Birding Adventures

Birding all weekend was a ton of fun! On Saturday we saw 28 different species at Bluebonnet Swamp and Sunday about the same at Greenwood Park. Both days I came home and took a nap. Early mornings are brutal; I dislike them to my core.

Our instructor uses a trick of playing a screech owl sound on her smart phone, putting the phone down on a low limb or on the forest edge, and then standing back to see who emerges. By playing the screech owl sound, for instance, it puts all the birds on high alert. There is definitely a lot of movement using raptor sounds. She encourages us to do this sparingly so as not to stress or agitate the birds too much. I saw my first hermit thrush using this method, and got photos of the eastern towhee and ruby-crowned kinglet with this same trick. I will be trying this occasionally on my own if I'm not seeing birds. There are apps with sound only, or spring for a full-fledged bird app like iBird, which is what I have.

I did not take my camera Saturday because 1) I go to Bluebonnet Swamp all the time; and 2) I wanted to learn and not be distracted with photography. Here is some of what I saw on Sunday.

Pied-billed grebe

Ruby-crowned kinglet

Eastern towhee.
Not the best image, but at least I have proof that I've seen him.

Japanese magnolia

Field of wildflowers

Another trick is to learn the call or song of each bird. Oftentimes our instructor heard the birds first, then knew they were nearby so she could look for them.

I hope this helps some beginning birders out there. I can't wait for our field trip next weekend.

Ruby and friends

Happy Wednesday, y'all! Before we begin I have a little update on the bird that I saw in the cemetery on my mother's birthday. (I almost typed birdday...obsessed much?) The bird I saw that day was the Ruby-crowned Kinglet. What's so amazing about this discovery is that my mother's favorite color was red―specifically ruby-red. That I saw this particular bird when I asked my mother for a sign brought me to tears when I finally made the connection (I first thought it was the Acadian Flycatcher, but a bird friend corrected me). Now I envision my mother up in heaven with rubies in her crown. :)

I tried so hard to get the perfect shot of this Ruby-crowned Kinglet, but these guys flit around faster than gnats.
My goal was to get the red crown on the head. This was the best I could do. Sigh.

Brown Thrasher

He was gorging greedily on suet.

I think this Rufous is giving me a little lip.

I rounded a corner and heard high pitched shrieking. I barely got this shot of the wood ducks
fleeing for their lives. Seriously, they made terrifying sounds as though in a horror film.

Another Eastern Phoebe

Red-tailed hawk (?)

Cedar Waxwing

Downy Woodpecker

Thanks to Stewart for hosting!

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Bird alert!

The sun came out on my mother's birthday after being absent for two weeks. What a glorious day it was! I first drove out to LSU Lakes and saw the usual pelicans, cormorants, warblers and ducks. Feeling a little disappointed I decided to go visit my mother's grave and wish her a happy birthday. As I stood over her grave I asked her for a sign to let me know she was there. I said, "I know it's your birthday and I can't give you anymore gifts, but it would be a wonderful gift to me if I had a new bird to photograph. Then I would know that you are here." After all, I had the 100-400mm lens that she bought for my 50th birthday, and I always think of her when I use it.

Something pulled me toward a grove of nearby trees and I just stood there meditating for quite some time, being very still, not really thinking about anything, but hoping I'd see something. And I did! I have a new bird that I can add to my bird list. Thanks, Mama!

Meet the Acadian Flycatcher Ruby-crowned Kinglet! (corrected 2/2/13) He appeared for maybe five seconds and I got two shots before he was gone, spooked by the camera clicks I'm sure. Since I am still shooting on manual I was happy that the exposure and shutter speed were correct. I was also pleased that even though they weren't the best poses, at least they were in focus.

UPDATE 2/2/13: On a bird expedition today with a group of birders, I learned that I may have misidentified this bird originally. Once I was able to check my bird book I realized this was not the Acadian Flycatcher but was indeed a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. This sighting is significant because my mother loved the color red, specifically ruby red. Although this bird does not have the red patch on its head, it's because this is likely a female. I sincerely believe my mother was trying to tell me she now has a ruby crown in heaven. I'm literally in tears as I type this because I had wondered since I saw this bird what the connection was to my mother. Now I know! Thank you, God!

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P.S. Sallie at A Full-time Life shared a live web cam for a pair of eagles and their recently hatched eaglets. Go have a look!