Birds are shifting their behavior based on weather

While the calendar says we’re still enjoying the summer season, our feathered friends are shifting their behavioral gears and exhibiting their fall/winter modes.

The berry-producing shrubs here in the confines where I live, such as American beautyberry and pokeberry, are seeing nearly constant activity during the day now, as a host of resident birds take advantage of the ripening fruits. Mockingbirds, thrashers and gray catbirds, blue jays, cardinals, Carolina wrens, house finches and woodpeckers may be seen plucking berries throughout the day.

These two shrubs are also attractive to many migrating species as well, and each year we find red-eyed vireos, black-throated blue, magnolia, common yellowthroat, American redstart and Tennessee warblers, along with the Eastern North American song thrushes such as wood, Swainson’s, gray-cheeked, veery and hermit visiting here for a quick berry meal, to search for insect and caterpillar prey, or sometimes just to rest in the cover of these native shrubs.

Shorebird migration is also presently underway. Local beaches and marshes offer these amazing long-distance travelers places to rest and refuel as they make their southward treks.

Among the species seen recently are semiprivate, Wilson’s and black-bellied plovers, semipalmated, Western, least, and spotted sandpipers, greater and lesser yellowlegs,short-billed dowitcher, dunlin, black-necked stilt and willet.

As is customary this time of year, a diverse group of wading birds can be found in area wetlands. Huntington Beach State Park offers nice viewing of a variety of these species in the marsh and Mullet Pond adjacent to the causeway. Wood stork, great and snowy egret, great blue, little blue, tricolored and green herons, white and glossy ibis, and numerous juvenile yellow-crowned night-herons are among the species observed of late.

Ruby-throated hummingbirds continue to make their way into and through our area as they head for more tropical winter destinations. A number of folks have been happy to report activity at their flowers and feeders still increasing as these tiny treasures seek to avail themselves of all available resources. Remember to keep your feeders clean and maintained with a solution of one part sugar to four parts water with no other additives.

The primary sugar these miniature marvels seek is sucrose, which is plain white table sugar. The one to four mixture mimics the sugar content of the nectar most hummingbird-favored flowers produce, so you’re only offering them what they would find in the wild. In addition to sugar water, these amazing Aves require a substantial amount of tiny insect prey to supply the proteins and fats they need to survive.

This story was originally published August 11, 2016 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Birds are shifting their behavior based on weather."