Banding Powell Gardens' Bird Feeder Birds for further Research

Staff from the Missouri River Bird Observatory (MRBO) spent Super Bowl Sunday at Powell Gardens' Conservatory banding birds that were captured in special mist nets outside by the feeders.  The birds banded received special colored leg bands so that individual birds at the feeders can be differentiated.  Visitors who now come visit our "Feather Your Nest" conservatory display can not only relax in the beautiful spaces and watch the birds outside but help keep record of sightings of our color-banded birds.  This way we can track individual birds visiting the feeders now and well into the future.

Visitors to the gardens on Sunday were treated to a first hand experience with wild birds.  Dana Ripper, Director of the Missouri River Bird Observatory holds a Black-capped Chickadee and allows a young visitor to touch the soft plumage.

Brittney Woody, assistant at the MRBO, removes a Tufted Titmouse from the mist nets while Dana watches.  We banded 6 Tufted Titmice and there were still others without bands visiting the bird feeders. Several of the banded birds were observed coming right back to the feeders that day too!  It will really help us get a better count of titmice that otherwise look alike at the Great Backyard Bird Count here on Sunday, February 19th.

Here the Tufted Titmouse gets his band on his leg.  The bands weigh virtually nothing and research has shown that the birds with bands tend to be more successful as they are favored by others of the species!

Now it's time to measure the Tufted Titmouse's wing.  Various measurements, weight, and health were noted on each bird before it was quickly released.  This is obviously our black-banded Tufted Titmouse!

Here Ethan Duke (Assistant Director of the MRBO) holds a Black-capped Chickadee to show its new red band.  We banded 10 Black-capped Chickadees and still saw others at the feeders without bands -- there were far more chickadees coming to our feeders than I had thought!

We caught and banded 5 American Goldfinches, the males are still more yellow than the females in winter but nothing like their bright yellow plumage of summer.

We only caught one woodpecker: this male Downy Woodpecker with gorgeous black plumage complete with white polka dots!  Only males have the red on the back of their head.

I am interested to observe our banded birds at the feeders this winter and wonder if we'll see any of them nest or spend the summer in the garden.  We caught one bird that was banded here by Craig Hensley last winter -- but put a color band on it too so we can track it with binoculars now. 

We will have Dana and Ethan from the Missouri River Bird Observatory back at the gardens for some continued banding of the Powell Gardens' birds in the future so keep watch of these events if you want to see a wild bird up close and personal.

Photos by Roland Thibault

Owls Banded at Powell Gardens

One of North America's smallest and most secretive (and cutest!) owls: the Northern Saw-whet Owl were banded at Powell Gardens last week. We invited staff from the Missouri River Bird Observatory to come sample appropriate habitat near the Byron Shutz Nature Trail where we thought the owls might reside. 2 owls were caught: one male near 9 p.m. and one female at 11:30 p.m.

Dana Ripper, Director of the Missouri River Bird Observatory (MRBO), shows off the male Northern Saw-whet Owl netted at Powell Gardens. Across North America, a network of researchers is monitoring the autumn migration of this tiny owl. Northern Saw-whet Owls were thought to be quite rare in our area but the MRBO is proving that we have more owls in central Missouri than previously known. Learn more at www.projectowlnet.org and visit the MRBO website at www.mrbo.org.

Here Dana relays information about the bird to Ethan Duke, Assistant Director of the Missouri River Bird Observatory. Each of the two owls caught were measured and weighed, checked for health, banded and released very near where they were caught. Based on the information gathered the first bird was a male and the second a female (you can't tell by their plumage). Both birds were more than a year old.

Dana holds out their relatively large wings to see their molt patterns. This bird weighed less than 3 ounces and can fly away with a mouse more than one third its weight.

Only professionals with proper permits may net and band these and all protected species of birds. Myself and a handful of Missouri Master Naturalists accompanied Dana and Ethan to the banding here at Powell Gardens. If you ever come across a banded bird (owl or any bird!) please report it to www.reportband.gov. I wondered what the story was with each of the Saw-whets caught here at Powell: where did you come from? From the high elevations of the Rocky Mountains? From the great northern forests of Canada? From Northern Minnesota? Were they planning to stay here for the winter or fly farther south? If only they could speak. The banders' research is helping us to understand the lives of secretive birds and put in place an understanding of what their conservation needs are now and for future generations.

