The friendly hummingbird

Today a young male Ruby-throated Hummingbird visited the backyard early in the day while the girls put out a different patio table. It perched on top of a chair, mere feet away, and patiently waited for them to finish their task. After that it ate from the feeders throughout the day. When I returned home I heard the above story as soon as the hummingbird returned and perched on the same chair I was sitting on. I asked them a simple question, "Do you want to take its picture?" Below is what happened as it sat on a tomato plant.

Grab the tripod and pick an angle focused on its favored perch...

....and start shooting.

Move the tripod and take some more photos.

Lower the tripod and share the camera with Danielle.

Who had a slightly different angle....

 

...and flipped the camera vertically. Micheaela's vertical photo (right) is cropped.

Michaela even had a Monarch land while she was taking photos....why not take this one too!

Other names considered for this post included:

• 15 fall warbler species get upstaged by yard bird!
• Gold family succumbs to peer pressure and shares yet another hummingbird photo on FB!
• The girls still think dad's hobby is cool. I wonder how long that will last.
• RTHU, be thankful this was written before you peed on the author.

July 4th Photo Safari

This summer included a long trip up north but stories and photos from that trip will be added later.  Instead this blog post is devoted to our Overland Park Arboretum visit on July 4th.  We've been members of the arboretum since moving to OP three years back and have made many visits in search of birds in winter and summer, insects, have given the girls photo challenges in the past, and even had them write about their experiences there. During this visit the girls wanted cameras and chose their own direction; Christine and I were left to watch and enjoy their creative spirits.

Turtles caught their eyes first.

 

(Top L to R) False Map Turtle, Red-Eared Slider, and Ouachita Map Turtle
(Bottom L to R) Red-Eared Slider and Spiny Softshell Turtle
  

The four different species of turtles were sunning and near the boardwalk, where the girls joined others in looking at turtles and fish in the water.

 

Danielle decided it was a good idea to get up close, while Michaela laid out to shoot an Eastern Amberwing.

Here are Danielle's videos below. 

Butterflies were out as well!

We all took photos of butterflies, which were spread throughout the Arboretum. 

 

(Top L to R) Silver-spotted Skipper and Sleepy Orange
(Bottom L to R) Horace's Duskywing, Clouded Sulfer, and Monarch
  

Fairy Houses are there also!!

Christine and the girls have created fairy houses the past couple of years as admission to the Renaissance Festival, we walked through the Enchanted Forest to get ideas.  As fate would have it we started the girl's versions this weekend when the neighbors trimmed some trees.

 

Pictures to use as ideas and inspiration.
 

Photo ops!!!

It is fun to take pictures of the girls, but somehow their smiles show up so much easier when they are taking photos as well.

 

They are getting big!

Summer Trip 2015 Birding Part 2

Here is the second of three birding installments from our 2015 Summer Trip. As many of you likely recall from previous blog posts we visited many states, left the country, visited my sister on the west coast, and stopped at many National Parks and Monuments. We still have some unprocessed photos from spring/summer 2015 with all our travels, but alas most of the bird and mammal photos from this trip are done. Below is my recollection from our drive back from Oregon, almost none of it covered in previous reports or photos. 

After birding a bit on the coast I realized how much I had missed looking for birds over the previous month and was anxiously looking forward to searching for new species along our drive home. The Van was leaking transmission fluid when we stopped in Boise, but luckily all was fixed and we were on the road again a day later.

Letting fate determine where to Bird in Idaho and Wyoming

I benefited from using the BirdsEye app during our 2015 Spring Break trip as well as this trip. The app makes it easy for me to search reported birds to eBird and identify areas to explore, which increases my awareness of expected species, and allows me to target areas to add life birds. 

Their reaction after being apart for 30 minutes!

Our primary goal was putting time behind the wheel and miles behind us so I focused on the most desired birding outcome....LIFE BIRDS!  A life bird is the first time a species is seen, and brings me a huge level of enjoyment when I see a new bird. 

Late in our second day from Portland I decided to stop at the Juniper Rest Stop just north of the Utah/Idaho border on I-84 with hopes of seeing a previously reported Juniper Titmouse. The girls were stir crazy so Christine took them for a walk while I went in search of birds along a quieter path. I did not add any new lifers, but I was fortunate enough to have a Say's Phoebe sit in the open and allow me to take photos. The girls followed me back and were able to see and hear the Ash-throated Flycatchers call.

