WhatBird Forums

Where is everyone?

thekiwi — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:55:00 GMT

Did they pack there bags and steal away in the middle of the night and not pay there bill ?

I have noticed over the past few days the visitors to my feeding station have gotten less and less I hardly see any goldfinch,sparrows,chickadees,cardinals it is like they have all vanished I have been to the woods a few times over the past week all at different times of the day and nothing today all I saw was 1 grass hopper, a couple snakes,1 duck so far out on the water if I took a photo doubt if you could see the duck ,1 blue Heron, a few cat birds . 1 chipmunk and heard a few but I do mean only a few Blue jays and that is how it has been of late. even over the past 3 to 4 days I haven't seen any hummingbirds either it is like they have all left I would have thought it would be a little early yet for migration but then again maybe I am wrong.

Maybe there may be a few of you out there may have some kind of answer it is strange walking through the woods and hearing the chatter I used to hear.

Huntington Central Park & Bolsa Chica Wetlands report for August 31, 2008

PONYRCR — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:13:00 GMT

Another L.A. Audubon Society field trip.

I've been wanting to go to the Bolsa Chica Wetlands for a little over a year now. The ever rising price of gas has kept me home. Obviously gas prices are not getting any lower so I finally decided to head out there. I figured going with LAAS would be my best chance to optimize my birding experience.

The morning started at the Huntington Central Park in Huntington Beach. I've never been there before and this park is suppost to be a good migrant trap. Unfortunately this day was not very birdy. We didn't see much. Mostly a lot of Black Phoebes. Our trip leader did hear a Blue Grosbeak, but unfortunately the bird was never sighted. Drat! this would have been a lifer for me. :( This was also the day there was a Civil War reenactment going on in the park, so there was lots of activity happening. We didn't stay long since it was obvious we weren't going to see much.

On to Bolsa Chica wetlands. Great biriding place. Unfortunately they have a very small parking lot. The wetlands parking lot is directly across the street from the pay parking lot for Bolsa Chica State Beach. Parking can be a little tricky here. We did somehow manage to get everyone parked.

First thing upon arriving I was able to get some good shots of a Black Skimmer feeding. Whoo hoo! A good Black Skimmer picture was on the top of my wish list for this trip.

Lots of peeps. Thousands probably. Lots of other birders as well. Some folks did see some Snowy Plovers, however I couldn't pick them out of the thousands of other peeps.

The other highlight of this trip was getting a Reddish Egret. A lifer for me and a great bird for Southern California. The bird was a good distance away and best seen with a scope. I did get a few shots, they really suck, but what can you do. Ya gotta take what ya can get.

The list...

Black Phoebe, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Anna's Hummingbird, Downey Woodpecker, Nutall's Woodpecker, Mallards, Black Skimmer, Snowy Egret, Great Egret, Rock Pigeon, Elegant Tern, Forster's Tern, Willet, Savannah Sparrow "Belding's", Black-crowned Night Heron, Short-billed Dowitcher, Semipalmated Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, Baird's Sanpiper, Brown Pelican, American White Pelican, Long-billed Curlew, Marbled Godwit, Western Sandpiper, Sanderlings, Reddish Egret, Great Blue Heron, Wilson's Phalarope, American Kestrel, Red-tailed Hawk, Pied-billed Grebe, Black-necked Stilt, Barn Swallow, Turkey Vulture, Belted Kingfisher, American Avocet, Green Heron, Least Sandpiper, Double-crested Cormorant,

Attached (sucky) photo of the Reddish Egret. Black Skimmer will be in my gallery.

Salton Sea report for August 23 & 24, 2008

PONYRCR — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 00:13:00 GMT

Yee gads what was I thinking. Seriously, what kind of nut goes out to the Salton Sea in August??? Well, I guess birding nuts. It was hotter then the hinges of hell!

The Salton Sea was a fine place to be in January but August, ick. It was 111 degrees on Saturday. Not sure what the temp was on Sunday but it felt about the same.

Once again I went to the Salton Sea on an L.A. Audubon field trip. Only 3 other crazy people showed up for this trip. We met at 5:30 a.m. at Cattle Call Park in Brawley. - If you want to get anything done out there you get it done early. I was amazed at how many people were out jogging and/or walking before the sun came up. The weather was lovely early in the morning. It would appear that there is a 2 hour window just as the sun rises where the weather is nice.

My target bird was the Wood Stork. Unfortunately we dipped on the stork. Our leader got a phone call that some Wood Storks had been seen flying from Red Hill Marina towards some ponds. We checked all the ponds but came up empty.

