The Big Yard: Notes from a Pajama Birdwatcher

Feb 01, 2022

A pair of Lesser Goldfinches comes for drinks at the statue fountain.

January 31, 2022

The first month of 2022 ends with 40 species, the last, courtesy of a Townsend’s warbler’s five-second perch in the bare chokecherry, a double-take surprise for a rare bird this time of year. Cold fingers numb against a frozen camera body and lens resulted in three blurry photos.

Although the warbler never returned, I’m happy to check it off. Still, it isn’t one of the missing 14. Over the last couple of days, I thought the yard might make up some ground on these birds. I kept hearing the trills of green-tailed towhees, the high, sharp slurs of black-chinned and zeeeets of rufous-crowned sparrows, the whistled tzew tzews of yellow-eyed juncos. But none materialized. I searched the understory duff and dry-rot twigs, the black-algae recesses of the pond, places ground-stalking birds favor. Nothing. And still the calls came.

Then, this morning, I read about lesser goldfinches, of which dozens cling to the thistle feeder all day. In his bird guide, David Sibley says their call is distinctive, and it is—easily recognizable as clear, wiry tseee-eeeews. However, he adds, it “includes many imitations of call notes of other species.” Dozens, apparently. Even rock squirrels.

The birds start breeding very early in the year and may actually nest year-round in southern Arizona. I’ve seen females pulling fluff from old nests. Right now, the bright male goldfinches with their shiny black caps are making their intentions known in several tongues.

“But how does this work?” the wife asks, after I explain why I’m hearing but not seeing so many birds. “Doesn’t it confuse the females?”

I tell her it’s no different than what other species do to woo mates. And then in my best Elvis impersonation I sing: Wise men say, only fools rush in...but I can’t help falling in love with you...

“Not working for me,” she says.

“How about Bono...”

“No.”

“Peter Gabriel? The book of love is long and boring...no one can lift the damn thing...”

“Yep. That’s our song.”

Some of it’s just transcendental.

“And some of it’s just really dumb...”