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Fidget, the Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow patches are all you need to recognize Fidget when he is flitting about in the forest. Burgess describes him as a “black and gray bird with a yellow cap, yellow sides, and a yellow patch at the root of his tail” (Burgess, p. 132, Living Book Press edition). You may have noticed that he is called a Myrtle Warbler in Burgess’ classic “The Burgess Bird Book for Children.” Cornell Lab has a really helpful section on why Burgess would have referred to him as a Myrtle Warbler:

The Yellow-rumped Warbler has two distinct subspecies that used to be considered separate species: the “Myrtle” Warbler of the eastern U.S. and Canada’s boreal forest, and “Audubon’s” Warbler of the mountainous West. The Audubon’s has a yellow throat; in the Myrtle subspecies the throat is white. Male “Audubon’s” Warblers have more white in the wing than the “Myrtle” Warbler. Female Audubon’s have less distinctly marked faces, lacking the dark ear patches of the “Myrtle” Warbler. Intermediate forms occur where the two subspecies’ breeding ranges overlap, such as in the Canadian Rockies.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yellow-rumped_Warbler/id

These regional differences are considered to be subspecies now instead of a complete separate species. It is always interesting to see Audubon’s name attached to a bird, isn’t it? You can find a picture here in order to see the differences in coloring.

Watch a great video by Lyco Birds here on Youtube. Bobby does a good job of showing the variations of coloring and field markers for identification. Our Fidget has very dark black markings around the face, but you can find Yellow-rumped Warblers with brownish, lighter markings as well. Since these are one of the most prevalent species of Warblers, it’s good to know how to identify them in the field.

Here is our gathering from Fidget:

Until next time, keep on birding! <3 Kate

More Burgess Birds in Detail

Burgess Bird Pages

The Living Books Press link above contains an affiliate link, so I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

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Sprite, the Northern Parula

As quickly as the Warblers arrived, they left. In Burgess’ classic “The Burgess Bird Book for Children,” Peter finds a Warbler that stays in the Green Forest, the Northern Parula. He notices Sprite by finding his nest which looks like a bunch of moss hanging from a tree. Cornell Lab explains that Northern Parulas actually depend on moss in order to build their nests and habitat loss affects their ability to breed in certain places (source). The particular mosses that they depend on are Spanish moss in the Southern United States and Beard Moss in the Northern United States.

Here is a great introduction of the Northern Parula and their nest building by Bob Duchesne on Youtube

Here is the rest of our gathering for Sprite:

They really are a beautiful bird! Until next time, keep birding! <3 Kate

Burgess Bird Pages

The Living Books Press link above contains an affiliate link, so I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

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Chut-Chut, the Yellow-breasted Chat

Thornton W. Burgess writes about Chut-Chut being a little different from the other Warblers. He mentions the Yellow-breasted Chat’s difference in size, being a little larger than other Warblers, and even his cautious behavior. This is a really interesting case for those who love Natural History because at the time that “The Burgess Bird Book for Children” was written and up until the 2010s, the Yellow-breasted Chat was a part of the Warbler family. With further research over years and years, this bird’s size, difference in behavior, and taxonomy led to grouping it into its own family: Icteriidae. (source: allaboutbirds.org)

The best time to find a Yellow-breasted Chat is during the Spring, when they are most likely to be sharing all of their beautiful songs. You can listen to it’s varied songs and calls here: Yellow-breasted Chat Song by American Bird Conservancy on Youtube

Here is our gathering about this interesting fellow Chut-Chut:

Until next time, keep birding! <3 Kate

The Living Books Press link above contains an affiliate link, so I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Happy Jack, the Gray Squirrel

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Happy Jack, the Gray Squirrel
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Gray Squirrels at aroundthespinney.com!

Animalia – Eastern Gray Squirrel, Facts, Diet, Habitat, and pictures of Happy Jack

Bear Tracker Animal Tracks – Gray Squirrel, natural history of the gray squirrel with track identification in many different types of terrain

Burgess Animal Pages

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Mummer, the Common Yellowthroat

Talk about making a statement, the Common Yellowthroat is easy to identify by his black face mask. The females do not have the black masks, but otherwise look very similar with yellow throats and a little more brown along their backs.

The Common Yellowthroat is another Warbler who is often prey to Brown-headed Cowbirds’ brood parasitism. That is the term used to describe the Cowbirds tactic of laying their eggs in other birds nests to be raised. The Yellow Warbler and Common Yellowthroat often build stories in their nest to try and combat this, but the Common Yellowthroat has another tactic. They will also abandon a nest that has been visited by a Cowbird.

