Mike's Birding & Digiscoping Blog

Which is correct?

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Wed, 07 May 2008 20:47:00 +0000

Harris's Sparrow, Harris' Sparrow, or Harris Sparrow?

"We are as often injured as benefited by our systems, for, to speak the truth, no human system is a true one, and a name is at most a mere convenience and carries no information with it. As soon as I begin to be aware of the life of any creature, I at once forget its name. To know the names of creatures is only a convenience to us at first, but so soon as we have learned to distinguish them, the sooner we forget their names the better, so far as any true appreciation of them is concerned."

- Henry David Thoreau

Do you agree with Thoreau?

Scarlet Tanagers Return!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Tue, 06 May 2008 20:56:00 +0000

Ahhh! There's nothing quite like a Scarlet Tanager in the sunlight!

Location: Pheasant Branch
Observation date: 5/6/08
Notes: Stream Corridor
Number of species: 67

Wood Duck
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Turkey Vulture
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Chimney Swift
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Least Flycatcher
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Swainson's Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-winged Warbler
Golden-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Palm Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Scarlet Tanager
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch

Scarlet Tanager © 2008 Mike McDowell

Garlic Mustard

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Mon, 05 May 2008 17:16:00 +0000

Garlic Mustard

Every spring I observe birders with good intentions pull Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) at Pheasant Branch Conservancy, but then leave piles of the invasive plant along the trail. This is a particularly nasty and resilient plant and to say that garlic mustard is prolific along the corridor trail is an understatement. If you're going to pull the plants, please bag and remove them from the conservancy – do not simply leave them lying on the ground. Plants that are pulled and left behind may still set seed and by doing so you may be unwittingly contributing to the garlic mustard infestation along the stream corridor.

One of the many Garlic Mustard Gardens at Pheasant Branch

When it rains, running water may wash the pulled plants (or seeds) off the gravel trail back to the soil. Also, not everybody who walks the trail knows what these piles of plants are and may kick them off the trail. With hundreds of thousands (probably millions) of garlic mustard plants, pulling a few dozen of them isn't going to dent the problem. But those who are pulling the plants out by the hundreds should plan on bringing bags and carrying them out of the corridor.

These plants might wash into the stream next rainfall.

Link: Invasive Plants Association of Wisconsin

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

A few weekend Photos...

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Mon, 05 May 2008 10:30:00 +0000

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Palm Warbler

American Pipit

Wilson's Phalarope

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

No Border Wall

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Fri, 02 May 2008 21:21:00 +0000

As many other birder bloggers are doing, I'm posting about the completely asinine Texas Border Wall our federal government plans to install along the Rio Grande River. In the process, they're going to severely compromise and destroy sensitive habitat, and literally hand Sabal Palm Sanctuary over to Mexico. Many other natural areas and wildlife in the region will be adversely impacted and you can read about the whole awful mess at No Border Wall website and blog. It may be too late to do anything about it, but there is now an on-line petition you can sign to express disapproval of the planned destruction.

Link: Sign the Audubon Action Petition

Link: Sabal Palm Sanctuary

Link: No Texas Border Wall

May 1st Field Trip Results!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:08:00 +0000

Participants of this morning's Madison Audubon field trip at Pheasant Branch were thrilled to see a beautiful male Cerulean Warbler foraging low. We had 9 other warbler species this morning, including Blue-winged Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler (sang later), and both waterthrush species. Thanks to all who attended and helped make it a special day!

Here's a frame/screen capture last night's bird migration on NexRad:

Link: NexRad (radar) Ornithology Tutorial

Location: Pheasant Branch
Observation date: 5/1/08
Notes: Madison Audubon Field Trip
Number of species: 55

Wood Duck
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-winged Warbler
Golden-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Palm Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch

Cerulean Warbler © Robin Street-Morris

A Bridge Too High

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:51:00 +0000

The issue over the Buffalo Peace Bridge Expansion Project provides an excellent example of how science can be distorted by politicians to fit an agenda and sway public opinion. Apparently, no political party is immune from employing this sort of tactic.

After a thorough review by the Federal Highway Administration, it was determined that the planned height of a new two-tower cable stay bridge would have an unacceptable impact on migratory birds, including the locally threatened Common Tern. Other groups expressing concern over the design included NY Department of Environmental Conservation, US Fish & Wildlife Service, US Environmental Protection Agency, Environment Canada, New York Audubon and the Baird Foundation.

