The latest edition of I and the Bird is being hosted by Amila at Gallicissa. Coming to us all the way from Sri Lanka, take some time to check out all the great entries!

Friday is also when I go over to A D.C. Birding Blog to check out John's latest edition of Loose Feathers. Another site I'll be checking with some regularity over the next few days is The Shorebird Project. They haven't posted any updates since they were in Tierra del Fuego monitoring the Red Knots down there, but I hope to get some news soon as these beleaguered birds should be arriving en masse from South America now.

On the home front, it has been kind of a weird week. Monday started out nice but was snowing by the afternoon, though I find a lone Horned Grebe over at the reservoir to pad my lists. Tuesday was mainly spent on the road for a shopping trip to the "big city" that, in addition to spending money, turned up a couple of more species for the Utah list: American White Pelicans at Otter Creek Reservoir and a Swainson's Hawk soaring over an alfalfa field. On my shopping trip I also picked up a few native plants that should be attractive to hummingbirds - if I can keep the deer from eating them like they did last year (a doe and her 2 yearlings are browsing within 30 feet of my trailer as I write). Wednesday we had a guest speaker who took up most of our workday, and yesterday I went to Las Vegas for a "press check" for the park's summer newspaper (I did all of the layout as well as some of the writing). Next week I have 3 days off on our new summer schedule - maybe I can get some photography done for a change . . .

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 07:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

First of all, hope all the mothers out there had a happy Mother's Day.

Here at Bryce we had a nice International Migratory Bird Day weekend with about 60 people at my presentation Saturday night and 6 bird watchers along with me on the bird walk this morning. That went pretty well with 17 species - 6 of those "life birds" for one of the participants. The highlight, I think, was the most glorious Western Tanager I have seen. The red on this guy's head was incredible - the one hanging around my trailer is positively dull in comparison. We also had great looks at a Plumbeous Vireo, some brilliantly colored and loudly singing male Yellow-rumped Warblers, and watched 3 Green-tailed Towhees doing some sort of display raising their wings (I've researched the behavior a little but haven't found any real specifics - apparently some sort of territorial thing going on between males). Another highlight was watching a Say's Phoebe carrying nesting material to refurbish the same nest that treated one of the walks last June to views of 3 freshly fledged youngsters.

The towhees, along with a Black-headed Grosbeak, are additions to the year list; added another later in the day when I saw a Broad-tailed Hummingbird (male) checking out taillights on cars in the Visitor Center parking area. I guess he just wanted to know what all that red was about; not many flowers around here yet. Also saw a first of the season female Western Tanager today, too.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 10:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One of the things I enjoy about living where I live is listening to the birds in the morning. Just for fun I took out my little notepad and jotted down the names of the birds I heard singing and/or calling today. It took them a little while to get going, most likely because we had some heavy rain in the evening (canceling last night's astronomy) which turned to snow during the night. This morning's "joyful noise" was provided by the following:

American Robin, Grace's Warbler, Northern Flicker, Cassin's Finch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Pygmy Nuthatch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Plumbeous Vireo, Chipping Sparrow, Western Bluebird, Western Tanager, and Brown Creeper.

As I write this the sun has set, it is nearly dark, and there is still a robin outside chatting away.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Things have been a little hectic at work with some training going on that has actually cut into my time off. The good news is the birds just keep on coming. On Monday we had some geology training (including a little fossil hunting that yielded a couple of nice new specimens from the Cretaceous) and on that day I added a pair of new species for the year lists Black-chinned Hummingbird and Black-necked Stilt. The stilts, a bird I know well from Florida, were in a pond just outside the park. Considered "rare" Spring/Fall migrants on the park checklist, they were a nice, unexpected surprise. At a staff get-together on Tuesday night I saw a pair of House Finches to further pad the list. Then this morning I went for a short walk while waiting for my laundry and the new bird on that little stroll was one I heard singing 6 or 8 times last Spring before finally seeing one: Plumbeous Vireo.

Bird of the day was when I got home after the chores were finished: #105 for the Utah list (and #91 for the Bryce list) was my long awaited male Western Tanager! Actually, I knew he was around because I heard him singing for a good 1/2 hour before I'd left, I just couldn't pinpoint the exact tree. When I finally did see him he was at the bird bath and binoculars weren't even necessary.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

And the answer is . . .

Chipping Sparrow.

(The question, of course, would be: What was Kevin's 100th Utah bird - and 84th for Bryce Canyon- in 2008?)