Their yellowthroats remind me of the need to highlight this songbird’s call. Check out this Wild Bird and Nature Video by McElroy of the Common Yellowthroat on Youtube

Here is the rest of our gathering for the Common Yellowthroat:

Until next time, keep birding <3 Kate

Find more about the Common Yellowthroat from Cornell Lab’s allaboutbirds.org

For more Burgess Birds in Detail

Arctic Hare

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Arctic Hare
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Arctic Hares at aroundthespinney.com!

AZ Animals – Arctic Hare Animal Facts, all about their characteristics, habitat, diet and more

1 Minute Animals – Arctic Hare YouTube Video, amazing video of the Arctic Hare

Burgess Animals Pages

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Creeper, the Black and White Warbler

The Black and White Warbler could easily be misidentified as a Brown Creeper because even as Peter Rabbit notices, they act similarly. Listen in on Creeper’s tactic for his very un-Warbler, Nuthatch-like behavior:

“I’m going to let you into a little secret, Peter. The rest of them (Warblers) get their living from the leaves and twigs and in the air, but I’ve discovered an easier way. I’ve found out that there are lots of little worms and insects and eggs on the trunks and big limbs of the trees that I can get the best kind of a living there without flitting about everlastingly. I don’t have share them with anybody but the Woodpeckers, Nuthatches, and Tommy Tit the Chickadee.”

Thornton W. Burgess, The Burgess Bird Book for Children, Living Books Press edition, p. 125

Cornell Lab’s allaboutbirds.org adds that Creeper actually has an extra long hind-claw that helps him with this behavior. He uses it to latch and move along the bark of trees. See if you can find it on the Writing Page below which contains the rest of our gathering about Creeper:

You’ll see them foraging for food along the tree trunks, but these birds nest on the ground in the forest.

Check out Lesley the Bird Nerd’s wonderful video about the Black and White Warbler on Youtube!

Until next time, keep birding! <3 Kate

The Living Books Press link above contains an affiliate link, so I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Marsh Rabbit

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Marsh Rabbit
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Check out these helpful links at aroundthespinney.com to learn more about Marsh Rabbits:

Animalia- Marsh Rabbit, full of facts about their characteristics, habitat, and diet

UF/IFAS Extension Pinellas County- Youtube video distinguishing between Eastern Cottontails and Marsh Rabbits

Burgess Animals Pages

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Sunshine, the Yellow Warbler

I would love to meet someone named Sunshine, wouldn’t you? Peter Rabbit meets Sunshine in Ch. 24 of Thornton W. Burgess’ classic, “The Burgess Bird Book for Children.” Sunshine is a Yellow Warbler and perfectly named for his bright yellow feathers, although he isn’t entirely yellow but also has reddish brown streaks on his breast and black on his wings and tail. As I’ve said before, Warblers are very fast so if you have a chance to see one perched on a branch, it would be good to grab some binoculars and see if you can find his streaks.

Sunshine has a really interesting conversation with Peter Rabbit. The topic of that conversation is Sally Sly, the Brown-headed Cowbird, and how she laid her egg in their nest. The amazing thing that we found was that allaboutbirds speaks about the very same thing that Sunshine tells in his story.

Let’s hear it from him first. Peter asks Sunshine if they threw Sally Sly’s egg out of their nest after finding it:

“No, replied Sunshine. “Our nest was too deep for us to get that egg out. We just made a second bottom in our nest right over that egg and built the sides of the nest a little higher. Then we took good care that she didn’t have a chance to lay another egg in there.”

Thornton W. Burgess, The Burgess Bird Book, Living Books Press edition, p. 122

For a better look at what Sunshine is describing, check out Mary Holland’s picture of a Yellow Warbler Nest on her blog Naturally Curious with Mary Holland. She describes the parasitic relationship Cowbirds have with Yellow Warblers, in particular, and their solution.

I can see why Sunshine and his wife are proud, because a Yellow Warbler’s nest looks particularly soft: check out Don Weiss’ video of a Yellow Warbler female building her nest on YouTube

Here is the rest of our gathering for Sunshine:

Until next time, keep birding! <3 Kate

The Living Books Press link above contains an affiliate link, so I may receive a small payment if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Jumper, the Northern Hare

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Jumper, the Northern Hare
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Check out these helpful links to learn more about Hares:

AZ Animals- Hare Animal Facts, for helpful pictures and information when filling out your Animal Pages

National Park Service- Snowshoe Hare (one of the many types of Hares)

Burgess Animal Pages