#bobolinks

Florida Wildlife, May 1960. Illustration by Wallace Hughes.

My beautiful rare finds - Bobolinks come all the way from South America to Southern Ontario to nest ... I feel truly lucky to see this rare bird as they are endangered now - ceekbee

We’re transitioning our old blog to tumblr, and reposting some of the cute stuff. This blog entry was originally posted April 3rd 2015. 

We are beyond excited to share with  bobolinks are back in our meadows! Last year we heard their calls for the first time in twelve years, according to our Executive Director Elaine Spacher. "I've been waiting for those calls since I started here! Now all I'm listening for is meadowlarks!"

The return of these ground-nesting birds indicates that our efforts to remove invasive shrubs like multiflora rose from our meadows, so they can be mown. The bobolinks thrive in grasslands, and their habitat has been decreasing over time as farmland and meadows are sold or developed. Last year's calls showed that our mowing schedule and careful grassland protection was worthwhile, and hearing the calls again this year shows that it wasn't a fluke. Perhaps the bobolinks will choose to nest here and remain from year to year.

Personally I haven't seen one yet -- the males are very striking with an unusual color pattern: white on their back and black on their belly -- but their calls are easily identifiable. I really hope that some of you talented bird photographers are able to get some images of our new friends!