tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37706512107150660812024-03-13T14:30:55.248-04:00The Curious BirderKimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.comBlogger644125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-41883498428083693412014-03-14T21:07:00.001-04:002014-03-14T21:07:48.295-04:00Back to Blogging again and Have a New Blog.Hey there all. Don't know if anyone even reads this blog anymore as I kind of stopped this past summer as I wasn't birding as much and my camera broke and didn't get a new one until a few week's ago. It reignited the blog bug and I'm back at it. Not so much bird related which is why I started a new one. It will contain birding still of course as it's still in my blog and Always will be, but felt it was appropriate to start from scratch.<br />
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Take care all.<br />
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<a href="http://kimsjournalandothermusings.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kim's Journal & Other Musings.</a>Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-75796347089367801392013-07-08T17:24:00.001-04:002013-07-08T17:24:13.033-04:00Closeup's of one of the Juvenile Downtown Worcester Peregrine Falcon's 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd be in number hell at work a little after lunch today with a bad case of eye strain so I'd be more than happy to see Tim from building management appear at my door to tell me one of the juvenile Peregrine Falcon's was on top of our building. It would be then I'd remember I forgot my camera so grabbed my Droid hoping for the best!<br />
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He'd look at us with I believe the sweetest face I think I've ever seen on a falcon before (I know I say that every year but this time I'm serious!). He didn't squack, or move or even look nervous but rather look at us in a deep way to try and figure out just what the hell we were!<br />
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After studying these birds over the years-each and every one has their personalities and of all the falcon's I've seen so far this one would major in philosophy at Oxford University as he seemed so deep which made me a tad uncomfortable as I thought he may be sick or something. Where was the squacking, the glaring and all the other things these birds are known to do?<br />
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He even looked at his foot as if he were trying to philosophize it!<br />
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And us too for that matter!<br />
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Teasing me as he knew I didn't have my camera and am awful taking pictures with my Droid with no glasses on as I can't see what I'm photographing and was zoomed in too close as you can see!<br />
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Despite the disadvantage I managed some half way decent shots! Once again look at the deep thought going on in his eyes. I'm a sucker for brainiac's-Swoon!<br />
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Last one just as he was thinking of fleeing the stalker! The highlight of my month so far. Work's been so crazy I'm lucky to be able to eat lunch so getting out has been close to impossible so this made up for it. Do wonder where the female is though, but glad I saw him. Also on the 23rd floor which made for better photos and a perfect break for my eye strain!<br />
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Take care all.<br />
<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-35085151213097151062013-07-06T17:58:00.001-04:002013-07-06T18:05:28.823-04:00If you can't beat em....Join em<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The long days of summer are here and with that comes an overall lack of motivation to bird. It's not as much to do with the lack of birds but rather the extreme humidity and bugs that go with it keeping me close to home just like winter as I'm as fond of the oppressive heat as I am the extreme cold and realize by now it's my normal pattern. Plus living near the center of town in Millbury this time of the year can be rather hectic with the carnival and fireworks which usually causes more stress than it should with traffic and noise pollution so am always happy the 5th of July when my street goes back to normal and the carnies move on. This year I'd try a different approach though as I get sick of being the town hermit so figured I'd try and live like the other 95% of the population and use this as a time to have fun, enjoy the chaos and yes- be social....Gulp. <br />
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So with that came nice cold beer as it goes hand and hand with hazy, hot and humid so would stop at the packie when I got out of work Wednesday to stock up on $30.00 worth of booze and another $50 on food! I'd be okay with the beer as my body is used to it but my son and his girlfriend bought some fancy French vodka for strawberry daiquiris and I'd see my son trying to make them following the directions on the back of the daiquiri bottle and gasp as it was all wrong!! My Martha Stewart instinct kicked in as I pushed him aside and told him he not only needed ice but the blender as well and got to work. I'd taste the pre made drink mix and scowl as it was as thick as nyquil so would brush aside their suggestion of 1 part vodka to 2 parts mix and do my own calculation which would be as follows: 2 parts daiquiri mix to 3 parts ice to 1.5 parts of the fancy French vodka. Put it in the blender, watch it mix for a bit and hope for the best. I'd grab a small jelly glass and pour some of it in for a sample as my son and his girlfriend eagerly watched to make sure I didn't mess up their drink I demanded to make! Sip....Hmmm......Sip.....Sip....."I think it's pretty good" I'd say as I gave them the other two sips and proceeded to grab myself a bigger glass and pour more of it in and it would be just in time for the fire works!!! I'd then run to the bathroom, grab two small pieces of toilet paper to stick in my ears (yes I'm that neurotic about retaining my middle aged hearing ability)-and off we'd go!<br />
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Everyone would be on blankets or chairs but I'd plop myself right on my freshly mowed grass (thanks to Nori) and watch the energy of the crowds waiting for the show to begin. Screaming children running around my yard with those light up florescent sticks (must be part of Tim's crew), a big pick up truck going by with two honkin American flags attached to both sides and Charlie Daniel's crooning from the radio, and a couple holding hands with a woman sporting a very fashionable patriotic vest that was not only red,white and blue, but blinked as it was lit!!! I'd watch her blink on by as I sipped my cocktail and wondered if it was chargeable or battery operated. Whatever it was, I thought all of it was fantastic. See Kim, I'd think to myself. You can be social and interact with mugglers- all you need is vodka to do so......... The Curious Birder strikes another level of genius again! The fireworks did turn out lovely though as the town made them extra special this year to celebrate their bicentennial so I took some video.<br />
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You will hear my son scream "Happy Birthday America" in an effort to get our neighbor Tim going which is what he does every time there are fireworks and he's had a few and sure enough it would work. Tim and his family has been welcome to my yard every 4th for fireworks and he brings his whole crew (50-60 people on average)-so was glad I didn't do a vegetable garden this year as I'd be at full capacity! After the fireworks we'd go inside to eat a late dinner and then head on over to Tim's for one of his famous bon fires and sure enough that baby would be smoldering and the yard hopping!<br />
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People would be everywhere with a new guitarist this time (the other one is in rehab) and he'd be playing Johnny Cash so between the vodka and him I'd happily plop myself on a chair and be sociable!! In fact, so sociable I'd be there until 1AM with my sign to leave when a recently divorced man tried picking me up (pattern I'm trying to break) so off I went for some much needed shut eye considering I'm usually up by 5! I'd make my way across the fence when I'd hear the sound I'd been hoping for from across the street. The Killdeer who live there and the ones I worried about with the fire works and the crowds. I'd consider going over there, but with the hour and nearby carnies quickly reconsider so just sat down and listened to them for a bit wishing I had my recorder nearby. This is the first time I've had Killdeer living so close so I've been amazed at what little sleep they get as they call all hours of the night.<br />
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I'd get up a little after 8 and be slightly hungover but after some coffee i'd have enough energy to make some blackberry jam as I have absolutely no motivation for canning jam this summer but have to do at least one batch of this considering the berries are right from my yard. It would give me time to nap and get ready for round two of the more fireworks. Wooot! Not!! I'd still not feel 100% but did manage another one of those nifty frozen drinks and a couple of beers....Just to be social of course!! I'd wake up Friday and it would be then my middle aged body would cry in protest of the two days of abuse I bestowed upon it so called in sick leaving a message for my boss telling him I felt as if I got hit by a truck and I wouldn't be lying! I'd spend the entire day on the couch watching TV and trying to stay cool but it would be no use.<br />
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I'd wake up today feeling marginally better but still not my usual self but did manage to get outside to get some pictures of my flowers. I have so many sunflowers this year from the spilled sunflower seed from my winter feeding and didn't weed them this time as I was curious how many I could get. The American Goldfinches have already landed on them to test but have quickly left as there's no seed yet. Love seeing these yellow birds eating from these yellow flowers.<br />
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Another favorite of the goldfinches the Black-eyed Susan's. The finches actually nibble at the base of the petals and have been doing so the past couple of days which is so fun to watch.<br />
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The Bee Balm which is a favorite of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird which is now in my yard a few times a day to get the nectar.<br />
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And the phlox the Hummingbird Moth's love so much. Have only seen one in my yard this year but other insects (especially the fireflies and dragonflies) are out in full force.<br />
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AWFUL photo of a juvenile Tufted Titmouse who absolutely loves my Mullberries. Most have gone bad already but there are still many ready to eat and these birds seem to do just fine mixed in with the Baltimore Orioles and Cedar Waxwings.<br />
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And last, not much recording the past week but did want to share one with you which is the high pitched call of the American Robin. I guarantee you've had this bird doing it in your yard before as have I but in the past I assumed it to be a Cedar Waxwing-but surprise, surprise it's a robin!<br />
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How cool is that!! Now it's time to plop myself in front of the fan again. The town is nice and quiet and I couldn't be happier. I'll take birds to fireworks any day and right now the ones in my neighborhood are doing just fine.<br />
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Take care allKimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-60537802168421401562013-06-30T06:50:00.000-04:002013-06-30T06:51:35.628-04:00Bolton Flats and Wachusett Reservoir<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's starting to become that time of the year again. When bird song and activity starts to cease with most birds busy breeding and also the time I notice house dust bunnies or pizza sauce stuck to the kitchen ceiling can no longer be tolerated and I resign myself to the fact I need to spend more time on the home front and less in the woods to get stuff done before fall migration! So with that said, off I went to Bolton Flats for 5AM yesterday to do some early morning birding. The skies would still be dark as I made my way to the parking lot and would realize that big honkin puddle in the beginning of the parking lot was still there so parked my car near the side of the road, rolled my pants into my boots and trudged through the puddle. It would be so deep I'm keep my car in this area as there was no way my car would make it so trudged back through the puddle and into the main fields. The flooding wouldn't be limited to the parking lot as there'd be water all along the main path but the sound of the pumping American Bittern and other birds made me forget it as I went about my way and swatted mosquitoes. <br />
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The large puddle and my car parked to the side. Yes we've certainly gotten a lot of rain this year! I'd get toward the end of the path and be thrilled to hear the bird I came specifically for which was the Marsh Wren and it would be nearby for some decent recordings!<br />
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My first recording. You can't help but to hear the Wood Duck which cracks me up. The Marsh Wren was in the same area as the duck and I believe I startled the duck considering how early and dark it still was.<br />
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My 2nd best recording and this time a pissed off Mallard in the back ground! I have learned that the dawn chorus is my favorite time to bird, but you pay heavily for it with 3:00 wake up times but it's the price that must be paid!<br />
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And lastly, a recording of some Song Sparrows nearby who appeared to be in the midst of a bar room brawl. It would start getting light and I'd see one sparrow duck into the thick shrubs with another diving into toward it and then all hell broke loose which you will hear in my recording (funny because you can hear one try and break out into song in the midst of it). Not sure if the begging young I hear in the middle of the recording are Song Sparrows but if they area I'm thinking I may have witnessed a lovers quarrel of some sort as the task of rearing young must be taking its toll by now! I'd keep my ears to the right of the path in hopes of hearing one of the Least Bitterns but by then the mosquitoes would be fierce as they bit any part of skin I neglected to get with bug spray so off I went to a place with less standing water which would mean less bugs!<br />
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Which would be Gate 28 of the Wachusett Reservoir. The dawn chorus would be done by now but that didn't stop the many birds from singing and giving me glances here and there.<br />
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Including the lousy photo of the Pine Warbler above. I made sure to get a record shot of the bird as it was singing a song I'd never quite heard from this bird in that it dropped during the last part of song (kind of like a Wilson's Warbler)<br />
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You can actually see the drop in song in the sonogram above. My guess it was still early in the day and late in the season and the warbler was only doing a half assed attempt of defending it's territory just to remind Pete 6 pine trees away to not even think of it!<br />
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There'd be other warblers out and about including the Prairie above scoring itself some caterpillars. I'd hear a dry, rapid chip note coming nearby and ID it in my mind as a Prairie so pished it for confirmation.<br />
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And was glad to see I was right for a change! The most satisfying part of learning bird communication are chip notes and hoping it comes in handy for fall migration!<br />
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I'd hear a bird in full song and at first glance I thought it could be an Indigo Bunting with the repeated notes but it just didn't sit right with me as it was too musical. It would have some short introductory notes so next on the list was Baltimore Oriole as I've heard them do that before and that didn't sit right either so decided to do some recording.<br />
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You can actually see the beginning notes I'm referring to in my sonogram above. After recording the bird I'd do some pishing and it wouldn't show its face so thought of a genius idea which was to play back the birds song I just recorded as each bird has their own unique way of singing so was curious to see if the bird would wonder who the impostor was!<br />
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And sure enough it did as it would turn out to be this gorgeous male Orchard Oriole! Seriously threw me for a loop as I always notice the drop in in this birds song and didn't hear it at first but you can see it in the sonogram.<br />
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Another lousy photo but thought it was funny as I got the dragon fly in it as well. HA<br />
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There'd be other birds out and about including the recently fledged Eastern Towhee above.<br />
