9AM this morning….
1PM… still snowng
A Carolina Chickadee is beyond happy that Cute Husband cleared around the feeders…
And, the best part of all this snow?Getting to spend every moment with my favorite guy….
Snowpocalypse… Snow far… snow good…
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Yesterday 4PM light snow begins…
9AM this morning….
1PM… still snowng
A Carolina Chickadee is beyond happy that Cute Husband cleared around the feeders…
And, the best part of all this snow?
9AM this morning….
1PM… still snowng
A Carolina Chickadee is beyond happy that Cute Husband cleared around the feeders… And, the best part of all this snow?
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Squirrel Chasing a Bird
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
On a cold, gray, rainy day, all the usual small birds were pretty active around the front yard feeders – Chickadees, Titmice, a pair of House Finches, Downy Woodpecker, Brown-headed Nuthatches, Mockingbird, Red-bellied Woodpecker. One Yellow-rumped Warbler made several visits to one of the feeders, which is a little unusual. Cardinals, Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated Sparrows and Mourning Doves fed on the ground.
One strange thing happened. I was inside, stopping to look out a large window on the second floor, and saw a gray squirrel at the base of a tree-trunk jumping around in a strange way, sort of like a cat playing with a mouse, but more clumsily. Suddenly a small bird streaked out, flying away from the squirrel and the squirrel ran after it. Both disappeared from view, and when I went downstairs to see if I could find them, I could not. I did not see what kind of bird it was, but when it flew, it looked like it got away.
It all happened very fast and was over quickly, but it certainly looked as if the squirrel was either trying to catch a bird or they were squabbling over something. After doing a very little research, I learned that squirrels are known to eat small birds sometimes – something I had never known. We have a lot of squirrels here, way too many – in part because we live in an old pecan grove and also have a lot of oaks. So far we’ve managed to prevent them from getting to the bird feeders (except for a new peanut-butter feeder out back – they’ve just figured that one out), but there are always several squirrels around. They’re a nuisance in many ways and I’m sure they compete with birds on the ground for fallen nuts, seeds and fruit from the feeders. But I assume eating birds is not something they do regularly.
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Trapped Golden Eagle
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
On Thursday afternoon I received a call from our local USF&W Office of Law Enforcement requesting assistance recovering an eagle caught in a leg trap outside of Glennallen. After making a few calls to Bird TLC volunteers, no one was available on such short notice, so I decided to take a days vacation and make the trip.
Our USF&W agent was in Fairbanks and would travel down and meet me at the Eureka Lodge. His trip was about 5 hours and mine was about 3. We were to meet with an Alaska State Trooper and recover the bird. Because of our travel time, the local trooper recruited some help from the local Bureau of Land Management agent and they traveled about 8 miles by snowmachine in the -10°f mountain area to recover the bird.
We meet them on the roadside and transferred the bird into my truck for a trip back to Anchorage. It’s right leg still had the trap attached just above the foot. The trap and foot were engulfed in ice, so at that time it was impossible to get the trap off.
In my Durango, the bird had a chance to warm up on the 3 hour trip back. As I got back on the highway I called PET ER and gave them a heads up that we were going to be there around 6PM and will need assistance. Dr. Doty who is their best avian DVM was off that day but decided to come in to assist.
When we arrived we got the bird out of the kennel and immediately stated running cold water over the trap and foot to thaw them out. It took two people to open the trap so I could pull the foot out. The wound was cleaned and x-rays were taken.
The x-rays showed the only bone damage was a broken hallux. The large gash above the foot was sutured closed and antibiotics and pain medication was given. Our main concern for the next few days is if there is blood circulation in the foot.
A grateful thank you to the Alaska State Trooper and BLM agent in Eureka, the USF&W Law Enforcement officer from Anchorage but who traveled down from Fairbanks. Their names I won’t post because this might be a criminal case. Those guys went above and beyond in my opinion. Thanks also to PET ER who’s always a big help and Dr. Doty from breaking away during her off time to help tend to this gorgeous bird. Also, thanks to the kind ladies at the Eureka Lodge who kept me entertained and full of coffee while I waited.
