Wood Thrush

Got my first wood thrush of the year.  It took a while because migration has been slow and I haven't had the chance to check out the spots where I got them in years before.  But while riding my bike the other day, i got one.  I recorded this sound of the Wood Thrush's call and once I put the camera, the wood Thrush actually flew out and was out in the open.  It is almost as if the bird knew I was filming him.  Almost. I don't have time for much more, but enjoy the video!

2013 Year List: 155 (45 to go!)
Wood Thrush

Birding in Central Park

Today we birded New York's Central Park.  Migration, in the Northeast, has been slow with just a few migrants here and there.  While the Day was slow it was a fun day in the park.  Lots of people were out and about.  Many people know that the Park is a completely artificial and manufactured environment.  It was designed to bring oxygen and natural life into New York City with hopes that oxygen and nature might civilize New York.  Many have written about the different parts of Central Park and the role it plays it for migrating birds, including me!

We entered the park with a goal of 20 birds.  I set a low bar because I was unfamiliar with the park and migration has been slow.  Long Story short, We were short 2 birds.  Part of the problem was that we only got 1 species of Warbler, a Yellow Warbler.  We did however manage to see Pale Male, a famous Red-Tailed Hawk Central Park Resident, and several nesting birds.  BC Chickadees, Blue Jays, and Robins were all in full swing with their nests.  It was a lovely day in the park and great to see tons of birders out!  I hope to get outside soon!

 Turtle Pond North of Belvedere Castle

 Pair of Mallards

A bit of the skyline feature the home of Pale Male, can you see it?

2013 Year List: 154

Bank Swallow

Glossy Ibis

The Glossy Ibis.  Besides Birding, my other love is history and the Ibis is a historic bird.The Egyptians loved the Ibis and it formed part of their mythology.  Egrets and Hawks also did, but the Ibis has been found mummified and made into statues.  Many of the Ancient Peoples believed that Ibis and many birds held secrets as important as the origins of Civilization and life itself!  Ancient Egyptians believed that hawks were the first forms of life on the earth and believed that they held the secrets to the notions of Justice, Truth, and  Creation.  Pretty impressive and understandable.  Birds have mastered the sky, ground, and water and with such grace.

When I see the Glossy Ibis, I feel a part of that early Human tradition of appreciating and wondering about the birds before me.  What I need technology to do, move around the planet efficiently and quickly, find food/directions, and protect myself from the elements, birds seem to conquer on a daily basis.  The Hummers that show up the next few days will have braved a cross continental flight that we couldn't match in terms of speed and challenge.  The Glossy Ibis shape, color, and habits all have a mystery that we haven't mastered yet.  Perhaps one day, we'll know a little more!

Glossy Ibises

Glossy Ibises

Glossy Ibises

Great Egrets

A Nearby Killdeer

2013 Year List: 153
American Redstart
Black-Throated Green Warbler
Blue-Winged Warbler

Birding and Coffee

Who doesn't love coffee?  Well lots of people I guess but the majority of people drink coffee and coffee is increasing its reach around the world.  Coffee hasn't always been a global drink but it became popular with the expansion of the Muslim Empire.  Trade spread the drink and the tree followed.  Once Europeans made contact and spread civilization across the Atlantic, the tree soon followed.  Fast forward 100's of years later and coffee has spread across the world.  Its definitely one of my go-to drinks, especially before birding. But the truth is that coffee is one of the main causes for loss of habitat for our Neotropic Migrants.

What does that mean?  The coffee I drink to bird, to get through the day, to relax, can be harming my environment?  In a word, yes.  With the growth of coffee, coffee plantations are under more and more pressure to make more and more coffee.  They decide to ignore the tree's natural growth environment as a sub canopy/shade tree and put the trees in direct sunlight.  While not awful for the coffee tree, the elimination of the other trees destroys countless acres and areas and habitat for birds and countless other creatures. The Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center has a lot of information about the biology and science of why shade-grown coffee protects the wintering grounds of birds.

While I'll direct you to the SMBC for information about certification, science, and finding bird friendly coffee, I want to talk to you about what I am going to commit myself to doing.  The first is that I am going to drink as much bird-friendly coffee as I can.  Once again, SMBC is a great resource for finding these companies.

