It’s been over a month since my last post, but don’t worry, I have still been birding and digiscoping in the interim. I decided to post a series of files created as I edited a flight shot I took this past winter of a Short-eared Owl that was residing close to my house. Since I digiscope, many of the shots I take do not initially show up on the computer screen accurately representing what I saw in the field. Take for an example this first shot below, the original file with no adjustments. The sun was beginning to set when the owls started flying but it was nowhere near this dark. The compensations my camera has to make to freeze motion thru an extra long lens it was not built to use means that it picks up less light than an SLR with a telephoto lens.
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Gypsy Moth Lymantria dispar It’s particularly bad this year. At least I don’t remember noticing the large swathes of mountainside that were nearly absent of any green. While the gypsy moth caterpillar can be a real boon to birds such as cuckoos which feast on the insects, they can also cause tremendous damage to their hosts which include oaks and aspen. According to Donald Eggen, director of the Office of Forest Pest Management for the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry, “Nearly 700,000 acres of Pennsylvania forests- primarily in the Poconos and central Pennsylvania- were defoliated last year because of the persistent bugs, and the infestation could be worse in 2007.” Originally introduced accidentally around Boston in 1869, the first outbreaks began around 10 years later and it 1890 the first attempts were made to eradicate the moths.
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Yellow-breasted Chat © 2007 Drew Weber Point counts have been good as of late. I was in Lancaster County a few days finishing up points in that area and my best find was a very outgoing chat. I had it singing during a point count near Muddy Run Reservoir so I marked the spot on my GPS and returned after my morning counts were finished. I only had to play a few phrases of its song on my car speakers before he popped up again, flying back and forth checking out who was trying to take his picture. Most shots I took were pretty bad but he landed on a utility tower long enough for me to fire off one shot and that is what you see. I had forgotten how fantastically goofy these warblers/tanagers look when doing their display flight. They have always reminded me of clowns.
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In the mornings, as I am zipping from point count to point count, I generally have the radio tuned to National Public Radio if I can get reception. A few days ago I was pleasantly surprised when I turned on the radio and out of the speakers buzzed the loud drone of the 17-year Cicada. Because I had just received the The Songs of Insects by Lang Elliott and Wil Hershberger from Amy over at WildBird on the Fly, I immediately recognized the sound and got very excited about hearing the interview. Unfortunately it was almost over and I didn’t have enough time between the point counts to listen to the rest, so I looked it up on NPR and found the page. It’s a great interview and I would recommend listening to it.
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To start off with, I want to say that my Pennsylvania list is not really that impressive. Yet. I have been making great strides now that I have been spending more time in PA. I believe I was at around 240 about this time last year, and I am currently sitting at 257, with about 13 that I should be able to see with just a little bit of luck and a whole lot of stuff that will require a little bit more than luck. To make it easier on myself, I have created a spreadsheet with all the birds that I would very much like to see in Pennsylvania. My biggest holes are waterbirds, sea ducks and shorebirds. I am missing both bitterns, maybe seven species of shorebirds and 2 of the scoters.
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Edition #50 of i and the bird has arrived at A Blog Around the Clock, a science blog run by a guy who goes by the screen name Coturnix. Give a read for the lastest in bird blogs. Numero 51 will be hosted by The Birdchaser so send in your submissions to Rob (birdchaser AT hotmail DOT com) by Tuesday, June 12.
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These aren’t backed by any guarantee, just what has held true from my experience. In no particular order I present you with 10 ways to see more birds. Walk slower. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen people walk past birds because they aren’t walking slow enough, giving the birds more time to move and become visible. There is always the urge to walk fast and cover more ground, but I have found that it is when I am moving the least that I see the most. Spend more time outside. This one is obvious, there aren’t many birds that you can see from your house unless you have a spectacular feeder setup. Not everyone gets to spend two months outdoors counting hawks in the spring, but any chance you have to bird could be the time you find something really special. Start earlier.
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For a poem, and the 49th edition of the birding carnival, hop on over to Via Negativa for a good time and interesting read as you peruse the latest, greatest bird posts in the blogosphere.
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I saw my 2nd state bird in as many days yesterday. Although its not very common in PA, Clay-colored Sparrows are findable in several parts of the state. They breed in some limited areas in the western part of the state and are sometimes seen in migration elsewhere. This bird is coming to a feeder in Lancaster County and is the same bird the presumably frequented the same yard last summer. When I arrived I was greeted by the buzzy bzz bzz bzz bzz that is so characteristic of the Clay-colored Sparrows song. It will be interesting to see if this bird continues to hang around for the summer and maybe finds a mate. Now I am off to training for my summer job doing point count surveys for the 2nd PA Breeding Bird Atlas.
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This afternoon, I was driving home from New Jersey after completing the hawk counting season. It was a pleasant day but I didn’t see much bird-wise for most of the trip. It was pretty ordinary in fact until I turned on to Schantz Rd southwest of Allentown. I spotted a plowed field off to the right that was sporting a large (1/2 acre maybe?) flooded area. Straining my eyes as I slowed down I could see birds moving out in the water and one really seemed to stick out. Slamming on the breaks and swerving to the shoulder in the safest manner possible, I slung by binoculars to my eyes, fully expecting to see the graceful foraging of a Greater Yellowlegs.
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