The Hawk Owl's Nest

Bathroom Bird ID Quiz

2010-11-21T23:40:00.006-05:00

I've had these bird postcards hanging in my bathroom for about 5 years now. I bought them at Ikea when I was first decorating the house. I bought them mostly because they had birds on them, but also because they went with the neutral beige theme of my wonderful artful decorative eye. This was before Beth was in my life to add any feminine touch to the decor. Over the years, I've stared at them as I've been busy doing other things. I never realized that they would make a good bird quiz. So here they are, make your best guesses in the comments. To be honest, I'm not even positive on the IDs, but I have good guesses.

White-tailed Kite in NJ

2010-11-05T18:34:00.002-04:00

A White-tailed Kite has been found in NJ along the Barnegat Bayshore. It was first reported on October 21 by a local birder, but not seen again. It was then re-found by the same birder on Wednesday. Today, it was seen by many birders. This is the second record of this species in NJ. From how I've heard it, the story of the first sighting goes something like this: A birder was photographing a group of Mississippi Kites down in Cape May. Some weeks or months later he was sharing the photos with a well-known NJ birder and, lo and behold, one of the photos was actually a White-tailed Kite!

Interestingly, a White-tailed Kite spent over two months in Connecticut and was last seen in mid-October. I may or may not try for the bird this weekend. It's about 90 minutes from me and we've got some plans, so I'll play it by ear.

Stink Bug Protection

2010-10-24T22:40:00.005-04:00

This fall, Facebook has been filled with comments about Brown Marmorated Stink Bug infestations throughout NJ and surrounding states. These little imported scumbags like to invade homes to seek warmth, slipping in through even the tiniest cracks. Yesterday I witnessed an epic battle between a spider and a stink bug on our porch. The spider won. This spider is for sale to the highest bidder as stink bug protection for your home.

My Moth Light Brings All The Bugs to the Yard

2010-10-21T22:14:00.001-04:00

Some people simply see moths as a pest that they want to keep away from their wool or as a visitor to their porch light. While most moths are not very colorful like their butterfly cousins, they are beautiful in their own way and are very interesting critters. In an effort to learn more about the moths in my yard, I invested a few bucks and created a somewhat portable moth light. Its only requirement is a power outlet and a place to hang the sheet. The idea is that the light attracts moths and other insects to a white sheet for easy viewing. Here are the materials I used:

2 work lights with clamps. I happened to have these already, but they
are about $5-7 at the hardware store
Black light bulbs – I got these CFL ones at Wal-mart (sorry Wal-mart haters, but no place else had them). If you could find a bigger bulb, you may not need two bulbs.
An old tripod – a new one would work too. I use this as a stand for
the lights, so many things could serve this purpose.
A white sheet – 100% cotton is preferred because it glows best with
the black light

I set this up in our little condo “backyard” in Auust by stringing a rope between a fence and the house. I turned it on just as it was getting dark and waited a while. Even after 15 minutes, small micromoths started to come. Within 30 minutes, moths started to show up and some other insects too. Here is a taste of what was seen. Thanks to Seabrooke Leckie for help with most of the IDs. Have you tried this yourself? I was amazed how easy it was.

5156 - Nomophila nearctica - Lucerne Moth

9666 - Spodoptera frugiperda - Fall Armyworm (Female)

9669 - Spodoptera ornithogalli - Yellow-striped Armyworm PROBABLY

5552 – Galasa nigrinodis – Boxwood Leaftier Moth

Myodocha serripes - Long-necked Seed Bug

Big news!

2010-10-19T00:03:00.003-04:00

In case you haven't heard, I've been asked to be one of the beat writers over at 10,000 Birds! I'll be covering topics mostly around NJ and butterflies, not necessarily mutually exclusive topics. I'm humbled to be part of the great company of writers that Mike, Corey, and Charlie have assembled. Look for my first post this Thursday.

Re-emergence

2010-10-17T08:48:00.003-04:00

Like a butterfly stretching its wings for the first time after coming out of its chrysalis... or a baby bird cracking through its egg shell... ok, enough with that... Anyway, it's good to be back with my first blog post in MANY months. So what the heck have I been doing all this time? I've been spending most of the time with our son Julian who just turned one a few weeks ago. I also started a new job back in May which has been keeping me very busy. In between that I did a bit of birding and even a bit of "mothing." I'll have some posts about both of those things in the coming days. I'll also be reviving some old topics, commenting on some recent developments in the birding world, and maybe even have a few surprises very soon (no, not a second kid yet). For now, I leave you with a picture of little Jules from his "Very Hungry Caterpillar" themed birthday party.

Puerto Rico – Non-Avian Highlights

2010-02-12T16:18:00.002-05:00

Birds weren’t all that we saw in Puerto Rico. There were many butterflies seen flitting about that I didn’t get photographs of. These included Great Southern White, Cloudless Sulphur, and Florida Purplewing. I did get one decent butterfly photo of a Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak.

Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak

We found two funky-looking moths. The first flew into the restaurant during dinner in Maricao. It’s about the size of a monarch.

The second was found at Casa Cubuy in El Yunque. This one was about 3” long.

Lizards are plentiful in Puerto Rico. The most common are of the Anolis genus like the one below.

We also saw this interesting lizard in a tree. Maybe someone out there knows the ID. It’s probably another anole! (Update - might be Puerto Rican Crested Anole)

This concludes all of the Puerto Rico posts I had planned. It was a fantastic trip!

Puerto Rico Bird List

2010-02-09T19:51:00.002-05:00

Here is the complete list of species seen. Asterisk denotes an endemic.

DUCKS, GEESE, AND WATERFOWL

West Indian Whistling-Duck

Blue-winged Teal

White-cheeked Pintail

GREBES

Least Grebe

BOOBIES AND GANNETS

Brown Booby

PELICANS

Brown Pelican

FRIGATEBIRDS

Magnificent Frigatebird

HERONS, EGRETS, AND BITTERNS

Great Blue Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Little Blue Heron

Cattle Egret

Green Heron

Black-crowned Night-Heron

IBISES AND SPOONBILLS

Glossy Ibis

NEW WORLD VULTURES

Turkey Vulture

OSPREY

Osprey

HAWKS, EAGLES, AND KITES

Broad-winged Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

FALCONS AND CARACARAS

Peregrine Falcon

RAILS, GALLINULES, AND COOTS

Sora

Purple Gallinule

Common Moorhen

American Coot

Caribbean Coot

SANDPIPERS AND ALLIES

Spotted Sandpiper

Greater Yellowlegs

Lesser Yellowlegs

Ruddy Turnstone

Dunlin

TERNS

Royal Tern

PIGEONS AND DOVES

Rock Pigeon

Scaly-naped Pigeon

Plain Pigeon

Eurasian Collared-Dove

White-winged Dove

Zenaida Dove

Common Ground-Dove

PARROTS

Monk Parakeet

CUCKOOS

Mangrove Cuckoo

Puerto Rican Lizard-Cuckoo*

Smooth-billed Ani

OWLS

Puerto Rican Screech-Owl (heard)*

NIGHTJARS AND ALLIES

Puerto Rican Nightjar (heard)*

HUMMINGBIRDS

Antillean Mango

Green Mango*

Green-throated Carib

Antillean Crested Hummingbird

Puerto Rican Emerald*

TODIES

Puerto Rican Tody*

KINGFISHERS

Belted Kingfisher

WOODPECKERS

Puerto Rican Woodpecker*

TYRANT FLYCATCHERS

Lesser Antillean Pewee

Puerto Rican Flycatcher*

Gray Kingbird

Loggerhead Kingbird

VIREOS

Puerto Rican Vireo*

SWALLOWS

Caribbean Martin

Barn Swallow

Cave Swallow

THRUSHES AND ALLIES

Red-legged Thrush

MOCKINGBIRDS AND THRASHERS

Northern Mockingbird

Pearly-eyed Thrasher

NEW WORLD WARBLERS

Northern Parula

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Adelaide's Warbler*

Prairie Warbler

Elfin-woods Warbler*

Black-and-white Warbler

BANANAQUIT

Bananaquit

TANAGERS AND ALLIES

Puerto Rican Tanager*

Puerto Rican Spindalis*

BUNTINGS,SPARROWS,SEEDEATERS,ALLIES

Yellow-faced Grassquit

Black-faced Grassquit

Puerto Rican Bullfinch*

TROUPIALS AND ALLIES

Yellow-shouldered Blackbird*

Greater Antillean Grackle

Shiny Cowbird

Greater Antillean Oriole

Venezuelan Troupial

SISKINS, CROSSBILLS, AND ALLIES

Antillean Euphonia

OLD WORLD SPARROWS

House Sparrow

WEAVERS AND ALLIES

Orange Bishop

WAXBILLS AND ALLIES

Orange-cheeked Waxbill

Bronze Mannikin

Nutmeg Mannikin

-------- STATISTICS --------

Species seen - 86

Puerto Rico Day 6: Last day and final thoughts

2010-02-07T00:10:00.002-05:00

We spent the night at Casa Cubuy eco-lodge. It’s a really nice spot overlooking the rainforest. There’s a river and waterfalls nearby. It’s very open, but covered from the rain. There are lots of comfy seats, a little fridge with beer and wine for purchase, and lots of hammocks. It could benefit from some bird feeders. The rooms are nicely decorated, although ours had quirky 4-poster beds which didn’t really match the eco-lodge theme. The rooms were clean and comfortable. Like many tropical sites, they had the “no flushing toilet paper” rule.

It rained all night and into the morning. We spent 45 minutes or so on the deck, but didn’t see many birds. It was pretty foggy. We did have great views of Greater Antillean Oriole. I’ve heard the breakfasts at Casa Cubuy are great, but we didn’t stay.

We packed up for our journey toward the airport. We stopped for breakfast at the Fajardo Inn. Not only is this a nice resort with good breakfast, the grounds are a great place to see two sought-after hummingbirds: Green-throated Carib and Antillean Crested Hummingbird. We were not disappointed. Both hummingbirds were right there in the parking lot! We also saw Nutmeg Mannikins and another Greater Antillean Oriole.

Green-throated Carib

Antillean Crested Hummingbird

Greater Antillean Oriole

We made a few stops in El Yunque in hopes of seeing Puerto Rican Parrots, but we didn’t find any. We did see some nice waterfalls and a Black-throated Blue Warbler.

