Birding Juneau

I'm in Juneau getting ready to board our cruise ship for exploring the Glacier Bay and the Inside Passage. Here I am with a native Tlingit building, raven pole, and a raven on the roof.

Birds right in town are the Common Raven, Bonaparte's Gull, Mew Gull, Herring Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Bald Eagle, Swainson's Thrush, and Pigeon Guillemot.

More from the trip when I get back!

Common Myna

Probably the most abundant and ubiquitous bird on Oahu, the Common Myna was introduced to Hawaii from India in 1865 by Dr. William Hildebrand to combat invasive Army worms. Hawaii has never been the same since. These birds nest in trees but also on buildings and bridges, and are found walking on parking lots, lawns, and beaches all over Oahu.

In the United States, the only other place to see them is in south Florida, where they have become more and more common since first reported in 1983.




I took these shots on Oahu with a Canon PowerShot through my 7x42 Zeiss binoculars.

Birding Oahu

Oahu is covered with birds. That said, birding Oahu can be a challenge!

Upon arriving in Honolulu, one quickly sees Spotted Doves and White Terns (Fairy Terns) all over the city, as well as the ever present Common Mynahs and Red-vented Bulbuls. Birding any of the parks or open areas around the city quickly gets one several other non-native birds (including Zebra Doves, Japanese White-eye, Red-billed Leiothrix, Common Waxbill, and Red-crested Cardinal).

Last weekend I was on Oahu to present a paper at a conference, and spent four days exploring the island. Beyond the common birds mentioned above, most other birds, especially native birds, were few and far between.



To find native wetland birds, I had to journey to the Kahuka area at the far northern tip of the island. The James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge and adjacent sewage treatment facility are gated and closed to the public, but by standing on the sign pictured here, I was able to see some ponds as well as all four of the native birds pictured on the sign (from left to right Hawaiian Stilt, Hawaiian Gallinule, Hawaiian Duck, and Hawaiian Coot). I was also lucky enough to spot three Bristle-thighed Curlews that hadn't yet departed for their Alaskan breeding grounds.



Seabirds were easily found at many rocky headlands--though usually in small numbers. The most plentiful by far were Red-footed Boobies. I only saw one Brown Booby (a flyby at China Walls in Hawaii Kai), and a couple of Red-tailed Tropicbirds and one White-tailed Tropicbird near Makapu'u Point. The picture above is from La'ie Point, where within a few hundred yards of shore I was able to spot Wedge-tailed Shearwater, Christmas Shearwater, and a single Bulwer's Petrel. By keeping my eyes open, I was able to see a Great Frigatebird (while body surfing at Waimanalo Beach Park) and a small flock of Grey-backed Terns (again at China Walls), but around most of the tourist beaches seabirds were few and far between.



The forests above Waikiki (above) are mostly made up of non-native trees brought in to control erosion after the island was mostly deforested in the past century. The birds there are almost all introduced as well. The common birds listed above are also joined by the melodious White-rumped Shama and a small handful of other birds. One is almost continuously haunted by the specter of missing native plants and birds. To think about the dozens of native birds now missing is heartbreaking. It took two hikes up Mt. Tantalus to finally find a single native forest bird (another story completely, and coming soon!). A couple of hours looking for the Oahu Elepaio near Hawaii Kai were singularly unproductive.



A visit to the picturesque Byodo-In Temple (above), a replica of a 900 year old Buddhist temple in Japan, illustrates the sad state of Oahu's birdlife. The place is crawling with birds--but they consist of a dozens of individuals of only a handful of introduced birds, including Common Peafowl, Black Swan, Cockatiel, Red-crested Mynah, and Common Waxbill. Most of the birds are actually the abundant Zebra Dove (below), Spotted Doves, and Common Mynahs that are ubiquitous in the settled parts of the island.



So while Oahu is a fantastic vacation spot, and crawling with birds, it is a challenge to see more than just a couple dozen introduced land birds and the most common seabirds (boobies and fairy terns). To see native wetland birds requires a bit of a drive, and finding native forest birds is probably best accomplished on some of the other Hawaiian islands.

More photos from my trip on Facebook.

40 Days and Nights in the Bird Blogging Wilderness?

It has been two weeks since Audubon let me go, and almost as long since I've posted anything. Enjoyed a trip to Austin with my family, including an afternoon of birding and catching turtles, frogs, and lizards at Hornsby Bend.