And who thinks they know better than all these smart people? Our elected public officials! Despite an April 23rd announcement by Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority to drop the 567 foot high two-tower cable stay design in favor of a lower profile bridge, politicians want to salvage the original signature design (above photograph). Appreciate the smoothness and simplicity in which bird impact concerns are summarily dismissed. Citing a 2002 scientific review indicating bird crashes into tall structures, including bridges, accounted for less than .02% of all bird deaths, Rep. Brian Higgens (D)-Buffalo concluded:

"This data calls into question the whole thesis that birds are crashing into any structures in any great numbers — birds apparently have the good sense to fly around obstructions, just as pedestrians tend not to walk into light poles on sidewalks."

How does the science weigh in? U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that bird collisions with tall, lighted communications towers, and their guy wires result in 4 to 10 million bird deaths a year. If you examine statistics and estimates on all of the ways birds are being killed via human causes, the number potentially crosses over a billion individuals annually. When expressed as a percentage, the number of deaths by collision structures may seem comparatively small, but this is a far cry from what Higgens suggests with his empty-headed rhetoric. Also note that collisions with windows (on structures) accounts for the highest cause of bird mortality apart from habitat loss and fragmentation - over 100 million birds annually. Higgens is wrong.

Next, behold the brilliant ornithological mind of Senator Charles Schumer:

"The common tern is not much different than a sea gull and it's hardly an endangered species."

The senator from New York entirely misses the point that the common tern, though locally threatened and declining, isn't the only migratory bird species adversely affected by the structure in its original planned form. I can only surmise that his ignorant attempt to lump the common tern with sea gulls [sic] is to have us associate large gull populations with mythical proportionate and sustainable common tern numbers, or perhaps that they won't even be missed if ultimately extirpated.

It's such an elegant bridge design, though. Who really cares about a few birds, anyway? A few birds here, a few birds there, pretty soon, everywhere, there will be fewer birds.

Link: Peace Bridge Expansion Project

Link: Fatal Light Awareness Program

Link: New York EC - Common Tern Status

Link: Higgins asks reconsideration of Bridge plan

Link: New Bridge Not Dead in Water?

Image courtesy of Buffalo and Fort Erie PBA.

Purple and Green, Black and White

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 16:35:00 +0000

Loath to surrender to the pestilent "man cold" foundering my motivation this weekend, the sunrise beckoned me. I could hear flight calls overhead as I filled our backyard feeders and imagined birds perched in the good light - I wouldn't be there to photograph them. The rising golden rays glimmered through the spruces and helped me summon the strength to go birding. I fired off a missive to Jesse and Dottie, letting them know I would be at Pheasant Branch by 7:30 a.m.

Along the trail, purple violets punctuated unconquerable garlic mustard – it is prolific and all past efforts to eradicate it seem futile. Though fairly quiet along the stream corridor, there were some conspicuous birds – notably several Black-and-white Warblers foraging on tree trunks and branches. The lighting was exceptionally good and all I needed was a little patience, carefully following one of the warblers for a few minutes...

Got it! Well worth the effort.

Location: Pheasant Branch
Observation date: 4/27/08
Number of species: 40

Wood Duck
Mallard
Cooper's Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Killdeer
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Palm Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

First Hummingbird

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 01:53:00 +0000

Being sick during spring bites big time – my entire weekend is shot. We did have a visitor at our nectar feeder late this evening – a first of spring Ruby-throated Hummingbird. I've also been enjoying a beautiful White-crowned Sparrow foraging around on the ground near our patio. Hopefully I'll be well enough to get back out in the field by Tuesday or Wednesday.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird © 2008 Mike McDowell

Nasty Weather

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 09:00:00 +0000

Turbulent weather moved across southern Wisconsin last evening, including a tornado near Portage. Nobody was injured, but a few houses were significantly damaged in the Wyocena area. I was on my way home after birding with Dottie when I captured the above shot looking southwest from near Waunakee. The wind was incredible and I was beginning to think I might observe a funnel cloud, but the more severe weather that produced the tornado was about 30 miles to the north. There's been significant rainfall in the past few days and the stream crossings at Pheasant Branch are flooded once again, rendering parts of the conservancy inaccessible. The flooding is so bad in the southeast part of the state that Saturday's Madison Audubon field trip to Wyalusing State Park was canceled. The lows will be in the 30's the next few days and I've come down with a spring cold. Perhaps I'll spend the weekend indoors and wait for more seasonable weather to return.

