2012 Sparrow Drives, Part 1

Guess I had better catch up on the sparrow drives we did out at Weekie Wachee with our good friend Marianne Korosy. Marianne learned to band with us at our Wekiva banding site years ago and has gone on to other bird studies throughout Florida. This is the 5th year of her studies on sparrows at this site. Maria joined me for her first drives.

Once the 20-plus nets were set, covering a couple hundred yards of the preserve, volunteers were instructed on techniques that would be used to flush birds hiding in the thigh-high grasses and palmetto. The group lines up and walks through an area, clapping and shouting as they walk to move the birds toward the waiting mist nets.



Once the group reaches the nets, any captured birds are removed from the net by trained banders, placed in soft cloth bags, and taken to Marianne for data processing.



Then, the volunteers move to the end of where they began before and repeat the process again until they cover the entire net array, first in one direction and then the other.



The most commonly captured bird today were LeConte's Sparrows. I believe it was a record number for any day of these drives. I place this bird in the bag for transport and reset for the next round.



Midway through our first run (we did both sides of the array twice), we captured a very surprising bird. Bill Pranty (a bird biologist and author whom I am proud to know as a friend and I even have a photo in one of his books, A Birder's Guide to Florida) holds up the first ever captured Wilson's Snipe at this site!



Snipe are very elusive and bolt away from you once flushed or startled by close approach so I had to take a break and get some shots up close. Marianne was just as surprised as the rest of us and examines the bird once it arrives at the table.



Unfortunately for banding data purposes, Snipe are considered game birds so they cannot be banded without special permits.



However, we could spend some time admiring the bird's plumage and marvel at its other features.



A beautiful bird above and below.



Ready for the final close up just before being released back into the preserve.



We finish the first round and take a rest, tighten the shoelaces and prepare for round 2.



Our latest capture, a Sedge Wren, is removed from the net as photographers snap away.



Back at the table, one of the many LeConte's Sparrows is fitted with a new band.



Truly, amazing little birds. Colors are so rich up close.



To close out the day, we captured a Swamp Sparrow, a couple of Grasshopper Sparrows, and a Savannah Sparrow, shown here.



All in all a pretty good day, though winds were a challenge as it pushed nets over from time to time. The next drive would be in 2 weeks and that will be featured in Part 2!

Early February BirdCam Roundup

Been busy all over the state so it was nice to get back to a few minutes to review some BirdCam photos and see what was hanging out back for a while. So, here is the quick round-up.

Though the Northern Cardinals are ever present, they have been absent from the cam shots for a while. So, it was nice to see the female heading down to grab a quick pose before heading back out.



The Western Palm Warbler is still pilfering the fruit bits from the feed. Not any Myrtle Warblers yet but they are busy near the lakes.



My local Carolina Wren I banded a while ago is still waking up very early in the mornings and occasionally stopping by for a snack.



Better, still, his mate arrived at the feeder to snack, as well.



Finally, the best capture. The Indigo Bunting is still around for the season. It is not calling as much in past years but it is great to see it is still hanging around.



No Goldfinches this year but that could be due to some much available food in the area since we are having a very warm Winter for the first time in years. I will keep watching the cam shots by the end of the month and see what we shall see!

Common Goldeneye

Twitch!

I was winding down my work for the day when I saw a post from a fellow birder reporting a great bird just located in closer to the Disney area. I figured I could beat the traffic so off to find it. It was reported in a small retention pond along with a Lesser Scaup. When I got there, I saw the Lesser Scaup right away. No sign of the other bird.



Then I noticed a ripple behind a drain cover so I headed in that direction. Soon I was staring at a Common Goldeneye!



Though 'common' in other areas, these birds are a rare treat for us in Florida.

With that bird in the 'bag' I headed nearby to check again on the Buffleheads where they were earlier. A few females were still in the other pond.



A couple of great birds to see before heading home on a Thursday. Saturday, I head off to band Sparrows again on the west coast.

Cedar Waxwings Are Cool

Timing is everything somedays.