Pondering the future of The Birdchaser, and bird bloggining in general. I first started this blog when I found out I hired by Audubon and would be moving to Pennsylvania for the job. The idea was to use the blog as another motivator to keep myself out in the field as much as possible while holding down a "real" job :-)

The bird blogging world has changed a lot in the meantime. Now it is almost more of a photo journalism medium. Blogging has created new birding celebrities. Many blogs have come and go. Few attract a large regular audience.

So I'm taking a sort of quiet time right now, a sort of 40 day fast, to think about where we are headed with all this bird blogging, and where I see myself fitting in.

Any thoughts about the future of The Birdchaser are welcome. Meanwhile, I've got birding trips to Hawaii and Alaska lined up for most of June. Have fun out there!

Classic Birding Bit

If you haven't seen this classic produced by my friend Evan for the Daily Show, treat yourself! Little known fact: Audubon had the chance to hire Evan a few years ago, but they went another way. He hasn't suffered since then, working on some very popular shows. But ya gotta wonder what Audubon might be like if they had more creative folks of Evan's caliber on staff (and could afford to pay them what they are worth!).

Ticked off while birding

While birding this past Saturday I brushed off three wood ticks that got onto me in the field, and when I got home I pulled off one nymph deer tick that had embedded itself in my leg. While I'm a big fan of strange and unusual creatures, I have to admit that these little critters give me the willies--and worse. A couple years ago I got a Lyme disease infection from a deer tick bite. I'll be watching the site of this latest bite to see if it shows sign of an infection, and will probably get a blood test done later this year just to make sure there isn't an undetected infection.

A new movie is just out discussing the controversy around the diagnosis and treatment of chronic Lyme disease. Under Our Skin is well worth watching or even showing in your community. Be careful when you are out there birding. It is often tempting to go crashing through the brush in the quest to see more birds. But that is exactly where the ticks are. Take proper precautions out there, and especially do a good tick check when you come in from the field and get medical attention if you are bit or find signs of a tick-borne disease!

Birdathon Day List

In eight hours today we found the following birds in the Wissahickon Watershed in and around Ambler, Montgomery Co, Pennsylvania. Usually not a lot of water birds around, it is mostly upland habitats. Bob Ridgely joined us for a couple hours in the morning--most productive place all day was Militia Hill in the Fort Washington State Park. This is my fifth year helping out with the birdathon, and I really enjoy birding with my mostly retired birdathon buddies!

Not a huge list, but a very satisfying day:

Observation date: 5/8/09
Number of species: 74

Canada Goose 25
Wood Duck 5
Mallard 8
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Great Blue Heron 4
Green Heron 4
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Solitary Sandpiper 1
Rock Pigeon 1
Mourning Dove 28
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1
Black-billed Cuckoo 2
Great Horned Owl 1
Chimney Swift 12
Belted Kingfisher 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 6
Downy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker 1
Eastern Wood-Pewee 2
Eastern Phoebe 3
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Eastern Kingbird 5
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Warbling Vireo 2
Red-eyed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 12
American Crow 6
Tree Swallow 25
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 2
Barn Swallow 18
Carolina Chickadee 4
Tufted Titmouse 5
White-breasted Nuthatch 2
Carolina Wren 1
Eastern Bluebird 3
Swainson's Thrush 1
American Robin 55
Gray Catbird 45
Northern Mockingbird 4
European Starling 13
Blue-winged Warbler 1
Northern Parula 7
Yellow Warbler 3
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Magnolia Warbler 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 4
Yellow-rumped Warbler 85
Black-throated Green Warbler 12
Black-and-white Warbler 8
American Redstart 1
Ovenbird 2
Common Yellowthroat 3
Hooded Warbler 1
Scarlet Tanager 2
Eastern Towhee 7
Chipping Sparrow 12
Field Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 11
White-throated Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 9
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 5
Indigo Bunting 3
Bobolink 5
Red-winged Blackbird 35
Common Grackle 15
Brown-headed Cowbird 28
Orchard Oriole 1
Baltimore Oriole 18
House Finch 1
American Goldfinch 17
House Sparrow 5

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Spring--finally!!!

The rain finally stopped long enough this morning for a short foray into the woods on my way into the office this morning (only three more days and counting!). A lot of flooding kept me out of some of the areas at Peace Valley, but it was nice to see the catbirds everywhere and run into a Veery, Yellow Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. Tomorrow is my annual birdathon for a local watershed, so looking forward to a full day in the field!

