Tag Archives: Birding

Another Go at Birding in the Northeast Kingdom

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The trail to Moose Bog at Wenlock Wildlife Management Area

My work took me yesterday to Lyndon State College, in northeastern Vermont. Since I live on the western side of the state, it took me a couple of hours to get there. After an early start and a morning spent learning about the school, I was free to go. Since I was so close, relatively, to a birding spot I had hit last year, I thought I might give it another try.

I did not have a lot of time and this detour added about an hour to my drive home, but I was so close I couldn’t help myself. I drove north, through Island Pond, and snaked around to Wenlock Wildlife Management Area. I parked in a little dirt lot off the narrow dirt road, avoiding the logging trucks heading in empty and heading out full of logs. I pulled on trail shoes and a looser shirt (a dress shirt and shoes are not my standard birding attire) and headed into the woods.

There were four target birds on my list: Boreal Chickadee, Gray Jay, Spruce Grouse and Black-Backed Woodpecker. All of them live in the boreal forest and this is a good place, apparently, to see them. I did not have a lot of time–two hours max–and I was hoping to see at least one of them. I walked on the trail through mossy, dense forest, looking and listening carefully. Spruce Grouse, which I have never seen, are not easily spooked; I have heard one can walk right past them. Maybe I did. I certainly did not encounter much.

I found a few Red-Breasted Nuthatches and lots of Blue Jays, but none of the avian quatrain I was seeking. The woods were still and mostly quiet. I hiked downhill and squished my way down to the bog, water sneaking over the tops of my shoes. I stood near the water for a while, hoping for something. No luck. Not even a dabbling duck. So I got back to the car, while feeling great to be out on a fairly warm November day in a beautiful place, a little disappointed.

Moose Bog on a Gray Day with no Gray Jays

Moose Bog on a Gray Day with no Gray Jays

As I changed my shoes back to my dry ones for the drive home, however, a Gray Jay popped out of the woods and landed a few feet away. It hopped around on the ground, back up to the edge of the trees and then lit on a branch right next to me. “Well,” I said to it. “You are just who I have been looking for.” Then out came another one. I watched them for a bit and then figured it was time to go.

I turned back to the car but then heard a peeping in the brush across the road. It was the soft whistle of a chickadee, the sound I hear most often in winter made by Black-Capped Chickadees. Could I be, I wondered, a Boreal Chickadee? And then I heard it call its chick-a-dee call. Bam! Boreal Chickadee confirmed. I found it in the dense trees and then really did have to hit the road.

So in the end I found two out of the four species I was seeking. When I have more time I will go back to find the other two. I did think that it would be quite a place to visit in the spring, when bird activity is at its peak. The Silvio O.Conte National Wildlife Refuge has a branch just up the road and there are trails to explore there as well. The black flies might be out, but I imagine the birds might be as well.

Gray Jays

Gray Jays

Paying Attention

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IMG_0538I started birding in earnest after I had a stroke. Instead of going to therapy, I went outside and paid attention to the world around me. I tried to run, but I found that I just kept thinking inwardly, going to dark places. It wasn’t fun. When I went birding, however, I was looking outward rather than inward. I was focused on sights and sounds, on the wind and the river under the bridge, on finding something new wherever I was. I returned feeling better, feeling more perspective on my place in the world.

Getting out in nature can have this impact for many people. It is hard not to notice what is around when you are hiking a mountain trail or canoeing a river. Birding for me gave me more of a focus. I had to pay attention. If my goal was to find as many different birds as possible, I had to be aware. Being passive was not an option. So I got out there and I paid attention and it healed my mind. Having a task, a focus, was key. I stopped paying attention to me when I paid attention to what I heard and saw.

Yesterday morning I visited the Catamount Outdoor Family Center in Williston to go birding. This was part of a bird walk sponsored by Green Mountain Audubon. There were quite a few people there, maybe 20 or so. I meant to count the people but I was too focused on counting birds. We walked the trails for over two hours and, despite the hundreds of mosquitoes, found 45 species of birds. Two highlights were the flock of Blue Jays mobbing a Barred Owl and a Red-Winged Blackbird chasing a Green Heron. We also heard, however, a Brown Creeper, a shy bird who looks like tree bark and whose song is high and hard to hear. Finding that bird means really paying attention so it is rewarding to discover it.