I am also going to commit myself to talking to coffee servers, companies, coffee retailers, and coffee drinkers about the reasons for bird-friendly coffee. Talking to people, creating awareness, and having a discussion about what we consume and how it impacts the world around us can help people make more ecological choices.  I can't speak for how persuasive I've been when talking about bird-friendly coffee, but I know that I am doing my part when I ask about the coffee that I am drinking.

I also want to extend an invitation to a larger discussion about how we can talk more companies and servers into joining the Bird-Friendly Coffee family.  What are the best ways to get more coffee drinkers to be responsible coffee drinkers?  I've got a few ideas, but I want to know what other people are doing as well.  The latest issue of Bird Watching Magazine has a list of the biggest "offenders" so I'll refer you to them to see the list!

In the end, I want to be able to enjoy birds for a long time.  It would be a real shame if birds were to stop travelling and migration because we needed a cup of coffee.  I've hope that I've given you something to think about and something for us, the birders of the world to ponder... over a cup of coffee?

Some pictures of birds that depend on shade grown coffee:

 Northern Parula winters in Mexico and the Yucatan

 Baltimore Oriole winters in Central America and Northern South America

Black-and-White Warbler winters in Mexico, Central America and Northern South America

Links to read more:
Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center Link Here
SMBC Bird Friendly Coffee Link Here
Bird Watching Daily "The True Cost of Coffee"
NPR "Coffee for a Cause"
Birds & Beans http://www.birdsandbeans.com/

Warblers, Warblers, and More Warblers

The massive migration of Warblers is underway.  Birds are showing up in our backyards from the Neotropic regions.  Its easy to just admire the bird once they show up and forget everything thing else facing that bird.   The migratory birds face shrinking environments, climate change, and the Human World.  These warblers overcome huge challenges to make it back to their breeding grounds.  Its important not to forget the perils of migration and the role they play in making their species healthy and successful.

Warblers don't tell this story themselves.  They just do what they do.  It is our responsibility not to make their voyage easier, but to respect their journey and to understand the role they play for our world.  Simple things matter a lot and simple choices can change a lot about our world.  There's an increasing awareness about bird-friendly coffee and that is something that I care a lot about.  I am working on a full post for that and hopefully it will be up soon.  In the meantime, look for new migrants outside!

 Black-and-White Warbler

Yellow Warbler

2013 Year List: 146

Black-and-White Warbler

Chimney Swift

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Baltimore Oriole

First of the Year

When it comes to migration, there's a lot of pressure to see the first of the year.  To be the first to see something or record your first sighting of something.  Sometimes, these can be great moments.  The bird can be tired from their migration and just too hungry to really care who's around.  I saw my first House Wren of the season.  I was excited because it was the first of the year for me.  There's a lot of hype about the first of the year.  Everyone wants to see the first of the year birds and migration just makes the fervor even worse.  I don't want to sound self-righteous, I get caught up in the fervor.

Many write that birding is not unlike hunting.  The quest for the first of the year is indeed tied to the instinct to hunt.  Searching through the thicket, trees, and marshes, its a primal need and skill.  Being close to the earth in that way is amazing.  One of the main reasons I got into birding was to find a way to interact with nature beyond knowing the difference between a tree and a bush.  I wanted to understand something more about nature and certainly birding has changed the way I see my environs.

I will certainly keep looking for those FOYs.  I hope you do too!

What I was looking for...

(C) Gerry Dewaghe 

2013 Year List: 138 (62 Needed)
House Wren

Migration is Coming...

This is a a well known fact that spring is on its way.  Every day my phone lights up with bird alerts from around the state.  This makes for exciting outings.  Every time you go out, there's seems to be something new.  As the past week worked out, I saw all sorts of new birds and sights.  I've attached some pictures below from my travels.

I am hoping to get many more pictures of migrants as they pass through.  There are some impressive sights to be had.  At Bombay Hook, I have over 150 American Avocets.  Seeing Shorebirds move in and warblers move in really helps me to understand and appreciate the journey the birds make.  Migration is an amazing feat.  Well, enough writing and get outside!

Purple Martins

American Avocets

Blue-Winged Teal

Bass Spawning

Hermit Thrush

Carolina Wren