Birding Is Fun!: July 2014

Monday, July 28, 2014

Eastern Kingbirds with Fledglings

Eastern Kingbird

Earlier this month I visited Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (near Titusville, FL), and I happened across a family of Eastern Kingbirds. Several of them breed on the island, and there's one particular location where I often see them during the summer months. In fact, I believe I've seen them here every year since I moved to Florida in 2010. This year was the first year I've seen actual fledglings here. Two fledglings were perched on the same branch, anxiously awaiting being fed by their parents. We watched this family from a safe distance for several minutes; I'm always touched by the tenderness that the parents exhibit toward their young--at least that's the way their behavior appears to me as a human.

Eastern Kingbird with Food

Eastern Kingbirds

I saw the kingbirds come to the fledglings twice with food and feed each of the two fledglings. The young ones were all too eager to receive their meals!

Eastern Kingbird Fledglings

As you can see, the fledglings look a bit different from their parents. They are a little grayer with a darker mask around the eye, and the white-terminal band at the end of the tail has not yet fully formed. This can cause some confusion for people visiting the coastal areas of Central Florida in search of Gray Kingbirds, since they are superficially similar. But Gray Kingbirds are a bit lighter-colored, lack a white-terminal band, and their dark eye-mask has a different shape than juvenile Eastern Kingbirds, so they aren't too hard to tell apart for observant birders.

Gray Kingbird

Eastern kingbirds may lack color--a study in black and white--but I find them strikingly beautiful birds. And I marvel at their abilities--it really is amazing how flycatchers are able to capture fast-flying insects like dragonflies in flight. And I especially enjoy the aggressive way they defend their nests and young. They will harass birds many times their size in defense of their territory. After all, they aren't called "tyrant" flycatchers for nothing. And if you're lucky, you may be able to see the color they do have--the "crowns" that earn them the name "kingbird."

Eastern Kingbird

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

The Thrill of Adventure

Posted by Rohrerbot

A slippery climb to view a Swallow-tailed Kite and the epic beauty of Semuc Champey

I love birding. Period. But I love birding Central and South America a little bit more. My first great passion was Spanish. It brought me to this chapter in my life. Once upon a time, a small town boy from Wisconsin dreamed of exploring the rain forests and ancient civilizations of Central and South America. He had read about them in his National Geographic magazines.

Clay-colored Thrush enjoys an avocado

Today that dream has turned into reality. Back in 2006, I went to Guatemala for the first time but I wasn't a birder. So I returned last year with my new eyes and camera ready for the journey. Birding in an exotic locale is an adventure. There aren't reliable ebird reports in many places. Many times I had to speak with people about a particular bird. They didn't always know what the names of the birds were but if I had a pic on my cell phone, they'd generally recognize them right away. At that point, they'd give me directions to the various spots and also the time frame in which the birds usually showed up. I found that I was the first person reporting in many of these incredible places. And it was a very rewarding experience.

This is where my heart belongs and perhaps one day I will return here for a longer stretch, but there is a great big world waiting to be explored. I chose Guatemala over Costa Rica or Panama this time because it was underbirded. Plus, if you forced me to choose, I'd pick Guatemala because it is such a colorful country. The Mayan culture is still rich and alive. However, it wasn't always the easiest place to travel and the birds could be a challenge.

Watching a volcano erupt in the distance

But at the end of the day after lots of research and exploration, we had the most incredible views from our lodges.

Slaty-tailed Trogon

There are no safety rails in Guatemala like one might find in Costa Rica or in parts of Panama. People would ask me the purpose of my trip and I'd tell them that I was birding. They wrinkled their noses.....meaning they didn't understand. So I began to tell them that I was a photographer filming the amazing Guatemalan wildlife. And then they understood. Birding is still an unknown for many around the world. We are the ambassadors for our feathered friends in this crazy human world. If people understand that there are those who would pay money to get a glimpse of their birds, they then might consider protecting areas for people to come visit. The idea is slowly catching on.

And the animals were incredible. With birder eyes, nothing goes unnoticed. Plus I had a friend with me who also helped in the searches and she was amazing. Together we laughed at the most uncomfortable situations. I think by the end of the month, she understood my addiction towards birds better.

Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush(that's a mouthful)

And while on the trails in Guatemala, I noticed during my research of strange birds that there were two birders who also reported on Ebird. In fact, they were some of the only ones who reported often. Both had male names and I assumed that they were older until one contacted me via Facebook. Turns out, the top ebirders for Guatemala were two high school students. I loved that my stereotype was shattered. As a teacher, it is my hope that we get more young people to bird. And I have seen an increase in their numbers! In fact just the other day, I met a high school student with a group of birders in the Arizona area. I had assumed the older gentleman was his grandfather. Turns out he was a birder! Isn't our lot a strange one? Where else can generations join together for one common goal and discover birds? Each offering the other knowledge, experience and quick spotting by sight or sound. I think it's pretty amazing.