Meet Dana and Ethan from the MRBO at Powell Gardens on Sunday, February 5th for banding birds around the Powell Gardens Visitor Center. It will be a chance for our visitors to get up close and personal to wild birds. Watch for specific details soon.

Feather Your "Nest"

For the first time since the Powell Gardens conservatory opened to the public nearly 14 years ago in February 1997, our display inside it will focus outward! The massive floor to ceiling expanses of glass designed by Faye Jones - Maurice Jennings offer uninterrupted garden views outward and allow maximum light inward. Our "Feather Your Nest" display inside the conservatory features four "vignettes" of garden rooms for you to sit and look outward to the Terrace Gardens and their birdlife. The vignettes are by Perennial Gifts & Good Earth Gifts (the Visitor Center's and Harvest Garden's gift shops respectively); Downtown Kansas City's Retro Inferno; Brookside's Pear Tree Antiques; and Crossroads' Webster House. Come experience these beautiful garden rooms and watch the birds at our feeders right outside the glass. Pick up some great ideas of garden room decor from our generous vendors while in indoor comfort with the perfume of blooming flowers and the beautiful winter landscape all around.

Cardinals are always an attention getter in the winter landscape as the bright color of the male's plumage demonstrates. You will see these birds at the feeders! FYI their "official" standardized name is Northern Cardinal as there are other species found southward in the Americas. This photo was shared with us by volunteer and Friends Member Linda K Williams.

I took this shot looking out from the conservatory and you can see 3 male cardinals and other birds at the feeders, the Visitor Center's stunning icicles and the bones of the winter landscape beyond.

The Terrace Gardens on the north side of the Conservatory are lit by the low angle of the winter sun which really shows off the beautiful evergreen Southern Magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora). Southern Magnolias are not only beautiful in the winter landscape but provide cozy shelter for wintering birds.

The Terrace Gardens to the south of the conservatory are more backlit and thus the evergreen Southern Magnolias look much darker, almost black-green.

A view east from the Conservatory shows our thriving evergreen Hazel Smith Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) taking the center stage with the winter garden landscape beyond. Next year I mentioned to staff that we should decorate the Giant Sequoia as a Christmas Tree now that it has grown tall enough to be readily seen from the conservatory and Terrace Gardens. This plant was donated to us by Marvin Snyder as a small, trial plant. Yes, this is the largest tree species in the world from the Sierras of California and can live over 2,000 years. I always wonder what it will look like many generations from now. Note the wonderful icicles too -- makes me think I'm looking outward from a monster's mouth!

Blue Jays are another colorful bird you will see at our feeders. They always stuff themselves with food then fly off to cache it for a "rainy day." By doing this with nuts and acorns, Blue Jays have planted many of our wild forest trees. Photo by Linda K Williams.

Downy Woodpeckers are the most common woodpecker here and have been coming to the feeders regularly. You can tell this is a male bird by the red on its head -- females are simply black and white.

You will also see the beautiful Red-bellied Woodpecker. YES, that's its name! Everyone notices its brilliant orange-red on the top and back of its head and the gorgeous black and white zebra patterning on its back first. It was named back before binoculars when birds were shot to see up close and museum specimen birds are lying flat on their back in trays so the first thing noticed when curators were naming our birds was their RED BELLY, which you can see in this photo by Linda K Williams. I always laugh when I remember my then young nephew asking me to "call the president" to rename this bird!

Here's our biggest woodpecker the Pileated Woodpecker (its almost the size of a crow) taken right outside Cafe Thyme by our Education Director, Eric Jackson one day at lunchtime. This magnificent woodpecker shows up in the gardens from time to time (actually there was one around this week). This particular one was oddly tame and would allow visitors to step outside and take its picture!

This White-breasted Nuthatch is another bird you will see, it's our "upside down" bird that forages on trees in the opposite direction as its unrelated woodpeckers. Photo by Linda K Williams.

Black-capped Chickadees always cheer up winter days with their busy antics. Their winter plumage always appears well tailored and spiffy too. Photo by Linda K Williams.

