Alpenglow and Anticipation

Sonja and I took the dogs for a good walk this evening to make up for the fact that we're leaving for almost a month on Monday. I brought my camera along for the first time in what seems like forever to try to get back into the swing of photographing stuff. The alpenglow on the larch and the snow did not disappoint.



Our walk was cut a bit short by a neighborhood trespasser, though. He had been gorging on the rotten apples that had fallen off of a tree near the West Glacier school. Thirty minutes later he ventured into the park's housing area, where he was greeted by a few rubber bullets to the butt by one of our rangers. Hopefully he'll have learned his lesson and won't be back in the residential area again.

Meanwhile, with our departure for Peru only a day and change away, the anticipation is reaching a fever pitch. We're making list after list (things to do, things to pack, things to buy) and creating a big pile o' crap that will be going into our backpacks tomorrow.

I've also been pouring through our brick-like copy the Peruvian Bible, trying to get familiar with the families and their location in the book. There are a lot of new sections that simply don't exist in North American bird guides...and others that are hugely expanded (27 pages of hummingbirds!). In fact, one of the reasons we chose Peru as our destination (besides it being Peru) was the incredible diversity of bird life.

In the process, I tried to come up with a top ten list of some of the birds I'm most anxious to see. It was almost impossible to pick only ten (there are over 1,800 species in Peru!), but here are some that would definitely be at the top of any list, in no particular order:

How can we go to a country with penguins and NOT try to see one! The Humboldt Penguins are found in Islas Ballestas, which will be one of our last stops during our trip.

Ever since I was 8 years old, pouring through David Attenborough's "Life on Earth" (yes, I was that much of a geek), the Hoatzin has fascinated me. I mean, the babies have claws on their freakin' wings! Claws! On their wings! And they have a sort of rumen-type digestive system...like a cow! They're like thirteen different types of awesome!

The world's largest flying bird. Was there every any doubt that we'd go try to see Andean Condors?

Motmots, in general, are really freakin' cool birds. But the Blue-crowned Motmot is one of the prettiest. Oh, and their tails aren't grown like that. The birds trim them to make themselves more attractive to females (not sure if the females trim their tails, too).

Few birds families are as indicative of the Amazon than the toucans. And I personally think the Collard Aracari is one of the coolest members of this cool family.

Hummingbirds and more hummingbirds. As I mentioned earlier, the Birds of Peru book has 27 pages full of hummingbirds! I just happened to choose this one to include here randomly. Because there are tons of others I'm equally excited to see, like the Sparkling Violetear or
Rufous-crested Coquette, for instance. Impossible to choose a favorite.

Incredibly colorful tanagers are also one of the symbols of neotropical forests of Central and South America. This Paradise Tanager is one of the most colorful.

We'll get a rare opportunity during our time in Manu National Park to visit one of only a couple known macaw clay licks, where hundreds of Red and Green Macaws (among other species) congregate to lick the clay, which helps them digest the toxic fruits they eat.

On our boat trip out to Islas Ballestas we are also expecting to see Inca Terns. In fact, I've read that thousands of these birds will follow the tour boats hoping for a bite of the chum they throw overboard. Not sure how I feel about birding tours chumming the ocean, but I suppose it's not much different than feeders set up at hotels, right?

And finally, no trip to Peru would be complete without a visit to one of the leks of the Peruvian Cock-of-the-Rock. Peru's national bird has become a lucrative tourist draw, and all of the trips into Manu National Park now stop at one of several leks that can be found in the cloud forests above the Amazon Basin.

Yeah, I'd say we're excited.

2008's Top Five "Birdy" Moments

As has become sort of a tradition, I'm choosing to do a "Top 5" list to close out 2008. As has ALSO become sort of a tradition, I will be copying Patrick's idea.

So, here are my top five "birdy" moments of 2008.

5. 2008 Christmas Bird Count
I had been planning on posting a report of my experience with the '08 CBC, but I got a little distracted. So I figured this would be as good a place as any to put it. Even though the day was wet...very, very wet (it rained the entire time), I still had a great experience. I love participating in the CBC. Not only does it give me an excuse to go out birding (as if anyone needs an excuse), but the camaraderie of gathering together with other birders and tallying the day's count is always exciting. There's such a sense of anticipation and delight at learning what everyone saw during their count.