Dr. Doty and I checked in on our golden today. It’s more alert and standing on its ow., but the injured foot is very cold still.
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Robins, Robins
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
This afternoon – cool, partly cloudy, partly sunny and blue-sky – hundreds of American Robins were scattered throughout our neighborhood, as if they had fallen out of the sky like drifting leaves. There was not one large concentrated flock, but many red-breasted, chirping, chucking, cheeping birds foraging in almost every yard, others in treetops and along the roadsides. In some places there were clusters of Robins in the trees making squeaky calls – and a few were singing
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Rusty Blackbird Blitz
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
“A species that was once considered abundant is rapidly disappearing before our eyes.” (eBird)*
Feeding in the grass with some of the Robins were a relatively small flock of Red-winged Blackbirds, and among them, I’m fairly sure there were some Rusty Blackbirds, but I couldn’t ever get close enough to be certain. As I approached, the flock always flushed up and flew a little further away or into the trees. There were several birds with bright yellow eyes that did not seem to be Grackles, so I think they must have been Rusties – and when they flew, they flew together and made rather soft chuck calls, not the harsher calls of a Grackle, and seemed to have the shape of Rusty Blackbirds – well, if I were a more confident observer I would have no doubt. But I just don’t trust myself. So I’m hoping they might be around again tomorrow and maybe I can get a better look. The past few winters a fairly good number of Rusty Blackbirds have been regular visitors here, but this is the first time I’ve seen them this season.
At this time of year, male Rusty Blackbirds are black with rusty speckling, or feathered edges, and striking pale yellow eyes. The rusty speckling, however, is sometimes not easy to see, especially at a distance. They often flock with Grackles or Red-winged Blackbirds, but are smaller than Grackles, with thin bills and long, club-shaped tails – but not as long as the Grackles’ tails. The females are particularly attractive in winter plumage, in muted shades of brown, from rust and cinnamon to grayish-fawn, with a dark streak through the eye and a tawny stripe over the eye.
Right now we’re in the middle of the 2010 Rusty Blackbird Blitz – a two-week period January 30 through February 15, when birdwatchers are encouraged to report observations of Rusty Blackbirds to help compile information about their population numbers and status.
Populations of Rusty Blackbirds have declined dramatically in the past few decades, falling by more than 90 percent. “A species that was once considered to be abundant is rapidly disappearing before our eyes,” says the eBird website. “Your observations can help save this species by arming scientists with critical information about its ecology.”
* For more information about Rusty Blackbirds and how to participate in the Blitz, see the eBird website.
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Big January ends @ 116
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
It’s 9:41pm on January 31. We’re sitting in bed after a long, zany, fulfilling, exhilirating, educational month of birding. We put 450 miles on the car today alone. We got it out of being stuck in the snow at the bottom of a hill at Finzel Swamp in Garret County in western Maryland. (Or rather the tow truck guy did. There’s a lot more to the story, coming to you in a post soon). We ended the birding day, spent with our friend and guide-for-the-day David Yeany, at the courthouse in downtown Cumberland, Maryland, where a Peregrine Falcon flew out of a tree and into the dusk. Species #116 in Maryland in January 2010. What a way to end it!
And so to bed….
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Eastern Towhees in a Thicket – Land for Sale
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
On a cold, gray, dreary, foggy, lightly icy day – like much of the last two weeks in January – four Eastern Towhees rustled in leaf litter on the ground in a tangled thicket of privet and other weedy faded shrubs and vines. Two were males, with dark red eyes and boldly patterned in black, red-orange and white; two females with the same overall pattern, but instead of black, a rich velvet-brown. Now and then one called cher-WINK. They kicked up the litter vigorously, searching for seeds, fruits, insects, spiders and larvae. They don’t much look like sparrows, but are – big, plump, brightly colored sparrows with colorful songs and calls to match. Robust, lively and earthy, they looked warm in the middle of a cold, gray day, glowing like the colors of a welcome fire against the withered background of the deepest part of winter.
The area of thickets where I saw them has become a favorite stopping place for me these last couple of weeks – on the rare occasions when I’ve been home long enough to get outside for a walk. It’s a vacant lot just outside our subdivision, happily neglected, overgrown with weeds and vines and grass, with a large red, white and blue “commercial property for sale” sign planted right in the middle of it. It’s not particularly attractive even when the foliage is green, and right now it looks especially bedraggled – but a lot of birds seem to like it.
