American Redstart

There are a ton of American Redstarts in the park this year, and can be seen (or at least heard) in most of the wooded areas.

The males are mostly black with bright orange on their sides, wings, and tail. The females and juveniles are more grey with the orange sometimes looking more yellow. 

Theses insectivores (bug eaters) have a neat way of catching their food. They flash their bright wings and tails which 'startles' the insect giving the bird a chance to grab it. 

To learn more about these guys visit here. 

Downy Woodpecker

Hello Everyone!

This makes the first blog post of the season and to start off I have a great video of a Downy Woodpecker going at a Basket Willow, right here in the Waterfowl Park. To watch, click here.

Due to their tiny size compared to other woodpeckers, they have a special niche in terms of where they gather bugs - goldenrod! They're small enough to grab onto the stem and hammer away until they reach the bug larvae inside.

To learn more about these Goldenrod Grub Grabbers, visit here.