Bird Diva » Out and About

eBird Report – Stephen Young Marsh

BirdDiva — Tue, 18 May 2010 02:41:04 +0000

Here’s the eBird report for this month’s monitoring walk at the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge:

We had 10 participants this morning on our monthly walk.

Location: MNWR – Stephen Young Marsh
Observation date: 5/15/10
Notes: MNWR monthly bird monitoring walk. Led by Bridget Butler and Ken Copenhaver.
Number of species: 41

Canada Goose 11 6 small goslings
Mallard 7
Blue-winged Teal 4 nest in grass with 9 eggs
Ruffed Grouse 1 heard only
Great Blue Heron 1 flyover
Turkey Vulture 1 flyover
Osprey 1 flyover
Black Tern 5 short visit to marsh, then left
Belted Kingfisher 2
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2
Least Flycatcher 2 heard only
Eastern Phoebe 1 heard only
Eastern Kingbird 5
Warbling Vireo 3
Blue Jay 1
American Crow 4
Tree Swallow 20
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Brown Creeper 3
House Wren 1
American Robin 1
European Starling 1
Yellow Warbler 15
Magnolia Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 1 heard only
Black-and-white Warbler 1
American Redstart 1
Ovenbird 2
Common Yellowthroat 6
Song Sparrow 4
White-throated Sparrow 3
White-crowned Sparrow 2
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1 heard only
Bobolink 3
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 8
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
Baltimore Oriole 2
American Goldfinch 2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/vt)

Not Bad for March in Vermont

BirdDiva — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 23:56:50 +0000

Here’s our eBird list from our first monthly bird monitoring walk at the Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge in Swanton. We had 15 people show up! I was thrilled, especially since March is pretty slow in Vermont when it comes to birding. But with songs of Red-winged Blackbirds in our ears and the consistent flyovers by geese, oh yeah, and the warm temperatures, I guess folks were really keen on getting outside.

Location: MNWR-Old Railroad Passage
Observation date: 3/20/10
Notes: First Friends of Missisquoi NWR monthly bird monitoring walk. Counted birds only on the east side of Tabor Road.
Number of species: 20

Snow Goose 8 flyover-1 flock
Canada Goose 105 flyover-4 flocks
Mallard 13
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Killdeer 1 heard only
Ring-billed Gull 3
Hairy Woodpecker 1 heard only
Pileated Woodpecker 1 heard only
Blue Jay 1
American Crow 8
Black-capped Chickadee 4
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
American Robin 2
European Starling 2
American Tree Sparrow 7 singing
Song Sparrow 4
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 13
Common Grackle 6
American Goldfinch 1

Our next walk is Saturday, April 17th on Maquam Creek Trail. Join me!

2009 Memories – Wordless Wednesday

BirdDiva — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 03:42:46 +0000

I’m not much of a photographer, especially birds. But I do enjoy my Olympus Stylus Tough camera. I’m on my second one as a result of a kayaking adventure to see Spiny Soft-shelled Turtles this year. Although the camera is waterproof to 33ft, it really doesn’t matter when you drop it in the lake. I dove three times for it but the soft mud on the shoreline swallowed it up. Tough #2 now has it’s own PFD when I’m on the water.

Anyways, here are just a few photos from my 2009 collection that remind me of all the wonderful adventures I had this year.

Main Image: March in Plainfield, VT

Northern Hawk Owl - January (taken by a friend)

Tree of Life - Patricia de Gogorza artist

Flowering Crabapple - Burlington, VT

Pickerel Weed - Mississquoi River VT

Snow Geese at Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area - Addison VT

The W!LD Center - Tupper Lake, NY

Kilkare State Park during CBC - St. Albans, VT

Happy New Year Everyone!

Ready, Set…Count!

BirdDiva — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 04:35:35 +0000

The 110th Christmas Bird Count starts tomorrow morning. Here’s where I was last year at dawn:

St. Albans Bay, Lake Champlain VT

Where are you birding for the Christmas Bird Count this year?

Click here for list of Vermont Christmas Bird Count circles.

Snow Geese in Flight

BirdDiva — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:32:27 +0000

Just under the wire for Wordless Wednesday…enjoy!