White-throated Sparrows and Song Sparrows join Towhees in feeding on the ground, often coming out to the roadside nearby to forage in the grass, and sometimes they sing. Brown Thrashers lurk deep in the tangles giving smack calls loudly. There’s often the chatter of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet as it flits quickly, weaving through the bushes, the fussing of a Carolina Wren, the chatter of a Chickadee, or an Eastern Phoebe quietly stopping by to perch on a branch, wagging its tail. Usually there are at least a few Robins in the trees overhead, and the high, thin calls of a small flock of Cedar Waxwings.
Though Eastern Towhees are quite common in eastern North America, and a familiar bird around many yards, many details of its natural history remain poorly known, according to the species account in Birds of North America. “Because the bird spends much of its time near or on the ground in dense habitats and scrubby growth . . . it is usually difficult to study . . . and deserves much additional study.”*
* Jon S. Greenlaw. 1996. Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.) Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
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As January Ends – A Scarcity of Birds
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
For the last two weeks of January, I was away from home much of the time, so my impressions of bird activity during these days are fragmentary. But whenever I could, I went out for at least one walk during the day, and my general impression has been that this winter we have fewer species of birds and smaller numbers here than in previous winters – except for some of our most common birds, like Chickadees, Titmice, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Mourning Doves, Cardinals and Blue Jays. All of these seem to be doing fine.
Most days I’ve seen Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures soaring, and at least one Red-tailed Hawk, sometimes soaring, but often perched in the trees or flying low along the edge of the woods. So far this winter, however, I have not seen or heard a Red-shouldered Hawk, and this is unusual. Until now, Red-shouldered Hawks have almost always been around, and in previous winters there were many days when I encountered one or two hunting from low perches in trees near the woods.
I have still seen a Cooper’s Hawk several times along a certain stretch of road that runs between yards with a combination of open space and woods.
Most days I run across at least one Yellow-bellied Sapsucker or hear its mewing call, but they are not nearly as common in the neighborhood’s many pecans and other trees as they have been in previous winters. So far we’ve seen very few Goldfinches, no Pine Siskins, and no sign of the large Blackbird flocks of previous winters.
But – to end the month on a less-gloomy note, there’s a handsome pair of Northern Flickers that usually can be found foraging in one large grassy yard with Eastern Bluebirds, Chipping Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos and other small birds. The check calls of Yellow-rumped Warblers can be heard just about everywhere, and one or two small sparkling flocks of Cedar Waxwings are usually around.
A pair of feisty Brown-headed Nuthatches are regular visitors to the feeders in our front yard, along with a pair of Downy Woodpeckers, and a few tiny, exquisite Golden-crowned Kinglets can usually be found in the pines. Carolina Wrens sing glorious songs – too often I overlook them – and also visit the feeders often. Large numbers of Robins are scattered throughout the neighborhood, spread out across yards, perched in treetops, and at end of day, glowing red in the setting sun as they fly over in small groups toward the west.
A Pine Warbler continues to trill its spring-like song outside my office window early in the morning and all around the house, all day, even in the coldest, grayest, dreariest weather.
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Birding the Appalachian Trail…
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
No, we are not out hiking the A.T. in search of bumping up our big January, but we are super proud to be featured in A.T. Journeys, The Magazine of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy this month!
Trail Birds
Text and Photos by Warren and Lisa Strobel
A few years ago, while section-hiking a portion of the Trail through Shenandoah National Park, we met a thru-hiker named Matt (we’ve long forgotten his Trail name) who told us something we’d never forget. “Everybody,” he said, “has to hike their own hike.”
We do hike our own hike.
We have walked every mile (595 Trail miles to date) wearing a pair of binoculars.
We not only hike the Appalachian Trail, we “bird” it.
Being avid birders has given us an opportunity to more deeply appreciate the vital habitat of the A.T. and the lands that surround it, and to reconfirm the importance of preserving and
enhancing the Trail.
enhancing the Trail.
