Birding Is Really Hard

Chuck-will's-widow, a long-awaited LIFE BIRD. I had no idea how freaking big these things were. Blucher Park, Corpus Christi, TX.

Despite the title of this post, I'm not about to pat myself on the back for being a legendary birder, or ramble on about the years of self-inflicted emotional damage birding has brought, or give all the gory details of the various life-threatening situations I've found myself in while in the pursuit of birds. When I tell you that birding is really hard, I mean it in an entirely different context.

Earlier this month I broke out of my habitual South Padre Island weekend routine to head a couple hours north to Corpus Christi, to bird with Nate of This Machine Watches Birds. The ABA just had a rally there, and specifically banned The Great Ornithologist Felonious Jive from attending because, in the words of a representative, "His birding skills make our leaders look like noobs, he smells like sardines, and people tend to get blackout drunk around him". Which is neither here nor there, but if the ABA is going to have a meeting there, you know the area has potential.

Wasted potential in this case. The birding was...mediocre...well, somewhere between mediocre and shitty. We hit a bunch of different migrant traps and other spots, but it was windy and the wind had been blowing the wrong direction for several days. On the Gulf Coast in the spring, that means only one thing...

Life is pain.

But is it really? No. Aside from getting to hang out with some people besides my coworkers for a change (refreshing as hell), I got a life bird. And not just any life bird...a gigantic nightjar. So all in all, the weekend was GREAT SUCCESS.

Pardon my grain, but I think you can still infer some of this bird's sickness from this unworthy image. Truly bizarre. I can't get over the birds structure, let alone the crazy immaculate camo the bird is rocking. Blucher Park is known for being a good spot to track this species and Eastern Whip-poor-will (which we dipped on).

This was the first of many Summer Tanagers I would see this spring. Paradise Pond, Port Aransas, TX.

California can have great shorebirding, but what we get in rockpipers and Sibe vagrants, we lose in charismatic eastern species. Stilt Sandpipers is one of those birds that is usually missing from any given shorebird flock on the west coast, and it's great getting to see so many (often in full-blown alternate plumage) here in Texas. Hazel Bazemore Park, Corpus Christi, TX.

Migrating makes Stilt Sandpiper so sleepy.

Blue-winged Teal are common down this way, and are capable of inducing their own brand of facemelt when they feel like it. Just let them whip out a wing. Turnbull Birding Center, Port Aransas, TX.

American Oystercatcher. It's so refreshing to see a black and white oystercatcher and not have to double check that it is a hybrid...that gets a bit old after a while. Jehl must have gone mad. Photographed at Indian Point, Corpus Christi (?).

The American Oystercatcher: a creature cursed with cankles.

Eastern Willets are plentiful along the coast here. Those with higher GBRS rankings than myself have suggested that the Willets will be split one day. Californians have ignored the existence of this subspecies for many years, but any birder who finds themselves near the Atlantic Ocean should get familiar with telling the two apart. Photographed at Indian Point.

"Kedek kidirk kedeek kerdek." - Least Tern. The sound of Least Terns talking to themselves is music to my ears. They are small and seemingly prone to poor reproductive success, but they are energetic and bring life to any beach or wetland they visit. Photographed at Indian Point.

The humble Sandwich Tern is dwarfed by it's orange-billed relative of royalty. Photographed on Mustang Island.

Pollywog Pond was one of many boring/disappointing places we birded. "Birding is really hard", I told Nate during our stroll through some great but lifeless habitat, and I meant it. One of the few birds of interest there was this low-flying Swainson's Hawk, which repeatedly coursed back and forth low over the treetops.

Despite the regrettable lighting, I got a few shots that I like. Swainson's Hawk is one of my favorite raptors, and it's been nice getting to see so many again this spring. Wish I could say that about Mississippi Kites...birding is really hard.

Birding The Conch Republic

While walking through the streets of Key West on our first day, I heard a loud unfamiliar flycatcher call above me. Shock and awe overcame me as I looked up to see my lifer Gray Kingbird. Key West, FL.

