Lapland longspurs seen during Maine cold spell Species often disoriented by snow, fog, isolated lights

At least there’s one redeeming quality to sub-zero mid-January – quite a few interesting winter birds have been sighted recently. In particular, a bird with the very exotic-sounding name of Lapland longspur.

The Lapland longspur is actually part of a family dubbed by ornithologists as “new world sparrows,” which includes the more familiar snow-bunting. The “Lapland” part of its name is a geographic reference to northern Europe above the Arctic Circle (where this bird is also found, and known there as the “Lapland bunting”). The “longspur” refers to the elongated claw on this bird’s rear toe.

As indicated, this bird’s breeding range also encompasses arctic regions in North America. During the winter, these birds move south and huge flocks – numbering in the millions – can be found on the Great Plains. However, they also frequent other regions of the United States. A few are reported every year in Maine, according to Judy Walker, staff naturalist at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm in Falmouth.

Judy Markowsky, director of Maine Audubon’s Fields Pond Nature Center in Holden, sighted two Lapland longspurs recently near Searsport. Her identification included the use of several clues, as she recounts below:

“From my moving car I could only see its silhouette, which looked nothing like the usual winter wire-sitters. Its head was a little hunched down, like a bluebird, but it looked smaller, sparrow-sized. It had a long, slightly forked tail, not a long rounded tail like a song sparrow. Most birds I can ID by their silhouettes, but not this one.”

Pulling over, Markowsky then studied the birds through her binoculars.

“It had buffy sides of its head and a dark, diffuse band across its chest. I suspected it was a Lapland longspur, and two bird books and two birders confirmed it!”

Markowsky observed the longspurs foraging for weed seeds on the roadside; during winter, seeds are a principal part of their diet.

This food source is also a potential danger, however; waste grain in agricultural fields treated with pesticides has caused mortalities in Lapland longspurs, according to the “Birds of North America” species account.

Another cause of mortality, according to the BNA, occurs when the birds migrate at night during snowy or foggy conditions. A major kill occurred Jan. 22-23, 1998, when up to 10,000 longspurs died in the vicinity of three communications towers and a lighted natural gas pumping station north of Syracuse, Kan. The BNA states that poor weather conditions and isolated lights seem to disorient these birds; many are killed upon impact with human-made structures, while others simply fly into the ground or frozen lake surfaces.

Although this bird is abundant and not considered threatened in North America, I don’t believe we can afford to ignore the above scenario. Ornithologists have documented that tall, lighted structures are sources of mortality for many other birds as well as the Lapland longspur.

NEWS bird columnist Chris Corio can be reached at bdnsports@bangordailynews.net