Sunday, January 30, 2011

Long eared Owl and some other Pelee area birds

My wife is too good to me to let me go out for these occasional mini-birding trips! I was lucky enough to make it out to Point Pelee and Hillman Marsh area today for a quick two hour nature walk.
 
I ran into a friend of a friend who happens to be a subject matter expert when it comes to owls at Point Pelee. He was driving by me and we spoke for a minute and he agreed to show me the location of this wonderful, mysterious bird. (lifer #225).

My main impression after seeing a long eared owl is... How beautiful.  Its smaller than I thought it would be. It was very skinny around the chest, I don't think the photo gives a good context of scale. Its like a rolled-up pennysaver newspaper. In my mind, I was thinking this would be a big as the great horned owl. It is so well camouflaged that even though it was 10-15ft away from me, I would completely lose the owl if I looked away even momentarily... very weird.

Just a quick mention of birding ethics with Owls... Never use flash on them*. Never try to attract birds with Ipods. This is unethical and not in the birds best interests. We also remained in our car and used it as a blind. This gave us limited angles with which to photograph. Use a strong telephoto lens and give the owl some room (I use a Sigma 500mm zoom lens and most of my photos are cropped which increases zoom even further).  Make an attempt to observe the bird without flushing it and then leave it be.


This Eastern Screech Owl has been featured before on my blog (deja vue?). I guess its always exciting to see an owl, even if its in its predictable and favorite tree hole. I walked Shuster Trail to east beach and then walked to the tip. Nothing overly exciting today other than the Long-eared Owl!

Some birds seen today include:

Horned Larks
Northern Flicker
Eastern Screech Owl
Long eared Owl (lifer #225)
Red Tailed Hawks (5 along highway 3 to Windsor)
Rough legged Hawks (2 dark morphs)
Sharp Shinned Hawk
Cardinals
Dark eyed Junco
Robins
Various gulls and duck along East Beach of PPNP.

Good birding,
Dwaynejava

*Instead of using flash, use other techniques such as increase ISO settings, increase aperture, lean on a steady object to reduce camera shake. 


Thursday, January 27, 2011

Black-legged Kittiwake ... The Detroit River has been good this week!


 I stopped by one of the Marinas in East Windsor today after work in hopes of seeing a recently reported Black-legged Kittiwake. I was only there for about 10 minutes when Karen from the Ojibway Park Nature Center joined me and we discussed the appearance of this elusive bird. We spotted it just seconds after we started discussing its appearance! Too funny. It was only about 30-40m from the docks that we were standing on. (Lifer #224)


One other interesting point is that on the e-bird observation graphs for Essex County, this bird is not even listed on it. Beyond that, I don't really know how common or uncommon this bird is.


This nice pair of Hooded Mergansers were not very shy and made for a nice photo. This duck species is so beautiful, and to get both in the same photo is a treat. This lets you compare the dimorphism of the species.


 Overall, its been a good week along the shore of the Detroit River for Winter birding! I'm repeating myself from my previous posting but White-winged Scoter and King Eider were seen last Saturday. Neither of those species were seen today. Black backed Gulls, Bald Eagles, GB Herons and 13 other species were seen. 

King Eider and White-winged Scoter were seen last Saturday but not today.

Three lifers in the dead of Winter? I'm luvin it!

Good birding!
Dwaynejava

Saturday, January 22, 2011

King Eider & Better looks at White-winged Scoter

Click image for larger view

I had some time to kill this morning so I headed out to East Windsor to see if I could re-find the White winged Scoter I saw yesterday. Its funny though, my main viewing area had been the park just east of lili-kazilies on Riverside Dr. I did not see much this morning from that park (with the exception of two soaring bald eagles over Peche Island), so I figured I would try the viewing from another marina I had never checked out.

Lucky for me, there was a friendly birder (Richard) there with a scope, and he pointed out not just the White winged Scoter but also a female King Eider! (Lifer! #223). I would not have noticed the King Eider without his keen eyes and his willingness to share his observations.