You'll see many American Goldfinches at the tube feeders as well. Yes, this is what they look like in their winter plumage. Photo by Linda K Williams.

I had to show a reminder of what the goldfinches will look like in a short 10 weeks in their bright breeding season plumage! Photo by Linda K Williams.

White-crowned Sparrows are one of my favorite winter birds at the feeders. These birds nest way "Up North" in Canada and spend the winter down here. The white racing stripe on the top of their head makes this adult bird easy to identify though to some, a sparrow is a sparrow even though we have many species here in winter. Photo by Linda K Williams.

Here's a test for beginning birders: Sparrows! The front one is a White-throated Sparrow, you can tell by the yellow in front of its eye even though you cannot see its characteristic white throat. But what's the sparrow in the back? It's a immature White-crowned Sparrow with auburn stripes on its head. Photo by Linda K Williams.

If you are suffering from the winter doldrums come out to Powell Gardens' "Feather Your Nest" display and enjoy the view and all the birdlife. Also remember that we will have feeders outside Cafe Thyme which opens Saturday (January 15th) as a Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions venue with a fantastic and delicious NEW menu. Come enjoy a magnificent, fresh lunch and I guarantee some interesting birds will be just outside the windows to add to the ambiance.

Thank you to Linda K Williams for sharing her bird photos for this blog. Visit her website at www.lindawilliamsphotography.com to see more beautiful images of local nature.

Peak of Spring!

Spring has exploded with a bonanza of flowers, butterflies & birds at Powell Gardens. Because of technical problems I cannot share images at this time but shall as soon as possible!

Precocious (spring flowering) magnolias and daffodils were in peak bloom last weekend. The lovely yellow Butterflies magnolia is currently in full bloom.

This weekend of April 26-27 will be peak bloom for redbuds. Dogwoods are budding well and may be quite showy by the weekend if the warmth continues. We are two weeks behind recent bloom times this year.

Wild plums opened yesterday and are in full bloom along the nature trail. A hike on the nature trail requires water proof footwear because of all the rain! Butterflies have emerged en masse and are at peak of spring numbers. The high ridge of the nature trail is where they "hilltop" on warm days. Butterflies go to the highest point around to search for a mate. Trail markers 18-20 are the best areas.

Spring bird reports are pouring in and beautiful Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Indigo Buntings, Baltimore Orioles and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have all returned. They are looking for feeders because mother nature is so far behind this year. We will be putting up oriole feeders outside the Cafe shortly and the hummingbird garden nectar plants will be planted next week.

The azaleas should be in peak bloom during the Spring Plant Sale weekend May 3-4. Be sure and check out our website (www.powellgardens.org) for the list of plants available at our plant sale. Friends members only get the first pick on Friday night (May 2) from 5-7pm. You may join or renew now!

Stay tuned for some images of the magnolias -- we have the best collection in the mid USA.

Winter Birds

Powell Gardens is a fine place to watch winter birds. Feeders have been placed outside the cafe for your entertainment and enjoyment to watch while you have lunch. The feeders have been a flurry of activity during the recent snow and ice as birds have had a tough time finding food with everything encased in ice.

At the cafe feeders watch for many Northern Cardinals (the official name of our cardinal or red bird), Blue Jays, American Goldfinches (in their drab winter garb), Purple Finches (males in raspberry stained attire -- females streaked brown with a white eye-brow), Black-capped Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, and a plethora of unique winter sparrows including: the Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco (often called "snowbirds"), American Tree Sparrow (with a rusty cap and black spot on their tummy), Song Sparrow (streaked with a tummy spot), White-crowned Sparrow (adult birds have a white racing stripe on their head) and the local endemic and largest of all American sparrows: the Harris's Sparrow (with a black bib) which is almost as big as a cardinal. Harris's Sparrows nest near Hudson Bay and winter in the lower Great Plains and are much sought after birds by East and West Coast birders.

