Tag Archives: birding

Sketching and Birding at Olana

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Today the
New York Plein Air Painters (NYPAP) had a paint out at Olana, the 19th century home, studio and designed
landscape of Hudson River School artist Frederic Edwin Church, in memory
of NYPAP founder, Ted Beardsley, so there were artists painting
everywhere on the grounds.  I saw several artists I already knew and met several more whose names were familiar to me, but whom I had never met, and then others who were entirely new to me. Such an enjoyable and inspiring day!
This was my first, but definitely not my last, visit to Olana. There are paintable vistas in every direction. I decided to do a series of sketches, rather than a finished painting, since it was all new to me and I wanted to experience a variety of vistas. There were interesting birds at each spot where I sketched, so I kept my binoculars on and my eyes open.
 Here is my day is pictures (click on images to see larger image and read what birds I saw at each location):

Periodical Cicada– the first I’ve seen this year; I know there will soon be many more
A big thank you to all those who organized this day’s paint out. It was a wonderful day!

Maine Colors– Scenery and Birds

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Today was one of those crystal clear days when I can’t get enough of the fresh air, the sunshine, and the scenery. From the moment I woke up and looked out the window of my bedroom (the window is right over the bed, so I can look out without even sitting up), I was entranced with the colors. At first the sky was just brightening up and there was a long line of orange over the hills opposite our cabin. Soon the sky was a soft pinkish, with violet clouds across the lake and dusky rose-colored clouds over the mountains at the north end of the lake. All day long the lighting and colors shifted. I did several sketches as I sat and pondered the thoughts and questions that came to mind throughout the day.

Yesterday when Sarah and I were walking in some nearby fields, we saw our first Bohemian Waxwings– a flock of about six were flitting from tree to tree! I have seen Cedar Waxwings many times, and when I saw these I thought at first that was what they were, but then I noticed the different color of the undertail coverts and the white on the wing edges. Their voice is also a bit different. While we were watching these pretty birds, a Bald Eagle soared far overhead and disappeared into the colors of the hills.

Outer Banks: June 2012

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Pink and orange streaks spread from the sky to color the glassy still open waters of the marsh that are broken only by a snake swimming, head held high, from one bank slowly across to the reeds on the other side. Five wild horses- one chestnut, two blacks, and two palominos- smooth flanks and flaxen manes glowing in the evening light, graze peacefully, heads deep in the reeds. A frog breaks the silence, and suddenly an exuberant chorus is filling the evening with the music of the marsh, accented by the nearby singing of a Common Yellowthroat from atop his wax myrtle tree. The Yellowthroat, and another across the open water, continue proclaiming their territories in song, but the frog chorus waxes and wanes repeatedly during the time we spend on the boardwalk.

Swimming snake

In the morning, a little ways inland from the marsh, I see the bright yellow-orange colors and domed shell of an Eastern box turtle in the muddy undergrowth- the second I’ve seen while here this week. A female, I think, since the eyes are brown, not red. I love these slow moving denizens of the land, so vulnerable to habitat destruction, cars, and collectors that is a somewhat rare treat to see them these days. 

Box Turtle in the sand near our house here
Such a pretty pattern!

Walking further, Stephen and I are surrounded by loblolly pines and widely spreading, shade-casting live oaks, replete with birds– Robins, Carolina Chickadees, a Red-eyed Vireo, numerous Pine Warblers singing their musical trill, and a red-bellied Woodpecker moving up a pine trunk. A young Boat-tailed Grackle in a treetop begs his parents for food and a Great Egret passes overhead, croaking deeply as he flies.

We step out of the woods to the marsh edge to see rusty red dragonflies zipping over the reeds, devouring mosquitoes. We love dragonflies! Looking across the sound, we see Monkey Island, an isolated island that hosts breeding Egrets and other birds– a rookery. 

All those white spots are Great Egrets- hundreds of them!
Osprey

Alaska– June 3

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Snowshoes would have been nice today. We hiked the Byron Glacier Trail today, which, according to our hike book, is a moderate hike with generally good conditions. Is four to five feet of snow on the trail “good conditions” in Alaska?

There were a two sections of the trail with no snow– sections about five yards long. The remainder of the trail was deep in snow, which thankfully was fairly firmly packed, so that we only sank in a few inches most of the time. I managed to stay more or less on the surface, but Steve sank through to his hip once. Despite the snow, however, it was a wonderful hike. The blue of the glacier was so BLUE (the photo doesn’t do it justice). The mountains on either side were stunning, and all the more so with a juvenile eagle soaring over them and finally landing somewhere on a mountainside.