The photo above has a Cedar Waxwing in it. It is perched at the top of a fir. It is hard to see, but I heard its high trilling song, then narrowed down its location and saw it well with binoculars. Birding is not about seeing the birds that make themselves obvious. It is about seeking out the birds that are there, finding them even when they are not obvious. That is the therapy for me in birding.

Cedar Waxwing, not hiding at all

Cedar Waxwing, not hiding at all

I will keep at it for now. There are multiple levels of challenge. How many birds can I find with each outing? How many birds can I find each year? How many birds can I find this year in my county? What might I find new today? Can I finally learn the song of the Blackburnian Warlber? There is the life list to consider as well: how many birds can I find ever? I won’t get bored. I will continue to learn and to discover new things. I will keep my mind healthy. And while I’m at it, I will have fun. That’s some good therapy right there.

I Like May

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IMG_0331I have spent a lot of time getting outside this month. Green has taken over from white and gray. Birds are singing. The sun shines or the rain falls. Winter is done. I have been loving May. It may, and this is a maybe mind you, be taking over as my favorite month. There is a pun in there, but let’s just let that go. Here is some of what I have been up to this month.

I visited Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge for the first time. The place was beautiful. I only explored some of it and will have to go back to see more at some point. I saw lots of birds, getting there first thing in the morning, including my first Black Tern and, right in the parking lot of my first stop, a Yellow-Throated Warbler.

I visited a few other spots as well. I just passed the 200 mark for birds species I have found this year, over 150 of them in Vermont. Like I said, I like May.

 

Leaves just emerging at MIssisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Leaves just emerging at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

I saw more than birds at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

I saw more than birds at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Northern Waterthrush at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Northern Waterthrush at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Boardwalk at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Boardwalk at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge

Dutchman's Breeches at Geprag's Community Park, Hinesburg

Dutchman’s Breeches at Geprag’s Community Park, Hinesburg

Trillium, Woodside Park, Colchester

Trillium, Woodside Park, Colchester

Woodside Park, Colchester

Woodside Park, Colchester

Bike Path, Burlington

Bike Path, Burlington

Shelburne Pond

Shelburne Pond

Clay-Colord Sparrow, a lifer for me, right in Hinesburg

Clay-Colord Sparrow, a lifer for me, right in Hinesburg

Yesterday morning, out early

Yesterday morning, out early

Golden-Winged Warbler welcoming the day with its buzzy song

Golden-Winged Warbler welcoming the day with its buzzy song

Earth Day Birding

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IMG_0217I got up early this morning after sleeping out on the porch with my daughter. She had one side of the U-shaped couch. I had the other. She didn’t wake up until I left. In fact, she didn’t wake up until long after I had gotten home. I headed to Shelburne Pond before the sun came up. It was cool–39 degrees–and mostly clear. I had about a half hour before the sun rose.

There were the usuals singing away–Red-Winged Blackbirds, Swamp Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, Cardinals, among others. A few Canada Geese paddled about not far from shore. A Wood Duck was silhouetted against the water. I hiked up the trail after watching the water for a while. The sun rose as I walked the woods.

I saw four Downy Woodpeckers chasing each other around and chirping at each other. I had never seen that before. I heard something singing down in the wetland–something whose song I could not remember–but I never got a look at it. I saw some Ring-Necked Ducks and a Common Goldeneye diving for breakfast. Then I saw an owl. OK it wasn’t an owl. I saw an owl in the same spot once before so I imagined it was an owl. It turned out to be a hawk.

I always think Red Tailed Hawk when I see any hawk, because they are so common, but it clearly wasn’t that–too small and the wrong markings. I have gotten to the point where I try to notice key details right away. Does it have bands on its underside? Does it have bands on its tail? What color is its back? That kind of thing. Right away I narrowed it down to three possible candidates. Once it flew and I got a better look at its tail, I narrowed it down to two. I walked up the trail further and then I heard it call. Boom: Red Shouldered Hawk.