Birdchaser Moving On

Yesterday I was informed that Audubon was eliminating my position and my last day of work there will be May 11. I'll miss helping run the Great Backyard Bird Count and working on eBird and blogging at Audubon Birdscapes. On the other hand, I look forward to finding new ways to work with folks around the country to make the world better for birds and people. And to more birding and blogging here at The Birdchaser!

The Ultimate Life List

I don't remember when in the early 90s I first heard about Phoebe Snetsinger, the indomitable middle-aged birder who became a legend chasing birds around the world in a quest to see more than 8,000 bird species. I never got a chance to meet her, but her daughter Marmot worked on the same project I did in Montana one summer, and in the mid-90s I house-sat for some mutual friends in Austin as they joined her on a few privately organized birding expeditions. Her persistence, attention to detail, and note-taking were famous and we were proud to see her as a birding hero.

I remember hearing and discussing her death (in a van accident on a birding expedition to Madagascar) in the fall of 1999 when I was just starting my PhD program. My own chasing about after new birds was starting to slow down as I faced the challenges of grad school and parenthood. When the American Birding Association published her memoir Birding on Borrowed Time, I got it from inter library loan and enjoyed what I thought would be the ultimate account of her birding exploits.

Frankly, when I heard that Olivia Gentile was coming out with a new biography of Snetsinger, I wondered why in the world we would ever want or need another book about the late great birder. Birding on Borrowed Time had pretty much covered all the trips and all the birds that she had seen, and seemed like the definitive bio.

Now, having read Life List, I'm grateful that Gentile took the time to revisit Snetsinger's life and times. With much more background on Snetsinger's family and copious details provided by friends and family, we get another view of the determined, and even obsessed, bird lister. A view that contributes to her memory, as well as to the growing literature chronicling the social and emotional toll that so frequently encumbers serious birding.

As with Dan Koeppel's To See Every Bird on Earth: A Father, a Son, and a Lifetime Obsession, Gentile's book shows in heart-rending detail the emotional costs that serious birding demands from those caught by the siren song of increasingly harder to find new birds, and from their closest family members. As we read about Snetsinger's exploits, we birders may feel twinges of jealousy--so many great birds and birding trips!--but also recoil from the emotional devastation that Snetsinger left in her wake.

And we may see hints of these same dual forces in our own lives. I already mentioned how my own bird chasing started dropping off in grad school as I struggled to juggle family, school, birding, and other competing interests. On my recent trip to Europe I fought off temptations to hijack weekend family time towards a pursuit of Eagle Owls and other lusted after avians. Its hard to get enough of both family time and birds--unless you're willing to write off one or the other.

Back when I was house-sitting for friends who were off on birding adventures, and before kids came to my family, some of the tour leaders mentioned in Gentile's book met me for a bite to eat at the Whole Foods in Austin. They told me about how great it was to be in the field, as well as how difficult it would be to have a family as a tour leader. One result of that conversation was that I ended up going back to grad school rather than trying to make a career of bird tour leading.

Fifteen years later, I've got the advanced degrees, a job at Audubon, and still manage to get out and see birds pretty much every day. Sometimes I even get to travel to see birds. Reading Life List, I revisit not only Snetsinger's exploits, but my own birding path, with the inevitable decisions that become signposts along the way. My own life list is far, far smaller than that of many of my friends. We all make choices. Hopefully, as you enjoy reading about Phoebe Snetsinger and her choices, you'll appreciate the ones that you make every day in your own efforts to fully enjoy birds along with whatever else gives you joy.

And if you are like me, it will inspire you to take even more birding trips in the near future!

Rhymes with Bird

For your blogging/poetry needs, from one online source:

blurred, burd, byrd, curd, ferd, gerd, gird, gjerde, heard, herd, hird, hurd, jerde, kurd, leard, nerd, slurred, spurred, stirred, third, word

Missing of course: a slang term for feces. And what about purred?

Any others?

Forensic Bird Photo ID Challenge

So here's the challenge: A) find the bird, B) tell me what it is.

At least as good as published photos of 21st Century Ivory-billed Woodpeckers!

Botched digibin'd shot through my 7X42s. Bird took off before I could set the zoom on my digital camera and get another shot.

