AntWren

Antwren

2008-09-17T17:23:00.001-07:00

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Silverton CO Espresso Coffee Shop

2008-08-29T08:22:00.000-07:00

We took the train up to Silverton Co yesterday for our son's birthday. He got to choose what he wanted to do that day. The train ride is long, but we really enjoyed the views of the Animas and the wilderness.

We stopped at the Steam and Steel Cafe up there and met Eric, one of the owners. Nice guy and Great coffee. So stop in and say hello to him at his Silverton CO espresso coffee shop. The cafe is at 1309 Greene Street.

Nemesis Bird Finally Found.

2008-08-17T07:59:00.000-07:00

Had a vacation up at Rocky Mountain National Park and Climbed Long's Peak. After about 4-5 years of looking for this bird we finally saw the White tailed Ptarmigan on the hike down from the Boulder field section of the trail. Yeahhhh.

Funny thing was we saw another one a few days later on the way to Dream Lake Up above Bear Lake in Rocky Mountain NP.

It was a good little show too. We had already climbed the mountain and the ptarmigan had 4 babies following it around.

Bald eagle Pics Soaring over the house

2008-03-14T12:51:00.000-07:00

Looked Out the Window just now and caught these two photos.

OK Spring is here...First Robin on the Property

2008-03-02T08:55:00.000-08:00

Not incredibly exciting except that I love spring. After what feels like 100 feet of snow, I saw and herd the first American Robin on the property today.

Now they're in Ghana

2008-02-29T09:02:00.000-08:00

Species Total 1628. They're just cruising along and are halfway there (sortof).

Bald Eagles Galore

2008-02-29T08:33:00.000-08:00

They seem to be everywhere. I'm seeing them all the time on Route 160 as I drive into Durango.

On Tuesday I went for a walk and found a young deer that had been killed. It was surrounded by Ravens and Magpies, but also flying away as I approached was a Bald Eagle. Cool.

It's possible that we have a cougar around working the deer herd. I haven't found any tracks though to confirm that.

1034 and counting

2008-01-27T21:04:00.000-08:00

Heading back to the UK via Houston. They have seen 1034 and are taking a short break before heading to Africa. Man I'm jealous...

thebiggesttwitch.com

Bald Eagles on Route 160

2008-01-27T20:52:00.000-08:00

Eagle's are cool. We were driving into town to help someone move(That's a whole different story). We came across 2 beautiful Bald Eagles sitting in a tall Pinyon Pine Tree right next to the highway. Just East of Durango.

They're up to 971....

2008-01-24T19:41:00.001-08:00

From the Biggest Twitch...Still i nSouth America. Current bird count. 971.

http://www.thebiggesttwitch.com/80/article.aspx

They really need to have their own RSS feed though.

Off to the Amazon

2008-01-16T21:36:00.000-08:00

Well not me. The birders on the biggest twitch are off to the amazon for about 5 days. Total species so far... 487

www.thebiggesttwitch.com

The Biggest Twitch

2008-01-05T09:48:00.000-08:00

I stumbled upon this through a link from the Arizona Bird List. Here's a couple who is trying top set a new world record of seeing the most birds in a single year in the entire world.

Their website is www.thebiggesttwitch.com I love this idea, (although it is probably a bit expensive for my taste) I will be following them throughout the year. My one wish is that their diary had a RSS feed so that I could automatically see their updates on my homepage.

Nevertheless, I will follow their exploits here and post updates as well. Mostly because I am interested myself.

I think they are at about 165 species so far and they just headed for Mexico after leaving Arizona.

Took a long trip to California. Heermann's Gull

2008-01-04T21:27:00.000-08:00

This is just a taste of my trip. By far this was one of my favorite birds on the 6 day trip to San Diego and Joshua Tree National Park. I love this shot mostly because the light was perfect. Sunset at Torrey Pines Beach just north of San Diego.