I've seen Say's Phoebes in a few states as their eastern range is the Midwest.

We drove out of Idaho, through Utah, and into Wyoming before we found a hotel for the night. It had a pool and we lounged around it late into the morning. Before we left town we stop at the state visitor center, which yielded few birds but did offer a chance to see a new mammal for the trip.

We headed down the road a couple hours before stopping at Green River - Scotts Bottom Nature Area as once again I used BirdsEye to find a location. I had hopes of finding previously reported Lesser Goldfinch and Sage Thrasher as lifers. We walked around the southern campground area and struggled to see anything in the afternoon heat. A distant Brewer's Sparrow perched and sang as we were returned to the Van, but this lifer seemed like charity and was very unrewarding given the overall limited bird activity, distant views of this bird, and sweltering heat.

After the initial walk our return to the freeway took us by water treatment ponds. Birders have a weird affinity for these sewage lagoons, so we stopped in. An American Avocet chick in the middle of a pond caught our attention so we stopped to watch. I'm not sure if the parent was concerned with the van 30 yards away or just curious, but it flew in and walked with feet of my window.

 The Avocet will loose it's salmon neck and head colorization after the spring breeding season.

As we slowly left the ponds along the dirt road Christine spotted a goldfinch with a dark crown. This was almost certainly a Lesser Goldfinch, which is yellow and black similar to American Goldfinches but with a green hue to its back and dark cap for the male. I missed the bird and was frustrated by my perceived bad luck of not seeing it! Christine's cooler mind reminded me that it would be okay to park and wait on the hopes that the birds might return. After a while the Lesser Goldfinches returned!!

 

Lesser Goldfinch (Left) and Mountain Cottontail (Right) from Green River!

With all the time birding during the third day, limited hotel options, and the late start we decided to drive late into the night all the way to Walden Colorado. At dusk we saw Greater Sage Grouse in the road, that were easily seen from a mile away. They were so large we initially thought they might be turkeys! As we got close they flew off, but it was a decent look at another lifer, the third of the day!! As fate had it, my birding plan for the next day would bring us closer to two of these lifers.

Summer Trip 2015 Birding Part 1

After taking many pictures it often takes me days, weeks, and even months to sort through them, add meta-data tags for archival purposes, crop and rename, and use creative digital darkroom edits in Photoshop. This past summer we took a month and half long journey that included driving to Minnesota, Canada, Oregon, and many National Parks along the way like Yellowstone and Rocky Mountain. While much of the trip was focused on family time I also squeezed in some time for walks, photos, and birding.  I still have not processed the dragonfly and damselfly photos from June 2015, but here are some bird and nature photos from the rest of the trip not already covered in previous posts. This post focuses on the birding while visiting Pacific City.

Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge

While others slept in I woke up early our first day while vising the coast and headed down to the beach to scope for birds. Many of the birds were similar to what I saw the day before while scoping and I wanted more. 

With the families planning to play on the beach I venture away to Nestucca Bay NWR and surrounding areas for birding. As I pulled into the drive I saw Wilson's Warblers and an Orange-Crowned Warbler and heard many more birds before noticing this  young buck bedded in the center island of the parking lot. 

White-Crowned Sparrow

I walked up the hill (one paved road was the only trail I found to walk) and was able to observe a Hutton's Vireo for the first time, a LIFER! They truly fit the description of Ruby-Crowned Kinglets resemblance. The dense foliage did not allow for photos unfortunately,  The top of the hill did not yield many species, but I did take a picture of this White-Crowned Sparrow on what appeared to be a field of Queen-Anne's Lace ( I am not a plant person at all and fully expect my id to be incorrect.)

Returning down the hill I felt like I was using house money having already picked up a lifer, but then it got better when I heard a call that  reminded me of a flycatcher. Alas my auditory id skills are not what they could be and the bird quit singing. In this instance I used playback, a technique used often by some and hated by others to bring birds in closer, and  quickly identified the Hammond's Flycatcher family that flew in. Not a lifer but it felt like it having only seen this species once before 5 years previously. These birds once again evaded photos in the dark underbrush of the slope, but I also walked away carrying the potential cost of my choice to use playback.