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And this bird where at first all I could see was its face and I thought a small falcon of some kind until it moved and be embarrassed to see it was a young American Robin! Never noticed the facial marking on recently fledged robins before but will be sure to remember it now!<br />
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The Brown Thrashers would be out as well for a nice treat as it would be a first for me for the month of June.<br />
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Flying away. <br />
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So now I sit here in front of the computer trying to will myself to the mop. I'm in good company though with the singing American Robins and Baltimore Orioles who are parked in my mullberry tree as well as the Killdeer across the street. There will be no birding today as I have a date with some much neglected pizza sauce.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-57531098759062113462013-06-26T15:49:00.001-04:002013-06-26T17:44:23.123-04:00Caspian Tern-Big Chauncey, Westborough<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I had a 1/2 day at work today due to an ongoing two day headache so planned on heading home for some R&R to make it go away. I'd get home and see a post by Nick on the Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/centralmassbirders/" target="_blank">Central Mass Birders</a> page of his father finding not one but TWO Caspian Terns at Big Chauncey Beach in Westborough so off I went to try for them as Justin still had them so it sounded as if they'd do me the honors of sticking around. I'd find my way to the quiet part of Chauncey Beach (away from the swimmers) and would see three birds close by so get my bins on them and could see one of the Caspian's right away but wouldn't you know off they'd fly!<br />
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Despite that- I'd still manage a quick record shot of them both! The left and right with the Ring-billed Gull in the middle. I'd curse to myself and be grateful I was quick with the camera but so wanted nice looks of them calm and on land. That wouldn't be the case though as they spent the rest of their time flying over the water.<br />
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And coming in close enough for some half attempted flight photos. Based on the photo I'm guessing this is the 1st summer.<br />
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While I was disappointed of the flight looks only, it did allow me a good amount of time to watch the two of them way out in the middle of the pond flying around together so took the opportunity to drink it all in and learn their overall flight patters as this is often how one sees them so appreciated the practice to be on the lookout next time! The picture above is a good demonstration of the bird in foraging mode with it's bill pointed downward.<br />
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Highlight would be seeing them dive down to the pond for prey and then bolt back into the air again which is a good thing to look for when you're observing white birds flying far out over water as it's not typical gull behavior so can help you pick out the outlier in the flock as they would be flying around with the gulls here and there too.<br />
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The adult. Soon enough they'd fly out of view and toward Chauncey Lake where all the dog walkers go near the soccer field so I got into my car to head over there to try and find them. I really wanted audio of these birds and figured that area would be ideal with no nearby traffic to mess up my recording. I'd get there and scan the water with my bins and wouldn't you know the little buggers would land back on the beach over where I just was. Since I was there I figured I'd spend some time looking around Big Chauncey and would see a very cooperative Great Blue Heron nearby.<br />
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I'd slowly approach it anticipating a fly off but the heron paid no attention to me and went about its business.<br />
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Which would be scoring itself some lunch! <br />
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We'd be on the same wave length as he stalked his prey and I stalked him and if I'm not mistaken I'd be mirroring his crouched body movement. He'd take two steps and I'd follow suit and when he stopped, I'd stop-to take a couple of photos of course!<br />
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Making for some pretty nice photos for my camera which is a rarity lately. It would also give me the chance to record more birds making me happy considering it was mid day and the star would be some young Yellow Warblers in a moving flock with their parents.<br />
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I've been very lucky this year with calling young which makes for some much needed audio that often gets under recorded in the bird audio world as they can be tough if you don't see them and no parents calling (not to mention they almost whisper) and it's no wonder they are often given second thought.<br />
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In summary, while I was driving home from getting an awesome county bird, I'd wonder why the Caspian Terns were seen this late in the season and according to Peter Dunne's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dunnes-Essential-Field-Guide-Companion/dp/0618236481" target="_blank">Field Guide Companion (my bible)</a>, fall migration (for lack of a better word) can happen among these birds as early as late June! So when you stop to think of it this is the first of the fall migrating birds. How crazy is that and just shows how time does fly.<br />
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So all in all a perfect way to take a 1/2 a day and my headache is gone! Guess all I needed was a little dose of birding.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-55911240165502014602013-06-23T20:01:00.001-04:002013-06-23T20:06:36.840-04:00Bush Whacking to Soule's Swamp-So That's where it is!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd head out this morning to do some birding and exploring with Alan so he could finally show me parts of Brierly I never manage to find myself with my tendency to get lost. Alan like the true friend that he is would take pity on me and serve as my compass which is something I often need which is another reason why we make such a good birding team! <br />
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The first spot would be the real Shiner Hole and not the one that's on all the Internet maps as that's actually Soule's Pond but no one know's that but Alan and other locals so it's no wonder I was confused! Shiner Hole would turn out to be this small pond of water-smack dab in the middle of the woods with some bush whacking required but would be in the same general area the heard (and the day after saw) <a href="http://kitchenwindowbirder.blogspot.com/2013/05/brierly-conservation-area-gift-that.html" target="_blank">Swainson's Thrush</a> earlier this spring so now have a destination to go to next year when I try for that bird again. Next up would be an obscure spot called Mud Hole which is shown in the first picture of my post. Not much to look at considering it's hard to access with all of the over growth but I'd be thrilled to hear the Winter Wren in the area as I wanted Alan to know the spot considering he gets as excited about Millbury birds as I do. We have this mission which is to find as many migrating and breeding birds as possible in and around town to avoid the chase up North we often partake in and after a few years of doing this we'd like to stay more local. Plus it's always satisfying to know how many cool birds live in town and where to find them!<br />
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We'd finally make it to Soule's Pond and be very happy to know it is indeed the pond I've been going to all along. Soule's Swamp was the other area I wanted to know how to get to and I'd realize I saw some of it yesterday so we stopped in the area briefly to see what was around.<br />
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The usuals would be about with a couple bonuses including the Great-crested Flycatcher above who was rather close which allowed for an attempted photo. The other highlight would be hearing the Pileated Woodpecker I saw yesterday so guessing they are nesting nearby.<br />
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We'd make our way closer to the part of the swamp I had yet to see when we'd notice a bird land nearby and for the first time in a while, I'd be at a loss as to what it was. Come to find out it would be a juvenile Brown-headed Cowbird which would be a fist for me believe it or not (that may actually be a good thing though considering how parasitic they are!). The host parent would fly in briefly but the little bugger would be too quick for an ID but had the potential to be an Ovenbird or House Finch.<br />
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And then finally Soule's Swamp. We'd have to bush whack something fierce to get here but it would be worth it with tons of cat tails and no phragmites around making for some pristine habitat. We'd find a large rock nearby allowing us half way decent looks of the swamp but vegetation is so tall this spot is more birding by ear than eye so that's just what we did. Many of the usuals would be singing as well as at least one pair of Swamp Sparrows making for a nice find with it being breeding season so guessing it's probable they are. No other birds of note which is perplexing with the habitat and potential for Least Bittern and Marsh Wren as well as the Virginia Rail Alan has gotten here in seasons past so will have to make this a regular spot to keep our eyes out for anything new.<br />
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It would also be here that I'd finally try out my new bird recording device above. Woot! I'd be itching to try it the entire hike through Brierly, but birds didn't seem as vocal as yesterday and I'm now getting to the point where the birds heard were the birds I've recorded over and over again so using discretion as I don't want to spam Xeno-canto. I'd want to record the Swamp Sparrow though but knew the audio would be awful due to how far out the bird was so be thrilled to have a Red-winged Blackbird calling nearby with the sparrow singing in the background<br />
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Notice I will <u>not </u>suggest you turn up your volume as the recording would come out perfect with no manipulation what so ever in my Audacity software so am very pleased with my investment!<br />
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I'd get home afterwards all eager to listen to the songs I recorded and be reminded of the big Bicentennial Parade going on in Millbury today as lawn chairs and shiny, happy people littered the sidewalk. I'd think nothing of it until Alan dropped me off and would realize my street was one of the drop off points for all parade participants with my street in utter chaos as people rushed to get ready for the 1:00 kick off. People would be running around with excited chatter as I sat near my computer trying to listen to begging calls of a Tufted Titmouse and would realize it was no use as one of the marching bands started their practice round right IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE!<br />
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I'd look out the window and see this which was my que to grab my cellphone, binoculars, camera and recorder and head for the safety of some local, walkable woods nearby as driving wasn't possible with most streets blocked off. I'd hastily walk out of town while others waked toward it and I'd realize the older I get the more anti social I become. Most people like parades but I'm not one who likes crowds (unless they're birds or birders on good birds) so off I went to join my own flock!<br />
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The woods looked so inviting once I entered them and figured the further I went the less the noise and instead of drums, I'd hear the call of blackbirds but after a 1/2 mile or so I'd realize it was impossible as all the bands were in full swing practicing their numbers before show time! The whole reason why I went into the woods in the first place (besides to just get away) was to try out my new nifty recorder but no matter what I did, the drums would drone and can't have that noise in my <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/recordist.php?id=NZBXECUZVZ" target="_blank">Xeno-canto recordings</a> obviously!<br />
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I would make one exception though as there was a bird far out near water making a song/call I'd never heard before and it would drive me crazy. The bird was fairly far out but could pick up the overall tone of voice as well as the phonetics which would be something like "He He Where Where"<br />
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Recording above and and not only will you hear the call/song in question but one of the MANY marching bands I could never escape!<br />
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I'd post my recording on the Xeno-canto <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/discuss_forum.php?topic_nr=6391" target="_blank">ID Forum</a> and get a response back of it probably being a Baltimore Oriole and after hearing other oriole recordings I'm convinced that what it is so it was nice to learn something new. The other cool thing I'd learn on Xeno-canto was with another mystery bird I had this past week that turned out to be a Wood Thrush. See <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/discuss_forum.php?topic_nr=6340" target="_blank">High Pitched Call Forum Discussion</a> for my recording in question as well as the wealth of information provided by Xeno-canto members of the high pitched alarm call all thrushes have but would only be introduced to them this year.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-45097795660438532882013-06-22T19:19:00.001-04:002013-06-22T19:19:31.788-04:00Searching for Solitude<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Work's been really tough on me this week and won't' go into much detail except to say when I get home my brain feels as if it's going to burst and so heavy simple things like putting away dishes and sweeping the floors are too taxing so spent most of my free time staring into space getting ready for the next day of hell. Not to mention another hefty car bill (this time a broken strut that actually crumbled when my mechanic got it up in the lift meaning it's been like that for a long time-so glad I caught it in time), and I'd be one defeated puppy. It would remind me how tough it is to be an adult sometimes as the weight of the world is on your shoulders and all you want to do is escape, but reality sets in and you know that you can't. <br />
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A walk in the woods is permitted though and I'd ask my youngest son if he wanted to join me and be thrilled when he said yes (the highlight of my week). We'd head to Brierly and I'd give him the binoculars while I had the camera and I'd be shocked to hear him ID birds I couldn't see without the bins and sure enough he'd be right with even a Downy Woodpecker call, which goes to show all the birding I do rubs off on my kids without them even knowing. The highlights for him would be the singing of the Winter Wren as well as the "Who cooks for you" of the Barred Owl and the Beaver above. I'd hear it's alarm call as its tail hit the water and he'd look at me perplexed and I'd let him know it was the local beaver and we'd be thrilled to see it was close by. My son was so excited he proceeded to take pictures and post them on Facebook so think I've found a new way of bonding with him.<br />
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This morning I'd do what I thought about all week, which was hit the South Main Power Lines before sunrise to catch the first of the summer dawn chorus.<br />
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Bird song has decreased dramatically since May migration-but the breeding birds would be out and singing including the Eastern Towhee above who'd be singing it's usual song but an un-standardized version so of course I had to record it as part of my new hobby!<br />
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There'd be another 3 or so Towhees all in the same general location and all singing the same song so not sure if it's the dawn song or not, but it was interesting to say the least.<br />
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Dawn song of the Eastern Kingbird above. It would still be dark out when I recorded this and the powerlines would be alive with the sound of birds and bullfrogs all around as well as a wonderful breeze to help wake me up. I'd get there before sunrise and be surrounded by inky gray skies and all the stress from the past week would melt away and it would be then I'd realize why I love birds as much as I do. Relationships with people and even pets can be so trying at times as one often feels as if they give more than they take, but with birds they ask nothing of you except to give them the space and respect they deserve. When the world is too much to bear all I need to do is look out the window and nine times out of ten, I'll find a bird to watch and will feel better seconds later. You sure can't beat that.<br />