As I mentioned, my count was very wet. I volunteered for a 7.9 mile route down the Going to the Sun Road, starting at the Lake McDonald Lodge, then turning off toward Kelly Camp around the northeast end of the lake. The snowshoeing wasn't necessarily that difficult, but I still got drenched from the outside (rain) as well as the inside (sweat).

The most anticipated spot along my route was the bridge at the head of the lake over McDonald Creek. Sonja had been spotting dozens of eagles here a month ago, all feasting on the spawning kokanee salmon. I saw four, plus about a half-dozen Chestnut-backed Chickadees, some Pine Siskins and a Steller's Jay.

But the highlight of the entire day was spotting the little American Dipper happily diving into the creek in search of aquatic invertebrates. These little birds absolutely amaze me every time I see them. They have a tremendous range (from interior Alaska to Arizona) and are completely non-migratory (given that there is an open stream available year round). It's hard to believe that the little birds toughing it out all winter north of Fairbanks and those chillin' in the warm perennial streams of southern Arizona are the same species. This bird is why Sunday's CBC is on my top five list.

4. Any morning spent enjoying Montezuma Well
As much as I love living at Glacier National Park, I really miss Montezuma Well. There are very few places I have ever been where you can actually feel the spirit of the place. Montezuma Well is one of them. The sense of timeless magic and peacefulness is palpable. Each season has a different sort of magic, too. In the winter, my favorite thing to do is walk slowly up to the rim from the parking lot. As you crest the ridge you are suddenly bombarded with the adorable squeaking of dozens of American Wigeons. Hearing that sound brought a smile to my face every single time. In the summer, the place to be is in the little oasis at the end of the trail where the water emerges from the cliff face into the prehistoric irrigation canal, the Outlet. Sitting comfortably under the dense forest canopy with your feet soaking in the 74 degree water, while the Arizona sun scorches everything not in shade, is an experience you'll never forget. And the birds know this, too. Even in the heat of the afternoon I never failed to see/hear all manner of birdlife: Summer Tanagers, Hooded Orioles, Bridled Titmice, Canyon Wren, Rock Wren...

3. Madera Canyon
What more can be said about Madera Canyon? Any visit to that birding paradise deserves a spot on your top 5 list!

2. Madera Canyon
And if you go more than once, it deserves TWO spots on your list!

1. Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Even my trips to Madera don't trump this little gem of an experience. It was my last official day working at Montezuma Well, and I decided to take a video camera to document my commute to work along the prehistoric irrigation canal that ran behind our house. I had assumed that I had seen all the new species that I would see in Arizona, considering we would be moving to Montana within a few days. Imagine my surprise when I heard a bird I had been dreaming of seeing for nearly 20 years during my morning walk. And I had the video camera along to document the moment! So here it is, my top "birdy" moment of 2008:


Happy New Year to all of my faithful readers. Here's hoping that 2009 lives up to it's promise:

San Diego

A couple weeks ago I traveled to San Diego for a friend's wedding. I've been meaning to post some photos from my trip for a while now and am finally getting around to it.

A San Diego sunset

Harbor seals and a Ruddy Turnstone

Brown Pelican and Heerman's Gull

Whimbrel

Willet

Sand dollar in the surf

Marbled Godwits on the beach

Of Cuckoos and Careers

I spotted what will, in all likelihood, be my last Arizona life bird...at least for a little while anyway. I was walking to work yesterday morning when I encountered a Yellow-billed Cuckoo. I'd been trying to find one of these ever since I learned they nested here. It took me until four days before we move to actually see one. Fortunately, I had a video camera with me, so I got some footage of the encounter:


And speaking of our big move, it's looking very likely that Sonja will have a job waiting for her when we arrive at Glacier! She'll be working as a bio-tech doing wildlife observations along the Going to the Sun Road. From what her new supervisor says, the job focuses mostly on grizzly-road interactions, so she'll be spending most of her time looking for bears. Both of us are really excited for this really amazing opportunity for her! Everything just seems to be coming together perfectly for us.

We leave on Tuesday morning, and plan on arriving in our new, temporary home on Friday. I hope to post at least once more before we leave, but you know how I tend to be about that. Either way, I'll be sure to post some pictures of Montana as soon as we get settled in.