Byron Glacier

I was fascinated by the creek flowing from the glacier, with its distinctly gray water. When I sat on a rock in the middle of a snowfield to paint, from time to time I heard a loud gurgling sound moving toward me. I think it was water working its way along deep under the snow, then rushing around the base of my rock.

Me painting Byron Glacier

After hiking to Byron Glacier and also stopping for a walk at the Moose Flats Day Use Area (where I identified my first Orange-crowned Warbler), we drove to Hope and hiked along the Gull Rock Trail in the lush green of ferns and trees for a while. There we saw our first Varied Thrushes– a male and female. What gorgeous birds! We kept hearing Varied Thrushes throughout that hike.

Stephen on the Gull Rock Trail

At one point in our drive south from Anchorage I saw a Loon and pulled off to look more closely. While there we also saw a pair of American Wigeons and then a beautiful pair of Barrow’s Goldeneyes– another first for me.

American Wigeon (male)
Barrow’s Goldeneye (male)

Now, after driving along a road sandwiched between the side of a mountain on one side and Resurrection Bay on the other we are settled for the night in a tiny cabin on Lowell’s Point, our heads filled with images of birds, mountains, and snow covered peaks.

New birds for my life list today: Barrow’s Goldeye, Mew Gull, Orange-crowned Warbler, Varied Thrush, Red-necked Grebe

Learning the Lingo

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I walked along the power lines, head craned skyward, trying to sort out at least one clear bird song from the music filling the air. It was impossible; all the songs of many species, and several members of many of those species, mingled and combined to form one continuous stream of notes and calls. And yet, my friend Barbara was naming birds right and left, and ahead, and overhead. How did she do it?

That was me a month ago, even though I had been listening to my bird song CD’s for weeks (and off and on for years). I loved the chorus of mingled song, but it was frustrating not to be able to identify the singers. But then one evening a couple of weeks ago when I was out walking with Stephen and Arielle, I began hearing individual birds… and sometimes even recognizing their songs! It was as though I had been immersed in an unknown language for long enough and finally the sounds were beginning to make sense and have meaning.

I heard a Black-throated Green warbler back in the tall Vermont spruces, then a Hermit Thrush in the shrubs on the other side of the road. I was unable to spot the Warbler because of the thick trees, but it was especially satisfying to enjoy his song, knowing who was singing. We did see the Hermit Thrush, peering at us through low branches and we saw many Red-winged Blackbirds. I heard then spotted a pair of Bluebirds flying overhead. In between happy family conversation, I found I was able to pick out many of the songs I was hearing.

I went to bed happily thinking of birds and awoke early realizing a Brown Thrasher was singing outside our window. It was so cool to wake up naming a bird that I was hearing in my sleep. I don’t hear or see Brown Thrashers around my house, so it was a treat to hear this one singing from the top of a nearby treeearly in the morning and for most of the day.

I still can’t hear or name the birds nearly as well as Barbara can, but I now know it is possible to learn this musical language. I will be listening to my Birding By Ear and More Birding By Ear CD’s eagerly, with more confidence now that I can assimilate these songs into my vocabulary.

Brown Thrasher opening the day with song

Trumpeter Swans

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I still smile every time I think of the Trumpeter Swans I saw in Ohio last month. They were an unexpected treat, since I had no idea there were Trumpeters anywhere in the East. When I first saw them, I thought they must be Tundra Swans, which look very similar, because my bird book (Peterson’s Field Guide to Birds East of the Rockies, fourth edition) doesn’t even include Trumpeter Swans.

As I wandered the boardwalks in the area, I wondered what the loud, honking noise was that I heard echoing frequently over the marshes– Trumpeter Swans! These birds float gracefully and serenely in the marshes, dipping their long necks under to eat plant material and staining their heads and necks red with the ferrous minerals in the sediment.

Trumpeter Swans used to be native to that area, but were extirpated by over-hunting and loss of habitat in the 1800’s. In 1996 they were reintroduced to Ohio and now there is a breeding population of these majestic birds.