It’s well known to most everyone familiar with the Trail that it provides a critical corridor for both fauna and flora. But the Trail’s importance to the avian life of North (and even South
and Central) America, is hard to overstate.
and Central) America, is hard to overstate.
The Appalachian Mountains are irreplaceable north-south migratory flyways for raptors and
songbirds, and serve as feeding stops and breeding grounds, as well.
songbirds, and serve as feeding stops and breeding grounds, as well.
They are the bird equivalent of interstate highway, fast-food joint, and comfy home all in one….
Read the rest of the story here (and see super cute pictures of Cute Husband in the act of birding AND hiking)
We are particularly proud to be associated with the The Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the work they do to protect a corridor of the East Coast for birds and the habitat they depend on.
An organizaton that is largely supported by hikers, but is well deserving of the support of birders for their work in conservation and education.
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Big January - one week to go
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Princess and I spent the weekend birding like crazed people, trying to use up every minute of our second-to-last weekend in January. We were all over Maryland’s Eastern Shore, putting tons of miles on the new car - it’s a hybrid - and having a good time to boot.
This close-up view of an immature Red-Shouldered (or could it be Cooper’s?) Hawk at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge was just one of many wonderful moments. We had 70+ Common Eiders and a male Harlequin Duck at the Ocean City, MD, inlet; found a Great Horned Owl after we heard it hoot just before dusk on Assateague Island, and had Dunlin and Greater Yellowlegs in the middle of the marsh as the sun went down. Magical. Along the way, we sharpened our bird skills and knowledge even more.
This close-up view of an immature Red-Shouldered (or could it be Cooper’s?) Hawk at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge was just one of many wonderful moments. We had 70+ Common Eiders and a male Harlequin Duck at the Ocean City, MD, inlet; found a Great Horned Owl after we heard it hoot just before dusk on Assateague Island, and had Dunlin and Greater Yellowlegs in the middle of the marsh as the sun went down. Magical. Along the way, we sharpened our bird skills and knowledge even more.
We have crushed our goal of seeing 100 species in Maryland in January - we are at 106, unofficially - and are not done yet. Stay tuned.
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We have Northern Goshawks
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
The above immature Northern Goshawk came to us a couple weeks ago with a injured left wing. The bones at the wing tip are fractured. It’s not known right now if it will be releasable or not. The only thing we could do was immobilize the wing and let it heal.
If you noticed its crop it’s getting plenty of quail. If you look at its expression on its face I don’t think it minds.
This immature Northern Goshawk came in from PET ER over the weekend. It was found on the ground in Wasilla and the people brought it in for care. It caused quite a ruckus when it escaped from the technician that was checking it in. It got into the cat room, but fortunately the cat room was unoccupied.
It’s in for observation. We believe it just knocked itself out flying into something. The tail guards are put on all goshawks, falcons, etc. to protect their tail feathers while in captivity until they are released. These guys use their tails like a rudder and make some really sharp turns with them. Damage to their tail feathers would delay their release until they molted.
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Mixed Feeding Flock, #8
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Time for BirdCouple’s (very) occasional round-up of interesting bird and birding news.
* First, word comes via Birding World magazine and Birdchick blog that an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker has been seen and photographed in Texas. The photos have not been released yet, so we are going to reserve judgement for now. Hope it’s true!
* The Large-Billed Reed Warbler, one of the world’s rarest birds, is back in the news again. This is one of our favorite rare-bird stories. First identified in India in 1867, it was almost 140 years before the bird was found again, this time in Thailand. We’ve posted about this bird several times in the past, here and here.
Now comes word from the Wildlife Conservation Society that a researcher has identified the Large-Billed Reed Warbler’s breeding grounds, or at least one of them, in the Pamir Mountains of Afghanistan of all places. The researcher, Robert Timmins, caught and released 20 - 20!! - of the birds. Wonders never cease.
* The Philadelphia Inquirer has an interesting article about troubles with endangered species lists, and whether they can do more harm than good. Nice pictures, although some of the birds are incorrectly identified in the website’s photo gallery.
