Category Archives: life bird

Home Sweet Home

After a week of traveling, with one day off to let some bad weather pass, we arrived home Monday afternoon after ten hours in the truck. The trip was plagued by idiot drivers, some of them returning from Spring Break in Florida and others just afflicted with the "weaving through traffic" disease and so added to the heavy traffic and often-lousy pothole situation, it was not fun. Once we got off the Natchez Trace it was brutal until we got north of Albany, New York. We stayed at KOA’s in Tennessee and Virginia which are fairly predictable: cramped, weak electric systems, useless wifi and 50 cable channels of nothingness – no PBS etc. They are better than Walmart and like I said, predictable.

The last night on the road, we stay in a nice La Quinta hotel in Harrisburg. They are dog-friendly, clean and quiet, and a nice rest before the long last drive. We launched at 7:00 AM and fought trucks until we got to I-88 in Binghampton. Knowing the roads and getting closer and closer gave me time to worry about our driveway and what awaited us at home. I had talked to our friend Terry who has watched things for us and knew that the warm weather in Vermont was helping but we have a muddy dirt road, tough driveway turn, and monster ledge awaiting. (Every time I think about a newer, slightly longer rig I need to remember our driveway.)

As we always do, we rolled down the windows, tooted and yelled as we crossed into Vermont in Fair Haven and while the frost heaves from Killington to Bethel jounced the trailer, soon we were sliding through Montpelier, up Elm Street and on to Shady Rill Road. What challenges lie ahead?

Shifting into four-wheel drive, I climbed Wood Road and noted that the bad muck hole had smoothed out some but then there was a pile of ice and rocks at the driveway that I had to miss as I turned and climbed. It was a leap of faith. As we topped off I could see the ridges of frozen snowbanks that blocked the garage and the turnaround but I got stopped, spent some time with Mary’s help backing and trying to stay out of the soft ditches, finally getting the rig out of the way for the time being. We cut grooves in the soft gravel/dirt with the truck and the trailer tires but I chocked it, unhitched and we could relax and check the house (which was in good shape.)

The trailer is sitting in the mud, waiting for the snow to melt and for things to dry out.

So, some homecoming thoughts:

  • It feels so good to be back in the land of recycling and local food. It pains us to think of all the plastic we tossed away – most of the country thinks they are doing great when they collect beer and soda cans.
  • After three months with essentially no wifi (State parks and many commercial parks have dog-slow systems where it’s much faster, and costlier, to use 4G), it is great to be able to download software or magazines without having to drive ten miles to the library.
  • It is good to be back in the land of NESN, at least so far.
  • We know the warblers are following us, we saw them in Texas, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
  • And while we avoid political stuff while traveling, it is wonderful to be back in a blue state, where the mud thrown comes from snow tires, not pompous politicians.

It was a good trip all in all. Sixteen new life birds for the trip and a number that are still waiting for me. Good birding to you all.

Screen Shot 2015-04-14 at 8.29.48 PM

A Rest Stop Surprise

We spent a nice day cruising up the Natchez Trace Parkway after spending the night at Natchez State Park. You drive the Trace at 50 mph which in itself is calming and the lack of trucks (or traffic) with everything green, flowering trees, windows down, 80 degree temperatures made it a lovely morning cruise. There are many pulloffs fro natural and historic sites, like this one.

The dogwood trees were more and more prevalent as we moved north on the Trace. There were pink blossoms like a wild plum and periodic swaths of bright yellow canola fields. (Here is one that I did not photograph but which we passed in Alabama.)

Mary posed beneath a flowering dogwood along the Trace.

We stopped for a lunch break at a picnic site along the creek and as we pulled in, I saw a VW camper with NY plates and asked Mary if we knew them. As we stopped, a guy came over and said, "Richard Mansfield, fancy meeting you here." I blanked on his name at first but it turned out to be some Oregon friends we met at Goose Island with their two English friends. I had thought they were headed to Florida but it turns out they are meandering. It was a great coincidence when you figure all the stopping places along the 200 mile segment we were on. Richard and Kris got to meet Mary and their dog Bella and our Penny continued the fued they started in Texas. It turned out that the Englsh folks loved the Vermont honey I had given the Oregonians.

As Mary prepared a sandwich, I took the dog for a stroll. There were warblers moving through the foliage and I saw a Black & White and a couple of Yellow-rumps but kept hearing this call I didn’t recognize. I looked and looked as we moved through the brush when I spotted it, a handsome male Prothonotary Warbler – life bird #426. He has a female with him and I watched them foraging, wondering why I lrft the camera in the truck. (I went back to get it, returned and heard him again and got these documentation photos.)