The trip was not as productive as the January trip. I did get 4 life birds but, unfortunately I only got a really good look at one of them.

On Saturday while I was scouting out the meeting place I caught the briefest glimpse of a Lesser Nighthawk as it flew away. I was hoping as dusk approaced I might get a better look at some, but no such luck. Life bird # 1.

I did get some decent looks at some juvenile Baird's Sandpipers that were in an aggriculture field. Life bird # 2.

I only got a so-so look at a Wilson's Phalarope. Unfortunately at this stop we were over taken by thousands of unknown small grey flying insects. Oh my god the place was thick with them. We didn't even want to get out of our cars. I had brought some insect netting clothes with me, but they still were all in my face. The only good thing about these flying insects was that they didn't bite. It was awful so unfortunately I didn't get as good of a look at the Wilson's Phalarope as I would have liked. Life bird # 3.

I did get an o.k. look at a Black Tern as it flew past me. Again not a great look but still enough to know what I was looking at. Unfortunately the photos I took both came out blurry messes. Drat. Life bird # 4.

The highlight of the trip for me was getting a good look at a Barn Owl. The Barn Owl is not a life bird for me. My first and only Barn Owl was in Hawaii on Oahu. That bird was quite a distance away so I wasn't able to get a good look.

While at the Sunny Bono Wildlife Center I remembered that the lady who worked in the visitor center told me (in January) there was a Barn Owl that roosted in one of the Palm Trees near the visitor center. I noticed a bunch of owl pellets under one of the trees. I stepped up close to the tree and looked up under the dead fronds and bingo there was the owl. OMG I got a great look at the owl. Got some pretty good photos as well.

All in all it wasn't the best outing. Only 4 life birds. But I did get a good look at a Barn Owl and I was able to get photos of some of the birds I missed out on in January, most notably the Yellow-footed Gull.

Still I'm not sure I'd ever go back to the Salton Sea in August. Maybe in a few years after my memory has a chance to fade and forget how bloody effen hot it is out there.

Attached photo of the Barn Owl. I'll put the Yelloew-footed Gull in my gallery.

The list...

Black-necked Stilt, Great-tailed Grackle, Snowy Egret, Killdeer, Ring-billed Gull, Cactus Wren, Osprey, Brown-headed Cowbird, Eurasian Collered Dove, Black Phoebe, Eared Grebe, Green Heron, Verdin, Orange-crowned Warbler, Turkey Vulture, White-winged Dove, Lesser Nighthawk, White-faced Ibis, American Kestrel, Loons (too far away for positive ID), Gila Woodpecker, European Starlings, Northern Mockingbird, Western Tanager, Abert's Towhee, Gray Flycatcher, Roadrunner, Common Ground Dove, Ring-necked Pheasant, Red-winged Blackbirds, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Burrowing Owl, American Avocet, Double-crested Cormorant, Least Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Great Egret, Cinnamon Teal, Baird's Sandpiper, Cattle Egret, White Pelican, Wilson's Phalarope, Spotted Sandpiper, Great-blue Heron, Black Tern, Peregrine Falcon, Laughing Gull, Yellow-footed Gull, Willet, Caspian Tern, Black-crowned Night Heron, Forster's Tern, Belted Kingfisher, Gambel's Quail, Barn Owl

Another Bird 2 ID

JanTheFan — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 21:42:00 GMT

This poor little bird has been hanging around a couple weeks and I have a previous shot in my gallery.

Here is his latest portrait:

http://www.whatbird.com/forums/photos/janthefans_captures/picture56807.aspx

He is looking more like a cardinal to me but his head is 'bald'.

Thanks for looking.

Jan

The Buttery Sunflower Diner for Birds

scalahan — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 02:09:00 GMT

This is a good season for the sunflower and the birds have been enjoying our flowers by the house. A few days ago I watched a downy woodpecker hang upside down to eat the seeds. Today I decided to pick the biggest flower and roast the seeds (for myself). I took the big flower inside, shucked the seeds, rinsed them off and then googled how to roast them. I put about 3 tablespoons of butter on them and lightly salted them. Wow - they smelled great! (I think I put too much butter on them.) Anyway, I took a small cup of them outside to have my husband and his friend sample - and stupid me - dumped them on the garage floor.