Richard and I discussed scopes. He gave great advice on not skimping when it comes to birding optics, but I told him... I have a wife, a new son and a mortgage. No $3000 scopes for me! I went ahead and purchased this scope which seems pretty good and costs about the same as an evening to a local restaurant. Now, I get the enjoyment of a scope while maintaining a healthy marriage!!!

This female King Eider does not look too much different than the female Canvasback to the right of her. Props to Richard for finding it. I guess I'm stating the obvious here but I wish a male King Eider was hanging around.

Hooded Mergansers seemed to much more abundant somehow this morning. A refreshing change from just seeing one in the far distance.

 There was a mature Bald Eagle flying with this juvy. They are basically easy to see if you scan along the trees on Peche Island.

Female Greater Scaup

Good birding!
Dwaynejava

PS: Thanks to Kelly for pointing out a typo I made on my last posting. I was calling the Scoter a Scooter!!!! Opps!!! I can laugh at such a silly mistake, but I must say, ... I have an excuse for that mistake! I was at Point Pelee in May this year, and someone came up to me and said: "There are some Surf-Scooters out off the west beach waters". I've been calling Scoters --> "Scooters" for the last 7 months! Thanks Kelly :-)

... don't even get me started on the spelling or pronounciation of Pileated Woodpeckers!

Friday, January 21, 2011

White winged Scoter and a few other goodies at Lake St Clair

Its been so gloomy out lately... Where is the sun? Well, it was sunny this afternoon so I figured I would get out there and enjoy some sun light & some good birds. What a great way to end off the work week!

Upon arriving at the Kayak Cove park I noticed a dark black scooter. I was quite sure it was a lifer, and upon referencing my trusty field guide... White Winged Scoter (lifer #222 )!  It was so cold out today... it was ridiculous. My goose bumps had goose bumps. I was probably only out there for 40 minutes.

My first attempt at age-based Gull Identification. Would this be 3rd, 2nd and 1st winter Herring Gulls (respectively)?

A Red Breasted Merganser. All three Mergansers were seen!

A Great Blue Heron flew slowly along the shore and then perched on a branch on Peche Island (top middle on the photo above). Only in the depths of January is this particularly interesting!
Greater Black Backed Gulls were around. I would love to get a very crisp, clear photo of  a Greater Black backed Gull.

This photo has several Bald Eagles just to the left of the middle of this photo. I think I'm counting about 6-8 'lumps'. Pretty cool! I  hope they stick around when I get my Kayak back in the water.

I still haven't yet seen a Long tailed duck. I think it might be my nemesis bird! This duck eludes me!

Overall, a pretty good post-work birding trip. I met up with a new blog reader (Kelly) who kindly brought her scope. I think I'm convinced that I'm going to buy one. I'm thinking about this one. Any thoughts on buying scopes? Are the specs on this one decent?

In Birding,
Dwaynejava

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Lake St Clair Winter Birding & Life list for 2010

After work Friday (and Thursday) I stopped by Lakeview Marina where Lake St Clair funnels into the Detroit River. Visiting this area has become a January tradition. This posting shows a few selected photos of various ducks and waterfowl.

Common Goldeneye is Common!

 The ducks (and swans, geese, mergansers) weren't as skittish as they normally were. I guess they are more confident when more are around.

 Redhead ducks (lifer #220), Canvasback & Greater Scaup are blog lifers.

 
Above, you can see  some Great Blue Herons in the distance (on the snow-bank to the left). I wish I had a scope, because there were huge rafts of ducks in the distance. I'm not really identifying gulls yet, but I did see a Black-backed in the photo below ... probably a Greater Black Backed Gull.
 
It would be awesome to have a scope and spend some time sifting through all these ducks. I would love to list out all the species but I feel the few I can identify just with my camera are probably a fraction of what is out there. Besides, along the Windsor shore, it seems there are different birds that further out, or along the shore of Peche Island.
 This is a highly cropped photo of the Peche island shore. Can you find a hooded merganser in this group?