Virtually every species of wintering sparrow has shown up feeding on cracked corn sprinkled on the walls outside the cafe (Harris's, White-crowned, White-throated, American Tree, junco, Song, and Swamp Sparrow are regular; while Lincoln's, Vesper, Savannah, and Field Sparrows are rare here in winter). The Missouri Department of Conservation puts out a nice pamphlet on the identification of winter sparrows in Missouri -- they are not all just "little brown birds!" Come out and take a look at their subtle and beautiful plumages.

We have aerators in the lake which keep it unfrozen so Powell Gardens is also a good place to see waterfowl. Take a moment to look at the ubiqutous geese! This time of year our local big races of Canada Geese are joined by northern (truly Canadian) "Lesser" Canada Geese which are much smaller. There are always a few of the smallest geese, now officially considered a separate species named Cackling Goose -- these birds have a squeaky voice and are the same size as a Mallard duck. They simply look like miniature, short-necked, little billed Canada Geese. Occasionally our flock of mixed geese contains a Greater White-fronted Goose, white Snow Goose and its dark form "Blue Goose" and the small Ross's Goose here on occasion (it looks like a miniature Snow Goose).

There are some local free-flying (feral) Greylag Geese (the European goose that is at the opening of the movie "Winged Migration") around too and they have hybridized with the local Canada Geese so you may see some weird unidentifyable hybrid geese here too. I put them on our bird checklist because so many visitors ask what they are: "What's the loud goose with the orange bill and the big white butt?" All our geese are a lot to learn if you are a beginner but join us on February 17 and we will take the time to show you all these nuances (regardless of your level of skill) during our bird hikes for the Great Backyard Bird Count sponsored by the Cornell Labratory of Ornithology.

Employees have reported many other birds on the immediate grounds so keep a keen eye and ear while visiting. A Great Blue Heron likes to hang out on the ice free shore below the west bridge to the island garden and was joined by a Wilson's Snipe last Friday. Mallards, Gadwall, Northern Shoveler and Common Goldeneye are species of ducks that can be seen with our geese lately. The large, crow-sized Pileated Woodpecker has been making appearances and a wintering flock of beautiful Red-headed Woodpeckers can be seen in the woods off the walk to the chapel. Cedar Waxwings continue to be seen along with a few Eastern Bluebirds feeding on what little fruit remains. I shall hike the long Byron Shutz Nature Trail for a future report! Birds add considerable life, sound and color to the winter garden so come out and take a look.
Good birding,
Alan Branhagen

Hungry birds

The wild food crop is the worst I have ever seen in 11 years! The Easter freeze killed the buds and flowers of so many plants that there is a substantial reduction in fruit for migrant and wintering birds. Linda Williams took these shots of Cedar Waxwings feeding in the Powell Gardens parking lot on Nov. 30. Our only locally native evergreen tree, the redcedar (and cedar waxwing namesake) was one plant that still produced “fruit.”

To be botanically correct, we are actually talking about cones that have fused together in berry-like form so birds and wildlife will eat them and pass the seeds along. (Only flowering plants have fruit, all conifers like the redcedar produce cones.) The redcedars will be especially important winter food this year. Linda also captured the waxwings feeding on native Smooth Sumac which we planted around the parking lot. Because sumac blooms in midsummer on new wood its flowering and fruiting was normal this year. Sumac fruit are almost always emergency food for wildlife and little used until late winter or early spring – a point well taken for this year.

--posted by Alan Branhagen, Director of Horticulture

Bird sightings

A rare young female Surf Scoter visited Powell Gardens yesterday! The Surf Scoter is a diving duck that nests in the boreal forest of the North America, Europe and Asia. It is a rare migrant in the Midwest (outside the Great Lakes) and to see a lone first year female like this one is an identification challenge as she is rarely depicted in field guides.

Linda Williams of Liberty, Mo., came out and took this good photograph of our bird. Surf Scoters are in severe decline, probably from acid rain and global warming as they nest under spruce trees near remote, far northern lakeshores. They can be regularly seen in rafts off the East or West Coast in winter where they dive for shellfish. They have been reported to eat good quantities of invasive, exotic zebra mussels in the Great Lakes. Powell Gardens’ bird went on long dives – we have lots of clams in the bottom of our lake. Unfortunately our bird stayed only from dawn to dusk on Friday, November 30, but she will be added to the Powell Gardens bird checklist as a rare migrant.