Well, nature has a way of taking care of itself, doesn't it? I took the seeds from the garage floor and put them into my feeder. OH MY GOSH! You would have thought I just opened the best diner in town for birds!! I had non-stop - tufted titmice, carolina chickadees, red bellied woodpeckers, blue jays, cardinals, goldfinches, house finches, downy woodpeckers and who knows who else - all come and take turns eating the buttery, roasted sunflower seeds. They just loved them!

Capturing Flight With A Digital Camera

JanTheFan — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:21:00 GMT

Looking for some tips for capturing birds in flight. Anyone willing to share a few tips would be greatly appreciated. I have a Sony DSLR a100.

Thanks,

Jan

Rufous is back!! August 20 2008

sandra — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:06:00 GMT

I thought i had missed them!! In 07 they came into Sonora California end of june and having thier family, Flying off 1st Week in September. This year they just showed up yesterday now thier is 6 of them doing thier mating flight! I sure hope we stay warm enough to get the babys on thier way. Its hard to get picks of them because they are so fast but I well try.

If you go down to the the woods you better *******

thekiwi — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 04:34:00 GMT

If you go down to the the woods you better be careful where you tread .. I went to the woods today had a good time I didn't get any decent photographs except for a couple I saw a doe and her buck complete with antlers a pair of northern flickers some cedar wax wings yellow warblers titmouse chickadees some herons grebes and then there where these guys there was 2 of them I nearly stepped on them when I first arrived at the woods I took my push bike was just about to dismount from the bike happened to look down just as well I did or I may have gotten a nasty bite.

July and August Birding

ally — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 02:04:00 GMT

The weather here in MS has been really hot and there's been little rain up until recently. In the past week we've finally gotten some rain and the temps have dropped a few degrees. One afternoon, it actually felt a little like fall! I've noticed that there seems to be more birds now that we've had some rain. As a new birder, I'm anxious for the fall action to get started so I can see some more new birds.

I have three areas where I routinely bird. I work on an Army Corps of Engineers base that is an ideal place. There is a lake, a pond, and a drainage ditch/creek that leads into a swamp so there are always waders about. There are wooded areas and lots of open areas. There are usually lots of mockingbirds, bluebirds, mourning doves, and red-head woodpeckers around. There is also a flock of about 75 Canada geese that live there year round. Back in July, I saw a pileated woodpecker at a nest/roost in a utility pole and when a looked at the pics I took, you could see the mate in the hole. This is also where I saw my first eastern kingbird and Coopers hawk.

There is a new subdivision going in down the road from my house that has lots of bird activity. So far there are no houses going up, just roads and lots. There are usually downy and red-bellied woodpeckers, mockingbirds, kingbirds, indigo buntings, and bluebirds there as well as others. Yesterday, I saw a bird that was new to me. I didn't get a good look, but it appeared to be mostly or all yellow so I'm thinking yellow warbler. Hopefully I'll see it again soon so I 'll know for sure.

Then there's home. We live in the county on about 5 acres that's mostly grown up. There are plenty of mature trees and lots of shrubby growth and there's a small pond. Saturday afternoon I saw a green heron and a beltd kingfisher on the pond for the first time. Today the kingfisher was back as well as a little blue heron. The feeders we have attract all the usuals - chickadees, titmice, house finches, cardinals, doves, etc. We don't have starlings or grackles at the feeders like some people have problems with and the cowbirds haven't been around since June. The cardinals have been VERY prolific this year, they are everywhere. I've seen a male cardinal feeding babies on several occasions, for some reason it's always the male and not the female. There's a white breasted nuthatch that visits pretty regularly and he picks the peanuts out of the mix in the platform feeder to eat. Today a Carolina wren was eating at the suet/peanut butter log which I'd never witnessed before. Five hummer ladies share two feeders or maybe I should say fight over two feeders. I'm not sure why they squabble so much, one day last week four of thm were drinking peacefully at the same time from the same feeder. A male showed up in July for a few days but I haven't seen him lately.

Since my last blog the July 4th weekend, I've added the following to my life list:

coopers hawk

eastern wood pewee

great crested flycatcher

eastern kingbird

eurasian collared dove

red eyed vireo

northern parula

Mississippi kite

Until next time, happy birding ya'll!

Bird Updates...

redvixen — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:20:00 GMT

Well, still seeing male RubyThroated Hummingbirds. I can't believe how much nectar they are going through!! Just this morning I filled both feeders, and it looks like I'll need to refill them tomorrow morning, or else risk running out. It's kind of fun to watch them, sometimes around six or more, zipping 'round the yard. One female comes up to the living room window often, and it looks like she's looking right in at me. Twice I have been sitting in the yard, on my phone, and a female (same one?) has come up within two feet of me and looked at me. My grandparents used to have a male (this was in Maine) who would actually tap on the window when he arrived back in the yard in the spring. My grandmother would hurry and fill the feeders to satisfy the little guy.

