V19 N47

Bird Droppings
Dispatches from the nation’s birdwatching capital… by Seymore Thanu
Every season has its special charms,
winter notwithstanding. When wife
Linda and I first became involved,
we asked each other the important
questions that couples ask. “Favorite
book?” “Favorite movie?”
And while I no longer know the answers
to those questions, I do recall Linda’s surprise
to my response to her question, “What is your
favorite season?”
“Winter,” I replied.
“Not summer?” she probed.
“No...” I replied, simply but sincerely, “...I
hate summer.”
Summer means sweating under the sheets
at night and breathing the same air they were
breathing in Birmingham, yesterday. Give me
the clean, crisp ice-tinged air seeping out of
Canada, anytime. It makes every breath intoxicating
and the low-lying winter light gilds the
landscape. Summer air blurs the edges and
coats the world in bland uniformity.
I guess winter light helps explain why I
find winter waterfowl so appealing. That and
their abundance. In summer, ducks and geese
are paired and spread out across the Prairies
and the Arctic. Only in winter do the birds
coalesce into flocks where their cavorting and
gabble is a seasonal delight.
In February, if you head for coastal inlets
that are stirred by the tide, you can hear the
courtship calls of male Long-taileds. It sounds
like the birds are saying South Southerly...
South Southerly....” In fact, “South Southerly,”
was the name market gunners ascribed to
the flagellum-tailed birds. In the Arctic the
Inuit know the bird as the “Ah-guy-achook,”
Another phonetic rendering of the duck’s call.
One vocalizing bird will set off a chain reaction
of calls followed by a spirited tail chase
in which females invite suitors to show their
best stuff.
One Spring, Linda and I were camped
at the edge of the seasonal ice sheet near
Pond Inlet, Nunavut. Spring was running late,
and thousands of Long-tailed Ducks were
jammed up against the ice, waiting for tundra
ponds to thaw. Sleep was about impossible
given the din of yodeling Long-taileds and the
near 24-hour sunlight. The threat of prowling
Polar Bears only added to our inability to
sleep.
But Cape May residents can avoid bears
and save the expense of a flight to Pond Inlet
and still be treated to the sight and sound
of Long-taileds in love. Just head over to
Townsend, Cape May or Hereford Inlet and
get an ear full.
December 30, 2021 EXIT ZERO Page 39