Great Tits!

(photo: wikimedia commons)
Ah Europe, you gotta love a place where you can see tits every day and talk about them with a straight face! These little birds are everywhere. And so are their cousins--Blue Tits. Other tits, such as the Long-tailed Tits I saw this afternoon are less common, but not too hard to come up with.

Europe, the land of Great Tits!

Bar-headed Goose

Snapped a photo of this beauty yesterday in Hofgarten park in Düsseldorf. It's a Central Asian bird, and since this is Western Europe, it's just an escapee--not countable by most birding standards. But a beauty nonetheless. Düsseldorf is crawling with exotic birds--I see Rose-ringed Parakeets from India almost as often as the native House Sparrows. A pair of feral Ruddy Shelducks cruise up and down the Rhine near here, and I see Canada Goose and Egyptian Goose almost every day. On the other hand, and ironic I think, I have yet to see a European Starling here, while back in PA they are a dime a dozen.

German Duck Stairs

One of the things I get a kick out over here in Germany are the little stairs in all the fountains so baby ducks can get in and out of the water. Nice!

Birding Benrath Schloss in Düsseldorf

Benrath Schloss, a big pink palace in southern Düsseldorf is a great spot, but maybe not the birdiest set of grounds in mid-April. Lots of Chiffchaffs singing, a Blackcap, and the ever-present tits. Did add Song Thrush to the trip list there, and enjoyed watching a Wren shaking its wings in defense of its territory, and the courtship display of the Great Tits. Otherwise, mostly a big reflecting pool--complete with Greylag Goose, Mute Swan, and Great Cormorant. There weren't any Tufted Ducks there today (there were over a dozen last week), so had to settle for a couple Canada Goose, an Egyptian Goose, and a Moorehen.

Birding Hamlet's Castle (Helsingør, Denmark)

OK, very cool castle. Not many birds. Coot, Tufted Duck, Mute Swan in the mote. Jackdaws on the castle. White Wagtails on the grass and on the shore. Worth a stop for the scenery if not for the birds.

Birding Grenen, Denmark

Spent a nice couple of hours walking out to the northernmost spit of sand in Denmark this afternoon with my kids. Lots of great birds around (King Eider, Common Eider, Common Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Northern Gannet, etc.). Also some great birding graffiti scrawled on the old German bunker fortification on the beach. Not everyday you get to see birding graffiti!

Birding Hasseler Forst in Düsseldorf

Yesterday I spent the afternoon in Hasseler Forst, a local park and birding spot here in Düsseldorf. I was able to find about 35 species while playing around with my kids--including Middle Spotted Woodpecker (my new favorite woodpecker!). A series of lakes is nearby at Elbseen, which held lots of waterbirds including Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe, and Eurasian Coot, as well as a Grey Heron rookery.

To get to Hassler Forst, take a bus to the Hassels Kirche stop, and take the road and path near the church back to the park. You first go over a highway crossing, and then in about a quarter mile you hit an area with conifers on both sides that is supposed to be good for Goldcrest and Firecrest (I only got the Goldcrest on my short visit).

Beyond the conifers is a train track, and take the path to the right through some oaks, where the Middle Spotted Woodpeckers are found. Also saw Great Spotted Woodpecker and Green Woodpecker here.

At the end of this path is a playground (for the kids), and you can take the path to the left to go under the train tracks to Elbseen. From there take the path to the right to get the best views of the lakes. About a half mile down this path is a viewing tower.

A great place to bird and I look forward to getting back there soon! Thanks to local birder Klaus Böhm for the directions!

Birding Dusseldorf

So far just the usual backyard birds in Dusseldorf: Wood Pigeon, Carrion Crow, Jay, Magpie, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Blackbird, Dunnock, etc. Did see three Yellow-legged Gulls near the Rhine yesterday.

In Belgium, saw Fieldfare at the Battle of the Bulge memorial in Bastogne, as well as a Pheasant on the road, and my first Swallow (Barn Swallow) of the year at St. Anne Chateau. Also Rose-ringed Parakeets at the royal palace in Brussels.

Once I figure out the bus system, should be able to start getting more birds soon.

Birdchaser in the eBird Top 10

eBird now has a new feature where you can see how you rank. I'm currently ranked #8 among all eBird users for species reported in North America (the ABA checklist area). Of course, that standing is only because the more senior top listers in the country aren't using eBird yet. I'd love to see my standing drop if more people were reporting their lists on eBird!

