Purple Martin

 

Purple Martin
Vollmer Peak, Orinda, California, USA
July 2022
Member of the Swallow Family
§A Gulp of Swallows§ (dubious about this claim)
★The Largest North American Swallow★

{Etymology Corner} So, when I was preparing this blog I stopped for a moment and thought 'why are they called Martins instead of, you know, Swallows, like all the other members of the Swallow Family. So, as you do, I googled it, for the blog. The answer is interesting enough that I'm just going to fully quote The Online Etymology Dictionary directly"

Martin (n.) kind of swallow-like bird (Chelidon urbica), 1580s (earlier in diminutive form maretinet, mid-15c.), from Old French martin, which is apparently from the masc. proper name Martin in some sense. Writers in 17c. said it was named for St. Martin of Tours (d. 397 C.E.), patron saint of France, whose festival day (Martinmas) is Nov. 11, about the time the birds are said to depart for winter. But OED says the naming "may have been purely arbitrary," and Century Dictionary says "the name has no specific meaning ...." Usually with a qualifying term: the common house-martin is so called because it nests under the eaves of houses. The American purple martin is so called by 1804.

So named after, literally, the name Martin, or maybe just nothing. Amazing work language, you're doing great.

~True Bird Fact~ Purple Martins have a rare and interesting relationship with humans, having developed, over the centuries an almost symbiotic relationship with us. Purple Martins are almost 100% reliant on humans for the creation and maintenance of their nests. The bird migrates between North and South American, and Native peoples in pre-colonial times would hang up hollowed out gourds for nests. The people get a bird that eats tons of insects that would otherwise be eating crops, and the birds get a home. The practice of building and keeping up Martin nests continues to this day, although there is concern that it's becoming less popular with young people (Millennials are killing Martins with their lattes and avocado toast! (I am being sarcastic here)). There are not many birds with a whole non-profit dedicated to their continued existence, but this bird has one. Cool stuff, Martin!

So this is my last blog of the year. Usually I do some kind of year in review post, outlining the best birds, best posts, etc. Well, this year, as you might have noticed, we have had a grand total of 3 blogs, coming in well under my own goal of doing one a month. What can I say, this is the year my son went from 3 to  4 and my daughter went from 0 to 1. It's been a bear, folks, but hopefully, next year will be more like a bird, which is to say I'll do more bird watching and blog more birds in the new year. Best wishes, Amateurnithologist signing off for 2022. 

Black-bellied Whistling Duck

Black-bellied Whistling Duck, fka Black-bellied Tree Duck

Green Cay Nature Center and Wetlands, Florida, USA
April 2022
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Brace of Ducks§

{Etymology Corner} I don't usually mention this, but the Latin name of this duck is Dendrocygna autumnalis, which translates roughly into Autumnal Tree-swan. I think that's a great name, it is a very autumnal looking bird.

~True Bird Fact~ Fascinating bird, with behavior that is very unique for ducks- ready for some bullet points? Cause this duck needs bullet points

• Does whistle
• Does nest in trees (in South America, where the duck is most commonly found, it nests in palm trees. Boy I'd like to see that)
• Does form monogamous pair bonds
• Has increased it's North American population by 6% per year from 1966 to 2019, and they expand northward every year. They used to be a rare bird, but now are quite common in southern states. If things continue at this rate, soon the only life this continent will sustain will be Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, and honestly, that's fine.

What a cool duck, huh? Well, anyway, that's all for today... Unless you'd like to talk about how this is my first blog post since January. Two this year! How did this happen? Well, to be honest, I had a second kid (as recounted here), and boy, does that take a lot of time up. Birding time has been minimal, but not as minimal as looking-through-photos time and sitting-down-to-write-a-blog time. Still, I am resolved to revive this blog, so I'm going to make a commitment to catch up on my blogging and come out with at least a total of 10 this year, to match my last year's total. I can do 10, right? That's super easy. Lots more birds to come. 

Hugs and kisses, 

The Amateurnithologist

Oak Titmouse

Oak Titmouse

Hal Brown Park, Kentfield, California, USA
September 2021
Member of the Titmice/Chickadee Family
§A Dissimulation of Titmice§ (just checking dictionary.com here, and dissimulation means "concealment of one's thoughts, feelings, or character; pretense", so yes, definitely a completely deranged collective noun for this bird, if you were wondering)

{Etymology Corner} So, we finally got a titmouse, which means it's time for a trip to the Etymology Corner for sure. I'm sure you're wondering, as I was, why on earth it's called that. The culprit, as is often the case, is Old English. 'Tit' was a word used for any small animal or thing, and 'mase', which eventually morphed into 'mouse', also meant.. small. So the name of the bird means, basically, "teeny, tiny bird (or other animal, who can be bothered, really)"

~True Bird Fact~ Haven't seen this many synonyms for plain when looking up a bird for a long time. "Nondescript save for it's crest" raves allaboutbirds.org, and describes the bird as "very-drab plumaged", meanwhile, audubon.org enthuses that it's "as plain as a bird can be." But, if you dig deeper, you'll see that people really like the Oak Titmouse. Dave Shulford, in his Marin County Breeding Birds Atlas memorably describes him like this "Though drab in color, this crested parid is the voice and soul of the oaks." I guess what I'm saying is, sometimes there really isn't a fun true bird fact, but a bird still just has 'vibes'. Oak titmouse is such a bird.

Quick, read this incredible blog post about the titmouse, from Nature in Novato, and forget that I was supposed to come up with a bird fact myself.