Red Shouldered Hawks are not common around here. I have seen them several times in Florida, and once last year at another nearby location, but never at this spot. Looking for birds is full of surprises like that. I so was not expecting to see a Red Shouldered Hawk. Nice way to start the day.

In the afternoon I headed to Lagoon Road. This is a birding hotspot these days as migrating birds find the wet areas there a great place to stop over. It is next to a water treatment plant, which seems to be a favored spot for birds in lots of places. Right off I saw Northern Shovelers, one of which is pictured above. Check out the schnozz on that dude! I had seen them from a distance on Lake Champlain about a month ago for the first time, and these were right there. So cool!

I also saw a whole bunch of sandpipers. They only pass through here in spring and fall. They breed up north. A couple were here earlier than usual so, again, it was exciting. I added three new birds today for my list for the year. Not bad for a rainy Earth Day. If it isn’t raining too hard in the morning I will rise early and try to be surprised again. And I’m guessing I will be back before my daughter wakes up. I won’t be getting her to listen to a dawn chorus with me any time soon, I can tell you that.

Early Morning Looking for Rusty Blackbirds

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Purple Finch Singing Up a Storm

Purple Finch Singing Up a Storm

I will tell you right off I was not successful in finding Rusty Blackbirds. The day was right, the habitat was perfect, but they were just not around. They don’t stay here. They just pass through on their way north this time of year. I was hoping I might catch a few along their way. Not today.

I rose pretty early and was up at the South Hero Marsh Trail by 6:00. It was a cloudy day so it was just light and the birds were already singing. The trail is an old rail bed so it is pretty much a straight line, running alongside a marsh with reedy areas and open water. I could hear geese out on the  water and a loon called a few times. Grackles and Red-Winged Blackbirds and Robins were trying to outdo each other. The place is thick with silver maples and large wet areas, puddles of a sort, dot the forest floor. I was hoping one of the rust-colored blackbirds might be flipping leaves looking for some breakfast next to one of those puddles. Breakfast, apparently, was served elsewhere today.

Perfect Place to Find Rusty Blackbirds

Perfect Place to Find Rusty Blackbirds

I did find a lot of birds. Woodpeckers ruled the place–Flickers and Downies and Hairies. I got a good look at a Golden Crowned Kinglet, my first sighting of the year, and then another of a Ruby Crowned Kinglet. I saw Wood Ducks and Green-Winged Teal and watched a Purple Finch sing up the morning. Ospreys soared overheard, crying out, and Snipes whistled over the wetland. It was a great morning to be out, even if it was chilly enough for the down jacket.

I stopped for coffee on the way home. The cashier asked if I was going fishing. Fishing season opened last weekend in Vermont. I told her I was not. I had already been out for two hours but I just said “No, not today. Good day for it though.” And I headed home, looking forward to a hot omelet.

Kiildeer trying to sneak by

Kiildeer trying to sneak by

High Water and Warming Up

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Gulls watch the roaring Winooski River up close

I took some time to walk briefly after work today. I walked along the river in Winooski. I thought I might see if I could find some spring migrating birds. The river was high. It roared. I could hardly hear any birds singing until I had walked far enough away. Lots of snow is melting. There was lots of snow this winter. It will be melting for a while.

I saw a few birds–Red-Winged Blackbirds, Hairy Woodpeckers, Tufted Titmouse. The usual types. I ducked off the trail at one point to listen and look. I saw some movement by a large puddle under the silver maples. I pointed my binoculars and saw a Rusty Blackbird. Boom! That is a fine bird to see. They are more and more uncommon and I had given up on seeing one this spring. I certainly wasn’t expecting to see one today. But there it was.

I like that about birding. I go out and just hope to see something. Sometimes one bird makes it all worthwhile. That happened today. It like to see whatever I see but most of the time there is some surprise. First White Throated Sparrow of the year, or a Catbird still around in December, or a Rusty Blackbird when I had not expected to see one. The unpredictability is a gift. Not being in control makes me feel more connected to the world. Being a spectator can take away the stress of modern life. It gives me a good sense of perspective.

