Non-Birding Post

To say that a birder spends a lot of time outside is a bit of an understatement.  Ask the birder and I  bet they'll say that they don't spend enough time outside.  Over this migration I've collected a few non-birding photos that I thought I would share with you.

American Bull Frog

Amphibians are important species in the natural world.  They are important sources of food for many birds from herons to egrets to hawks.   They are also important indicators of the health of an ecosystem.  Since Amphibians have such a permeable skin, populations really suffer with pollution and run-off.  That means that ecosystems with a lot of pollution will have an unhealthy population of amphibians.  Frogs, toads, and salamanders are also pretty cool looking animals as well.  Take a look around for them next time you are outside!

Painted Turtle

Turtles are also great animals to run into.  They are definitely awesome and prehistoric creatures.  My wife and I were lucky enough to see a gopher tortoise in Okefenokee Swamp.  Sadly those pictures are lost to a faulty card reader.  In the mean time, make sure to be on the look out for these reptiles.  Besides, a recent taxonomic change moved them closer birds!

Pink Lady Slippers

Who shouldn't take a moment and enjoy the smell of the flowers.  Pink Lady Slippers are one of the orchids native to the Northeastern US.  They are beautiful plants and one that reminds us all to take a moment and look at the flowers around us.  Pink Lady Slippers and all sorts of others are around to help us enjoy nature all the more.

Leopard Slug

This alien mollusk is at home across the Eastern US.  Slugs are great reminders of the vast diversity of life that we can and should expect to see in our parks.  Without biodiversity, nature would become drab.  At least for a while.

What are your favorite non-bird creatures and plants to observe?

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday - Link here

Book Review: Imperial Dreams

One of only two known clips of the Imperial Woodpecker

(C) Cornell University and Made by William Rhein in 1956

One of my gifts this holiday season was Tim Gallagher's latest book Imperial Dreams.  The book is a voyage into the natural history of the Imperial Woodpecker (Campephilus imperialis) in the Sierra Madre Mountains in Mexico.  For me this book was more than just a travelogue.  It was a journey into a nation and land that seem to be disappearing more and more every day and descending further and further into violence and chaos. Author Tim Gallagher takes on this fierce region, its tough natural history, hardy inhabitants, and current struggles.  The prose balances these well and you can't help but read on and on as Gallagher strikes deeper and deeper into this region.

For me, the birds of Mexico are not only far and distant because of time and space, but also the political and economic troubles make it a difficult journey and the birds distant.  Gallagher's account of his travel this land strikes a good balance between making the reader want to go and climb and explore these ancient mountains and lament the political and crime issues that plaque Mexico.

Does he find the Imperial Woodpecker?  How does Gallagher's quest end?  How does he deal with the dangers of the region?  Pick it up and find out!  It is definitely worth the read and you won't regret following Gallagher and on his journey through the Sierra Madre.

Some Campephilus Woodpeckers in the Peabody Museum's Collection

Sadly, this is how close many of us will come to the these birds...

Wendell Berry, Poetry, and Nature

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege to see Author, Poet, Activist, and Farmer Wendell Berry speak at Yale University. While, I was only slightly familiar with his work prior to this event, I was greatly impressed with his capacity to verbalize and enumerate the different aspects of what makes thinking and acting so important. Of course, that is an incredibly vague statement. Apparently, I'm not quite as good as Wendell Berry. But then again that is a short list of people who are.

Caring about the environment and local communities has always been a passion of mine. Berry pointed or during his talk how we have lost values in both of these institutions and the depreciation of both goes hand in hand. As an educator, I'm not only witness to a growing unfamiliarity with all things natural, but also to all things local. My students are always telling me that they can't wait to leave Connecticut and they can't wait to see the world.

I'm not going to lie and say that I was any different at their age, but what they are showing me is the disconnect between themselves and their environs and community. A disconnect that can Anna had proved to be problematic and rope with troubles, issues, and pitfalls. How do we repair these rifts? How do we heal the great schism of our communities and our planet?

I am going to so myself here. I an starting to built my reading list for 2014 and Berry is going to find himself on it. I might throw some Bill McKibben and Paolo Freire on there as well. So I guess my official review of Berry's talk: Go see him whenever possible. Listen, laugh, and think and be prepared to be left with some nagging issues and thoughts that in the end will hopefully bring some wisdom your way.

Wendell Berry at Yale (C) Michael Marsland

http://news.yale.edu/2013/12/16/famed-environmentalist-students-learn-requires-accepting-our-own-ignorance

West Rock, Birds and a Morning Hike

This weekend, I took a hike up a park.  While East Rock is well know to New Haven and Connecticut Birders, West Rock is often forgotten and ignored.  For instance, East Rock has, on ebird(c) 195 species while West Rock sits at 74.  Even the neighboring Edgewood Park also can only boast 102.  But that's how it goes sometime.

So the park was a buzz with birds.  There were lots of birds all over the park.  From the Parking lot to the Rock's Summit, I could hardly take a step without seeing some birds.  Chickadees and Vireos were all over the place.  Jays popped up all over the place.  Nuthatches and Woodpeckers were feasting.  Warblers were singing and kissing the air.  The famous residents of West Rock are Ravens and Peregrine Falcons weren't anywhere to be found.  Perhaps migration has helped them along.  There also Vultures soaring about.  I also found some fox droppings on the trail.  The Park was definitely a haven for all things nature and birds and I can't wait to get back.