It was a wonderful stop: seeing our friends and getting a bird I missed in Texas. The rest of the trip up to Tupelo was fun – I couldn’t stop thinking of the surprise of having such a yellow gem pop into my binoculars. Likely the last life bird of this trip – and a great one.

Thanks, Larry, for the life bird

On Saturday morning, I joined a dozen other birders for a "woods" bird walk led by Judy and Larry Geiger from Wyoming. I have known these folks for years – Larry is a "pokey" who birds very slowly and really prefers to sit and let birds come to him. Every morning as I walk Penny past their campsite (which is adorned with feeders, water sprays, brush piles..) I’ll see Larry sitting in camo clothing in his chair, binoculars and camera at the ready, armed with his coffee and a hand-rolled cigarette, waiting. He sees a lot of stuff before most of us are up and about.

Judy, on the other hand, is a walker, and birds at a pretty good pace, usually instructing as she does. They are a great team who let birders identify sightings by field marks rather than shouting out, "There’s an Indigo Bunting."

Saturday’s walk was rather routine until we visited the park feeding station. Nothing was moving in except the usual suspects and some of us were getting antsy to move on but the leaders dawdled, waiting. Then someone spotted something with yellow, always a good omen, and we were on to a Black-throated Green warbler – and then someone said, there are two birds – and sure enough, a gorgeous Yellow-throated Warbler was also flitting about. Most of us got good looks and then, as warbler do, they were gone. After a wait, we moved on psyched to have such a neat start.

We had ambled only a hundred yards, still chatting about the warblers, when Larry said, "I’ve got a great bird here. Hopefuly, he’ll sing, he’s way back in the understory." As we scrambled, he was talKing about "rain crow" and some other stuff and I had no idea what we were looking for. Suddenly, others spotted it, telling which way it was moving …I still couldn’t see anything. Then the Yellow-billed Cuckoo moved a little more into the clear and then we spent the next fifteen minutes watching it actively feed on caterpillars in the dense foliage. Photos were tough to get – this was the best I could get.

We asked Larry how he ever spotted the bird which was so well hidden and he said that he had spotted the tail, knew that only cuckoos had tails like that, etc. I could have walked down that park road hundreds of times and unless the bird was calling, would have missed it. It was nice to find out later that it was life bird #422 for me. Thanks, Larry.

Birds Can Brighten a Damp Misty Day

While my Vermont friends are waiting for the “konk-a-ree” of the Red-winged Blackbird as a sign of spring, we are overwhelmed by them. We’ve been feeding birds on our site and if you put out a suet feeder, there’s a dollar a day fix for them. Same with peanut butter, oranges, and seeds. We get 50 or more, as well as their buddies the Brown-headed Cowbirds, as soon as feeders are loaded and we think, “Isn’t it time you folks shoved off?”

One thing you do in Texas is to scan blackbird flocks for the stray Yellow-headed Blackbird. I’ve been doing that for years with no luck, until yesterday.

The previous night a birder friend asked me whether I had seen the Yellow-headed that she and several others had spotted that day. So, armed with seed and goodies, I loaded up our feeders early yesterday morning. Soon, a hundred blackbirds, with a few brave doves and quail, were at it – all flying off when something spooked them, and returning en masse. Nothing but black and brown as I watched from the Airstream window.

After an hour, I decided to double-down and throw even more seeds on the ground since the early crowd had cleaned things up. As I put the feed back in the truck, I noticed about 50 blackbirds on the power lines across from our unit. I scanned them with the binos- black, black, black, etc. Half flew off and another group arrived. I looked them over and right on top of the pole, Bingo. I got a good look and snuck back into the trailer for my camera, capturing a long-range shot in the mist, before the bird departed. Life bird #419!

We went off for a few groceries and computer time with wifi and bought a bag of oranges from a roadside stand. I cut up one of the oranges and put it on the tree since the blackbirds seem to leave the citrus alone. The GreenJays, Orange-crowned Warblers, and Golden-fronted Woodpeckers feast on them. We grabbed a quick post-lunch nap as the weather continued to be cool and misty.

Mary woke me up to “Dick, there’s a bird on the tree I don’t recognize.” I grabbed my binoculars, saw an oriole, grabbed my camera and squeezed off a few shots through the trailer window.

