Neighborhood Naturalist Fall 2015

neighborhood naturalist CORVALLIS, OREGON — FALL 2015

Fox Sparrow article and illustrations by Don Boucher

photography by Lisa Millbank

T

ry this: go get two quarters. With the palm of your hand slightly cupped, place one quarter firmly in the center. With your other hand, pick up the other quarter and strike the one in your palm sharply. That’s the best simulation of the Fox Sparrow’s call note that I can demonstrate in writing. The call note is important because you’re more likely to hear them well before you can get a glimpse. Fox Sparrows are not the easiest for beginners to notice, but that doesn’t make them any less interesting.

Fall in the Willamette Valley is marked by the sounds of Cackling Geese, soaring Bald Eagles and an influx of Red-tailed Hawks dotting fenceposts along the highways.

Meanwhile, shy Fox Sparrows slip quietly into brushy areas. Birders first notice them in low numbers during September, and by November, they’re common. They remain throughout the winter and early spring, leaving for their breeding grounds by early May.

be a good winter home for a discriminating Fox Sparrow.

Open-canopy forests with small meadows may have Fox Sparrows, but open oak savannas won’t do. But wherever the oak savanna fades into a forest of oaks or other trees, there’s usually a line of brush that’s just perfect for Fox Sparrows.

Some suburban neighborhoods can resemble the natural habitat with a stepped habitat of trees, shrubs and lawns.

Estates with tidy landscaping are less desirable because Fox Sparrows need hidden places around shrubs where there’s lots of loose dirt, forest duff or leaf litter. Those with Fox Sparrow-approved yards may notice them eating bird seed, especially millet. Like other sparrows, they’ll spend more time on the ground or on platform feeders, rather than perched on a tube feeder with the finches.

Within their preferred habitat, Fox Sparrows usually aren’t as abundant as some other thicket birds. They’re While nearly every brushy spot in the Willamette solitary, and seem to need a little more space between Valley has a Song Sparrow or pair of Spotted Towhees, Fox others of their kind. A Fox Sparrow prefers to remain in Sparrows are more particular. They need a tiered habitat its home thicket, and if out in the open, it will stay within with open areas, brush and trees in close proximity. A a few yards of nearby cover. Where food is abundant, it dense blackberry thicket where a field meets a patch of may associate loosely with its neighbors, such as Song forest would do nicely. A city park with a large lawn that’s Sparrows, Golden-crowned Sparrows, Spotted Towhees adjacent to the trees and dense brush by the river would also and Dark-eyed Juncos.

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Four Fox Sparrows Sooty Fox Sparrow This is the typical Fox Sparrow of the Willamette Valley. It winters in western Washington, Oregon and California. It breeds along the Pacific Coast from the Olympic Peninsula to Alaska.

When I was a beginning birder, the sparrow pages in the field guide were filled with homogenous-looking brown, streaky birds. After familiarizing myself with the common and similar-looking Song Sparrow, I began to pick out the Fox Sparrow more readily. My appreciation for the Fox Sparrow has been refined, and now I can see how it is subtly handsome. Males and females are indistinguishable, but the species varies in appearance throughout North America. In the Willamette Valley, we encounter the chocolate-brown variety, also called the Sooty Fox Sparrow. The species is named for the Red Fox Sparrow, which doesn’t occur in Oregon. It’s a couple of shades lighter overall, and has rusty-red markings reminiscent of the color of a Red Fox. Fox Sparrows scratch at loose dirt, forest duff and leaves for similar reasons that chickens do, to uncover seeds and tiny soil critters. Unlike chickens, they scratch with both feet in unison, sometimes vigorously flinging leaves. As sparrows go, they have large feet and long claws, giving them an edge at scratching for their food. Many sparrows scratch here and there as they move along, but Fox Sparrows will concentrate on one spot for many minutes. I’ve watched a Fox Sparrow dig until its legs disappeared into a tiny crater. Take a close look at the spots where you’ve seen Fox Sparrows scratching, you might see their “foxholes.”

Red Fox Sparrow Very rare in Oregon. Winters east of the Rockies and breeds in Northern Canada and Central Alaska.

Slate-colored Fox Sparrow Uncommon in the Willamette Valley in winter, but common in the Rogue Valley and in California. Breeds in Central Oregon and the Rockies.

Thick-billed Fox Sparrow Winters in California. Breeds in the Oregon Cascades, Central Oregon and Siskiyous.