Tomorrow morning I will rise early and go somewhere to look and listen again. I may see nothing new. But I am sure I will see something interesting. Hopefully I will be surprised. It should be a fairly warm morning. That alone will make me feel good.

Spring Edging In

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I was pretty cozy in bed this morning but I got up early anyway. It was cold out (below freezing!) and I had woken early. I wavered. I waffled. But then I remembered that spring migration is underway. In Vermont. We’re talking a very short season. I got out of bed.

I watched the sky turn pink before the sun rose. I watched the sun rise. I listened to lots of birds singing: song sparrows, cardinals, red-winged blackbirds, phoebes, mourning doves, swamp sparrows, even  a ruby crowned kinglet. It was cold but it was a beautiful morning. How can I regret watching the sun rise on an early spring day?

I wasn’t the only one out there. Often at that hour I see no one else. OK really I almost never see anyone. And I say almost because I saw a bunch of people today. A car passed, a dog walker, a runner, a biker. I got one of each. That meant no chance of seeing ducks on the river. They are skittish. I walk as stealthily as I can as I approach the river, but if someone else has just passed, forget it. No ducks for me. I did see a wood duck pass over at one point, so at least there was that.

Every day now new birds are coming back north. I saw my first kingfisher of the season this afternoon. I also saw a flock of bohemian waxwings in Burlington this afternoon–they will soon make their own journey north, leaving these southern climes behind. I will try to get out there as often as I can these next couple of months. I would hate to miss something passing through.

Woodcocks are calling in the early evening. The sun goes down and wood peepers start wood peeping. Daffodils are starting to pop up. The buds on the trees are budding out. Sugaring season is winding up. Soon it will be green–too green to see through the woods. That makes the birding harder but it sure looks fine. I’ll get out of bed for that too.

A Little Birding on the Gulf Coast

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Ruddy Turnstones flying as the sun rises

I just got back from Florida. I went with my family on a trip to visit my spouse’s grandfather and to get some warmth during these cold Vermont days. We stayed on Sanibel Island, which is home to the J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. The island is a spectacular place to be, in part because of the refuge, and it is a spectacular place to go birding. We were planning to return to Vermont in Tuesday, but because of the blizzard of 2015, our flight was canceled and we got an extra two days there. That made things quite a hassle for my job, but plenty enjoyable over those two days.

We visited the same place a year ago and I saw 62 different species of birds. I was hoping to see that many this year. I missed some from last year but got a few new ones and saw 72 this year. I went out every morning and snuck in some extra birding on the beach and elsewhere. I didn’t see a Wood Stork (can’t believe I missed that one) or a Yellow Throated Warbler I was hoping to see (I saw a few last year) but had some great sightings nonetheless.

Highlights included three lifers for me: Prairie Warbler, Snowy Plover and Common Gallinule. The Prairie Warbler was flitting about in a tree with a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher and a couple of Cardinals. The Snowy Plover I got to see with my wife on the beach. It is always good to see a lifer with someone you love. The Gallinule I saw tucked into some shrubs at water’s edge on the Bailey Tract of the refuge. All were memorable.

I missed seeing a White Crowned Pigeon, an uncommon bird that was hanging around the refuge. It turns out that Lillian and Don Stokes, writers of bird guides and part-time Florida residents, were at the refuge the same day as me and saw that threatened species. It would have been great to see that bird, or to meet them, but timing was not in my favor that day. Below are some other great sightings I managed to photograph.

Willets were plentiful--I saw hundreds of them

Willets were plentiful–I saw hundreds of them

White Pelicans at the refuge

White Pelicans at the refuge, along with Willets, Dunlin and Laughing Gull

American Coot at the Bailey Tract--check out those white honkers

American Coot at the Bailey Tract–check out those white honkers

Black Skimmer landed on the beach one morning; I saw over a hundred that day

Black Skimmer landed on the beach one morning; I saw over a hundred that day (Ring-Billed Gull, Ruddy Turnstone and Sanderlings are hanging out with it)

Snowy Plover

Snowy Plover

A trip highlight: Eastern Screech-Owl in plan sight. My family all got to see it as well.

A trip highlight: Eastern Screech-Owl in plan sight. My family all got to see it as well.

