tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-93368792024-03-18T06:44:58.706-04:00The BirdchaserBirding. All the time.birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.comBlogger1365125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-26000643942098794712024-01-01T19:07:00.005-05:002024-01-01T19:07:53.825-05:00Year of the Blue Jay/Tiyas/Di'di My first bird of 2024 this morning was a Blue Jay I heard from inside before I even left the house. So 2024 will be the Year of the Blue Jay for me.Enjoyed a couple hours of quick birding in the morning, managing 50 species including Mute Swan (new for my all time Jan 1 list) and lingering Red-necked Grebe and Common Loon in the impoundment at John Heinz NWR in Philly.This is going to be a birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-48251718946229446332023-08-16T11:18:00.003-04:002023-08-16T16:22:44.904-04:00Ask and Ye Shall Recieve A couple years ago I posted this on the eBird discussion group in Facebook--Very happy that this year eBird overhauled their database so that we can report these exotic birds, track them in the database, but not have them show up in our birding totals for listing purposes. Great job eBird. So these Chukars from behind the Philly airport in 2020 are now officially in eBird--but they birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-29865729391609077862023-08-15T14:00:00.001-04:002023-08-15T14:00:29.695-04:00And Then There Were NoneOne of the things I love about birding is the window it provides onto the changing seasons, and the connection that fosters to the natural world. While we anxiously await the arrival of migratory breeding birds in the spring, you have to be paying even more attention to notice exactly when they disappear in the fall.Wood Thrush (Source: Wikipedia)I haven't heard a Wood Thrush in over a week, so birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-73316943977214836692023-08-14T10:26:00.003-04:002023-08-14T10:26:28.724-04:00July 2023 Road TripSo this may be the road most travelled by for me, I-80 out to Utah and back. We've done this drive several times, and when we are in a hurry to get out West, this is our default drive--32 to 36 hours straight, depending on stops for food. We made a quick trip out for a family reunion in Grand Teton and Yellowstone. Not a lot of new birds for the year on the drive, and not much wildlife on the birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-6235547919202413152023-08-10T11:07:00.003-04:002023-08-16T16:30:23.806-04:00My 42nd Birdiversary!!!Today marks 42 years as a birder. While I had been watching birds casually for awhile before then, 10 August 1981 is the day it really started for me, on a weeklong middle school field trip from the Portland suburbs out to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. An annual or semi-annual tradition at the time, middle school teachers at my school would take a couple van loads of kids out on what we birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-26487658784408032032023-08-01T18:46:00.004-04:002023-08-01T18:48:31.192-04:00Birding Boa OgoiToday I spent a beautiful morning out at Boa Ogoi (Shoshone:Big River AKA Bear River) with Darren Parry, a member of the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation tribal council. We visited the site of the Bear River Massacre north of Preston, Idaho--where a US Army detachment attacked and massacred over 250 Shoshone men, women, and children at a winter village in 1863.Daughters of the Utah birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-17473108585845727462023-06-21T15:28:00.005-04:002023-08-16T16:30:05.780-04:00May 2023 Road TripLat month my son Michael and I had a quick roadtrip out west, 7083 miles in 12 days. Not a lot of time for any real birding, but did log 175 species mostly from the highway. No surprises, but great scenery and fun to catch up with a few old bird friends--such as Upland Sandpiper on a fencepost in ND and Hammond's Flycatchers in Montana. I've covered most of these roads before, but taking a few birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-20643504025972689612022-12-31T15:11:00.003-05:002022-12-31T15:14:16.166-05:00Top 10 Birds of 2022Another year in the books, and another year where I didn't leave the U.S. and hardly traveled outside of Pennsylvania. Here's to more travels in the new year! eBird has me down for only 279 species this year, with 224 of those right here at home in Delaware County, PA. So for sure I need to get out more! That said, here are my Top 10 Birds of 2022.Gray-headed Swamphen--Overdue new birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-7677691563419510972022-10-31T11:01:00.002-04:002022-10-31T11:01:15.560-04:00My 20th eBird Anniversary October 18 marks my 20th anniversary as an eBird user! Can't believe it has been 20 years! As an old man, I now look back and see that on 18 Oct 1982, 20 years before I started using eBird, I was a young teenage birder with only 152 birds on my life list. 20 years before that I wasn't even alive and the Beatles had just released their first single, "Love Me Do."20 years ago, birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-28354046254914662832022-10-05T09:44:00.008-04:002022-10-05T09:44:59.517-04:002022 Southeast PA Quad County Birding Challenge Back in 2020, I challenged birders in Philly, Delaware County, and Montgomery County to see which county could--Find and report the most birds for the year on eBirdHave the most eBirders report 200+ species in the county that yearHave the highest eBirder totalHave the highest eBird yard list for the yearHave the most birders report over 100 species for their yard on eBirdIt was a lot of funbirdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-41115560958259479822021-07-29T11:27:00.001-04:002021-07-29T11:27:57.812-04:00Great White Heron Chase in Philly For the past week or so, a Great White Heron has been hanging out on the Manayunk Canal in NW Philly about a half hour from my house. This morning I braved the traffic on I-76 and headed up there. I shouldn't have worried about parking, there was ample 2 hour street parking nearby, and I took the stairs down to the canal to look for the bird. I didn't have to even look for the bird, it was birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-71306790864030438572020-05-31T21:53:00.000-04:002020-05-31T21:54:21.919-04:00Birding ProvidenceMy house is right on Providence Rd, in the township of Nether Providence in Pennsylvania, so when I am yard birding, I am literally birding Providence.
Birding Providence
But that's not the Providence I'm thinking of this week, after some interesting birding experiences. For centuries, Providence has been used as a name for Deity, or for the foresight or beneficial intervention of God.birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-84605347043822823602020-04-19T12:47:00.004-04:002020-04-19T12:47:33.766-04:00In Praise of the Sun
The sun, dominating the horizon during my first hour of Outdoor Church
I missed sunrise this morning, as I didn't get outside until 45 minutes later. But during my 4 hours of Outdoor Church in the yard, I became increasingly cognizant and appreciative of my relationship to the sun.
During the first hour, with the sun low on the horizon, the local weather station was showing a birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-4015661231021977582020-04-09T13:28:00.001-04:002020-04-09T13:29:38.270-04:00Birding the COVID-19 ShutdownThe COVID-19 pandemic has killed many people and disrupted the lives of many more. While it is a terrible tragedy and scary for all of us, I've been birding a lot from my yard as well as local hotspots I can get to without having to bump into too many people. I've got my NFC station up and running, and have already had a couple of Virginia Rails caught on tape. I am currently #1birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-58469894693914220902020-02-08T18:57:00.004-05:002020-02-08T18:57:57.918-05:00Ornitheology SeminarLooking forward to my latest five lecture series coming up next week at Widener University--Ornitheology: Birds as Symbols and Messengers of the Divine. Lectures will include:
Introduction and Birds in Australian Dreaming and African Animism
Birds in Shamanic Cultures
Ancient Middle Eastern and European Gods and Birds
Birds in the Abrahamic Religions
Eastern and Southeast Asian Religions birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-76321143460077179552019-12-31T10:17:00.004-05:002019-12-31T10:17:54.537-05:00My Top Birds of 2019As we wrap up another year, time to take a last look back at my birding for the year. I had some great birding in my home county, but other than that, I didn't get a lot of birding in elsewhere this year, ending with a very meager 282 species for 2019 (my worst total in recent memory). But here are my Top 10.
10. Harlequin Duck--rare in Pennsylvania, a very enjoyable sighting of a birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-8440589765452699902019-12-16T09:40:00.000-05:002019-12-16T09:40:39.771-05:00100th Glenolden Pennsylvania Christmas Bird Count
When you are supposed to be birding the river for waterfowl, and all you get is this.