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After that it would be off the Brierly with my goal of hitting the same body of water I did last week, but this time the other side which never got the attention it deserved.<br />
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I'd do some recording here and there on my way to my destination promising myself I'd only stop for the unique including a Wood Thrush not only singing but calling as well. Bird calls are now my number one fixation as they're tougher than songs and are heard year round, so it's in my best interest to learn them, so of course I'd hit the record button!<br />
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LOVE the "Thwak" call of the Wood Thrush and in looking at my Xeno-Canto records, this is the bird I've recorded most- in total appreciation of their song ability which you can see in the sonogram above.<br />
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I'd finally get to the small pond and birds would be everywhere. I'd both hear and see a Pileated Woodpecker as it flew across the water as well as hear two Yellow-throated Vireo's making for a nice surprise. Abandoned Heron's nests would be scattered on tree tops and there'd be both Green and Great Blue Heron's including what looks to be this first year above. He'd land fairly close which allowed nice looks when suddenly an Eastern Kingbird would fly in and dive bomb him. I'd have my binoculars for a better view as I watched the kingbird swipe at it's head and the heron would open its bill real wide in an effort to grab it I'm guessing. I'd hold my breath the first few times hoping the kingbird would survive and after a few seconds I'd be reminded why this bird is called "Tyrannus tyrannus" as the heron didn't stand a chance against the kingbird. The flustered heron finally had enough and would fly away as the kingbird followed suit continuing to dive bomb it as well as a Red-winged Blackbird who decided to join in on the fun, just to piss the heron off even more. It would then that the sound of birds would be interrupted by the sound of moi letting out the only laugh of the week as I roared with it as I watched them fly on by. I'd continue to bush whack and would hear many sparrows so stopped in an attempt to pinpoint where I heard a potential Swamp Sparrow who continued to sing sporadically the entire time I was there.<br />
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Song Sparrows would be about too including the two juves above who were so trusting of me I didn't have the heart to bush whack past them until they flew away. They just looked at me curiously as I looked at them and my heart would swoon. By then my cell phone battery would be close to dead but darn it I wanted a recording of the Swamp Sparrow. I forgot the memory card to my camera at home so video was out of the question and after getting three confirmed calls of the bird I'd resign myself to the fact it wasn't meant to be as I headed on home for a much needed nap. I'd wake up refreshed and would head to Best Buy where I'd proceed to buy a digital recorder just to capture the sound of birds. And so begins the next chapter of the Curious Birder's many journey's.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-1863259610122053102013-06-19T18:19:00.003-04:002013-06-19T18:19:26.749-04:00Peregrine Falcon Update (kind of) and Killdeer with their young<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Decided to do a quick stop to check on the Peregrine Falcon's this morning and noticed both the adults have moved closer to the Front Street area of the People's United Building (in fact, the same ledge as last year when the female <a href="http://kitchenwindowbirder.blogspot.com/2012/06/peregrine-falcon-update-including.html" target="_blank">gave me a scare</a>)-which I'm taking as a good sign of course as the juveniles must be walking around the platform area and becoming more active. <br />
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It wouldn't take long for the other falcon to fly near the platform to relieve the other which allowed me the chance to try and get a distant flight shot which is one of my favorite ways to photograph them. <br />
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By no means the best but will take what I can get. Work's been insane lately with often no time to even eat lunch but would like to be checking on these birds at least twice a week now as fledging can't be too far off and would love to be able to document it like last year so stay tuned.<br />
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Birds and their young have been active on the home front too with some Killdeer living across the street with two of their young.<br />
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One of the adults who appeared to be looking for a spot to nest again.<br />
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As you can see in the photo above. I'd also see another adult with two young but they'd never get close enough for photos and didn't want to chase them so went back Monday night hoping they'd be less camera shy.<br />
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And they would but still not the killer photos I wanted. They'd be calling and squacking which allowed me to record them which I prefer to pictures anyhow so whipped out the good old Droid! If you listen to it you'll hear faint Killdeer calls and those are from the young. Toward the end you'll hear the adult's call becoming more rapid while the young came toward him and he fanned his tail in an effort to herd them it looked like (couldn't tell as I didn't have my bins-DOH!) It was still interesting none the less and would be happy I could pick up the back ground calls of the Chimney Swifts too!<br />
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So with that said, it's nice to see two different sets of birds successful thus far with nesting this year. All the rain we've had has made me very nervous for many birds as I have a feeling many will not be as successful as the falcon's and Killdeer.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-12393951124081198042013-06-16T18:46:00.000-04:002013-06-16T18:46:54.087-04:00The Chipmunk Invasion & My New Love-the Wood Thrush<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd wake up well before the sunrise this morning in order to do my new found obsession of recording birds so would be up at 3:45 with a goal of being out by 4:30 in hopes to pick up some birds singing their first morning song. I'd question my sanity on why I was getting up at such an hour as I put the coffee on and could still smell the fire from my neighbor Tim's party last night and wouldn't you know they'd still be outside, singing the Eagles and drinking beer. I'd remember those days and be glad I was about to start my day instead of sleeping through it like Tim and his guests most likely would. I'd take some extra time to pack my bag with both food and water as the entire trip would be done by foot as my son needed the car so decided to head to Martha Deering which would be 5 miles there and back plus and additional 4 of hiking to equal 9 miles on foot so needed to make sure I had the calories to support it.<br />
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I'd get to my spot where I always stop to look for a Least Bittern though I know the odds are low but do it just the same as you never know! This has always been a quick stop by car so was happy to see a trail I could do by foot that would allow me to hike the whole length of the river to see what I could find. There'd be no bittern of course but did pick up some Wood Ducks with ducklings as well as a Great-blue Heron. Soon enough I'd be away from the river and deep in the woods with a powerline nearby and bird song would be wonderful including two Hairy Woodpecker's counter-drumming which allowed me the chance to do my first ever drum recording. Wooot!<br />
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How cool is this! Seriously, it seems as if a whole new world has been bestowed upon me since I made a goal of studying bird song more as I'd pick up on the counter drumming immediately and spend about 5 minutes recording them as one would drum, wait and the other would follow. It always leaves me with more questions than answers as I try and understand what's going on between my chosen subjects. Are they both males and defiending their turf or a couple who are drumming for contact calls? I'll probably never know but it's fascinating to listen to.<br />
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I'd continue along my way and be impressed with all the provisions made on my newly discovered trail including the bridge above. Not sure who did it but wouldn't be surprised if it were the Mountain Bikers in a way to connect Rayburn to Martha Deering to make for a nice, long ride.<br />
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Make shift rock cairn's along to create a whimsical touch.<br />
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By then the sun would start to shine and the earth awaken as I made my way toward Martha Deering. Sounds of birds would be everywhere with peeks of sun shining in my eyes and the smell of the wet earth would invigorate me. I'd pass more Hairy Woodpeckers, Eastern Wood Pewees, Ovenbirds and Scarlet Tanagers as they called from the tree tops and it wouldn't take long to hear the song of the Wood Thrush some distance away. It sounded different to me so willed it to keep singing in an effort to get closer to it for recording. After a couple of minutes of hiking I'd stop to let my ears tell me where it was and once again they led me to the singing bird.<br />
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Of all the things recording birds the past couple of weeks has taught me is how to really focus on the sound of the bird in relation to location. You need to be as close to the bird as possible to get the best recording which requires intense concentration and forces you to slow down. Once you get on the bird and start recording, you must remain completely still as any movement will interfere with recording. I believe it is the stillness that wills the bird closer to you as you aren't fiddling with your binoculars or camera settings so the bird goes about its day unconcerned with your presence. I'd spot the bird, hit record and be swept away by his song.<br />
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Don't know if it's because I'm more aware of song in general but this thrush sounded different to what I was hearing throughout the month of May. Almost slower, more musical and spaced further apart. Once I hit the reocrd button I focus only on the song of the chosen bird and hear nothing else so would be surprised my Droid could pick up on the Brown Creeper I didn't even notice until I ventured down the trail more.<br />
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I'd finally make it to Martha Deering and stop for a water breakbefore heading to Grafton and would notice that something had picked up since the wee hours of the morning which were the many Chipmunks who'd be calling from everywhere and making me crazy as it required more concentration in hearing the birds. The other thing I'd notice were a lot of horse droppings along the path which meant watching where I was going in order not to step in it as it would literally be everywhere so guessing Martha Deering and the Grafton Land Conservation has become a favorite among horse riders.<br />
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All would not be lost though once my ears got used to the Chipmunks and would hear and spot a Scarlet Tanager nearby who'd turn out to be the female above. I'd get to an area where a Baltimore Oriole was doing an abbreviated song I've noticed since the first of June and wanted to record it but the relentless Chipmunks made it impossible and was highly annoyed. Despite the noise it wouldn't take long for me to realize I had a Yellow-throated Vireo singing nearby making me very happy as it would be another June record for me in town which means potential breeding. <br />
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You will understand what I mean by all the Chipmunks once you hear the recording above and I'd hear this the ENTIRE TIME I was in the woods I kid you not! Was happy just the same to get a recording of the vireo though.<br />
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I'd finally make it to the Grafton turn around point and it wouldn't take long to get good and lost. I'd kick myself considering I knew these woods well when I was trail running them, but that was two years ago and realized I was over confident. I'd get caught up in one of those mountain bike loops where I'd go around in circles trying to find my way out and be uncertain of how to get out of Grafton and back to Millbury. I'd grumble to myself and knew one thing and that was despite the MassBird posts on lack of chipmunk sightings there is no shortage in my area and horses sure do sh*t a lot as I took a nasty spill in some turning a corner!<br />
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I'd finally resort to whipping out the Droid which already had a low battery due to all the recording I was doing and go to the map section to help get me out of Grafton and wouldn't you know, it worked like a charm so will remember it next time as there will of course be a next time. I'd hear another Wood Thrush the closer I got to Martha Deering and had to stop to record this one despite the low battery as it was throwing in notes I'd never heard before making it very recording worthy.<br />
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Notice the chipmunks calling in the back ground! I seriously wanted to grab one by the tail and toss it across the woods at this point as not only was their annoying call imprinted in my brain after hearing them for 4 hours straight, but they were messing with my recordings no less-little buggers!<br />
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I'd be bone tired at this point and all my photos would come out lousy so would put away my camera and recording and plop myself on a rock for much needed rest. It would be then I'd realize there were at least two Wood Thrushes nearby including the one above with food in the bill I'm guessing to feed young.<br />
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Going away. I'd watch and listen to the two of them for a while and never realized just how tame these birds can be if you have the patience to remain still as they'd pay no attention to me after a while. Soon enough I'd get back to Martha Deering and realize I'd done over 10 miles of hiking with another 2 or so to go. Normally this wouldn't bother me as I'm used to 11+ distances but the most miles I've put in by foot this year was five and my lower back was protesting something fierce. I'd use the last of my phone battery power to call my son and ask him to pick me up at "Little Dorothy (a pond nearby) as I wanted to go to the grocery store to get him his pizza rolls he wanted as well as the beer I craved after all that hiking.<br />
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I'd arrive at Little Dorothy bone tired and sit for the first time since 5am. I'd finally have welcome relief from the Chipmunks as none would be heard while I sipped my water and watched a Mallard with her ducklings nearby. She'd keep them close to the vest and whenever one went astray she'd make this grunting type noise to call it back with its siblings.<br />
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I now sit here in front of the computer re energized as there are Killdeer across the street who've been around past few days so guessing they're setting up shop. Will be heading over there for hopeful pictures ans audio. Just cross your fingers there are no Chipmunks nearby.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-90128015141825861772013-06-15T16:53:00.001-04:002013-06-15T18:00:34.282-04:00The Dawn Chorus & More<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've been re-reading some of Donald Kroodsma's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Singing-Life-Birds-Listening/dp/0618840761" target="_blank">The Singing Life of Birds</a> which is about all one can do with the weather we've been having so going back to some of my favorite chapters including The Dawn Chorus. Donald and other savvy birders know the best time to bird by ear which is the hour before sunrise when birds awaken and their hormones rage reminding everyone in their vicinity whose turf is whose so don't even try it! I'd be reminded of my special friend <a href="http://kitchenwindowbirder.blogspot.com/2008/11/power-of-chickadee.html" target="_blank">The Black-capped Chickadee</a> who perched in my Mullberry Tree one April morning having his own dawn chorus and how that one little bird would change my life in a way I never would imagine. Looking back on it now, it's no wonder I've always been drawn to the song of birds as that's what got me interested in them in the first place, so off I went to Brierly before sunrise to listen.<br />
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By the time I got there bird song would be heavy but was disappointed neither of the Chestnut-sided Warblers were out as it was one of the reasons I went as early as I did in an attempt to record their dawn song.. The Veery's would be out and singing as beautifully as always, but no special tune to start the day so off I went to find one who did. I'd make my way to a spot many warblers are and the place would be alive with bird song from many species. My ears would finally pick up on the lone Scarlet Tanager who'd be singing his dawn song so of course I had to record it!
