birdnote q&a: what do ‘our’ birds do in winter?

BIRDS ARE IMPRESSIVE in the ways they cope with winter, whether by fleeing or toughing it out like the great horned owl (above) on its snow-coated nest. Ever wonder how chickadees find those seeds they stashed for winter use, or just how far south some species will go to spend the offseason? Ellen Blackstone of BirdNote, the daily public-radio show, has the answers, along with some tips on what we can provide to “our” birds in winter.

In the Q&A that follows, Ellen’s answers contain green links to audio files from BirdNote’s archive that you won’t want to miss. A recap of earlier stories in our ongoing series is at the bottom of the page, along with information on how to hear BirdNote daily. Easiest of all: browse all the BirdNote series stories at this link.

winter bird q&a with ellen blackstone

Q. How far south do migratory birds go for the winter?

A. They cover a very wide range of distances, but here’s a hint at some of the impressive extremes:

Our humble barn swallow is a true long-distance migrant, and may winter as far south as southern South America, often returning to the same area year after year. Imagine: the sprightly bird that nested in the eaves under your garage, catching insects in the Pantanal in southern Brazil!

Don’t you wish you could see? (Those are baby barn swallows on a shelf-like nest up North in the photo above.)

Eastern and Western bluebirds are either resident, or medium-distance migrants—meaning they may travel to Texas or Mexico, or may remain on their breeding grounds, or relocate to somewhere in between.

Western tanagers find their way into Central America, but their cousins, scarlet and summer tanagers, may make it all the way to Bolivia. That’s the male scarlet tanager, above.Just think of the

seeds ground birds Nature bird sh-t Ellen Blackstone Mexico Brazil Bolivia state Texas state Oregon