I was actually taking a break in the middle of the day to search for some parakeets. I had seen them in different spots over the years but can't find a permanent, reliable place to get them on my local travels. So I did some drive arounds without luck and headed home, empty-handed. I stepped out of the van and heard a ton of high-pitched calls in front of the house. Goldfinches? Nope. Cedar Waxwings!

I was unloading the things I had in the van while keeping an ear to the sky and trees when I saw a bit of movement near the street. Birds were starting to head to the holly trees mere feet from the yard. Waxwings were mobbing. I grabbed the camera and positioned myself in the one stretch of shadows and began trying to focus on the fast flying, berry-grabbing birds. It was a very nice 20 minutes. I got a lot of good shots as they drifted back and forth, like this one.



Seriously, is there a more elegant looking bird than a perfectly lit Waxwing? I find them so stunning.



Those tans and yellows and that deep black around the mask. I almost can't breathe as I squeeze off shot after shot when they stop for a brief moment, hoping I can get a photo to capture the beauty of them. Did well today.



The best part of looking through the shots, though, was finding I got some good berry grabbing moments. The birds were quickly stripping the two trees right before my eyes in mere seconds. Every wave wiped out another section on the branches.



A bird would choose a branch, size up where the remaining berries were and slurp them down. I love this shot of a near-gone gulp.



Something I was happy to catch, I never saw the Waxwings actually tossing the berries into their mouths as they were about to swallow them. The camera doesn't lie.



Sorting through the 100 photos, I made another interesting discovery. Notice that tail tip on this bird?



Most Cedar Waxwings have yellow tips on their tails. This one is orange. I remember reading about this more rare sighting before so I did some research and the most agreed upon reason that some birds have orange tips is due to diet. Some birds feed on honeysuckle berries and develop the different coloration. This shot clearly shows the orange tips. Nice.



The encounter was over too soon for me. They left a few berries on the tree but the traffic was increasing and eventually the birds flew off to the North. There are usually one or two days that Robins and/or Waxwings put on a frenzy in the neighborhood. Trick is being there.



This may have been my only chance for this many Waxwings at one time this season and I am super happy to have been able to witness it. Bring on the Robin frenzy!

Diving Hooded Mergansers

I always try to look for the Wintering Hooded Mergansers when I leave the banding site. Last week, a mowing crew scared everything away but today I happened upon a flock of Mergansers as I circled the back parking lot. Luckily, this flock was too close to shore to be able to hide before I got a few shots off.



As the flock moved away. I was able to get a few more shots. This one was closer than the last and I was trying to focus in on the male.



Before they drifted out too far I got the male singled out.



When the birds are either hungry or frightened, they dive under the water to either grab food or swim underwater as far as they can to avoid any danger.



Once they have reached their goal, the birds re-emerge from under the pond and show off their new hair-dos.



A female was also diving with that male. Though they do not sport the contrasting black and whites, they are still pretty little ducks.



The number of ducks is fluctuating but I enjoy seeing even a single bird during this time of year. Fortunately, there have been nearly a dozen every week. Mergansers are cool.

Still Watching Turkeys

Another day leaving work, another great view of the local Wild Turkey flock that have been hanging out for the past week. Timing and light were more in my favor today. Plus, the birds did not seem as concerned when I slowed for shots. The Toms were still vigilant and now there are at least 8 birds in this flock hanging out. Colors are still as vibrant as ever.



I even managed to get a shot of the male and female in the same shot which I really like.



I love having this quick little set of encounters before my long drive home.Though it does make me hungry...

BirdCam Roundup

The BirdCam has been running again for quite some time but other bird trips and demands have kept me from doing more than scanning and deleting a bunch of the shots so here is a collection from the past month that I found interesting.

Most of the shots are of Mourning Doves, of course. They are usually jockeying for position so most of the shots end up blurry. This is a nice clear one.



For some unknown reason, every now and then the cam takes a shot that is a little to a lot of purple. Sometimes it makes for a nice duotone.



One bird species we see, and hear, everyday is the Tutfted Titmouse. However, they are so quick that it is hard to get a shot of them and when the camera snaps a shot of them they usually have their backs to the camera. Stopping to stare helped this time.