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As you will hear-there were birds singing from all over which made it rather tough to record the tanager with all the other competition! The 1st picture of this post is the full length sonogram of all the birds and the one above is of the first 10 seconds of recording (full audio though). Notice the chickadee singing Phee Bee which is what caused me to catch the birding bug. I like to think it was the one on my tree five years ago letting me he he approves of my passionate hobby and sang that morning for my own good ;-)<br />
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I'd leave Brierly just as the sun started to awaken and decided to hit another spot nearby that's pretty birdy but the only caveat being no trails which means straight bush whacking. I'd decide to give it a go and stay near the edge of the nearby field as there's a little trail there and was glad I did as it wouldn't take me too long to pick up my first ever Millbury Louisiana Waterthrush!<br />
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The bird is distant but can still be heard. Mystified as this area is near still water with no running water that I know of so will need to investigate further and see if there are other ways to get in the general area without bush whacking for what feels like miles.<br />
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I'd hit another area in Millbury off Carelton Road which is more LA Waterthrush habitat as you can see in the photo above, but wouldn't you know I couldn't find any! It would still be nice with many of the usual woodland birds and my first ever June Black-throated Blue Warbler here in town so don't know if they're breeding but taking it as a probable sign!<br />
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You'll vaguely hear the BTBW if you have your volume up high enough. He was way out in the woods and I didn't bush whack as there were Ovenbirds nearby starting to squabble and won't bush whack if I think there may be nesting birds in any of the areas without trails of course.<br />
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And here he is, the Ovenbird himself! I find it much easier to find these birds when they are calling and not singing as the song rings throughout the woods so getting a visual on it as your ears as your guide can be deceiving-but not so much with the call which has allowed me some of the best looks ever of Ovenbirds this year.<br />
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After that it would be back to Brierly as I'm trying to tackle all sections of it by the end of the year and was looking forward to trying to get to Soule's Pond to see if I could pick up any new species for my Brierly list. The recent rain has caused more water overflow so many of the trails remain flooded as you can see in the photo above (wonder if I can ever wonder the woods this year without my rain boots!).<br />
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Woodpeckers would be everywhere including the Hairy above as well as my first ever Pileated for Brierly and a very cooperative Red-bellied Woopecker for some audio for Xeno-Canto.<br />
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This woodpecker was so close to me I actually got a little wind from his wings! Amazing how close the birds come when you just stop for a few moments and listen (almost like they don't know your'e there).<br />
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Now heading toward the pond. Don't think I can ever get enough photos of Brierly as it's magnificent once you get lost in the woods. I'd finally make it to Soule's and NOT get lost which would be a first for me when I'd hear a close by Downy Woodpecker and its young when suddenly my ears would pick up on one of my favorite bird songs of all time which would be the Winter Wren. The bird sounded as though it was only doing traces of its song and was so far out I got out my Sibley's Droid App to play other songs I may not be familiar with and after one song I'd realize the bird was closer than I thought as the little guy flew right in and almost landed on my boot! I'd look down at him "naked eye" and be taken aback by just how tiny he is as I've always seen this bird with the bins and even that's a struggle. He'd look at me and I at him and I had to force myself to suppress a serious giggle that was forming within because he was the cutest thing I believe I've seen all year and boy did he look pissed! I'd apologize and move on or at least that's what I wanted him to think as I was hoping he'd sing his song as a victory celebration in getting rid of the other wren after one song (and a New Yorker song no less!). I'd still remain fairly close and it wouldn't take too long for him to sing his lovely song and I'd be thrilled with my audio considering It's coming from my lousy Droid!<br />
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Swoon...Nature's Prozac here folks. Amazing that such a song can come from such a tiny bird.<br />
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And a picture of the birds song. If you look at it closely you'll see all three songs he sings are a little different which is something I can't train my ears on just yet so it's nice to look at bird's song through sonograms sometimes so you can see it with your eyes.<br />
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I'd be in my element at this point as I made my way back to the main part of Brierly and somehow I managed to get on a different trail which I'd realize would bring me to yet another portion of the beaver pond I hadn't discovered and I'd be thrilled to get not just one but two Green Herons including the one above. This is on the other side of where we usually get this bird so hoping it's another pair. <br />
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Another treat would be the Blue Jay above who'd be very close and doing something I've never seen this bird do before which was almost a form of drumming with his bill (similar to what woodpeckers do and he'd be doing it on this meesly little branch no less (almost like caching)!<br />
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You can actually somewhat hear the faint drumming if you listen carefully on the 9 second mark.<br />
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I'd finally make my way back to the main trail while doing a mental inventory of all the lovely birds I heard or saw and wonder why I hadn't had any sighting of a flushed Barred Owl as it's almost a ritual at this point. Moments later I'd see one fly past and comment aloud with a thanks! Suddenly the owl would slow down and land on a tree and it would be then I'd finally be eye to eye with one of the Barred's at Brierly. He'd look at me and I at him as I slowly turned on my camera being sure not to make any quick movements in fear he'd fly away. I'd manage a few and then he'd turn around and leave the branch as quietly as he arrived. I find it amazing that a bird this size with wings as large as his never makes a sound as it maneuvers the woods. It wold be the perfect way to end my time at Brierly.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-44097566784964393622013-06-12T18:46:00.002-04:002013-06-14T20:21:43.126-04:00A Little Birding Before Work<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd need to make a run to the transfer station before work today and would leave a little early to see if the Willow Flycatcher was around yet so stopped at a local powerline to find out. I'd hear the flycatcher as soon as I got out of the car as well as a close by "Tow-hee" call of the Eastern Towhee so naturally out came my camera for a photo as well as my Droid for some audio. I'd stay on the path and make my way a little closer to the call when I'd also hear a thin, short and high pitched chip note coming from the same area and after some naked eye scanning I'd find out who it was.<br />
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Who would turn out to be the female Towhee. You can hear the recording of the males "Tow-hee" call and the female's high pitched call below.<br />
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I'd do some research on these two calls and both are categorized as alarm calls but you wouldn't know it by looking at them interacting with one another and neither seemed agitated by my presence as I was there a good five minutes and watched the male preen and the female inhale a couple caterpillars so believe they were more contact calls as the male would call and she'd respond and fly closer to him or vice versa. I did make sure to keep a respectable distance and stay on the path which is something I'm always cognizant of this time of the year so who knows. <br />
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I'd also go to <a href="http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna" target="_blank">Birds of America Online</a> and figured I'd share some of it with you on both calls.<br />
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"<em class="headline" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Chewink Call.</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">. Conventionally transliterated as </span><em class="sciname" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">tow-hee</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">, </span><em class="sciname" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">chewink</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">, </span><em class="sciname" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">joree</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> . Employed by both sexes, juveniles, and adults, and at all seasons. Generally regarded as alarm call, since it occurs in mobbing contexts (i.e., used in presence of ground predators and disturbances near nest), but it occurs in other situations as well."</span><br />
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<em class="headline" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">"Lisp Call.</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> “ </span><em class="math" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Seee</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> -Call” of Stokes and Stokes </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">. Heard in all populations, perhaps second most common call after Chewink Call; uttered by both sexes. It is high-pitched, clear, sibilant, even-pitched (short versions) or down-up slurred (longer versions), duration about 1 s. Tonal quality soft, thin, barely audible beyond few meters distance. Mentioned in literature as </span><em class="math" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">wee</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">, </span><em class="sciname" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">tsee-a- wee-e</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">, or </span><em class="math" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">seee</em><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">. Occurs in social context (e.g., within pairs and families, in foraging groups during winter and migration), evidently functions as contact note."</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">I do have to admit I'm wondering why the female isn't on her nest as I would think it would be around that time. All this rain we've had this month has me very concerned about all of our nesting birds here in the North East.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Take care all.</span><br />
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<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-61264180451587559202013-06-09T20:30:00.001-04:002013-06-09T20:30:33.142-04:00Wachusett Meadows Breeding Bird Survey and more recordings!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Alan and I would head out to Wachusett Meadows today to participate in the Forbush Bird Club Breeding Bird Survey and get there for 7. Since time was of the essence I'll warn you now I was too busy watching, listening and counting birds to grace you all with any of my lousy photos. Except for this one of course of two Eastern Phoebe's prior to setting off on our route to start the count.<br />
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Larry would join us, and we'd be thrilled to find out his grandfather was Lawrence Chapman himself who was a major figure in getting all that wonderful land donated to Mass Audubon (hence the name of the Chapman trail). We'd be grateful for not only the company but the extra set of eyes and ears as well. Once we started our route we'd immediately pick up some Ovenbirds, Pine Warblers and the first of our Red-breasted Nuthatches above (I lied a little when I told you I didn't take any lousy photos as you can see this one is awful!).<br />
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We'd continue and be very happy with our route as we'd pick up quite a few Blackburnian Warblers on the way (five in total) as well as some much wanted Black-throated Greens as soon as we got to the Hemlock's.<br />
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It would be here we'd pick up a Winter Wren as well as our first woodpecker of the day who'd be a Hairy which I'd get by ear. Moments later I'd see a woodpecker land on a tree trunk and call out I have a visual on the Hairy but at second glance I'd realize it would be woodpecker number two.<br />
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Who'd turn out to be our much wanted Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and a gorgeous male no less which was a treat with killer looks (a first for Larry) so was happy to not only get it for the breeding survey but to show Larry as well as you couldn't get a better look for your first time.<br />
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We'd get to a different habitat and I'd comment about it being Black-throated Blue territory as a way of wishful thinking and it wouldn't take us long to find one and a male no less! We'd confirm that when suddenly a bird called out from nearby and we'd know it was a waterthrush, but thought Northern at first as we were in the middle of the woods with no visible water nearby. Soon enough we'd realize it wasn't a Northern and my wishful thinking kicks in as I ask Alan to play Yellow-throated Warbler for me as the beginning notes of their song reminds me of a Louisiana and who knows as one was spotted here a few weeks back so maybe it stuck around. Alan would play it and disappointment would kick in though I knew it was a long shot but we still didn't believe the LA due to NO WATER. We'd both comment on the end note of the song so Alan would play the Louisiana once and out the bird would fly from no where to confirm what we heard. I'd even do some audio of it as a record shot considering we thought it rare to have this bird in such a habitat. We'd still be happy about the unexpected find when we'd hear the unmistakable call of a Red-shouldered Hawk and be thrilled to get two of them with half way decent looks of one. We'd continue along our way and about 1/10th of a mile or so we'd hear rushing water which would explain the Waterthush so all in all this was a great route for the count and all of us would be happy.<br />
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I'd get home and both neighbors would be out planting flowers and trimming weeds when suddenly a bad case of "the negligent neighbor" would take hold as both mowed their lawn yesterday which makes mine look ever worse considering it hasn't been mowed in two weeks. I'd make a comment to my son and he'd tell me the same thing which is "I'll get to it this week" so naturally I would do the thing every mother should which is to flee the yard and the Bobolink habitat and take off to Brierly for some much needed R&R!<br />
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I'd decide to do a different route this time and once again fledglings would be everywhere including the House Wren (audio below). I'd be somewhat taken aback by this as I've never recorded an adult in this area before so have no idea where they came from but there they were for both my ears and eyes.<br />
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Not the best volume wise but thought it was neat enough to record so I did! A few feet away from here would be another family of birds who'd turn out to be some Downy Woodpeckers so naturally I'd record them too!<br />
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Again, not the best volume wise but what do you expect from a Droid! Love their little begging calls and got good looks of the female feeding the nestlings still in the tree cavity so it was a welcome treat and made me forget about my white trash lawn!<br />
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I'd set about my different route which was to get to Mount Ararat all by myself after Alan showed me the way as I wanted to prove I could do it and of course I'd get good and lost. I'd find myself on one of those mountain bike loops created by the mountain bikers where I'd continue to hit the same spot many times only to do it again when suddenly I'd hear a loud, clear, fluid chip note nearby making me stop dead in my tracks to try and ID it. Out would come the Droid for recording and was happy it was close enough to get a half way decent audio and this is what I'd get.<br />
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Is that not the coolest looking sonogram or what! I'd still not know what the bird was but was determined to find out considering I got such a good recording and couldn't post it on Xeno Canto without an ID when Ovenbird came to mind as I remember something similar coming from one last year. I'd get my Droid out and only get to one "Teacher" when suddenly the bird came out of nowhere and started calling and singing like mad.<br />
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Which leads me to Sonogram number two. Love to see the two sonograms of the same bird close to one another for comparison. <br />
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Record shot of the recording star as he got closer to me for inspection.<br />
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It would be obvious to me at this point the bird was agitated by my presence even before playing the call when I was just minding my own business while trying to get myself unlost so did what I usually do when alone with no one looking and that is smile at him while he's looking at me with his "hairy eyeball" and apologize for the disturbance in the sweetest baby talk voice I could muster. That didn't work so I hauled butt away from him trying to make my way down the trail and out of the vicious loop I was in. I'd then remember something Alan does whenever somewhat lost which is to not follow the trail but to bush whack in the area you want to get to instead. It wouldn't take me long to hear the distant Gray Tree Frogs which was my bench mark (as well as the American Redstarts) to make sure I was headed in the right direction.<br />
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And based on how loud the tree frogs are you can see why I used them as my bench mark! If you listen closely you can hear a Veery and some recently fledged Black-capped Chickadees but the tree frogs drowned them out despite both being fairly close by. I'd listen to this wonderful chorus for about 10 minutes as I'd never heard it so loud and didn't want to leave. I think I'm finally at the phase of my birding where I want to learn more about insects, frogs, butterflies, etc-now that I've gotten the hang of birds somewhat. The first few years in my learning about nature I never paid much attention to anything else but the birds as I didn't want to overwhelm the brain with too much to learn too quick, but believe I'm ready to take it to the next level.<br />
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I'd get home and get dinner ready accompanied by an iced cold beer when my son's friend came as you can't miss him (remember the one with the <a href="http://kitchenwindowbirder.blogspot.com/2012/06/birding-in-june-it-sure-feels-like-it.html" target="_blank">loud bike</a>?) Well he still has it and it still produces the same trauma with my house cats but he'd come with one purpose and one purpose only which was to mow my lawn! See he not only likes the loud engine to his motor bike, but the lawn mower as well and I often come home to see the lawn mowed and it being obvious my dear, lazy son was not the one to do it as it comes out so much better. So now I end the weekend with a lot of great birds, recordings, memories and a lawn as nice as my neighbors.<br />
