A Slow Burn
As I close out this year's birding adventures, I look back at some of the birds that made me smile. It was about quality studies of birds that I hadn't had great looks at OR they had been too far to see with any detail. In other words, BETTER VIEWS DESIRED. I made some headway in the lifer categories, but it was definitely a slow burn. This year, I did my studies in south Florida, Oregon, Washington and western Mexico. While I'm not quite finished with my work for the year, here are some of the highlights on some very special birds.
Brown-headed Nuthatches
It was in the Everglades where my friend Homer and I went to search for the beautiful Brown-headed Nuthatches. In Arizona, we have the other 3 nuthatches....White and Red-breasted and Pygmy Nuthatch. However, the Brown-headed Nuthatch is only found in the southeastern part of the United States. Another species, closely related to the Brown-headed Nuthatch, the Bahama Nuthatch, is most likely extinct. Thankfully, our Brown-headed Nuthatches in the US are listed as Least Concern.
Wood Stork
These next 2 birds, the Wood Stork and Limpkin, were BVDs(Better Views Desired). In the past, I've always seen Wood Storks from a distance. The same with the Limpkin. This year I resolved that problem by getting right up and personal with these birds at the wetlands north of Miami. Limpkins(below) seem to be moving north and are entering many states for that first time record. Known as the Limpkin invasion, birders in states like Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan were itching to have their state tick and this year, they got just that! Still waiting here in Arizona but it will happen:) Both birds are listed as least concern but it wasn't always that way! Wood Storks are making a slight comeback after being on the endangered list in the US. Today, with proper conservation, this species seems to be doing better.
Limpkin
Again, while the Dusky Grouse was not a lifer, it, along with the Sooty Grouse, required more observation. I wanted to hear their booms and see their territorial display for females. Khanh and I took a rainy trek up to the hillside to view displaying Dusky Grouse. I had my hot coffee and he had his dirty mocha. (The "dirt" is ground coffee beans in an ice cream frappe). The "booms" of the Dusky Grouse are soft but sounded quite loud as the male got a little aggressive with me:) That's exactly how I wanted to celebrate this beautiful bird. Grouse are absolute favorites.
Dusky Grouse
Sometimes the landscape is more fun than anything else. I love the views and countryside of the Great Gray Owls. Finding the owl is like the cherry on top of a sundae, but finding the bird in its gorgeous habitat is magic. In fact, I love that entire area along the Canadian border because there are so many beautiful birds and critters that share that space.
Great Gray Owl
This led me to my grouse-for-the-year Sharp-tailed Grouse observation. This was a lifer and the main purpose of the trip. We hiked 2 miles up these gorgeous grassy knolls to see them. Grouse have funny calls during their territorial dances. This is yet another grouse that did not disappoint.
From high on a grassy knoll to the wonders of the Pacific Ocean, I drove to Cannon Beach through the emerald coastal mountainous rain forests of Oregon. There I spied the Tufted Puffins flying on and off of Haystack Rock in April. I find myself drawn to certain habitats. One of my favorite drives is from Portland to Cannon Beach. I drove Robert's oldsmobile with my coffee, listening to Oregon public radio. It was a moment of perfection. And then standing on the windy beach watching puffins and murres zip around me made ponder what it would be like to live around this beautiful coastal community.
Tufted Puffin
The coastal mountainous rain forests led us to search for the beautiful Sooty Grouse. There we studied their loud booms high up in the pine forests. I wish Khanh lived near me (or actually I lived near him). We have so much fun playing detective in these scenic crazy places for incredible birds. The birds are so different from my Arizona ones. And they are a bit more challenging. The "booms" from this split of the Blue Grouse complex is loud and can be felt through your body from high up in the trees.
Sooty Grouse
Eventually, I had to return back home. There I find myself often in the grasslands of southeastern Arizona. I love the grasslands. A newly recognized species, the Chihuahuan Meadowlark, has been a favorite of mine for years. Anytime I see one, I try to get a pic. In fact, my photo is featured in the autumn issue of Cornell's Living Bird Magazine. While I love finding new birds, I don't like rushing the experience. It's like a fine wine. I will spend hours with a species just to connect with it.