Durango Christmas Bird Count

2007-12-24T08:36:00.000-08:00

Oh Well, Looks like I might miss this this year. I had hoped to get out during my first winter here and participate in the Durango, Christmas Bird Count. bummer. Here's the links to when the counts are occurring in Colorado.

Christmas Bird Counts in Colorado

Raptor 1, Kitty 0

2007-11-28T14:43:00.001-08:00

Here is a picture I found out on the internet of a Hawk with a cat as prey. I hadn't heard that hawks were taking small pets until now.

Rats take over island...Their time is limited.

2007-11-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

So I read this morning that a pair of rats can have 5000 offspring in one year. WHAT. WOW. The Norway rats jumped ship many years ago and have systematically eating all the eggs on this island. Thus No birds.

Alaska is working to eradicate the rats so birds can get a foothold back on the island.

"As far as bird life, it is a dead zone," said Steve Ebbert, a biologist at the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, whose 2,500 mostly uninhabited islands include the Aleutian chain, of which Rat Island is a part.
State and federal wildlife biologists are gearing up for an assault on the rats of still-uninhabited Rat Island, hoping to exterminate them with rat poison dropped from helicopters. If they succeed, the birds will sing again on Rat Island. And it will be the third-largest island in the world to be made rat-free.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jt_vMaXClQ1hqGbMd9TtI7fkau1AD8T68VAO2

Rare Birds Yearbook

2007-11-28T06:41:00.000-08:00

This is neat. Maybe a holiday Gift for your biridng friend... Hint hint ;-).

The Rare Birds Yearbook 2008 is the first book ever to concentrate on the status of the world’s Critically Endangered birds in a popular and accessible but still up-to-date and rigorous way. Compiled in cooperation with BirdLife International, the book provides an entry of up to two pages for each Critically Endangered species, complete with its history, the latest information on its status, and the measures that are being taken to protect it. Each species is illustrated in colour, and many of the photographs are published for the first time.

http://www.birdlife.org/news/news/2007/11/rare_bird_yearbook.html

http://www.rarebirdsyearbook.com/

Bird of Paradise

2007-11-11T20:08:00.000-08:00

Love this video of a bird of paradise.

Bird Feeders are up.

2007-11-11T07:23:00.000-08:00

New Home = New feeders.

We got them up a couple of days ago. now they are covered with Chickadees, Finches, Scrub and Stellar's jays. Still waiting for some woodpeckers though.

New Mexico Geocaching Birds

2007-11-10T21:00:00.001-08:00

In the Pinyon/Juniper habitat of Northwestern New Mexico this morning and afternoon, the family treked around looking for geocaches. Found a couple. Sprained an ankle, climbed a few knarly hills and saw a few birds too.

Red-tailed hawk, Scrub Jay and Rock Wren were the ones that come to mind.

Is this really November 10th?? It was like 75 degrees out there today.

Number 70: American Crow

2007-11-03T07:32:00.001-07:00

I really am not a big numbers guy when it comes to life lists. I do like to keep track, but the number itself doesn't drive me too much. I guess I treat it like a goal that keeps getting me out into the woods looking for birds and whatever else I can find.

So in Keeping with the "life list tradition" :) I saw an American Crow yesterday as I was hiking the NorthEast corner of the property.

Bushtit this morning

2007-10-27T17:00:00.000-07:00

Had a Bushtit sighting this morning. I actually saw a whole bunch of them. Was trying to take a photo of a downey woodpecker and a flock flew over and landed in the tree right above me.

Mountain Chickadee and Juniper Titmouse

2007-10-26T19:09:00.001-07:00

Got a nice pic of a Mountain Chickadee today and also saw a Juniper Titmouse and a Brown Creeper. All while wandering around Heartwood Cohousing and it's 350 acres.

200+ ducks and a Townsend's Solitaire

2007-10-25T13:09:00.000-07:00

The Townsend's Solitaire was just hanging in the Junipers near the common house a couple of days ago. I understand that they will be around most of the winter.