It flew off and as I tried to look at the images, it returned and I hurriedly took a few more. Then it departed and we got out the bird book. We eliminated the big three (Altimira, Hooded, & Audobon’s) but when we came to Bullock’s, we had it nailed. Dark lores, dark eyeline, white patch on wing – check, check, check. In reviewing the images, I noted a band on this guy’s right leg – it would be interesting to know when and where that took place.

The Bullock’s Oriole is rather unusual here but we got it – a good team effort. Life bird #420. A drizzly Texas day turned into a two life bird day- you just never know. Hasta luego, mi amigos.

Chasing Mister Yellowthroat

It started about eight-thirty one night over a week ago when a sharp knock on the Airstream door launched Penny into a barking frenzy. I got her leashed as I opened the door to two Canadian birder friends who were doing a Paul Revere imitation, spreading birding news. "Dick, did you hear about the rare Gray-crowned Yellowthroat discovered at Estero today?"

I not only had not heard about it, but had never heard of it. They filled me in a bit and then went on to notify other birders in the park. Here’s what I read online the next morning:

Gray-crowned Yellowthroat is common shrubland species from northern Mexico throughout Middle America to Panama. It was formerly a breeding bird in the ABA Area, but more or less disappeared at the turn of the 20th Century. It’s become somewhat regular in south Texas since 1988 or so, with a number of records scattered throughout the area. A pair of birds even attempted nesting in Cameron County in 2005, though at least one of them was likely a hybrid with Common Yellowthroat. The last record of this species in the ABA Area was in 2006.

With Mary watching the dog, I was off to Estero Llano Grande State Park, about 45 minutes away. There was a bird walk scheduled but I decided to look for the Yellowthroat and joined 20-30 others on a path soon to be called "the stakeout." We watched, pacing to and fro, for a couple of hours and seeing/hearing nothing, most of us decided to go on an informal walk with a couple of the park hosts. We saw a wide variety of birds ( the place is one of the top spots in the Valley) but returning, met a couple of guys with big smiles, who told us, "We saw it about 15 minutes after you left." Returning to the stakeout, we spent another hours seeing nothing but brush and tall grass. C’est la vie.

I took a day off for other stuff but returned two days later about 9:30 A.M. to the news, "Sue (one of the hosts) and some folks just saw it. Go get it." There were even more birders waiting, some napping, some reading, some chatting. It was like old home week, I saw a couple of folks I first met last year. And the photo gear – several had "baby joggers" to carry in their massive lens. All was for nought – I waited nearly three hours and the bird never showed again. I decided to forget it.

So every day for a week, I read eBird reports on morning sightings, as I went elsewhere for other birds or activities. Finally, I decided to try one more time. I left before daylight yesterday and was the first onr there. After an hour, three other birders showed up and wouldn’t you know, walked right past the bird in the first ten minutes. The problem was, I was back on the path searching, just out of sight. One came back to let me know (which was very nice to do) but by the time I got there, nothing – except a nice picture they took. I watched for another half hour, getting pretty discouraged, thinking that I wasn’t destined to see it.

More birders showed up and shortly, there was a yell (someone had heard it call) and as I got there, some people were seeing it in the grass but I couldn’t. Looking through binoculars, just willing that bird to show up is hard work. But, one eagle-eyed gal from Illinois was caling out positions ans suddenly, it moved up the bush and we all had decent looks. My camera’s autofocus went wild on the branches so the documentary shot I took was pretty sad.

However, Dan Jones, one of the top birders in the Valley, took a shot two days ago when the bird was perched. As you can see, it’s beautiful.

So much of birding is being at the right place at the right time. If I never again hear, "Oh, you should have been here 15 minutes ago," I won’t be heart-broken. Meanwhile I am enjoying the memory of finding such a neat bird for life bird #417.

Sorting Sparrows at Goose Island State Park

Our six-day trip to Texas was highlighted by:

  • Trekking down our icy driveway with last minute luggage for a 5:45 AM launch Monday
  • Whiteout with treacherous driving for 20 miles around Saratoga on the Northway
  • Awful crosswinds for the first three days
  • Black ice on I-81 in PA below Chambersburg
  • Freezing rain and 30 degrees in MS
  • Heavy rain around Beaumont and steady rain through Houston (and a backup that I luckily circumvented, pulling the Mass-h_le trick of driving up the right side of everything)
  • Four comfortable nights in La Quinta Inns which, while seeming to lower in quality as we went south, still were clean, warm, and restful.)

