In a children's song about autumn, it is sung:
Birds fly south
Geese, rooks, cranes.
Here is the last flock
Waving its wings in the distance.
Still ducks, swans, swallows, starlings, larks, nightingales, cuckoos, wagtails and various other species fly away, most of which are familiar to residents of cities only by images. But there are many who remain.
Why are frosts not terrible?
And which birds are left to winter? Who is not afraid of severe Russian frosts and deep snow? What birds can be seen all year in the city and in the forest?
Birds roam not only for warmth, but also for food. If there is something to feed in the cold, they do not fly away. Warm plumage, the ability to stray in flocks, the ability to hide in various buildings and human help allow birds to winter. Although prolonged severe frosts can sharply reduce their numbers. Many tales of the northern peoples say: "There was such a cold that the birds froze on the fly."
City dwellers
The question of which birds remain to winter in the city is easy to answer. In the usual places pigeons are waiting for food. Gray crows every morning and evening in flocks flock from the place of spending the night on large trees in yards and parks outside the city and back. Magpie, common crow, jay can be seen near the houses.
In the frosty air, the woodpecker knocks far away on an old tree in the park. In winter it is even easier to find by the sound and the crushed bark lying on the snow and see among the bare trees.
Increasingly, in large cities of the middle lane, you can see ducks and even swans that people feed on non-freezing reservoirs of water. Although until recently, these wintering birds, whose names and photos are widely represented in specialized literature, were very rare. Reducing harmful emissions in enterprises contributes to an increase in the number of birds in the city, which is an indicator of the well-being of its ecology.
Old friends
The wintering birds, whose names are familiar from childhood: sparrows, squirrels, carduelis, different types of tits - big and crested, gait and Muscovite, long-tailed, and also nuthatch, are happily flipping notes at the windows and balconies where they were already fed.
It’s hard to see tits in the city in the summer, but by the winter they migrate closer to a person’s housing, they can fly to a familiar window for several years in a row.
Flocks of bright bullfinches and waxwings noisily fly from one rowan tree or small-fronted apple tree to another, leaving a lot of pecked berries in the snow. During the thaw, overripe berries can ferment, then the birds, after eating them, behave like drunk. They lose their orientation, beat against the walls and fall.
These are wintering birds, whose names and photos are a symbol and decoration of the harsh season. The appearance of bullfinches and waxwings always attracts attention and pleases.
Science of kindness
Wintering birds for children become an object of study and care. Together with parents and educators, they make and fill the feeders, see who flies to them. They observe how they behave, if they have to share food, wintering birds. A kindergarten and a playground with feeders attract sparrows, tits, pigeons from all around. Grain, seeds, waste from the table, pieces of lard - are snapped up in these bird canteens.
A heavy pigeon can turn over a hanging feeder; one has to invent various designs for small birds.
It is always interesting to watch how impudent sparrows grab crumbs and seeds from under the nose of important pigeons. Magpies chatter and gallop, solid crows walk. Such lessons in communicating with wildlife are very memorable for children. To know which birds are left to winter in the city, to prepare for their appearance, to feed in harsh times is very important. This is a science of kindness for a child.
What birds are left to winter in the forest?
The north and the middle strip of Russia in winter are buried in the snow, rivers and lakes freeze. Waterfowl and swamp birds fly south. But observing skiers, hunters and outdoor enthusiasts know about which birds winter in our forests.
In cold weather, you can hear and see tits, woodpeckers, crossbills, pine forests in the forest. Some species of blackbirds fly away, but the mountain ash and blackbird can remain wintering at the latitude of the Leningrad region, especially with a plentiful harvest of mountain ash. More often the old males remain.
Large birds such as wood grouse, black grouse, partridge and hazel grouse can easily find food and can hide in the snow from predators.
Predatory hawks, owls, owls, owls, owls winter in nesting places, although some species migrate from more northern regions. They can be found not only in the forest, but also in parks, gardens, cemeteries, summer cottages, where they hunt small birds and rodents.
Taiga game
If someone saw and heard a flock of large birds flying up from under their feet, he would hardly ever forget the fright and surprise of such a meeting.
The smallest representatives of wild chicken - quail, winter in Africa, South Asia. But their relatives, hazel grouse, black grouse, capercaillie and partridge have always been the coveted winter and spring prey of Russian hunters. The meat of taiga game has a thin, resinous flavor and is very much appreciated.
Deep snow serves as a home and bed for these birds. In the evening, a flock of stones falls into a snowdrift from trees and hides in it from frost and wind. And in the morning it takes off to feed on needles and kidneys again. In severe frosts, the pack can remain in the snow all day.
But a snowdrift can also become a grave for birds, if a hard crust forms on it, and the grouse or partridge does not have enough strength to break through it and get out.
And when the first thawed patches appear, the time comes for mesmerizing currents of grouse and black grouse. During the wedding songs they don’t hear anything, for which they got their names.
Thrifty Cedar
Long winters force some birds to build solid supplies. Among the Siberian fishers there is an expression: "Kedrovka lowered the whole bump." The fact is that in a year when there are few pine nuts, this bird stocks almost the entire crop. Nourishing nuts rich in tasty and healthy butter help to endure the harsh winter and grow chicks in spring. Kedrovka makes tens of thousands of bookmarks of nuts of 10–20 pieces in secluded places and remembers them for several months! Part of the reserves, of course, is plundered by other inhabitants of the taiga from chipmunks to bears, forgotten “treasures” sprout, give rise to new groves of Siberian pine.
Winter chicks
What other birds migrate to those places where many seeds of conifers have been born, and manage to fearlessly breed chicks in February?
These are crossbills. In our country, there lives a klest-elovik. Beautiful motley birds with tenacious paws and a crossed beak cleverly extract and bite the seeds, then drop the cones to the ground.
In January-February, they begin to twist warm two-layer nests. The male brings the female sitting on the nest to the food, for a little more than two weeks she lays eggs, and then the parents feed the chicks for another three weeks. Sometimes crossbills postpone nesting until spring, hatch only in May.
Life does not freeze
It is not a secret for a curious observer that not only tits, pigeons and sparrows, but also tap dance, oatmeal, schura, kings and three or four dozens of other species winters near us. During trips and walks, you can get acquainted with the most diverse representatives of birds, learn to distinguish their voices and footprints in the snow. There are even mobile applications that allow in the field to identify birds by voice.
Hanging a feeder from a plastic bottle or pouring crumbs from the table on the windowsill is not at all difficult, but it is so interesting to watch birds and understand that life in nature does not freeze in winter.