I was in no hurry to leave having already picked up a lifer and decided to take a casual stroll back down the hill towards 101 and the refuge entrance. I was hoping to see the mixed flock of warblers and take some pictures.

Orange-Crowned Warblers from the west coast are more yellow than those from the east coast.

I likely spent a half an hour watching a small mixed flock of Wilson's Warblers and the Orange-crowned Warbler above when I heard a vireo. The song reminded me of a Blue-headed vireo, but admittedly many of the vireo calls are similar and differences are subtle. I checked the mobile eBird app and saw that Cassin's Vireos are expected in the area. I very quietly listened to the call after reading about their vocalizations which are described as "Song a series of phrases; intermediate between clear notes of Blue-headed Vireo and rough, husky notes of Plumbeous Vireo".  Score another LIFER, but this time I did not use playback and try to lure the species into the open for me to see it. 

I walked back toward the parking lot and patiently waited for the curious Wilson's Warblers to present themselves. As I was watching Wilson's Warblers through my binoculars and trying to determine where the best photo opportunity might be, a Hermit Warbler flew in and quickly flew off. It was the third LIFER of the day! Chasing after the bird for more views and photos was impossible as within a minute it flew across the road and away from the refuge. I was able to find a spot that gave me the opportunity to take the photo of a Wilson's Warbler below.

Wilson's Warblers are one of few warbler species on the west coast.

Satisfied with these photo opportunities I returned to my car and was about to leave when a SUV with three birders arrived. We quickly shared information about where to see their target species and they took off up the hill. I noticed the feeders next to the parking lot had many Rufous Hummingbirds active and I walked over hoping to take a photo. While I did take a couple of photos none of them turned out great.

I was lucky when two Red Crossbills flew in and let me snap a few frames. This is a species I have seen in many states yet have not been able to take good photos of. The photo below is a huge improvement from previous attempts. Unfortunately the one frame of the male feeding the juvenile was blurry and at a bad angle, so I can wait with anticipation for the next birding and photo opportunity.

Red-Crossbills

I returned back to the rental and checked in with family, but was quickly distracted with all the potential birds and not looking forward to climbing a sand hill. So with the permission of my wife, my mother, my sister, my dad, and my brother-in-law (perhaps it was more insistence to get rid of Mr Grumpy) I took off again.

Cape Lookout SP--Cape Trail, Tillamook County, Oregon, US

Using BirdsEye to identify target species is wonderful when a birder is traveling, assuming that local birders use eBird. Fortunately for me a few people had reported sightings around Pacific City. I chose the Cape Trail from potential hikes and walked 2.5 miles to the lookout of the Pacific Ocean.

The view back toward land was better than looking straight out into an endless ocean.

Walking back I was less scared of falling off the cliff and finally set up the scope to scan. Of course this was also prompted by a lack of birds at the tip of the point where I scanned for a while. I added my fourth and final LIFER of the day with a Cassin's Auklet that was halfway back to the car. The bird was almost directly below me, but I was not going to attempt a straight down photo. Instead I snapped the photo looking out over the bay. Adding a flyby Brant while seasick rounded out a handful of lifers from our visit to Pacific City. Pretty Awesome!

Birding Blitz Videos

After 1400+ miles in 4 days, sleeping in car two of three nights, birding on average 10+ hours a day, and a memory card full of pictures to edit I am ready to go to sleep.......but before I do here are four videos and recap of my mad-dash birding extravaganza.

I left shortly after 3 am Wednesday morning hoping to see Whooping Cranes at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge around dawn. After sunup I was soon distracted by sounds coming through the open car windows, especially one that sounded like a Say's Phoebe. I stopped and looked for it but without visual confirmation I chose not to include it on my bird checklist as I have seen them before but never in Kansas. As I searched for the Phoebe this Meadowlark perched close to the car and reminded me of my daughters question from this past month "Why don't you take photos of meadowlarks?"

I turned my attention to this common species and took the video below, with a few photos, to show my daughters.  The phoebe did not appear but is often the case I hear birds I cannot identify.