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Take care all.<br />
<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-10685441288293793272013-06-08T20:18:00.000-04:002013-06-08T21:06:53.119-04:00Saturday Birding<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd decide to do some mid afternoon birding today and figured while this is typically the time birds are quiet all would be out and about as stir crazy as I after the awful weather the past 24+ hours so waged my bets with my first stop being the South Main Powerlines where I'd be greeted by quite a few bird including the Gray Catbird above. Killer photo for me considering my quality of photos goes drastically down hill during migration as all the "target birds" are far too quick for me and my pathetic camera. The sun at this point would be hidden by thin cloud cover which is my favorite way to take photos. Not an insect expert but it appears as if our friend the catbird may have caught a wasp!<br />
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And this charming little bird would even grace me with a tail view!<br />
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I'd start along the trail and this is what I'd see after all the heavy rain we've had so was glad I wore my rain boots which allowed me to just tuck my pants into the boots and trudge on.<br />
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Wild flowers that were sleeping last time I was here were now wide awake making for a nice feast for the eyes after all the gray. Dragonflies would be out too including this Eight Spotted Skimmer (correction: Common White Tail-Thanks Mark!).<br />
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But one of the main reasons I wanted to venture out is to listen for birds and tinker with my new hobby recording them! :-p. I'd finally get to whip out the Droid as I wanted to record a Song Sparrow low in some vegetation doing it's high pitched contact call to another Song Sparrow nearby. You'll probably need to turn up your volume high to hear it as my Droid isn't good for quality audio but I want you to listen to this bird and the chip note "Chet". Okay, ready.....Now tell me when your'e done.<br />
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First of all, check out the nifty sonogram my Song Sparrow created. Notice how many of the chip notes appear evenly spaced. How cool is that! Now back to the "chet" call note which differs from the classic "chimp" call note. Paul Driver from <a href="http://pjdeye.blogspot.com/2013/03/sparrow-high-chip-calls.html" target="_blank">Bird Calls and Songs</a> has a better recording of a Song Sparrow doing this call and according to him it is believed to be a note only the females do. So now you know! Just think of the possibilities this has in the dead of summer when your'e looking for things to do an now you can sex Song Sparrows!!! No need to thank me really there isn't!<br />
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I'd make my way to the trail that always has a little water on it and my ears could pick up on rushing water as I approached it and this is what I'd see.<br />
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A full blown stream! I'd contemplate crossing it as I've been through worse (think Bolton Flats with Alan with water almost to my hips with currants that forced us to hold onto trees at times, no I'm not kidding-but we wanted a Blue-winged Teal for the year list!), but then I'd think of the potential reward inr doing so which would be the usuals and recording would probably be out the of the question with the heavy Saturday afternoon traffic coming from Route 146 so I'd turn around and head for the solitude of Brierly.<br />
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And be so glad I did and decided to go off the usual trails hoping I could flush one of the Barred Owls as I'm on a mission to confirm their general location as I want to take my son and his girl friend there in an attempt for them to get a half way decent look at one. The weather would start getting really nice at this point and the further I went into the woods the better I felt. There'd be some minor flooding here too with puddles to my ankles and I'd walk through them with the same enthusiasm I used to do when jumping puddles as child. The smell of the wet, live earth was wonderful and I'd drink it all in as well as the woodland chorus of birds singing for me and with each one my senses would come alive.<br />
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First would be the Red-eyed Vireo. He'd be so loud I was convinced he was right above me and after some searching I'd finally find him. I'd do no pishing, just listening and after some patience I'd see the little bird.<br />
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So naturally out would come the Droid to record him!<br />
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I'd stand there listening and recording with my ears being super sensitive to every note escaping the bird and notice notes I'd never really paid much attention to in the past and would make a mental note to myself to listen to the other RE Vireos along the way to see if they sounded any different and while many had the same "canned song", a couple had different variations which was a welcome find.<br />
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I'd do the same ear task with an Eastern Wood-pewee where there'd be no pishing just stopping, listening and trying to match my eyes to the singing bird and after some patience I'd find him too.<br />
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Calling away in a duet with another pewee some distance away. I'd continue along my way and would finally flush one of the Barred Owls and despite trying to relocate it, I never did but it's nice to know it's still in the same general area as last. But my biggest treat in this area was yet to come as I'd hear a Hairy Woodpecker nearby with what sounded like begging young nearby. I'd do my ear exercise again and find their location and took about 15 minutes of audio of them and chose only one to share with you all as I don't want to inundate you with bird songs and believe me I could do it!<br />
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Another one where you may need to turn up the volume some but you will hear the faint begging calls of the young as well as the communication calls of the adult. Toward the end you'll hear the classic song of the adult Hairy which gets those fledglings really going!!<br />
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A distant photo of what I believe to be one of the fledglings. I'd spend another 10 minutes or so here with just my binoculars transfixed in their world. I've always thought of birding as a gift and something I'm glad I found but wish it were earlier than my 40's so trying to make up for it now and it would be here I'd realize there's still so much for me to learn. All the chasing, listing and running around for the migrants leaves me no mind set or time to just observe and watching this family of Hairy Woodpeckers felt like an honor. Something so private and intimate as the bond between parent and child and here I was on a Saturday afternoon drinking it all in while others were doing yard work or shopping at the mall, stressed to the max and rushing around. Yes birding is a gift indeed.<br />
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I'd make my way out of the woods and come across more fledglings including some Tufted Titmice and Black-capped Chickadees. I would also come across the flock of begging young that would be so low I couldn't ID them but I'd see yet again another B&W Warbler so guessing it's their fledglings.<br />
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There neighbor the Blue-winged Warbler is still around of course and decided to grace me with a fanned tail view which is always nice!<br />
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And now for my mystery call which I at first thought was a group of recently fledged Black-capped Chickadees so posted my question on <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/discuss_forum.php?topic_nr=6257" target="_blank">Xeno Canto</a>. The link brings you right to my question and you will see I already have an answer by another favorite blogger of mine in the world of bird vocalizations <a href="http://earbirding.com/blog/" target="_blank">Ear Birding</a>. This is why I love Xeno-Canto so much because not only do these folks love to talk bird talk, but are super helpful too. And now for the mystery call.<br />
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You will hear what sounds a lot like a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher but don't trust my ears as I've been fooled by Black-capped Chickadees doing something similar and with all the juves if I don't see them I don't call them. Will be going back in the next few days to see if I can locate them again as I'd LOVE to have breeding Blue-gray Gnatcatchers as Brierly so cross your fingers for me!<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-69862715725005595942013-06-06T19:04:00.003-04:002013-06-06T19:04:59.155-04:00Downtown Worcester Peregrine Falcon Update and a new hobby por moi! Bird Recording Woot!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's been another week from hell at work and the only way I can cope is to bird here and there so decided to check on the Peregrine Falcons yesterday at lunch with my co worker and buddy Chris where we'd see both the adults close to the People's United building continuing to be on the look out for potential threats.<br />
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Both would fly around the building with their Indian war like call ringing throughout downtown Worcester so I'd get my first "do you know what those birds are" from people walking the streets as you can't help to hear them. I'd be glad to fill them in as there's one thing I can never get tired of talking about which are the Peregrine Falcon's!<br />
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But the two birds I wanted to see more than the adults were the two juves and after some walking around I found the perfect spot to see them and even managed a half way decent photo considering how far up they are. As you can see they got rid of the white plumage which has been replaced with their typical juvenile plumage. Swoon! So funny to see them watching mom fly around and my co worker wondered if mom was trying to show them how to fly and I'm wondering if she has a point as they were captivated!<br />
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On our way back to work I'd see some prey on top of the People's United logo which looked too big to be a Rock Pigeon so of course I had to try and get a better view and a photo! My co worker thought nothing of me taking pictures of dead birds as she knows me all too well which is always why she's one of my buds! Wish I could have gotten closer as I'm intrigued and wondering if it's a crow.<br />
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And now ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for. Drumroll please.............I proudly present to you the debut of the Curious Birder on the premiere bird recording network of the entire planet. <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/" target="_blank">Xeno Canto!!</a>. Woot!!! Yes I've been a member there for over two years and spend many nights geeking out on it but my interest in bird song has really grown this past year so want to spend the slow months of summer bringing it to another level and have a theory in my mind that if I record bird songs and calls, I'll retain them more, especially chip notes which do all sound the same to me (though I can tell a sparrow chip note from a warbler chip note but can't always tell which sparrow or warbler it is many times! Plus song and calls are the way birds communicate with one another so consider it a fun and interesting way for me to learn more about the breeding birds and how they interact with one another.<br />
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I'd do my first recording yesterday morning at Martha Deering with one of my first recording artists being none other than the beautiful Wood Thrush.<br />
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I'd actually spend about an additional 5 minutes just listening to this bird and every second that passed, my blood pressure would decrease and my breath would slow down and I'd be in a state of mind people go to the pharmacy for and it would be then I'd remember why I love birding by ear more than I do by eye.<br />
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If fact, I'd be so addicted I'd do it again this morning and be at Brierly as the sun rose with one bird in particular I wanted to record and of course he'd be in full song as soon as I walked the path.<br />
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Who would be my very lovable and tame Veery. Every year I wind up finding a particular bird to take an interest in and go to see whenever I get bored with last year being the Barn Swallows and this year the Veery. I know exactly where he hangs out and it never takes me long to find him and can get lost forever just getting my binoculars on him and watching him sing, preen and eat. He also has a wonderful set of pipes I never get sick of hearing. I'd luck out this morning though and not only get him but two others and they'd all treat me to a Veery chorus putting my ears in a state of euphoria as you will hear above. Swoon!<br />
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I'd make my way down the path after that with a nice glow going on as I realized how much less stressful it is to bird with no purpose as I took my time just listening when suddenly I would hear warbler chip notes coming from some nearby shrubs. Hmmmmmmm.....I think I hear the chip note of a Black-and-white Warbler I'd think. No wait, I year a Common Yellowthroat for sure. Hmmmmm....Another one I don't think I know..Could it be the Blue-winged whose always around here? Suddenly my sense of calm diminishes as out come the bins in the general area while I start my pishing. Out would pop my singing bird and this is what I'd see.<br />
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Yup, just your typical morning warbler a** and under little sun and in dense green no less! I'd see it good enough to think it was my Black-and-white and was hoping it would turn around but flew off instead and then I'd see another bird dart next to it and figured I'd get my confirmation with the other bird and this is what I'd see.<br />
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Yup a Blue-winged Warbler. To make matters even more confusing I could have sworn I saw the B&W flutter its wings some as if it were begging the BW to feed it, but then off they'd both fly as I pished again thinking the B&W I had was a juve as the chip notes sounded a little off to me when I first heard them and this bird would continue to be chipping with now adult two adult B&W's singing nearby.<br />
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And this would be the best picture I could manage but you can clearly see it's still calling. Also note the white wing bars, buffy flanks and limited streaking (in fact less streaking than what I normally see on a female) so still wondering if its a juve but not sure if it's still too early for them or not. Whatever it was, it was still interesting and was glad to know I'm getting better with my calls.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-23446175723689993232013-06-02T16:46:00.002-04:002013-06-03T05:25:00.401-04:00Forbush Bird Club Trip-Rutland State Forest & Flycatchers are hard!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Alan and I attended the Rutland State Forest Forbush Bird Club trip that was lead by Donna and Dave where we'd all meet up at the Barre Falls Hawk Watch site and be rewarded with quite a few birds as soon as we got there.<br />
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We'd walk along Coldbrook Road some and one of the first birds we'd get would be the Indigo Bunting above and once again this bird appeared to be going through some form of transitional plumage with the gray and lighter blue than what I'm used to seeing on this bird. Not far from here would be the first flycatcher of the day who'd turn out to be an Alder. The bird would not only grace us with some decent views but fly onto the telephone wire as well for all members to admire.<br />
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And this is what we'd see as we were getting on the bird with it being above us and I remember looking at it through the bins and thinking the bird almost looked as if its head was shaped as a Grasshopper Sparrow. I'd get the picture above on my screen and think the same exact thing and was almost hesitant to post it as the bird looks so odd so its amazing to get a different view of a bird that's normally a little above face level and hidden by cover so it was a definite treat. Despite the poor quality photo you can still see the small eye ring and the white throat which are good field marks for this bird when your'e looking at it face on (so long as you've confirmed it by voice first of course).<br />
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American Robin's would be out and about including this one who seemed to like the hang out on the telephone wires as much as the flycatcher! Notice the shadow at the end of the trail which you can see on the flycatcher as well so it's a perfect reminder of how lighting can really add things to birds that aren't really there as it almost looks as if its part of the plumage (especially the Alder IMO).<br />
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Lousy picture but the twosome is so bizarre I had to share it with a Northern Flicker to the right and Brown-headed Cowbird to the left.<br />
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We'd get to the next area of the trip where the Purple Finch's like to hang out and the place was alive with bird song including both the Chipping Sparrow and Pine Warbler above. We'd really want a Purple Finch and I could have sworn I heard a bird in the distance with finch potential so off we went to investigate only to have another bird sing in the distance that I was determined to see as I thought it was a House Wren and found it odd considering we weren't near any houses so wanted to see if I was right (hey, they don't call them House Wren's for nothing!). We'd confirm the House Wren when another bird would take it's place that sounded like "Chileck" and not "Chibeck" so now I'm creeping around all animated going through puddles and in the zone as I think it may be my much wanted Yellow-bellied Flycatcher!! I'd finally get to the area it was and realize it was a sharp and rapid Chicbeck and not a slow and thoughtful Chileck and my heart sank but we were able to see the Least Flycatcher for a few seconds before it flew off again. Birds would be calling from everywhere still and I could have sworn I heard a Blackburnian Warbler that had me all excited but was confused at this point with birds calling in all locations but wouldn't trade it for all the world as it's my favorite way to bird. I may not be able to ID them all and I may get some of them wrong but the sound of birds singing is so nice and know pretty soon they will quiet down to raise their young so it was literal music to the ears.<br />
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And speaking of music to the ears, at another stop we'd hear a couple Black-throated Green Warblers which is always welcome and I don't think I could ever tire of their song. Other interesting tidbit here would be two Eastern Phoebe's with food in their bills which we were guessing was to feed their young.<br />
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Bird song at our next stop would dwindle with only the always vocal Red-eyed Vireo, a lone Ovenbird and a moderate flock of Cedar Waxwings. Soon enough we'd hear another vireo who would turn out to be the Blue-headed above. <br />
