Posted by ppeery on April 9th, 2012 in Education and Inspiration, Nature/Environment

The Louisiana Waterthrush 

Parkesia motacilla

The lovely, resonant song  of the Louisiana Waterthrush with its descending notes is one of the delightful indications that spring is really here.  The Waterthrush returns from wintering in Central America and the West Indies to look for nesting sites along relatively unpolluted headwater streams.   The male returns before the female and until he finds a mate he sings vigorously all day.  Once a mate is acquired his singing is predominantly in the morning.   The female also sings, though a shorter version of the song, as well as gives the same calls as the male.

The Louisiana Waterthrush is noted for constantly wagging its tail in a teetering motion as it forages.  Both the generic and specific name mean “tail-wagger”.

Louisiana Waterthrush populations and successful reproduction are decreased by the lack of benthic macroinvertebrates found in healthy streams and by the impact of acid rain on streams.  Thus this species is an indicator of a healthy ecosystem.

Preferred nesting sites are along fast flowing small steams, frequently at the headwaters of the streams.  Hence western Albemarle County is a good area to find them.  In upland forests the nest is usually placed in a cavity along a stream bank.  The male and female both walk along looking for the site.  The male will enter a potential site, turn around several times and drag nearby leaves into the cavity.   If the female does not enter, he follows her further up the stream to explore other sites.   Once she enters a site that is acceptable they both gather leaves from the immediate area to build the nest.   Once the nest is finished there is often a delay until the female begins laying one egg a day until 5 eggs are laid.  The eggs are approximately one third the mass of the female.  Incubation by the female begins the day before the last egg is laid and all of the eggs hatch the same day, after 10-14 days of incubation.  They leave the nest at 10 days of age.

The young are given the same food as the adults eat.  The predominate food consists of adult and immature stages of aquatic invertebrates.  They may forage along the forest floor, trails, and even in gardens and in trees if there is a shortage of food near their nest.

The brown-headed cowbird will frequently lay eggs in the Louisiana Waterthrush nest.  The adults will chase the cowbirds but if the cowbird is successful in laying in the nest the waterthrush may bury the alien egg under the floor of the nest, or peck, puncture and discard the cowbird eggs.   Since the eggs are similar in size and the cowbird will remove a host egg for each parasitic egg laid, sometimes the waterthrush will raise both species.  In some areas  studied cowbird parasitism led to a 50% reduction in fledglings of waterthrushes.

To  see a picture of and hear the song of the Louisiana Waterthrush go to:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Louisiana_Waterthrush/id

and click on “Sound”

Submitted by Dorothy Tompkins

Comments Off

Posted by ppeery on March 28th, 2012 in Nature/Environment

A pair of red-tailed hawks has its nest west of Hightop Drive in the woods just after you  come down the hill beyond the airstrip.  The female was on the nest March 16  and became quite agitated when I climbed up the hill behind the nest.  Typically she would lay two eggs in mid to late March; her behavior suggests that she has at least one in the nest now.

The female does most of the incubation of the eggs with the male sitting on the nest for 3-4 hours per day until the last week when his presence on the nest declines.  The incubation period is estimated to be 4-5 weeks.

The hatchlings are altricial (immature and helpless) and unable to raise their heads initially.  They weigh about 58 grams.  By the second day they begin to utter peeping calls and by day 10 make high whistling notes in response to the adults being overhead..  By 30 days of age they begin stretching their wings and exercising, and leave the nest by day 46.  The female broods the young; the male brings the food.

The Red-tailed Hawk is found from central Alaska south to Venezuela and east to the Virgin Islands, thus is found in all states but Hawaii.  The species varies considerably, with up to 16 subspecies, but all adults have a uniformly reddish tail with a narrow dark band across the end of the tail.  We usually have two or more pairs at Bundoran and get to observe their magnificent flight year round as well as the spectacular aerial maneuvers during courtship.  Because of the density in our area, the territories are defended year round.  Because the Red-tail inhabits open areas interspersed with patches of trees, it enjoys the habitat established in our country and their population expanded during the 20^th century.

The Red-tail often hunts from a perch enabling us to easily see it.  Its diet includes small mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, arthropods and fresh carrion.  Because of the latter it may perch by roadsides looking for road-kill.  It is probably important in keeping the population of small rodents in check.   I have seen a Red-tail catch a full grown squirrel, however it could not fly away with it.  One did fly away with my pet bantam chicken many years ago.

Red-tails are magnificent soaring birds: they spend about 75% of their flight soaring and 25% flapping.  Their flapping is generally slow, ponderous compared to crows.  Typical of hawks females are larger than males; the male is 45-56 cm and female 50-65 cm long.

If the nest is still visible after the trees leaf out we can hope to see the young as they become active in mid to late May.

A link to the red-tailed hawk on allaboutbirds (Cornell) follows.  Click on “Sound” to hear the hawk.

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-tailed_Hawk/id/ac

Submitted by Dorothy Tompkins, 3-16-12

Comments Off

Posted by ppeery on August 2nd, 2011 in General

Albemarle County is known world wide for its beautiful countryside and for being the home of  Thomas Jefferson and the University of Virginia.  Now it can claim frame as being the home of one of the best pizzas in America.  Crozet Pizza, located just a few miles from Bundoran Farm, has always been a well known secret for local residents, but now it has it hit the big time.

Food Network named Crozet’s Pizza as one of the top 50 best pizzas in the county.  According to the NBC 29 segment, “The pizza that won editors’ hearts is a combination of shiitake and portobello mushrooms over a base of garlic, herbs and olive oil.”

Congratulations to Crozet Pizza on this well deserved honor.

What are your favorite places to get pizza in the Charlottesville/Albemarle County area?

1 Comment »

Posted by Leif Riddervold on July 12th, 2011 in Agriculture, Baldwin Center for Preservation, Education and Inspiration, General, Nature/Environment

Hello all!

I hope that this post finds everyone well and that you are staying cool through this very hot spell! The heat index today will be about 110 degrees, so the summer heat is certainly on. The rains have been plentiful this year at Bundoran Farm, providing good conditions for the pastures and orchards. Additionally, a small vegetable garden that we planted this year is thriving in these conditions. In fact, we presently have plenty of fresh organic cucumbers available for Bundoran Farm owners and nearby neighbors. So if you are in the area stop by the Baldwin Center and help yourself to a few. We also have a few zucchini and yellow squash available to the first few that arrive. Later in the season we will have some corn, sweet peppers, green beans and plenty of vine ripe tomatoes.

What a great way to enjoy and appreciate the bounty of the land.

Below are a few picture of our small garden and our recent harvest.

Comments Off

Posted by ppeery on June 28th, 2011 in Architecture and Design, General, Green Building

Matt Robb and his brother, Mark, grew up in this part of the county. This is also where they began building custom homes more than twenty-five years ago. Mark has since moved on to a career in wildlife management, while Matt has continued to maintain the craftsmanship and commitment to people that has made Robb Construction a highly respected and sought-after builder.

Over the years, an imaginative variety of projects have characterized the company’s portfolio. From the elegant lines of a expansive formal residence to the welcoming view of a country cottage—and just about everything in between—Matt’s goal is to express the owners’ vision for their new home and build it to last.

Robb Construction is also well known for its long history and expertise in constructing energy-efficient homes, particularly with the use of insulating concrete forms, as well as in the employment of geothermal systems. With their office just a quarter mile from Bundoran Farm, and their established practice of building just one home at a time, they are posed to make sure can a new homes built by Robb Construction at Bundoran Farm will receive the best of care in every detail.

For more information and to see photos of some of their projects, feel free to visit thief website at www.robbconstruction.com.

Comments Off