Thus ended our trip in Puerto Rico. I had a blast. I highly recommend Wildside Nature Tours. My experience was great with very competent, flexible, and personable leaders. Others who have done trips with them have said similar things. Thanks again to 10,000 Birds and Wildside Nature Tours for sponsoring the contest that got me there!

Go to Day 6

Puerto Rico Day 5: Finding What We Missed

2010-02-06T10:53:00.002-05:00

We started around 6:00AM and headed back to Guanica State Forest to try once more for the Puerto Rican Nightjar. We drove to the forest, headed up the road at a closed gate, and stood waiting in the darkness. Actually, it was a bright moon, so it wasn’t really that dark. In any event, it wasn’t long before we heard a “Whirr!” of a nightjar. It was quite close, but deep enough in the dense woods that we couldn’t see it. We heard 1 or 2 others, but never did see one. It was cool knowing that we were hearing a bird that only exists in this small area of Puerto Rico and nowhere else on the planet. We also heard a Puerto Rican Screech Owl.

With one target species down, we grabbed breakfast and then hit the road. This was mostly a travel day to El Yunque, basically across the southern part of PR from west to east, but we did have a few more birding stops to pick up some other birds we hadn’t seen yet. Our first stop was back to the feeder area where we had less-than-desirable views of the Yellow-shouldered Blackbird the day before. This time there were several of them on trees near the feeding station. They were joined by some Shiny Cowbirds, a known nuisance to the blackbird’s population, and also a ton of Eurasian Collared-Doves.

Yellow-shouldered Blackbird

We then went back to Guanica State Forest for some daytime birding. It was quite windy and the forest was very quiet. We were standing around and listening when I saw something move in my peripheral vision. It was a Mangrove Cuckoo!

Hello there!

We also had great looks at two Puerto Rican Todies. It’s hard to pick a favorite PR bird, but this one is certainly high on the list. Tody pictures below.

Our next stop was back to Laguna Cartajena NWR to look for West Indian Whistling-Ducks. While looking for them, we found a couple Least Grebes, a bird I hadn’t seen since 2005 in South Texas. I like their beady little eyes. We had terrific views of one West Indian Whistling-Duck flying by, but it landed out of view. The sky was filled with Cave Swallows and I was able to pick out an oddball in the group, which turned out to be a Caribbean Martin. We had a long ride ahead of us and one more birding spot.

Caribbean Coot – Notice how high the white face shield goes up its head.

Cattle Egrets are everywhere in PR

After a bit of a drive, a nap, and a stop at Sizzler (they still have those?), we stopped at a school baseball field in a tiny town. Oddly, this is the best spot in PR to see Plain Pigeon* (what a name!), a rare Caribbean specialty. Sure enough, we quickly found one high in a tree on a hill side. It’s not as plain-looking as its name suggests.

After the pigeon site, we were on the road heading to El Yunque and the Casa Cubuy eco-lodge. We arrived at the lodge after dark. After dinner, we listened for screech owls. We heard one, but the wind and rain were not conducive to finding the bird. This was our last night in PR. Stay tuned for some cool hummingbirds and thoughts on Casa Cubuy in the next installment.

*I think the worst West Indian bird name goes to the Sad Flycatcher.

Puerto Rico Day 4: Mountains to the Coast

2010-02-05T14:21:00.002-05:00

We spent the night of day 3 at Hacienda Juanita, a lodge in the mountains on a banana and coffee plantation. It was a bit rustic, but comfortable enough. On the hotel grounds, we listened for the endemic Puerto Rican Screech Owl and heard multiple individuals. One was so close but it was straight up a rock wall that butted against the lodge. There was no way to see it.

The view from the Hacienda Juanita

We woke the morning of day 4 to find that our breakfast was slightly delayed. The cook wasn’t there yet, so we’d have to wait a little. We took the opportunity to do a little birding around the property and saw some of the same species we’d already seen. Breakfast was worth the wait. I had a great omelet and some hot harina cereal. Tasty! We also had good views of a female Puerto Rican Emerald (a hummingbird) from the breakfast table. After breakfast, I was buying coffee in the office when I heard one of the leaders call from outside, “Antillean Euphonia!” While not an endemic, it’s a much sought-after Caribbean species. We all had amazing looks at a male and female checking out bromeliads (that’s where they nest) in a large tree in the parking lot. What luck!

Antillean Euphonia

We packed up and left Hacienda Juanita for another shot at the Lesser Antillean Pewee at the nearby fishery. Luck was with us again and it was there, flycatching from a perch over a creek. Neat bird! Too small and far for photos though. The late breakfast turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

We packed into the minivan again and made our way to the coast, specifically Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge. On our way there, the leader saw an odd animal cross the road. We did a u-turn to see what it was and it turned out to be… MONKEYS! Macaques to be exact. There are no native monkeys on Puerto Rico. These are apparently escapes from a feral colony on a nearby island. No one knows how they got to the mainland, according to one local.

Cabo Rojo is a GORGEOUS area in the southwest corner of PR with the turquoise waters of the Caribbean beating against red cliffs that give Cabo Rojo (the red coast) its name. It’s much drier than the rest of the places we had visited. We saw cacti and succulent plants all around.

We got our first taste of shorebirds for the trip at Cabo Rojo with side-by-side Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Ruddy Turnstone, Dunlin, and Spotted Sandpiper. A group of Royal Terns lounged atop a group of pilings as well.

Royal Terns

The whole time, the Los Morillos Lighthouse loomed high on a cliff watching over us.

We walked up to the lighthouse to get a good view of the sea. The view was breathtaking.

A Brown Booby soared right over our heads and joined a dozen of its brethren on a large rock in the sea. I had distant views of these birds in Australia, but these views were fantastic, although the light was harsh and my photos reflect that.

We left Cabo Rojo and continued to Laguna Cartajena NWR, a large marsh and home to Caribbean Coots and West Indian Whistling-Ducks. This was one of my favorite stops on the trip. I love waterfowl and wading birds and this place was chock full of them. Caribbean Coots were plentiful along with Common Moorhens, a few Purple Gallinules, Ruddy Ducks, White-cheeked Pintails, and 9 species of waders. We even had a chance to compare American Coots to Caribbean Coots. The Caribbean’s fast shield extends further up the head than the American’s. We looked for the West Indian Whistling-Duck, but didn’t see one. So we planned to return the next day, since we had something big waiting for us.

We left Laguna Cartajena and headed to the town of Parguera, looking for the endangered and endemic Yellow-shouldered Blackbird. They live in the mangroves, but come to a local feeder next to a little store each afternoon. Our timing was a bit late and the birds were already in the mangroves. After much waiting, we did see a few birds silhouetted in a bare tree in the mangroves. These would have to wait for another try the next morning as well.

In the evening, we went to Guanica State Forest, the stronghold of the Puerto Rican Nightjar. Unfortunately, we didn’t hear or see this rare species. It was incredibly windy and perhaps this kept the birds down. After much waiting, we decided to pack it in.

My friend Mike shows the most comfy way to look for PR Nightjars

At dinner, we agreed to wake up extra early to try again for the nightjar. More on that in our next installment and more photos from Laguna Cartajena.

Go to Day 5

Puerto Rico Day 3: Rare Birds and Bacalao Ice Cream

2010-02-03T09:46:00.002-05:00

Note: This is my first attempt to post with Windows Live Writer so I hope it doesn’t look like garbage.

We woke at an ungodly hour and had the equivalent of a NJ diner breakfast (not a bad thing) before departing for the Cambalache State Forest. This is a small, and I mean SMALL, plot of tropical forest that holds a surprising number of Puerto Rican endemics. Upon exiting the minivan, we immediately were hearing and seeing birds.

The first was the sing-song-y Puerto Rican Vireo which gave us great looks. He was followed by the cardinal-like call of the Puerto Rican Bullfinch which also gave stellar looks. The birds were coming quick. We heard the short bzzt of the Puerto Rican Tody, but he remained out of sight. A loud call from around a bend was that of the Puerto Rican Woodpecker – a Melanerpes unlike any I had seen before. We had brief looks at one, but better looks were to come. A raucous rattle was that of the Puerto Rican Lizard-Cuckoo, one of the birds I most wanted to see on the trip. It spent time high in a tree giving us views of just pieces of the bird at time. A nearby fart-like sound led us to crippling, eye-level views of the Puerto Rican Tody. As one person said, it looks like a lollipop and the bill is the stick. So true! It looks like it would taste good if you licked it. My photos of this one stink, but there were more to come later on the trip.

A Common Ground-Dove

We got crippling looks at the Puerto Rican Woodpecker in a hole in a telephone pole. This bird was too cool.

Puerto Rican Woodpecker

Digiscoped shot

We then headed over to the Rio Abajo area in search of Puerto Rican Parrots. With less than 40 wild birds left, this came down to a matter of luck. Unfortunately, we didn’t see the birds, but did add Loggerhead Kingbird, Broad-winged Hawk (pretty rare in PR), and Scaly-naped Pigeon to our tally. We also saw the gorgeous flowers of the Poma Rosa or Rose Apple.

On the road near Rio Abajo, we also spied Shiny Cowbird. An attractive blackbird, this bird has caused problems for the endemic Yellow-shouldered Blackbird.

Shiny Cowbird

We stopped at a famous ice cream shop in the town of Lares. They are known for having hundreds of different flavors of ice cream including many non-traditional flavors like rum, ginger, garlic, rice & beans, carrot, and the one I tried… SALT COD (AKA Bacalao). Even being a vegetarian, I couldn’t resist trying fish-flavored ice cream. You know how they say that things are an “acquired taste?” I don’t know how anyone could acquire a taste for it. Blech. I ended up getting one scoop of peanut and one scoop of sweet plantain. It was great.

We were back on the road again heading to Maricao State Forest, home of the recently discovered (well, 1972) Elfin-woods Warbler. It was late in the day. We paced up and down the road listening for its chip note (it doesn’t sing). After some time, we heard that chip and the diminutive bird gave us terrific, although brief, views. What a feeling to know that we were seeing a bird that is relatively new to science and limited in range. We ended the day looking for a Lesser Antillean Pewee at a nearby fishery, but were skunked. We would try again in the morning! Look for my Day 4 report in the next few days. I guarantee photos of boobies.