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Off it flies and while the photo is awful it does show the bold, white spectacles as well as the yellow-olive flanks.<br />
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We'd get to another spot where there'd be plenty of warbler calls (Chestnut-sided, Redstart and Yellowthroat) and we'd see yet another Ruby-throated Hummingbird perched up high and looking around.<br />
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The next stop would be near a boggy pond where we'd pick up quite a few new birds including Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Hooded Merganser and the Great-crested Flycatcher above where we'd see another and both were behaving as if young were nearby.<br />
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The last stop would be Prison Camp Road where we'd get another Indigo Bunting and a Willow Flycatcher Alan and Bob heard. We'd get another Alder shortly thereafter making for a productive stop to end the trip. Despite migration being over with birding would not be slow today as we'd pick up quite a few birds making for a great trip with awesome birds, nice weather and good company so thanks Donna and Dave!<br />
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Now a rewind to Saturday morning with Alan and I going to Bolton Flats for the flycatchers. We'd make our way to the corn fields where it would already be oppressively hot with both haze and humidity thick in the air as you can see from the photo above (plus my camera was facing the sun). Lousy photo but I don't often see a Common Yellowthroat from above on a bare tree and at first glance the birds head looked kind of crested giving it a Cedar Waxwing look going on. Never noticed how long this birds tail was as I normally get it peeking at me partially hidden by cover.<br />
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Another lousy photo this time of a Willow Flycatcher. Alan and I had met up with Bob and Diane a little earlier and we'd be close to the area of the "T" when I'd spot a bird of interest to the right of us with the first thing I'd notice was the short, notched tail which reminded me of a Purple Finch. I'd get my bins on it and see it was a flycatcher and then Alan, Bob and Diane would get on it and we'd all be speaking out loud and yelling out field marks and besides the tail all of us would notice a dusky type vest on the bird (reminiscent somewhat of an Olive-sided or an Eastern Wood-peewee. Naturally out would come the camera where I'd put it on full zoom as the bird was so far out but was hoping for a record shot to study when I got home.<br />
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And this is what I'd get. The photo makes the birds tail look thicker than it was as I had it on full zoom but you can still see it was short and notched. You can also vaguely see an eye ring and the bill appears short which we'd all notice when we were on the bird.<br />
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Another photo which sadly doesn't show the vest but does show an overall color of yellow but the sun was so bad none of us were sure how much of it was actually the bird and how much was due to the position of the sun being right in our eyes. Once again the bird would appear compact with that short, notched tail.<br />
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Lousy photo number three were you can still see the yellowish-olive on the bird but no wing bars as it was so far out. He is facing away in this photo.<br />
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Last lousy photo where pixels are really over exposed that somewhat shows what appears to be an overall yellowish-olive on the bird but no wing bars with my camera never picking up on them in any of my photos.<br />
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Obviously this bird would turn out to be a scope bird as we couldn't get it to sing (though we did try the calls of Least, Yellow-bellied and Acadian) to see if it would respond and it wouldn't as that would have cinched the ID. There'd be four of us on the bird and lighting so poor and the bird would drop down to eat here and there and then reappear only twice more so we never got the looks we would have liked, especially with the sun. Two of us saw what we thought appeared to be a yellowish wash on the birds throat and two of us wouldn't so with the inconclusive field mark, we brushed it aside as it could have been the sun. With that said, the flycatcher would have to go as unidentifiable but do think it could be narrowed down to either Least Flycatcher or Yellow-bellied due to the size of the bird. The vest that all of us noticed is very interesting though and think the shadow of the bird due to the sun's position made it more pronounced than it really was. The only two flycatchers with a vest like appearance (besides Olive-sided) that I've read were the Acadian and Yellow-bellied and as you can see this bird is far to small and pudgy to fit the Acadian bill (pun intended). Yes it kills me to have a bird un identified but don't want any "dirty birds" on my list this year as I figure I'm in year five of birding so hold myself to higher standards as I should know better. If you can't positively ID a bird, than don't. Hard medicine to swallow when one wants a Yellow-bellied but look on the bright side as I spent most of yesterday reading all I can between the flycatchers so watch out next time!<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-11740321762563312242013-05-30T16:43:00.000-04:002013-05-30T16:43:47.119-04:00Peregrine Falcon Update-May 30-Downtown Worcester-Two Chicks Confirmed!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd decide to do a Peregrine Falcon update this morning as I've seen the male perched on the cross to the church every morning I drive into work which is normal behavior when nesting's been successful. I'd get there before 7am figuring I'd both hear and see more with less traffic and noise. The female would be on the ledge watching guard looking as fierce as ever.<br />
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With the male on the cross watching guard looking as goofy as ever!<br />
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I'd get my bins toward the platform searching for life and it wouldn't take long to find a shadow of interest (you can actually see it in the picture at the bottom of the ledge a little to the right of the shadow of the female). I'd wait for it to move and sure enough it would which would be my confirmation of one chick! I'd wait around for a bit hoping to see more shadows but wouldn't so went back to the office to send an email to Bill Davis letting him know I saw one and was hoping for an update by him.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Emily Eaton-Courtesy of Mass Fish & Wild Life<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;">He'd let me know the Peregrines had two chicks this year (one male and one female) and both were banded by Fish and Wild Life on 5.22. I'd be thrilled with not only the update but the pictures as well as they were taken by Emily Eaton so it's nice to know she's still involved as I know her love for these birds. The photo above is of the female chick.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Photo by Emily Eaton-Courtesy of Mass Fish and Wild Life</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">And this photo above is of the female adult!!! Come to find out she was able to get rid of her leg band some how and Tom French was able to capture her and get her rebanded! How he did it is beyond me as I've seen her in action but he did and she is now sporting a brand spanking new leg band courtesy of Tom who is holding her in the picture above.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I can't tell you how thrilled I am that I don't have to play the guessing game this year but do wonder how come there were only two. Don't know if egg production lessons the older the Peregrines get as the Mrs is getting up there in age but it does lead me to wonder.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Take care all.</span></div>
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<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-8728400857843674172013-05-29T17:43:00.002-04:002013-05-29T17:43:58.696-04:00Franklin's Gull Bolton Flats May 29, 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd be at work today and see a new post come in on the Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/centralmassbirders/" target="_blank">Central Mass Birders Page</a> by Justin of a black headed gull he spotted at Bolton Flats which looked bigger than a Bonaparte's. It wouldn't take long for an update as Jess had joined him and was able to confirm the gull as a Franklin's. I'd be lucky that it was close to lunch by then and I'd just complete a project so figured I could get away with taking an extended lunch and just work later than usual to make up for the mid day birding! I'd get there and see John and Audrey on their way down the path and be happy as it would be more eyes to search for the bird.<br />
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It wouldn't take long for John to spot it way out near the green houses napping right near the blue awning pictured above. While it wouldn't be the best look, I'd be appreciative of John letting me use his scope to see it better than just my bins.<br />
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Word had gotten out of the gull by then as other birders arrived including Alan, Paul and Peter where we'd all look at the gull way out and hoping a woman nearby would flush it closer.<br />
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And sure enough she would as the gull would fly off and closer to us for better views!<br />
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Where it landed closer to the large puddle near the "T" and continued to preen.<br />
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Not the best disgicoped photo but does a half way decent job of showing the white spots (that are larger than a Laughing Gull) on the wing tips.<br />
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And this shot which isn't as bad that really shows those white "eye arcs" as well as the relatively short bill. After much gawking of the gull a few of us would make our way toward the parking lot when Paul would let us know Peter had found a sleeping Common Nighthawk so naturally we went back to see if for ourselves.<br />
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And this is what we'd see for an added bonus as this would be the first time ever I'd see a nighthawk remaining still.<br />
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We'd proceed to head toward our cars and would soon see the Franklin's Gull flying to the right of us near the wetlands of the parking lot where the Bittern can be heard often so naturally watched it to see what it would do. I'd be fixated on its flight as it barely flapped its wings as it ascended up in the air in an effort to gain altitude it seemed but were hoping that wasn't the case as others have yet to see it so let's cross our fingers. <br />
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So yet again another real cool Worcester County bird (iin fact, a lifer) and I believe a county record. Just goes to show what team work can do as Justin and Jess were able to spot, confirm and communicate a very special bird allowing many others to see it.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-13450654221671166252013-05-27T19:02:00.000-04:002013-05-27T19:02:06.199-04:00Weekend Birding-Can Someone Tell Mother Nature It's Spring!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd wake up Saturday morning and decide to do a little birding before the heavy rain so made a couple stops here and there including Martha Deering were I'd pick up my 1st Brown Creeper and Red-breasted Nuthatch for the month as well as the local Barred Owl who'd look miserable and wet as he got dive bombed by an American Robin.<br />
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Lousy picture of it going away as it had enough of the mobbing but wanted to share it because it's a good example of how I distinguish between a flushed Hawk or Barred Owl when it tail on, going away. Notice how the owl almost looks hunched back with the wings looking so heavy it weighs him down. I've never seen this from a hawk as their body always looks strong and balanced enough to support its wings. Other highlight here would be a couple of singing Pine Warblers and a very vocal Great Crested Flycatcher. I'd proceed to go home and start on my much neglected cleaning when I'd see a post by Justin on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/centralmassbirders/" target="_blank">Facebook Central Mass Birders Page</a> of 8 Short-billed Dowitcher's at Bolton Flats so Alan and I would take off after lunch to try and get them.<br />
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The rain would be light but steady at that point with temperatures dropping causing all of the swallows to feed low near the water which allowed us some great looks at them including the best look I've ever gotten of a Bank Swallow before but do have to admit, I felt bad for them as this weather can be lethal for swallows and swifts. I was worried all weekend about the Chimney Swifts and while I can't confirm they are nesting in my chimney this year, the heat wouldn't go on the entire cold snap so spent most of my time home bundled up in fleece and reading a book with the lowest temp in my house going to 56 degrees this morning. Brrrrrrrrr..<br />
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Anyhow, back to topic. Alan and I would get there and it wouldn't take long to find the Dowitcher's but we'd be dismayed to see them far out in the back which allowed good scope views- but not for as long as we wanted as they flew off and be hidden by the tall grass that's starting to grow at Bolton. We'd meet up with Bart who'd be in full rain gear and he'd tell us he was there for almost and hour and didn't see them until we flushed them so that tells you how tough they were to see and the weather certainly didn't help. Notice the goofy drake Green-winged Teal mixed in with them! <br />
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Alan and I would attend the Forbush Bird Club's Upton trip Sunday which would be led by Nick. We'd all meet up in the parking lot and many would be dressed in full winter gear including hats and gloves and there's just something so wrong with that on Memorial Day Weekend! Between the wind and cold temps birds were not visible but Nick made the best of things showing us where many of the birds are normally seen during migration and breeding including some Northern Waterthrushes. While we never did see them, we heard them which was nice as one can never tire of their song.<br />
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We'd make our way to the birdiest section of the trip that day and get good views of a couple birds brave enough to show their face including the Great Crested Flycatcher above. It would be here that the Yellow-billed Cuckoo others spotted would be found and visible. That is to everyone but me as I couldn't find the bird despite good descriptions from all and the bird being "naked eye". I'd get on it just as it flew off but what else is new!! Did hear it to it's Coo Coo call as it was its Ka Ka Ka Ka KOW which was nice as it's one of my favorite sounds of all. The other highlight here would be a Virginia Rail doing its "three stooges call" nearby.<br />
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Next would be some powerlines nearby where we'd pick up some of our warblers (mostly by ear with the awful wind!) including Yellow, Blue-winged and the many Prairie. Highlight here would be seeing a Field Sparrow with that appeared to be a green caterpillar in its bill which was so cute! We'd all still be mighty cold at this point but it was still a nice trip despite the March like conditions. I'd head home and go straight to the covers the rest of the day and night as my house was cold and couldn't get the chill out of my bones with no heat. It did give me time just to relax and read though to get ready for more birding Monday.<br />
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Which would be showing Matt from <a href="http://www.growingwithplants.com/" target="_blank">Growing with Plants</a> some local spots nearby for decent birding with the South Main powerlines being our first stop. Matt was really into birding in years past but life and other hobbies put a lot of it on hold but now he's back so off we went to see what we could get. I'd remember the first time Alan took me here and how in awe I was over the bird variety and I was hoping I could do the same with Matt but have to admit I was a tad nervous after yesterday as I wanted to make sure he got decent looks of many of our colorful breeding birds. The bird Gods would be me in my favor as the first bird we'd see would be a very strange but still beautiful Indigo Bunting. I'd see it naked eye and knew it was an Indigo but looked so different to me I'd second guess myself until I got my bins on it as the bird was almost a light blue with some gray in it which is something I'd never seen before.<br />
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Another lousy shot as I just wasn't into pictures today but you can vaguely see the gray I'm talking about. According to my Sibley Guide this is a male Indigo Bunting that appears to still be in transitional plumage so it was nice to learn something new. We'd just finish looking at a Common Yellowthroat when a new bird appeared and I'd get my bins on it to see it was a 1st year Orchard Oriole!<br />
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Which would have me thrilled considering it would be cool bird number two and confirmed why my ears were telling me the oriole I was hearing in the midst of all the bird song sounded different to me. Such a treat and tells me again the Orchard Oriole numbers are up vs. last year as well as the Cuckoos. I'd also be happy to show Matt his first ever Prairie Warbler as I remember the "wow" factor that bird had with me when Alan showed me it for the first time as well as a first ever Blue-winged Warbler which made for a very productive stop!<br />
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Stop number two would be Brierly Conservation to show Matt some wood warblers as well as others that call this land home. We'd be happy the Chestnut-sided Warblers were nearby and visible but their usual hyper selves so were satisfied with the brief look we had when one stood still for a quick moment! I'd be happy to hear the Veery in it's usual location being as visible as ever as it allowed both of us nice, long looks for a much needed break from all of the others.<br />
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We'd meet up with Alan, Bob and Diane who'd tell us about a Solitary Sandpiper over near the beaver pond and would see it flying away which wasn't the best look obviously but it was nice just the same to get that bird on my Brierly list as it would be another first. The other highlight would be a Red-shouldered Hawk somewhat high in the sky and going away so hoping it's the one Alan and I have seen in weeks past as he's gone into hiding and both of us would like it if he set up territory there of course! We'd make our way to where the Black-and-white Warblers are and one would show us some mercy and land close enough for half way decent looks before flying off .<br />
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On our way back to the parking lot, we'd veer off to a side path which can be very birdy so wanted to show it to Matt and it wouldn't take long to get our first active pocket of birds here!<br />
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There'd be a very vocal Red-eyed Vireo leading the chorus as well as the nearby Veery, Ovenbird (darn thing wouldn't come close for looks), Scarlet Tanager, American Redstart and after much searching the bird I wanted here most (besides the Canada who wasn't around), which was the Magnolia Warbler. I'd get on it quick enough to ID and shout to Matt I had a maggie and by the time I explained where it was, off he flew. I'd really want Matt to see this bird as I remembered how striking it was the first time I saw it at Quabbin Park with Alan but it dove out of view and my ears were telling me away from the path. After some searching I thought I'd hear it close by again but then the darn American Redstart would sing as well making for much confusion on the ears as they both sang in unison.<br />