Life List

Last January (Jan 2010), I compiled my life list which was at 81 birds! This was after about seven months of birding, and without binoculars and a field guide (I was only using allaboutbirds.org).  In 2010, I've seen 218 bird species! I don't want to list too much, so I will make this a January-only tradition.

This year, I am hoping to go to BC for the first time in my life, and plan to pick up a few western goodies. I will also try to make it out to Florida, possibly in March.
Black Skimmers in Florida... Florida, I miss you!


2010
1
Bittern, Least
2
Blackbird, Red-winged
3
Blackbird, Rusty
4
Blackbird, Yellow-headed (MI)
5
Bluebird, Eastern
6
Bobolink
7
Brown Pelican (FL)
8
Bufflehead
9
Bunting, Indigo
10
Bunting, Snow
11
Canvasback
12
Cardinal, Northern
13
Catbird, Gray
14
Chickadee, Black-capped
15
Coot, American
16
Cormorant, Double-crested
17
Cowbird, Brown-headed
18
Crane, Sandhill (FL, MI)
19
Creeper, Brown
20
Crow, American
21
Cuckoo, Black-billed
22
Cuckoo, Yellow-billed
23
Dove, Eurasian Collared (FL)
24
Dove, Mourning
25
Dowitcher, Short-billed
26
Duck, American Black
27
Duck, Ring-necked
28
Duck, Ruddy
29
Duck, Wood
30
Dunlin
31
Eagle, Bald
32
Eagle, Golden
33
Egret, Cattle (FL)
34
Egret, Great
35
Egret, Snowy (FL)
36
Falcon, Peregrine
37
Finch, House
38
Finch, Purple
39
Flicker, Northern
40
Flycatcher, Alder
41
Flycatcher, Great Crested
42
Flycatcher, Least
43
Gadwall
44
Gallinule, Purple (FL)
45
Gnatcatcher, Blue-grey
46
Godwit, Marbled (MI)
47
Goldeneye, Common
48
Goldfinch, American
49
Goose, Canada
50
Grebe, Pied-billed
51
Grosbeak, Rose-breasted
52
Gull, Bonaparte's
53
Gull, Great Black-backed
54
Gull, Herring
55
Gull, Laughing (FL)
56
Gull, Ring-billed
57
Harrier, Northern
58
Hawk, Broad-winged
59
Hawk, Cooper's
60
Hawk, Red-shouldered
61
Hawk, Red-tailed
62
Hawk, Rough-legged
63
Hawk, Sharp-shinned
64
Heron, Great Blue
65
Heron, Green
66
Heron, Little Blue (FL)
67
Heron, Tricolored (FL)
68
Hummingbird, Ruby-throated
69
Ibis, Glossy (FL)
70
Ibis, White (FL)
71
Ibis, White-faced (Big creek)
72
Jay, Blue