Gray Silky-flycatcher

Now birding still isn't "cool" by the regular gang, but it's catching on. Why? Epic locales like the ones we visit entice the young at heart to explore places that they've never heard about before. And when I asked these young people why they've chosen birding as their hobby, they've explained to me that not only are birds amazing but that it takes them to strange and exciting places. When I heard "strange", I immediately thought about the smelly sewage plants and dumps:) Then there are the epic National Parks. We can camp, hike, canoe, etc. Birding is also a personal challenge and for some, a competition. How many trips around the world did it take me before I put 2 and 2 together? I'd prefer not to think about it:) I'm here now and that's all that matters.

My next series for Birding is Fun will focus on several Guatemalan places that I thought were great for birding. I'll share some secrets with you as well plus give you some info for your non-birder crew who might want to follow. We'll explore Antigua, Tikal, Semuc Champey, Lake Atitlan, and other locales. Each place offers birders great spaces to explore while having other things of interest for the non-birder crowd. It's like a two-for-one:) While on this trip, I snapped this picture(below) of an artist painting her mural near Antigua. It inspired me as I sat and watched her work. It got me thinking about my own photography and life list. This became the header for a personal blog to help organize the sightings of new and old birds alike.

Each year I learn more and more about birds and it's thrilling. That's why Birding is Fun!

Where will this trail lead me? What will I discover?

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

A Bounty of Beautiful Birds

Posted by Julie G.

My Birding Is Fun! June post, Magnificent Warblers!, featured many of the gorgeous, colorful warblers seen throughout the bird migration season here in the Midwest. This post will highlight several other species spotted during this time period. All these stunning birds were photographed either in the city of Chicago, on our La Porte, Indiana property, or in Berrien County, Michigan.

Always a welcome sight on our property in La Porte ~ Baltimore Oriole

A lively Blue-gray Gnatcatcher seeks insects in the brush

A Curve-billed Thrasher ruffles its feathers after a torrential downpour

So far, this is my best rare bird sighting of 2014. Curve-billed Thrashers are most often seen in the southwestern United States and in a large portion of Mexico. This golden-eyed visitor was observed over two weeks in June at Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary in Chicago.

A radiant beauty! ~ Scarlet Tanager

A tail-bobbing Solitary Sandpiper seeks nutrition

A striking Horned Grebe in full breeding plumage finery

A handsome Pileated Woodpecker searches for insects amid fallen tree debris

Posing pretty surrounded by pink blossoms ~ Cedar Waxwing

A Brown Thrasher forages near the woods edge

A lovely Veery searches for insects in the forest underbrush

A brilliant Indigo Bunting visits our koi pond in Chicago

Foraging for insects ~ Rose-breasted Grosbeak

A curious look ~ Golden-crowned Kinglet

Posted by Julie Gidwitz ~ Nature's Splendor - http://naturessplendor-julie.blogspot.com/

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Birding Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Posted by Unknown

North Dakota's badlands couldn't be in a better spot. (Well, they'd be better off without all that oil shale under them, but that's another story.) The badlands fall pretty much on a line the separates the western from eastern avifauna of North America. More specifically, it's the border between the upper Great Plains and the Rocky Mountain ecoregions. Any time you're birding around a "borderland" like that, it's bound to be interesting.

Yes, it actually looks like this. Painted Canyon, Theodore Roosevelt NP.

The only truly protected areas of the badlands of any considerable size are the two units of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The South Unit is right off of I-94 with the town of Medora serving as gateway. The North Unit is a bit more remote, but no less scenic. The park has plenty of rocky scrubland, grassland, and riparian habitat with the Little Missouri River winding its way through the wilderness. Spotted Towhees provide the background soundtrack for the park while Lark Sparrows are the real "trashbird." When something as cool as a Lark Sparrow is your trashbird, you know you're in a good spot!

Lark Sparrow (Chondestes grammacus. They are EVERYWHERE in Teddy Roosevelt.

Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis) in the North Unit.

Birds aren't the only animals worth looking at in the park. Bison and pronghorn are easy to spot. Easy, that is, unless you're looking up and trying to locate a singing Yellow-breasted Chat while walking around the edge of a small copse of trees. In that case you may startle a reclining bull bison. This will be extremely shocking to both you and the Bison. Ideally the bison will snort, retreat, and merely glare at you rather than charge at you. This will allow you to live long enough to recount the story in a post about Theodore Roosevelt NP at the Birding is Fun blog.

This is him glaring at me after he gave me some room. I deeply appreciate his decision to not punish my stupidity.

There are several active Prairie Dog towns in the park, providing endless entertainment. If you're watching a town and suddenly every single Prairie Dog gives an alarm cry and disappears into the ground...look up. There's likely a Golden Eagle about to swoop over your head.

Pretty cute for not being a bird.

Sarah scoping the bluffs above the Cottonwood Campground for eagles. Golden Eagles nest on those highest cliffs.

Did I mention the wild horses?

To get a better view in the grassland, simply hop atop some bison dung.

Not a great photo, but this is the Yellow-breasted Chat that almost got me killed, so he deserves a spot here.

The Little Missouri River provides an excellent riparian oasis.

Birding is fun anywhere you do it. I mean, we all love sewage ponds, don't we? But when you find good birds in a breathtaking natural area it's extra special. Here's a video I shot of a Lazuli Bunting. I think this captures the feel of the place. Watch it till the end, it's short.