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We'd finally see it and I even managed some awful photos. One note is when I had my bins on it I noticed it didn't look as bright yellow underneath than what I'm used to seeing and was thinking it was the lighting but noticed the lack of streaking the bird above appears to have so wondering if what I have above is a female. Probably wishful thinking on my part as the one I got a real good look at face on was a definite male so if there are two of them than maybe they'll breed here as this is the same general location Dan stopped one for us on the Millbury Forbush Field Trip.<br />
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So despite the cold weather, birding was still nice and hoping this is the last of the cold weather. In looking at the long range forecast I see 90 degree temps for us next weekend and you so know I'll be complaining about that too!<br />
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Take care all.<br />
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<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-36252315220868325042013-05-24T17:57:00.000-04:002013-05-24T21:50:45.099-04:00Cattle Egret Bolton Flats & Hooded Warbler-No this isn't the Coast!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd be at work today and keep checking in on the Central Mass Birders Facebook Page thinking all would be quiet before the rain until Joe would post of a Hooded Warbler near his yard and then panic would strike as I'd still have a bunch of stuff to get done at work so whipped through it hoping I could find out more about it and leave early to get the bird. I'd just about be packed up and ready to leave when Alan would call and I presumed it was to tell me about the warbler.<br />
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Me: Hi<br />
Alan: Hi<br />
Me: I know all about the bird and on my way<br />
Alan: No you don't know the whole story<br />
Me: (confused and flustered). What do you mean I saw the post about the Hooded Warbler<br />
Alan: Well there's a Cattle Egret at Bolton Flats<br />
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Suddenly I was overwhelmed with two great birds in the area and me still at work and had my heart set on the Hooded, but we're talking Cattle Egret.<br />
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Me: Well I was just on my way to get the Hooded<br />
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Alan: Well which would you rather have the Cattle Egret or the warbler?<br />
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I'd stop to contemplate this for a moment as I've never been asked this before so it required thought as it's like asking me if I'd rather have chocolate cheesecake or a hot fudge sundae and naturally I'd want both!<br />
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Me: The Cattle Egret<br />
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Alan: Okay, if you leave work now I can pick you up and we can try for it. (Alan knew that would be my response of course as I've talked about a Worcester county Cattle Egret the 1st year I started birding)<br />
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I'd leave in a hurry talking to myself about how I'm not chasing birds anymore as it's too stressful and wonder if Jim next door heard the whole conversation and thinks I'm even crazier than when I was swooning in his office over the Barred Owl not letting him get any work done.<br />
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I'd arrive home in record time and Alan would pick me and Justin up telling us Bart had found it and called and off we went to try for the Cattle Egret. The entrance to the parking lot would be flooded but Alan being the trooper that he is plowed right through it as we got out of the car to walk the path and I'd be glad I wore boots as they were needed as you can see in the 1st picture!<br />
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Soon enough after much scoping we'd find the bird mixed in with the Canada Geese past the flooded field and on dry land.<br />
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Not the best record shots as you can see, but the bird was far out so hoping Alan and Justin have better ones.<br />
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Another lousy shot but all of us got excellent looks at it through Alan's scope.<br />
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Next it would be off to get me the Hooded Warbler as both Justin and Alan got it earlier and I was feeling left out and not holding out much hope the bird would still be there. We'd be there for a bit when we could both hear a very loud and metallic chip note and I'd get on a warbler where all I could see was a nice colorful yellow on the body and a lot of white at the tail. "I think I have it, I'd shout to Alan as we both tried to get a better look at it from the tree tops. I'd see it fly above my head an could clearly see the black at and around its throat making me very happy and wishing more warblers were this easy to ID in flight as it isn't the case in most instances with flying warblers! The bird would show me some mercy and land long enough for me to attempt a record shot.<br />
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Swoon!!!! Not the best picture in the world, but I'll take it as it would be life bird number two for me in one day!<br />
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Swoon again! Sigh, and here I was all thinking last night that it would be a quiet few days with the rain and all but should know better with migration still in full swing.<br />
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We'd drive back home and I'd be in awe over the two birds I'd just seen considering we're smack dab in Worcester County and not on the coast as this is the stuff you normally see there and not here. Just a nice reminder that we do get our share of cool birds in our county and why I love birding locally as much as I do.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-89591283312716984332013-05-23T21:13:00.001-04:002013-05-23T21:13:46.789-04:00More Spring Migration and the Invasion of the Cuckoos!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Despite having a full time job, I've managed to make the best of things by prioritizing my life which means work, birds and not much else as housework and cooking can wait!! It would all start on Wednesday when I'd go on Facebook and see the bird radar of the North East showing lots of bird activity over night. I'd quickly get ready for work and hit Brierly just to see if the radar was right! No sooner would I get out to the car and hear a Blackpoll in my yard as well as another while driving to Brierly and song would be heavy in the parking lot as soon as I arrived making me very happy. There'd be a singing Northern Parula, American Redstarts, Magnolia Warblers and Chestnut-sided Warblers and before I knew it an hour had passed and I'd remind myself I had to get to work. I'd see Alan drive up and now I'm back near the brambles pishing more birds out with him and realized I needed to make an executive decision. The decision would be to take an emergency half a day as I met all my deadlines the day prior so the half day would be my reward of course!! It would still be early so I'd leave my boss a voice mail with an Ovenbird calling in the back ground. <br />
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There'd be all kinds of great birds as we made our way near the beaver pond including another Canada Warbler as well as the Green Heron I had there about three weeks ago. It would be funny though as we were trying to pish a Mangolia when we heard this real strange call coming from the pond which was hidden by leaves. After some patience we'd finally see who the culprit was and it would indeed turn out the be the heron as you can see in the picture above.<br />
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We'd also get this bull frog above with spots which was pretty interesting and worthy of a picture. We'd make our way to the area I flushed the Barred Owl and to my amazement the pond I thought I just discovered turned out to be the back end of the new pond which has brought us all the fabulous birds this year! So of course we have to trace it to see what else may be lurking and before you know it, I'm bush whacking through brambles and weeds with not only my work pants on but my work shoes! After more exploring, I'd grudgingly go to work and besides some leaves stuck to my pants and a tick crawling through my hair while on a conference call, I was as presentable as I could be and actually managed to get a lot of work done so thinking I may need to do this more often!<br />
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I'd be at work Wednesday and Justin would post on the Facebook Central Mass Birders page about both a Yellow and Black-billed Cuckoo at the Cross Street Powerlines so off I'd go after work hoping for both. It wouldn't take me long to hear the Black-billed but it was rather soft and sporadic so figured it had skulked more into the woods to get away from the a**hole dirt bikers who'd by flying around and making a ton of racket. I'd spend some time wondering around and just listen to all of the breeding birds as I'm really into chip notes lately so it allowed me some good study. Eventually the Black-billed sounded closer and soon enough he'd fly from one end of the road to the other and land in brush and call. In fact at one point he flew so low he almost clipped my head much to my delight! I'd call Alan and tell him the bird was not only calling but visible and sure enough the bird would continue to do both when Alan arrived. It allowed for some close study of this birds behavior and made me feel better after seeing the dead one in downtown Worcester.<br />
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I'd wake up early this morning and go back to Cross Street hoping to hear the Yellow-billed and would again strike out on that but the Black-billed was still there and calling away which was the perfect way to start the day. After work it would be off to Brierly hoping for a Yellow-billed there and I'd get one less than five minutes of arriving! One thing I've noticed about Cuckoos is it's really hard to pinpoint their location when you are getting them by ear only but the one thing I've learned lately is if you can hear them and they sound far away, chances are they're not and you need to stay in the general location. My patience would pay off as I'd see it fly across the trail so once again I'd call Alan to let him know we had Millbury Cuckoo number two and to get the Brierly as quickly as possible. HA<br />
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Alan would arrive and we'd both get really good looks at the bird (in fact, one of the best looks I've ever gotten of one). Wish my camera could have done it justice but what else is new! The best thing about it is the bird actually did all of it's calls for me including one of my favorite sounds of all time which is their "knocker call" Earlier on, I'd also hear both Barred Owls doing a duet which would be the first time I'd ever hear that so all in all a perfect way to end my birding for the week as it sounds as if we are about to get dumped with rain!<br />
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Last note is the number of Cuckoos not only in Worcester County this year but the entire state. Will be interesting to see what the final number look like but as of right now it seems to be invasion of the cuckoos!<br />
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Take care all.<br />
<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-48370498401733063482013-05-20T20:30:00.000-04:002013-05-20T20:30:49.016-04:00Downtown Worcester-Peregrine Falcon update and other tidbits<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I figured it was time to do a Peregrine Falcon update considering it's been over a month. I went over to the Peoples United building this morning with hopes I could hear begging chicks but it wouldn't take long for me to realize its easier said than done as portions of the side walks are closed with work being done to open Union Station as the new bus hub June 1st. Add to that all the noise from traffic and heavy machinery and couldn't hear much. I did see the male Peregrine Falcon take off from the BOA building and land on the cross for a few seconds and then fly into the area I believe they are nesting and not reappear for the time I was there so taking it as a good sign. At this point all I can hope for is the chicks to start walking and doing so on the side facing Front Street so I can get looks at them from the 24th floor and I also think I'll be able to hear them there too as I'll be much closer. I'd make my way back to work when my eyes would notice something on the ground. I'd get closer and my heart would sink as I realized it was a dead Black-billed Cuckoo. :-(<br />
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I really wanted to examine it more and even thought of picking it up and asking Tufts if they wanted it (imagine the look on my co workers face as I walked past reception!) I'd decided otherwise as a policeman was giving me the "hairy eyeball" with my bins and camera so took one photo to see if I could see any trauma to the bird and don't so guessing it's a window strike. I've been thinking of this bird off and on all day and has left me in a funk. The perils birds face on a daily basis is often forgotten and I've seen dead birds before in downtown Worcester but this one bothers me most as its such a neat and secretive bird and I'm mad it had to die in such an undignified way. :-(. The only good thing about dead birds is you can really examine them and I'd be taken aback at how large it seemed as I've only seen a Black-billed once and much of its body was covered by tree branches.<br />
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I'd decide to do some birding after work to help get me out of my funk and hit South Main Powerlines in hopes for a Yellow-billed cuckoos as both are moving through and had one here before so was hoping to hear AND see one alive and well. Bird song would be all around me and I'd pick up my first Wild Turkey in this spot which was nice as I saw it in some brush and it would wait for me to pass by before getting back on the trail and crossing the street.<br />
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The Eastern Towhee's would be out in full force and I'd be happy to see my first female of the year looking as classy as ever.<br />
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There'd be a battle of the songsters going on as American Robins, Scarlet Tanagers, Baltimore Orioles and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks were singing at once making for a nice practice session on the ears.<br />
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I'd be able to get directly above a grosbeak before he flew off and while the photo is lousy I love it as it shows what the bird looks like underneath which is just as cool close up as in the air.<br />
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I'd walk along the trail and noticed a bird that looked different to me in flight and was lucky enough to see it land in a leafy tree so stopped to see if I could re locate it with my bins. I'd walk a little closer and suddenly hear the loudest song of an Eastern Wood-peewee I've ever experienced. I'd walk closer to where the sound was coming from and realize I was heading in the direction of the flying bird. Suddenly I'd spot my mystery bird and realize it was he who was singing the peewee call right out in the open and out of tree cover!!! The view in the picture above is how I saw the bird with my bins and even though it was singing I didn't believe it at first as it was the best "tail view" I've ever gotten of this bird and right out in the open. Love this picture none the less as it shows the "dusky vest" Sibley refers to.<br />
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Flying over across the powerlines and out of view but managed a crappy photo where you can see its dark head and a trace of the distinct wingbars I saw really well with the bins.<br />
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No sooner would I be walking away from the peewee and I'd see a Baltimore Oriole flying above and landing in a shrub. I'd want to get on the bird as I thought it was a female by the color as it flew past until I relocated it in the shrub and saw this.<br />
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This would really throw me for a loop as I've seen juves like this but it's far too early for them so posted the pics on Facebook to get feedback from others and I'd be given this <a href="http://www.migrationresearch.org/mbo/id/baor.html" target="_blank">link</a> which is pretty nifty. Come to find out female coloration can vary and this is a she! Swoon, this is why I love birding as you learn something new everyday you get out there.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-76880348237290914652013-05-19T19:39:00.001-04:002013-05-19T19:56:05.237-04:00Brierly Conservation Area-The Gift that Keeps on Giving!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd head back to Brierly today with Alan in hopes for an actual view of a Swainson's Thrush and we'd get there early which would immediately pay off because as soon as we got out of the parking lot we'd be inundated with bird song with warblers being the main chorus. I'd play my new game of ID the outlier and could have sworn I heard a Blackburnian mixed in with the crew and sure enough we'd get not one but two and great looks of one no less! I'd also hear what I thought was another Canada Warbler (in a different area then when Dan spotted one) and we'd both be rewarded with a nice view of it so it's nice to know all my warbler song practice is starting to pay off! We'd reluctantly leave the parking lot but we had places to go and Swainson's to see so off we went toward Mount Ararat where we'd be thrilled to get a Yellow-throated Vireo Alan heard as we made out way up the incline. The other highlight here would be a very vocal Great-crested Flycatcher calling nearby.<br />
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We'd head back to the area I had my Swainson's yesterday as I'd remember it immediately due to a pink bib on the trail which was my bench mark yesterday on the birds approximate voice location and it would be then both Alan and I would see a bird fly from one end of the trail to the other, the bird would be rather still and we'd be shocked to see a bird that looked very much like a Swainson's at first glance.<br />
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As you can see in the photo above with those nice buffy spectacles as well as buffy cheek and the brownish gray overall on the back.<br />
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Pardon the photos as it was still fairly early so lighting was an issue but let me tell you, we both got killer looks of this bird as it stayed there on the log for close to five minutes paying no attention to either of us! Swoon, this bird has now replaced the Black Vulture as my bird of the year as I never knew how sweet they are and can't get over how tame, in comparison to both the Hermit and Wood Thrush. We'd linger around Brierly for a bit and then I'd take off on my own later in the morning and hit South Main powerlines in my annual tradition of checking for a Yellow-billed Cuckoo.<br />
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I'd make my way down the path and my ears would be overwhelmed with bird song. The weather was perfect and it would be then I'd realize I was at the spot I've yearned for since this cold, past February when birds were all singing at once and it felt like spring. A Baltimore Oriole was close by and singing so lovely, I'd be shocked to realize a trace of tears forming in my eyes and quickly brush them away but what can I say, I love my birds for so many reasons with song being number one (remember it was the Phee Bee song of the Black-capped Chickadee before dawn in my yard that first opened my eyes or rather ears to birds), so I guess that's my soft spot when it comes to our feathered friends.<br />