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 12:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

After work today I made a quick run into Tropic for a few items and, along the way, added 2 more species to the year's lists: Brown-headed Cowbird (who needs 'em) and Mourning Dove. The doves made it 99 species year-to-date for the state and 83 for the Bryce checklist. Still need Western Tanager and, since there is no more colorful species that regularly occurs here, it would make a great one for number 100 . . .

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 10:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The past couple of days have been kind of productive with 5 new avian species to add to the year list plus a reptile (of course the lizard won't go on the bird list . . . ). The 3 Dendroica warbler species that breed at Bryce are now present and accounted for with the addition of Yellow-rumped (Audubon's) Warbler and Black-throated Gray Warbler (a positively striking male) in the last 24 hours. I added Grace's last week and for the past couple of days a male has been singing his heart out here in the campground. Sunday I found a Wilson's Phalarope hanging out near the Mallards over at Tropic Reservoir; today a Red-breasted Nuthatch was calling before coming into the open for a look near my trailer and, at the Post Office, saw some Barn Swallows buzzing around in their quest for insects. I'm now at 94 on the year for the state list and 78 species on the Bryce list.

I went the entire summer last year without seeing a Mountain Short-horned Lizard, though it is said they are fairly common. Last Thursday when I came home for lunch there was a pair of them scurrying around near my trailer. It got chilly again so, unless something ate them, they must have gone back below ground to wait for warmer temps (in fact, someone at work mentioned it seemed a bit early). We'll keep an eye out, but for now I'm more interested in the arrival of the Western Tanagers . . .

Update: We can add 3 more to the list: On the way out to the reservoir I saw some Tree Swallows barely 1/2 mile outside the park, then, at the reservoir, a Franklin's Gull (what a tough ID, even though I wouldn't expect to find many species of black hooded gulls in Utah; it was out in the middle of the lake, bobbing up and down in the waves - it's windy again today), and finally a Western Kingbird on the way back home. Now at 97 for the year and 81 for the park. Just for fun I counted the Eared Grebes at the reservoir: 130+ (hard to count as they were swimming in tight rafts among the whitecaps - tried really hard, to no avail, to see if I could find a Horned Grebe in the mix, too).

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 12:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday (Tues.) I heard a song just outside the employee laundry so grabbed my binos to see if I could find it and ended up with the season's first warbler, Dendroica graciae (Grace's Warbler). Just for good measure one popped next to the old homestead this morning and sang for quite a while up in one of the Ponderosa's just outside my trailer. Somewhat surprised as I expected the more numerous Yellow-rumps would be the first to make an appearance. But a warbler is a warbler and I'll take all I can get.

Both Monday and Tuesday I drove Roxy out to Tropic Reservoir - on Monday not knowing how much it had thawed - and, let her get her feet wet. Over half of the lake was free of ice and the birds were taking advantage. Picked up 5 additional species for the year list and, because of close proximity to the park, all make it on the Bryce list, too (crazy that it is a 14 mile drive to the lake, yet only about 3 miles in a straight line from where I live . . .). A loon was present both days and I shot this nice wing stretch Tuesday morning. The new species: Red-breasted Merganser, Northern Pintail, Ring-billed Gull, White-faced Ibis, and Belted Kingfisher. In addition I've picked up Brewer's and Yellow-blackbirds over the past few days, along with the aforementioned Grace's Warbler, so we stand at 88 species for the year on the Utah list and 67 for Bryce.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 06:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

We're having a little more Spring-like weather again following the cold temps and nasty winds we had earlier in the week. The bad news is another front will be passing north of here and high winds will be making a return over the next couple of days. Looking back at a post from last year around this time, I made mention of a really windy day, so I guess it must the norm here in April.

I've had the bath out but, with it being so cold still, I haven't hooked up the dripper as of yet. Robins have found it, though, and, despite the temperature being around freezing, they do like their baths. Must be clean birds. Other birds I've noticed around the campground: Western Bluebird, Pygmy Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Northern (red-shafted) Flicker, Steller's Jay, a pair of Canada Geese (!) that flew through here this morning, and a bird that had been singing all week that I finally saw this morning (kept thinking it might be a warbler), Brown Creeper. What had me going was the song doesn't match up that well with the recordings of creepers that I have - close but a little different. There's also a woodpecker around, but haven't had a good enough look to tell if it is Hairy or Downy.

