It’s hard to imagine tiny tufted titmice and Carolina chickadees as leaders. But these frequent visitors to our backyard feeders are the species that several other forest and woodland birds flock around this time of year.
By following titmice and chickadees, ornithologists say, the other species may have more success in finding food and escaping predators. Followers may include nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, kinglets, vireos, creepers and more.
During late fall and winter, these flocks of mixed species usually gather in the morning and rove through the forest in search of seeds and overwintering insects.
On a winter day, you might be walking along a quiet wooded path and, then, suddenly, the shrubs and thickets around you will come alive with a flock of small, twittering birds in search of food.
Titmice and chickadees, which are close cousins, usually are the leaders because they seem more adept at finding food. Also, their constant alertness and excitability can quickly warn others of danger.
At first glance, flocking seems disadvantageous for birds — food is scarce in winter and competition is high.
Ornithologists say, however, that foraging with a group raises a bird’s chances of finding food. With many more eyes to hunt for food and watch for predators, the chance of an individual bird surviving winter increases.
Also in winter, the breeding season is at a standstill and the birds are more compatible — they don’t have the urge to defend territories and compete for mates.
For similar reasons, other birds — cardinals, bluebirds, robins, sparrows, blue jays — also tend to band together during winter, but only with their own kind. For them, “birds of a feather flock together” holds true.
Perhaps the best-known birds for flocking are the blackbirds — red-winged blackbirds, European starlings, common grackles, brown-headed cowbirds — which may flock up in the many thousands.
By late winter, when surging sex hormones motivate birds to find mates and defend territories, flocking will cease.
In the sky: From David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer: The Leonid meteor shower reaches a peak Tuesday night of about 15 meteors per hour — in the eastern sky from 2 a.m. until dawn. Venus rises out of the east about three hours before sunrise. Mars rises out of the east about 3 a.m. Jupiter rises out of the east just after midnight and will appear near the moon Thursday night.
About the Author