AFter complaining about a lack of Goldfinches, I have seen quite a few recently. It seems that they prefer the sunflowers I allow to grow around the fountain and in the garden to the thistle seed I have out for them.

Saw a chickadee yesterday, as well. I get many more of them in the colder months than i do in the summer. Tufted titmice, same thing.

Bird Traffic Slowing

Kevin71 — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:04:00 GMT

I have been seeing more cardinals lately at the feeders, but the overall count of birds has gotten lower. This is especially so with the blue jays. I may get 2 or 3 blue jays visiting 2 times a day now, when it used to be 6 to 8 at a time and at least 4 times a day (at least on the weekends).

I bought a new cage feeder the other day, but after a week of it out on the deck, I didn't get many visitors. Turned out the distance from the cage to the plastic seed holder was too far for birds with smaller beaks to get to the seed. So, I got my wire clippers out and modified the cage by widening the holes around the opening of the seed holder. Since then, I am having to re-fill the feeder about every 4 days.

Has anyone else had issues with uploading pictures to the gallery? I have tried on many different days and on different browsers all with the same problem. I notified whatbird but have not heard back yet. Anyone know what this issue may be?

Until next post...

Keeping track of my hummingbirds

redvixen — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 23:53:00 GMT

Just wanted to make a note that I did see a male hummingbird today (I haven't watched all day as we've been out). If I can, I'll make a note of it every day so I know when they leave, if that makes any sense at all. I'm just trying to figure out when they leave to migrate, so maybe I can track them from year to year. Today is August 10th, 2008. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Moving the Feeders

Kevin71 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 20:02:00 GMT

I bought an Oriole feeder the other day - the one with the orange nectar. I hung it close to my other feeders off of my second story deck but after reading some posts I decided to move it to an isolated area of my backyard - hanging it off a tree. I have not seen any orioles in backyard so far, but I know some of my neighbors have seen them. I also bought a new squirrel-proof wild bird feeder today since the squirrels ruined my other one. It seems to be working much better.

Finally got some great pictures of hummingbirds today - will upload them to my gallery later tonight. I keep my camera on the ready at my bay window aimed the general area of my feeders. I have always been too slow to get the hummingbirds, but today I got some of them at the nectar feeder. As I was stumbling with my lens, a hummingbird came right up to the window - about 2-3 feet away from me. I spotted it from the corner of my eye as I was looking thru my lens focusing on another area. By the time I got to where the hummingbird was, it was too late. What an awesome picture that would have been!!!

Until next post.....

My First Post to my Bird Blog

Kevin71 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:28:00 GMT

My name is Kevin and I live in Southern Maryland. After living in this area for 2 years now, I decided a couple months ago to start attracting birds to my backyard and to take pictures of them. On a daily basis, my backyard visitors include, in no particular order:

Blue Jay

Yellow Finch

Tufted Titmice

Cardinals

hummingbirds

Mourning Doves

House Finch

I have been working on attracting Orioles - I hope to start attracting them before fall - may need to wait until spring. I take pictures daily - check my picture gallery for them.

Until next post....

Yet Another Blog

Nytro — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 02:35:00 GMT

As if I have enough time for yet another blog.

As if I have enough time to figure out how THIS one works.

We shall see.

Welcome to birdie blogging, I suppose.

Cannot identify this pretty little bird.

rvshirley — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:52:00 GMT

We have a bird coming to the feeder that does not seem to be in the bird book: SMITHONIAN HANDBOOKS BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA WESTERN REGION.

It is wren size and has a beautiful orange breast and a black and white crown. The back is grey and it has a short tail with no colour showing.

We are in southern Alberta just north of the Montana border.

Pictures in the photo gallery BIRD SPECIES (by rvshirley) if I can make it work. ;-)

Thanks for any info you can give me.

Bald Eagles at Conowingo Maryland

Relyks — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:57:00 GMT

I am relatively new to the bird watching scene and have become more facinated by it through my attempts to become a better photographer. I put out the feeder and hoped for some birds to photograph and after a couple days, the birds came to visit along with the dasterdly squirrel.