Go to Day 4

Puerto Rico Day 1 & 2: Caribbean Gems

2010-02-01T20:12:00.010-05:00

The view from the hotel beach

My friend Mike and I arrived the evening before our birding tour in Puerto Rico to avoid any potential weather-related events that might have caused flight issues. He and I toured around Old San Juan, ate some great local food thanks to a cab driver's recommendation, and drank VERY locally at a dive bar - $1.50 Medalla Light! Bird-wise, we only saw the ubiquitous Bananaquit that first day.

We awoke the next morning and, as I opened the blinds of our balcony, a bird took off from the deck. A Greater Antillean Grackle had brought a chicken bone to our balcony and had been eating it there.

Greater Antillean Grackle

We birded around the hotel a bit where we saw more grackles, a Brown Pelican, Red-legged Thrush (the Puerto Rican version of a robin), and Zenaida Dove.

Zenaida Dove

At 12:30, we met our leaders Kevin and Lena from Wildside Nature Tours and the two other tour participants. After a brief food and fuel stop, we headed west from San Juan toward the town of Hatillo. We made our first birding stop at Laguna Tortuguero, a small woodland area next to a large lake. We immediately started hearing and seeing some of our sought after Puerto Rican endemics.

The first endemic we saw was Adelaide's Warbler - a gorgeous bird, but uncooperative for a photograph. Pearly-eyed Thrashers called from the undergrowth and several female Puerto Rican Spindalises (Spindali?) flitted in the limbs of an Orchid Tree. Luck was with us and a splendid male Spindalis joined the party. He stayed just out of view for a while, but then came down ridiculously close to feed on the flower petals of the Orchid Tree.

PR Spindalis with a piece of petal in his mouth

A hummingbird made itself known by buzzing over the canopy of the tree. It was a female Antillean Mango - a specialty of the Caribbean.

Antillean Mango - the leaf is not really stuck to the end of his bill, just bad positioning in the photo

We also saw some familiar birds like Osprey and Northern Parula and less familiar ones like the introduced Orange-cheeked Waxbill. We ended our time there and continued to our hotel for the night. I had a great dinner of some eggplant dish with a delicious side of rice and beans, along with some flan de vanilla for dessert. Yum. We were off to a terrific start! Day 3 was filled with tremendous birds. More on that later.

Go to day 3

Off to Puerto Rico

2010-01-25T15:24:00.002-05:00

For those who didn't see it on Twitter or Facebook... I'll be leaving for Puerto Rico tomorrow for 5 days of birding adventure. The actual tour doesn't start until mid-day on Wednesday. Where connectivity is available, I will be tweeting and blogging about the trip. It should be a blast. Thanks again to the guys from 10,000 Birds for sponsoring the contest. Endemics, quite a few exotics, and neat West Indian birds await!

Would you count it? A CBC conundrum.

2010-01-04T09:54:00.002-05:00

John from A DC Birding Blog and I were conducting our part of the 75th Long Branch, NJ CBC on Saturday, a count that I compile. We were on a small trail along a frozen lake (like most of the water in our count area that day) and we ran into a gentleman putting up a Screech Owl box. He mentioned that he worked for The Raptor Trust, giving him some good credentials. He didn't know of any Screech Owls around, but did mention something very interesting. Earlier in the day, he ran into a hunter who showed him a photo taken that day of an injured Barred Owl on land within our count area. The owl box guy went to look for the bird, but did not find it. He planned to return later in the day with dogs to see if he could find it and then bring it in for rehab.

So, do I count it as a bird seen on our CBC? My plan is to count it unless someone has a good reason not to.

For a full write-up of our day and the birds we saw, check out A DC Birding Blog.

Top 10 Birds of the Decade

2009-12-18T10:17:00.003-05:00

A few bloggers have started posting Top 10 Birds of the Decade lists (here and here). I think David's is a little more meaningful, but this will be a fun exercise. Although I had been birdwatching many times as a kid, I didn't really start actively birding on my own until 2001 or so. I didn't chase much for the first few years.

My Top 10 US Birds in no particular order (it's easier to limit it to a US list):

1. Green Violet-ear in Navasink, NJ - showed up on my birthday and I got to see it at sunrise the next morning. It flew off a short time later never to be seen again.
2. Long-billed Murrelet - this is the only bird on the list that I didn't actually see, but I missed this extremely rare bird TWICE. I missed the one at Sandy Hook because I was at a meeting drawing pictures of my annual accomplishments. LAME. I chased it a few days later and missed it. Then I missed another at Lake Nockamixon. Boo.
3. Great Gray Owl - one of the more impromptu acts of my life was hopping on a plane to Minnesota in February 2005 to see the owl invasion there.
4. Northern Hawk Owl - one of my favorite birds, obviously. I first got to see one in Minnesota and then saw another last year in New Hampshire.
5. Ivory Gull - Not one, but two!
6. Bicknell's Thrush - one of my most enjoyable birding experiences was hiking up Wakely Mountain to see Bicknell's Thrush with fellow bird bloggers.
7. Western Reef-Heron - chased twice in NY and both times I was joined by my wife. It was her first rarity chase and we had a lot of fun. Saw it on the second try.
8. Swallow-tailed Kite - seeing a bunch of these along with a throng of Mississippi Kites in Georgia was a real highlight for me and my wife
9. Green Jay - How can you not love this bird?
10. Hoary Redpoll - only because I froze my butt off in the town of Embarass, MN and had my parents think that I died in a car crash just to see one. My cell phone had cut out while on the phone with my mom and I didn't get service back. When I got service back an hour or two later, I had 11 voicemails.

I'm sure I missed some good ones. What are your top 10?

Birding on a Soap Opera

2009-12-05T17:47:00.003-05:00

My wife is addicted to Days of Our Lives, a US soap opera. I will admit that I do watch and enjoy the ridiculous story lines. Ok, stop laughing. In any event, we were watching it today and two of the characters were birding! Here's a snapshot:

The character on the left remarked that the American Goldfinch was "much too far north for this time of year." The guy on the right responded, "To me they're just rats with feathers." That's a Peterson Field Guide in his hand, the 5th edition. Pretty funny.

A gull of the Ivory variety

2009-12-01T13:02:00.003-05:00

In case you haven't heard, an immature Ivory Gull was found in Cape May, NJ on Friday. This is the 5th record of this species for NJ - 1940, 1955, and 2 in 1986. So, as you can imagine, the NJ birding scene and much of the mid-Atlantic is buzzing about the bird. As you may recall, I saw my first Ivory Gull in Piermont, NY in 2007. That didn't stop me from going to see this one in my own state. So, down I headed the 2+ hour drive very early on Sunday. I got to the marina that it favors and only had to wait 15 minutes or so before the gorgeous white creature appeared. I was joined by friends from VA and NJ and we spent a long while photographing and observing the bird. It was insanely accommodating, doing circuits over the crowd of birders, perching close by for photos, and picking from the water. It was nuts. Here are some photos.

Cape May Ivory Gull Photos - Nov. 29, 2009

Oh and did I mention it was a spectacularly sunny and warm day for late November? After viewing the gull, we hit some of the other Cape May hotspots. We got word of a Selasphorus hummingbird at a local feeder which we got to see. We also saw Eurasian Wigeon, Common Eiders, a few lingering Baltimore Orioles, a Bald Eagle or three, and a few lovely Red-shouldered Hawks. We struck out on the Swainson's Hawk that's been down there for nearly a month. All in all, it was a great day to be out. The gull is still being seen as of today. So if you didn't see one of the Massachusetts birds last year, you get a second shot. Although not an adult, this bird is still a beauty and it's a chance to see a bird that is not only rare in the US, but becoming more rare globally.

Pelican Blood Movie Trailer

2009-11-25T14:09:00.003-05:00

Wait, what's this? An actual post! Watch the trailer below for the British film, Pelican Blood, based on the novel by Cris Freddi. The main character is a birder or a twitcher as the case may be. Warning: Foul language.

Pelican Blood Trailer from TOBY COURLANDER on Vimeo.

Welcome our new baby!

2009-10-07T15:27:00.005-04:00

Julian Patrick Belardo

Born: 10/2/09 5:57 PM 9 lbs. 10 oz. and 21 1/4" long

Mom and baby are doing great!!!

You can read our birth story here and you can see a slideshow of photos here.

MADCAP HORSE

2009-09-30T10:26:00.002-04:00

For some reason, this just popped into my head today. It's a mnemonic I learned for tree and shrub identification: MADCAP HORSE. It is used to help you remember which trees and shrubs have opposite leaves. It works here in NJ at least.

Maples
Ashes
Dogwoods
CAPrifoliaceae - viburnums and honeysuckles*
HORSE Chestnut

*I think viburnums are now in the family Adoxaceae, so this may be a bit confusing

I'm sure there may be exceptions to this mnemonic, but it's worked for me.

Moth Night Photos

2009-09-03T15:57:00.012-04:00

Last night was "Moth Night" sponsored by the East Brunswick Environmental Commission. I was joined by John at A DC Birding Blog. Lots of families with kids, lots of good questions, and some pretty neat moths. Here are photos. If anyone cares to make some IDs for these, please do. I'll be checking them in the field guide over the coming days.

Cricket Crawl

2009-09-02T11:45:00.002-04:00

If you're local to NY and free on September 11, you can join the Cricket Crawl. It's a citizen sciene survey of 7 common cricket and katydid species. The web site has a link to learn the calls of these 7 species, so that's useful, even if you can't attend.

Filmy Dome Spider

2009-08-30T18:17:00.005-04:00

My parents have a group of spiders living in a large hedge that separates their yard from the neighbor's yard. The spiders build dome-shaped nest and are possibly Filmy Dome Spiders (genus Neriene). I was able to get a photo of the web, but not the spiders themselves. My point-and-click camera wouldn't focus on them. The spiders are about an inch long including legs. There are several webs in about a 3 foot square area. The detail of the dome webs is incredible. The web shown below is about 8" across. The second photo is a zoomed in version of the first photo.

Shooting dragonflies with a gun

2009-08-25T14:06:00.001-04:00

Note to self: Don't try to shoot a dragonfly. Check out the story here.