This morning I went with Eric H. to the pasture pond to see what the 200+ ducks were that were hanging there. Well they were VERY uncooperative and left before first light. We got to see them all leave, we just couldn't ID any of them. Likely a lot of them were Mallards, judging by the size and classic "quack".

Otherwise a beautiful morning with lots of deer.

Another Owl. This one a Northern Pygmy owl

2007-10-17T17:11:00.000-07:00

OK this time I got the ID right. This little guy was hanging around the cluster of homes here. We think it smacked a window and was slightly stunned. Tiny Tiny Tiny, but really great.

Northern Saw-whet Owl - Totally Cool Photo

2007-10-14T12:58:00.001-07:00

I was walking with my son today. We were exploring a portion of the property that I had not been to yet. In the back of my mind I remembered that this was the area where we had heard the Pygmy owl earlier this fall/late summer. We started looking around in the pinyon pines and suddenly flushed something.

Turns out it was this great little owl that sat and posed for a picture. It stayed for a while and I was able to show Sue, Nick and one of my neighbors.

Wow.

My Bad...I had initially identified this guy as a Pygmy Owl and it is a Northern Saw-whet Owl.

Hermit Thrush, and a couple of new photos

2007-10-13T10:33:00.000-07:00

While out cleaning birdhouses today, I saw a Hermit Thrush. He got away before I could snap a photo. Also ran across a Vesper Sparrow and got a good shot of a Dark Eyed Junco. Both the Thrush and the Vesper Sparrow were new birds for me here at Heartwood Cohousing.

"Oregon" Junco on front walk

2007-10-13T07:48:00.001-07:00

This morning I looked out my kitchen window out to the walkway and saw a very dark-hooded Junco. While most of the Junco's in the are "Dark-eyed juncos", this one is an example of one that only shows up here in Colorado in the winter season. This type lives mostly in th Northwest during the rest of the year.

Blue Grouse in the St. Juan National Forest.

2007-10-07T20:58:00.000-07:00

New lifer for me today. Was driving on a 4x4 road (FR 171N) when Sue saw three birds on the side of the road. We thought at first that they were our Nemesis bird... White tailed Ptarmingan. We thought that because that was what we wanted them to be. :)

Still very cool birds. I may have seen this bird a long time ago, but I don't think I had such good looks at it nor did I record it then.

Dark Morph Red Tailed Hawk

2007-10-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

While this may not be the most exciting bird to see, It was neat for me. I only wish that we had some more hanging around our pasture to feast on the local prairie dog population.

We did see some nice Ring-necked ducks and eared grebes just south of town the other day. That was just before I got stuck in a herd of sheep that were being transferred down the highway to another pasture. I wish I had a camera for that little event. It was a bit of a surprise to my parents who were visiting.

Pine Siskins: Bird of the Day

2007-09-19T13:52:00.000-07:00

There must be hundreds of them around. caught these guys right outside the back window this morning.

American Tree Sparrow only the 9th time

2007-09-18T08:53:00.000-07:00

I just got an email from the Colorado birds email list that my

"American Tree Sparrow sighting was only the ninth september sighting in Colorado!"

I don't keep track of dates of bird arrivals (usually), but I do recall thinking at the time that this Tree Sparrow was early.

2007-09-18T07:20:00.001-07:00

Back Yard Chipping Sparrow this morning.

Check this use of Radar in Pennsylvania

2007-09-17T17:24:00.000-07:00

Love this. Review the Radar to see if birds are moving into your area. Then go out and bird the next day. I had seen this in Florida, when people were tracking the birds coming out of Cuba on any given night.

Check this out. Fall Migration and Birding From the Fairfax Birding Blog

Google Tag Cloud

2007-09-16T20:22:00.000-07:00

See that cool Google Tag Cloud on the Right. I have been trying to figure that out for a while. I even tried Technorati for a while, but didn't like how when you clicked on it it sent you to their site.

So if you want that Tag Cloud go to this website... Blogger Tag Cloud

It works like a charm.