If I can get around to editing, I have some more Sage-grouse video from earlier this week, too.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's almost hard to believe, but I arrived here a year ago today, though we didn't actually move into the park on the 16th. And I really didn't think I would be around more than 6 months, let alone go from being a volunteer to a Park Ranger.

For the occasion I put together this short (about 1:40) slideshow:

(There's a slightly larger version of the file here . . . )

It has been an amazing year: 125 species of birds* tallied to date in Utah, I've learned more about geology that I thought I ever would, I'm currently learning more about paleontology than I thought I ever would, I've made a few nice photographs along the way, and - this is the great part - they pay me for a job that I absolutely love doing.

I am looking forward to a great summer - hope you will stick around and join me and Roxy on our adventures around Bryce and the rest of Southern Utah!

*Despite the wind gusting up to 50 mph, I added 6 to the 2008 Year List today (now at 80 species): Common Loon, Western Grebe, Clark's Grebe, Eared Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, and Caspian Tern.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I went back to work yesterday and it was nice to be back after my 12 days off; in my Geology Talk today I got show of a couple of my "new" fossils. They generated some "oohs" and "aahs".

I'd failed to mention that I picked up a couple of new Year Birds while I was out fossiling: Violet-green Swallow and Rock Wren. Not sure what I was thinking when I went out since I remembered my binoculars, but not a field guide. Not being completely familiar with Western wrens, it wasn't until I returned home before I knew if I'd been looking at Rock Wrens or a Canyon Wrens.

With a few hours of daylight remaining after work today, Roxy and I went to see if we could finally get down to the reservoir. The road had been blocked about 1/2 mile in by a rather deep drift. Over the past couple days someone had punched a hole through and we made our way there. And discovered that it was, except for a little bit of the shoreline, still completely frozen over. So much for finding any ducks, grebes, or loons. I was surprised to find the local pair of Osprey hanging around their nest (#74 for the year list) and couldn't help but wonder what they are doing for food. I suppose they could be getting fish from the river . . .

In other news, it is now confirmed that for International Migratory Bird Day (Sat., May 10), the evening program will be my Wings on the Wind - Travels With Migratory Birds at the Bryce Canyon Lodge. Then on the following morning I'll be leading a bird walk - you should stop by if you're going to be in Utah!

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was a little worried when I first arrived at the lek (before sunrise . . . ) that there wouldn't be a lot happening on this day. Just as I crested the little hill and got my first view of the area I didn't see any grouse - only a Golden Eagle soaring over the lek and a few Pronghorn milling about. Besides the eagle, I was afraid no Greater Sage-grouse would show because my contact at the Forest Service had said that sometimes they won't show up if it is overcast. But show up they did, just a little late. For the most part they were too far away to do anything with, it didn't matter, though, because the light was horribly flat due to the cloud cover. At one point I made an attempt to move in closer using my blind, but that wasn't fooling either the grouse or the Pronghorn. So I went back to my truck and hoped for a little sunshine and for the birds to come a little closer.

I got my wish.

I had a small group fly not far away and was able to get a few shots of these two engaged in a Wing Fight. The bird on the right won, I guess, since the other left the area, but it didn't matter in the end because the hen they were fighting over left, too. And not with the bird who lost. Actually, with all that strutting going on (there were 18 males and 10 females), I never witnessed a copulation. Probably be out there again tomorrow.

The video (about 12 MB and 2 minutes long) has a long section sandwiched between a pair of shorter clips. The first clip has a brief Wing Fight; I was hoping they would carry on a little longer but ended up with a couple of minutes of non-violent posturing. The second clip has a male strutting for some (disinterested) females. The final short clip I stuck in there because of the Pronghorn walking in the frame. Unfortunately the microphone in my video cam does a lousy job picking up their sounds - I was really disappointed how it picked up so little from the male who was very close by. The obviously does much better with high frequencies - the song bird in first segment come in clearly. And yes, the area is strewn with cow pies (yuck!).

Oh and, by the way, species number 71 stopped by for a few moments during my brief attempt at trying to sneak in with the blind. I heard the call first and knew it was a sandpiper: Long-billed Curlew. I shot a couple of frames just for i.d. purposes - it was way out and I cropped this picture a lot (complete with a Pronghorn in the background, also . . .).

