Willet ever stop raining?

Tweet It has rained about every day for the last two weeks here in SW Ohio.  Not all day every day, but at least enough to make it hard for me to be able to get out birding.  That being said, when I saw a slight glimpse of the sun this evening, I had to grab my birding gear and head out.

I didn't have much daylight left, but there was enough light that I could still take identifiable pictures if I needed to.  With all the rain, I figured the beach at East Fork would be fairly empty of people and I was right.  There was a vehicle jamming music out on the sand of the the beach, which is not allowed.  They quickly left after I got out of the car.  I then noticed some larger shorebirds foraging in the grass not far from me.

The bird closest to me appeared bigger than the ones around it.  I could not see the head or bill, so I was initially confused..  I looked at the other birds and quickly IDed them as Willets.  That is a good bird in Cincinnati, but what is this other bird that is bigger?  I needed to get a little closer.  Then the bird lifted its head.  A Godwit!  Now what kind?

It is a good shorebirding day in Ohio when you can get out of your car and see this:

Very odd habitat for both birds, but I have see a lot of good shorebirds in the grass at the beach at East Fork.

A couple who was out walking saw me looking at the birds and asked some questions about them.  It was nice to show them the birds.  They seemed somewhat interested.  Very cool.  

The birds spooked and flew to the water's edge on the beach.  I love to watch Willets in flight.  The Godwit then proved that it was a MARBLED GODWIT when it flew.  A very pretty rufous light brown cream color to the wings and underwings.  It also vocalized.  There was not enough light left for an in flight shot.

I have only seen one Marbled Godwit ever, and it was here at the south beach at East Fork in Sept. of 2007.  There are only 10 other records of this bird in the database on the Birding in Cincinnati website.

None of these records are from June, July or August.  Pretty early and cool!

It was a funny bird to watch.  It was catching worms in the grass and then preening on the beach.  

Very funny postures as it fed.

The shorebird stare down never fails me!

And who could forget those lovely Willet wings!

Shorebirding season off to a good start.  Bring on the birds!

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Why I bird...

Tweet I haven't been able to get out as much as I had hoped during the end of May/early June, as I have recently had two cameras and a spotting scope stolen from my home.  This had left me without any camera for a short time.  I rely  on my camera as my secondary (only to memories) way to capture my birding experiences.  However, it is my primary and best way to share them with others.

So, it was to be expected that I would purchase another camera and return to my birding norm.  Although, it was an unexpected and very depressing financial blow.  So, to get things off my mind, I decided to go for a long walk in some very deep woods that I have never been in before.  The canopy was so thick in spots, that  it seemed as if it was twilight when in fact it was close to noon.  The woods was very quite as it was kind of warm out.  As I proceeded to walk deeper in the woods, I could hear Pileated Woodpeckers chattering like mad.  I figured that they must have a nest just outside of the park property.  The leaves were so thick, that I could not see much ahead of me.  Then, out of nowhere, the pair of Pileated Woodpeckers started flying towards me.  Then a loud unknown squawk was heard, as a Cooper's Hawk came crashing down almost on top of my head.  The Pileateds were in hot pursuit.  The hawk hit the ground, and then saw me and panicked.  Then the woods came alive in bird song and alarm notes.  I was quickly reminded of why I bird, as I forgot about all the worries I had from the robbery.

Everything happened so quick, pictures were impossible to obtain of the encounter.  Here is the male Pileated, just seconds after it all.

The rawkus agitated a pair of Ovenbirds that were apparently nesting in the area that the hawk came down in.  The male began to sing and the female was rolling on the ground flailing her wings.  It was very dark down under the canopy.

After my long walk in the woods, I decided to check the beach since it was still early for the large amounts of swimmers of the summer.  

The only bird on the beach was this Semipalmated Plover.  I would of not spotted it, but it was being chased by a little girl.  It was also calling, which I have never heard before.  It was like it was yelling HELP!

I quickly found out why I think it was calling.  It was hopping on one leg.  The bird finally had enough of the little girl's chasing and flew away.  As I was walking towards my car, I noticed the bird was standing almost beneath it.  I then noticed that the bird obviously had an injured leg.  

I then thought about my problems in relation to this bird.  There is no way to tell where or when this bird injured its leg, but it most likely had to migrate with it in that condition.  For it to be able to avoid predators and keep on flying is just amazing.  This is why I bird.

The bird was actively feeding, so I think it will survive to its breeding grounds.   

There has been an explosion of Blue Grosbeaks it seems at East Fork.  I have seen 4 males and one female, with all 4 males quite a distance from the next.  Recently, I was able to obtain a quick shot of one.

Since the bird was at quite a distance and in harsh light I returned the next day to get this shot out the car window.

Such a beautiful bird! I could watch them all day I think.  To see such gorgeous birds as this, this is why I bird.

As always, take time out to enjoy nature and try to take a child out birding as well.

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My mini vacation...

Tweet I have had a lot going on recently, some of which was not so pleasant. I really could use a vacation.  So I decided to think big...

My first trip was to Japan, where I found these beautiful Tree Nymph Butterflies.

From there I went to South Asia area...

These Blue Clipper Butterflies were very common.

This butterfly changed colors with every angle!

From Asia, I decided to travel to South America.  I spotted this nice looking Zuleika Butterfly.

This Cydno Butterfly was cool too.