Once out of Houston, the weather cleared and we stopped for fuel at Buc-cees (and topped off our fat levels with some great barbecue sandwiches.  Soon, I was starting to see more birds –  and at 70 mph (on low traffic roads) I noted Eastern Meadowlarks, Great-tailed Grackles, a Crested Caracara, several Northern Harriers, many Red-tail Hawks, and the ever-present Turkey Vultures. We are now settled at Goose Island State Park for a week and whilebit’s cool and windy, the only white stuff around are American White Pelicans and Great Egrets. The park is one-third full and we have a quiet spot to relax and get the trailer organized.  And bird.

I took Penny on four walks today and the bird activity was good — too early for warblers except for many Yellow-rumps, but loaded with sparrows. Sparrow identification is not something I would list when considering KSA’s (Knowledge, Skill, Ability.) It’s not easy when they keep flying up from the tall grass to spots just out of binocular range while the Vizsla on leash pulls your arm off.  I missed more than I even got a look at.  Yet, I got a lifer, a Harris’s Sparrow.  It popped up on a bush not too far away and I got the glasses, then the camera, on it. I didn’t know what it was but went back, downloaded the photos, and tentatively identified it as a juvenile Harris’s.  Then I emailed my friends at North Branch Nature Center and Chip, the Executive Director, agreed with my call.  So it was life bird #412 — first of the year and the trip.

This was one of two juvenile Harris's Sparrows I saw this morning. Lifer #412

This was one of two juvenile Harris’s Sparrows I saw this morning. Lifer #412

I ended up with six sparrow species (and may have missed others):

  1. Song
  2. Field
  3. Savannah
  4. Lincoln’s
  5. Harris’s
  6. House

I hope to sort ducks and gulls in the next couple of days.  There are rafts of Redheads and Northern Pintails and it will be time to relearn the gulls and shorebirds. Good birding.

A Morning Surprise – #400

One of my 2014 birding goals was to reach 400 life birds – in my fifth year of birding. I saw two Black-tailed Gnatcatchers as I checked into the Salton Sea State Receation Area last weekend (for 398).

The following morning I birded the Wister Unit about 25 miles south and after a great session birding from the truck crawling along managed wetlands, I came right up to a large hawk, who peered at me through the open window about 20 feet away. (Fortunately, the dog was napping in the back seat.). I got my binoculars up slowly, studied the large bill, the feathery legs, and after about a minute, the hawk shook out his feathers, took a dump, and slowly flew away. It was my first Ferruginous Hawk and an "up close and personal" encounter for number 399.

So for several days, I’ve been wondering what number 400 might be. We have been back at Gilbert Ray County Park in Tuscon and while I have had some good outings, the birding has been rather slow. I figured that perhaps in the week ahead in New Mexico, I’d get lucky.

This morning, I walked Penny just at sunrise since we had a long drive to Las Cruces ahead of us. I had my binoculars but no camera as we circled the camp loop. I spotted a hummingbird, the first I had seen there, and thought, "Another Anna’s." When I got my glasses on him, it was a spectacular Costa’s Hummingbird. I got some good looks but then he was gone. The trailer was close by so I dropped off the dog after feeding her, and grabbed my camera. Of course, he was not there – and so I started packing the truck. I went back and found him perched, in bad light, in a far off tree. The shots I got don’t capture the irridescent gorget and crown – but I saw them in the sunlight and they were spectacular. The photos do capture the pot-bellied shape.

What a neat #400. I got it just as we were leaving its range so it literally was the last chance. The morning encounter made the long trek across Arizona and New Mexico desert much more enjoyable and we are settled into a nice New Mexico state campgound.

Trogons – Aren’t They Elegant?

We are presently situated at Patagonia Lake State Park, which is beautiful in an Arizona high desert fashion and home to a nice variety of birds, but lacks wifi or cell coverage. There is no tv and FM radio is all from Mexico. The view from our park site makes up for a lot – this is the hill we see each morning.

Two weeks ago, in an email exchange with the assistant park manager, I learned that she had seen an Elegant Trogan – a spectacular bird that is a target for most birders. I’ve been out with Penny and picked up three or four new life birds: western birds that are often pretty common here – but I’ve not been this far west birding. I’ve added Gray Phoebe, Bridled Titmouse, White-throated Swift, Hammond’s Flycatcher, and Gila Woodpecker in two days.

Last night, we met with neighbors to discuss options for our future stops and the first thing that Donna, our new friend, did was to pick up her camera and said "Let me show you a picture." My response was, "I don’t know that I want to se it." Sure enough, she and her husband had seen and photographed a beautiful male trogon yesterday afternoon, I was truly happy for them but motivated.

This morning, a bird walk was scheduled for nine AM and Mary was planning to go (we take turns dog-sitting.). I decided to go out early for an hour or so before the thundering herd took to the paths.