The other day my son told me that there were Bald Eagles at the Conowingo Dam site off of Rt. 1 just south of the Southeastern Pennsylvania state line (about a 30 minute drive). I kind of figured that they were probably Hawks and he thought they were Eagles. I learned that Maryland created a Bald Eagle Habitat after their population dwindled to just a few. In the one day my son and I went to Conowingo, I saw five Bald Eagles, two Osprey, Herons and Cranes galore as well as other birds which I have no clue as to their identity. Many of the Bald Eagles sat in far off power line towers and would swoop down for fish or glide in the thermals. The birds were difficult to positively identify without binoculars or a big zoom lens. They were difficult for me to keep in focus which I could blame on distance but I believe it was due to camera operator error.

If you want to get a look at some Bald Eagles, take your big zoom lens, binoculars or telescope to Conowingo if you get a chance.

Update 08/16/08 - I went back to Conowingo and waited patiently for the Bald Eagles to show themselves. Just as I packed my camera back in my bag, my wife spotted two flying closer than normal to us. I wasn't able to get my camera out fast enough and lost my chance. I packed up again and said to the wife it was time to leave. Just as I putting the camera back in the bag, the wife spotted another Eagle leave it's nest and fly in our direction. I got lucky and was able to get a couple photos.

My most common birds

bgdbeatnik — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:23:00 GMT

Tufted Titmouse

Black-Capped Chickadee

Blue Jays

Downey Woodpecker

Mourning Dove

House Sparrow

White-breast Nuthatch

Red-breasted Nuthatch

House Wren

Baltimore Oriole

Northern Cardinal

Flicker

European Starling

Northern Mockingbird

Gray Catbird

American Robin

Common Grackle

House Finch

less often:

American Goldfinch

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Northern Saw-whet Owl

Great Horned Owl

Dark-eyed Junco

Hummingbird at feeder!!

Corbett — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 22:14:00 GMT

Over the past week, our hummingbird feeder has been visited daily by a female ruby-throated hummingbird! We first saw it when I was writing last week's post. We were shocked. We knew they were around but didn't really expect to get one. She has come almost every day, and many people in my family have seen their first hummingbird at our feeder. We hope to attract more, but are happy with one.

Also this week, I saw an eastern kingbird , semipalmated sandpipers, a snowy egret, a little blue heron, and chipping sparrows. To improve my birding, I got Sibley's Guide to Birds and Birding by Ear. Now I will try to learn bird calls and songs as well as plumage.

SEOW and why I love Ebird

kurtgeiger — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 08:34:00 GMT

Sometimes I make mistakes in the field and every once in a while I mistake a field mouse for a house mouse at a distance, or fail to discern a Dark morphed Swainson's Hawk from a Dark Morph Redtail ( thanks for the help to all!!). Sometimes though I know I get one right even if it is odd or out of place.

When I submitted my Short eared Owl observation to EBird, I expected I might here from them because it was listed as rare for the area. Well I heard back from them in the form of a email asking me for pictures and details so they could verify the sighting. I gave them the details and a long distance photos that I did not think would be any help. When I got home from work, I checked my email and found the response. From the pictures alone they could verify a SEOW at Oroville Wildlife Refuge. I feel really proud that I nailed that one and I as I progress in my education both on my own and in formal education as a field biology, I feel confident that I will be as good as I want to someday! I guess sometimes you just have to trust yourself if you have done you're homework

I have really come to enjoy using Ebird and contributing my observations. I feel like my dedication to the trail is helping keep accurate records. I am at 139 birds for my year and life list ( I started keeping track in Feb. my goal was to properly ID 100 birds this year. I now think 175 could happen.

Look for the SEOW pictures in my gallery

Audubun Oriole in Southern California?

cindibee7 — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 17:21:00 GMT

I was watching my humming birds at their feeders when this beautiful yellow bird flew in. I've never seen one like this before. So I went to my computer and went to identify it. The bird came up as a Audubun Oriole. I'm not a bird watcher (I do enjoy watching them in my yard) but is it possible this bird belonged to someone and it escaped, or is it possible it is really lost in Southern California? La Verne is about 40 miles from downtown Los Angeles. Any comments would be appreciated.

Grand Central Railway Station

thekiwi — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 18:34:00 GMT

Funny title I know for a blog on a birders site ... but that has just been what my humming bird feeder has been lately I went weeks no shows or maybe 1 or 2 show up take a taste then disappear. I was using store brought nectar I really don't think they liked it I was changing it every other day and still no good. I decided to change and make my own nectar at a ratio of 1:4 1 part sugar 4 parts water I think those little hummers really like home cooking I am even getting fights over the feeder now I am going to get another feeder or 2 to give em a choice now.

