What's up with its name?

I started my love of the outdoors tagging along with my father from when I was just 5 or 6 years old. I'm sure he tired of my constant questions but it never showed. It seemed like I could never learn enough about nature. I had a particular fondness for identifying wild birds and trying to see as many each year at my feeders or around our yard.

In my youth, I couldn't get in our car and drive to a birding spot, but I was amazed at how many birds I could identify close to my Weissport, Main Road home. After my father passed away, and in the process of cleaning up his home, I rediscovered my first bird book. It was a very tattered reminder of where this birding passion started. Tucked inside it were some frayed Pennsylvania Game Commission packets and literature which I collected at the Carbon County fairs during the 1960s. Of course, most were about birds.

To add even more to my "geekiness" was the fact that I didn't collect and paint model cars; Dad and I collected and painted Bachman model birds. I can remember begging to go to the hardware store in Lehighton to buy a new model as soon as my previous one was completed.

My bird feeders were roughly constructed from the pine wood salvaged from crates acquired either at Reed's Market in Weissport or Jim's Grocery up the street. I don't think the birds were too fussy about how the food was presented, just that it was there during those snowy days.

I sometimes cracked my own corn, mixed it with the sunflowers we grew in the garden, or a few times each year my mother found a little extra in her budget to buy a bag of wild bird seed. I mixed peanut butter and seeds and smeared that mix in large pine cones. I even found out that sometimes I could get free suet from the market, and that really tempted the birds. And so it began.

I thought my initial installment would maybe catch your interest in some common ways birds are named, and at the same time, how confusing it can be. The redheaded woodpecker obviously was quickly named by its bright, completely red head. They can be found here in Carbon County, mostly as spring and fall migrants. If the red head doesn't catch your eyes, the bright white wing patches as it flies will. It seems that our home turf is just a bit too far north, because they are certainly more common in the Lancaster County area.

If you were a "Beverly Hillbillies" fan, you may remember Mr. Drysdale's secretary, Miss Hathaway. In her dialogues, she regularly was discussing her chances at seeing a yellow-bellied sapsucker. You might expect to be on the lookout for this bird with a belly as brightly yellow colored as the redheaded woodpecker's red head. Well, sorry to disappoint you.

Note the photo of a yellow-bellied sapsucker feeding on suet. You may be able to see a bit of faintly washed yellow on its breast area. Certainly not the yellow you may have thought by hearing its name. Well, maybe the name doesn't always describe its actual appearance. I'll discuss this secretive bird in a later article.

Let's take a look at another bird, the red-winged blackbird. They are quite common in our area where you can observe them conspicuously perched on a cattail, sapling or fence post. They prefer wet, marshy areas, pastures and swamps. They are most easily seen from March to May. So look for them now. However, don't expect to see a blackbird with bright red wings. It does have a bright red wing patch, with a line of yellow feathers beneath it. When singing and trying to attract mates, the male will display his red patches. I'm sure whoever was responsible for its common name found it easier to identify as a red-winged blackbird rather than a red-shouldered patched blackbird.

In conclusion, I'll mention a bird most people have seen before, the American goldfinch. It is indeed a finch, but the males have about the brightest yellow feathers you have ever seen. Far from the golden color its name would imply. Maybe those responsible just didn't know their colors, or it was easier to pronounce goldfinch rather than yellow finch. Many, many bird species names include a color description in their name. Most are described well. I'm sure you will know the color of a snowy egret or a snowy owl.

My hopewas to interest you enough to anticipate something new and interesting in next week's column and to see what else you may learn. Remember, take a moment or two and get outdoors, and keep your eyes open!

Test your knowledge: Most female birds of prey (hawks, owls) are: A. larger than the male, B. smaller than the male, C. about the same size

Find out the answer next week.