Green Backed Heron

Just got back from "Byrdstown" Tennessee

scalahan — Tue, 20 May 2008 23:24:00 GMT

What a great name for a town! My husband, my father and I just got back from a quick mini-vacation to Dale Hollow - at Byrdstown, TN. My mission was to add a new bird or two to my life list. Well - good news - I added 4 new birds to my list! I could hardly put my reference book down all day! I would be looking up one bird and then another would call out or come into view. I was a true, blue, crazy bird lady all day long!

I saw for the first time - the Alder Flycatcher - I positively ID'd him by his call; the Eastern Wood Pewee; the Yellow Billed Cuckoo and the most spectacular Prothonotary Warbler.

On May 18th, my dad and husband went fishing and I stayed back at our cabin all day and watched for birds. When I heard the Yellow Billed Cuckoo, at first I thought I was hearing a Wild Turkey across the road. I vendured over to the sound. Then, it flew over my head and landed about 35 feet up - "Ka, ka, ka, ka, ka, ka, kow, kow, kow ,kowp, kowp, kowp, kowp - WOW HOW AWESOME!

After my dad and husband returned they took me down to the lake where I observed and added about a dozen more birds to my list of the day. That is where I saw the Prothonotary Warbler. My dad saw him first and my husband got to see him too - so I have two witnesses! At first, I thought it was a different warbler, but after reading about the environment that they habitate I knew this was a Prothonotary Warbler. We were in a finger of the lake that was recently flooded over. What a spectacular bird!

Here is my list of 46 birds - for "Byrdstown, TN on 5/18/08....

Summer Tanger, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Red Bellied Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, White Breasted Nuthatch, Brown Headed Cowbird, American Goldfinch, Alder Flycatcher, Carolina Wren, Hairy Woodpecker, American Crow, Turkey Buzzard, Cedar Waxwing, Tufted Titmouse, Eastern Wood Pewee, Chipping Sparrow, Red Winged Blackbird, Downey Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Yellow Billed Cuckoo, Mourning Doves, (heard) Black Billed Cuckoo, (heard) Wood Thrush, Ruby Throated Hummingbird, Black Capped Chickadee, Northern Flicker, Brown Thrasher, Mallard Duck (& 5 babies), Barn Swallow, Canada Geese (& 6 babies), Belted Kingfisher, Great Crested Flycatcher, Great Blue Heron, Gray Catbird, Eastern Kingbird, Green Heron, Prothonotary Warbler, Bald Eagle (immature), European Starling, Killdeer, Grackle, Northern Mockingbird, Pileated Woodpecker, House Finch and Song Sparrow.

Thank you BYRDSTOWN, TENNESSEE! Your birds and your people are so very nice and spectacular!

Great day for birding!

scalahan — Sat, 10 May 2008 16:05:00 GMT

Today, I saw the cheery chickadee, telling me once again to go down by the creek. I watched the chickadee bathe and preen. Then I noticed another bird down in the creek. Speckled breast, flicking tail - is it a song sparrow? It flew but it returned. I studied it again. I didn't have my binoculars so I stayed very still and studied it. It walked, rather than hopped, and it's tail was just "a bobbin" I thought, "Wow - that certainly isn't a song sparrow." It had white bars above its eyes and it was kind of brownish, grayish and it had a speckled breast like a thrush. Hum...I've got to look this one up! I ran up to the house and got my field guide. A Louisiana Waterthrush! Bird number 128 on my life list!

And so, because I was so drawn to the creek, I went back down about an hour later, this time with binoculars in hand. I looked again for the waterthrush - no sign of him. But I watched across the creek and a cardinal flew into the bush, then a gray catbird. I studied him for a while - looking for insects and looking at me. Then I spotted another bird. At first I wasn't sure what it was - more white eye brows, another semi speckled breast, perfect semi circle brownish circles under it's eyes and I studied its beak. Hum....could it be a female, rose breasted grossbeak? Again - I ran up to the house - yep! Another great bird today! I've never seen a female before, only the male, and that was about 18 years ago. Cool. I just love my creek!

I think that I really don't need to travel very far this year to add birds to my life list. All I need to do is open my eyes! Happy Birding!

I think yellow is my color this year!

scalahan — Sat, 03 May 2008 23:01:00 GMT

I heard another interesting bird singing today. I was drawn outside into the windy woods behind my house by its call. At first I thought it was the Eastern Towhee. Then I saw a towhee and it flew. Then a chickadee landed in the tree above my head - as to say - "Take a look down by the creek." I walked along the creek and then noticed a small bird bathing. At first I just thought it was the song sparrow. But as I looked closer (this time I brought my binoculars) I saw flashes of yellow. Wow - a bright yellow throat. The bird didn't notice me and flew up into a small bush and preened after its bath. It stayed there for about 5 minutes, letting me watch it preen. Flashes of a bright yellow throat, white belly, white wing bars, gray back and head and again that bright yellow throat. I studied it for quite some time then it flew up into the trees. I ran fast up to the house and looked it up. Magnolia Warbler? Myrtle Warbler? Nope - I think the closest was Yellow Throated Warbler. A new bird on my life list. Number 126 today! Cool!

