Strawberries for Lunch

As I was taking a stroll along a creek, I was going purposely slow to watch the water swirl around the rocks. When I walked closer to a nearby bushy area, I spotted two quick flashes of gray in the corner of my eyes. I stood still and was lucky enough to observe the one bird that stuck around. I was close enough to get a good shoot, and iNaturalist helped me identify it as a gray catbird. I had never heard of this type of bird. I love the name!
I was fascinated watching the gray catbird hop around the ground. Someone had left food scraps in the bush, and the gray catbird was pecking at a strawberry that had been left. I noticed the bird pushing it's tail out, and I wondered if this had to do with how it was moving it's head. After doing some research, I found out that it is common for gray catbirds to use tail flicking for locomotion. This movement can vary from a quick upward or downward flick to a circular motion (birdsoftheworld.org). Another behavior I observed that I found to be a common trait of the gray catbird was flipping of leaves. As I suspected (and was later confirmed), the catbird flips leaves to uncover insects.
All because I took a few moments to slow down, I got to see and learn about a new type of bird! I will now be interested in looking out for them in the future.

Posted on May 7, 2020 11:41 PM by juliacohen5