Shark's Tooth and Centenial Peak

2007-09-16T17:17:00.001-07:00

Well, today we hiked up to the Shoulder/pass/notch between Sharks's Tooth and Centennial peak. Along the way we were treated to loads of birds and wildlife. Most notable was the vast numbers of Pine Grosbeaks. They were everywhere. Also had red-tailed hawk, Cooper's hawk, Hermit Thrush, Brown Creeper, Ruby Crowned Kinglet, and to top it off a American Three Toed Woodpecker.

Gadwall and Blue-winged Teal Photos

2007-09-15T15:09:00.001-07:00

These are a couple of photos I took from down in our pasture pond. A Blue-winged Teal and a Gadwall.

Snipe hunt successful: Though not for snipe

2007-09-15T08:42:00.000-07:00

Maddy, Eric and I headed out for the pasture pond this morning at 7:30am

Excellent day: New for Heartwood Birds are...

Western Bluebird, Coopers Hawk, MacGillivray's Warbler and Blue Winged Teal. Also still present is the Sora still wandering around on the South side of the pond. Excellent views in good light in the morning.

Possible snipe sighting, but it was so fleeting that we were just not sure.

We're going on a Snipe Hunt

2007-09-14T19:33:00.000-07:00

Just like the song from Camp...

Or the really difficult search for the elusive bird...

I have heard that there is a Snipe pair nesting down on the corner of land. So we're up early and heading down to the pasture.

CD Picture from CDBaby.com

Pic of Actual Snipe from The Blog From another Dimension

Looks like he lives here. Northern Pygmy Owl

2007-09-14T06:49:00.000-07:00

Woke up this morning again at around 6am. Heard the Northern Pygmy Owl again. Very cool to have this bird living in the "neighborhood".

American Tree Sparrow

2007-09-13T10:09:00.000-07:00

New American Tree Sparrow showed up this morning. Pretty Psyched. Although it was only a brief visit. I was surprised to see it this early in the year, but what do I know... I just moved here.

Photo Credit... http://fog.ccsf.cc.ca.us/~jmorlan/atsp010607.htm

Yellow-rumped warbler in the backyard

2007-09-13T07:14:00.000-07:00

Just scored another one. Had a small group of warbers, siskins and towhees come through. The Yellow-rumped warbler is a new Heartwood bird for me.

Clark's Nutcracker in my front yard

2007-09-12T17:22:00.001-07:00

Right across the walk from my front porch is a great looking Clark's Nutcraker A new one for me here at Heartwood Cohousing.

I took this photo back in July in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Melting Sea Ice

2007-09-11T20:56:00.000-07:00

Got this from over at the DC Birding Blog

Sea Ice the size of Florida has melted in the last six days!

Melting Sea Ice

Sora was still there this morning

2007-09-10T20:21:00.000-07:00

And I heard there was a Common Snipe hanging out by the bend in the road. No luck today. My next shot will be this weekend.

New Life Bird today. Sora

2007-09-09T11:29:00.000-07:00

Left for a walk around the pasture pond at Heartwood Cohousing this morning and was psyched to catch a Sora walking the edges. Whohoo New Life bird for me. It hung around for a good long time. Long enough for me to call Sue and have her bike down to get good looks.

The photo is not all that great, I was digiscoping from a long distance. I have not done very much digiscoping. This image is clearer than the one I tried to get using my Canon though.

These are the best kind of lifers. I like the ones where you find them yourself and ID them yourself.

I added this pic of a sora so you can see what one is supposed to look like if you get a clear photo.

This Photo from : http://audubon.sonoma.net/birding/sora.html

News from the Ivorybill front in Arkansas

2007-09-08T07:45:00.000-07:00

Doubters naysayers...whatever, people are out in the field seeing this bird. Read this article from the Arkansas Times

On May 7, Mueller, 62, was walking in the Wattensaw Wildlife Management Area, an 18,000-acre preserve between Hazen and the White River, when he saw a bird flying straight at him. “It saw me and did a U-turn,” Mueller said. “When it turned it flew briefly out of the forest and into the light. I had a very good look at the top of the wings, black on front and white trailing edges.” He saw the bird for four or five seconds, and was struck by how glossy the bird's black feathers were.