The Yellow Belly of a Different Feather

scalahan — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 21:48:00 GMT

Well, it seems the Yellow Bellied Sapsucker has flown further north - or more into the woods. I haven't seen him for quite some time now. But today, a new "yellow belly" arrived. I heard a call in the woods - similar to the start of a robin's song - but only one note, coming from high up in the trees. I got my binoculars and started looking. I watched it swoop and flitter. Then I got a good look at it. The Great Crested Flycatcher - cool! It had a gray, crested head, whitish wing bars, a long narrow tail, and that wonderful yellow belly! Cool! I sure am glad it was a bit noisy. Some birds just want to let you know they are here - don't they!

Yellow Bellied Sap-sucker is Back!

scalahan — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 02:10:00 GMT

Yippee! It must be spring! The yellow bellied sap-sucker is back. The male came to visit yesterday - high up in the hickory tree, just like last year. He still has his "tatoo marks" left on the tree from last year - a line of tiny pin holes around the tree.

He didn't say much when he visited so I'll have to watch for him again. I love to hear him chatter - he sounds a bit like a cat - or a baby crying. I'm so glad the snow is gone!

Rufous came today!

scalahan — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 22:17:00 GMT

Finally! I've been hearing the Eastern Rufous-Sided Towhee for several weeks now and I finally got to see him. I put some black oil sunflower seed out in the feeder and on the rail of my deck. No sooner than about 15 minutes later there he was in his wonderful tuxedo - perched along with a male cardinal - dining together on my deck rail. I quickly grabbed my camera to get their picture, aimed and shot - and my camera battery went dead! Shoot! I guess you all will just have to believe me! I am charging up that battery right now so that tomorrow I might get a picture or two. Everything seems to be feeding today. Here is my bird list for the past few hours:

Eastern Rufuous Sided Towhee, Male & Female Cardinal, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Song Sparrow, Downey Woodpecker (both male & female), Red Bellied Woodpecker (both male & female), Mourning Dove, White Breasted Nuthatch, Eastern Goldfinch, Northern Mockingbird, Slate Colored Dark Eyed Junco, Bluejays, American Robin, Turkey or Black Vulture (circling overhead).

Not bad for never leaving the house today! Happy Easter - Happy Spring - Happy Birding & Everything!

A Rainy Day Discovery

scalahan — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 00:27:00 GMT

Well - it's a very windy, rainy election day in southeastern Ohio. You wouldn't think it would be a a very good bird day - but it was for me. It all started yesterday with my car making a strange noise (brakes) on the way home from work - I know - a car is not a bird - but somehow the two became intertwined in my universe! I decided to take my car to get it looked at first thing this morning. I knew this would take forever so I brought 4 Wildbird magazines with me to catch up on my reading and learn a few things. As I was reading - I saw a comparison of 3 ducks - the Black Duck, the Mottled Duck and the female Mallard Duck. There were three pictures to study and compare. I looked at them all very closely. I knew I had a picture at home of what I thought were 2 female mallards (see my gallery "SC's Bird Pix"). Well - after careful study and research I discovered they aren't Mallards. They were Mottled Ducks. Yippee! A new life bird for me! Here I thought they were Mallards on vacation in Florida with us!

Now that is just one part of my story. While I was reading and waiting, and reading and waiting, another lady came in to the "reading and waiting" room. She said to me, "Do you go bird watching?" I said, "Yes, I do". Well - another flash in the cosmos today - she does too! How about that! We discussed some different species of birds and places to go bird watching and I told her about this fantastic website you all have. She is going to visit it. So two discoveries today - a new life bird and a new visitor to whatbird.

Happy birding - even when it's raining!

Winter visitors

scalahan — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 18:31:00 GMT

Well, another chilly day in Batavia, OH - we have ice on top of snow on the ground but it seems to be melting a little today. I went outside to feed the birds this morning. I saw deer tracks near the feeders, squirrel tracks on top of the snow and little, tiny chipmunck tracks under the feeder too. Looks like everyone is hungry! I put out plenty of food this morning and everyone came to eat. Here's my list for today:

Carolina Chickadee, White Breasted Nuthatch, Tufted Titmouse, Song Sparrow, Mourning Dove, Cardinals, Northern Mockingbird, European Starlings, Red Bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Carolina Wren, Dark Eyed Junco, American Goldfinch, Blue Jay, Turkey Vulture (up above). And - four pesky squirrels - but they seem to want to share today!