Birds mentioned on The Daily Show

2009-08-11T10:07:00.002-04:00

Douglas Brinkley, author of a new book about Teddy Roosevelt, was the guest on The Daily Show last night.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Douglas Brinkley

http://www.thedailyshow.com/

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Spinal Tap Performance

Nesting

2009-08-03T19:57:00.002-04:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - we're in full-blown "nesting" mode. Beth made a comment on Facebook about her being in nesting mode. Of course, one of my witty friends responded, "Do you find that Pat watches you from a distance with binoculars while you are nesting?" Baby Julian will be here sometime around Sept. 16.

Lucy Wayles

2009-07-15T15:36:00.002-04:00

Has anyone ever read the "Lucy Wayles" mystery books by Lydia Adamson? The titles include Beware the Butcher Bird, Beware the Tufted Duck, and Beware the Laughing Gull.

Bird-themed Baby Gifts

2009-07-12T21:04:00.004-04:00

Yesterday was Beth's baby shower. I was sure we'd be overrun with bird-themed baby gifts, but we were not. We only got a few. Some were Charley Harper-related things we registered for (more in a future post) and we also got a few outfits with cute birds on them. Beth's best friend gave us a crap load of hand-me-down clothing from her son, who will turn 1 in Sept. Within the bags and bags of clothes were these slippers.

It's my lucky day!

2009-07-06T08:50:00.001-04:00

On top of what's already been an awesome year, I was ecstatic to hear that I won a guided birding trip to Puerto Rico through Wildside Nature Tours!!! The trip will likely be in January and you can bet there will be lots of posts and photos to come. Many thanks to the crew at 10,000 Birds and Wildside Nature Tours for having the contest.

Birding Board Games Pt. 2

2009-07-04T11:25:00.000-04:00

I hope you enjoyed the first part of my posts on birding board games. I only have two (right now) and this is the second - also picked up on eBay. It's The Birding Game with Roger Tory Peterson. Again, I haven't actually played this one. It's brand new despite the beat-up box.

The game centers around the theme of a "big day" - trying to see as many species as you can and earn as much money for conservation as possible in a single day. The game includes 4 sets of "habitat" cards (Woodlands, Freshwater, Saltwater Marsh, and Open Country) and cards for equipment, sponsorship, "habitat entry", and "birder's luck." "Birder's luck" is like the Monopoly "Chance" card of this game. The box also includes a trimmed-down version of the Peterson Guide with just plates. More on the use of that and the cards in a moment.

You move around the board using your little owl head pieces. What? No little Scotty dog or boot?

As you move around the board, you collect the equipment, sponsorship, "habitat entry", and "birder's luck." When you land on a habitat card and you have the appropriate "habitat entry" card, another player reads you the card. The card directs you to identify a bird on a specific plate in the field guide. If you identify the bird correctly, you can add that bird to your checklist. If you answer correctly, you then have the chance to answer a bonus question, but only if you have the right equipment card. The bonus question is a trivia question about that species. If you get the question right, you earn bonus dollars. The questions are divided into 4 difficulty levels depending on your expertise as a birder - from beginner to hardcore lister. You must choose a difficulty level at the beginning of the game.

Your winnings are recorded on a scoresheet. The game ends when the first player fills in the list of species on the scoresheet.

The next bird fest I'm at, I'll be sure to bring these games along with me if it's within driving distance. Maybe we need a "Birds & Beers & Games" type event here in NJ!

"Wildman" Steve Brill

2009-07-01T08:20:00.003-04:00

Last night, Beth and I attended a program on edible wild plants by "Wildman" Steve Brill at the gorgeous Franklin Township Library. The Wildman is a dynamic fellow who has been foraging for wild edible plants in the NY-NJ-CT area for more than 25 years. He's an educator who visits schools, garden clubs, and other organizations. He also hosts many field trips throughout the area. The "Wildman" is (in)famous for being arrested in 1986 in Central Park for eating a dandelion leaf - a very funny story.

Steve's program is an overview of the benefits of foraging, information on ecology, and the historic and current human uses of the plants and fungi in the northeast. My best way to describe him is, as I said to Beth is, "He's quite the character." His presentation is full of puns and witicisms, which was great for me since we have a similar sense of humor. He's also great with kids and an engaging storyteller. I was happy to see kids there and Steve involved them by having them help hand out samples.

The program included a lot of examples of plants and mushrooms that Steve had picked that day. We were able to taste many of the samples too. These included Lamb's-quarters, Black Birch, Ramps (delicious!), Pineapple Weed, and our favorite - Poor Man's Pepper. The mushrooms were very interesting including a bolete that turns blue when you break it open. As is apparently important when it comes to foraging, the Wildman stressed the importance of knowing what you're eating and the toxic effects of eating the wrong thing. As he said when referring to one toxic plant, and I'm paraphrasing here, "You get the most horrible diarrhea, vomiting, and pains. This continues until you die. Then the symptoms go away."

We had a great time at the presentation and also purchased two of Steve's books. Unfortunately, he was sold out of his vegetarian cook book, but we'll definitely be getting that one soon. If you live in the tri-state area, try to get out to one of the Wildman's lectures or better yet, one of his field trips.

Birding Board Game Pt. 1

2009-06-24T21:34:00.011-04:00

Over the years, I have purchased two birding-themed board games on eBay. This isn't Birdopoly we're talking about here. These are actual games about birding. I'm going to highlight both games in this post and a subsequent post. The first game is called Gone Birding. Published in 1990, it's a video-based game hosted by Bill Oddie and Peter Alden. You also may recognize the artwork on the cover and playing cards. Let me start my description of the game by saying that I haven't actually played it, but I plan to the next time I can get a group of birders together in a non-birding situation. Is that even possible?

This is the board above. The premise is relatively simple. You are on a cross-country birding trip trying to see as many species as possible. The person who "sees" the most species wins. You are dealt a series of cards from a "hotspot" deck at the start of the game. These cards each list a well-known birding spot. As you "visit" each spot, you pick up birds for your list.

You also pick up "Surprise" cards along the way (including a very surprised-looking puffin). Surprise cards help change the game up a bit and keep it interesting, sort of like a Chance card in Monopoly. Some of them are pretty funny as you can see in the second photo.

The video element of the game helps create the flow of the game through a series of ID challenges and also takes you from hotspot to hotspot. There are 10 games on the tape, each leading you through an approximately 2-hour board game experience. It seems like an interesting game. Have any of you played this game? Anyone want to come over and play? I hope the video tape works!

The Sibley Guide to Trees?

2009-06-24T11:21:00.001-04:00

Holy cow, how did I miss that David Sibley is coming out with a Guide to Trees? AWESOME. Pre-order it here.

Butterfly back from the brink

2009-06-22T22:46:00.002-04:00

ScienceDaily has a really neat article on discoveries that saved the Large Blue butterfly from extinction, a European species with a very interesting life cycle. The article stresses the importance of understanding the entire life cycle of a species and its ecological interdependencies.

And yes, I've been a lazy blogger. Facebook is a good eater of time.

Help Legalize Beekeeping in NYC

2009-06-17T17:55:00.002-04:00

Who knew that beekeeping was illegal in NYC? Hrmph. Well, you can help out by signing a petition to lift that ban.

Gull struck by winning hit in baseball game

2009-06-12T09:50:00.001-04:00

Royals vs. Indians last night - story and video here.

CSA Bounty

2009-06-11T22:45:00.004-04:00

Excitement abounds! We are members of the Rutgers Community Supported Agriculture program this year and today was our first pick up. The cold and wet weather here made the share a bit small this week, but it's still plenty for the two of us. I'm sure we'll have MORE than enough over the summer to make up for it. Our stash includes:

LOTS of salad greens including one that tastes remarkably like wasabi (some type of arugula maybe?)

Pea shoots

Kale

Scallions

Radishes

Lemon Balm

Sage

So, my first order of business was to address a craving I had for scallion pancakes. Consider it done.

"Lawrence's" Warbler

2009-06-02T15:00:00.004-04:00

For the past month or so, a "Lawrence's" Warbler has been seen at the Kay Environmental Center in Morris County. I got to see it on Saturday. This is the rarer of the two Golden-winged Warbler x Blue-winged Warbler hybrids - "Brewster's" Warbler is the other. It was singing the bee-buzz song of a Blue-winged Warbler. Neat bird! Learn more about Cornell's Golden-winged Warbler Atlas Project which also tracks hybrids.

Monk Parakeets

2009-05-30T15:04:00.004-04:00

As I reported a few months ago, Monk Parakeets have officially been added to the NJ state checklist of birds. The "lister" in me finally had a chance to see them and count them for my state list. There are two populations I know of. There's a fairly large population in Edgewater, about an hour and 15 minutes from me. There's a much smaller population in Carteret - about 20 minutes from me and within my county. My friend's grandson has been monitoring two nests in Carteret and I went to see one today. As is typical of this species in urban habitats, the nest is on a telephone pole. I saw one adult perched with nesting material next to the nest, but he quickly entered the nest. I waited about 10 minutes and two adults emerged and took off to points unknown. I waited a bit, but did not see any more activity. I had to get home, so that was that! Here's a look at the massive nest.

Trap, Neuter, and Release: Bad for Cats, Disaster for Birds

2009-05-28T17:05:00.001-04:00

If you don't get the American Bird Conservancy's email newsletter, you may not have gotten a chance to see this video about the Trap, Neuter, Release programs implemented in many cities around the country.

Becoming a more local birder

2009-05-27T22:38:00.003-04:00

When it comes to birding locally or having a "local patch", I am ashamed to say that it's not something I've embraced. Is it because I don't have any good habitat nearby? Not at all - there are some decent parks around and even a darn good one on a major river on my way to work. I've never once stopped there to bird before work. :( No I don't have any excuse. There are terrific grasslands 20 minutes away, marshes nearby, and a bayfront not too far away.

For some reason, I'm always willing to default to a 45 minute drive to bird at Sandy Hook. It's partially because I like the social element of birding there where I'm bound to run into other birders - and usually ones I know. It's also a place I feel comfortable and I know it well.