* Finally, friend Paul Baicich passed on this diagram of the new bird topography. We have no idea what it means, but it looks cool:
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Big January update - 2/3rds of the way there
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Well, January will be 2/3rds over tomorrow. Where are we? That is, where are we in our crazy, zany quest to see as many birds as possible in the first month of the year?
This is where we are: We’ve learned a heck of a lot more about birds and nature in the last 20 days, that’s where we are. When you are trying to eke out EVERY bird you can find in the middle of the mid-Atlantic winter, your senses are at full alert. You look at every gull, every sparrow, every raptor carefully. You listen just a little more intently to every bird song and call. You watch the weather and guage the habitat. You’re out in the field more often. You go to old haunts, like Lake Artemesia in Greenbelt, Maryland, and discover, to your joy, that there’s been a new birding trail, called the Luther Goldman Birding Trail, designated in your absence. You’re happy even if you spent an hour there and didn’t add a single bird to your 2010 list.
So … let’s do the numbers. Like many of our blogging friends and colleagues, such as Kathie at Sycamore Canyon, and Larry at Brownstone Birding Blog, we are doing this Big January thing, trying to see as many species of birds in 31 days as possible. Rough goal is 100, although we’d like a lot more than that. Some days they come in bunches, others in 1s and 2s. Some days they don’t cooperate at all.
As of Jan 19 at 10:25pm, we have 81 species for our home state of Maryland, and, including the great state of West Virginia and the District of Columbia, 83. We’ve had some lovely surprises, and a few crazy “misses,” common birds we have not laid eyes (or ears) on yet. Stay tuned. We’re not half done yet…
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Of Eagles and Waxwings
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
BE 10-003 came in late Saturday night from Kodiak. It was found with a fox leg trap attached to its left leg. I picked it up at Era Alaska with some fantastic help from their employee’s. I took it to PET ER because it’s hard to handle an eagle like this on your own and I didn’t want to stir anyone out of their home knowing it would be a late nighter.Dr. Doty had stayed late to help out. She and her staff are big supporters of Bird TLC. We took x-rays and confirmed it was broke. It’s a clean break. The plan was to stabilize it for the night and make plans tomorrow on when to operate. I took it to Bird TLC and bedded it down.
Dr. Riddle, one of Bird TLC volunteer D.V.M.’s, came in early Monday morning to check 003 out and maybe operate. At that time the foot was cold and there is no reaction to the pinch. He stabilized it and returned it to his mew. We’ll check on it in a couple days. Hopefully we have something better to report.
It’s the Bohemian Waxwing season. They’re out flocking around, running into things and sometimes eating too many fermented berries. We have several visiting with us for a little while.[?]
It is kinda hard to bird if you keep falling down….
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Cute Husband and I finally found a weekend that Mitch and Adam could escape with us for a quick ski get-away. 
Timberline in West Virginia was the destination and Warren and I decided to try cross-country skiing (with our bins in a backpack) on the first day…. perhaps we could add a bird or two to add to our January as we checked out the lovely scenery.
The boys only wanted something super scary, super fast and all downhill. So, they headed up the mountain with their snowboards.
We decided to take a lesson to ensure we were all good with sliding along a somewhat flat surface with long attachments on our feet.
Our instructor was quite wonderful and he even took us up on the lift so that we could test our skills going down a slippery slope between trees with long attachments on our feet.
After falling approximately 50 times (where he would kindly lift me off the ground each time because the long attachments on my feet were not helpful when one needs to get vertical again) he proclaimed us experts.
Our instructor also explained that cross-country skis were easier to use on flat ground and maybe we should look for some of that.
Ok, that sounded good.
Does my smile look fake?
I’m hiding the pain.
Off we went in search of flat land and birds.
We did pish up some Black Capped Chickadees which were a wonderful addition to our year list…
I discovered that you can be standing in one place, not moving at all, with long attachments on your feet and quickly drop right smack on the ground.
Snow is slippery with long attachments on your feet.
So, the next morning, we decided to ditch the bins and try our hand at down hill skiing.
He is very cute, is he not?
This is the view from the top of the mountain that my thoughtful husband took for me. 
After crashing and burning getting off lift at the first green trail and when complete and utter fear took over when I saw a hill larger than the bunny slope, I surrendered and watched my gents glide down the mountain from a cozy viewing area at the bottom.