So how certain was he that it was an ivory-bill, North America's largest woodpecker, whose numbers were estimated at 22 in 1939? “If I was on a Christmas bird count and ivory-bills were expected birds, I would count it. But if I was not already alerted to that fact, I would have said, ‘Gee, I wonder what that was? It was sure something different.' ”

Also Check out Laura's Birding Blog from time to time, or sign up for her RSS feed.

Townsend's warbler

2007-09-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

Got a Townsend's Warbler this morning. First for the back yard birding effort today.

Photo from http://www.columbialandtrust.org/news/letters/v11n1TrustTalk.htm

The poor guy smacked our window. (We think)

2007-09-07T15:36:00.000-07:00

This Plumbeous Vireo was found on our back patio area. We were able to get very close looks as it was apparently stunned.

No worries though. It flew off in short order.

5 more new yard birds

2007-09-07T07:15:00.001-07:00

Nashville Warbler, Evening Grosbeak, Red-naped Sapsucker, Mountain Chickadee and Plumbeous Vireo. They all came through my back yard this morning. Raises the count to 34 here.

Northern Pygmy Owl... Cool

2007-09-07T05:37:00.000-07:00

Alarm went off at 6am this morning and almost immediately I heard a Northern Pygmy Owl out to the east probably in the scrub and Ponderosa pine.

Rapidly building my list here at Heartwood. That is mostly because it is a new list so everything is new here. Newcomers to the list. The above owl of course, Rock Dove, Mourning Dove and Western Meadowlark.

Pygmy Owl Photo from PAWS

Lewis' Woodpecker

2007-09-06T05:50:00.000-07:00

New "yard bird" yesterday. Driving down the access road down to the highway, I had a Lewis' Woodpecker land on a fence post right next to the car.

Photo Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis's_Woodpecker

New Antwren Discovered

2007-09-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

Given the name of this blog (Antwren) I had to note the discovery of this bird. While it was discovered some time ago in Brazil, it is still a lovely bird.

Formicivora grantsaui

A link to the paper written about the discovery. Sincora Antwren

Great Jacamar

2007-09-03T19:44:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite birds. I saw this Great Jacamar on a trip to the Canopy Tower in Soberania National Forest in Panama. I had a blast. This trip was in 2005. It was with Mark Suomala at Marks Bird Tours.

This particular bird was seen on the pipeline road and it perched right over the middle of the road giving everyone great views.

Increase in Lifestyle promotion

2007-09-03T07:29:00.000-07:00

I was reading about the The Eastern Shore Birding and Wildlife Festival being held in October in Eastern Virginia. I noted from the article that the chamber of commerce is adding a focus on how great Eastern Virginia is. The festival will still celebrate the massive bird migration that comes through the area.

I am a big fan of ecotourism. It brings dollars into an area and it seems natural extension of that to see the local businesses and government want to encourage people loving the natural beauty to stay in the area. What do they call that ecomoving?

Bring on the birds

Turkeys all over

2007-09-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

As we were driving in today we saw a group of 6 turkeys way out in the distance in the pasture. Certainly a new yard bird for us.

Turkey Pic from Wikipedia

Backyard Birding - Orange-crowned warbler

2007-09-01T07:26:00.000-07:00

While working this morning I glanced out and saw a couple of very drab warblers flitting around the backyard flowers. Turned out to be an Orange Crowned warbler.

Found this photo over at http://stone-bridge.blogspot.com/

Photo credit goes to Jim McCulloch at the above blog. The photo can be found here http://stone-bridge.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html

A very nice shot.

How hard to write a Bird Blog

2007-08-30T21:02:00.000-07:00

So much to do so little time... OK no cliches.