I sure can't wait for the snow to melt and the weather to warm up a bit so I can venture outside into the woods. I miss my migratory visitors.

The morning after the first big frost

scalahan — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 02:56:00 GMT

Wow. What a great surprise this morning. We had our first big frost last night here in Batavia OH (near Cincinnati). As I brought my dog out this morning the birds were everywhere - flying, chirping, singing, chasing, pecking - and I mean everywhere! There was a fantastic pileated woodpecker at our sycamore tree. The sun shined on his head and he looked like a shiny new Christmas ornament. I sneezed and he flew - but not too far away. I also saw the yellow bellied sapsucker, the northern flicker, northern cardinal, carolina chickadees, robins, blue jays, cedar wax wings, tufted titmice, starlings, downy woodpeckers, red bellied woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, juncoes, goldfinches (although they aren't gold anymore) and a mockingbird that just loves to play with my head! The mockingbird has been around for about a month. He was singing a new song today and had me thinking there was some new visitor. I think he was aggravated with all the new neighbors that moved into his territory. After I whipped up my breakfast this morning, I went back out with some cornmeal mush and seed and put it in the feeder. The downy woodpecker, the chickdees and the titmice especially liked the treat. Although I had to chase away the squirrels a few times. What a fantastic day for birding. I tried to get some pictures but I'm not that great with my camera and the birds just kept wanting to fly away. I didn't get any great bird pictures but I've got a great picture of my backyard woods to post.

Happy November to all - enjoy the migration!

Saw a Hermit Thrush this week & bird feeding ideas....

scalahan — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 01:44:00 GMT

I think the fall migration might be starting. I saw a Hermit Thrush the other day. I was watching out my bedroom window at all the robins in the yard and I spotted a bird - smaller than a robin, no red breast, and gray on its back with a speckled/striped breast. I studied it for quite some time. It was feeding on the ground - kind of like a robin - but eating insects and it stayed near the woods. It was smaller than a robin and its back was plain and grayish. I looked it up in my field guide and at first was confused. Was it a Hermit Thrush? Then, I saw it again the next day up in a tree - only this time it looked more brown than gray. Yep - I think I confirmed it - a hermit thrush - very plain face. Now - where is it from - according to my field guide - Canada or the upper US. - definitely not from Cincinnati.

Oh yea! Try this for an interesting suet recipe. I made some corn meal mush for my husband's breakfast and with the hardened leftovers of mush mixed some bird seed it it. I then put it in my suet feeder. Boy did they love it! I greased the bird feeder pole with Crisco to keep the squirrels off and it worked! I saw chickadees, titmice, white breasted nuthatch, downy woodpecker, red bellied woodpecker and cardinals.

I also tried this - I took two toasted bagels, spread peanut butter on them and then rolled them in birdseed. I then took some ribbon and tied them up in the trees. The next day they were gone! I'm not sure if any birds ever got to try it but I'll bet what ever ate them had a tasty treat! Have fun feeding the birds!

Ruby Throated Hummingbird and American Gold Finch

scalahan — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 02:11:00 GMT

Exciting news to post. We have some tall 10 ft sunflowers growing next to our house. Just two days ago, I was looking out the window and saw a beautiful male American Gold Finch eating at one of the flowers. He didn't notice me looking out the window watching him. The wind was blowing the sunflowers and he held on almost upside down to eat. Then all of a sudden, a beautiful, female ruby-throated hummingbird came to the same sunflower stalk and ate right next to the gold finch. They both stayed there for about 10 minutes. I wish I had my camera but my husband had left it at work. What a beautiful sight. I think they might be best friends!

Green Backed Heron sighting

scalahan — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 19:53:00 GMT

About a week ago (from July 7th) I was looking out my boss's window at a small lake. I usually spot geese or ducks on the water. But this particular day, I spoted a large bird creeping around the rock perimeter of the lake. At first I just thought it was a crow. It would hide among the rocks and I'd just see a glimpse of it from the window. But then later that day I spotted it again - It was poised and pointed at the edge of the water. It still looked like it was black but it was definitely not a crow. As I watched to my amazement it jabbed it's bill like a sharp long speer and pierced a fish right out of the water's edge. Wow! It flung the fish up into the air and then ate it. I couldn't wait until I got home to look up this strange bird. I searched my bird book and found it - a green backed heron! I decided I would look for it again another day. Sure enough, it returned to this lake each day - and the best part - it has a mate. There are two that I get to observe - when I can take a sneek peek out my boss's window.