Then, I thought I spotted an owl!  Haven't been seeing many birds on my travels...

Ah - Owl Butterflies.  So cool.

Then I spotted the most awesome butterfly there is, a Blue Morphos.  I wish they would spread their wings!

I then spied what I think is a Postman Butterfly.  Very cool looking.

I don't know where I am at now, the sign says Morocco, but I don't think I am in Morocco!  Anyway, I found these cool butterflies here too.

I like the red spots.

This butterfly is just the coolest looking butterfly I have ever seen.  I don't know what it is but it is cool!

I am now back in the Southern US.  Still seeing good butterflies, like this Queen.  

And this Zebra Longwing.

I bet that you are wondering how Donald the Birder could have traveled all over the world and not got one single bird picture?  Well, I really haven't left Cincinnati.  I attended the Butterfly Show at Krohn Conservancy.  Very beautiful.  I recommend it.

I have recently had my cameras and spotting scope stolen out of my house.  This has caused a small blip in my birding adventures as well as a considerable financial blow, but I have now got a new camera. Still trying to get used to it.  

Since I am on the topic of butterflies, I thought that I would share some local pictures I got while attending the East Fork Butterfly Count this year on June 8th.  I was able to get a new species, although I didn't spot it first.

One of the most numerous butterflies were Summer Azures.  They were everywhere.  Not so easy to get a pic, they don't stop.

This Northern Pearly-eye was very cooperative.  Such a nice looking butterfly!

I think this is a Tawny-edged Skipper.  Or is it a Crossline?  I am definitely rusty on my skippers!!

But the COOLEST butterfly I saw on the count was this Striped Hairstreak found by another butterflier at the visitor center on Slade Rd.  I have never seen one before.  Very cool.

I have been out birding with the new camera.  I have seen some cool birds as well.  I guarantee that my next post will feature birds!

Whatever life throws at you, never stop enjoying the beauty of nature!

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Book review: The Unfeathered Bird

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When I was younger, I remember my dad taking me to the old natural history museum about once a week.  He was working on a project for college, so I would go and explore.  I saw many cool things that were on display and also got to see many specimens that were not on display.  I remember seeing the many bird specimens, both skins and skeletons.   I was like a child in a candy store back then, wanting to absorb all that I could.

The Unfeathered Bird by Katrina van Grouw brought back many of those childhood memories for me.  Very seldom does a book come along with such beauty.  The artistic talent of the author is just amazing.  The illustrations seem to come alive with every page turned.

This book will really give the average birder a deeper appreciation for birds in general.  They are simply biological wonders.  

The book is separated into similar groups of birds with a non-academic text description of each group that discusses the different physiological adaptations that make them unique.  

The author/illustrator is a former curator of ornithology at the Natural History Museum of London as well as a taxidermist.  I used to volunteer as a bird skinner for a museum, so I can appreciate the time it took to prepare and lay these specimens out to be drawn.  

This book is a masterpiece.  It is one that I see as a gateway book that may ignite the spark that could set a young person on the road of constant learning in science as well as birding.  I highly recommend this book.

Disclaimer:  This book was supplied to me free of charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review.

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A red, white and blue day...

Tweet Since I had to work most of this holiday weekend, I didn't make any plans other than to watch birds (not too surprising there).  I had Sunday off, so I decided to spend almost all of it outdoors.  The temperature was not too bad either, with a high around 70 and low humidity.  The cooler temps had the bird singing all day.  Since it is Memorial Day weekend, I thought I would post some patriotic birds that I have seen today.

I decided to go far back on a very wooded trail.  I could hear Acadian Flycatchers, as they were everywhere.  I did hear a Cerulean Warbler, but I could not find it.  I hear less and less of these birds every year it seems.

I could hear Indigo Buntings calling from an open spot in the canopy where a large tree had fallen.  I have Indigos in the yard, but I can never see them, I only hear them. I could see this one.

I continued pishing, and saw some red movement up ahead.  It was a tanager.  Then I heard chick-burr.  

I can see you!

This is very near where I seen the Scarlet Tanager in my previous post, but this one is a different male.  In this bird, you can still see some of its immature plumage (the yellow blotches).  The other bird did not have this.  

The other evening before sunset, my girlfriend and I saw a Summer Tanager very near the road at East Fork Dam area.  This bird has been reported as very cooperative by other birders, and they weren't kidding.  I showed a nonbirding couple the bird as well.  Many people are surprised to know that there is a red bird around here that is redder than a cardinal.   They were very interested in it - would make a nice spark bird!   If you live near SW Ohio, this bird is right next to a parking lot going down to the spillway.  Just park and listen, as he is always singing around dusk.  Today, I tried to spot him earlier so I could take his picture.  I heard and then found him as soon as I got out of the car.  

This Yellow-breasted Chat flew by and landed on a weed right in front of me.  I guess he wanted his picture taken too.  He was very noisy (love their sounds!) and very cooperative for a chat.  

I bet you are now wondering where the white is at.  Well, I didn't exactly see a WHITE bird today.  But I did see a bird with white in its name.  Can you guess what it is?

Here it is - a White-eyed Vireo.  A cool bird it is.  Love its song.  (It has a white iris)

Next post will be about butterflies, as the East Fork Butterfly Count is coming up.  Some butterfly pics from the US as well as elsewhere will be shown here.  I love lepidoptera too!

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