Genetic research suggests these are separate species, but more study is needed. Someday, maybe field guides will have three new sparrows for birders to check off their list? For now, the Fox Sparrow is one species that appears from coast to coast.

Notice the large feet and long claws on this Fox Sparrow. They are specially adapted for scratching for their food.

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Fox Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Our largest brown sparrow. It’s about 20 percent heavier than the Song Sparrow. The head is uniquely solid dark gray-brown and rusty-brown, without obvious striping. The lower bill is yellow.

At a glance, the Song Sparrow of Western Oregon is dark enough to be confused with the Fox Sparrow. The head and face have noticeable gray and brown stripes and the bill is gray.

The markings on the breast take the form of neat little chevrons.

The streaks form a broad cluster in the center. It has a thin, white eye ring (see inset) similar to the Hermit Thrush but much more prominent than the Song Sparrow.

The markings on the breast are streaks. They are loosely arranged and converge to a small spot at the center.

The Fox Sparrow has a red-brown rump and tail. Under the tail, the pale feathers are marked with tidy brown points (see inset).

Hermit Thrush

Strangely, the unrelated Hermit Thrush is a Fox Sparrow lookalike. Although it’s larger and isn’t shaped like a sparrow, it has a very similar color pattern to the Fox Sparrow.

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Although they prefer to stay hidden, they’re not hard to find once you’re familiar with the “striking quarters” sound. They’ll usually make this call, out of some degree of agitation, as you approach their thicket. Two other sparrows sound similar, the Dark-eyed Junco and Lincoln’s Sparrow, whose calls are higher-pitched and less robust. To get an idea of the difference, go get a couple of dimes and repeat the same coin-striking exercise. While the Fox Sparrow is usually compared to the Song Sparrow by appearance, they don’t sound alike. The Song Sparrow call is a raspy timp!

We don’t usually get to hear Fox Sparrows sing.

Occasionally, on a warm and sunny winter morning, they can sing an abbreviated song. In late March or April, singing ramps up. The full song is rich, complex and melodious, similar in quality to some finch songs. By May, however, they leave the Willamette Valley and sing much more often in their summer breeding grounds.

This Fox Sparrow enjoys a frost-softened windfall apple.

Meanwhile, the mother Fox Sparrow is hunting for insects to feed her babies. She notices a Short-tailed Weasel nearby. She has a special tactic to deal with this threat.

She distracts the weasel by landing nearby and feigning a Even if you haven’t seen Fox Sparrows in your yard, you broken wing. Of course, she never lets the weasel get close might try taking a closer look. If your space isn’t suitable enough, and the ruse works to lure the predator away from for them, a nearby park might be a place to look. Patrol the nesting area. the area in search of that call note inside the brush. They’re By late August, the Fox Sparrows are done raising their not altogether secretive. Once you find one by sound, wait nearby for a few moments and you might see it in gaps second brood, and some begin their journey southward. between shrubs. Also, look for them among mixed sparrow By September and October, we receive them here in the flocks composed of juncos, towhees and other sparrows, Willamette Valley. Our cold, rainy or cloudy days are made a little bit more cheerful by a chocolate-colored sparrow in foraging on the ground near the brush. the brush with its smacking-coin like call. ó I’ve given you an idea of where to find Fox Sparrows in the Willamette Valley, but let’s now take an imaginary journey to where they spend the summer. It’s June in coastal Alaska, where fjords are surrounded by forests of Sitka Spruce and Alaska Cedar and white-capped peaks gleam in the distance. It’s place where you might see a grizzly bear or a moose. Along the forest edge, there are low-growing willows and alders. There’s a cup nest in the nearby grass with four nestlings, and a lovely, rich song streams from a willow branch above. This father Fox Sparrow could be the same male that visited your platform feeder last February.

Watch a video and hear the sounds of Fox Sparrows at www.neighborhood-naturalist.com

A Golden-crowned Sparrow lands on a spruce branch at the edge of the Fox Sparrow’s territory and adds his plaintive song to the morning chorus. But Mr. Fox Sparrow will have none of that, and chases him away from his territory. Most male birds only challenge males of their own species during breeding season. It’s a waste of time to chase every bird that enters the territory, especially when they aren’t interested in his mate. But a male Fox Sparrow is more belligerent, and The motion blur of the this photo shows the quick, double-footed will challenge similar species that dare to enter his territory. scratching habit of the Fox Sparrow.

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O

Fly Agaric

pen a mushroom field guide, and you’ll find pages of little brown mushrooms, little white mushrooms, and a baffling array of tan, gray or beige ones that fall somewhere in between. Special chemical testing techniques or microscopy may be required to distinguish some of them, and many of these cryptic mushrooms go by their Latin name alone.

