Northern Mockingbird .....Terranea 2890 Southern California_
"Whether in the desert or cypress swamp, on the National Mall or on the terrace at the Getty, mockers have adapted surprisingly well to North American cities and suburbs.
This may be due to our landscaping choices: cities' vegetation tends to be more structurally complex than that of neighboring wildlands, adding to the mockers' potential menu of seeds and berries; our profligate use of water boosts the availability of the insect portion of the birds' diet. Mockers often forage on the ground for fallen seeds and ground insects, though they will hunt from perches as well.
Both male and female mockers take part in aggressive nest defense. Mother and father also share in feeding chores, which don't last long: two weeks or less after hatching, baby mockers are about ready to start venturing from their nests. Add that period to the two weeks generally spent laying and incubating eggs, and that means mockingbird parents are on high alert for around a month each year.
The parents can even solicit help from outsiders. Unrelated adult mockers do often help defend other nests, and a persistent alarm call from a besieged mocker can recruit several other adults to the area to harass the stubborn cat, or whatever.
And then, as spring passes into summer, the babies fledge. The adults' blood pressure declines slightly, though mockers never really become unaggressive. An errant hawk or cat may still get The Treatment. Mated couples may part, or they may start the process over again: a pair can raise two or three broods in a breeding season, and go on monogamously to do the same thing next year."
Chris Clarke kcet.org
Northern Mockingbird .....Terranea 2890 Southern California_
"Whether in the desert or cypress swamp, on the National Mall or on the terrace at the Getty, mockers have adapted surprisingly well to North American cities and suburbs.
This may be due to our landscaping choices: cities' vegetation tends to be more structurally complex than that of neighboring wildlands, adding to the mockers' potential menu of seeds and berries; our profligate use of water boosts the availability of the insect portion of the birds' diet. Mockers often forage on the ground for fallen seeds and ground insects, though they will hunt from perches as well.
Both male and female mockers take part in aggressive nest defense. Mother and father also share in feeding chores, which don't last long: two weeks or less after hatching, baby mockers are about ready to start venturing from their nests. Add that period to the two weeks generally spent laying and incubating eggs, and that means mockingbird parents are on high alert for around a month each year.
The parents can even solicit help from outsiders. Unrelated adult mockers do often help defend other nests, and a persistent alarm call from a besieged mocker can recruit several other adults to the area to harass the stubborn cat, or whatever.
And then, as spring passes into summer, the babies fledge. The adults' blood pressure declines slightly, though mockers never really become unaggressive. An errant hawk or cat may still get The Treatment. Mated couples may part, or they may start the process over again: a pair can raise two or three broods in a breeding season, and go on monogamously to do the same thing next year."
Chris Clarke kcet.org