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

At the first lekking ground I went to this morning I came up empty - no birds to be found - while the second had a few, but I also arrived on the scene a little too late. I was somewhat concerned about getting there late for fear I might scare them away, but, as it turned out, some Pronghorn had moved on to the lek and the crowd of grouse had already begun to disperse. Two of the males weren't ready to give up and kept at it, strutting and "plopping" (listen here - requires RealPlayer), this guy was closest but I still had to crop a little more than I would have liked. I'll be heading out before dawn tomorrow, weather permitting, and hope to get some video in addition to stills.

Picked up a couple of new species for the year list today while roaming around and the "Airport Lek" where I shot the grouse is within 5 miles from the park boundary, so the Greater Sage-grouse can now be added to my Bryce year list. The first new one (out of the "zone") was Brewer's Sparrow (#69), the second I saw in flight in the park just north of the Visitor Center and is always a good great bird when you see it: Falco perigrinus. Hopefully this summer I'll be able to zero in on the Peregrine Falcons; there's a possible nest site somewhere around the Farview Point overlook here at Bryce.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 04:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was out looking for leks this morning (though I only found a lone displaying male and he was out of photo range) and, on the way back home I had 4 birds fly in front of me with a very familiar shape and wing markings - Willets (#68). They're listed as "rare" on the Bryce checklist so they were a real treat. It was strange because they weren't close to any water source, just hanging out in the sagebrush and rabbitbush flats atop the Paunsaugunt Plateau, not far from the park boundary. Definitely a far cry from the beaches and mudflats of Florida and the Gulf Coast where I had always seen them in the past.

Tomorrow will be another Sage-grouse morning with a different lek site to go visit. Unfortunately the closest lek to "home" is not accessible to my 2-wheel drive truck, at least not before another several days of dry weather.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Strange coincidence.

Went out looking for birds on this the 4th month & 1st day and what do I do: notch 41 bird species on the day (a new personal high around these parts, though a far cry from the 98 I had on a bird-a-thon in Florida). I suppose the April Fool's Day joke on me was that I didn't manage to get a single bird photo, just a couple of more rodents to add to the collection. The chipmunk was the first I'd seen up and around since last fall, though some visitors mentioned seeing one a few days ago. For what it's worth, the total number of vertebrate species I tallied was 47 (birds+mammals). Included in the avian total was 5 new "year birds" and that total also includes 1 "lifer" (wigeon). It may be possible to break 50 birds in one day covering the same ground I did today, though once more songbirds arrive later this month the ducks will, for the most part, be long gone.

Here's the list: Common Raven, Greater Sage-grouse, American Kestrel, European Starling, Horned Lark, Steller's Jay, Western Meadowlark, Mountain Bluebird, Red-tailed Hawk, Eurasian Collared-dove, American Robin, Juniper Titmouse, Western Scrub-jay, House Sparrow, Killdeer, Canada Goose, American Coot, Bufflehead, Ring-necked Duck, Mallard, Pie-billed Grebe, American Wigeon, Redhead, Ruddy Duck, Black-billed Magpie, White-crowned Sparrow, Rock Pigeon, Golden Eagle (6!), Northern Flicker, Western Bluebird, Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon & Gray-headed), Sharp-shinned Hawk, Northern Harrier, Spotted Towhee, Turkey Vulture, Say' Phoebe, Wild Turkey, White-breasted Nuthatch, Clark's Nutcracker, Pygmy Nuthatch, Mountain Chickadee.

(year birds, lifer)

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The Alaska Science Center has a new batch of satellite tracker equipped Bar-tailed Godwits, following in the wing beats of E7 and her friends:

The northward flight of Bar-tailed Godwits began in mid-March with the departure of four godwits from the North Island of New Zealand. This year we are following two populations of birds north, a group of 9 from New Zealand and a group of 15 from Western Australia (WA). The birds from WA represent a different subspecies of Bar-tailed Godwit that nests in eastern Siberia whereas the New Zealand birds nest in Alaska.

I'll be following along on their journey north and hope that, come Fall, we'll be treated to some more epic transoceanic journeys by these amazing shorebirds!

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the past couple of days I've seen some more stuff either here in the park or very close. New bird species include the arrival of White-throated Swifts - seen yesterday zipping around from the Sunset Point overlook as I was chatting up some folks just prior to my Geology Talk (leaving the talk I also saw some activity at the last prairie dog colony to emerge - almost a month later than the first!). The day prior at the laundry I saw my first Northern Flicker as well as a pair of Western Bluebirds within the park. New additions today included 1 bird and 1 mammal: the bird was a Northern Goshawk flying just outside the park; the mammals were a couple of herds of Pronghorn outside the park, they have migrated from lower elevations where spent the winter.