But one mushroom is familiar to almost everyone: the red-capped, white-spotted Fly Agaric. As a kid, I thought that the mushroom of children’s books, kitschy décor, video games and clip art wasn’t even real, just a cartoonish cliché.

I learned later that in reality, the Fly Agaric is just as colorful as the picture-book drawings, but its charming appearance is at odds with its reputation as a poisonous hallucinogen.

Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria) and its relatives form a genus of distinctive mushrooms, including some with extreme toxicity and others that are choice edibles. Amanita includes the Death Cap (A. phalloides), introduced to our area from Europe, and the native Western North American Destroying Angel (A. ocreata), which contain a toxin that causes severe liver and kidney failure. But the genus also contains prized delicacies such as the Western Grisette (A. pachycolea) and the Coccora (A. calyptrata). Fly Agaric is native throughout the Northern Hemisphere, but has been introduced to Africa, South America and Oceania.

Fly Agaric, like the chanterelles, boletes and certain other fungi, forms a symbiotic relationship with trees. A network of fungal filaments surrounds the fine roots of pines, cottonwoods, birches and occasionally other trees.

The plant and fungal partners in an ectomycorrhizal relationship exchange carbohydrates, water, minerals and other nutrients. Because they aid the growth of trees and help them withstand drought, Fly Agaric and the other ectomycorrhizal mushrooms play a profoundly important ecological role.

article and photography

by Lisa Millbank

Since the fungus itself is mostly a diffuse network of tiny threads that interlock with tree roots, the only part we see is the reproductive structure. The sole function of the mushroom is to manufacture and dispense spores. When fall rains commence, it’s the signal for the reproductive period to begin. A mushroom begins as a pinhead-sized knot in the mycelial threads called a primordium. Fly Agarics, and all of the other Amanita species, start off as a little egg-shaped “button.” The developing mushroom is protected by tissue called a universal veil, and the gills are covered by a partial veil while they mature.

As a Fly Agaric grows, the stalk elongates, the cap expands, and both veils break. The universal veil fragments into the little white “warts” on the cap. The partial veil

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Although Fly Agarics throughout the world share the same major characteristics, mycologists have noted several distinct genetic populations. These populations are different enough that, in time, they may be recognized as separate species. Mushrooms can be pure, bright red through orange, yellow, and rarely, white or brown. Each genetic group seems to contain a variety of color forms.

Many of our local Fly Agarics have a beautiful gradient This photo shows the white fungal mycelium of Fly Agaric, growing frowm red to orange. The spots can range from white to with Monterey Pine roots. The ectomycorrhizal relationship benefits pale yellow, and a heavy rainstorm can wash them away, both species. leading to potential identification difficulties. in particular, binds to GABAA and GABAA-rho receptors The Fly Agaric’s common name is often said to come for the major neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric from an old practice of placing pieces of the mushroom in acid. These receptors are present in many regions of the milk, which would attract flies and poison them. Whether brain, and even in the retinas of the eyes. Muscimol this potion actually works is questionable, since a few can cause a strong tranquilizing or sedative effect and a experiments have shown that it doesn’t kill flies (although sensation of delirium or dissociation. Some users report they seem to fly erratically after consuming it). Others pleasant, relaxing or euphoric experiences, while others suggest that the word fly describes hallucinogenic effects endure terrifying, painful or psychologically traumatic of the mushroom, from a time when mental confusion hallucinations. Recreational consumption of Fly Agaric and delirium were thought to be caused by flies entering commonly produces nausea, and large doses may cause the head. low blood pressure, convulsions and a coma-like state. The effects vary greatly from person to person, and different Fly The psychoactive chemicals in Fly Agaric, muscimol Agaric populations may contain different concentrations and ibotenic acid, act on the nervous system by binding of muscimol and ibotenic acid. to receptor sites for certain neurotransmitters. Muscimol, Although most people recover without medical intervention, some are hospitalized. Victims of poisoning are sometimes given inappropriate treatment due to outdated or erroneous medical literature. Some texts claim that Fly Agaric contains significant amounts of muscarine (rather than muscimol), an antidote for which is the drug atropine. Giving atropine for an overdose of muscimol and ibotenic acid is of no benefit, and may worsen the symptoms. Treatment for severe Fly Agaric poisoning mostly involves supportive care until the person has recovered.