I have to say, if you are looking to go birding on your nonbirding vacation, Key West is a good place to be. Even frequent consumption of excessive drink and living on a sailboat anchored offshore (that's how we roll) were not able to get in the way of birding. The fact that the island is so small and that there are only a handful of places to bird (all easily accessed) make for very convenient birding.

Of course, in the first couple days I was completely slammed with year birds, and the bonus life bird was just extra frosting on the proverbial birding cake. My first afternoon birding there happened to fall on a very good day for migrants, and Zachary Taylor State Park was littered with birds. Another positive aspect of being there in the fall (and waking up late because you are raging all the time) is that there are tons of raptors flying around throughout the day; this is a major migration corridor and the numbers of falcons, accipiters, and Broad-winged Hawks streamed, kettled and puddled (?) overhead were impressive to say the least.

Here's some shots from my first couple days there.

Look at the size of that bill! This bird was right on Duvall Street, known more for its puddles of tourist vomit than its lingering South Florida specialties.

This Blackburnian Warbler (year bird) was one of the first birds I laid eyes on at Zachary Taylor State Park. The ABA birding guide recommends birding the native veg that grows near the Fort, but I had equal numbers of migrants (if not more) in the Australian Pines that grow near the beach.

Look at that stubby tail. For whatever reason, our west coast warblers are all relatively long-tailed in comparison.



A female Blue-winged Teal in the moat by the fort. Predictably, I didn't see much else in the way of waterfowl on this trip. Zachary Taylor State Park, Key West, FL.

You can still photograph Laughing Gulls while you are busy Not Birding. Key West Bight Marina, Key West, FL.

I love birding cemeteries, I'm not sure why. Key West Cemetery is worth checking out, although it doesn't offer the same level of birding that Zach Taylor or the botanical gardens do. It does have some pretty cool headstones though. Here is a Palm Warbler, the most abundant passerine I saw over the last two weeks. Key West Cemetery, Key West, FL.

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are always suckers for a good pish (or even a "spish"). Key West Cemetery.

The long, thin bill of gnatcatchers are perfect for the emotionless crushing of hapless, stupid insects.

While hanging out in the bush with the gnatcatchers, my first Northern Parula of the trip popped in as well.

If Tennessee Warblers (year bird) always sat like this, people would not have such a hard time identifying them. Zachary Taylor State Park.

This sunset shot proves I was not on a birding trip. I was enjoying the sunset, like a normal person. Zachary Taylor State Park.

It's Thought Parole, Population Control

Least Bittern. So, so sick. Martinez, CA.


Well birders. It's almost Halloween...this month has really flown by, you hear me? The best of fall birding is most likely behind us, and birders to the north are already slipping into a state of catatonic depression...winter is nigh. Of course, its not so bad for us Californians...we get almost as many ubervagrants in winter as we do in September and October. All is not lost.

There are all pictures from last winter that never made it up on BB&B for some reason. Drink them in with your eyes. Then drink something else, because the weekend is here.

Hooded Merganser. Golden Gate Park is one of the easiest places to see "Hoodies" anywhere in the state. San Francisco, CA.

Blue-winged Teal. Hella common in the east, hella uncommon on the west coast. Redwood Shores, CA.

Red-shouldered Hawk. Ventura, CA.

Green-winged Teal pair...I like how the colors on the drake turned out. Redwood Shores, CA.

Western Scrub-Jay, with a hookier (shrikier?) bill than normal. Ventura, CA.

Red-tailed Hawk dispute. Voles are in high demand. Martinez, CA.

Black-necked Stilts. Heck of refined. Martinez, CA. 

Thou Shalt Not Partake of Decaf

Black Tern. If White Terns were almost renamed Angel Terns....then this would have to become Reaper Tern, or simply Angel Of Death. If you're going to go giving birds Christian names, you gotta go all the way.

