Oozing Out of Every Tree

This photograph doesn't look real to me. But its hella real. The Great Blue Heron is even a wild bird...the others, not so much. I like what the merganser is doing, for some reason. San Diego Zoo.

Commuting...what a bummer. There is no better time to observe the cancer that is urban sprawl and overpopulation. You reflect on how you can go miles at a time without seeing anything that vaguely resembles what may have been there a hundred years ago or so. It's all very depressing.

But that's my only gripe with work so far, which has kept me in a steady state of being underslept and exhausted. Hanging out on the beach all day looking at plovers is apparently grueling...whou would've thought?

On top of that, I've even been Ebirding lately, which is particularly tiresome and really embarrassing. These are not the best conditions for blogging, believe it or not, because I'm not really motivated to do anything in such conditions, beyond watching X-Files and having a cold beer. To this end, here are some more San Diego birds.

By the way Ebird, please stop forecasting "fallouts" in your migration predictions, it makes us wince...especially in March. That's not a term to be thrown around lightly. That said, thank you for existing, and good job.

A handful of Little Blue Herons call the San Diego area home, which brings me great joy and causes a dangerous flood of Serotonin when I see one. I can't exactly claim the same thing for Blue-winged Teal, but they are approved of as well. Robb Field, San Diego, CA.

It's a great relief to have so many heron species occupying the area. Being away from them for so long makes me feel empty. Look! It has a blue face! How do birders live without having a blue-faced purple-headed bird to look at?

Western Sandpipers and Dunlin in various stages of molt/sexiness. 7th Street, Imperial Beach, CA.

Well, I'm no Felonious Jive or anything (seriously), but I reckon most of these (if not all) are Short-billed Dowitchers, based on call. Except for the Cinnamon Teal, that is. J Street Mudflats, Chula Vista, CA.

The illustrious/blogwizard/birdslave Corey Finger requested I photograph an Elegant Tern. So here is an Elegant Tern, which is another California specialty. Maybe the sun will be out next time. Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge, CA.

Long-billed Curlew. An excellent bird. Not rare, just excellent. Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge.

Snowy Egret is a top contender for economy of style...they are basically made of three (3) colors. J St. Mudflats, Chula Vista, CA.

Contrary to most of the above pictures, it is not actually always cloudy here. In fact, San Diego has little in common with the Aleutian Islands. For example, Western Kingbirds are back in force. Santee Lakes, CA.

Lesser Goldfinch. SO COMMON. But they have color, have the humility to come to bird feeders, and are with us all year. I think this is one of the species we would have a very different perception of if they were not oozing out of every tree and bush around. Mission Trails Regional Park, CA.

Police, Don't Hit Me Please

Redmond Lake, one of the local Piping Plover nesting areas. This place is overflowing with Baird's Sparrows and Sprague's Pipits, kids. The prairie I mean. Not the lake. That would be weird.

July. That means summer doldrums. Birders across the Northern Hemisphere are perishing from heat and boredom. Many birders become completely addicted to migration and cannot handle the fact that nothing unusual is moving through their local hotspots. They resort to travelling and self-mutilation in these seasons. Even if they can handle being friendly with their local breeding birds, most birds usually stop singing some time in July and get serious about finishing raising their babies. Everything seems to disappear.

A Western Kingbird basks in lemony goodness at Camas National Wildlife Refuge, Idaho. Mmmmmmmmm....lemony goodness.

Yup. This is a month to sit back and take stock of your life as a birder. How is it going for you? What have you seen? Are your id skills up to par? Any nemesis birds haunting you?

Personally, I've seen way more birds that I thought would have at this point in my life. Young Seagull would totally high-five me. My eye-birding could use a little work here and there (i.e. Empidonax flycatchers, large gulls), but its pretty kickass overall. My ear-birding, although not as good as my eyes, is solid...I attribute this to living on several parts of the continent every year and constantly learning and memorizing new sounds. Not that I'm some kind of warbler-flight-call Jedi or anything.

