Today started out with migrants trying to get lift into a low cloud ceiling with little wind and no thermals at the BRRI Cattle Landing Hawkwatch, run by Belize Raptor Research Institute. Thousands of dragonflies were on site for the first few hours, which made it difficult to spot the few raptors that were attempting to head south (the swallows however, had … Read More
Rough day for catbirds
Throughout the northeast lots of Gray Catbirds are migrating south on a daily basis. It is also peak falcon migration right now. You can probably guess that this combination isn’t going to fair too well for some catbirds…sure enough, today at the Cape Henlopen Hawkwatch we had a Merlin fly in after crossing Delaware Bay, drop down into the brush near the hawkwatch, and … Read More
Cape Henlopen Hawkwatch – September Highlights!
Ah…fall migration, my favorite time of the year! Warblers streaming through the trees, thrushes calling from the understory, and raptors filling the skies – all while the leaves slowly change color, and with each cold front we move closer and closer to winter. I am living and working down in Delaware for the season, and have been trying to make … Read More
Hawk Migration Up-Close and Awesome
This fall, I’m stationed atop Capilla Peak in the Manzano Mountains, about 25 miles southeast of Albuquerque. My purpose: count, identify, and band as many migrating raptors as possible. Myself and three others are working for Hawkwatch International, an organization devoted to the conservation of North American raptors. There is nothing quite like a complete immersion into the miracle of … Read More
Birding Cup 2014 Summary
Pennsylvania birder Matt Sabatine, a new addition to this year’s Nemesis Birders line-up for the Shaver’s Creek Birding Cup competition, offers his perspective on the team’s Big Day attempt. Gordon Dimmig provided a few photos he took while birding with us during the afternoon of the Birding Cup. Follow links to eBird checklists! The days leading up to the annual Shaver’s Creek Birding … Read More
See the weather in a whole new way
Savvy birders are meteorologically astute. They keep an eye out for what may be arriving with the next airmass, wrung out of the skies by an approaching front, or even just a pop-up thunderstorm on an otherwise migration-friendly day. In the age of smartphones and apps, it’s now more convenient than ever to stay abreast of changing weather conditions. Anyone … Read More
Phoebe and White-throats – PSU Fall Banding
October 8th was our most recent day of bird banding in the PSU Arboretum, and we were able to capture 41 individual birds of 10 species. White-throated Sparrows finally officially took over as our most common bird, with 17 captured today. Gray Catbirds, which were the most commonly-caught species prior to the 8th dropped down into 2nd place, with a … Read More
Centre County Dickcissels!
Dickcissels are rare visitors to Centre County, PA and have been found every month of the year, although there are only 8 records since 1984. During the past few years, there have only been a few records. My friends and I were lucky to have one fly over us, calling while we were watching shorebirds on September 9th, 2011 but … Read More
Blackpoll Warbler! – PSU Fall Banding
When I woke up this morning, it was 36 degrees in State College. I knew Big Hollow (where our banding station is) would be very cold and that it would be a while before the sun could get down into the hollow and warm things up a bit. We started off the first few net checks with catbirds, towhees, and … Read More
Foggy Morning – PSU Fall Banding
South winds all last night combined with a very heavy layer of fog this morning made for a fairly slow day of bird banding, but we still had quite a bit of fun. Twenty-seven individual birds were captured of 11 species. Two Ovenbirds were banded, one of which was incredibly fat (with a bulging area of fat on its upper … Read More