by The Birdfreak Team on March 18, 2010
The ice is thawing on the Findlay Reservoir (and many other places). A March 16th excursion was the first time we saw open water here. Bring on the waterfowl!
Six swans were out in the middle, hanging with about a hundred gulls and a Canada Goose or two. Tundra or Trumpeter, we may never know. The gulls are persumed to be either Ring-billed or Herring for the most part. They were all out just far enough where we couldn’t ID them without a spotting scope, which we do not have.
In other unidentifiable news, a group of thirty or so scaups were fun to watch. These were close enough to identify, though I am not a hundred percent sure. I don’t go by size usually since it can be deceptive, unless more than one species is around for comparison, but I think since they had more of a purple iredesance on their head, that could make them Lesser Scaups.
The coolest sighting was the view of a thousand spiders. On the medium-sized rocks around the reservoir these dark rather large spiders were sunning. Dakota theorizes they are some type of wolf spider, we really need to bring our guide books along. In winter, I tend to get rather lax on the gear preparation side. We were also camera-less…not good birder behavior!
March 6, 2010 – Still Frozen
It will be intersting to see what the next few weeks bring in.
Good birding!
by The Birdfreak Team on March 16, 2010
Last year around this time, Stacia spotted a Snowy Owl relaxing in one of the fields at her farm. She was super excited, even though this was prior to her meeting her Birdfreak. (Of course, who wouldn’t be excited about a SNOWY OWL?!)
Recently, Stacia asked “Where’s my Snowy Owl?”, hoping he or she would return so we could see it together. Here’s my thoughts on why this owl hasn’t returned this year.
Last winter (2008-2009) there was a fairly big movement of “winter finches” – Pine Siskins, Common & Hoary Redpolls, and White-winged & Red Crossbills. There were lots of Northern Shrike sightings as well as a Spotted Towhee (rare for our area).
What about Snowy Owls?
This picture was taken two winters ago.
Snowy Owl sightings were fairly regular. At one point in February of last year there were at least FOUR Snowies in LaSalle and DeKalb (Stacia’s) counties.
This year there have been hardly any Snowy Owl sightings in northern Illinois. Also lacking from the bird sightings: all the above listed birds (at least for the most part and in our core counties of coverage: Winnebago, DeKalb, Boone, Ogle).
This pattern seems to fit. The weather and food supply must have been adequate enough to keep the “winter” birds further north (which is a good thing for them). So it really isn’t too surprising that Stacia’s Snowy Owl didn’t return.
Snowy Owl mount at Severson Dells
Learn more about Snowy Owls from Cornell’s All About Birds.
by The Birdfreak Team on March 15, 2010
A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Jamaica
by Ann Haynes-Sutton, Audrey Downer, and Robert Sutton with is an updated version of the 1990 edition, Birds of Jamaica – A Photographic Guide.
This updated and comprehensive guide to Jamaican birds covers more than 300 species of birds including 25 endemic to Jamaica. There are some 650 photographs by Yves-Jacques Rey-Millet.
Jamaica boasts a wide variety of habitats for a relatively small country (a bit smaller than Connecticut). These diverse habitat types are discussed thoroughly in the introduction along with topics such as migration and conservation.
Sixteen (16) birding hotspots are also covered briefly to aid birders in mapping out good locations to find endemic and “target” birds.
The guide uses all color photographs with two or more shots for many species. The species accounts include detailed information on habitat and behavior (a must for finding and identifying birds) as well as text on voice, range, and status in Jamaica. Multi-colored range maps are also included.
Another cool feature to this guide is that the local bird name is included when it varies from the common name.
A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Jamaica is a beautiful guide and a must for any birder wanting to visit this Caribbean island. And who wouldn’t want to see the “Old Woman Bird”, the endemic Jamaican Lizard Cuckoo?
Want to go birding in Jamaica? You can win 4 nights stay for two at the Hotel Mocking Bird Hill, situated on 6.5 acres of prime birding. Included in this prize is also 1 full day of birding. Full details and to enter before March 29th, 2010.
Disclosure: we were given a copy of this wonderful book by the publisher to review. However, we were not persuaded to say or do anything other than give an honest review, which we have.
by The Birdfreak Team on March 14, 2010
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by The Birdfreak Team on March 11, 2010
National Geographic Bird Coloration
by Geoffrey E. Hill is the birder’s companion to the much more technical two-volume set: Bird Coloration. Birders benefit greatly from understanding the how and why a bird is colored but this information can be daunting to learn. It is our ongoing quest to attain as much knowledge about birds as possible and National Geographic Bird Coloration is a perfect resource for doing just that.
Bird Coloration would make an excellent text book but doesn’t read like one. Definitions of key terms are called out on page for quick reference, the photographs and drawings are matched beautifully to the text, and the information is geared towards birders. Numerous large information blocks called “Birder’s Note” are sprinkled throughout to assist birders of any skill level.
An example “Birder’s Note”
Hiding in the Open Sky: Countershading can make high-soaring hawk and other birds surprisingly hard to see under some light conditions. Patient birders who regularly scan the open sky with their binoculars are rewarded with soaring birds that would otherwise be missed.
The main topics covered in fourteen chapters include:
- Patterns of Variation
- The Visual World of Birds
- Measuring Color
- Pigmentary Coloration
- Structural Coloration
- The Genetics of Coloration
- Environmental Influences
- Warming Up & Wearing Down
- Revealing or Concealing
- Statements of Identity
- Choosing Mates
- Color & Confrontation
- Signaling Strategy
- The Evolution of Color
Each of these chapters can stand alone providing a wonderful reference book to answer specific questions. Discover how some birds are colored in camouflage while others are so bold and obvious. Find out why bluebirds are blue, how color is described and the differences between human and bird vision, among many other fascinating topics.
There is still a great deal of discovery yet to be made when it comes to birds and color, but Bird Coloration provides a great resource for one of the most important topics regarding ornithology and bird identification.
National Geographic Bird Coloration
National Geographic Books
March 16, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4262-0571-2
Disclosure: we were given a copy of this wonderful book by the publisher to review. However, we were not persuaded to say or do anything other than give an honest review, which we have.
by The Birdfreak Team on March 10, 2010
As any birder can attest to, birding can be done nearly anywhere at any time. This past Friday I was visiting the Todd Library at Waubonsee Community College where Stacia works. The weather was finally starting to feel like Spring, so after visiting some co-workers we walked around the nature-friendly campus.
We had just gotten done talking about how the Sandhill Cranes had seemed to have disappeared (from previous years, not just seasonally) when not 100 feet from the library building we spotted one! I hadn’t thought to bring my camera so the best I could muster is one with the iPhone.
You can barely make him out in the middle there.
This beautiful bird began calling and then took flight. As we walked around the campus, dodging Canada Geese poo, we heard two or more other cranes calling. A pair even flew gracefully by, sparking comments from other people walking by.
We also heard our first Red-winged Blackbird of the year, another sign that Spring is getting closer every day!