Trumpeter Swans are the largest North American waterfowl (20-30 pounds) with a wingspan of 6-8 feet and they can fly between 40 and 80 miles per hour. They mate for life and usually live about 15-20 years in the wild. They mate for life and build large nests, up to 6 feet in diameter, in marshes, and tend to reuse the same nest year after year.

I don’t know if this is a Trumpeter Swan nest, but it was very large with large eggs, so I think it might be

Links for more info:
Trumpeter Swans in Ohio
The Trumpeter Swan

Ducks in Trees and Other Delights

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I slipped quietly onto the boardwalk after watching the sunrise over Lake Erie at Maumee Bay State Park. As they were the day before, the Red-wing Blackbirds were again the most numerous and clamorous of the birds, but suddenly I heard a louder rustling than one of them could have made. I looked up and saw…a pair of Wood Ducks perched in top of a tall tree! The photo on the left shows the tree, a ways away from me and quite tall, with the duck perched near the top. I knew Wood Ducks nested in holes in trees a fair distance from the ground, but I had never seen them perched so high. During this morning walk, I observed many of them flying to and from tree tops. 
Wood Duck perched in center tree
Zooming in on perching Wood Duck
Next I spotted a bright-eyed raccoon watching me through a screen of reeds…

You can’t see me…

A couple of Hermit Thrushes hopped and perched in the underbrush, bobbing their tails as they  watched me passing by.

Hermit Thrush

 After almost three hours rambling along the boardwalk, I headed back to the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge. When there, I found only five Trumpeter Swans where there had been thirty-four the evening before. Were they on their way farther north?

Several Blue-winged Teals were feeding– the first I’d seen in many years. The blue on their wings was beautiful when they flew.

Blue-winged Teal (male)

There were two families of Canada Geese on one pond; one pair both had bright white chin straps…

whereas the other pair both had chin straps that were more of a tan color. I am trying to determine if they are a different subspecies. Does anyone reading this know? I know there are seven subspecies of Canada Goose (and four of the related Cackling Goose), but I can’t find descriptions with photos.

Everywhere I went I heard the Red-winged Blackbirds proclaiming their ownership of reeds, trees, and shrubs. It was a privilege to visit this land that belongs to them and all these other denizens of the wild, and I look forward to visiting again someday. In the meantime, may they be fruitful and multiply and live in safety in their beautiful world.

Red-winged Blackbird

Birding in NW Ohio

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Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge

I
knew I’d be ready for some time alone after three days with 2,000
people at The Festival of Faith & Writing (more on that in a later
post), so I planned a meandering journey home with plenty of time for both
planned and spontaneous birding breaks. I spent this afternoon and this
evening along the coastal marsh areas in NW Ohio, stopping at nearly
every wildlife refuge and natural spot I came upon.

Maumee Bay State Park

The
soft pastels of the cattail marshes spread far and wide, dotted with
clumps of trees, alive with a plethora of Red-wing Blackbirds singing,
squawking, and flitting by. I’ve always liked the showy males with their
red and yellow epaulets, but I’m finding that now I especially love the
more muted, yet still striking, colors of the females. These blackbirds
filled the air with their song, perched on reed
and small trees throughout the marshes, watching me walk by on trail and boardwalk.              

Great
Blue Herons, gulls and terns of various sorts, Egrets, and Bald Eagles
fly over the marshes. At Magee Marsh this evening, there were about ten
Great Egrets feeding in the pond, standing still, bill poised over the
water, then suddenly striking. 

 

The ponds are filled with water birds,
and I saw my first American Widgeon, Greater Scaup, Northern Shoveler,
and Trumpeter Swan. Thirty-four Trumpeter Swans! They were dotted
throughout a waterway in the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, reaching
under to graze on water plants, then lifting their graceful heads to
look around. I didn’t want to leave, and kept stopping my car to watch
them.

Trumpeter Swan
Northern Shoveler

I
walked a mile or so back in the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge,
enjoying the sights and sounds, the wind blowing so hard I couldn’t hold
my binoculars steady. That wind meant few songbirds were active, but it
also meant that, when I was downwind of a muskrat, it had no idea I was
there and so it came fairly close, ripping grasses to carry away.
Eventually he had gathered enough, then he slid into the water and swam
off with a tremendous mouthful of grass.

A
refreshing day of solitude immersed in the beauty of creation. From the
excitement of “firsts” to the quiet wonder of watching a muskrat
gathering grass, my soul was nurtured and filled as I savored God’s good
handiwork.