Chihuahuan Meadowlark
Then Mexico came. It was time to really really study Blue Mockingbirds. I watched as a pair of Blue Mockingbirds fed their baby. I gently settled into a position where they let me witness them up close. There was a clump of bamboo and their nest was inside of it. The parents would fly in and out always working in tandem. While one parent was out, the other was by the nest feeding the babies. A Cooper's Hawk flew by us and both parents went deep into the bamboo. After the threat of the bird went away, they were back doing their routine. It was great listening to their various calls. And that blue........
Blue Mockingbird
I had this next bird fly by me for so many years, but I never really got my eyes on the hummingbird until this summer. The Cinnamon Hummingbird was the most common hummer along the coast of western Mexico. I watched them zip around "THEIR" areas and protect their spot from other hummers. After this summer, I could finally claim to "know" this bird.
Cinnamon Hummingbird
During my years on pelagics, I've seen all kinds of nesting. This year I went to an island off of the western Mexican coast to study nesting Bridled Terns, Magnificent Frigatebirds and Blue-footed Boobies. Ocean birds are a favorite but I will admit that I have much more to learn about them.
I've never quite seen Elegant Trogons as a common bird like I did in Puerto Vallarta this summer. Normally in Arizona, one needs to be patient and in the right canyon with water. In Puerto Vallarta, very little effort was needed to observe this bird out in the open.
female Elegant Trogon collecting food for her babies
It can be overwhelming at times to push myself into new areas and figuring the overall cost per new bird or the cost for better desired views. I have found that it's easy to add on hundreds of new birds to the list, but it's meaningless for me if I can't really study the birds longer. On several occasions, I remember adding new bird after new bird to my list but if you asked me today what their name was, I might hesitate (because I don't remember). It feels rather empty just ticking off birds for the sake of ticking. So when I go over my life list, I try to make notes to those new areas and try to observe that species of bird again and just study.
Sinaloa Crow
Next year looks to be an exciting year with plans falling into place. This year I started off a bit clueless and with some health issues. I've sort of figured it out and realized that I had been stressed out by certain things. There was a lot going on behind the scenes. I'm still working on house projects but we are in a better place now.
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl
The detailed work with birds can be overwhelming. What do you focus on? One of the things that drives me crazy is wasting perfectly good vacation time when I could be out in the field studying new birds. Or studying birds better.
Black-throated Magpie-Jay
There are times in Arizona when a special bird will come to visit, like the Berylline Hummingbird below. If I'm in the mood, I'll go and study the bird up close and personal. I will admit to you all that I've gotten rather bored with Arizona birding. I'm not sure if older birders have felt the same way, but it's my honest feeling. Don't get me wrong. I love the birds but I enjoy them from my feeders at home now. Instead of chasing the same rare birds, I am saving my money for that African or island trip. The greater and larger adventures have begun now. This year you've seen more treks into Mexico. You'll see more next year in Mexico, South America and beyond. There will be another grouse "hunt". And there will be a trek back to Western Africa.
On every trek, I'll nail about 80 percent of the birds with a great pic. But there are always those, "Damn! That bird slipped away too quickly!" or...."Why does it always have to be overcast for this beautiful species of bird to be seen?!" Years can pass before a birder can get those up close and personal pics of secretive birds. I think though that those birds come with time and patience. This year I was finally ready to witness the magic that was the Northern Waterthrush. The secret to a great picture of this bird is to go alone and quietly watch it forage in that stale pool water. It always seems to like to hide behind branches around still pools of water.
The world now has a total of 10,906 bird species. I expect that number to grow with the advancement of technologies in the science community with genetic studies. Some have suggested that we may have as many as 20,000 bird species on this planet when all is said and done. Some sadly have already gone extinct. Others are heading to extinction. I could feel that heavy weight watching the Thick-billed Parrots fly over our heads. I could feel it on Maui with the honeycreepers. And no matter what I say or do, it's going to happen because the majority of humans won't get it until it's too late. For birders, it's a race against time.
a juvenile male White-eared Hummingbird
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