I took the tags off Penny to quiet her and we walked the half-mile or so, seeing some nice morning activity. The lake was active with Northern Shovelers, grebes, Cinnamon Teal, and Ruddy Ducks while dozens of Ruby-crowned Kinglets worked the trees. I saw eight Western Bluebirds and many woodpeckers as we worked our way toward the creek where thr trogon had been spotted the day before.

I was just about ready to head back, knowing the group was getting ready, when a flash of color popped on to a low bush ahead. A male Elegant Trogon was looking at us, as Penny strained at the leash. I watched, tried a few photos, and handled the dog as the bird hopped to the ground, flew up to another tree, and challenged my camera/dog balancing abilities. The autofocus was going crazy with the brush and I didn’t want to spook the bird, which was rather calm.

I quit without a "great" shot and quietly retreated, happy to have seen this great lifer. As things happen, Mary’s large bird group did not see this guy but found the juvenile/female companion so they too all got their trogon.

So we have to drive four miles to check email – birds like this are why folks love southern Arizona.

Life Birds #368 & #369

Warblers can be frustrating, flitting from branch to branch, often moving through and suddenly gone, and causing you neck pain as you try to watch them high in the trees. I’ve had several that were target birds but which I kept missing. The other day, several birders gave me the old "We got some good looks at them a few minutes ago" spiel, which while true, didn’t make my day.

Saturday, I returned with the dog to Anzalduas County Park to try once more. It was quiet (there is a fee for weekends) but when I saw and heard a singing Loggerhead Shrike on the way in, and then spotted an Eastern Bluebird as I parked the truck, I was expecting a good morning. And it was.

Going into the grove of trees we visited the other day, I saw all sorts of activity up ahead. Dozens of Blue-grey Gnatcatchers and Orange-crowned warbers worked through the foliage, with many American Goldfinches feeding as well. Then I spotted something different – smaller, black and white – and a Black-throated Gray Warbler, life bird #368, popped out in the open. I studied it as it moved back into the branches, and grabbed for the camera. It was moving away, little by little.

As things happen, I then saw some yellow and in seconds, was looking at my first Yellow-throated Warbler. This time I was ready with the camera and grabbed this shot.

Then, as is often the case with warblers, it was over. They had moved on and I was left with this "wow, that was something else" feeling of being at the right place at the right time. Good Birding.

Black-billed Cuckoo — check!

As you know if you follow my Vermont Airstreamers blog, I’m in the midst of a major renovation project and thus, am spending little time for birding. This morning, I was tempted to spend an hour or two early at North Branch Nature Center, seeing if I could run into the Black-billed Cuckoo they have been hearing nearly daily.  I have been down there on several occasions recently with no luck — and today I decided to press on and get some errands done downtown.  I came home with my supplies for the Airstream project and after coffee, headed out to strip some clear coat  off two stubborn panels.

I had tested a couple of stripping compounds and had just started to check them when I heard a cuckoo sound just across the driveway and up in the woods.  I ran to the garage to get my binoculars and Mary, whose window was open, said, “Was that a cuckoo?”  I said it was and went up to look for a few minutes but it had ceased calling.  I returned to my project since I needed to rinse off the stripper before it dried on.  About then, the Black-billed Cuckoo called again from a different spot.

A Black-billed Cuckoo on Wood Road in North Middlesex, VT.

A Black-billed Cuckoo on Wood Road in North Middlesex, VT.

So, I had my cuckoo — a life bird and a County bird — but I was not satisfied because up to this point, have always seen the bird I log as a life bird.  I know that hearing it is a positive ID and I worked for about another fifteen minutes, hearing the bird periodically.  Finally, I decided to drop things, get the dog, and go for a little walk looking for it.  And so we did, down the driveway and across the road where I last heard it.  After ten minutes, I caught movement of a cuckoo-sized bird but had trouble finding it in the foliage.  I finally got part of it in the binoculars just as it started a very soft co0-coo-coo.  I fiddled with the camera, struggled to get it in the frame, and snapped off a couple of shots for a record.  I grabbed the binoculars as a second cuckoo joined the first but they moved off before I could get the camera up again.  They moved off, calling now and then, and the dog and I returned up to the trailer to get back to work.

Black-billed Cuckoos have been a nemesis bird for me now for several years – I can’t tell you how many trips I’ve made to look for them.  And two just show up in our dooryard!  Such is birding.   I’m glad I got a good look and the photo – it feels more like a real life bird — number 357 and the second one this month.