I checked Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area and headed west in search of Lesser Prairie-Chickens. I was unsuccessful in my afternoon searches, so I grabbed a hotel in Dodge City and returned the next morning to Hodgeman County. Success with seeing this species for the first time....a Lifer!!  I am truly thankful for the help and suggestions of fellow birders, as a pair of males were dancing right where a few people indicated they would be. 

I spent a couple hours watching the scene above repeat itself.  Every so often they would fly off and strut their stuff alone, only to come back together and face-off.  I headed further southwest to Morton county and Elkhart. Within Kansas this seems to be arguably the best location for rarities in the state. While the timing of my trip was not conducive to finding rarities, I still wanted to explore the Cimarron National Grasslands and the town that so many of my friends talk about. The sun went down before I was tired, so I made a split decision to drive that night to Black Mesa Preserve in Oklahoma in search of a Ladder-Backed Woodpecker. 

The terrain at Black Mesa is quite rugged and I saw Canyon Towhees and Scaled Quail for the first time, two lifers! I contributed to the death of a quail even, as my presence flushed them which alerted a Merlin of their presence. The little bird of prey swooped down and caught one of the quail. This is a bummer knowing my action has a negative consequence. This Curve-billed Thrasher was seen on the hike as well.

Returning back to Elkhart I check the Shelter-belt once again and was fortunate to be there at that time. Two youngsters were running and playing in the same area as I intended to search for birds and their presence had the Barn Owls flying around in avoidance. I heard the owl's screech and chuckled as the youngsters loudly asked what was that. I checked a few birding hotspots and started by drive back.  

Just like the first day, I started my last day at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge.  I used the car as a photo blind and parked next to a small pond with two male Redhead ducks in it.  Soon after eight more Redheads flew in and I took the video below. A Say's Phoebe called and this time flew into the open, the 300th species I've observed in Kansas. While this number does not represent much, it personally was a goal of mine for last year as an incentive to get out and explore more places in Kansas. 

I may write another blog post from this trip, but I realize I am already a bit behind on photo editing (MN Winter Birding Part 4, Summer 2015 Trip Birding, or a post about spring events that we've posted through Facebook) so if you want to see photos from the trip I would direct you to my Facebook or Flickr page.

Spring Break - March 17th Birds

Be forewarned, I wrote this blog to remind myself of March 17th birding memories on the fourth day of the Texas Road Trip. Amazingly I only planned to bird a small portion of the day, the rest of the day fortuitously fell into place. With this information in mind I can almost guarantee that I ramble on and add more information than is ever going to be desired by even my closest of birding friends and family in this blog post.

Double Bayou Park

During our first night camping my inflatable mattresses did not hold air very well and I was up often throughout the night falling out of bed. When I was awake hearing a couple of owls (eBird list) was a nice consolation prize for the lack of sleep. With heavy fog present when I awoke I didn't feel a rush to get to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge; instead the girls slept in and I had a nice walk around the water soaked city park. The white-eyed vireos (eBird list) could be heard singing at first light and it was wonderful seeing them up close during my morning walk.

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge

As we left camp the fog was so heavy I only felt safe driving 10 miles per hour, but fortunately it thinned a bit right before we completed the 5 mile drive to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge.

We stopped at the main entrance's visitor center and I spotted the first surprise and lifer of the day....a VERMILION FLYCATCHER! This species summers in the South-West and is found in eastern Texas during its wintering range.

We walked around the Willows boardwalk and found more spider webs than birds. We did see a bullfrog, northern mockingbirds, and few others (eBird checklist is here). The surprise of this walk was getting my first view of  a VIRGINIA RAIL. Danielle wanted to see what I stopped to look at and hoped on top of my shoulders. She was able to see this beautiful little marsh bird at less than 10 feet. I couldn't manage a sharp photo with the heavy fog and slow shutter speed, but the photo to the right is the best I've got so far. 

We considered heading to the coast due to the heavy fog and returning early the next day for birding, but decided to check out the Shoveler Pond drive since we were there. The girls loved seeing a raccoon lumber down the road as we turned the corner and we stopped to reposition the van's inside when we saw the first alligator. With cameras in hand and a repositioned front of the van the girls could stand and look through the windows. While we were stopped a group of lifer Fulvous Whistling-Ducks flew over and we soon saw my lifer Mottled Ducks. The later is a species quite similar in appearance to Mallards, but is most regularly found in Texas and Florida.