I’m still in pain.
But, beyond happy to spend time with my three favorite guys.
So, the final birds of the weekend?
A Ravens win that, unfortunately, did not replay last night….
A Ravens win that, unfortunately, did not replay last night….[?]
Birdsong on a Winter Morning – Pine Warbler and Others
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
“The calendar may tell me that the toughest days of winter are yet to come, but I know in my heart that on December 21 it is already spring. I have heard it in the air. I have heard it in the lusty singing of nuthatches and titmice and chickadees. The woodpeckers are drumming, female jays and crows rattling. In the grand cycle through the seasons, these birds know what time it is.” (Donald Kroodsma, Birdsong by the Seasons)*
It wasn’t on the winter solstice, but near the end of the first week in January when I heard the first Pine Warbler sing – a rich, musical trill like a breath of spring air on a very cold, icy, clear mid-winter morning. That was several days ago, and since then they’ve been singing every day. As I work in my office, one sings just outside my window, and I’ve also heard their songs in other parts of the neighborhood. A pair has been coming to the feeders in our front yard, a splash of warm yellow among the more somber-colored Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, Chickadees, Titmice, Downy Woodpeckers, Brown-headed Nuthatches and Chipping Sparrows.
This morning – still cold enough for ice in the bird baths, but sunny and warming up fast, with a bright blue sky – several other birds were also singing, reminding me of Kroodsma’s words and of his chapter, “The Winter Solstice Is the First Day of Spring.” Two Carolina Wrens sang back and forth, matching each other’s songs and switching from one to another, a Tufted Titmouse sang peter-peter-peter, a Carolina Chickadee fee-bee, fee-bay, an Eastern Towhee drink-your-tea, an Eastern Bluebird warbled and a House Finch whistled its cheery song. A Red-bellied Woodpecker gave its spring-like quurrr call over and over. Northern Cardinals also began to sing in the first week of January, but this morning they were quiet, at least while I was listening.
Later in the morning two Brown-headed Cowbirds sat in the top branches of a bare tree along the edge of the road, giving a surprisingly nice sort of dry, feathery, trilled call together as they flew. I’ve been watching and hoping for Blackbirds, but the Cowbirds weren’t exactly what I had in mind. There’s still no sign of larger flocks with Red-winged and Rusty Blackbirds that we’ve had in previous winters. The big open grassy yards where they used to spread out every day seem empty this year, and very quiet.
Two Red-tailed Hawks perched together on the top of a utility pole in a power cut, facing each other and looking content to sit together and soak up some sun. After a few minutes one dropped down from the pole and spread its wings, gliding out and circling up with ease and calling as it got higher, as if urging the other to come along.
Two Golden-crowned Kinglets called ti-ti-ti from some pines, and one came down low enough to see for several minutes, showing a bright gold-orange crown. Some years there are more Golden-crowned Kinglets here than others, and this year there seem to be fewer, so it feels like a good day when I can catch a glimpse of one or hear their calls.
Brown Thrashers seemed to be more active than they have been for a while. Several in the old field were exchanging loud smack calls, and while I was walking past the field three came out into the tops of bushes to call and look around. I don’t know if I just happened to come by at a time when they were out, or if they, too, are beginning to feel like spring.
*Donald Kroodsma, Birdsong by the Seasons, A Year of Listening to Birds 2009, page 275.
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Killdeer - An Unusual Visitor
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
Late this afternoon the weather was cool and sunny, with a clear blue sky and high wind-swept white cirrus clouds, with temperature in the 50s, much warmer than the past 10 days or so, almost balmy.
The most surprising sighting of the day was a Killdeer – the first time I’ve ever seen one in our neighborhood. It was foraging in short, dry grass near the driveway of a home and I watched it for several minutes, just walking around. But I wasn’t the first one to see it. A couple of days ago, a neighbor had stopped me to ask about a bird he had seen and could not identify – he described it well, as a good-size bird that flew and landed in a distinctive way, mostly brown, with a long dark bill and a white ring around its neck. I couldn’t figure it out at the time since I’d never seen one here, but after I got home, decided from his description that it must have been a Killdeer – and sure enough, today I saw it not far from his house.
