Tag Archives: Bahamas Birds

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YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER

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YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER

Abaco has two permanently resident woodpecker species, the WEST INDIAN WOODPECKER and the HAIRY WOODPECKER. There is a third, migratory woodpecker species that is a fairly common winter resident, the yellow-bellied sapsucker Sphyrapicus varius.

Like its woodpecker cousins, the sapsucker drills holes in trees (see below). The dual purpose is to release the sap, which it eats, and to attract insects that it also eats. A two-course meal, if you like. They’ll also eat insects on an undrilled tree, and even ‘hawk’ for them in flight. They balance their diet with fruit and berries.

Bahamas -Great Abaco_Yellow-bellied Sapsucker_Gerlinde Taurer 1 FV

Bahamas-Great Abaco_Yellow-bellied Sapsucker_Gerlinde Taurer 2 copy

The distinctive patterns of sapsucker holes may completely encircle the trunk of a tree with almost mathematical precision. This is sometimes described as ‘girdling’ and may have a damaging effect on a tree, sometimes even killing it if the bark is severely harmed. This may require preventive measures in orchards for example, though note that in the US Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are listed and protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act so radical action is prohibited. 

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Abaco Bahamas 2.12.Tom Sheley copy 3

YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER SOUNDS

DRUMMING (Xeno-Canto / Richard Hoyer)

 CALL (Xeno-Canto / Jonathon Jogsma) 

On Abaco, palms are a favourite tree for the sapsuckers. There are several palms along the beach at Delphi. Below is a coconut palm that had seen plenty of sapsucker action, with the drill holes girdling the entire trunk from top to bottom.

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers & Coconut Palms 1 RH

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers & Coconut Palms 2 RH

In their breeding grounds yellow-bellied sapsuckers excavate a large cavity in a softwood tree as a nest. They mate for life, and often return to the same nest year every year, with the pair sharing nesting duties. I have no idea whether the pair migrate south for the winter together, or whether they agree to take a break from each other. I’d like to think it’s the former…

sphy_vari_AllAm_map

Credits: Photos Gerlinde Taurer, Tom Sheley, RH; Cornell Lab (Range Map) & Xeno-Canto (YBS recordings as credited above)

Species featured in ‘Guide to the Birds of Abaco’ by Keith Salvesen, pp 242-3

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LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD: LORD OF THE FLIES

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Loggerhead Kingbird, Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen)

LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD: LORD OF THE FLIES

Four principal so-called ‘tyrant flycatchers’ (Tyrannidae) are found on Abaco: the loggerhead kingbird, the gray kingbird, the La Sagra’s flycatcher and the Cuban pewee. These are common permanent residents, except for the gray kingbird which is a summer resident only. Several other flycatcher species are found on Abaco, but they are very uncommon winter residents, rare transients, or vagrants. 

Loggerhead Kingbird, Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen)

Loggerhead Kingbird, Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen)

Loggerheads seem to have two methods of observing humans and their mysteries. One is by perching on a branch or in a shrub, watching intently. They stay quite still… until suddenly launching into the air to intercept some passing insect with their hooked beaks (so-called ‘hawking’), before returning to their perch. And staring at you again. The other method is to follow you round, either flying slightly ahead as you progress; or fluttering in the coppice alongside you; or playing catch-up from behind. 

Loggerhead Kingbird, Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen)

A typical quizzical loggerhead sideways look… all flycatchers do this

The collective names for a group of kingbirds are: a Court, a Coronation, or a Tyranny

Loggerhead Kingbird, Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen)

Photo Credits: Keith Salvesen at Sandy Point, Abaco Bahamas

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CHRISTMAS BUNTING(S) . ABACO . BAHAMAS

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BUNTING(S) FOR AN ABACO CHRISTMAS

Painted Bunting, Abaco (Tara Lavallee)

painted-bunting

BUNTING  /ˈbʌntɪŋ/  (Noun)

  1. A small New World songbird of the cardinal subfamily
  2. Flags and other colourful festive decorations

PAINTED BUNTINGPainted Bunting, Abaco (Erik Gauger)

Few birds radiate Yuletide vibes better than Painted Buntings, with their perfect festive colours. Here is a seasonal flock of them to enjoy. A very happy Christmas to those who kindly continue to visit Rolling Harbour.

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Painted Bunting, Abaco (Tara Lavallee)

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painted-bunting

Painted Bunting reflection, Laguna Seca.South TX Tom Sheley
Painted Bunting dip reflection LR.Laguna Seca.South TX. 4.16.13.Tom Sheley

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MANGROVE CUCKOO – ABACO, BAHAMAS

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Mangrove Cuckoo, Abaco, Bahamas (Gerlinde Taurer)

MANGROVE CUCKOOS ON ABACO

The MANGROVE CUCKOO (Coccyzus minor) is one of three cuckoo species found on Abaco and in the wider Bahamas. The yellow-billed cuckoo is another; and the noisy black smooth-billed anis are cuckoos by species though not in appearance.