With Baby Julian (did I mention he has a name?) coming in September, I know that birding closer to home will become a necessity. I'm going to embrace it fully. I've already began researching local spots, checking out Google maps, and talking to friends. I'd like to concentrate on my home county of Middlesex County even though I'm on the border of a county that has a lot better habitat (and a fall hawkwatch). Middlesex County, in my opinion, is very underbirded except for a small handful of locations. It's mostly developed, but has some interesting waterfront areas, a major river, some nice swamps, and even an odd remnant piece of Pine Barrens habitat (more on that in a future post). It's a pretty large county by NJ standards too. So, stay tuned for future posts highlighting some of these locations and the birds I find along the way. My one big question is... Can someone tell me where there is decent grassland habitat in this county!?

GREAT Swamp Birding

2009-05-25T09:27:00.005-04:00

Last week, an adult White Ibis was found at the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. There are only a handful of inland records of this species and I had never seen one in NJ (despite there being a few sightings of one last year). Sunday was a beautiful morning, so I headed out early to the spot where it had been seen most regularly. A few other birders were around and we all waited patiently for the bird to show with no luck. Other birds were there for our enjoyment though. Lots of Yellow Warblers were around and I was able to get a good shot of one.

I also saw Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Yellow-billed Cuckoo (a pic not worth publishing - it's so bad!), Swamp Sparrow, and several Green Herons. The highlight while waiting for the Ibis was a gorgeous singing Mourning Warbler. I've never had such good views of this bird even on breeding grounds in the Adirondaks. He was a bit too skittish for my camera, but I was able to get a shot.

At this time, a gentleman with a camera approached us. He mentioned that he had seen the White Ibis from a blind a few miles away and showed us a photo on his camera. So, another birder and I zoomed over to the boardwalk trails where the blind is located. On a mission, we booked down the trail to the blind where a couple pointed us to the White Ibis. Albeit distant and hunkered down in the marsh, we were all able to enjoy great looks. See my horrid photo below. If you want great looks at this bird, the best place to see them is Disney World. They are EVERYWHERE there. All in all, a nice morning out.

Potential new birding TV show

2009-05-22T09:08:00.002-04:00

Richard Crossley, birder and author, has been working on a proposal for a new TV show about birding in the city. Animal Planet is interested, but they are surveying people to see if there really is a market for the show. Watch the five minute preview and then fill out the survey to let them know what you think.

Bay - the color, not the place

2009-05-17T21:55:00.003-04:00

Beth and I had a discussion on the term "bay" as in "Bay-breasted Warbler" today. I had crippling views (as the Brits would say) of one yesterday at Sandy Hook. I was without camera of course due to an insane amount of fog and mist. Of course, the mist lifted momentarily and gave pretty decent light on the warbler. Ugh. Anyway, Beth had never heard the term "bay" used to describe a color, so I did some research. It's a term typically reserved for the brown color in horses and typically those with a black mane contrasting with the brown body. Here are some photos for comparison.

World Series of Birding Recap

2009-05-14T11:17:00.004-04:00

Ok, so I'm a few days late for the 100th I & The Bird, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't go read it. Good job Nate!

So the World Series of Birding has come and gone. In a year of excitement and non-birding life craziness, the WSB didn't have the same sense of anticipation for me as it has in the past. Regardless, it was a phenomenal day at Sandy Hook filled with splendid birds and terrific company. I think I look forward to seeing the people more than the birds, honestly. Not to bore you with a long play-by-play, I'll list some of the highlights and lowlights of the day. You'll have to wait until the end to see our results. Also, I was a slacker as a photographer on Sat. so I have nothing to share.

Highlights:

It was more or less a weather miracle. Forecasts were for rain in the morning and we never got a drop.
The biggest highlight for me is an easy one: Two Mississippi Kites flew over our group at different times (maybe the same bird). This was a state bird for me.
Both Glaucous and Iceland Gulls - For me, this has been the best year for white-winged gulls that I can recall in the last 10 years. I had never seen Glaucous at Sandy Hook and it made a long "death march" well worth it.
A stunning Blackburnian Warbler (photo below) visited us during dinner right in front of the Sandy Hook Bird Observatory building. The funny thing is that a Blackburnian visited us during lunch several years back.

The world's most abiding Clapper Rail gave everyone great looks during lunch.
Two Bald Eagles were seen by the group, plus I had another one later in the day with a smaller group.
Singing Chuck-will's-widows were a first for me at the Hook

Lowlights:

A Yellow-breasted Chat was seen by some of the group, but I missed it. I haven't seen one in a few years. I sat there for 15 minutes at the location where many people saw it and never saw it.
A big wall of fog hung over the northern part of Sandy Hook early in the morning which may have hindered the bird activity.
Not everyone heard about this, but a mystery flycatcher was seen by a reliable observer who was not part of our team. The best guess was a Streaked/Sulphur-bellied type. It was not seen again.
SUNBURN! I was stupid and didn't put sunblock on. I was quite colorful when I got home.

Our total for the day was 134 species - a total I'd stack up against any other 7 mile by .5 mile stretch of land in the US.

(Thanks to Bob for the photo - I was a photo slacker on Sat.)

A pause in our regular programming

2009-05-12T09:52:00.006-04:00

Baby boy Belardo pics below! We have decided to name him Julian Patrick. Bobolink was a close second in name choices. :) I owe you all (and myself) a post about the World Series. Yikes, I might miss the deadline for IATB 100...

Baby Belardo and the WSB

2009-05-05T13:42:00.004-04:00

It has thus been determined that Baby Belardo is a boy! Let the blue clothing pour in.

The World Series of Birding is this Saturday. It came on quick this year. After the great fun and success of the Super Bowl of Birding in January, I wanted to have a team of bloggers and do a whole state run. Well, schedules of the members of the Super Bowl teams didn't work out (except for Christopher) and my schedule wasn't cooperating, so I decided to delay an all-blogger WSB run for next year. I just didn't have time to do any real scouting and planning. Some may say it will be even harder next year with Baby Boy Belardo, but I will make the time. So, this year, I will be once again be assisting with the "Sandy Hook Century Run." We'll try to see how many species we can see only at Sandy Hook. Check out last year's results. Wish us luck and wish us GOOD WEATHER!!!

Favorite Warbler Song?

2009-05-04T11:19:00.001-04:00

Ok, time for a poll. What's your favorite warbler song? Let's stick with North American wood warblers. It's a tough call, but I think I'm going to go with Blackburnian.

Citizen Science

2009-05-04T09:19:00.000-04:00

CNN has an article on citizen science today.

A miserable rainy day grebe

2009-05-03T20:50:00.002-04:00

It seems yesterday was the day to be out birding after seeing the amazing reports from Garret Mountain (a popular migrant trap in northern NJ). Unfortunately, TODAY was the day I chose to go birding. We had a potluck gathering for all Sandy Hook Bird Observatory volunteers. There was a great turnout despite a steady rain that was quite heavy at times. The highlight of the day, for me, was a breeding-plumaged Red-necked Grebe in Spermaceti Cove. That plumage is a fairly rare sight in NJ and it's the first time I've ever seen it. Sorry, no pics due to the rain. The second highlight was the food. I should have taken photos of that! It was quite the spread.

May Day

2009-05-01T11:42:00.002-04:00

Today is May Day and I will be celebrating by working, then maybe birding if it stops raining, and then taking a whole week off of work to just chill and do some work around the house. I'll definitely be birding too next week. In honor of May Day and being the big hockey fan I am, check out one of my favorite hockey calls ever.

Butterflies in Cape May

2009-04-28T09:05:00.006-04:00

Not only were birds plentiful this weekend in Cape May, but the butterflies were out in force too. One of the specialties at Belleplain State Forest and parts of Cape May are the Elfins: Brown Elfin, Pine Elfin, and Henry's Elfin. This Henry's Elfin below was photographed at Higbee Beach. Sorry for the poor quality. This thing is the size of a nickel! We did not see any of the other elfins unfortunately.

Belleplain was overloaded with Juvenal's Duskywings. The Duskywings, like the Skippers, are akin to the gulls and shorebirds of the butterfly world. They are all, more or less, some shade of gray with a miscellaneous pattern of some other shade of gray. They're made a bit easier if you know which ones are flying at what times of the year. This time of year, Juvenal's are the only ones with a small vertical line of white spots at the leading edge of the forewing. Note that this species is named for the Roman poet, Juvenal. The name is no indication of the age of the butterfly, although several people asked this understandable question!

We had several other species of butterfly including American Lady (below), Orange and Clouded Sulphur, and Mourning Cloak. While eating lunch at the Forsythe Refuge, I found a Falcate Orangetip doing its best Cabbage White impression. It was too quick to photograph, but it was a first for NJ for me.

Belleplain State Forest Birding

2009-04-27T16:15:00.006-04:00

August-like temperatures made for an interesting late-April weekend birding around Cape May county. On Saturday, we primarily birded Belleplain State Forest about 40 minutes northwest of Cape May. This time of year is fantastic for breeding and migrant warblers and their “friends” at Belleplain. It’s also a nice spot for butterflies (more on that in a future post). The day started out with cool temperatures but peaked in the low 80s by mid-afternoon.

Our group met up at the Headquarters and birded along the roads all morning. Our first spot yielded the song of a Yellow-throated Warbler. The song was likened to water cascading down steps by our trip leader and I think that’s a terrific mnemonic. My promise of even a bad shot of the Yellow-throated Warbler did not work out as this bird was pretty well hidden in the treetops. I got some brief views of that glowing throat though!

We were greeted by other terrific birds. Ovenbirds called “TEACHER-TEACHER” from the woods, but never showed themselves. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers bounced around with several building nests of lichen, moss, and leaves. A blotchy Indigo Bunting perched near an empty feeder. Black-and-White Warblers sang “weeza-weeza” in the treetops and a White-eyed Vireo sang “Pick-up-the-beer-check” as my friend likes to say.

We visited a new spot to me that consisted of farm fields and “scrub-shrub” habitat. Here we found some species that love this habitat – lots of singing Prairie Warblers and a few Orchard Orioles. For some reason, I find it hard to pick up the song of the Orchard Oriole. I hear it fine. It just doesn't stick in my brain like other birds.

A final stop before lunch was a sandy road leading to a swamp. Our target here was the “Golden Swamp Warbler” – AKA the Prothonotary Warbler. We met some other birders there who had a brief glimpse of the Prothonotary. So we waited… and waited… and finally a distant “SWEET-SWEET-SWEET” call rang out. It stayed ever so out of reach until the bird flew literally at our group and then did a fast u-turn and landed on a tree only 10 feet away. Stunning! I rattled off a few bad pics. See below.