Good day to you, Bourbon, Bastard and Birder. While you are most likely relishing the taste of juicy freedom that is Saturday, I've got a big storm keeping me indoors...so far its been a day of coffee, bagel, Descendents, Drag The River and the internets. Tomorrow I'm heading out to check on our very last Piping Plover brood of the summer, and then it's going to be essentially killing time before I take off for Yellowstone National Park in a few weeks. I'm pretty stoked.

Here's some assorted North Dakota and Montana photos. Have a great weekend nerds.

Nobody wants to get stuck in the mud, just ask this Semipalmated Sandpiper.

An Eastern Kingbird, complete with skirt.

The backyard. Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge, ND.

Mountain Bluebirds invented their own shade of blue.

Red-winged Blackbird. They nice.

 My, what eyes you have dragonfly. The dragonfly densities in North Dakota dwarf anyplace I've ever been, although I think we passed the peak of the season. They are still flying around attached to eachother though, making sweet sweet dragonfly love. Can you imagine going for a walk while having sex? I can't either.

Blue-winged Teal seem to be the commonest waterfowl around these parts...none of them look like this anymore though. All of the ducks are now in their hideous eclipse plumage now, they make me sick.

North Dakota Home Entertainment System.

You'll Get No Direction From Me

Eastern Kingbird. Look how eastern it is.

It's a big world out there, birders. Don't be afraid to pull your head out of binoculars and take a look around once in a while. To facilitate this, here's some news.

BB&B fully supports the shark fin ban that is going through the legislature in California, which looks like it will eventually be passed. You can read about that here. Does it interfere with certain cultural traditions? Yes. Do I care? No. When it comes to dealing with extinction issues, the tradition of a species continuing to exist trumps any kind of popular wedding soup. Sorry.

The Department of the Interior has promised to do a better job handling all aspects of the endangered species act, including dealing with the the long Candidate List that has 261 different plant and animal populations on it. Currently, this list is a kind of limbo that many declining and vulnerable species end up on when an effort is made to get them legal protection. This needs to end. Birds like Sprague's Pipit, Xantus' and Kittlitz's Murrelets, Lesser Prairie-Chicken, Greater and Gunnison Sage-Grouse, Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, and Red Knot are on there. From what I know, Red Knot are disappearing more rapidly than any of these other species...but what do I know? I need to ask The Great Ornithologist, Felonious Jive. Anyways, you can read about some of this here. Hopefully something actually comes of it...the press release is surely a response to this court decision. I'm still not sure about Salazar's performance as Secretary of the Interior so far (not listing Bluefin tuna and delisting Gray Wolves stand out as huge mistakes he has so far overseen), but I would still take him over his Bush predecessors, particularly that unbelievably corrupt bitch Gale Norton. Oh yeah....ahem, these are the views of one Seagull Steve and one Felonious Jive (The Great Ornithologist), and do not reflect the views, official or otherwise, of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, whose efforts I generally laud.

Blackpoll Warbler. These things are rad.

Magnolia Warbler. One of my favorite yard birds here. Being strictly migrants to the plains, they are on their way to Canada at the moment...soon they'll all be to the north.

Californians will be bummed to learn that seventy (70) state parks will be closed this fall in an effort to balance the budget.

Unsurprising, but depressing nonetheless, is the fact that world CO2 emissions hit a record high in 2010. Shit.

The official public comment period for federal wind-energy guidelines designed to protect wildlife (in particular, bats and birds) has just ended. What FWS decides to do will have huge implications for wildlife for decades to come. You can read about that here.

Blue-winged Teals are everywhere here. They are also correctly named.

Bobolink doing its flight song. I should always live with Bobolinks.


We're finally getting out into the field today for the first time since Thursday. Finally!

As you can see we've got a pretty good mix of birds here, all of which can be seen or heard within walking distance of my fabulous trailer. Now if only the Upland Sandpipers would sit still for a picture.....mmm....Upland Sandpipers....

Yeah. See you soon!

Your friend and mine, the Red-winged Blackbird.