Wordless Wednesday: Swallow-tailed Kite

Shot with my point and shoot (x3 optical zoom) while driving as it flew alongside the highway.

Bad Photos of Good Bird: Snail Kite

OK, so my digiscoping was pretty lousy on this one, but I got over 50 shots of a Snail Kite hunting and eating snails at the end of Joe Overstreet Rd on Lake Kissimmee. Seeing some really cool birds, just need a better scope setup...

Loggerhead Shrike

Digiscoped through my old Bausch & Lomb Discoverer scope on a window mount on my recent Florida trip. You gotta love butcher birds!

Dead Hog

There were at least a dozen Black Vultures on this roadside feast when I first pulled up, but they scattered. Note also the dead 'dillo (click for closer view, if you dare!).

Florida Scrub-Jays

Had a chance to digibin and digiscope some Florida Scrub-Jays on Sunday. The following shots were taken with a hand held Canon PowerShot SD750 through Zeiss 7x42 BTs.

Squirrel Boobs

Not for the faint-hearted, today at work I got an eye full of this gal hanging on my bird feeder showing off all her glory!

Birdchaser on Martha Stewart Radio

Tomorrow morning at 8:30EDT I will be on Morning Living, a Martha Stewart Living Sirius Satellite Radio show talking about what is going on with birds in people’s yards this time of year—early migration, nesting, etc. If you have satellite radio, tune in for a few moments of fun bird news! Or you can get a FREE online trial subscription here.

I and the Bird #96

Inspired by Black Oystercatchers I watched earlier this week in California, here is the latest I and the Bird (#96). Just like an oystercatcher, you're gonna have to hunt for the juicy bird blog posts. Click on an oyster or starfish image to see what you can find. There's plenty of great meat to be had, and even some pearls. But you're gonna have to work for them! Have fun!




The next I and the Bird will be hosted by Great Auk-or Greatest Auk? Submit your posts there by April 2.

Big Sur Condor

After my talk this afternoon I slipped out of the Audubon California Assembly to drive down Highway 1 for a couple hours. Great vistas!

Highlight was a lone young California Condor (Condor #44) perched on a rock above the surf at Big Sur. Unfortunately, all I could get were these poor digiscoped shots through a handheld spotting scope.



It’s been over 20 years since I’ve seen a free-flying condor, so it was great to spend a few moments with this young bird.

Birding Asilomar

This morning before the Audubon California Assembly, a bunch of us went for a bird walk down to the beach. Great to see Black Oystercatcher, Black Turnstone, Whimbrel, and Surfbirds. Star of the show was a Rhinoceros Auklet floating in the surf just offshore. Wonderful!

Sea Otters at Moss Landing

Driving down to Asilomar from San Jose, I stopped by Moss Landing and was delighted to find maybe 30 or more sea otters floating in the inlet. Growing up in Oregon in the ‘80s I could only dream of seeing these wonderful beasts. Here I had them floating on their back within a stones throw. Isn’t life great!?!

My Yard eBird

Want to keep track of the birds in your yard? The new My Yard eBird makes it easier than ever. Just sign in, mark your yard on a map, and start entering your bird sightings. My Yard eBird keeps your yard list, keeps track of how the bird numbers change over time, and provides graphs and charts to help you better understand the movements and fluctuations of bird numbers in your yard.

My Yard eBird has all the features of regular eBird, but we've made it a little easier for backyard birdwatchers. You don't have to be a rocket scientist, computer geek, or bird nerd to now use the most powerful tool available to help you keep track of the birds in your yard.

All you need is this link and the birds in your yard to get started!

Signs of Spring

Sure as shooting it's Spring in Pennsylvania. Early Spring, but Spring nonetheless!

Yesterday I had a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers courtship displaying outside my window at work, and a Fox Sparrow under the feeders, and a Chipping Sparrow showed up. Flocks of Common Grackles are on the move, and all the cavity nesting birds are singing away. Fish Crows are moving back into the neighborhood. We may yet get a late snowstorm, but we've turned the corner. Spring is in the air!

MEGA: Black-headed Siskin in Texas

Today a Black-headed Siskin, a Mesoamerican bird, was found for the first time north of Mexico on South Padre Island in Texas. More info here and photos here. Wish you were in Texas?