When Are They Gonna Get Here?

BirdDiva — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 16:15:18 +0000

Well, the “other” category has it. And to see the what the “other”s are you’ll have to take the poll! Which would help a great deal ‘cuz only thirteen people responded anyways…

Knowing when it’s spring…one of the most common questions this time of year, is when is x-species going to be back. I don’t know about where you live, but in Vermont, spring sometimes takes her time returning. Sometimes Old Man Winter and Spring have a bit of a smack-down again in April, so those of us who live in the northeast really start to ache for the birds to get back here and lighten everything up. One of my friends the other day posted on their status that he was anxiously awaiting the return of the Barn Swallow. Me, I know I’m on my way outta mud season when I hear “fee-bee? fee-beee”.

The cool thing is, thanks to citizen science & migratory bird data, we can actually predict when the birds will be back! Nice, huh? And I’ll tell you it’s pretty impressive when you say to friends that x-species will be back next week, like the Eastern Phoebe pictured above, and it shows up the next week in your friend’s yard. Man, I look like I’ve become some sort of savant bird whisperer or something. But really it’s science and you just need to know where to find it.

The Mad Birders’ website, for example has a tool for birders in Vermont. This group of bird geeks in the Mad River Valley took the state’s arrival/departure checklist and reworked it into a comprehensive spring arrival flyer. I luff this! Print it out, slap it up on the fridge, put it in your field guide, link to it on your Blackberry and you are ready to track who gets here when.

A great way to beat back winter and get on with spring is to celebrate each bird as it arrives! It was a little disheartening to tell my friend who digs Barn Swallows that he’ll have to wait another month. But I did tell him that he could get his s fix until then by groovin’ on the beautiful Tree Swallow which is predicted to arrive back this week in Vermont!

And you?

How do you track new arrivals?

Feel free to share your tools by leaving a comment here.

Birding in Vermont Is Back

BirdDiva — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 21:18:47 +0000

Just in time for spring, Bryan Pfeiffer is back on Vermont Public Television with the one-hour special Birding in Vermont. Chase those winter blues away on Tuesday, March 10th at 9 pm as Bryan takes you to some of the best birding spots in the state. I was invited to join Bryan at Herrick’s Cove, an incredible birding spot in southern Vermont along the Connecticut River. Bryan is co-author of Birdwatching in Vermont and leads birding tours across the country.

And speaking of spring, here’s a couple of other things to check out online to get jazzed for the birding frenzy that’s not to far away:

Audubon Vermont’s Birds of Lake Champlain with Conservation Biologist Mark LaBarr

Mission Migration Game

Learn Bird Songs! with Lang Elliott

The Owl That Got Away

BirdDiva — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 21:19:54 +0000

Big thanks to all the folks in St. Albans who came out for the Owl Prowl Saturday night. I guess I didn’t pay out enough in mice for the owls to actually show up and dazzle us. But, I hope you all had a great time and will go get your hoot-on somewhere in a wooded area near you this winter and try out your new owl whispering skills yourself. As promised, here are some links to more info on owls to help you out:

Voices of North American Owls Audio Guide is the CD set I used to play all kinds of crazy owl sounds on my iPod with a cheap set of portable speakers I got for twenty-bucks.

Birdwatching in Vermont by Ted Murin & Bryan Pfeiffer is a must have book if you’re gonna become a true beek and start cruising Vermont with your bins.

All About Birds where I like to cruise for cool facts on all the birds that cause my brain to twitch. Maps, audio, pictures & more! Type in any species of owl and you’ll be primed for your own owl prowl in no time.

Barred Owl photo courtesy of Pat Folsom, Waitsfield VT. Taken in her yard!

Life-Bird Boogie

BirdDiva — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:30:56 +0000

You asked for it…well, Kevin did…but you’re all gonna get it now. My adventure to the see the Northern Hawk Owl in Eden, VT today was quite successful. The owl is a lifer for me so of course it resulted in the Life Bird Boogie, now captured by my boyfriend on video for all to see. Laugh at it, copy it and break it out on your own birding adventures. Good camera work too…look close the owl is on the tallest conifer behind me over my shoulder to the left. Be prepared for subsequent video clips on this adventure…it was quite the trip.