In the "I'll Have to Go Look for This One" department: Yesterday a park visitor reported seeing a Peregrine Falcon zooming around the park's southern end at Yovimpa Point - I'll be down there in a few days when I'm off and be sure to let you know!

And in the "Wish I Could Have Been There" department: A few days ago the park's superintendent witnessed a Long-tailed Weasel take down and drag off a significantly larger Mountain Cottontail. Can you imagine????!!!! No doubt I'd feel bad for the bunny, but that would still be an amazing bit of nature at work to be lucky enough to witness.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 10:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday, New Jersey governor Jon Corzine signed into law a bill placing a moratorium on the harvesting of Horseshoe Crabs that carries stiff penalties ($10,000 first offense, $25,000 for subsequent offenses). Hooray for New Jersey! Now if Delaware would just follow suit, things would be so much the better (well, that and an Endangered Species Act listing from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service that is long overdue).

One item I learned from an op-ed piece is that the way this new law is written, the burden of proof that all is well gets shifted:

Driven by the steeply declining populations of the red knot, the new law shifts the scientific and legal burden from DEP to show that the species is harmed, to the fishing industry to show that any horseshoe crab harvest will not harm the recovery of the red knot and several other migratory birds.

I like that. We should do this across the board and make all industry financially responsible for proving that their actions won't harm the environment. Fat chance it will happen anytime soon, at least not without a major shift in the way Americans think. Not when you've got clueless people like the one who was the first commenter (of only two as I write this) in the first article I linked to above:

Maybe part of the problem is the Red Knots eating the eggs. If the eggs can't hatch then it only makes sense the population of the horseshoe crab will go down.

Why comment when you have absolutely no concept about what is going on here? It's not like this hasn't been going on for thousands of years. I lost a few perfectly viable brain cells from the searing stupidity in that comment; I'm amazed this person can actually turn on his/her computer. (Hey friend, why don't you go back to watching Survivor or Dancing With the Stars and let the thinking people run things around here for, oh, say the next few thousand years. Okay? Maybe our species will survive then.)

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 07:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

While I missed getting to 30 species last week, I more than made up for it with a nice day today (38 species) and really padded my year list (9 new today and now at 57 species). I started out early in hopes of finding a Sage Grouse lek, but came up empty in that quest (I've since had the opportunity to chat with the wildlife biologist with Dixie National Forest and know where they are - snow, however, will prevent me from getting to them until more melts off). Just down the road from where I'd hoped to find the grouse I picked up a new "lifer" when I happened upon some Sage Thrashers. Another mile down the road I found a couple of first-of-the-season Northern Flickers and, a short time later, nice looks at a singing male Cassin's Finch.

I was stuck at 28 species (1 better than last week's total), with 3 new "year birds", when I gave up for the morning, headed home to have a little lunch, do a few chores around the ol' homestead, then do a little shopping. Following up on a tip, late in the afternoon I went to check out a pond down in the valley between Tropic and Cannonville (east of the park) and that is where I hit paydirt: Ring-necked Duck, Ruddy Duck, American Coot, Redhead, Cinnamon Teal, and Northern Shoveler were the new-for-the-year species I picked up out of the 10 species I found there. I also saw a small flock of swallows zip past, but they were gone before I could get the binos on them, unfortunately.

The other side of seeing more species migrating into the area is that many of the winter birds are now heading out. I haven't seen a Rough-legged Hawk in about 2 weeks and see fewer Bald Eagles and Horned Larks these days.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 11:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

On Thursday & Friday mornings, in between the chatter of flocks of Robins moving around North Campground, I heard some owls. Friday's was easy as it was a faint but familiar "hoot" I had heard many times before: Great Horned Owl. The call I heard Thursday morning was unfamiliar and turned out to be the source of a little frustration. What I heard was a slow "toot" (or "too", I suppose), and the first thing I did was run in and grab my Palm with Handheld Birds installed. I knew from other rangers that Northern Saw Whet Owls were present in the park so that was the first one I pulled up, listened to the recording, and determined that the cadence was too rapid for what I was hearing. I did a quick check of the park checklist and next up was the Northern Pygmy Owl, but it was still wrong. So was Long-eared Owl. Next I went to my computer and checked my Guide to Birds of North America software, still no match for what should be present in the park.