MANGROVE CUCKOO, Abaco (Alex Hughes)

You will notice that some of the birds shown have got fat insects in their beaks. Their preference is for caterpillars and grasshoppers, but they are happy to eat other insects, spiders, snails, lizards and (with a nod to an all-round healthy diet) fruit.

Mangrove Cuckoo, Abaco, Bahamas (Tony Hepburn) copy

Mangrove Cuckoo, Abaco Alex Hughes

Mangrove Cuckoo, Abaco, Bahamas (Tony Hepburn) copy

These cuckoos are shy birds and fairly hard to spot in the coppice unless they are on the move. You may see one flying across a track ahead of a vehicle, flashing its distinctive tail. Here are a couple of recordings of their call, described in various ways, for example as “gawk gawk gawk gawk” or “gauk gauk”. I’m not sure I hear it quite like that but I can’t think of a sensible way to write it out phonetically…

Jesse Fagan / Xeno-Canto

 Cornell Lab / Allaboutbirds  

Mangrove Cuckoo with insect.Delphi Club, Abaco, Bahamas (Tom Sheley)

Credits: Bruce Hallett, Alex Hughes,  Tom Sheley, Gerlinde Taurer and the late Tony Hepburn; Audio – Xeno-Canto & Cornell Lab. All photos taken on Abaco!

Mangrove Cuckoo, Delphi Club, Abaco, Bahamas (Tom Sheley) copy

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SMOOTH-BILLED ANIS . ABACO . BAHAMAS

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Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

The Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani) – aka Cemetery Bird – is the third member of the cuckoo family found on Abaco, the others being the MANGROVE CUCKOO and the YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO. You can (it’s voluntary) find out more about them in an earlier article HERE. 

I have returned to these engagingly gregarious birds and their raucous ways because Paul Harding has recently captured a sequence of  a small group of anis behaving so endearingly that they are irresistible. Not for them the oddly incompetent fluttering flight, nor the disorganised, unbalanced landing technique. It’s simply a matter of getting settled on a branch, and then making room for one more in the middle (or perhaps resisting it…).

There were 4 on the branch…Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

Hey – make room for another one…Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

Budge up, guys, I mean C’mon…Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

Yay, I’m in… a bit squished but…Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

Um… guys, I can’t breathe…Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

 That’s better… all settled now….Smooth-billed Anis, Bahamas (Paul Harding)

Let the racket begin!

Credits: all terrific pics, Paul Harding; sound files, Xeno Canto

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NORTHERN PARULA (WARBLER) ON ABACO, BAHAMAS

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NORTHERN PARULA Setophaga americana 

220px-Parula_americana_map.svg

GALLERY

 

All birds photographed on Abaco, Bahamas and featured in BIRDS OF ABACO (PDF available)

Northern Parula BH (ad m)

 

Northern Parula WB P1001202 copy

 

BAHAMAS - N. Parula Warbler - Oct 2010 sm

 

BAHAMAS - Northern Parula 2, 1-22-12, Nursery copy 2

 

Northern Parula BH (imm - 1st fall f) sm

 

Northern Parula CN clip 300 to jpg sm

© Keith Salvesen / Rolling Harbour / Birds of Abaco

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FIVE STARS: BAHAMAS ENDEMIC BIRDS (FOUR FROM ABACO)

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20130106_Bahamas-Great Abaco_4846_Bahama Yellowthroat_Gerlinde Taurer copy
Bahama Yellowthroat (Gerlinde Taurer)

 

FIVE STARS: BAHAMAS ENDEMIC BIRDS (FOUR FROM ABACO)

Abaco is fortunate to be home to 4 of the 5 endemic Bahamas species. The fifth, the beautiful BAHAMA ORIOLE Icterus northropi, was found on both Abaco and Andros until the 1990s, when it sadly became extirpated from Abaco. Now found only on Andros, there are thought to be fewer than 300 Orioles left – a barely sustainable number. The species is unsurprisingly IUCN listed as critically endangered. Here’s a picture of one as a reminder of what Abaco is now missing…

 

Bahama_Oriole (Wiki)
Bahama Oriole

 

Abaco’s four endemic species are the tiny Bahama Woodstar hummingbird, the Bahama Yellowthroat, the Bahama Warbler (since 2011), and the Bahama Swallow. All are of course permanent breeding residents on Abaco and its outer Cays. None is exclusive to Abaco; all are relatively plentiful. The Woodstar is perhaps the hardest to find, not least because it competes territorially with the Cuban Emerald hummingbird. Even Woodstars can be found easily in some areas – Man-o-War Cay is a good place for them, for example. Here are some striking images of these four endemic bird species taken from the archives for “The Birds of Abaco” published last month. 

