Fox Sparrows Are Migrating Now, Watch For Them at Feeders!

Fox Sparrow photo taken at in NH

Note rufous color on body and tail

This individual has a prominent breast dot

Migration update - Fox Sparrows are on the move and are being reported from many birding list serves, including those in New England. Look for them at your bird feeders. The birds we see in NH have that wonderful foxy color. Not all subsecies of Fox Sparrow are this rufous, some are considerably darker. (See our newly published The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern and Western Regions for complete subspecies and extensive photos.) One of the eastern subspecies of Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca iliaca) is the most rufous. We're always thrilled to get a close look at these large, beautiful sparrows. Look carefully at the sparrows at your feeders and see if you have any Fox Sparrows. They like mixed seed and will often feed on the ground.

Who's Migrating Now? Find Out How To Attract Them!

Dark-eyed Juncos, called "snowbirds" because they arrive for winter, are migrating in big numbers and we had 92 on our property yesterday. Look for them at your feeders, eating seed off the ground. Some will winter here. The darkest juncos are adult males, young females are more brown.

Fox Sparrows, with their beautiful foxy color are also migrating. This one was with the Juncos.

American Tree Sparrows will spend the winter here at our feeders in NH, the first one arrived today.

American Robins are all over our yard, loving our crabapples. Although they can be seen here in NH into early winter, once very severe weather sets in and the crabapples are gone, they will have moved on south.

Tips for attracting migrants and wintering birds:
1. Keep multiple feeders stocked with energy packed black oil sunflower and mixes that contain sunflower and millet, a junco favorite. Juncos and other sparrows prefer to feed on the ground.
2. Keep a bird bath going except in severe weather. The robins were drinking and bathing in our bird bath today.
3. Plant crabapples and other fall berry producing trees and shrubs. These will attract robins and Cedar and Bohemian Waxwings and maybe Pine Grosbeaks.
4. Make sure feeders are near dense cover, like evergreens so birds can seek protection from bad weather and predators like Sharp-shinned Hawks.
5. Get our The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern or Western Region so you can identify and enjoy your winter visitors.

NH Spring Birds Canon SX 50 HS

Common Redpoll, f.

Tree Swallows

Fox Sparrow at our feeder. (AV, 1/200, f 6.5, +.1/3, ISO 400, digital zoom 195%)

Dark-eyed Junco

Song Sparrow

Canada Goose on the pond

Ring-necked Ducks (female, l. male, r.) on a cloudy day on our pond, (AV, 1/400, -1/3, f 6.5, 400 ISO, digital zoom 400% 4800 mm equivalent, handheld.)

Returning home from FL to NH, here are some of the birds that greeted us. The feeders were busy with flocks of about 60 Common Redpolls and 50 Dark-eyed Juncos. Both will soon more on to their breeding grounds. A beautiful Fox Sparrow is visiting the feeders, one of my favorites. It too will move on to northern breeding areas.
Tree Swallows are here in numbers claiming their nesting boxes. We have about 15 nesting pairs and this time of year there is much fighting over boxes. Song Sparrows were singing. They breed here as do the Canada Geese. Ring-necked Ducks are migrants on our pond, so dramatic looking. This morning we had a Bald Eagle swooping on them, but it did not catch any.
All photos were shot with the Canon SX 50 HS. This camera loves good light and you can do pretty well in Smart Auto with good sunlight. The challenges are in low light. I mainly shoot in AV, as it gives you some of the most control over the camera. I use exposure compensation, often changing it, as well as ISO, in between photos to suit the lighting situation. With the Fox Sparrow I added plus compensation because it was a backlit bird. The Ring-necked Ducks were very far away, in low light, yet I still got a photo with a painterly quality, kinda dramatic. I handheld it at the far range of the digital zoom, where the camera goes to 4800mm. If you want my tips for using this camera, email me, email is at top right of blog.
Speaking of spring migration, will you be ready to ID all the birds you see? Our just published, The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern and Western Regions will help you, especially if you take bird photos!
Lillian