At that point I decided to see what my Sibley guide (the desktop version) had to say about voice and it turned out that Northern Pygmy Owls calls vary regionally. Maybe I should have checked there first or, in hindsight, checked the description with the Handheld Birds software because I would have learned of these differences there also. It does seem odd, however, that in 2 different software programs, they provide recordings of Northern Pygmy Owls from the smallest portion of the species range (southern Arizona). The really odd thing about Handheld Birds is the description:

Primary song is a slow, monotonous series of took notes. "Mountain" form from southeastern Arizona into Mexico gives paired phrases . . .

Seems kind of silly to me that they would include a recording that isn't the "primary" song. The same could be said for the other software which - and this is arguably worse - doesn't even mention the fact that the song is variable. I'm sure it is hard to put every little bit of information one might need and one very good reason I rely on multiple resources. But this issue of voice is kind of critical, I think, and should be clearly pointed out, especially when a field guide, electronic or otherwise, is dealing with a family of birds (owls) that are frequently heard and not seen.

I could rant a little more about it (there are discrepancies between Sibley's "big book" and his western field guide, for example), but won't.

Two days later I still think it is pretty cool that I heard that little owl, even if I didn't see it.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today was my Best Birding Day So Far This Year; I was hopeful that I would hit 30, but came up 3 short in the end. On a positive note, I added 4 new species to the year list, bringing that total to 45; all were within the range of the Bryce checklist area, too. The additions are Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe (a big surprise I found hanging around the edges of a pond where I was checking out the ducks), Vesper Sparrow, and Savannah Sparrow. The only (bird) species I managed to photograph was this male Greater Sage-grouse. They should be lekking soon, if not already, and the spot where I shot this one seems to be a major hangout for them. This was the third time I found them there and, who knows, it just may be one of the leks . . .

Birds weren't the only thing happening today, either. Since it was quite a bit warmer and the winds were a little calmer than yesterday, the Utah Prairie Dogs were up surveying the scene again. I am kind of surprised that I have not seen any chipmunks yet and, to date, only one Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel. Maybe later in the week if the weather holds (though the weather has already proven that it can be schizophrenic this time of year 'round these parts).

(Today's birds: American Robin, Common Raven, Horned Lark, Mountain Bluebird, Greater Sage-grouse, Ferruginous Hawk, Western Meadowlark, Townsend's Solitaire, American Kestrel, European Starling, House Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon & Gray-headed), Red-tailed Hawk, Western Scrub-jay, Killdeer, Savannah Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Canada Goose, Wilson's Snipe, Western Bluebird, Steller's Jay, Bald Eagle, Turkey Vulture, Mallard, Golden Eagle, Pygmy Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I am going to quit writing about "signs of Spring" because every time I do we get Winter weather again. After my last post we got about 4 inches of snow and yesterday, though the sun was shining most of the day, the winds behind the front were gusting up to 30 mph and the high temp was barely above freezing here on the plateau. The prairie dogs retreated back into their burrows and the birds were nowhere to be found in the park except for a lone Turkey Vulture (first of the season) and a Rough-legged Hawk. I added another 16 species down in the valley, including one additional "year bird" to add to that list when I saw a bunch of female Red-winged Blackbirds at someone's feeder in Tropic. I'm now at 41 species in the state and 29 species on the park's checklist since January 1.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Especially since about 2/3 of the total was attained while driving to the "big city" for provisions today. And would have probably ended up with more if I could ID sparrows while zooming by at 60 MPH. I did add four new species to my year list and ended up with a total of 25 species on the day - that would be the most I've seen in a day since back in August or September.

Just in case you're wondering "How does a guy identify 16 or 17 species of birds while driving"?, it really isn't that hard. My friend Kevin Karlson teaches a technique called "Birding by Impression" and, while I haven't taken his class, I have read about it and had sort of developed the same thing independently in my almost 9 years watching birds (he's far better at it than I am, though). It is a matter of being familiar enough with certain species that I can be doing 70 down I-15, see a large, dark figure with a bright white head and tail in a tree and, in a split second, the brain registers "Bald Eagle". An electric blue bird with a gray belly perched on a fence post or wire: Mountain Bluebird; similar color blue with a red breast: Western Bluebird. Horned Lark is a cinch with a quick glance and I am able to make out the head pattern as it flies along in my direction of travel. Stocky brown bird with a bright yellow breast equals Western Meadowlark. And so it goes. Robins, pigeons, Red-tailed Hawks, or whatever, if I am familiar with the species habitat, flight characteristics, obvious field marks, etc., it doesn't take but a second to make a positive identification. (Sometimes I do stop, though. At 100 yards off the highway that raft of ducks with green heads demanded a closer look with the binoculars because, as it turned out, it was a mixed group of Mallards and Green-winged Teal - and I would have probably just thought "Mallard".)

