My son made an adorable bird feeder in school the other day. It's a yellow pipe cleaner with fruit loops laced onto it. As soon as he got home, we hung the feeder in the tree outside. I was hoping at least one bird would come and taste it, but no such luck yet. And today, we've got such wet weather, I don't think there will be much left of his feeder by day's end.
However, looking out the window this morning with him, we saw some birds that I couldn't immediately identify. So, I got out my handy bird book. They looked like some sort of finch, but I wasn't sure. I was very surprised to learn that they were American Goldfinches, because they looked so different from what I was used to. In the summertime, they have bright yellow feathers. However, in winter, they have drab colored feathers. How interesting!
Here is some interesting information about the American Goldfinch from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Website.
The American Goldfinch changes from winter plumage to breeding plumage by a complete molt of its body feathers. It is the only member of its family to have this second molt in the spring; all the other species have just one molt each year in the fall.
The American Goldfinch is one of the latest nesting birds. It usually does not start until late June or early July, when most other songbirds are finishing with breeding. The late timing may be related to the availability of suitable nesting materials and seeds for feeding young.
The American Goldfinch is gregarious throughout the year. In winter it is found almost exclusively in flocks. In the breeding season it feeds in small groups. Whether it maintains breeding territories is debatable.
The American Goldfinch is mostly monogamous, but a number of females switch mates after producing a first brood. The first male takes care of the fledglings while the female goes off to start another brood with a different male.
American Goldfinch information and pictures accessed 1/28/09 from Cornell Lab of Ornithology's website, All About Birds, http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/American_Goldfinch.html
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1 comment:
Pecs is good to use my son is speech impaired and although he is quite verbal now it took him a while to get there. His teacher at school used to make me a lot of picture schedules and social stories with whats called boardmaker they have so many options and even though his school was very willing to continue providing me with the velcro and picture's I figured it would be good to have all my boys to participate with it, so I decided to purchase it for home.
Even though it's a bit high it has been very useful in providing structure which helps cut out so much anxiety. Look up the makers on the website it's called Mayer Johnson and mention to the teacher that you would like more things to help with at home as well. If he has an IEP in place I know they should be very helpful.
Look into support services like in home support aides or respite as well, big help. Hang in there!
Naye
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