We finished the day at Jake’s Landing, a favorite writing topic for Pete Dunne. On the marshes there, we saw a young Bald Eagle, tons of Willets, and had a brief glimpse of a Clapper Rail. The sun was beating down hard and I wasunfortunately sunburned. A nice late afternoon nap was in store!

I'm still alive!

2009-04-21T16:18:00.002-04:00

Hey readers... I'm still alive. We're FINALLY checking out of the hotel today or tomorrow - over one month after checking in! The work on our house took WAY longer than expected due to some poor painting and re-work. Now, it's a battle with the insurance company and our condo association which is worse than staying in a hotel. In other news, Beth and I will be relaxing and birding in Cape May this weekend! Yeah! I hope to get a horrible photo of a Yellow-throated Warbler to share with everyone.

Cornell's New "All About Birds" Site

2009-04-16T14:24:00.003-04:00

Cornell launched their fantastically redesigned All About Birds site today. Learn about all the new features through Cornell's Round Robin Blog.

Western Tanager in NJ

2009-04-14T18:07:00.003-04:00

I guess this NJ Birds editor job is paying off! I got a note today from someone at NJ Audubon asking me to check out a report of a Western Tanager at a feeder in nearby Plainfield. I gave the homeowner a call and found out that it was someone I actually knew. I had birded her yard during the Raritan Estuary Xmas Count twice. Her yard was a hotspot for a wintering Brown Thrasher for several years.

So anyway, I went to check out the bird and was very confident that the owner was correct in her ID. I arrived at the house and within minutes a gorgeous male Western Tanager landed on the feeder. Huzzah! I got some crappy pictures through the window of her kitchen. The pic above was the best of them. This represents one of only a handful of spring records for Western Tanager in NJ.

Awesome Kea Pics (not mine)

2009-04-14T09:55:00.003-04:00

I love the pics and this story about a Kea from Peregrine's Bird Blog. I wish our pet parakeets had this much personality! Keas are notoriously curious of people (probably not a good thing), and I've heard stories of them doing damage to equipment and rental cars with those huge bills.

Scotts Bird Seed Commercial

2009-04-09T17:57:00.003-04:00

Wow, I never thought I'd see a commercial for bird seed on TV, but I just did! Scotts' new commercial claims you'll get twice as many Indigo Buntings!

A chick! - Duke Farms Eagle Cam Update

2009-04-08T13:52:00.002-04:00

A chick was seen in the nest on Monday morning and has been seen on and off since then. I only caught it briefly twice, but it was super cute. The adult was feeding it and it was extremely cool. The rest of time, the adult sits on it. I hope a second egg will hatch soon.

Beth loves the way that the adult "wiggles" when it settles into the nest. I hope you're all enjoying it. It's caused some productivity loss at my company for sure. :)

I never thought I'd be into one of these live cams...

Ready to Hatch! Duke Farms Eagle Cam

2009-04-05T10:51:00.002-04:00

I'm sure I'm not the first bird blogger to post this... NJ residents are excited about the Duke Farms Eagle Cam. The eggs are apparantly ready to hatch any moment. I've had the link sent to me by a few non-birders and have seen a bunch of people post about it on Facebook, so it's been great local PR for the birds. Duke Farms is Doris Duke's estate located about 12 miles from me in Hillsborough, NJ. Although the property is private, NJ Audubon runs birding and nature trips there throughout the year. In partnership with Rutgers, Duke Farms has put together a tremendous environmental stewardship program. The habitat, especially the grasslands, are phenomenal. In recent years, they have had breeding Henslow's Sparrow and Dickcissel! These are both very rare breeders in NJ.

A Mighty Wind

2009-04-05T09:00:00.005-04:00

Holy crud was it windy yesterday! I led a "Birding for Beginners" walk at Sandy Hook that I was lucky to have 6 brave souls show up for. Now, on a regular day, Sandy Hook is more windy than most places since it's jammed between a bay and the ocean with nothing to really block the wind. But yesterday was different. It was REALLY windy on the mainland and INSANELY windy at Sandy Hook with gusts up around 60 mph by some estimates. Wind + birds + beginners does not a good day make.

Incredibly, it turned out to be not half bad. In the early morning, hundreds of birds were overhead presumably trying to make landfall after being blown to sea. Most were Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles, and Brown-headed Cowbirds. Zipping by our group, aided by the wind, it was difficult to get good looks, but it was quite the spectacle. These birds were joined by the star of the day - dozens of American Kestrels were migrating through. Every time I looked up I saw one. Again, it was tough for the group to get on them, but neat to see. The group did get to enjoy several Ospreys, a "Gray Ghost" Harrier, Turkey Vultures, an American Oystercatcher, and some Great Egrets. A few groups of Northern Gannets strayed into the bay and were quite close to shore. It was worth standing with the wind in our faces for a few moments to observe them. I was hoping one would dive, but no luck! We sought some shelter in a wooded area, but the birds didn't cooperate. Only a few robins and crows were around. I did get to spend a lot of time talking about birds and conservation, so that was nice.

Our group also included two kids - 9 and 7. They were enthusiastic and asked lots of questions. They almost got blown away a few times though. All in all it turned out to be an ok day despite the uncooperative weather.

Sorry, no pics today. It was too darn exhausting in the wind to lug around my camera AND my scope.

Fun with Google Book Search

2009-04-01T06:32:00.000-04:00

Wow, what rock have I been under? Google Book Search is too cool. The preview mode has a pretty good assortment of bird books including the Peterson Gulls of the Americas, Birder's Conservation Handbook, Birding in the America West, and many others. For many books, the previews are very detailed, but for many it is just one or two pages. Don't be fooled by the links that show a page number in the title. For many that is just the page that the preview starts on.

Bird ID Quiz

2009-03-31T16:17:00.007-04:00

Here's a fun ID quiz for y'all. All photos were taken in the fall of 2008 in NJ. Please leave your guesses in the comments. Sorry, no prizes available. Photo 4 may cause some debate based on what I've cropped out of the pic, but the others should be relatively easy. Thanks to Anthony Laquidara for pics 1,3,4,5 and to C. Takacs for pic 2.

1.

2.

My first regional editor experience

2009-03-30T12:06:00.009-04:00

As you may recall, I recently took over as editor of NJ Birds for Region 2 (basically the northeast portion on NJ). I finally wrapped up my first report over the weekend for Fall 2008. (Yes, I'm a wee bit behind!) Here are some observations on being an editor of bird records:

It's more work than I originally thought! It took me about 8-10 hours of work over the weekend to compile everything. Granted, I hadn't had the opportunity to log the sightings from the fall as they were reported. Also, using my background as a programmer, I was able to build a small program that takes a spreadsheet of records and formats them to the standard publication format. That accounted for a few hours.
I now have an even better appreciation for eBird and REALLY wish every birder used it (I'm guilty as anyone). It would make my life a whole lot easier. Cornell sent a data dump from eBird for the state. I was able to glean tons of sightings that weren't reported to me or to the Jerseybirds mailing list.
You obviously can't include every record due to space, but you wish you could. Sorry to all my friends out there whose records may not have made it into the final report.
I have a better appreciation and understanding of the bird distribution in my region. For the fall specifically, it was interesting to learn more about typical arrival/departure dates, popular staging areas for waterfowl, high counts of species, and seasonal anomalies. For example, a Bobolink was observed on 10/13 which is pretty late for this species in NJ.
The reports give an in-depth seasonal view of bird activity at less well-known birding spots thanks to some dedicated birders. Areas like Baldpate Mountain and Mehrhof Pond may not be on every birder's list of top locations, but the list of sightings would make any birder think twice. Baldpate hosted great warblers and other fall migrants, while Mehrhof held a hefty 1800 Ruddy Ducks at one point among other goodies. Must be a big pond. These sightings help motivate me to step away from my more comfortable birding locales.
You never know where you'll find birds. One regular contributor stopped off at a random plowed field in early September and found a host of shorebirds including American Golden-Plover, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, and an Upland Sandpiper (rare in migration in NJ).
There are rarities such as a November Bewick's Wren that was not reported publicly, but was well-documented and reported only to the editor and records committee.

So, it's on to my winter records now which I hope to finish up this week. I have about a zillion Siskin and WW Crossbill sightings to weed through. Snowy Owls made a nice appearance this winter too. I'll let you know when the Spring 2009 (with Fall records) issue is published online so you can see my report.

Hilarious commercial

2009-03-28T10:07:00.003-04:00

Being in a hotel and without our DVR, we're forced to watch commercials. I found this Life Alert commercial particularly funny. Note: I didn't put in the title on the Youtube video. I know how to spell "its."

Turkey Vulture Collides with Car

2009-03-27T12:12:00.004-04:00

I just saw this on the local New York ABC affiliate 12:00 news:

PARSIPPANY, N.J. - State police say a turkey vulture injured a passenger when it crashed through a minivan's windshield Friday. It happened on Interstate 80 in Parsippany. State Police Sgt. Stephen Jones says a man was driving his Dodge Caravan in the eastbound lanes when the bird flew up. Jones says the bird went through the glass and ended up in the seat. The man's wife, who was a passenger, had glass fragments around her eye. Jones says the vehicle was towed away by Eagle Towing.

The report showed footage of the vehicle with a huge hole in the windshield. The bird did not survive.

UPDATE 3/28: Not a Turkey Vulture, but a Turkey. Bad NJ Reporting - pic here

The Wood Duck Hotel

2009-03-25T09:55:00.004-04:00

So this week the flood damage to our house from January 3 is finally being fixed. It took several months of battling with the condo association's insurance, my insurance, and my neighbor's insurance to finally start the work. While the damage is being fixed, we get to stay at the Hilton Homewood Suites. The logo of this hotel is a Wood Duck and it's prevalent throughout the hotel. It's on the towels, a pillow, all of the signs, etc. I just hope I don't encounter duck on the dinner menu. We've been there since Sunday night and it's been an adventure - no hot water on Monday, smoke alarm this morning, a big 18-wheeler parked behind Beth's car preventing her from leaving... fun! I shouldn't complain too much. In general, the hotel is nice, relatively new, and clean. I also had a nice view of a Turkey Vulture circling low over the parking lot on Monday and a horde of Juncos outside our window. And, no, I didn't pick the hotel because of the logo! Well, maybe.