74
Junco, Dark-eyed
75
Kestrel, American
76
Killdeer
77
Kingbird, Eastern
78
Kingfisher, Belted
79
Kinglet, Golden-crowned
80
Kinglet, Ruby-crowned
81
Knot, red
82
Lark, Horned
83
Longspur, Lapland
84
Loon, Common
85
Mallard
86
Martin, Purple
87
Meadowlark, Eastern (FL)
88
Merganser, Common
89
Merganser, Hooded
90
Merganser, Red-breasted
91
Merlin
92
Mockingbird, Northern
93
Moorhen, Common
94
Nighthawk, Common
95
Night-heron, Black-crowned
96
Nuthatch, Red-breasted
97
Nuthatch, White-breasted
98
Oriole, Baltimore
99
Oriole, Orchard
100
Osprey
101
Ovenbird
102
Owl, Eastern Screech
103
Owl, Great Horned
104
Parula, Northern
105
Pelican, American White (FL)
106
Phalarope, Red-necked (MI)
107
Phalarope, Wilson's (MI)
108
Phoebe, Eastern
109
Pigeon, Rock
110
Pintail, Northern
111
Plover, Black-bellied
112
Redhead
113
Redstart, American
114
Robin, American
115
Sanderling
116
Sandpiper, Baird's
117
Sandpiper, Buff-breasted
118
Sandpiper, Least
119
Sandpiper, Pectoral
120
Sandpiper, Semipalmated
121
Sandpiper, Solitary
122
Sandpiper, Spotted
123
Sandpiper, Stilt
124
Sapsucker, Yellow-bellied
125
Scaup, Greater
126
Scaup, Lesser
127
Scoter, Surf
128
Shoveler, Northern
129
Shrike, Loggerhead (FL)
130
Shrike, Northern
131
Siskin, Pine
132
Skimmer, Black (FL)
133
Snipe, Wilson's
134
Sora
135
Sparrow, American Tree
136
Sparrow, Chipping
137
Sparrow, Clay-coloured
138
Sparrow, Field
139
Sparrow, Fox
140
Sparrow, House
141

142
Sparrow, Lincoln's
143
Sparrow, Savannah
144
Sparrow, Song
145
Sparrow, Swamp
146
Sparrow, White-crowned
147
Sparrow, White-throated
148
Starling, European
149
Swallow, Barn
150
Swallow, Northern Rough-winged
151
Swallow, Tree
152
Swan, Mute
153
Swan, Tundra
154
Tanager, Scarlet
155
Tanager, Summer
156
Teal, Blue-winged (FL)
157
Teal, Green-winged (MI)
158
Tern, Black
159
Tern, Caspian
160
Tern, Common
161
Thrasher, Brown
162
Thrush, Hermit
163
Thrush, Swainson's (FL)
164
Thrush, Wood
165
Titmouse, Tufted
166
Towhee, Eastern
167
Turkey, Wild (Local Rarety)
168
Turnstone, Ruddy (FL)
169
Vireo, Blue-headed
170
Vireo, Red-eyed
171
Vireo, Warbling
172
Vireo, White-eyed
173
Vulture, Black (FL)
174
Vulture, Turkey
175
Warbler, Bay-breasted
176
Warbler, Black-and-white
177
Warbler, Blackburnian
178
Warbler, Blackpoll
179
Warbler, Black-throated Blue
180
Warbler, Black-throated Green
181
Warbler, Blue-winged
182
Warbler, Canada
183
Warbler, Cape May
184
Warbler, Chestnut-sided
185
Warbler, Connecticut
186
Warbler, Hooded
187
Warbler, Magnolia
188
Warbler, Mourning
189
Warbler, Nashville
190
Warbler, Orange-crowned
191
Warbler, Palm
192
Warbler, Pine
193
Warbler, Tennessee
194
Warbler, Wilson's
195
Warbler, Yellow
196
Warbler, Yellow-rumped
197
Waterthrush, Northern
198
Waxwing, Cedar
199
Wigeon, American
200
Willet
201
Woodpecker, Downy
202
Woodpecker, Hairy
203
Woodpecker, Pileated
204
Woodpecker, Red-bellied
205
Woodpecker, Red-headed
206
Wood-pewee, Eastern
207
Wren, Carolina
208
Wren, House
209
Wren, Marsh
210
Wren, Winter
211
Yellowlegs, Greater
212
Yellowlegs, Lesser
213
Yellowthroat, Common
214
Wood Stork (FL)
215
Roseate Spoonbill (FL)
216
Redish Egret (FL)
217
Anahinga (FL)
218
Boat Tailed Grackle (FL)
219
Yellow Throated Warbler (FL)


I bought a suet feeder for the Red breasted Nuthatch and it seems to be well received by the BC Chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers and of course, the guest of honour! I see a White breasted Nuthatch around on occasion, but its funny, I have never seen him at a feeder. He seems more interested in foraging the trees.

Good birding,
Dwayne

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