 

We didn't very close to either of these species and a 300mm lens leaves a lot to be desired.

While scanning a mudflat for shorebirds I struck up a conversation with Mike from Buffalo, later referred to as Buffalo Mike in this post. He was visiting his girlfriend in Houston but she was unexpectedly called away for work and left him to bird three days around the coast by himself. Mike didn't use eBird nor did he keep an online life list (mentioning why should I spend time on a mobile device rather than looking at birds), but recalled many birds traveling the world the past 20 years. He was knowledgeable both of the area and birds, shared my passion for looking at birds, and seemed to care less about listing totals than just enjoying the moment. I shared my scope and I pointed out semipalmated and pectoral sandpipers, two species he had not seen the previous days with only binoculars.

Overcast skies, rain, and fog made obtaining "good" photos a challenge.

We started chatting about  target species see and I mentioned how Ruddy Turnstones has eluded me for nearly 7 years. Buffalo Mike urged me to check out Bolivar Flats. I listened intently as his recommendation mirrored Mike Stewart's (another wonderful birder I only briefly met in Kansas). We already had plans for the next three days but I filed the information as we parted ways. Along the rest of the drive we saw White Ibis and Common Gallinule completing the eBird list.

Leaving the Wildlife Refuge we saw our first White-tailed Kite....adding four lifers to my bird list while at Anahuac. The drive around Shoveler Pond was amazing in itself without the birds and was one of my favorite memories of the entire trip. Christine stood between the seats taking pictures through the van's moon-roof, the girls alternated between the windows of the front passenger and middle seats, and seemingly all three of them pointed out every bird and animal with genuine smiles.

Smith Oaks Sanctuary and Rookery

It was lunch time when we left Anahuac so we only stopped at Smith Oaks Sanctuary briefly to check it out.  I grabbed a single camera while we left the others behind and was lucky enough to get the photo of a Neotropic Cormorant below. Heavy fog was still present however and we decided to head toward the beach after a short walk. I contemplated whether to ask Christine to create an eBird list or not, but with limited species at this highly visited location I decided against it on our drive out. I turned the corner and I saw Buffalo Mike turn toward the Rookery; we gave each other a quick wave and I smirked thinking that my decision not to enter an eBird list was influenced by Mike's position on the topic. We were off to find the ocean.

This is my third favorite bird photo from the trip!  The first was in the last post and second is yet to come.

Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary

Royal Terns are so neat. 

Four miles from Smith Oaks Sanctuary to the gulf seemed to fly by and before we knew it the road turned east and we were at the ocean. Unfortunately the fog was still so heavy we could not see the water 100 yards away. The girls were watching a movie, Christine had food in her belly, and I received the go ahead to find a location on the ocean I wanted to bird.....as the girls would be able to go swimming anywhere (or at least we thought). We check BirdLog for hotspots and decided to check out any hotspot heading west toward Bolivar Flats, but with heavy fog at each location there seemed to be no reason to turn away from fate and we continued on toward the Houston Audubon Society bird sanctuary. 

With no other locations to check we parked at the end of the service road on the beach and decided to take a bike ride. I grabbed binoculars and scanned a flock of gulls/terns (eBird list), quickly picking out lifer Royal and gull-billed terns. 2 more lifers and 6 for the day!

I tried to ride bike with binoculars, tripod, and backpack....but quickly rectified my hubris and turned back. I grabbed the Van and drove to the end of the beach, where the Sanctuary began while the girls went for a bike ride.

Wilson's Plover have thicker bills than other US plovers.

Unfortunately biking on the beach sounded better in our minds than reality and the bikes soon were back on the trailer. After some indecision I chose to walk the sanctuary and the girls chose to swim.

Within feet of telephone pole barricade (the sanctuary was open to foot traffic but no motorized vehicles), I picked out yet another lifer with a Wilson's Plover. The heavy fog had persisted all day and makes the photo to the right appear gray.