 

New Year Birding Goal

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Last year I had a goal to see 175 birds in my home county. My goal for 2013 was to see 150 and I got up to 174. The 175 goal was simply to surpass that 174. By December 31 I had encountered 194. At one point in October I thought I might be able to get to 200, a lofty goal for one county in Vermont. I had seen three new birds for the year in one day and thought I only needed to find a few more to reach the 200 mark. In the last two months of the year, however, I found only one new one–a snowy owl by Lake Champlain, just inside the county line. Still, 194 ain’t bad.

I could have simply increased my goal to 200 for the county. That would, perhaps, seem logical. I wanted, however, to try something new, something broader. Staying in the county is fairly easy, as I live year and it means I do not travel far. But I will travel a few times in any case. In 2014 I encountered 177 different birds. I traveled to Florida and to California, plus looked on the Connecticut and Maine coasts. I was happy with that. I have no California trip planned but I do have a trip to Wyoming planned. Wyoming does not have quite the diversity that California offers but will offer some great birding I am sure.

My birding goal for 2015 is simply to find 250 birds, anywhere. I know this is less than 2014 but I will not be in California. I saw 88 species there. Half of those I saw nowhere else. It can be tempting to just up the ante and go for more, but attempting to find 250 unique bird species is a reasonable goal for me. If I could take all the time I wanted and travel all over I could try to find twice that number but that is not in the cards, not this year.

Noah Strycker is one man trying to find as many birds as he can in one year by traveling all over the world. He is now in Antarctica, where he started two days ago. There are about 10,000 bird species in the world and he is hoping to see half that many. That is a lofty goal. You can check out his progress on his blog, Birding Without Borders, on the Audubon website. If you want to follow my progress you will have to check back here. It won’t be nearly as exciting, but I hope to get a few interesting species and maybe some photos. So far I am at 28 species for the year, including the Snow Goose that eluded me all last year. Not a bad way to start a new year, goal or no.

Cold Day to Look for Birds

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December is well under way, which means I only have a few days left to see how many birds I can find in my home county. Last year my count was 174 so I wanted to best that this year. I reached that goal months ago but kept going. I figured 200 was just a little too far out of reach but as I inched closer I thought it just might be possible. Yesterday I was at 193. Today I got up to 194.

I had heard that snowy owls had been seen on the lake and I wanted to try to see one myself. I have tried to find them, but I have struck out. I headed to Sand Bar State Park early this morning even though it was cold–18 degrees–and it was windy. With ice on the lake, and the wind blowing in right off the water, it was bitterly cold. I started off well by seeing a Rough Legged Hawk. They are not common but head south to our area in the winter. I got a really close look at it so felt the morning was a win already. I also saw ten Northern Pintails, beautiful ducks with a brown face and white neck. Again, I got close enough to see them well, and ten is a lot to see at once. So I was happy enough.

As I was watching the ducks (and there were many other ducks there as well) I missed a Snowy Owl glide in and land on a log nearby. I looked up and couldn’t believe it had landed right there. I watched it through binoculars and through my spotting scope and then figured I might as well try to get closer. I walked toward it and it did not fly away. I got close enough to get the above shot.

I watched it for a while. I had seen one last winter but this was a much better sighting. The sun had come up by then and was low in the sky, so when it peeked out from the clouds, the owl was bathed in golden light. But mostly it was cloudy, and did I mention the wind? I had on lots of warm duds, including snow pants and a down jacket, but the wind managed to creep in. My hands, especially, got cold. I kept warming them and they kept getting cold. Apparently t is time to break out the thicker gloves.

The owl, and the Pintails, were still there when I walked away; I was too cold to observe any longer. I warmed up in the car and headed to the corner store for a cup of hot coffee for the ride home. The owl was still on that log, a white ghost in my rear view mirror as I drove off. All those people driving by on Route 2 couldn’t see it, but there was an unusual and beautiful creature right there if they slowed down and looked. It is easy to miss things of beauty as we race along. It was seriously cold this morning, but I am glad I slowed down to look. Six more species by the end of December? I’ve got a bit more slowing down to do in these next weeks to reach that goal.