Storm image © 2008 Mike McDowell

More Warblers!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:06:00 +0000

Northern Waterthrush

Location: Pheasant Branch
Observation date: 4/25/08
Number of species: 42

Wood Duck
Mallard
Green Heron
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
American Robin
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Pine Warbler
Palm Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

Northern Waterthrush © 2008 Mike McDowell

Wood Ducks!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 19:26:00 +0000

Departure

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 03:00:00 +0000

It's interesting how a single night of suitable migration weather can so drastically change the birding for the next morning. Yellow-rumped Warblers were extremely numerous along the Pheasant Branch corridor over the weekend, but southerly winds Sunday night were more than they could resist – onward to the boreal forest! This morning the "butter-butts" were very scarce - our group found only around a half dozen. Along with the Myrtles, so too went the bulk of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. But, as one birder aptly remarked this morning, "It's still only April!." Indeed, there's a lot more migration to come.

Yellow-rumped Warbler © 2008 Mike McDowell

More Spring Arrivals

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 00:25:00 +0000

Pasque Flowers

Bloodroot

The passage of spring is an event taking days, weeks and even months. One by one, the harbingers please us with their awesome natural beauty; there is a unique feeling or reminiscence as we experience each type. Witnessing spring's winged and blossoming arrivals on a given day, we are inclined to mark nature's march toward summer one living organism at a time. We'll see an American Robin and proclaim spring has arrived, but we know it's merely a prelude to what lies ahead and it's going to get even better in the forthcoming days. Such progressions were captured in transit this weekend, in a few forms I include here.

Palm Warbler

Surrounded by dozens of Yellow-rumped Warblers, a lone Palm Warbler was a new arrival this morning at Pheasant Branch Conservancy. Around southern Wisconsin, birders are starting to report feathered gems like Wilson's Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Pine Warbler and Orange-crowned Warbler. It was a splendid weekend to enjoy the warmer weather with friends of all ages at a favorite natural area.

Bloodroot

First Short-eared Owl for PBC

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:17:00 +0000

On Monday after work, I stopped at the Pheasant Branch prairie and found a Short-eared Owl hunting over the fields - the first time I've ever observed this species at the conservancy. Because the bird was zooming and gliding non-stop, I realized the only chance to digiscope it would be via video capture:

Last evening I met up with Dottie, Sylvia, Lisa and Jesse to see if the owl might return, but no such luck for us. It was so windy; perhaps the owl waited until later to come out to hunt. While we waited, I snapped a few photographs of the scenery. On our way back to the parking lot, we heard the peenting calls of American Woodcock.

Levels of Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:18:00 +0000

American Robin

However common or rare, every bird represents an opportunity to hone your photographic skill. Because many first-time digiscopers struggle to obtain sharply focused images, my advice for them is to practice on birds more easily approached, like American Robins or other common birds. Even seasoned photographers will seize the occasion to work with unusual lighting angles - the ordinary can become more aesthetically pleasing in a new way. Every bird and lighting situation is unique and a successful exposure is earned experience, even if it takes you a couple of shots to get it to your liking. Over time, mastery over your gear and technique will translate to a higher frequency of "keepers" out in the field.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

Sunny Sunday

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 19:37:00 +0000

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Red-bellied Woodpecker

American Robin

American Robin

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Northern Cardinal

A chilly morning brought warblers and kinglets to the ground to forage, but at least the sun would soon start to warm things up. I was the only birder walking the stream corridor trails of Pheasant Branch Conservancy for the first hour - ah, very relaxing! For this interlude, it was me, the sound of my footsteps on the gravel path, the cool air, a calmer stream and many busy birds. Songs of hidden Winter Wrens kept me alert for opportunities during my stroll, but it was other birds, placed by chance, that appeared before my camera lens. I doubt I would be so lucky with a Ruby-crowned Kinglet on a warm day. The tiny insectivores were a bit sluggish and a Cooper's Hawk clearly held the advantage. Watching it hit the ground and take a kinglet was an alarming sight, but that's the red, tooth and claw of nature at work. Eventually, I was joined by several other birders and so it was time to put the camera away and get down to some serious birding.