The Killdeer is an upland plover that’s fairly common on farmland and open grassy fields. We often see them – and hear their loud, peeping calls – in parks and ball fields. I’ve even found their eggs, in a shallow gravel nest, laid right on the edge of a walking trail in one park. But to see one here in our neighborhood is new. It’s a handsome bird, with rather long legs, white markings on the face, brown back, white throat and belly, and what looks like a white ring around its neck is created by black bands around the upper breast.
Thanks to my neighbor for a very interesting sighting!
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Cindy checks off on Hal the bald eagle
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
Cindy checked off on Hal the bald eagle on January 7. Hal has been with Bird TLC since 1989. He’s a victim of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Disaster. Cindy is our Director of Avian Care and Education. I know both will do some awesome presentations together.
This picture was taken during Cindy and Hal’s dry run presentation. I wasn’t able to attend the actual check off presentation due to Red going on a vacation.
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He’s back
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
With the help of local falconer Eric Fontaine, Red is back at home at Bird TLC in his mew. Red had escaped almost a week ago, and it’s been a hand full trying to get him back. The first few days we spent chasing sightings and the we found what he was calling his new home. We were able to stake it out, but Red was good at robing our traps. Eric helped out with his equipment and experience and that’s what it took.
Thanks to Channel 2 News for broadcasting our alert, PET ER for screening all sightings and forwarding them on, all of the volunteers who joined in the search, Diane who spotted him in his new home, everyone who called and especially Eric.
Welcome home RED!
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How about a transfussion for lunch?
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
I was supposed to take my friend Britt to lunch at the Greek Corner. With all of the holiday stuff, she was sick for a bit and just things getting in the way, we hadn’t done much together. Right before lunch time I got a call from Valarie at the TLC office about an eagle coming in from Kodiak. Cindy has been swamped trying to catch Red, getting EOY reports done and trying to get all things squared away so she could leave town for a week. Sure, I can go get it and bring it back to TLC and drop it off and head out to lunch. Fortunately I picked Britt up before the eagle.
We get to the clinic and Cindy starts the exam right away. The bird looks physically fine but is very pale and its mewts are discolored. Toxic reaction is suspected and is tube feed to neutralize whatever it might have taken in. Blood is taken and it’s found to be extremely anemic. A transfusion is lined up.
Did I mention Britt is taking the photo’s? It don’t look like we’re going to make it to the Greek Corner today. Thanks for a friend who understands and actually gets to join in.
Blood is taken from an immature in rehab. It wasn’t a happy participant. Britt is then recruited to help out because we’ve run out of hands. The transfusion is given to our new patient. He’s given a clean mew, water and lunch. He’s being monitored and blood will be taken and tested again in a few days to see if what was going on is still going on.
Time is up. I need to get back to my real job and Britt has an appointment to go to. That was lunch I guess. Hopefully when we get to reschedule, we get to go to the Greek Corner.
For more pictures of our lunch, check out Britts website.
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Big January update - 60 species
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Birdcouple is doing a Big January, a bit of fun that we are sharing with several of our fellow bloggers, including Kim, The Curious Birder; and Larry at the Brownstone Birding Blog. We’re also in a friendly - very friendly - competition with our good friend Ross Geredien, he of the Good Migrations.
Big January means trying to see as many different species as you can in the first, cold, snowy month of the year. On one level, it’s a bit silly (especially to non-birders), we realize. But it’s also a lot of fun, and forces us to get outside during a time of year when the inclination is to stay indoors and read or (worse) watch TV.
So where are we? With a third of the month gone, it’s time to report! Lisa saw a Brown-Headed Cowbird in Annapolis today, our 60th bird species of 2010. Exlcuding birds seen out-of-state (an Orange-Crowned Warbler in DC and Black-Capped Chickadee in West Virginia), we are at 58. That’s okay, but we clearly have to step it up just a bit to reach our goal of 100 by January 31. And of course, as the common birds are ticked off, it does get progressively harder. Ross G is miles ahead of us.
Onward and upward! Watch out winter birds! Watch out Ross!
