FAMILIAR AND FRIENDLY CATBIRDS TAKE TO RAISINS

If you don't know catbirds, you don't know Cape Cod. Anyone who spends more than twenty-four hours on Cape Cod from May to September would find it hard to overlook catbirds. These natty all over dark gray birds with the crisp black cap and orange undertail coverts are in every area on the Cape where there is thick shrubbery and vine tangles. Since dense thickets in deciduous woodlands and in residential realms abound here, so does the gray catbird.

Although first cousin to the melodious mockingbird, a catbird's song is seldom musical. It’s more a jumble of disjointed nasal and squeaky notes that emanate from a concealed perch deep within the confines of its copse. Catbirds often utter a down sliding mewing sound, which may be where they get their name from. On the other hand, perhaps their habit of moving stealthily and catlike through the vegetation was how they were named.

Because catbirds are so often in dense foliage, we know less about their courting behavior than we do about cardinals' or robins'. However, Donald and Lillian Stokes in A Guide to Bird Behavior, Vol. I say courting displays include: "A visual display where the body feathers are greatly fluffed, an auditory display of high, squeaky singing, and prolonged chases within limited areas." You may be alerted to this activity by watching for any continual chases, especially in any situation where there are more than two catbirds.

Catbirds by this time have already completed their first nesting of the season, but they will soon be ready to start a second one. Although their nests are bulky affairs of twigs, grapevines, leaves, weed stems, paper and other man-made materials, it is unlikely that any of us would be likely to see one, since their habitat is so difficult to penetrate. The female does all the incubation of the 3 to 5 eggs, but the male in never far away and guards the nest when the female is off to feed herself.

I am indebted to Jim Stewart of Harwich Port for the following story. I enjoyed it so much that I knew you readers would, too. I've heard from other residents who have also had success getting up close and personal with catbirds, but Jim gave me the most details.

He said that ever since 1975 he has been feeding raisins to catbirds, and before that first summer was over a pair of catbirds “would respond to a whistle and come flying in for a hand-out, often taking raisins off an outstretched hand." In the intervening years the Stewarts have lost trees in their yard, converted their patio into a sunroom, changed their gardens and moved the bird baths, but none of this has affected the catbirds. You can figure that the life expectancy of a catbird to be about five years, so in 28 years there must have been 5 or 6 generations of catbirds, and each has learned the secret of the five-fingered raisin bush!

I particularly liked this anecdote of Jim's. "One time I left some squash vines too long; they were infested with borers. A catbird watched while I started to clean up, and as a test I cut out a borer and tossed it toward the bird. He/she grabbed it and flew off to feed a fledgling, so I spent an hour cutting up vines and extracting borers.

Although secretive, these are endearing birds to have nesting nearby, and if you have some patience and persistence you may be able to entice catbirds to feed currants or raisins right from your hand! I hope Jim's tale will inspire others of you to try your hand at this rewarding pasttime.