The Western Grisette is an edible relative of the Fly Agaric. Note the white, cup-like volva visible at the base of the stalk; the volva of Fly Agaric is concentric, shaggy rings.

Despite its somewhat unpredictable effects, Siberian tribes are known to have used the mushroom in religious ceremonies. Some of the psychoactive chemicals are excreted in the urine of the user, so after consuming Fly Agaric, Siberians would collect their own urine and drink it to “recycle” the compounds. In the case of Fly Agaric, interesting anecdotes like this have led to rampant speculation and wishful thinking by both academics and psychedelic enthusiasts. Because of its use by Siberian shamans, Swedish cultural historian Samuel Ödmann

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photo by Randy Molina, U.S. Forest Service

detaches to expose the spore-bearing gills, forming a skirt-like ring around the upper part of the stalk. The mushroom’s bulbous base has concentric, shaggy rings of universal veil tissue called a volva. In other Amanita species, the volva may be a large, sack-like structure.

A nice crop of Fly Agaric mushrooms is popping up under their ectomycorrhizal partner, an ornamental Blue Spruce in Corvallis

suggested that Viking warriors, or berserkers, used Fly Agaric to induce a trance-like, uncontrollable battle rage– though it’s very unlikely that this mushroom would cause such effects. Some claim that the Fly Agaric is the mystical Soma plant revered in the Rigveda and other ancient Hindu scriptures. And there are even wilder claims that Christianity originated from a Fly Agaric-worshipping cult.

In addition to the long history of recreational and religious use of Fly Agaric, it has occasionally been served on the dinner table. Its use as a food is very uncommon, but when properly prepared, it is apparently safe to consume.

Since ibotenic acid and muscimol are both freely soluble in water, a careful process of boiling the mushroom in large volumes of water and then pouring off the cooking water can detoxify it. In parts of Russia, Japan and Italy, detoxified Fly Agaric has been used as food. This is similar

to the use of American Pokeweed in the southeastern states–a highly toxic plant that is used as a vegetable when properly processed.

Mycologist David Arora and food writer William Rubel feel that the warnings about the edibility of Fly Agaric in most English-language field guides reflect a cultural bias, and according to the North American Mycological Society, there are no well-substantiated accounts of healthy people dying from consuming Fly Agaric in the literature of mushroom toxicology. It’s also likely that reports of fatal poisonings from some of the highly toxic Amanita species have been wrongly attributed to this species. However, the American Association of Poison Control Centers does mention the death of a man who suffered cardiac arrest after he ate at least six dried Fly Agaric caps. Deaths have also been reported from Tanzania, where the mushroom has been introduced recently. While fatal poisoning is very rare, Fly Agaric is still a dangerously toxic mushroom.

Here in North America, most of us grow up with little cultural knowledge of edible wild mushrooms, and therefore must learn from pictures in field guides, without the guidance of experienced mushroom collectors.

Consuming any species of Amanita should only be done with the utmost caution and with full knowledge of all possible look-alike species, since any mistakes or erroneous assumptions could be fatal. The Death Cap and the Destroying Angel both contain amatoxins, which cannot be removed by any known cooking or processing method.

While healthy humans typically recover from ingestion of a few Fly Agaric caps, other animals are affected more severely. Domestic dogs and cats are much more sensitive to the toxins in Fly Agaric. Quite the opposite are squirrels, deer, snails, slugs and fungus gnat larvae, who will all

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The cottony “warts” on the cap are remnants of the universal veil, and a heavy rain can wash them off.

happily munch on a nice Fly Agaric. Seeing another animal eating a mushroom doesn’t mean it’s safe for human consumption.

Although the recreational use of Fly Agaric does pose a much greater risk to users than the psilocybin-containing “magic mushrooms,” the possession and sale of Fly Agaric is actually legal in most states, including Oregon. Its complex

A nineteenth-century botanical illustration by Auguste Faguet shows a cross-sectioned Fly Agaric and the volva’s rings at the base of the stalk.

mycorrhizal relationship with trees prevents it from being grown commercially, and its reputation for causing bad trips and dangerous side effects limits its appeal.

Look for scarlet-capped Fly Agarics under Black Cottonwood, birches, pines and other conifers this fall.

Not only is it easily recognized, it’s a curiously enigmatic mushroom, steeped in folklore and carrying an aura of The gills are pure white and blade-like, and the spores make a white danger. But most of all, isn’t it fun to find something in nature that looks like it leapt out of a children’s book? ó spore print. The partial veil is seen hanging from the stalk.

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