For some reason the girls wanted to walk along rather than swim after a couple of minutes, so we slowly made our way along the shoreline.  Shorebirds appeared to materialize out of the fog. It was at this time I was extremely grateful for studying the O'Brien Shorebird guide and focusing on shorebird body structure rather than color or fieldmarks. After a short while the girls decided to swim again and who should I see walking down the beach but Buffalo Mike. We were both surprised to see each other yet again, and hiked part of the sanctuary as if we were old birding pals. We bounced identifications off of one another and discussed varying opinions, working through the shapes to identify as many as possible.  The entire eBird list detailing lifer Long-billed Curlew, Red Knot, and Ruddy Turnstone seems to miss most of amazing feeling of the fogging shoreline!! These three shorebird lifers brought the daily tally up to 10!

 

Long-billed curlew (TL) and Ruddy Trunstone (TR) were lifers, snowy plover (BL) and sanderling (BR) are just cool.
 

We decided to head back toward camp, hoping to find anywhere away from fog. Within half a mile of the beach the sun almost popped through the clouds. A perched Osprey caught my eye and I parked the car underneath it as I urged Christine to take a few photos. I'm glad she did as she snapped the photo below.

My second favorite bird photo from the trip. Depending on the I often think this is the best of the entire trip!!

Back to Camp

The hour and half drive from camp to Bolivar Flats was too long in the car and we all needed something more relaxing in the coming days than what we had previously planned. Christine and I discussed a bunch of ideas while the girls watch a movie. This was the first time in two days we had allowed them to watch TV and we slowly pulled onto the paved road heading back toward camp as Christine mentioned the idea of Pleasure Pier and hotel in Galveston.

For whatever reason I remembered at that precise moment we had left something on the bike trailer and pulled the van over. As I jumped out of the pulled-over van I looked north onto a small pond and saw lifer Black-bellied Whistling Ducks (eBird list).

I hoped in the car with a big smile and shared the sighting with Christine, taking it as a sign that we should definitely pursue her wonderful idea and ditch our previous plans of visiting museums in Houston. This decision worked out quite well as the 18th turned out to be the favorite day for everyone. The sun finally poked through the fog and we had sunshine for the first time at 5 pm. We made plans to stop at the Rookery again on our way back to camp but then Christine asked the question. "Did you see everything you wanted to at the Sanctuary?"

I responded "It was amazing. I found a ton of birds but didn't find a Sandwich tern."

As we crossed Rollover Bay pass I lamented how the gulls, terns, and pelicans appeared to call out to me and take their picture. They were sitting on top the pilings as people fished nearby and were the first birds I saw that day in sunlight. Christine told me to stop and we pulled into the parking lot. All intentions changed as we turned around a corner and saw the bay filled with shorebirds, gulls, terns, and pelicans.  Christine told me to go find a Sandwich Tern while the three of them relaxed in the van, photos would have to wait.

I scanned through the birds (eBird list) and yelled out there were lifer Black Skimmer and American Oystercatchers out there! This brought the tally of lifers up to 13 just for this one foggy day! By the time we got back to the rookery the fog had returned and we decided to head back to camp. As luck would have it we stopped at the Rookery the next morning in between rain showers and were able to take photos.

Daily Overview

The eBird website is free for everyone and keeps a running list of all species seen as well as the first date of observation for each of them. The list below is a screenshot from eBird and reveals the 13 lifers from March 17th. The software fails to convey the story behind them and thus this blog post. In addition to the lifers I saw species seen only days before for the first time as well as others never viewed before. I saw a total of 121 species on March 17th. 

In the eight years of birding, I've only added more than 13 lifers within one day twice. On April 5, 2008 when I added species #68 (Wood Duck) through #89 (Tree Swallow) and on May 13, 2008 when I added species #137 (chimney swift) through #156 (indigo bunting). A bit surprisingly I didn't add this many species in one single day during our trip west in 2010 when I cracked 300 lifers and added 51 lifers over two weeks.

The one that got away

Amazing as March 17th was for birds, there was one species that got away. Can you guess what species I am referring to? Look at the my photo below and try to identify all the species. Click on the photo to see what I found after returning home.

I was oh so close to having 14 lifers on the 17th. Instead I added 13 and this species is left off my list until next trip.  Yes I saw this species but I didn't identify it on that day. Everyone keeps their own list, but I know I'll get more enjoyment seeing it for the first time in the future if I can identify it in the field compared to checking it off my list by finding in a picture three weeks after getting home. 

Great Birding!