Madera Revisited...One Last Time

One of things I'm really going to miss about living in Arizona is the (relative) ease with which one can access some of North America's premiere birding hot spots. Take Madera Canyon, for instance. I've been there three times in the last four months and have seen some of the most amazing birds I've ever encountered. Sure, it's a three hour drive to get there. But the payoff is so worth it.

This trip was no different. Sonja had to work which meant I was going it alone. I don't think she minded all that much, though. She seemed to be getting a little tired of driving so far just to go birding. I left home around 3:30am in order to make it to the canyon before the heat of the day. As it turned out, I could have left an hour or two later and had just as much success, considering how quiet it was for the first couple of hours.

The morning started out exciting, though, as I spotted what I thought was one of my three main target species for the day, a White-eared Hummingbird. Alas, my excitement faded as soon as this little guy took to the air and two brilliant white patches appeared on the tip of its tail. Still, it's not often that one gets a chance to admire a Blue-throated Hummingbird, so even though it wasn't a lifer for me I still took the time to enjoy watching it get chased off the feeder by a noisy Black-chinned Hummer.

Another non-lifer I was hoping to see again was Madera Canyon's resident Flame-colored Tanager, particularly because I wanted to try to get a better photograph of it. My last attempt at trying to capture this bird in a photo was less than satisfactory due to the fact that the damn thing refused to leave the very tops of the 30 foot sycamore trees. Things worked out a little better this time around.

After singing his little heart out at the top of a tree (of course), he finally decided to descend a bit and put on a little show for me (I was surprisingly the only birder around for the first hour or so). I did miss my greatest opportunity to snap a picture when he landed no more than ten feet from me. I was so thrilled to see it so close that I sorta forgot I had my camera around my neck.

This one's kind of a weird angle, but I like how it shows off the brilliant plumage that gives this bird its name.

The other bird everyone comes to Madera Canyon to see is another that has never disappointed me (at least not in Madera): the Elegant Trogon.

By the time I heard the trogon's croaking bark in the distance over three hours had elapsed since my arrival and I still hadn't seen any of my target species. As soon as I heard it, though, any disappointment I was starting to feel quickly vanished and I began to focus on simply enjoying the experience of birding in Madera. It's hard not to enjoy it when you get a bird like this looking down at you from just overhead.

Such a cool bird. Seeing (and hearing) him again made the whole trip worthwhile for me.

Four hours in and still no lifers (or so I thought...turns out I wouldn't identify one until I got home Monday night and examined my photos), but I didn't care. I was having a great time relaxing in a lawn chair at one of Madera Canyon's "Birding B&B's" taking photos of the gorgeous Broad-billed Hummingbirds that seemed to be everywhere.

You can't ask for a more photogenic bird than this one. But the excitement of the chase quickly returned when two guys in the chair next to me asked if I was still looking for the one bird I wanted to find more than any that day, the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher.

Then they pointed up to a branch overhead. Turns out there was an active nest in a tree no more than 30 feet from where I was sitting.

Not only did I get to see a Sulphur-belly, I got to watch them fly in and out of a nest cavity as they brought an endless supply of bugs to their demanding brood.

But the most exciting bird for me that day was one I hadn't even considered looking for until one of the birders I had been chatting with mentioned that they had seen dozens of them a ways down the road. So, on my way out of the canyon, I made a quick stop at a pull-out and headed down the trail in search of a little bird I really hadn't thought twice about, the Varied Bunting.

None of the pictures I've ever seen of this bird come remotely close to how gorgeous it really is. The deep maroon, violet and indigo of its plumage blend together in a way that is almost indescribable. It was one of the most surprisingly stunning birds I've ever seen.

When the day was done, I left Madera Canyon with three new lifers: Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, Varied Bunting, and the Cassin's Vireo I couldn't properly identify until I got home. If those three birds (plus all the others I saw) weren't enough to convince me that the trip was worth it, the Gray Hawk that flew over my car as I was driving through suburban Tucson in search of a gas station most certainly was.

Glacier National Park is going to be an incredible place to live and work, there's no doubt about it. I'll even get to flesh out the grouse section of my life list a bit. But I will most definitely miss the world-class birding we've been able to experience during our time here in Arizona.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It's been a little crazy around here the past week or so. We've had house-guests pretty much daily since last Monday, which doesn't provide much time for blogging. First it was some NPS colleagues of mine who were here to help me lead the interpretive training for our seasonal rangers. Now, Sonja's folks and nephew Nick are here for a visit.

