Tag: Homeschool Resources

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Glory, the Northern Cardinal

One of the most beloved birds, the Northern Cardinal is a bird that can be identified easily by most people. Did you know that it is the state bird for seven states? The states included are Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia. Cardinals are a great guest to any backyard because they do not migrate but instead stay throughout all of the seasons. They have the most lovely calls and show their rich red feathers, for male, and beautiful burnt orange feathers, for female, throughout all of the seasons as well. They inhabit a large portion of North American from the Yucatan Peninsula to the Southern tip of Canada.

One of the best portions of Burgess’ description of Glory comes when discussing his fatherly duties:

‘I’ve noticed,’ said Peter, ‘that people with fine clothes spend most of their time thinking about them and are of very little use when it comes to real work in life.’

‘Well, you needn’t think that of Glory,’ declared Jenny in her vigorous way. ‘He’s just as fine as he is handsome. He’s a model husband. If they make their home around here you’ll find him doing his full share in the care of their babies. Sometimes they raise two families. When they do that, Glory takes charge of the first lot of youngsters as soon as they are able to leave the nest so that Mrs. Cardinal has nothing to worry about while she is sitting on the second lot of eggs. He fusses over them as if they were the only children in the world. Everybody loves Glory.”

Jenny Wren and Peter Rabbit, Thornton W. Burgess, The Burgess Bird Book for Children, Living Book Press Edition, p. 136.

One of my favorite memories from our backyard is looking out to our large platform feeder and seeing a male cardinal take care of his young cardinals and a young cowbird that had obviously been adopted. Find more about that here: Sally Sly.

To hear one of Glory’s beautiful calls, you can listen here:

American Bird Conservancy on Youtube. Have you heard this call before?

Here is what we gathered about Glory:

Until next time, keep on 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.

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Weechi, the Magnolia Warbler

Bold in black and yellow is the Magnolia Warbler! As we have seen in The Burgess Bird Book for Children, there are many warblers with black, yellow, and white patterns, but the Magnolia Warbler takes the cake with his striking combination. Burgess describes him like this,

The top of his head and the back of his neck were gray. Above his eye was a white stripe and his cheeks were black. His throat was clear yellow, just below which was a black band. From this black streaks ran down across his yellow breast. At the root of his tail he was yellow. His tail was mostly black on top and white underneath.

His wings were black and gray with two white bars. He was a little smaller than Fidget the Myrtle Warbler and quite as restless.

The Burgess Bird Book for Children, p. 133, Living Book Press Edition

Check out Cornell Lab’s All About Birds’ guide on Weechi to see just how striking this combination is, and I’m sure you’ll agree!

When we first read this chapter, I wondered why this bird had its name. Cornell Lab held the clue I was looking for:

In 1810, Alexander Wilson collected a warbler from a magnolia tree in Mississippi, giving it the English name “Black-and-yellow Warbler” and “magnolia” for the scientific species name, which became the common name over time.

All About Birds, Magnolia Warbler Overview

This is definitely a warbler that might be easier than not to spot by his striking colors and bold mask, but knowing different behaviors is also helpful to differentiate this warbler from the rest. Magnolia Warblers might stop through in your area while migrating. Look for them collecting and eating insects in the trees, from the bottom side of the leaves (source).

Here is our gathering for Weechi:

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.

Little Chief, the American Pika

Around the Spinney and Sea
Around the Spinney and Sea
Little Chief, the American Pika
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Little Chief at aroundthespinney.com!

NWF’s – American Pika Wildlife Guide – some really interesting facts about this species.

Mount Rainier National Park’s YouTube video – Call of the Pika – A great video to hear the call of the Pika!

Burgess Animal Pages

Yap Yap, the Prairie Dog

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Yap Yap, the Prairie Dog
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Yap Yap at aroundthespinney.com!

WWF’s – 8 Surprising Prairie Dog Facts – some really interesting facts about this keystone species.

National Geographic’s – Prairie Dog – Facts about their Diet, Habitat and Behavior.

National Geographic’s YouTube video – Prairie Dog Snake Alarm – A great video to hear see how a Prairie Dog Town defends their little ones from a rattlesnake!

Burgess Animal Pages

Whistler, the Hoary Marmot

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Whistler, the Hoary Marmot
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Whistler at aroundthespinney.com!

Animalia’s – Hoary Marmot bio – Facts, Diet, Habitat and pictures of Whistler.

Terra Mater’s YouTube video – Why Marmots Scream – A great video to hear Whistler’s whistle and learn why they do it. You’ll even see the very cute Pika in this video!

Burgess Animal Pages

Johnny Chuck, the Woodchuck

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Johnny Chuck, the Woodchuck
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Johnny Chuck at aroundthespinney.com!

National Geographic’s – 10 Facts You Didn’t Know About Groundhogs – Really interesting facts about Johnny Chuck including how he is a stand-in for hedgehogs!

Mass Audubon – Woodchucks – Facts, Diet, Habitat and pictures of Johnny Chuck.

Burgess Animal Pages

Seek Seek, the Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Seek Seek, the Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Seek Seek at aroundthespinney.com!

University of Michigan BioKids – Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel – Facts, Diet, Habitat, and pictures of Seek Seek.

Friend’s of Pope Farm’s Conservancy Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel on Youtube– this is a great video to learn a little more about these Spermophiles and it shows the inside of their burrows!

Burgess Animal Pages

Striped Chipmunk, the Eastern Chipmunk

The Burgess Animal Pages
The Burgess Animal Pages
Striped Chipmunk, the Eastern Chipmunk
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Check out these helpful links to find out more about Striped Chipmunk at aroundthespinney.com!

Wild Adirondacks – Eastern Chipmunk – Facts, Diet, Habitat, and pictures of Striped Chipmunk.

Project Noah’s Nature School Video on Youtube– this is a great video to learn a little more about Chipmunks and how to identify their burrows! There is also a fun challenge at the end.

Burgess Animal Pages

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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.

Timmy, the Flying Squirrel

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

A-Z Animals – Flying Squirrels – Facts, Diet, Habitat, and pictures of Timmy

NatGEO Flying Squirrel Youtube Video – this is a great video to see how Flying Squirrels jump and use their patagium to glide! Watch them glide down a football field!

Burgess Animal Pages