 

BAHAMA WOODSTAR Calliphlox evelynae 

Bahama Woodstar male 3.1.Abaco Bahamas.2.12.Tom Sheley copy
Bahama Woodstar (m) (Tom Sheley)

 

Bahama Woodstar (f) TL IMG_3213 2
Bahama Woodstar (f) Tara Lavallee

 

BAHAMA YELLOWTHROAT Geothlypis rostrata

Bahama Yellowthroat vocalizing.Abaco Bahamas.Tom Sheley
Bahama Yellowthroat (Tom Sheley)

 

Bahama Yellowthroat (M) BH IMG_0675 copy
Bahama Yellowthroat (Bruce Hallett)

 

BAHAMA WARBLER Setophaga flavescens

Bahama Warbler BH IMG_8398 copy - Version 2
Bahama Warbler (Bruce Hallett)

 

Bahama Warbler WB P1001012 copy
Bahama Warbler (Woody Bracey)

 

BAHAMA SWALLOW Tachycineta cyaneoviridis

Bahama Swallow CN
Bahama Swallow (Craig Nash)
bahama-swallow EG copy
Bahama Swallow (Erik Gauger)

“The Delphi Club Guide to the Birds of Abaco”  was published as limited edition of 500 and has only been for sale for 8 weeks or so exclusively through the Delphi Club. Yesterday, we passed a happy milestone in that short time as the 250th copy was sold. Complimentary copies have also been donated to every school and relevant education department on Abaco to tie in with the excellent policy of teaching children from an early age the value of the natural world around them, the importance of its ecology, and the need for its conservation. The cover bird for the book was easy to choose – it just had to be a male Woodstar in all his glory with his splendid purple ‘gorget’. 

 

Bahama Woodstar (m) BH IMG_0917 copy
Bahama Woodstar (m) Bruce Hallett
JACKET GRAB JPG

Image credits as shown; otherwise, ‘cover bird’ by Tom Sheley, Bahama Oriole – Andros Project / Wiki

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BANANQUITS – ABACO BAHAMAS

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Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen / Rolling Harbour Abaco)

BANANAQUITS: AHEAD OF THE CURVE?

Bananaquits (Coereba flaveola) are small, colourful, and delightful birds of the coppice and garden. Besides their obvious attractiveness, the birds have in recent years enjoyed an uniquity: the status of being the sole species in the family Coerebidae.

Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Gerlinde Taurer)

However this singular status has really been a kind of avian parking place due to past, present (and doubtless future) uncertainty of the right category for these birds. Like so many avian species these days, they are subject to the rigours and vagaries of continual reclassification by the ornithological powers-that-be.

Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Craig Nash)

Bananaquits are, broadly speaking, passerines – essentially birds that perch. The nominal ‘passer’ was specifically awarded to sparrows by BRISSON, a contemporary of Linnaeus. Recently, bananaquits have suffered mysterious migrations of their classification ranging from the generalised ‘passerine‘ to the vague incertae sedis (= ‘uncertain group‘) to uncomfortable inclusion with tanagers / emberizids. 

Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Tom Sheley)

The debate over the appropriate classification for this pretty little bird (of which there are many subspecies in the broad Caribbean region) – rumbles on. A new way to confuse the issue is the suggestion that the bananaquit should be split into 3 species. In some areas, I believe this has happened at least informally.

Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Tom Sheley)

Elsewhere there are doubters, sceptics, and champions of other group inclusions. The most obvious beneficiaries of all this will be dedicated birders, who may end up with two extra species to add to their ‘Lifer’ lists. Personally I’d like to think that the birds themselves will stay ahead of the curve in their own category, maintaining the mystery of their precise status while humans argue about what to call them. 

Bananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Erik Gauger)

CREDITS: Keith Salvesen / Rolling Harbour (1); Gerlinde Taurer (2); Craig Nash (3, 7); Tom Sheley (4, 5); Erik Gauger (6). All birds photographed on Abaco, Bahamas

Bananaquit perched on yellow elder, the National flower of the BahamasBananaquit, Abaco Bahamas (Craig Nash)

 

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BIRDS OF ABACO . 10th ANNIVERSARY

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THE DOWNLOAD OF THE BOOK OF THE BIRDS

birds-of-abacoDownload

NOTES

  1. This download is of the entire book
  2. Reduced to 18mb for 10 second loading (no noticeable loss of definition)
  3. Below the screen BIRDS OF ABACO enlarges the screen; DOWNLOAD will do just that
  4. The top bar contains all the usual ways to make adjustments to the contents
  5. This is the penultimate version before printing, with a few crop marks etc
  6. Please let me know if there are any problems with the download

The download is free and can be scrolled on-screen or saved in the usual way. Do share with family and friends. By all means use parts – eg the Checklist – to print for reference. It’s fine to print out a single complete copy for personal use only.

As mentioned in previous posts, I am asking those who choose to download the book to make a modest charitable donation to a local wildlife-related cause or to a local school or an organisation that inspires kids to get involved in the natural world around them.

KEITH SALVESEN

March 2024

rollingharbour.delphi@gmail.com

Thanks to all the many people who contributed to the book including 30 photographers who took brilliant photos; 3 Bahamas bird experts who contributed greatly to the composition and accuracy of the book; the superb printers Conti in Italy; Peter Mantle the inspiration and eminence grise; and my wife Sally whose publishing and editorial skills are second to none, and her patience limitless.