WINTER IS FOR THE BIRDS is a phrase we have all heard at some point in our life. People using this in a conversation are knowingly (or unknowingly) referring to something not so good, undesirable, revolting or without merit. And because us Iowans are striving to survive another long winter of cold and more snow, using the term “for the birds” seems to fit into our discussion.

There is the biology side of winter for birds that are year round residents. These hardy feathered creatures endure, find food, adapt to the weather whatever it is, and seem to make it quite well into the upcoming spring seasons still so far away. A Cooper’s Hawk is one of those survivors, a creature well built for its role of swift flight through tangles of forest tree branches to swiftly dive bomb its unsuspecting prey, other small birds, to sink its talons into its body and squeeze it to death. Food for its body is the result.

We know the term “snow bird” as the definition applied to our human friends that take a cue from some migratory birds. They go south a long, long way to enjoy warmer temperatures, food, and the ability to cope with weather much more amenable to thick parka-like survival gear they would have to wear back home.

This scribe has discussed winter in Iowa with many friends. Some of those friends are January through March inhabitants of places like Arizona, New Mexico, south Texas or Florida. They all get great delight with a periodic telephone call back to Iowa saying something similar to “Today’s high temp will be 75-80 with lots of sun and warm winds.” Then they talk about the T-shirts they have to wear at the beach to keep the sun from burning their skin. They know how to hurt us.

An Iowan’s reply to such insults about our sanity for remaining in Iowa are not fit for print. We cringe at the fun and games our southern snow bird people are enjoying while we huddle inside our warm home, unable to venture outside to often or for too long, and left to contemplate the count down of days remaining until spring officially arrives the third week of March. Even then, late March and early April are not times of no snow. Quite the opposite is possible when winter cold fronts and warmer southern air masses collide over Iowa to bring potential blizzards, more snow and strong winds.

If our snow bird friends have returned to Iowa by April 1, and a big snowfall event strikes to place big drifts of snow everywhere, that could be a bit of revenge we can purposely attribute to their coming back too soon. Then they will respond with the term … “this weather is for the birds.” They long for the warmth they left behind, if they had only extended their winter home stay by two weeks, or three or four!

The term “it’s for the birds” has a illustrative history. It is related to the processed oats and hay that comes out of the south end of a horse that is facing north. Horse poop is what we call it. Long long ago when horse drawn carriages were the only method of transportation, people riding in the buggy would inevitably have to observe processed hay returning to the ground. Little kids, curious about everything, would ask mom or dad, what that was. A reply of “it’s for the birds” was a likely answer, the most sanitized term they could come up with for horse manure. Copious droppings on the streets were found by house sparrows, pigeons and a host of other winged critters. Inside the now flattened remains of horse food were grains of oats. It was bird seed, bird food, slightly altered, but still nutritious and life sustaining though it may be, it was a revolting situation from the standpoint of people who had to see it, smell it or clean up after it.

Check this out: Jeremiah 16:4 – “They will die of deadly diseases. No one will mourn them. And they will not be buried. Their dead bodies will lie like manure spread on the ground. They will be killed in war or die of starvation. And their corpses will be food for the birds and the wild animals.” Now you know more about the history of the expression “it’s for the birds” than you ever wanted to know. This scribe is inclined to agree that winter in Iowa can be equal to a lot of horse crap.

q q q

Here is a winter biology lesson. What do snakes do in the winter time? They certainly do not migrate to Arizona, Texas or Florida. They go underground to places inside rocky outcroppings, or deep into animal burrows, abandoned wells or caves. Here, below frost line, they can endure winter in a state similar to hibernation. It is not true hibernation with deep sleep and extremely lowered body temperature, minimized heart rate. Snakes are awake though sluggish at best. Many other snakes are likely to group together to accomplish the long wait of winter.

Snake scientists have a name for winter survival. They call it brumation. That is their fancy word for something similar to hibernation but not quite with the same definition of conditions that some small mammals experience. Snakes are ectothermic, taking on a body temperature similar to the environment they are enclosed with. Hibernation is a term derived from the Latin for wintering quarters. It is used for almost any animal that overwinters in a super slow state of existence. It is the slight variations of life forms that may determine if an animal is a true hibernator, just a deep sleeper with occasional activity, or in the case of snakes, brumators.

Snakes spend their winter time in a different state of body condition or readiness. It is a winter dormancy in ectothermic vertebrates that demonstrate physiological changes which are independent of body temperature. They cannot regulate or maintain a body temperature other than what their surroundings impose. Long before winter cold sets in, snakes do not eat. Food sources of insects, worms and other items are long gone. To have undigested foods in their guts after entering a deep chamber well below frost line will cause death. So they live off stored fatty tissues, very slowly of course, and in most cases, those reserves are adequate to bring them through another winter alive. When spring does break, warmer air returns, new insect populations awaken, snakes warm up, crawl out and adjust to a new season. They break dormancy, hibernation or brumation, whatever you want to call it.

q q q

In two short weeks, March 14, the local chapter of DUCKS UNLIMITED will host its annual membership drive and fund raising banquet. The event will be held at the Impala Ballroom located on West Lincoln Way in Marshalltown. Early bird tickets purchased before March 10 will cost $45. That ticket includes an annual membership in DU, the evening dinner and a chance on a framed print or a chance for $100 DU cash. Contact Rich Naughton at 1826 Wiese Garden Road, Marshalltown, for tickets, ticket options for spouses or kids (the Greenwings) or sponsorships. This important conservation program event is in the best positive terms possible, good for the birds.

q q q

The DECORAH EAGLES have two eggs. Perhaps by the time you are reading this story, egg number three may be present. This eagle pair has had three eggs routinely. Two eggs is a normal clutch. We will soon learn if it is two or three. That is good for these birds and the millions of people watching the eagles on their computers world wide. Every continent on earth has observers of the Iowa bald eagles.

q q q

March 11, a Wednesday evening at about 7 p.m., DNR Forester Joe Herring will present a program and information on a tree pest insect. The Emerald Ash Borer has invaded many states and Iowa has many counties with confirmed cases of this tree killing insect. This program is free. Come learn more about ash trees and what proactive things people can do to prevent the spread of the insect, or pre plan replacement trees of different species to take the place of ash trees that will be removed from our landscape. The free program is hosted by the Izaak Walton League. The place is the Conservation Center at the Grimes Farm. I’ll see you there.

—

Garry Brandenburg is a graduate of Iowa State University with BS degree in Fish & Wildlife Biology. He is the retired director of the Marshall County Conservation Board. Contact him at PO Box 96, Albion, IA 50005.