Pheasant Branch (stream corridor) - 4/13/08:

Wood Duck
Mallard
Common Loon
Osprey
Cooper's Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

Pace

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:39:00 +0000

Since it doesn't look like we're going to see the sun again until Monday, I thought I'd post the last photograph I took when there was sunlight, even though it isn't of a bird. It rained all day today, but I still stopped by the Pheasant Branch stream corridor on my way home from work today - the crossings were completely flooded. Birding in the rain can be fun in May, but not when there's still ample chill to the air. These days I enjoy nature photography at a more relaxed pace. Still, when the weather is lousy for several days on end, I feel a slight sense of lost opportunity mixed with an impending time crunch. Most songbirds will be on territory by June, which presently leaves me with about a month and a half of digiscoping birds during migration. Whatever photographs I come away with will be proportional to the effort I give it. I know what that takes and thinking about it already makes me tired! Perhaps this helps explain why I haven't been doing as much digiscoping the past few years.

© 2008 Mike McDowell

Spring Birding Field Trips!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 18:24:00 +0000

It's spring field trip season! Here's my schedule for May. Exact times can be found by visiting the respective date links below. I see that the Madison Audubon May schedule hasn't been posted yet (you may want to check again late April), but I'm pretty certain the 1st and 13th are both morning field trips and the 29th is an evening one at the prairie on Pheasant Branch Road. It's typical for us to find between 15 and 20 different warbler species during the early May outings. All of my field trips are free and open to the public. Hope to see you there!

May 1st - Madison Audubon / Pheasant Branch Conservancy (map)

May 3rd - Holy Wisdom Monastery (map)

May 10th - Horicon Marsh Birding Festival (map)

May 11th - Horicon Marsh Birding Festival (map)

May 13th - Madison Audubon / Pheasant Branch Conservancy (map)

May 29th - Madison Audubon / Pheasant Branch Conservancy (map)

Chestnut-sided Warbler © 2008 Mike McDowell

Chippie in the Rain

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:05:00 +0000

I saw my first-of-spring Chipping Sparrow eating from a window feeder at Eagle Optics this afternoon. The above photograph was taken via holding my Nikon Coolpix 8400 up to the window. I replaced the original image to this post with one taken today (Wednesday) so you can see a chippie super close-up!

Image © 2008 Mike McDowell

Black-capped Chickadees

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 18:54:00 +0000

Last night's migration brought more Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Golden-crowned Kinglets and Yellow-rumped Warblers into the stream corridor of Pheasant Branch Conservancy. Tree buds are starting to become noticeable as spring continues to awaken in southern Wisconsin. Often times before meeting my birding friends, I'll wait near the trail entrance and watch the sunrise through the trees. As the darkness dwindles, the woods begin to come alive with the song of birds. Among the first I hear are cheerful "fee-bee" songs of Black-capped Chickadees.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I located a pair of chickadees diligently excavating a nesting cavity along the corridor trail. Nearly every time I walk by the spot with the sloped tree they've selected, one or both of them are engaged in the effort. Even so, it may not be the only cavity they're working on! Often times, one is busily excavating while the other seems less enthusiastic about the project, watching the hard work of its mate from a nearby branch.

I haven't observed them long enough to discern if the distribution of work has been equal. But I did notice that the chickadees would pause for a few seconds once they've released the bits of wood from their bills into the stream below – a perfect digiscoping opportunity! And that's what I did this morning.

I admire Black-capped Chickadees. From their endurance over the winter months to their energetic behavior - they really are magnificent and beautiful little songbirds. Also amazing are their extraordinary complex warning vocalizations:

"Researchers found that the chickadees responded differently to predators of different sizes. Small raptors such as pygmy owls, for example, elicited the most frenzied chickadee danger calls. The alarms were punctuated with several extra 'dees' at the end of the 'chick-a-dee' call."

Sure, the flashy migratory birds are awesome, but I’m compelled to pay tribute and give respect to the frisky little birds that stay with us all year as well!