So I guess the store brought nectar ain't what it is cracked up to be home made for me now all the time.

Quick adventure in Watchung Reservation 06/25/08

Dovekie — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 16:54:00 GMT

I haven't been doing much birding lately... summer and gas prices are mostly to blame. Our usual backyard birds are still around - house sparrows, house finches, grackles, catbirds, mockingbirds, robins, mourning doves, a lone rock dove, and thankfully an occasional titmouse.

My boyfriend and I decided to get out of the house for a short hike in Watchung Reservation (in mountainside, nj) yesterday. We hiked to a small man-made wildflower meadow with a couple of nest boxes. From the box came chirping and out of the box came a little Wren! Seemed like a house wren, but maybe its beak was a little more curved. I've added the picture to my gallery as a mystery Wren. Its belly was all black and seemed featherless - probably plucked to keep the eggs warm with its body heat. It was fun watching the little guy/gal come and feed its chicks. A murder of crows flew overhead and landed in a dead tree - which was kind of cool.

Soon after, we decided to take a hike in an area behind the wild flower field. Soon we saw the quick movement of a small and surely wonderful, new bird. We slowly chased it, my camera snapping away hoping to catch an image of our mystery bird high in the tree canopy. We were so focused on our little friend that we didn't see the Sharp Shinned Hawk until it flew right over my boyfriend's head! It quickly disappeared back into the forest, heading towards the open wild flower field. Finally after 15 more minutes I was able to take an Identifying photograph of our mystery bird. A titmouse. Argh! I have to admit though, it was a lot of fun. And my boyfriend almost got a 'birding badge' as we like to call it, from a sharpie flying overhead. Disheartened and starting to get eaten by mosquitoes, we moved on, hoping to find the sharpie resting in a tree. We saw bunnies, cardinals, and catbirds, but the sharpie was gone or at least hiding.

Oh well, it was still a good change of pace and a nice adventure.

Lots of Birds

Corbett — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 22:46:00 GMT

Great birding this week! On Monday, I went to the Daniel Webster Audubon sanctuary. In the first bird blind I saw a Solitary Sandpiper ( a life bird), a juvenile little blue heron that I mistook for a snow egret at first, a green heron, and a glossy ibis. I also saw a lot of bobolinks, the sanctuary's specialty, many purple martins in the martin colony, yellow warblers, and an unidentified empidonax flycatcher. Later that day, on a beach on cape cod, I saw semipalmated and piping plovers, sanderlings, and my first semipalmated sandpipers.

On friday, I went to the friday morning birders program again. We went to Daniel Webster Sanctuary first. The leader had gone monday and seen the little blue and glossy ibis that I saw the same day, but we didn't see them again. We did see least sandpiper, blue-gray gnatcatcher (life bird), eastern towhee (life bird), martins, pheobe, yellowthroat, yellow warbler, and fish crow (life bird). We also saw the same flycatcher I couldn't identify monday in the same spot, but this time it was identified as a willow flycatcher, another life bird. We went to other locations in marshfield, including where I saw my first phoebe last week.( See last week's post) There we saw a swamp sparrow (life bird) and heard marsh wrens (life bird). At another spot, we saw a green heron, black-crowned night-heron, and both yellowlegs. At the last stop we heard a yellow-billed cuckoo (life bird) and saw a flicker. In total, I saw and heard 65 species, beating the 49 last time I went.

Accidental Encounters

kurtgeiger — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 05:19:00 GMT

I have held fast to my promise to take some time off but I have had some neat sightings.In my backyard yesterday I had one of our familar birds hanging around. One of our Red Shouldered Hawks hung out with me for awhile. We both looked at each other and as long as I did not move, the Hawks stayed put. He hung around for about 10 minutes.

Since I dont use feeders, I do not always see alot in my backyard. Over the past week, a female Anna's Hummingbird has come around a few times a day to feed at my wifes flowers. I got a few pictures today and I love the little calls they make.

However the really neat things was driving home from work, I went the long way and I saw a Great Horned Owl swoop down from the darkness and sieze a HArvest Mouse in the road. I stopped my truck and watched as the Owl held the mouse in his talons and would hop periodically. This lasted roughly 5 minutes before the Owl flew off carrying his prize. I also saw a rare and unique mammal, my first Mink. It darted across the road and though I only saw him briefly, no doubt as to what it was. Cool