Family Matters

It's early June, National Procreation Month. Humans follow the pattern of nature, with a spike in wedding schedules and March babies. A good deal of coupling is happening in the bird world as well.

Green Herons

Hopefully their recent rendezvous in the verdure will lead to these Green Herons' successful proliferation as well as our summer-long entertainment at Halibut Point. We missed out last year, when only a single bird made an appearance, calling plaintively for companionship over several weeks, then disappearing.

Wild Turkeys

Some species start early and are already introducing their newborn chicks on stilts to survival skills in the local woodlands.

Common Eiders

Similarly, buoyant young eiders perhaps born on offshore islands are beginning to appear for tutelage on our rocky coast.

Cedar Waxwings

When a flock of about 50 Cedar Waxwings settled onto the crown of a tree the other day I inquired of Chris Leahy what it indicated about their familial intentions. Were others of their group brooding eggs elsewhere? He replied that "waxwings are a flocking species before and after the breeding season, but are not colonial nesters. Your birds have not mated yet but will pair off and do so. They nest here (with varying frequency), but become much less conspicuous during that period."

 Some of those pictured are likely to nest locally while some may go elsewhere. The important thing is that this emblematic bird keeps returning to Halibut Point State Park in all seasons.

Barn Swallows

There's been conspicuous activity by a pair of Barn Swallows at the Park Visitors Center, accompanied by the nuptial couple's commentaries to each other on various subjects.

They've been swooping in and out of a breezeway preparing their mud-crafted nest for a clutch of eggs.

In the course of this they are providing close-up views of their extraordinary plumage and flight maneuvers.

House Wren

A House Wren lining a tree cavity with suitable material is readying it for a nursery.

Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore Orioles are the most accomplished treetop nest weavers. They've chosen a spot where emergent foliage will spread a protective canopy over their domicile by the time fledglings come along.

Tree Swallows

Parenting presents demanding chores and responsibilities for all species.

Eastern Phoebe

Adults supply food until the juveniles grow to sufficient size and strength to begin taking care of themselves. Their development and lessons in proficiency continue beyond the cramped nesting quarters.

Green Heron with fish to carry home

As with every other aspect of bird life, reproduction is a script perfected over eons of time and passed down to successive generations. Each newborn is the beneficiary of these uncanny abilities and each is a potential innovator of beneficial refinements. It only works through a combination of individual and cooperative achievements‒family matters.