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

Two Birds for Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 15:59:00 +0000

I birded the Pheasant Branch stream corridor with Dottie this morning for about an hour. We found more Yellow-rumped Warblers as well as the Louisiana Waterthrush. Other birds included Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Fox Sparrows, Wood Ducks and many of the other usual suspects. Dottie had to head to work around 8am, so I went to the prairie on the north side of the conservancy and digiscoped an Eastern Bluebird and Song Sparrow. These images were taken with a Swarovski AT80HD and Nikon Coolpix 8400.

Early Bird for the Early Birder!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 15:32:00 +0000

NexRad frame from 04/03/2008

I can't recall ever having anything other than a Yellow-rumped Warbler as my first warbler of spring migration, but today proved the exception. I checked a few weather maps before going to bed last night. I noticed that wind changed to a southerly direction, and NexRad indicated detectable levels of bird migration coming out of Illinois. When I woke up this morning, I rushed to the computer and animated several hours of NexRad, indicating steady migration throughout the night. From this data, I predicted there would be many new arrivals at Pheasant Branch Conservancy.

Arriving at 7:00 a.m., my first new arrival was a Hermit Thrush foraging right along the trail, and then a Winter Wren's voice grabbed my attention. A little further down the trail I came upon a group of Wood Ducks perched high up in the trees. Fox Sparrows were present in good numbers, foraging on the ground alongside of Song Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos. A few Eastern Phoebes were singing, too.

As I stood along the stream, I prepared to digiscope a Black-capped Chickadee that was busy working on clearing out a cavity in the side of a decaying tree. All of a sudden I was alerted to a loud chip-note. As the bird responsible for the call flew past me, I instantly knew it was one of two species. I was all set with my digiscoping gear and snapped away once the bird finally came to rest on a partially submerged log near the stream bank. After I getting a few ID-worthy shots, I studied the bird through my spotting scope: very pink legs, clear white throat and a bold supercillium. Then it sang and ended the ID challenge.

Louisiana Waterthrush!

Louisiana Waterthrush - Pheasant Branch: 4/03/2008

Fast-forward to work: I checked the record early arrivals for this species on WSO's website. There are three records before April 7th:

1. March 30, 1988 – Manitowoc, Charles R. Sontag
2. April 3, 1998 – Waushara, Mark S. Peterson
3. April 4, 1948 – Milwaukee, Gordon H. Orians

Rewind back to Pheasant Branch: Just moments after successfully digiscoping the waterthrush, I heard a Yellow-rumped Warbler and then watched it fly across the corridor trail and perch in willow tree. Warblers! The excitement has begun, but was over for me. I checked my watch and had to get to work. Time flies when you're seeing great birds!

Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Cooper's Hawk
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch

Louisiana Waterthrush © 2008 Mike McDowell

Hello April!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:44:00 +0000

I haven't birded since Saturday and have no updates, news or photographs to share for this first day of April. Plus, it's been overcast and rainy – very unsatisfactory for my type of photography. Still, because this has been such a hard winter, I wanted to post something to celebrate the passing of March. In that spirit, here's a series re-posted from my digiscoping gallery of a Yellow-rumped Warbler bathing in the stream at Pheasant Branch Conservancy / April 2004. These spritely birds will soon return to the stream corridor – by the hundreds and thousands – and that's something worthy of celebration.

There are multiple reasons I photograph birds, and near the top is a notion of reliving certain experiences and memories. That's so obvious, though, and no doubt why photography of any kind is such a popular pastime. This Yellow-rumped Warlber series is one such memory I recall with great fondness and awe. Surrounded by warblers, their cheery songs emanated from the treetops and the understory. Then, as if on que, bunches of warblers descended onto the stream to bathe. I sat there on the edge of the bank, as warbler after warbler perched on branches directly in front of me before heading down to the water.

All images © 2008 Mike McDowell

Late March Birding

noreply@blogger.com (Mike McDowell) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 02:05:00 +0000

Dottie and I birded the entire length of the Pheasant Branch stream corridor this morning. New spring arrivals included Eastern Phoebe, Golden-crowned Kinglet and a northbound flock of Double-crested Cormorants flying high overhead. I might have missed them if Dottie hadn't pointed them out. We were hoping for Fox Sparrows and Winter Wrens, but found none. After Dottie departed, I found an Eastern Meadowlark and Eastern Bluebirds on the prairie parcel of the conservancy. The cheerful songs of Song Sparrows filled the air.

Canada Goose
Mallard
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
European Starling
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

Eastern Phoebe Digital Sketch © Mike McDowell