But it is hard to find time to get out and actually get some birding done with a busy life. Makes me wonder how building and growing this bird blog will be. Today I had only the usual suspects hanging around the house, chickadees, western tanagers and the amazing numbers of hummingbirds. I'll wander around the pastures tomorrow to see what I can find.

One interesting bird I did hear today was a calling red-tail hawk. I had seen a bunch around but hadn't heard any as of yet.

2007-08-30T11:03:00.001-07:00

Technorati Profile

Rare bird killed in Ireland

2007-08-30T07:51:00.000-07:00

Come on folks. Who really thinks that killing the bird is gonna help. ?!?!

From Ireland, where there is a reintroduction project, we hear that one of the recently reintroduced red kites has been killed. From USA Today

Activists from the Golden Eagle Trust, which seeks to protect and promote rare or extinct birds of prey, released 30 red kites six weeks ago in Wicklow, a hilly county south of Dublin, in hopes that some would nest and breed successfully.

But the continuing threat from farmers and hunting clubs was underscored by this week's discovery of a red kite that had been killed by a shotgun blast on a farm near the Wicklow coastal town of Arklow. Police said they would investigate, but had made no arrests.

Head over to http://www.redkites.co.uk/ to read about this beautiful bird.

Brown Hawk Owl Found in Alaska

2007-08-29T19:38:00.000-07:00

Brown Hawk-Owl, Alaska, Saint Paul Island August 27, 2007 © Rich Hoyer / WINGS

Found and photographed by Jake Mohlmann, Saint Paul Island Tours

Source: http://www.surfbirds.com/cgi-bin/gallery/display.cgi?gallery=gallery10

Ivory Billed Woodpecker Links

2007-08-29T19:21:00.000-07:00

These all from Google, but are a great place to read about the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker.

Welcome — Ivory-billed Woodpecker

Includes details of the rediscovery in 2004, past searches, and the bird's slide toward extinction.
www.birds.cornell.edu/ivory/

Ivory-billed Woodpecker - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) is a very large member of the woodpecker family, Picidae; it is officially listed as an endangered ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory-billed_Woodpecker -

Ivory-Billed Woodpecker: Researchers find ivory-billed woodpecker ...

Ivory-Billed Woodpecker: Found! Researchers find ivory-billed woodpecker - Big Woods of Arkansas, home of the ivory-bill bird - The Big Woods Conservation ...
www.ivorybill.org/

Ivory-billed Woodpecker

US Fish and Wildlife Service site with updates on the discovery of Ivory-billed Woodpecker at Cache River NWR in Arkansas and the recovery effort.
www.fws.gov/ivorybill/

Ivory-billed Woodpecker information

Ivory-billed Woodpecker search page - by David Luneau.
www.ibwo.org/

$27 Million to research Ivory Bill habitat

2007-08-29T19:13:00.001-07:00

I qualify as an Ivory Bill believer so I am always reading these news stories. I am very happy to see the Fish and Wildlife service step up and spend some money on this project.

From The Morning News and AP

Federal wildlife officials say it’s worth millions of dollars to research the suspected habitat of the ivory-billed woodpecker, despite conflicting views on whether the elusive bird even exists in the swamps of east Arkansas.

“There’s enough out there that we’ve got to keep searching,” said Jeff Fleming, a spokesman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “It’d be irresponsible not to.”

The agency this week released a 185-page draft plan aimed at preventing the extinction of the bird. The draft plan, which is open for public comment until Oct. 22, recommends spending more than $27 million in federal dollars on recovery efforts for the woodpecker.

You can find the full plan at www.fws.gov/ivorybill/

Cool... Curve Billed Thrasher

2007-08-29T08:55:00.001-07:00

On an otherwise sucky day, because I had to drive 500 miles. I did pick up a curve billed thrasher at the Santa Fe Airport. Pleasant Surprise.

Say no to pagerank, Yes to Life

2007-08-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

I know summer is almost over so get out of the office. Get away from the screen and stop worrying about the Google pagerank.

