[Tweeters] the almost crepuscular thrush

[Scott Ramos]

Thrushes do seem to have crepuscular habits. Camping in the mountains and
beyond is a good way to experience this. Below about 3000 ft, one of the
first birds to call and sing, even before dawn, is Swainson's Thrush, often
accompanied by Robins. And, the last bird singing at dusk is ...
Swainson's. Above 3000 feet, Hermit Thrush takes on these duties. I have
had them still singing way past nightfall while listening for owls. For
many years, I have run a Breeding Bird Survey near Liberty (thanks,
Sharon!) and at our first stop at the designated start time--4:34 am--the
most reliable singer is Veery. Listening to any of the Turdidae is always a
highlight of trips to the mountains.

Scott Ramos
Seattle

On Sat, Feb 11, 2023 at 4:39 PM Dennis Paulson <dennispaulson at comcast.net>
wrote:


> Hello tweets,

>

> We’ve had Varied Thrushes in the yard ever since that cold, snowy spell in

> late December, and it’s interesting to have them around so much. One thing

> I noted is how they do well in very low light levels. I think that’s true

> for other thrushes as well—they seem to have big eyes.

>

> They begin to feed before it is light out, when I can barely see a

> movement in the grass. Yes, they feed on our “lawn” where we sprinkle

> millet seeds regularly. And they feed on those seeds everywhere we put

> them, including in the shrubbery. They remain in the yard feeding until

> very late in the afternoon, too. I’ve noticed that Spotted Towhees do the

> same thing, often not appearing in the yard until it is getting dark. Of

> course they can be present at any time of day, but they are definitely the

> last bird to feed on some afternoons. With the short days in the winter,

> feeding at 3:30 pm can be almost dark.

>

> Varied Thrushes of both sexes also bathe in our fountain just before it

> gets dark, too dark to see anything but a silhouette splashing in the water.

>

> Has anyone else noticed this?

>

> Dennis Paulson

> Seattle

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