and abandons it. The cowbird egg and the hatchling that follows is cared for by the victim species, often at the expense of their own young.
It’s just common sense to take it easy and drive carefully when snow covers streets and highways. Everyone knows that. But did you know that slowing down when the landscape is blanketed in white can save lives even after the roadways have been cleared?
Following significant snowfalls such as the one earlier this week, birds and other wildlife are attracted to bare ground along the edges of plowed pavement. They are often so preoccupied with the search for food that they ignore approaching cars and trucks until it is too late.
Take a look at the species found today along a one mile stretch of plowed rural roadway in the lower Susquehanna valley.
Following snow storms, birds that normally feed among leaf litter on the forest floor or in thickets and fields are attracted to plowed roads. During their urgent search for food, many are struck and killed by motor vehicles.White-throated Sparrows commonly congregate along roads passing through woodlands and thickets.A juvenile White-crowned Sparrow looks for food among leaves along the edge of snow-free pavement.Adult White-crowned Sparrows take cover in roadside shrubs until traffic passes. Within moments they’ll return to a patch of bare ground along the road’s narrow shoulder.Dark-eyed Juncos are commonly encountered along roads through snow-covered weedy fields and suburbia.Song Sparrows gather along roads traversing brushy areas.Juvenile White-crowned Sparrows and, to the upper right, an American Tree Sparrow (Spizella arborea) take refuge in a small roadside sapling after fleeing a passing automobile.This Yellow-rumped Warbler was attracted to berry-laden shrubs and vines in a road cut with a southern exposure and patches of bare ground.Following a snowfall, Eastern Bluebirds are regularly seen feeding along the edges of rural roads.Horned Larks gather along the snow-free margins of roads through tundra-like farmland.
For many species of wildlife in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed, the fragmented and impaired state of habitat already challenges their chances of surviving the winter. Snow cover can isolate them from their limited food supplies and force them to roadsides and other dangerous locations to forage. Mauling them with motor vehicles just adds to the escalating tragedy, so do wildlife and yourself a favor—please slow down.
Even in areas with ideal habitat, snow cover will cause birds and other wildlife to explore bare ground along highways while seeking food.Ring-necked Pheasants frequently become traffic casualties. These birds feeding at roadside due to the snow cover are in increased peril.
You need to get outside and go for a walk. You’ll be sorry if you don’t. It’s prime time to see wildlife in all its glory. The songs and colors of spring are upon us!
Flooding that resulted from mid-week rains is subsiding. The muddy torrents of Conewago Falls are seen here racing by the powerhouse at the York Haven Dam.Receding waters will soon leave the parking area at Falmouth and other access points along the river high and dry.Migrating Yellow-rumped Warblers are currently very common in the riparian woodlands near Conewago Falls. They and all the Neotropical warblers, thrushes, vireos, flycatchers are moving through the Susquehanna watershed right now.A Baltimore Oriole feeds in a riverside maple tree.Ruby-crowned Kinglets are migrating through the Susquehanna valley. These tiny birds may be encountered among the foliage of trees and shrubs as they feed upon insects .Gray Catbirds are arriving. Many will stay to nest in shrubby thickets and in suburban gardens.American Robins and other birds take advantage of rising flood waters to feed upon earthworms and other invertebrates that are forced to the soil’s surface along the inundated river shoreline.Spotted Sandpipers are a familiar sight as they feed along water’s edge.The Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia) is a Neotropical migrant that nests locally in wet shrubby thickets. Let your streamside vegetation grow and in a few years you just might have these “wild canaries” singing their chorus of “sweet-sweet-sweet-I’m-so-sweet” on your property.
If you’re not up to a walk and you just want to go for a slow drive, why not take a trip to Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area and visit the managed grasslands on the north side of the refuge. To those of us over fifty, it’s a reminder of how Susquehanna valley farmlands were before the advent of high-intensity agriculture. Take a look at the birds found there right now.
Red-winged Blackbirds commonly nest in cattail marshes, but are very fond of untreated hayfields, lightly-grazed pastures, and fallow ground too. These habitats are becoming increasingly rare in the lower Susquehanna region. Farmers have little choice, they either engage in intensive agriculture or go broke.Nest boxes are provided for Tree Swallows at the refuge.Numbers of American Kestrels have tumbled with the loss of grassy agricultural habitats that provide large insects and small rodents for them to feed upon.White-crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys) are a migrant and winter resident species that favors small clumps of shrubby cover in pastures and fallow land.When was the last time you saw an Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna) singing “spring-of-the-year” in a pasture near your home?And yes, the grasslands at Middle Creek do support nesting Ring-necked Pheasants (Phasianus colcichus). If you stop for a while and listen, you’ll hear the calls of “kowk-kuk” and a whir of wings. Go check it out.
And remember, if you happen to own land and aren’t growing crops on it, put it to good use. Mow less, live more. Mow less, more lives.