What I found amazing was the seemingly sudden appearance of Mountain Bluebirds; I saw close to 50 in a matter of a few hours, almost like someone had released from a cage or something. The other 3 new "year birds" were the Green-winged Teal (lots of them, too), a Great Blue Heron, and California Gull. The teal and bluebirds were within the boundary limit of the Bryce checklist area, so will pad that year list, too. Totals are now 39 species within the state and 27 on the Bryce list since January 1.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 10:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I made the mistake of going through most of the 171 comments accompanying the article in the Orlando Sentinel I linked to the other day about the pro golfer who killed the Red-shouldered Hawk. The stupid in some of the comments burns (actually, not all the comments are from Floridians, there are a couple of examples from around the country here, too):

"Well The homeless need feeding who told wildlife to take the bird. It was a charity shot. Cook it up!!!!!"

"Maybe I could get him to aim at some of these sandhill cranes that are continually shrieking around my neighborhood."

Naturally, someone (there were a few) from the anti-abortion lobby in Florida had to chime in; while they are entitled to their opinion on the matter of abortion (as long they don't advocate shooting doctors or blowing up clinics), I fail to see the relevancy on this issue - killing this bird was an illegal act, abortion in this country is not:

"It's sad when an animal is killed there are fines, and jail time.Yet innocent Unborn Babies are Killed"

Many, like this one, have trouble with the language and even want to blame the whole affair on the bird (emphasis added):

"Wow! One out of 10. Great shot. I could hit golf balls at a bird for the next 50 years and not hit one. Watch out Tiger, this guy is comming after you. Stupid bird. He really didn't mean to kill it dead. He was most likely trying to hit close enough to scare it off. I bet he never dreamed he would actually hit that bird."

A supreme idiot, this one:

"Good I hate birds. I am going to share this story with my Bird Hating Club this is classic."

There's more lunacy (and a couple of comments from the more rational people) below the fold . . .

Continue reading "The Florida Mind" »

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The New Jersey Marine Fisheries Council has done the right thing and reversed their decision from last month regarding the harvest of Horseshoe Crabs on Delaware Bay and has set the limit at "zero". I think the state of Delaware is still going to permit the taking of 100,000 males and I am unaware of any attempts to reverse that at this point, but a least with the NJMFC decision the crab population will have a chance to recover a little, which can only be good in the long run fro the Red Knot.

In the meantime, we are still waiting for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to make a decision on listing the Red Knot as an endangered species. They were petitioned (again) a little over a week ago, maybe something will happen soon and that would probably bring things to a halt in Delaware, too.

(Hat tip to John at A D.C. Birding Blog for this latest Red Knot news.)

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Back in 2003 a minor league pitcher for the Daytona Cubs hit a killed an Osprey with a baseball and got little more than a slap on the wrist for punishment (a fine and community service).

This morning I read on this week's edition of Loose Feathers over at A D.C. Birding Blog that a pro golfer in Florida killed a Red-shouldered Hawk. According to this article in the Orlando Sentinel the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) has issued an apology from Tripp Isenhour who said he was "only trying to scare the bird". However, according to witnesses, the fatal blow came on this TENTH ATTEMPT! The self-proclaimed "animal lover" has been charged and faces the prospect of jail time and fines up to $10,000. In my opinion he should get the maximum and a lifetime ban from the PGA to go with it. As a society we really need to send a message that this kind of behavior just cannot be tolerated.

(Sadly, according to a poll accompanying the article in the Orlando paper, over 25% of the respondents don't think he should be punished at all. Not surprising coming from one of the few states that still is debating whether real science should be taught in schools.)

