Archive for January, 2009
« Previous EntriesA Cormorant Rant
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
My Mom sent Cute Husband and I these lovely pictures of some Double-crested Cormorants that have been hanging near my parent’s home.
My Dad used to duck hunt (not for Cormorants… too fishy tasting) and is still very much aware of the waterfowl comings and goings near their home.
But, my Mom [...]
Winter White
Submitted by BrdPics Blog
A couple of days ago I found a pleasant phone message waiting for me on my cell after work- a gentleman who had earlier attended a field trip that I co-led had found a swan on a private lake in rural Weld County, Colorado and would I like to go check it [...]
Chipping Sparrows and Scheming Dark-eyed Juncos
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
At 7:45 this morning, it was cold, clear and windy, with a silky blue sky and traces of high white clouds, all that were left of the dark clouds and rain of the past few days. A thin crust of ice topped the birdbaths. Three Chipping Sparrows sat on the block [...]
Mixed Feeding Flock, #1
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Today, we’re starting a new feature here at Birdcouple. There are many times when we have bits and pieces of bird- and birding- and nature- and environment- and wildlife- related news that we want to share with our visitors, bits and pieces that don’t necessarily add up to a whole.
They’re [...]
Late January – The Usual Suspects
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
This morning began at first light with a plain orange glow that rose and spread quietly over the eastern sky, beneath a fold of steel-gray clouds, and with the songs of a Pine Warbler, a Carolina Chickadee and a Carolina Wren, and the spring-like quurrrr of a Red-bellied Woodpecker.
Many of the [...]
Mt. Redoubt adviseory
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
Good Morning,
Just a quick update for everyone, Mt. Redoubt is rumbling again, as I’m sure you have heard. So now seemed like a good time to go over the best way to deal with volcanic ash & birds.
Clinic:
If we have the space, we will bring the outdoor birds inside until the [...]
Siskin Winter
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
Pine Siskins continue to visit the two feeders on our back deck off and on all day every day. They are aggressive little birds, and only a few Goldfinches succeed in getting to the feeders now and then. Early in the mornings, several Siskins swarm both of the feeders, and there’s [...]
Nesting Bald Eagles
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Did a nice spot of birding Sunday afternoon with Shawn Beach over at Shawn and Anne’s spread near the Chesapeake Bay. They have an incredibly lovely home and farm, with dogs, chickens, goats and more. Are we jealous? Hmmm… maybe just a tad.
Shawn said he had seen three bald eagles [...]
Macro Monday
Submitted by Craigs Birds Blog
Rating 3.00 out of 5
[?]
Malignant Missile
Submitted by BrdPics Blog
Bill of the Birds uses a name I really like for the Sharp-shinned Hawks that make winter appearances in his yard- Death Rockets. So hoping that BT3 will consider this imitation to be the sincerest form of flattery, I’d like to talk about the Malignant Missile that visited my yard yesterday- a [...]
John Heinz NWR
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
As Lisa blogged a few days ago, we had a wonderful time last weekend giving a talk and meeting folks at Terrain at Styer’s, a unique home and garden store just outside Philadelphia.
Afterward, we escaped for a couple of hours of chilly birding and walking at John Heinz National Wildlife [...]
Hawaii goes digital early … for the birds
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
… and some other news.
As many of our readers may know, next month (Feb. 17, to be precise), the United States is supposed to convert entirely to digital TV, dropping analog signals that go through the air, and with them those “rabbit ears” that used to stick out of the [...]
Now Broadcasting
Submitted by BrdPics Blog
I recently recorded an interview about the Boulder Christmas Bird Count for the Dot-Org feature on KGNU 88.5 FM, an independent radio station broadcasting from Boulder, Colorado. The spot ran last Thursday, and the host, Nikki Kayser, was nice enough to send me a copy- click here if you’d like to listen. [...]
..and More Back Yard Birds
Submitted by Craigs Birds Blog
We’ve been fortunate to have a good supply of woodpeckers in our yard over the last few years including regular visits from Pileated and even a visit from the Red-headed Woodpecker. The Downy Woodpecker is also a regular at our suet feeder and deserves some recognition for being a part of [...]
Owl Native To Arctic Spotted In Tennesse
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
Snowy Owl Seen Around Spring Hill In December
By Reported by Alan Frio
WSMV-TV
updated 10:17 a.m. HT, Wed., Jan. 21, 2009
SPRING HILL, Tenn. - The thousands of acres that surround the General Motors plant in Spring Hill have become home to a bird not native to Tennessee.
A snowy owl, which is more commonly [...]
More Back Yard Birds
Submitted by Craigs Birds Blog
Interestingly enough, I realized the other day that I really didn’t have a decent shot of a Black-capped Chickadee. These birds are always in our yard and at the feeders. They are dependable that way and I appreciate that.
Black-capped Chickadee:
Posted by Craig at 7:54 AM 0 comments [...]
Gardens + Birding = Great Event!
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Find an over-the-top garden center.
No…. garden center does not even begin to describe Terrain at Styers….
Ok, find an incredibly luxe, yet peaceful nursery, with a creative and imaginative use of retail space that has gorgeous accessories for the home and garden and add in an interest in birds and you [...]
Back Yard Birds
Submitted by Craigs Birds Blog
It was such a nice day out today compared to the recent weather we have had I decided to just sit in the backyard and take a few shots of the birds in my yard and on my feeders. I had the “usuals” that visit my feeders which are Downy’s, Chickadees, [...]
Thoughts for Inauguration Day
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
As if we needed more proof that birds have long permeated our culture and society: the word inauguration is actually related to birds.
Inauguration comes from the word “augur.” Augurs were priests in ancient Rome who were consulted when any important decision had to be made–like going to war, signing a [...]
Macro Monday
Submitted by Craigs Birds Blog
Rating 3.00 out of 5
[?]
Baby, it’s cold as )#$#)($^#()^% outside
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Birdcouple yearns for temperatures that are, say, a balmy 55 degrees. We yearn for our trip to sunny India in seven weeks. We yearn for green leaves, the songs of warblers and long summer nights.
That’s how cold it is. It was 11 degrees F when we started Lisa’s car at [...]
Miracle on the Hudson, and bird strikes
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Warren covers international news on a daily basis, and much of the news is bad, depressing–or both.
So it was beyond uplifting to see Thursday’s emergency water landing of a US Airways Airbus in the Hudson River off Manhattan turn from tragedy to triumph, as a calm and skillful pilot prevented [...]
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Gleaning from Leaves
Submitted by Birding Notes Blog
Also yesterday morning, a female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was gleaning something from the gray-green leaves and branches of some privet at the edge of the woods. She was very pretty, with a rich lemon-yellow breast, pure white throat and crimson crown. She raked the branches and leaves of the shrub through her [...]
Bird TLC looses a good friend in Homer
Submitted by Bird TLC Blog
Jean Keene aka The Eagle Lady has passed away due to complications from cancer. She was a friend to most people who meet her. I was one of the fortunate who did. Todd and Linda Boren and myself had coffee with her when we went to Homer to release an eagle [...]
Looking ahead
Submitted by The Birdcouple Blog
Princess and I have busy jobs (they pay for our birding and other fun) and they’re especially busy right now, after the Holidays.
So, no time for a full-out blog post today, as much as we might wish. But there’s lots coming down the pike.
First, the Great Backyard Bird Count is just [...]