Saturday was the 100th Glenolden PA CBC. I woke up very excited to try and help the count get to 100 species for the day. It was a little wet and drizzly, but I left at 5:30 to look for owls. Long story short--after 17 miles of driving and playing owl tapes, no owls.
I started the day up birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-49382991896892424532019-12-12T21:17:00.002-05:002019-12-12T21:17:17.962-05:00REVIEW: Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America
So I've been sitting on this review for over a year--a very worthy title that I want to do justice to, but have struggled with how to review. Here's the short of it--this is a pathbreaking book, representing an amazing new effort in birdsound identification that I want to be successful, but one that I am still struggling with.
Donna at 10,000 Birds has a great review of the book birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-31611667163204005962019-12-12T18:35:00.001-05:002019-12-12T18:35:23.933-05:00Scouting for Suburban Philly Christmas Bird CountThis year for the Glenolden Christmas Bird Count I've inherited a 10 mile stretch of the Delaware River downstream from Philly, from the PHL International Airport to Marcus Hook on the Pennsylvania/Delaware state line (see below).
My Glenolden CBC area from Marcus Hook, PA (left) to PHL International Airport (right)
Over the past week, I've scouted out more small urban woodlots, marinas, birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-24848383006852362162019-06-05T19:17:00.000-04:002019-06-05T19:17:00.458-04:00Arrival of Fat White Jowled AmericansWhat is big, fat, white, American with big jowls?
Last night my friend Sheryl Johnson was watching the sky over Haverford College, hoping to catch sight of the shorebird flocks that pass over SE Pennsylvania at dusk on late spring days with south winds. While watching the sky, she and her daughter and friends were surprised so see five American White Pelicans flapping south in the fading birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-52714148151503922522019-04-06T23:17:00.000-04:002019-04-06T23:17:25.766-04:00Early Philly Migration on NEXRADSo far there have been a few nights with birds on the NEXRAD. Tonight is another night of light migration. A few birds on the radar, but not hearing any on my microphone. Still waiting for nocturnal migrants to make an appearance here at my listening station.
Light nocturnal migration over Philly
birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-21729967609965347482019-03-18T13:04:00.001-04:002019-03-18T13:15:15.985-04:00Kōlea--Hawaiian urban birdOn a recent trip to Oahu to present Mayan ethno-ornithological results at an endangered languages conference, I enjoyed spending time with the kōlea, otherwise known as the Pacific Golden Plover. While I tend to think of these as breeders in the arctic wilderness, in Hawaii these guys are running around in people's lawns, roadsides, and even forests. They are common everywhere, birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-6001441260186262832019-01-21T13:30:00.004-05:002019-01-21T13:30:56.761-05:00BCDC Field Trip--January 19
Last Saturday I led a morning field trip for the Birding Club of Delaware County. We hit the main vantage points along the Delaware River here in Delaware County, looking for wintering waterfowl and other winter birds. Highlights were Great Cormorant (locally uncommon) and 61 Tundra Swans. I also found a couple American Tree Sparrows right before the trip started, but we birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-8994346969156336912018-07-27T11:45:00.000-04:002018-07-27T11:45:25.747-04:00Birding in a van, down by the riverMy name is Rob Fergus. I'm an ornithologist. I am almost 50 years old, and I bird in a van, down by the river.
With fall migration well underway, the best place in my county for shorebirds is a small tidal flat on the Delaware River behind the Philadelphia airport. Several times a week I try to hit there at low tide to see what comes my way. Half a dozen Bald Eagles birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9336879.post-22520465620098875702018-05-29T09:33:00.000-04:002018-05-29T09:33:49.512-04:00Adventures in Birding: A Book, A Culture, A Life
As a teenage birder growing up in Oregon, my favorite book to check out from the Clackamas County Library was Adventures in Birding, by Jean Piatt. Published in 1973, Adventures in Birding chronicled the adventures of Piatt and his wife Marybelle as they made journeys around North America trying to find 600 species of birds to join what was then called the 600 club--an informal group birdchaserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12059679554555819009noreply@blogger.com2