From over at DeanHunt.com

Just say no to Pagerank

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More males than females

2007-08-29T07:24:00.000-07:00

Got an email from BirdLife today about a study that may show that populations of birds may be overestimated. Why? because the study apparently shows that males are more visible and that there are more males than females in each of the studied populations. Therefore, since we see more males and make then assumption that each male is paired then we assume the species has higher numbers than they actually have.

Odd that the email I received was titled "Globally threatened bird pay for their sex" But hey I guess it got me to read it.

“Most species have male-skewed sex ratios, but a wholly unexpected finding was that the rarer the species, the more highly skewed towards males the population sex ratio becomes,” says Dr Donald. “This means that many of the world’s rarest species may be much closer to extinction than we previously thought, because the number of females is lower than the number of males . It is much easier to save a population with an excess of females than one with an excess of males.”

http://www.birdlife.org/news/pr/2007/08/sex_ratios.html

149 Smuggled birds returned to Mexico

2007-08-23T06:40:00.000-07:00

These birds were picked up at a border crossing while they were being smuggled into the country. Many were sedated in order to try to keep them quiet during the smuggling operation.

These birds will now be returned to the wild or kept for breeding purposes if they cannot survive in the wild.

They were caught coming into the U.S. illegally from Mexico, sedated and hidden under blankets or in duffel bags. On Wednesday, 149 parrots and parakeets seized from smugglers were sent home.

The neon-green birds, which had been held in quarantine for up to 18 months on U.S. soil at San Diego's Otay Mesa border crossing, were handed over in cages to Mexican authorities. They will be returned to native habitats in southern Mexico or kept for breeding purposes if veterinarians determine they cannot survive in the wild.

From over at the Environmental News Network

British Birdwatching fair

2007-08-22T11:40:00.000-07:00

Mark your calendars for next year.

THE BRITISH BIRDWATCHING FAIR IS THE WORLD'S FIRST AND LARGEST INTERNATIONAL BIRDWATCHING EVENT
Described as the birdwatcher’s “Glastonbury”, Birdfair encompasses the whole spectrum of the birdwatching industry whilst at the same time supporting global bird conservation. This is the event of the year if you’re into birds and wildlife. There are hundreds of stands selling the latest products for wildlife enthusiasts. You’ll find everything, from scopes to sculptures, binoculars to bird food, eGuides to eco-holidays!
Every day we offer a packed programme of events. Three separate timetables boast a fantastic variety of lectures. The Events Marquee hosts quiz shows, question and answer sessions, exclusive book launches and family-based entertainment. The Birdfair Auction offers you the chance to bid for a whole host of ‘lots’ donated by our exhibitors, ranging from holidays, to artwork, to unique one-off experiences, with all the monies raised going directly to this year's Birdfair project.

http://www.birdfair.org.uk/

Basra Reed-warbler returns... to Israel

2007-08-22T11:32:00.000-07:00

Sort of a new discovery here. At least it is a new discovery of a new breeding population if birds in Israel.

The only recorded breeding population of Basra Reed-warbler found outside of Iraq has been confirmed in Israel by conservationists at SPNI (BirdLife in Israel).
After the discovery last year of four individual reed-warblers in Israel’s Hula Valley, SPNI have this year announced the return of three of these ringed individuals, along with one unmarked adult - confirmation that Basra Reed-warbler does indeed breed in Israel.

48 Million Birdwatchers

2007-08-20T07:52:00.000-07:00

Birding has been growing very quickly. It is an activity that does not really take that much equipment or training. Heck learning how to bird and identify birds is really what this is all about. You are always learning new things about habitat, song. How deep into this you go is up to you. This article explores the growing world of birding and it's hopeful effect on ecotourism as well.

Not since the days of John James Audubon have birds gotten so much attention from naturalists. While hunting and fishing are declining in popularity, the old-fashioned act of birdwatching is hot again as people look for outdoor activities that don't require a lot of equipment or training.