While some parks get ignored, it seems that city parks in New Haven are getting more and more attention.  Many people are starting to work harder and harder towards making these parks better and more accessible.  Introducing more native plants and more landscaping with bird-habitat.  It seems that at one time or another, every park in New Haven undergoes positive changes and new plantings, I can't wait to see what they'll do next and what birds will pop up!  I think I might adopt a local park to bird once a week to try and boost the local bird list and appreciate more of New Haven's local parks.  Any feedback on this idea would be appreciated.

Black-Capped Chickadee

Hairy Woodpecker

A Dragonfly

Not West Rock, But a local pond with a Female Northern Shoveler and Euraisan Wigeon!

2013 Year List: 265

Eurasian Wigeon

Birding in Dixie: Virginia

First Stop down south was the Commonwealth of Virginia.  We stopped at Grayson Highlands State Park (Link).  A real interesting park to be sure, it borders the Jefferson National Forest is a 30-minute drive from the Smoky Mountains NP.  It is part of the Appalachian Mountains and borders the Appalachian Trail and the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The Park was simply amazing.  We did the Cabin Creek Trail.  While we weren't there for birding necessarily (it was a road stop hike) we quickly found some amazing nature in this park.  We started with an encounter with the feral ponies in the park and ate some trail side blueberries that were literally ripe for the picking.  Next we encountered the creek.

The Creek was probably the most fun part of the trail and what made the park spectacular.  The life near the water was amazing.  We spent most of our time looking at different plants, fungi, fish, and listening for birds.  I've posted some pictures of the park looked like and the nature we got to enjoy.

 A View of the Park

 A Fungus

 A Destroying Angel Fungus probably

 The Waterfall

Blooming Wintergreen

The next two pictures were the birds we got.  Neither picture is mine.

Black-Throated Green Warbler (C) by William Majoros and Blackpoll Warbler (C) by Cephas

The only birds of note were a Black-Throated Warbler and a Blackpoll Warbler.  They were surprises as we got to the park very late in the day.  The Blackpoll was a particular surprise!  We heard the call, saw the legs and the cap and beak.  The Break was a good one as driving for hours can be particularly monotonous.  We even drove through Damascus, VA which was a welcome change from the typical roadside rest stops. Birding in Dixie will continue soon!

2013 Birds:

245 

Book Review: Refuge

(C) Terry Tempest Williams and Random House

I recently finished Refuge by Terry Tempest Williams.  What a wonderful book from beginning to end.  Tempest Williams seamlessly combines the struggles of her daily life with those of the natural world around her.  Tempest Williams begins the book by talking about the the Salt Lake and the Great Basin.  The book clearly outlines what makes that ecosystem so unique, the fact that it is a closed water cycle.  The Great Basin's biodiversity has impacted Tempest Williams in her writing and her life.

The intersections of life struggles and environmental struggles are woven together in incredible fashion.  Without giving too much away, the life around the Great Basin and home life faced different but related struggles.  The slow but constant rise of the Great Salt Lake threatens the many different habitats that so many birds and animals depend on.  I don't want to give too much away, but Tempest Williams work does an excellent job portraying the frailness of life and the balance of the ecosystem with a tremendous use of words and tone. This is a must read!

Terry Tempest Williams - The Coyote Clan

OT: Nature and Wilderness

This is a bit off topic but I feel as though it is related.  There is a growing body of literature out there about the state of nature and wilderness in our modern world.  Although the word growing conjures images of new and exciting writing, I want to be clear that this is no new body of literature.  Thoreau and the other Transcendentalists often wrote about the state of nature and wilderness with the former being the standard bearer for the subject.  Thoreau, in Walden, wants to reconnect to nature, or at least a more pure idea of nature to try and better himself.  He was angry and disappointed at the avenues and trends he saw in his times.  War, technology, and separation from nature troubled Thoreau and he went into the woods for that reason.  He wanted to push people away from the complacency of the modern world and to find deeper connections.  Human connectivity to nature and each other drove his work.

Tim Bowling's work, The Lost Coast, offers an autobiography, or at least a partially autobiography, of his relationships with the Fraser River.  I say relationships because in part he connects the distant past, his family's past, and his own life, to the Fraser River and its changing environment.  Specifically, the life cycle and struggles of the Salmon of the Fraser River.  The life cycle of the river and the salmon have powered the lives of millions and Bowling saw the results of overfishing and the belief that humans can manage the environment better.  Bowling links the expansion of fishing to the expansion of our consumerist culture and increasing de-connectivity with nature to explore and share the pains and struggles of the Fraser River.

There is a loss of culture and nature that is evident in Bowling's Work.  The death and rebirth of the salmon is one of hope.  The Native Nations of BC saw the power of the Salmon as miraculous.  Their cycle of death and life is much like the mythical phoenix, except on an impressive scale.  In the end, it is the Salmon that can empower and ensure the future of the Fraser River.  Yet, disease and faults of the farmed Salmon can endanger this cycle.  Humans have impact lots of other parts of nature.  Yet the failures we have seen and will continue to see may not be a lack of understanding of the complex life of salmon, but rather, a failure to trust nature and our role as a part of nature.  We have a tremendous and significant role to play as part of nature and I hope to focus some of my summer reading on this theme and the idea of how I, as a birder, am part of this cycle and nature.

(c) Nightwood Editions and Tim Bowling

Link to the Publisher's Page - Click Here
Link to the Author's Page - Click Here