Hooray for Monk Parakeets!

2009-03-24T10:19:00.002-04:00

After years of speculation, the Monk Parakeet has been officially added to the NJ state list of birds by the NJ Bird Records Committee. There is a large population in Bergen County and a smaller population in Middlesex County that have been around for many years.

Your Bird Impersonations

2009-03-20T11:31:00.003-04:00

I got an interesting request from a friend recently asking if I'd be able to attend an event held by a local chorus and if I'd be able to do some bird impersonations for the group. I had to decline, although I was flattered to be asked. Not only can't I make the date, but I'm not too confident in my repertoire of bird impersonations. I think I do an OK Barred Owl. I can do a good Mourning Dove, most of the US Nightjars, and I'm sure a few other species. I can whistle the melody of some bird songs too, but not well. Eastern Screech-Owl stinks and that's probably one of the more useful ones around for bringing in birds. And no birds have ever been curious about my Mourning Dove impersonation.

I definitely wouldn't consider myself anywhere near as proficient as The Bird Call Lady! What impersonations can you do? Leave a comment!

Butterfly Season

2009-03-18T20:02:00.004-04:00

These late winter warm spells like we're having today bring out what is typically the first butterfly seen each year in NJ - the Mourning Cloak. I saw one zip by today as I was walking up the sidewalk of our house (a very common view of this species). It is a gorgeous butterfly when seen from above with its yellowish trim accented by blue dots. When its wings are closed, it's cryptic as can be. One could land on a loose-barked tree like a Shagbark Hickory, wings folded, and you'd have a tough time finding it.

So why is this usually the first butterfly seen in NJ? Unlike many species, it hibernates throughout the colder months as an adult, hiding under loose bark, in debris piles, or anywhere it can find a nice dark place. On the list of the first signs of spring, seeing Mourning Cloaks is right up there with crocuses, phoebes, Red-winged Blackbirds, and all of your other favorites. Have you seen one yet this year?

NY Birding with Bloggers

2009-03-16T22:37:00.006-04:00

I'm a bit late getting on the bandwagon for posting about Saturday's NY birding adventure that brought together some of the local forces of blogging/birding in John, Corey, and Carrie. They've all given wonderful, in-depth reports of the day, so I won't repeat everything they've already said. It turned out to be a terrific day including signs of springs, some rarities, and it was a good opportunity to work on my NY state list. Not that I really have a NY state list, but if I did, it would be around 178 species... or maybe exactly 178 species. Not bad for not trying. Here are some highlights of the day via photos.

Tree Swallows were back at Jamaica Bay scoping out nesting boxes and generally just looking happy. I was happy to see them because it means warm weather is close!

Brant are rather conspicuous in coastal areas of NYC. They're even seen on the medians along the highway. This one was seen at Jones Beach, shortly after we saw a gorgeous Snowy Owl. We had a 4 goose species day! See the last pic below.

If a gun were placed to my head and I was forced to pick a favorite bird, I might opt for the Harlequin Duck. It is just simply gorgeous. I love their little squeaky sounds, although this pair was silent. These Harlequins sped along very close like little motor boats or wind-up toys. Love em!

The oddest sighting of the day goes to this Ross's Goose. I wish I had a photo of the pond it used as its temporary home just off the main drag in Merrick, Long Island (where we had some wicked pizza and I got some Girl Scout Cookies - Samoas!!!). It definitely was out of place, but this little "city" pond was particularly spectacular with Ruddy Ducks, Hooded Mergs, Black-crowned Night Herons, and Shovelers joining the party. Definitely odd to see a Ross's there though. It was a terrific life bird for some on our trip and very accomodating. It swam pretty close to us and afforded us nice photo ops.

It was a terrific day to be out with old friends and new. I look forward to our next bird blogger adventure.

A Reminder to Bird Safely

2009-03-13T16:09:00.003-04:00

Take a look at this story and photos from a local birder about his accident while birding on a popular jetty here in NJ. It's a reminder to never bird alone or be very careful when you do!

Purple-headed Grackle

2009-03-11T11:00:00.002-04:00

No, not some new species of Grackle, but I thought this photo really captured the beauty of this species and the irridescence on the head really stood out. You can see why it used to be called Purple Grackle.

We had our annual invasion of Common Grackles last week. One or two days out of each late winter, they converge on our neighborhood. They swoop in and gorge themselves on anything and everything and then disappear. They seem to particularly like one neighbor's lawn. I don't know what that means for their lawn, but I guess there is something good to eat there. So, I spent the day chasing these birds away from my feeder since they dessimate my seed supply. Still a pretty bird though!

Long-eared Owls at the Great Swamp

2009-03-07T20:26:00.005-05:00

Yowzers was it warm today! T-shirt weather! Beth and I took a ride to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge this evening. The place was hopping with birds and birders. There have been some rather well-known Long-eared Owls roosting there. They're well-known thanks to a birder posting exact directions to our NJ mailing list. Oops! Well, we went and checked them out and they were indeed very accommodating. This was Beth's first Long-eared Owl sighting! Keep reading below for other thrills.

We also saw an adult Red-headed Woodpecker that's been hanging around there all winter. It was too distant to photograph, but it was a beauty. Wood Ducks were conspicuous with groups flying over and calling repeatedly. Ring-necked Ducks were also bobbing and diving on several areas of open water. I can't stress how awesome the weather was.

We finished the day at dusk looking for Woodcocks displaying. We heard quite a few "peenting" and got looks at one repeatedly doing its flight display. I love that. It's always a challenge to find them in flight, but we were able to spot one individual a few different times. A sure sign of spring are the woodcocks displaying.

Robins singing!

2009-03-06T21:50:00.003-05:00

Less than 5 days after a big snowfall (by Jersey standards), I heard my first American Robin singing while Beth and I took a walk. Juncos were singing and many birds were active on this warm day. Our feeders had their annual visit from the droves of Grackles and Starlings today too. Our parakeets had fun yelling at them. Spring is coming. I love the fact that we're pushing the clocks ahead this weekend too. More time for birding!

Gulls Stealing Ice Cream

2009-03-06T08:18:00.001-05:00

Here's a funny gallery of pictures of gulls stealing ice cream.

Can't you hear my heartbeat?

2009-03-05T20:15:00.002-05:00

Ugh... I've been a lazy blogger lately. So, we got to hear Baby B's heartbeat on Tuesday. The doctor used her weird little device which looked like a Fisher Price Tape Player to listen for the baby's heartbeat. It took a good 2-3 minutes to find it. The doppler device made some weird sounds along the way, sort of like a dragon growling. I tried to convince Beth we were having a dragon baby, but she wasn't going for it. Then it hit paydirt and we heard the speedy heartbeat of a 12 week old fetus. We're about 2 months away from finding out the sex. Very exciting. Unfortunately, Beth's been really sick with a constant cough. Hopefully, she'll feel better soon. It's been rough.

In other news, no, I haven't been birding in a while. This weekend!

Nature Blog Network Featured Blog and SNOW!

2009-03-02T17:49:00.003-05:00

Thanks so much to Wren for choosing me as the featured blog on the Nature Blog Network this week.

In other news, it's a snowy day here in NJ. It's our first and hopefully last substantial snowfall of the year. Beth and I both had "snow days" although I worked the whole day. Sometimes having high-speed remote access to work is not a good thing.

The feeders were hopping today thanks to the snow. We usually only have one male Downy Woodpecker visit, but today a female joined him. I wasn't able to get a pic, but she did have a very dark belly which was interesting. Also, I had a record high count of goldfinches for my yard of 12. Yeah, I know some of you get 12 fighting over one post on your feeder, but it's great for condo-land here. Lots of MoDos and Juncos too. The MoDos enjoyed hiding from the snow on our porch as seen above.

New Birding TV Show - Birding Adventures

2009-02-27T14:55:00.003-05:00

This guy stole my dream job. Has anyone seen this show? It's only on in the southeast US it seems. The host is a South African. Maybe Quintus knows something about it...

Home town gull

2009-02-27T13:19:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts folks. Life's been busy!

I got a note that an Iceland Gull was found at Spring Lake Park in South Plainfield, NJ. This is the town I grew up in. My high school was right behind this park and I spent many horrible hours running around that park for our "mile test." Ugh. The lake itself has always been covered in Canada Geese and FULL of goose turds. I was shocked to hear about an Iceland Gull being there. I can't imagine what there is to eat there besides trash. The only interesting bird I ever saw at Spring Lake was a banded Snow Goose that was likely injured. I'll have to find the banding report I got and post it here. It goes to show you that you never know what you'll find! Maybe it'll be the Patagonia Picnic Table Effect and a Ross's Gull will swoop in.

I'm going to try to swing by the lake tomorrow to get a glimpse of this bird.

Loud Squawking Crow Forces FAA To Ground All Flights Indefinitely

2009-02-25T20:33:00.001-05:00

From The Onion

Leaf-footed Bug ID Needed

2009-02-23T21:38:00.005-05:00

Beth found this Leaf-footed Bug sitting on our window sill today. It's about 20 degrees outside and has been cold since a warm spell in early February. I wonder how it got in and I wonder what its story is. Anyone know the species? I posted an ID request to bugguide.net which is usually a quick way to an answer.

UPDATE: Thanks to Nuthatch for IDing it as a Western Conifer Seed Bug. Funny because I IDed one of these for someone else last year! They are native to the Pacific Northwest but have undergone a tremendous range expansion into the northeast. It's unknown if it's natural or human-assisted. In general, it is considered a pest, but a cool-looking pest in my opinion.

Some silliness

2009-02-21T19:58:00.001-05:00

I swear this was sent to me and I didn't find it myself. From icanhascheezburger:

NJ Great Backyard Bird Count Notes

2009-02-18T10:46:00.000-05:00

Well, the Great Backyard Bird Count has more or less come to an end. Please continue entering your sightings if you haven't already. As the count reviewer in NJ, I get to see some interesting observations. Here are some highlights from this year here in NJ:

160 species recorded. We had 163 last year. Someone counted the Monk Parakeets in Edgewater which wasn't done the last 2 years.

Tons of Pine Siskins all over the state (except in MY yard!)

