Sharp-shinned Hawk (juvenile) - Accipiter striatus
Early this week, this Sharp-shinned Hawk was perched in the Alder Tree that borders our garden. Many different birds use this tree as a perch, as it has a commanding view of the area. I see raptors perched there occasionally. This lovely, jay-sized hawk was still a little wet from the recent rains, and fortunately didn't fly off instantly. I've identified it as a juvenile, as it still has golden eyes. Adults have red eyes. It is always astonishing to make eye contact with a wild animal! They ALWAYS see me before I see them!
The following quote about Sharp-shinned Hawks is from Birds of the Sierra Nevada by Edward C. Beedy and Edward R. Pandolfino.
"Whether scanning from a hidden perch or dashing through forests, Sharp-shinned Hawks are constantly on the alert for small songbirds, their primary prey. Finch-sized birds are captured in midair or plucked from the ground or from foliage with the aid of the hawk's long central toes and talons. These adept hunters attack from low, chasing flights or by sneaking in from behind concealing obstructions. Chases are short and quickly aborted if the surprise attack fails. If successful, the hawk returns to a favorite perch to pluck the prey fastidiously before it is eaten."
Sharp-shinned Hawk (juvenile) - Accipiter striatus
I wrote about how wild birds deal with heavy rain in my Oct. 30, 2021 blog. I've reposted that information here, as it is so relevant right now! The following information is from birdwatchingpro.com.
"If you’re an avid bird watcher, then you probably already know that if a light rain is falling, birds will still go about their business as usual. This is because they are designed to have at least some sort of water resistance. Unless it’s a heavy rain, water will generally just slide off the feathers, and their bodies will be kept warm thanks to the air pockets beneath their feathers.
But in the heavier rains, most land birds will seek shelter from the storm. Small bushes, shrubs, thickets, or even some trees will provide excellent shelter from heavy rain. In order to maintain their body warmth for as long as possible, the birds will stay still and conserve their energy.
If the rain does not cease, then the birds will eventually run out of energy. So, they will have to venture out and find food to fuel their energy. Birds that feed on insects may have a tough time finding grubs while it is raining, but they tend to be spoilt for choice after the rain.
Raptors may also suffer during prolonged periods of rain. Birds that feed on seeds and worms will be okay for food, especially since heavy rains tend to unearth worms. If a storm rages on for a prolonged period of time, then raptors and insect-eating birds will suffer greatly and face hypothermia and even death."
Red-shouldered Hawk - Buteo lineatus
I saw the Red-shouldered Hawk twice this week!! It was perched on a dead tree over looking the river, and it was perched in the same Alder Tree that the Sharp-shinned Hawk had been in! Just lovely to see!
.JPG)
Red-shouldered Hawk - Buteo lineatus
I took this photo of a Red-shouldered Hawk several years ago in the pouring rain. Luckily we've had breaks in the recent wet weather, in which I hope our local birds dried out. Also, it looks like today (January 14) might be the last heavy-rain day this week. They are also forecasting that this weeks long period of precipitation is coming to an end by Thursday (January 19). Fingers crossed!
Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis
There aren't a lot of raptors in our area. In fact I have mainly been seeing one Sharp-shinned Hawk, one Red-shouldered Hawk, and one Red-tailed Hawk. Each one has a specific diet in the winter, such as birds, birds and mammals, or just mammals. I imagine that it's not easy for these raptors to find enough to eat! The heavy rain has made it even more difficult to catch prey, as explained in the following quote from gckcopywriter.com.
"Raptors like rain about as much as a cat likes a bath.
Hawks, eagles, owls, and other birds of prey have a tough time during drenching rains.
First, depending on their size, a raptor’s wings can take as much as an entire day to dry out. Before that, it’s too difficult to fly any normal distance to find food.
Second, even if they can fly normally, their prey – whether its smaller birds, rabbits, or squirrels – take shelter against storms in dense surroundings or burrows. They stay hidden.
If it rains too long, raptors can be faced with a serious lack of food and face a real crisis."
.JPG)
I took this photo several years ago, on the open-slope in our neighborhood on a VERY rainy winter day. The next day, the storm had passed and I was happy to see the Red-tail back on its perch in the sun!
Questionable Stropharia - Stropharia ambigua
Forest Fungi!
The heavy rains have made lots of mushrooms pop up in the woods!
I really love seeing them, but I'm not a mycologist. There are so many kinds that it's a bit overwhelming to learn them all. They can also be quite difficult to identify. The Questionable Stropharia pictured above are the most obvious, numerous, and common mushrooms in our neighborhood.
Recently I learned something super interesting about mushrooms! I was wondering how fast mushrooms grow, because they seem to show up overnight. One day you don't see any. The next day there's tons of them. So I did a little research and I found out that if conditions are perfect (not too hot, too cold, too wet, or too dry) most mushrooms CAN double there size in 24 hours!!! How do they do that?
Well, plants and animals grow through the process of "cell division", which is relatively slow and takes lots of energy. The underground mushroom body (the mycelium) does grow by cell division. However, the fruiting body, or mushroom, grows by "cell enlargement", not "cell division". The mushroom enlarges its cells by filling them with water! This can happen very quickly, and make it appear that a mushroom is growing super fast! The tiny "button" stage of a mushroom has almost exactly the same number of cells that the fully-grown mushroom has! This is also why mushrooms appear when it rains! Without the rain they couldn't "grow"!
Trametes versicolor (?) - Tremella mesenterica
This group of fungi were growing on the trunk of tree.
They looked like a beautiful ruffle-knit scarf!
unknown - unknown - unknown common name
unknown sp. - unknown sp. - Spathularia neesii
The tiny parasol mushrooms are also quite common, but I only found three of the orange, wrinkled-cap mushrooms. I couldn't identify either of them. I found two small patches of the tiny, pinkish, club-shaped ones, and iNaturalist.org identified them for me as Spathularia neesii, but I can't find a common name for them!
Rain on the River!
Damp Earth
It rained a total of 11.82" from Saturday the 7th to Sunday the 15th, and more is in the forecast for Sunday through Wednesday! This brings us to a water year total of 48.07"! It looks like the rainy weather will change at the end of next week, and give the flood victims a break! We've been lucky and haven't been flooded, but that's because our rivers and creeks are carrying the water downhill to the Central Valley.
I'm going to put my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com to sleep for awhile.
It looks like we don't need anymore rain just now!
Are there any Woodpeckers around?
How are the moss, lichens, liverworts, and ferns doing this winter?
Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more!
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