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I'd also spot an Eastern Towhee who'd be dead silent in some lower branches totally unaware of me stalking him which made to stiffle a giggle as he was just being him and so cute as he preened and looked around.<br />
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While I never did get my Yellow-billed Cuckoo I did get some really nice looks of many breeding birds including the Prairie Warbler above which is nice as this is one of my favorite warblers of all.<br />
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I'd go home for the lunch time lull and decide to lay down for a bit as I got up early and didn't fall asleep until fairly late the night before. I'd have my windows open and could hear a robin singing nearby as well as the local Northern Mockingbird so I'd close my eyes and just listen to him as he belted out tunes of his neighbors. Soon enough I'd drift off and be in "la la land" but kept waking up some to check the time as I wanted to get back out before the rain. I'd have spotty dreams with the last one being my annual "I can't ID this bird" dream I seem to get every year and this one's a doozy like all the others. I believe it was a bird club event as I'd be on a trail with a bunch of birders and would only know two (Alan and Kevin). Suddenly I'd spot a bird and shout out to the others as I had no idea what it was as its butt was to me so wanted others on it before it flew off! I'm lousy in my conscience life of trying to describe locations of birds so it would only ring true in dream land too as no one could spot it so they asked me to describe it. Suddenly the small little bird would fan its tail like an American Redstart and then turn around and be speechless as this is what I'd see.<br />
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That's right folks, the face of the zebra of one of my favorite gums of all when I was a child (Bubs Daddy sour apple was number one). I'd remain speechless as everyone was waiting for me to describe the bird but couldn't as I was too embarrassed and then the dream ended which woke me up of course and was thrilled to see it was a dream and not the "real deal". HA ;-). Don't' know why I share some of the stuff I do with you really I don't but I guess it's to give you a better glimpse of my mind sometime.<br />
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Anyhow, I'd head back to Brierly and would see three Turkey Vultures flying by so take a quick look at them and continue to lock my car when I'd hear an almost grunt type noise coming from their location so of course I look as I've never heard a noise like that coming from a TV before. And the reason I wouldn't is because it would be a Fish Crow all by itself and doing it's distinct call before landing in a tree nearby. It seems as if Fish Crow sightings are a lot more frequent for many here in Worcester County this year and I'd be happy to have my second sighting already this spring.<br />
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I'd decide to do a little bush whacking in an area Alan and I are convinced is filled with fabulous birds we can't see from the main trail and it wouldn't take long for me to see one of the other pair of Chestnut-sided Warblers I've often wondered about as they were closer to the main trail in years past so it was nice to see they are still in the general area. The rain would start to fall some so headed for the shelter of the woods as I didn't want to go home just yet.<br />
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Bird song would continue to dwindle the further I went into the woods and be replaced by light rain drops falling on leaves as I made my way around the windy mountain bike trails. Two Ovenbirds would be nearby making contact calls to one another and I'd be in my element as both their faint, rapid chip notes and the sound of rain was nice on the ears after all the bird chatter just a few moments prior. Soon enough the rain would pick up some and I'd remind myself it wasn't the best time to get lost so make my way back toward the main trail and to my car.<br />
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I'd be making my way back past the pond the beavers have made this year when my ears would pick up on something fairly distant but it was distincitive and would be the call of the Black-billed Cuckoo. I'd stop for a bit as I wanted to hear all three of its coos and after a while and a little moving around I'd hear them all but it wasn't easy.<br />
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FYI, for some reason I can't post any of my YouTube videos directly on Blogger this evening so if you really want to listen to some lousy audio of the bird you can do so here <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBtM823DVj0" target="_blank">Black-billed Cuckoo Millbury</a> .<br />
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And lastly a very lousy photo of a bird which is now one of my favorite this year which is the Veery as I find them not at all shy and fascinating to watch long term with a pair of binoculars. I'd find him on the main path where he'd take two hops and stop to look around (kind of robin like, but not as clumsy). Anyhow I'd edge up closer to him waiting for it fly off and it paid no attention to me as it turned over leaf litter and even appeared to gobble up some leaves! I'd finally call out to him to let him know I was coming though and the little bugger would fly right into a shrub nearby which pissed off a female Northern Cardinal so not sure if the Veery flew right into the Cardinals nesting spot but it made for an interesting way to end a fabulous weekend of birding!<br />
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Take care all.<br />
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<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-61740292642790738032013-05-19T06:20:00.000-04:002013-05-19T06:20:27.744-04:00More Spring Migration Birding<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd do more birding this past week and would take Thursday off to do some birding with Alan and one of our first stops would be the place the Worm-eating Warbler is known to breed. After some patience and pishing it would be obvious the bird wasn't around so hope it's just late in arriving and will show up soon.<br />
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Next would be Little Chauncey to Big Chauncey in Westborough where the wind would be fierce keeping the birds out of view. We did spot a flycatcher though and we couldn't get the bird to sing so have no idea if it was a Willow or Alder which was very frustrating but were happy none the less that they are starting to arrive.<br />
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We'd finally make our way to Big Chauncey where we'd get our 1st pocket of birds including Yellow-rumped Warbler, American Redstart, Warbling Vireo and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher like the goofy one above. Love this photo as he looks "bugged out"<br />
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Tiger Swallowtail on the way out feeding on mud which is something I've never seen before so it was nice to learn something new.<br />
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We'd both head home and then head to Bolton Flats for Bart's Forbush trip and be thrilled to get the Common Gallinule as well as three White-crowned Sparrows like the one above. After that the bird club would hit Pine Hill Road where we'd be dismayed to see there was a fire there last week and some habitat to the right right at the main start of the path is burnt so it will be interesting to see what that habitat is like next year. Dawn was there and she'd pick out a Common Nighthawk flying above which made for a sweet and early FOY. Other FOY's for both Alan and I would be American Woodcock and Eastern Whip-poor-will.<br />
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There'd be another Forbush Bird Club trip Saturday in the Millbury area lead by Alan. We'd all meet at the Millbury Bike Path where there'd already be many birds including the Warbling Vireo above. Bonus bird toward the beginning of the path would be an Orchard Oriole Dan had spotted which was a treat and part of a continuing trend county wide as these birds appear to be everywhere compared to last years anemic numbers.<br />
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Canada Geese and goslings on the Blackstone River.<br />
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We'd just finish looking at a Blackpoll Warbler when a sandpiper would be spotted (pun intended) and we'd all assume Spotted at first considering that's who is usually around here but be thrilled to find out it was a Solitary.<br />
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A treat and nice FOY.<br />
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Next would be Sutton for the Grasshopper Sparrow and sure enough it would be around and in view allowing all trip members a nice view.<br />
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We'd hit Brierly next where we'd add to the list including the Scarlet Tanager above and some Ruby-throated Humminbirds. Bonus bird of this spot would be a Canada Warbler Dan spotted which was a first in this spot that I know of.<br />
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I'd head back out on my own after lunch and the mid day lull with two goals in mind. 1. Work on my patience when it comes to birding. I'd noticed a pattern with Dan and his method of birding which is the fact that he lingers around areas instead of rushing through which is something I know I do. His patience paid off when he got the Canada so figured if it works for him than it may for me! 2. Swainson's Thrush. The bird I had as my ring tone for 6 months last year and one I didn't have for the county so was hoping Saturday would be the day that would change! I'd first go to Butler Farm in Millbury where I'd spot another Common Nighthawk flying by. My patience paid off as I got really nice looks at a Red-eyed Vireo, Wood Thrush and two Ovenbirds with one on the ground which was funny to see.<br />
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Cedar Waxwings on the apple trees which is always nice on the eyes!<br />
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One of two Chestnut-sided Warblers who'd be busy gathering nesting material. I'd head out deep in the woods in hopes for a Swainson's and once again get lost which is a common thing whenever I venture into Brierly alone. It paid off in the end though as the wrong path was the right path when I spotted the Barred Owl flying by as I flushed it out. Other highlight would be the many Yellow-rumped Warblers near the pond as well as an Eastern Wood-peewee.<br />
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After finding my way out I'd be happy to see my first soaring Broad-winged Hawk of the year which is always nice and was happy I could ID it only seconds after getting my bins on it due to it being in a nice position with the sun just right. I'd continue to go deep in the woods keeping my ears out for a Swainson's and soon enough I'd hear one deep in the woods! Out would come the camera in hopes for an Audio record shot and be happy to get it even if it was a little far out.<br />
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You'll have to turn up the volume on you computer some most likely as it was far out but I'd be happy it was close enough to capture via the camera as it's a song I've longed for since early last year. A sweet FOY and I'd be happy my persistence paid off in the end and I'd be rewarded with its lovely song.<br />
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Take care all.<br />
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<br />Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-32450101310581241862013-05-15T05:39:00.000-04:002013-05-15T05:39:06.299-04:00Searching for Maggie!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'd head out this past rainy Sunday morning in search for a few target birds. My first stop of Oakhurst for the Grasshopper Sparrow and it wouldn't take long for me to hear its chip note nearby. After waiting about 5 minutes of so it would finally to its "tick tock tazeeeee" song which was good enough for me as I didn't want to over pish it as to not stress the poor little guy out. Next would be Uxbridge Community Garden considering I was curious what would be around for spring migration and there wouldn't be anything new but did get probably my best photo ever of a Bobolink.<br />
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Next would be Riverbend Farm in Uxbridge for the 2nd year Orchard Oriole Beth and Paul had the day prior and there'd be lots of birds around including a Baltimore as soon as I got out of my car. After wondering around the maze a while I'd hear what I thought was the Orchard and be thrilled to see I was right once I made my way out of the maze.<br />
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Er....Um....Not the best photos as you can see but I'll take it as it was starting to rain again. I'd go back home to change my socks and put on waterproof boots and head back out as there was one bird I still had to get which was Magnolia Warbler and I was getting a complex considering Nancy had them at Riverbend on Saturday and couldn't get one despite putting in a lot of effort while looking for the Orchard Oriole.<br />
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I'd strike out there but be over whelmed with the numbers of Yellow-rumped Warblers as they'd be everywhere along with the American Redstarts. Unwilling to admit defeat I'd head to Butler Farms where I'd see a Blue-winged Warbler hovering which was a first for me and was happy to get a photo of it. Soon enough it was time to go home for a bit.<br />
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I needed to run an errand late Sunday afternoon in West Boylston so decided to stop at Kristoff Pig Farm hoping for a Magnolia there as well as the hopeful Ruffed Grouse I flushed there two years ago and would strike out on both but did pick up my FOY Indigo Bunting.<br />
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I'd get an email from Alan today telling me he got a Magnolia at Brierly today so off I went after work hoping for the same luck. Yellow-rumped Wablers would be everywhere again with the sun in such a position they'd look almost yellow underneath at times which made for some serious birding with there being so many and them all being so quick!<br />
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Of course I didn't mind much considering they were all singing at once and I think I can finally say I have their song forever imprinted in my memory so appreciated the lesson. I'd have my ears open for the Magnolia though and thought I could hear one here and there but was never 100% confident with the combined singing of the Yellow-rumped and redstarts so would be thrilled when I found it by itself in a shrub.<br />
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Swoon. Seriously, this is one warbler that makes me weak in the knees with its loveliness. It would even sit still long enough for me to savor it with my bins and attempt the photo above. Should note I also go a FOY Red-shouldered Hawk Alan had spotted there earlier in the week. Little bugger threw me for a serious loop though considering it was the size and shape of a Red-shouldered as it was close enough for me to spot it perched nearby and I did this naked eye. I'd be looking at it "face on" which gave me a good look at it's body and heavily striped chest and buffiness around the face but it still had its juve plumage from last year which threw me off as I've never encountered a RS like that and had no idea they held onto their juve plumage as long as they do. Posted on the Hawk Watch site on FB and from what I read, they indeed do so you learn something new everyday!<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3770651210715066081.post-68221161241596566582013-05-11T14:12:00.001-04:002013-05-11T14:12:19.034-04:00Forbush Bird Club Wachusett Trip (In Memory of Fran)-May 11th, 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Alan and I would attend the Forbush Bird Club trip to Wachusett and vicinity in memory of Fran which would be led by Susan. The weather dampened our spirits some as we headed out to Princeton with the wind shields going due to rain but still held out hope as it is May after all! We'd meet at the ski area and after much patience the rain lessened and we' pick up quite a few birds including a Louisiana Waterthrush, Black-throated Blue and Green Warblers and this Eastern Phoebe above.<br />
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There would also be the many Barn Swallows, Chipping Sparrows and a male singing Purple Finch which is always a treat.<br />
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We'd head on over the Wachusett Mountain main state headquarters for the Winter Wren and sure enough we'd get it with others as well including the Great-crested Flycatcher above.<br />
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As well as pretty decent looks at a singing Wood Thrush which is always music to the ears!<br />
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And the always welcome Scarlet Tanager who looked like a Christmas Tree Ornament perched high from above and singing.<br />
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We'd finally get to the "turn around" spot which is usually a guarantee for an Indigo Bunting but couldn't find one. Perhaps the snow in the picture has caused them to delay their arrival at their summer residence! ;-)<br />
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Next would be the spot for the Northern Waterthrush which we'd get as soon as we got out of the car (FOY for both Alan and I) and after a bit we'd all be thrilled to get great looks at one of the Canada Warblers (another FOY for both of us).<br />
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Swoon, I just love this bird and was beyond pleased with the looks we got of it.<br />
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Next would be Harrington Farm for the Bobolinks and both our ears and eyes would be reminded it was spring with the beautiful tulips and a Louisiana Waterthrush singing nearby.<br />
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As well as the few Bobolinks like the one above. This would be a 1st for me as I've never seen this bird perched on a wire before!<br />
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We'd hit another spot that was very birdy including a Yellow-throated Vireo. This would be our second vireo of the day as we'd also gotten Blue-headed in a couple of spots.<br />
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Another FOY for both Alan and I were the Chestnut-sided Warblers like the one above. This bird was so close it was a "naked eye bird" which made photos difficult as it was so close my camera didn't want to focus!<br />
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And we'd also get our much wanted Veery which was quite fitting considering the trip was in memory of Fran. I think he sent it to us considering what great views we got of it!<br />
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We'd hit a couple of spots we normally don't on this trip including one Dick K brought us too as we still didn't have Blackburnian Warbler on our list but got it quickly which would make for a very nice FOY for me.<br />
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Our last stop would be "Four Corners" as we met up with Bobbye earlier who told us she had Least Flycatcher there in the morning and we would soon be rewarded with it as well as many Bobolinks and a Blue-winged Warbler and Northern Parula which made for another productive stop.<br />
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All in all, my best day bird wise this season which just goes to show that weather often has nothing to do with it as not only was there rain here and there but wind too.<br />
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Take care all.Kimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05539583838978744802noreply@blogger.com0