According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, which tracks wildlife recreation, birdwatching is now a hobby of 47.8 million Americans, with "wildlife watching" up 8 percent from 2000 to 2006. The birdwatching trend comes as both hunting and fishing declined in popularity, by 4 percent and 12 percent, respectively, over the same period.

From WTOPNews.com in Maryland.

Hummingbird photos from today:

2007-08-19T19:40:00.001-07:00

Both are Broad-tailed Hummingbirds seen today in Southwest Colorado

4 hummingbird day

2007-08-19T17:04:00.000-07:00

Had, Rufous, Calliope, Broad-tailed and Black Chinned at the feeder today. Very cool.

New Hummingbird Species needs protection

2007-08-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

From Birdlife International

"The flamboyantly coloured Gorgeted Puffleg Eriocnemis isabellae, a new species of hummingbird, has been discovered in Colombia. But there are concerns over its future safety because the Serrania del Pinche mountains where it was discovered are unprotected.

Ornithologists Alexander Cortés-Diago and Luis Alfonso Ortega made three sightings of the new hummingbird during surveys in 2005 of montane cloud forest in the Serrania del Pinche, south-west Colombia.

“We were essentially following a hunch,” said Alexander Cortés-Diago of The Hummingbird Conservancy (Colombia) and co-discoverer of Gorgeted Puffleg. “We had heard that a new species of plant had been discovered in the region in 1994. This discovery and the isolation of the Serrania led us to believe there could also be new species of vertebrates.”

I love hearing about new discoveries like this. The armchair explorer in me comes to life.

Owl banding in Michigan

2007-08-19T13:26:00.001-07:00

An interesting article about Owl banding. Also talks about the interesting people drawn to birding, bird watching and studying birds.

An Owl in the Hand

Wildlife review says project won't hurt Ivory billed woodpecker

2007-08-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

LITTLE ROCK -- A review by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services officials found the proposed Grand Prairie irrigation project would not endanger the ivory-billed woodpecker.

The review by the wildlife agency was ordered by U.S. District Judge Bill Wilson Jr. as part of a lawsuit filed to halt the irrigation project.

Last summer, Wilson issued an injunction for the $400 million irrigation project on the White River in eastern Arkansas. The project's pumping station is near DeValls Bluff, close to where the elusive woodpecker was spotted and filmed after it was thought to be extinct.

In a July 26 letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mark Sattelberg of the wildlife agency said the project "is not likely to adversely affect the ivory-billed woodpecker."

Now we have to wait and see whether the judge agrees.....

Today the Hummingbird feeder went up

2007-08-18T06:45:00.000-07:00

We certainly have Broad-tailed and Rufous hummingbirds around. Looking forward to seeing what else we can conjure up.

Maybe we'll get lucky and get a magnificent hummingbird. Next step for me is to get some photos.

Raise 38 Million to save 189 Species

2007-08-17T21:49:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest reasons that bird species go extinct is Habitat destruction. It's often that simple. Look at the Ivory Billed woodpecker. Why has it almost disappeared. Because the habitat is gone. It has gone Waaay back in the swamp to survive. Now an international organization is spearheading an effort to raise $38 million dollars to try to save 189 species of birds. Some of the these species only have a few hundred individuals left.

British-based BirdLife International is calling on environmental groups, corporations and individuals to contribute the $37.8 million needed for what it calls the Species Champions initiative to save the birds, including 17 facing extinction in the United States. The money will be used to protect habitats, raise awareness and reduce invasive species that often eat bird eggs and compete for food.
Bird Life International

More yard birds

2007-08-17T08:59:00.000-07:00

Mountain bluebirds and Spotted towhees. Glimpses caught on my morning run around the loop here.

New Yard = New yard birds

2007-08-17T07:25:00.000-07:00

Since we moved to an entirely new part of the country, we are building a new "yard list".

Today we have just the basics. Steller's Jay, Scrub Jay and Pygmy Nuthatch.

An interesting fact about the Steller's Jay is that it has the largest range of any jay in North America, ranging from Alaska down through the Rocky Mountains to Central America.