Fourth Rock Cut Christmas Bird Count – Initial Report
January 2, 2012
Article in: Bird Conservation
For the fourth year now the Birdfreak Team has run the Rock Cut Christmas Bird Count. We started the count in 2008 and each year we have attempted to refine where we send counting parties.
Downy Woodpecker
The Birdfreak Team took a couple good-sized preserves and also checked Rock Cut State Park briefly (to assist a team there). Here are some of our findings. We will have a full report once all the data is collected from the other teams.
Northern Shrike
The weather was chilly but no precipitation and absolutely no snow cover (a first for the count). We hiked for several hours and drove only a short while (to the other locations).
Our team recorded 30 species and 469 individual birds. Diversity was definitely up but numbers down.
Cedar Waxwing
Our areas didn’t really have water like some other parts of the circle so waterfowl numbers (geese and ducks) should increase our species and total birds.
Red-bellied Woodpecker
The best bird for our group was one of the first ones we saw: a Northern Shrike!
Later in the day we were informed of a wonderful sighting of a Golden Eagle from a party not “officially” on the count but in our circle. This is a great find for this still young count.
Eddie and Stacia
A Coterie of Cedarbirds [Cedar Waxwings]
January 26, 2011
Article in: Birding
A recent trip to Rock Cut State Park yielded a nice collection of one of our favorite winter birds, the Cedar Waxwing. We found a large group seemingly oblivious to our presence as they destroyed berries.
Caught in the act of throwing back a berry
A nice view of the red “wax” of the Cedar Waxwing
Phriday Photo – Cedar Waxwings Are Everywhere!
September 11, 2009
Article in: Photography
Nearly every time we go birding these days, the most photogenic bird we find are Cedar Waxwings. They provide a lot of opportunity for digiscoping since they tend to be in groups and perch out in the open.
Digiscoping with a Digital SLR Camera
November 12, 2008
Article in: Photography
Digital SLR (single lens reflex) cameras have many advantages over traditional point-and-shoot digital cameras, many of which carry over into the realm of digiscoping. The biggest advantage is the SLR’s ability to shoot numerous shots in succession with nearly no lag time. Not only that, but you have virtually complete control over every aspect of the shot: manual focus, aperture, exposure, shutter speed, etc. Of course, learning the right settings takes time and we are at the early stages of this process.
Cedar Waxwing – digiscoped
Swarovski makes a wonderful digital camera adapter (DCA) for digiscoping. The adapter has two pieces: one attaches to the scope’s eye piece and the other threads to the digital SLR’s lens. We use the Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM lens with our current camera, the Canon EOS Rebel XTi.
The adapter fits snugly over the eyepiece, eliminating any vignetting and allowing for quick removal when done digiscoping. There is a tightening knob on the adapter so you can lock the camera in place while digiscoping. When not locked, you can still zoom in and out with the scope’s eyepiece.
It is important to leave the camera in manual focus at infinity and perform all the focusing with the spotting scope. Set your aperture down to as low as it goes and have at it.
Keep in mind that digiscoping isn’t easy but it is fun. Our setup weighs in at a bit over 11 pounds, which gets heavy when lugging it around for extended periods of time. But if you are into photographing birds, we would definitely recommend trying out digiscoping. And if you already own a great scope, you might as well give it a shot (pun intended).
Swamp Sparrow – digiscoped
We’ll have many more posts about digiscoping in the upcoming weeks and months. You can view many of our digiscoped shots at our brand new digiscoped lifelist page.
Phriday Photo – Cedar Waxwing
October 31, 2008
Article in: Photography
Cedar Waxwing – digiscoped with Swarovski 80 HD Spotting Scope
31 Cool Bird Facts #6 – Cedar Waxwing
October 6, 2008
Article in: Birding
Cedar Waxwings [Bombycilla cedrorum] are beautiful birds with a diet that includes a lot of fruit. They can survive on fruit alone for months at a time. If they are not careful of fermented fruit, they are susceptible to alcohol intoxication and could even die of alcohol poisoning.
Starting around the 1960s, some Cedar Waxwings were found with orange tips on their tails instead of the usual yellow. This is due to a red pigment found in an introduced honeysuckle species that will turn a growing tail feather orange.
Information from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Cedar Waxwing