Where I'm coming from: Florida has a really bad record when it comes to dishing out punishment for crimes of this kind. When an 18 year old killed 2 Whooping Cranes in 2000 near St. Augustine his sentence was 75 days and 200 hours community service. A mere slap on the wrist and, if I remember correctly, we was arrested again before his sentencing for shooting out a bunch of store windows with a BB gun. The baseball player that killed the Osprey did a whopping 100 hours of community service for his crime. It's a joke.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

It's not enough that the prairie dogs are out of their burrows but as I was walking in to work this morning I heard what I though was a familiar song. My first reaction was "No way!" but I walked back to my truck, found it with my binoculars, and sure enough, perched on the peak of the Visitor Center roof: First Of The Season Say's Phoebe. A pair raised 2 broods below the eaves last summer - maybe could be one of them . . .

For my year lists that makes #34 for Utah, #24 for the Bryce Canyon National Park checklist.

(Update: On the way to a dinner party last night added Mallard to bring the state list to 35)

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 03:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I received a link to this article about Whooping Cranes and wind farms via email a few minutes ago.

Have to rush off to work but will look at it in depth later . . .

There's a lot about this article that troubles me. They are talking about 40,000 turbines along the U.S. section of the Whooping Crane migration corridor and it sounds like nobody is looking at taking any kind of proactive steps to protect these birds. There is no question that, as a society, we have to move in a new direction as far as our energy needs are concerned but, damn it, we absolutely have to evaluate how we are going to protect habitats and biodiversity along the way. We simply can't keep destroying things. While we don't know at this point what, if any, effect this will have on migrating Whoopers, we have to find out and take steps to protect them (and any other species our activities could potentially impact). If that means shutting down the wind farms for a few days while they pass through, then so be it. If a Whooper dies because of the activities of a power company, they should have to pay dearly.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 09:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I still subscribe to FLBirds just to see what is happening with birds in Florida and, today, there's a nice follow-up post by Wes Biggs about the public meetings NASA held on Monday. It was also cross-posted to FlaBirding and, on that list, there is another post urging people not to get to worked up about it because of NASA's longtime stewardship of the land in question. I agree that there is definitely something to be said for taking that position.

On the other hand, I know all I need to know about the morons currently running things in this country and, given this is apparently a "commercial" venture, I have serious doubts about what may go down. I'll be watching for announcements for the public comment period when it comes time for the Environmental Assessment that will be taking place over the next few months (per Wes' post, draft this spring, final over the summer). I'll be writing letters and announce when the comment period opens here when the time comes (with addresses, etc.).

The collage features four images from MINWR, all shot on Blackpoint Wildlife Drive (clockwise from top left): Northern Pintail (hen), White Ibis, Black-necked Stilt, and Pied-billed Grebe.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

NASA held hearings yesterday as part of an environmental assessment associated with plans for a private launch complex at the Kennedy Space Center. As I understand it, one of the proposed sites would effectively shut down operation of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Abandoned launch pads abound south of the present shuttle launch complex, so it is hard for me to imagine why they would have to destroy pristine habitat. There were two meetings yesterday and the overwhelming majority of attendees at them voice their opposition to this site proposal, as I would have been had I been there:

"That you would even consider it boggles my mind," Wes Biggs of Orlando told NASA representatives seeking public input at two back-to-back hearings in Titusville City Council chambers. "The Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge isn't just another refuge. It's one of the jewels of the federal wildlife system, and it is known worldwide."

(You tell 'em Wes!)

"If NASA builds Site 2, NASA will become my enemy," Biggs said at the afternoon meeting. "Really, that's how I look at it. Just the idea that NASA would consider as a last resort building on Site 2 boggles my mind. I don't know if you've got an understanding what type of firestorm you'll get if you do this."

Besides the fact it is just a great place to go birding, I am especially partial because it is the place where I "discovered" birds back in 1999 and saw my very first wild Bald Eagle shortly after that. I love the space program but, like Mr. Biggs, I would be one very unhappy fellow if this went down. Nor to mention that it would probably kill the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, one of the largest in the country - I just can't imagine the amount of money it would pull from the local economy. There are times when there's a long parade of cars winding their way along Black Point Wildlife Drive.

Another thing that concerns me is it sounds like this "Site 2" will be in pretty close proximity to the largest remaining concentration of Florida Scrub-jays. Listed as "Threatened" under the Endangered Species Act, this could be a bad thing for them, too. They have been squeezed out of other areas at an alarming rate and, at least with the last governor of the state, nothing much was done to help protect the "Scrubbies".

If I can find a link for written comment, I'll post it here because this is such a monumentally stupid idea.

Posted by Kevin, F.C.D. at 08:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)