This Winter we have a new guest at the feeders. A Western Palm Warbler has been flying in once the seed level is a bit lower. This mix has a little bit of fruit in it but most others birds don't seem to like that. Usually we have a Catbird eating the fruit but I haven't seen it this year. Instead, the Palm Warbler seems to love it!



I stopped putting out whole peanuts to save money last Summer. As a result, our Blue Jays abandoned us. Two days after I started the peanuts again...



Finally, one of my favorite birds has been hitting the feeders. I banded this particular Carolina Wren when he first arrived in the yard a few years ago. He was a young bird at the time. He and his mate started living in a wind chime I hung by the front door. The wind chime has a watering can at the top and he moved in a couple days after it was put up.



Hoping to get another shot of the Indigo Bunting that has returned again this year. It should be there in between the hundreds of dove and squirrel shots I will discard.

Inland Buffelhead

Funny how things work out sometimes.

I had a chance to get my son to school and then head to work early. This meant I would be about an hour early. Not a bad thing in our business. Once I neared work, I check for my office keys and noticed they were not there. I was switching out cooler contents and left them at home. No one would be able to let me in until more than an hour as I am the first to arrive 95% of the time.

What to do? I remembered reading a post about some fun birds not terribly far away. I had over an hour to kill. Driving, it is! Mind you, I only glanced at directions to this spot and then decided I would never have time to visit there since my hours stretched from early light to zero light. I drove on on instinct. Fortunately, I remembered the street name and finally found it as I was about to give up. Then, as I rounded the curve, I spotted the bird I was after out of the corner of my eye. A male Bufflehead!



There are usually reports of Bufflehead along the coast of Florida during the Winter but I always miss seeing them. I had to go to the West coast to find my Lifers. Now, I have 3 in a tiny retention pond in Central Florida and not far from Disney!



The bird even did a little stretching so I could get and nice view of the wing pattern.



Along with the Bufflehead were about 35 Lesser Scaup and a few Hooded Mergansers.



Circling and diving for food was a pair of Forster's Terns.



Time to head to work. A little forgetfulness lead to a nice encounter with an infrequent visitor and really made my day get off to a wonderful start. Maybe I should forget my keys more often...

Visiting an Old Friend

Since I had a little more time today, I decided to head over to Astatula and see how the Say's Phoebe was doing. I didn't spot it on the fence it has been on for the past few years so I began to worry. I headed across the road and scanned the other pasture. Still no luck. I started wondering if other birds were around so I half-heartedly scanned the entire area for any signs of birds. Nope.

Just as I was about to give up, I saw a flash out in the field near a large cart now in the field. I waited. It flashed out again and disappeared. Had to be the Say's. Yep. Now using the cart to hide and perch upon. I have revisited this bird for 5 years now and this is the best I can do.



It typically stays way out in the center of the pastures on either side of Ranch Road. When it switches sides, I do not know, but it is always about the same distance away. At least with the new lens I can make out the shape and colors better. Again, this species is typically a Western bird, rarely found in Florida. Definitely good enough for an ID verification.



There weren't a lot of birds out this day. It was nearing noon and the winds were up so besides the Say's I only found an American Kestrel and a few Palm Warblers near the doves down the road. So I headed out along Ranch Road hoping to find some Bluebirds or Florida Scrub Jays. No sign of either but there were a lot of Tree Swallows. I decided to head home.

As I neared the Say's site again, I noticed a speck on the wires ahead. Bluebird! Actually closer than I had expected. Too bad it wouldn't come closer or pose in a more natural setting.



I looked behind me and noticed another spec out on the fences. The female Bluebird was waiting for me to leave.



I had to linger a bit longer, however. I noticed a lot of activity in the nearby oak. Mostly Palm Warblers but there was more yellow in there so I stepped out to investigate. Sure enough, there were several Pine Warblers joining in the hunt for tasty insects.



Seems like there are more Pine Warblers around this year. Maybe the warmer weather has something to do with it. Or maybe the warmer weather has me out there looking more!



Either way, it is only January and the Pine Warblers and other birds are singing their Spring songs and I couldn't be happier.