We’ll report back on the weekend…
W & L
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Ice, Ice, Baby!
Submitted by BrdPics Blog
I had the privilege of visiting friends Chris Wood and Jessie Barry in their Upstate NY haunts over my winter break. Our exploits crossed the border into Canada as well, partly for the birding there (5-figure gulls in Niagra and a Barnacle Goose in Grimsby, for example.) The other reason is that the closest American Airlines could get me to my intended destination (Rochester, NY) within 3 days of my departure from Denver was Toronto…
Anyway, we had the good fortune to base ourselves at Jessie’s parents’ house on the south shore of Lake Ontario for a couple of days (Thanks, Jim & Liz!!) They have the ultimate lake-watching setup- picture windows facing the lake and an awesome rail-mounted, top-down scope mount right at the window. A strong arctic cold front blasted in on our first night, and we did some serious pajama birding for a while with the comforts of hot coffee and a hot fireplace nearby. A decent lake-watch list developed including scads of Long-tailed Ducks, White-winged Scoters, and Red-breasted Mergansers flying by in adjustment to the new weather conditions.
Pajama birding at its finest…
Winter birding on Lake Ontario: Only serious, well-dressed birders need apply.
Fantasmagorical ice at Charlotte Lighthouse (Mouth of Genesee River.) A miracle sunbeam hit the lighthouse for a minute or two- the picture doesn’t begin to do it justice…
More wicked ice at the Irondequoit light
Pajama birding at its finest…Eventually, however, we sallied out into the gnarly weather (temps in the low teens and winds in the high 20s and 30s.) More good birds were found, but to me some of the most impressive sights were the ice formations that were plastered on the breakwaters and navigation lights at the mouths of rivers.
Winter birding on Lake Ontario: Only serious, well-dressed birders need apply.
Fantasmagorical ice at Charlotte Lighthouse (Mouth of Genesee River.) A miracle sunbeam hit the lighthouse for a minute or two- the picture doesn’t begin to do it justice…
More wicked ice at the Irondequoit light
Oh, and there were birds around, too. I’m usually lucky to see a single Long-tailed Duck each year in Colorado, so I was pretty geeked to see thousands of them on the lake. The light was rough and many of the birds were distant and wary, but I still vastly improved my photo stock of this species.
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Red is on the loose
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
by Channel 2 News staff
Monday, January 11, 2010
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — There have been lots of calls and lots of sightings, but Red is still on the loose.
The red tailed hawk escaped Thursday night from the Bird Treatment and Learning Center. Red is an education bird and while he can fly, he can’t take care of himself in the wild.
There have been multiple sightings around town of a hawk with leather straps across his ankles.
He appears to be spending most of his time in trees along the New Seward Highway near the Dimond exit, but so far no one’s been able to catch him.
If you see Red, contact the Pet Emergency Center at 274-5636 and they will contact staff at Bird TLC.
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CBC Radio Feature
Submitted by BrdPics Blog
There’s a nice feature from Boulder’s independent radio KGNU about the Boulder CBC- a radio journalist came with my group in the early morning and then recorded some of the fun at the compilation dinner. Thanks to the Boulder County Nature Association for hosting the MP3 file!
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Birding Community E-Bulletin
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
The first issue of the Birding Community E-Bulletin for 2010 is out, and we want to draw BC fans’ attention to this wonderful, and under-appreciated report.
This month’s issue, available here, has interesting news about top North American rarities, including Bare-Throated Tiger Heron, Pink-Footed Goose and Ivory Gull. But (as the old TV commercial used to say), wait, There’s More!
Other articles cover the 20th anniversary of Partners in Flight; worrisome news about two at-risk bird species in Canada; a nod to a VERY important book about bird-healthy gardens and invasive plants, entitled Bringing Nature Home (Lisa blogged about this book in November and Warren is reading it right now); and other good stuff about IBAs, Red Knots and bird-friendly coffee. Most importantly, a reminder that in 2010, we should be thinking not only about the birds we see and add to our various lists, but what we are doing for them.
The E-Bulletin is written by our good friend Paul Baicich and colleague Wayne Petersen, director of Mass Audubon’s IBA program. Good, good stuff.
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