Later today we'll be leaving for Zion National Park for a few days, but when we get back I hope to have some exciting news. In the meantime, enjoy this photo from an early morning birding trip I took with Nick yesterday. He hardly even flinched when I woke him up at 5:30am to get ready to go. I think he even enjoyed the whole experience, even though we didn't find the bird we were looking for. He even spotted some birds I would have missed, including a nice look at a Blue Grosbeak. Not bad for a 16 year old non-birder.

Red-tailed Hawk
at Montezuma Castle

Madera Canyon: A Birder's Paradise

There are three birding meccas in North America that nearly every birder puts on their "someday I'll go there" list: the Pribilof Islands of Alaska, the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, and the "Sky Islands" of Southeastern Arizona. This weekend Sonja and I visited one of these for a birding experience that few other places on the continent can rival. Madera Canyon is tucked away in the Santa Rita Mountains south of Tucson, easily accessible to anyone who knows both where it is and why it's such a treasure, and for anyone interested in seeing cool birds it offers eye-candy that you can't find anywhere else north of the Mexican border. This is such an amazing place for birds that I was willing to make the 200+ mile trip down there twice in the last two weeks, just to give Sonja the opportunity to see what I saw. 64 species and many lifers later (4 for me and 13 for Sonja) both Sonja and I agreed that it was well worth it.

Remember how I had forgotten my camera battery last time I visited Madera Canyon? Well, I made no such mistake this time. The following photos depict the highlights from our morning exploring one of Arizona's most spectacular Sky Islands.

An early morning glimpse of a Magnificent Hummingbird (you really need to click on that photo to get a decent look at the bird).

A typical view of the Flame-colored Tanager that has been one of the highlights for many birders visiting Madera Canyon this spring.

This Hepatic Tanager was another lifer for Sonja. One of my goals for the day was to experience a "Four Tanager Day", something not possible anywhere else within the ABA boundaries of North America. We got three pretty quickly (these two and some Western Tanagers at our first stop), but the Summer Tanager eluded us...until we were on our way out of the canyon. I was a happy camper!

This turned into the day of the vireos for us. This Bell's Vireo was one of five species we saw today. The others we saw were Gray, Plumbeous, Hutton's and Warbling Vireos.

Mexican Jays could be found all over the place.

Same with the Acorn Woodpeckers, which were probably the most numerous species we saw today.

This was the only Arizona Woodpecker we spotted, though.

We scored four tyrant flycatchers today, too, including this Dusky-capped Flycatcher.

We almost missed the Northern Pygmy Owl that put on the show for me last time (eating a lizard and copulating in front of a crowd of onlookers). We were about to give up when someone spotted it. I didn't crop the picture to give you a better idea of the size of this tiny owl.

While we've got tons of Bridled Titmice around our place, this was the first time one of the buggers cooperated enough to get some decent photos of it.

Without a doubt, however, the highlight of the entire day was seeing Madera Canyon's most famous resident: the Elegant Trogon.




We chased this bird's dog-like bark up (go here and click on "Elegant Trogon Voice" to hear the bird) and down the canyon, spotting him several times throughout the hike. I was even able to draw him closer by mimicking a mutant saw-whet/pygmy owl hybrid. Seeing one of these obviously tropical birds in the wild is indescribable. Everything about them just screams "I don't belong here!" It's a testament to the importance of protecting Arizona's fragile Sky Islands that these birds of the tropics can still be found in the States.

We finished out the day by stopping by the Sonoran Desert Museum, a non-profit "zoo" that takes in non-releasable rehab animals, focusing on the unique species that inhabit the deserts and mountains of southern Arizona. Their bird aviaries were nothing short of spectacular:

We spotted five species of hummers in Madera Canyon this morning (including Broad-billed Hummingbirds like this one), but they proved to be much easier to photograph in the aviaries.

Another shot of the beautiful Broad-billed Hummingbird. I was disappointed that they didn't have a Magnificent Hummingbird on display. I guess I'll just have to go back to Madera Canyon to get a decent photo of one of them.