81 White-winged Crossbills - definitely a record in the years recorded online. The previous high count was 4!

A well-known birder found an Atlantic Puffin from Barnegat Light State Park - pretty cool!

Other rarities included Cackling Goose, Eurasian Wigeon, Barrow's Goldeneye, Eared Grebe, American Bittern, Black-headed Gull, Glaucous Gull, Rufous Hummingbird, and Bohemian Waxwing

Last year NJ was #1 in individual birds thanks to some BIG counts of Snow Geese in south Jersey. This year, we are #8. Those same counts of Snow Geese were not reported this year.

Six species of owls including Snowy

As opposed to past years, several of the "Red-headed Woodpecker" sightings turned out to actually be Red-headed Woodpeckers!

Someone reported a Northern Goshawk, which is always a nice find in winter. I emailed the person to confirm it. Sure enough, she sent me pics of a gorgeous adult bird from her yard.

Several sightings of Baltimore Orioles - one person told me how they love to feed it grape jelly all year long. Wintering Baltimore Orioles at feeders are an annual occurrence. You never know when one might be a Bullock's and the viewer just doesn't know better.

Personally, I had seen a Belted Kingfisher in the retention pond near my house the last 2 years. No luck this year.

Fun times! Thanks to everyone who participated. What observations did you make about your state?

Siskins (not at my feeder)

2009-02-16T19:45:00.006-05:00

So I seem to have the only feeder in NJ where there are no Pine Siskins. I've had 4 Goldfinches, which is nice for my yard. Beth and I spent the weekend in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. We stayed at a little B&B and just relaxed. We had a great time, some great food, and some fun browsing in the shops of Doylestown and nearby New Hope. We spent a little time birding at Peace Valley Park so I could try out the new tripod. It works wonderfully! This was actually my second trip to this park. The first was an unsuccessful rarity chase for a Redwing back in February 2005.

The first birds we immediately noticed at the park were all the siskins. They were calling like crazy and filling all of the nearby feeders. We got some terrific photos. Enjoy!

Leucistic Kestrel

2009-02-14T09:05:00.003-05:00

Check out this photo of a leucistic American Kestrel from Arizona.

Definition of leucism vs. albinism here.

My V-day Gift from Beth

2009-02-13T20:21:00.002-05:00

Ok, so we exchanged the night before Valentine's Day for no good reason. We were both excited to give each other gifts. Beth got me an AWESOME gift - a Manfrotto Carbon Fiber Tripod! Whoa baby is this thing light! I plan to try it out a bit this weekend. She's heard me mention wanting one for a long time. So she conspired with my friend who works at the Sandy Hook NJ Audubon gift shop to get me the tripod. She's so sneaky. I'm very excited!

In case you're wondering, I got her a pendant with sapphires in it - her birth stone and the future birth stone of Baby Belardo.

Get out there and count!

2009-02-13T08:12:00.002-05:00

Today is the start of The Great Backyard Bird Count! Get out there and begin counting! Bringing out the trash this morning, I already had 2 Turkey Vultures, 2 American Crows, 2 American Robins, and 1 American Goldfinch fly over my house. I don't usually see Vultures directly over my house, especially not at 7:30 AM.

And remember, your counting doesn't necessarily have to be in your yard. It can be in a park, refuge, or wherever. Even if you don't know all the birds, count the ones you do know. But don't guess at the ones you don't! It makes the job of the state reviewer (like me) more difficult.

Most importantly, have fun!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-02-11T09:53:00.001-05:00

Vulture Comic

2009-02-09T12:14:00.002-05:00

Funny blog post title

2009-02-08T20:40:00.002-05:00

The title of this blog post caught me by surprise in my Google Reader. Then I realized it belonged to Serious Eats and it wasn't one of N8's taxidermy posts. Actually, it's kind of a gross post regardless of whether it's food related or bird related.

Cumberland County Eagle Festival this weekend!

2009-02-05T15:47:00.003-05:00

If you're local and not busy on Saturday, head down to Cumberland County, NJ for the Winter Eagle Festival. I will be the on-site naturalist at Beaver Dam from 10-11:30 and at Turkey Point from 1:00-5:00. It's a great opportunity to view not only Bald Eagles, but thousands of Snow Geese, lots of Harriers, and Short-eared Owls. It's supposed to be a gorgeous day weather-wise too. Hope to see you there!

Tripod Head Question

2009-02-03T12:08:00.001-05:00

Has anyone experimented with using a grip ball head like this one on their scope tripod instead of the standard tripod heads out there? I'll admit, I don't even know if it would fit on my tripod and I don't know much about tripods. It looks like it would make finding and locking on a bird easier, but may make scanning more difficult.

Two "state bird" day

2009-02-01T18:13:00.008-05:00

The Owlman and I took a morning birding trip on this Super Bowl Sunday in search of some of the NJ rarities that have been around. Our first stop was down to Collingswood, a suburb of Philadelphia. A plain-old-regular-run-of-the-mill yard that happens to have a really nice feeder setup, some water, and a few evergreen trees surrounding it has been host to a Green-tailed Towhee for the last month or so. The last NJ Green-tailed Towhee was in 1985. It goes to show you never know what will show up where. We were lucky and were treated to splendid views of the Towhee, although my awful photos don't do it justice.

We then headed to the Pole Farm in hope of seeing some owls. No owls, but we encountered a splendid raptor show. We had multiple harriers including 2 "gray ghosts." We also had a gorgeous dark-morph Rough-legged Hawk fly right over us. It was cruising quick and I was a bit slow with the camera but I got the decent shot below. We also saw several Red-tails, a light-morph Rough-legged, and we had crippling views of a Red-shouldered Hawk. Enjoy the pics below. I particularly love the last one. We finished our day at Round Valley Reservoir where we saw an Eared Grebe that had been hanging there for some time now. Two state birds for me in one day! Be sure to check out Quintus's better pics of the Towhee and his report of the day.

Rough-legged Hawk

Red-shouldered Hawk

First baby picture!

2009-01-30T09:42:00.004-05:00

Here is the first picture of baby Belardo. Ok, so it's more of an amorphous blob or sea creature at this time, but you can make out some parts there. It's about the size of a blueberry now, so we've been calling it "our little blueberry." The Belardos are known for being well-endowed in the cranial area, hence the comment on there. The circle shows the baby. The line points to the giant head. I have to admit that seeing the little beating heart was truly mind-blowing.

Plymouth, MA Ivory Gull Newspaper Article

2009-01-28T13:19:00.002-05:00

My friends John and Adam from VA got mentioned in this article about the Plymouth Ivory Gull. John is featured in an interview in the article.

I will refrain from grumbling about missing the bird. Or did I just grumble by saying that I won't grumble?

Super Bowl of Birding "Awards"

2009-01-27T10:05:00.005-05:00

Our Super Bowl of Birding weekend has come and gone and it was a blast. We finished fourth in species count and sixth in point total. Not bad! Reports and perspectives on our weekend can or will be found at 10,000 Birds, Picus Blog, The Drinking Bird, and The Owl Box. In this season of unnecessary awards ceremonies, I thought I’d do my report a little differently. So here I present the first (and possibly annual) Super Bowl of Birding awards:

Best Bird of the Trip – While I may argue that it was the fleeting glimpse of my life Dovekie, I think the Northern Hawk Owl in Center Harbor, NH is the clear winner. It put on a tremendous show for us on Friday afternoon. I couldn’t seem to find it’s nest though!

“Boo Bird” Award – On our NJ Audubon van trips, we always nominate a “boo bird.” This is the bird that was the biggest disappointment. I’m going to award it to a Saturday bird and a Sunday bird. On Saturday, it was the YB Sapsucker who didn’t show at its regular feeder during the 20 minutes we waited – 5 points missed. On Sunday, the obvious “winner” is the missing Ivory Gull.
The Mario Andretti Award goes to Christopher. Our fearless leader was truly fearless behind the wheel. We zipped down narrow New England roads, through ice and snow, between cars, and over small children. Yet, he managed to do it without even a scratch on the rental car.

“Best Use of Humor While Freezing His Butt Off” goes to Nate. With temps dipping well below freezing, Nate said that even his teeth were cold. Yet, no matter how cold and windy it got, he still kept up his good humor. He also made several Simpsons references, which I feel is required on all birding trips. Lifers have a way of keeping you happy too!

Crazy Digiscoper Award – Corey is the clear winner. I’ve never seen someone spend so much time digiscoping Rock Pigeons. Just kidding, but he did take some tremendous pictures and spent an inordinate amount of time reviewing the pics in his viewfinder.

The Most Enthusiastic Award goes to Quintus for his constant use of superlatives (and sometimes colorful language) to express his joy at seeing so many awesome birds. He also did a swan dive into the snow to celebrate after we photographed some WW Crossbills.

Stupidest Blogger – That goes to me – for not bringing my 300mm lens and camera. It seemed to make sense when I made the decision… we’ll be running and gunning, no time for photos, yadda yadda yadda… I was so wrong. I deserve all the ribbing I got for that. That’s why we have next year… Another blogger received several votes in this category due to a misplaced wallet.

Food of the Trip – It’s a tie between York Peppermint Patties and pizza. We had some great pizza on Friday and then were fed semi-good pizza on Saturday at the awards ceremony. Corey and I both had moments of brilliance in bringing the Peppermint Patties with us.

Least Visited Place - The clear winner here is THE BATHROOM. I don't mind using the woods, but the places we visited didn't have many private areas to tend to my business.

Well that's it! The weekend was great and I'll definitely be going back next year.

Roger Tory Peterson on C-SPAN

2009-01-27T06:09:00.000-05:00

Beth recorded C-SPAN2's show "Book TV" over the weekend. It featured Lee Allen Peterson, son of Roger, speaking about the writing of the Field Guide to Birds up through its current version. You can watch the show online here.

No, we don't sit around and watch C-SPAN all day.

USDA Killing Starlings in NJ

2009-01-26T21:29:00.002-05:00

Starlings were almost literally falling out of the sky in Franklin Township, NJ over the weekend (about two towns away from The Hawk Owl's Nest). The USDA poisoned some starlings in an effort to control their populations and didn't bother to really tell anyone. I can't believe there's actually a chemical referred to as starlicide!

I'll be posting about our great weekend in Massachusetts over the next day or two. It was PHE-NOM-E-NAL!