Let's face it people...I'm number 8. 8 is a strong number. But it's not the number legends are made of...no...for that, we must turn to The Great Ornithologist Felonious Jive.

Upland Sandpiper, officially my new favorite shorebird. Digiscoped with work camera and work scope. Photographed at Lostwood NWR.

I'm not sure what will happen here on the prairies. This place is unlike any other. I have noticed that shorebirds are already moving south (Wilson's Phalaropes, Lesser Yellowlegs, Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers so far), but everything has been about the same since I got here. The nesting shorebirds still attack me. The Baird's Sparrows still sing. The grass is still green. Heck, I've seen seen fireflies and some moose over the last couple of days...summer is raging here.

The majestic Sharp-tailed Grouse. Photographed at Lostwood NWR.

Marbled Godwit. Photographed at Lostwood NWR.


I have been flogging the BB&B interns extra hard lately. Although it may not look like it, we are going full throttle over here. I'm working on stuff for 3 separate outlets...BB&B, obviously, and 2 more that will spread our particular brand of bizarre left-wing bird gospel far and wide. I will hint that one Felonious Jive will be getting his own blog soon, much to do the disdain of birders everywhere. Yes, it is only a matter of time before BB&B hegenomy...then, and only then, will I be free to launch my own personal bird observatory.* Would you like to play a part? Speak now, because in a few months time your voice may be drowned out by the masses.

Just kidding. I love you all! Thanks for reading though, it's appreciated. Now I'm going to watch Alien Vs. Predator 2 because I'm a schmuck and there's nothing to do in North Dakota.

* This is actually not true. The only thing stopping me is thinking of a clever name for it.

Gumbo Lilly!

Perfect Death Trigger Happy Patriots

Western Kingbird. Photographed Somewhere In Nevada. It yellowy.

People are still abuzz from Felonious Jive's scandalous interview from earlier this week. I can understand why...he has a strange, magnetic energy about him that somehow reaches out to everyone, feathered and otherwise. Not anyone can be a Great Ornithologist. It was good to get the Human Birdwatcher Project back on track as well...the truth behind birding will be revealed, its just a matter of time. Then, and only then, will everything make sense.

I only made one birding stop between Mono Lake and North Dakota, and that was Camas National Wildlife Refuge, in Idaho. I had never heard of the place but it was on my way north and had no admission charge. Nice. This random spot turned out to be pretty sweet, and I highly recommend checking out if you're ever in the area...although I have no idea you would just happen to be in Eastern Idaho. It had a little bit of everything, and provided a lot of good opportunities with the camera. Their moose did not reveal themselves, but my own Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge has not been forthcoming with its moose either.

Northern Harriers are the scourge of marshes nationwide. Combining the eyesight of a hawk with the hearing of an owl with some intense sexual dimorphism, they are unstoppable.

The flashiest marsh bird of them all, a Yellow-headed blackbird. I'm not sure what its doing exactly. Maybe it isn't either.

Right. North Dakota. It's so....North Dakotan. I don't know what else to say about it. I drove to Minot a couple days ago, which is The Big City for these parts. They have a university and various places of business. I even managed to find some hippie food finally, and made other novel purchases (a case of Schlitz and a bottle of Bullet Rye). The weather was good this week so its been a lot of hours and a lot of miles out on the prairie, circumnavigating various alkali lakes in the great plover hunt, which saps my blogging energies. I'm sorry. I know you need this people...probably more than I could ever know. 

Excuses excuses. Enjoy the Idahoan photos. Sorry that I can't provide any potato coverage, it is a special crop indeed.

A pair of Trumpeter Swans had the place to themselves. Nice view. Camas National Wildlife Refuge.

This Sandhill Cranes has its summer coating of rust. It's from gorging on the blood of the innocent. Excuse the scientific jargon.

Eared Grebes have acquired their summer ears. Can you imagine lacking ears half the year? Yeesh.

This Wookie-textured lump is actually a porcupine. Beware the Idaho-Endor Porcuwookie.