As usual....BUT this is a birding blog. So catch the warblers as they arrive in the next 2 weeks.
Sunday, May 1, 2016
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
"The Messenger", a film about the increasing perils migrant birds face
The Rehoboth Beach Film Society (RBFS) will be screening this documentary Friday, 4/22, at their new location at Cinema Art Theater, 17701 Dartmouth Drive, #2, Dartmouth Plaza, Lewes (behind Wawa.)
The following quote is from Denise Hoban of RBFS. She has asked Sally and I to make our Osher Birding Class aware of this very informative film about the plight of migrant songbirds.
"It’s a spectacular film with wonderful aerial footage that takes viewers from locations in the Boreal Forest to the streets of NYC and shows how the problems facing birds pose implications for planet earth. The Messenger is being shown in collaboration with the Delmarva Birding Weekend and the Delmarva Birding organizer, Jim Rapp will be present to lead a post film discussion."
Official Trailer of The Messenger
The following quote is from Denise Hoban of RBFS. She has asked Sally and I to make our Osher Birding Class aware of this very informative film about the plight of migrant songbirds.
"It’s a spectacular film with wonderful aerial footage that takes viewers from locations in the Boreal Forest to the streets of NYC and shows how the problems facing birds pose implications for planet earth. The Messenger is being shown in collaboration with the Delmarva Birding Weekend and the Delmarva Birding organizer, Jim Rapp will be present to lead a post film discussion."
Official Trailer of The Messenger
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Osher Spring 2016 Field Birding Schedule
Our first class will meet at Cape Henlopen at the Point parking lot. Our target species for this class is the endangered Piping Plover. Checking the Point out this morning, Sally and I had 4 Piping Plovers. The below pic is from a couple years ago at Cape Henlopen.
Osher 2016 Spring Field Birding
Meeting time for all Classes is 8 am at the designated location. We will not have a class if major bad weather, like heavy rain, is
forecast. If the weather looks questionable, check Bill’s blog, http://billfintel.blogspot.com/ for
last minute go-no go decisions. He will post a decision at the latest by 6 am
on the day of a class. Also be sure to dress appropriately, as it can be windy
and cool along the coast, plus a few showers will not deter us.
April 13 - Meet at Cape Henlopen Point parking lot.
This is the lot farthest north on the ocean and Bay. Our goal will be to find
and observe Piping Plover, N. Gannets, Scoters, Loons, and migrating raptors.
Inland we will search for Brown-headed Nuthatch, Pine Warbler and other
woodland birds. Park entrance fee required. Low tide 8:29 am.
April 20 – Location
TBD - Check Bill’s Blog, http://billfintel.blogspot.com/
by noon April 19 to see where we are
meeting, where we will bird, and what we hope to see. The locations we visit will
be based on our scouting, plus the most recent birding reports from Delaware
Birds and other local sources. Hi tide 8:29 am.
April 27 – Meet at
Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters just off of Route 16. We
will spend the morning exploring the Refuge for both woodland migrants and
shorebirds. Low tide 6:44 am
May 4 – No Class
May 11 - Meet at
Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. Today we will bird some
on the Refuge, and some on little used back roads. This will probably include
exploring the Nature Conservancy’s McCabe Preserve near Milton. Our primary
targets will be woodland migrants, such as Scarlet Tanager, Wood Thrush,
Prothonotary Warbler, etc. Low tide 7:07 am.
May 18 – Meet at
Prime Hook NWR Headquarters. From there we will car pool directly to the DuPont Nature Center at Mispillion. Our
primary target bird will be the Red Knot, but many other shorebirds should be
evident, such as the colorful American Oystercatchers and Ruddy Turnstones.
From Mispillion we will slowly bird our way south to arrive back at Prime Hook
Headquarters by 11 am. Hi tide 7:12 am.
Friday, April 8, 2016
New Zealand Hi-lights
Photo captions from top to bottom:
1 - 2 Wandering Albatross and 2 wandering Delawareans
2 - 6 lb Rainbow Trout caught by Bill, with Sally's moral support & yes it was carefully released
3 - Fishing guide Simon, with Bill and Sally overlooking Queenstown, NZ
4 - Tail of a very large Sperm Whale as it sounded off Kaikoura, NZ
Thursday, April 7, 2016
First Ruby-throated Hummingbird in our yard in 2016
Friday, January 22, 2016
Snowy Owl at Dover AMC Museum
Peter Zoll took these photos today. They are distant photos, but are certainly of a Snowy Owl (or decoy) who can move his head from side to side. Anyone have any more info?
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Bill's Top 12 Birding Tips
These tips are primarily for someone getting started birding, but even if you consider yourself an experienced birder, you may find some useful advice. For instance, with winter storm Jonas approaching our region, attention to feeding birds is something your backyard birds will benefit from, and you too should get many good visual rewards.
So please, scan through this list compiled and condensed from from 40+ years of birding.......
by me and my birding spouse, Sally.
Bill’s Top 12 Birding Tips
1. Go birding with groups led by an experienced birder - he/she will know what species to expect - he’ll know the key field marks and help you hone in on them - he’ll know the bird songs and help you learn them - and he’ll have a spotting scope
2. Buy the best optics you can comfortably afford - many good brands: Nikon, Swarovski, Swift, Leica, Zeiss - avoid compact, zoom and high power binoculars - magnification 7 to 10x, objective lens 30 to 50 mm - mid range and my choice is 8.5x42 - try binoculars first, especially if you wear glasses - when it comes time to purchase a spotting scope, you’ll know
3. Purchase at least one good field guide - Sibley, Kaufman, National Geographic, Peterson - better yet, with 2 different field guides, you can cross check what they say - some come with an Eastern edition which narrows options
4. Learn the common resident birds “like the back of your hand” - when new species arrive during migration, you’ll know you have somebody new - learn the songs of the most common birds
5. Use and trust published literature, such as - range maps, birds do get out of their normal ranges, BUT this is rare - check-list abundance is quite useful and accurate - if the check list says your ID is a rare species, you may wish to recheck your ID
6. Bird year round - 85% of DE birds are migrants, which means only 15% do NOT migrate - when possible spend extra time birding during migration, which is: - spring: April-May, with peak the first 2 weeks in May - fall: Sept-October-November, with peak the last 2 weeks of Sept
7. Learn habitat preferences of the birds you seek - most warblers don’t hang out on the beaches - most shorebirds don’t hang out in the woods - “waders” do like to wade in shallow water impoundments
8. If you can, provide food, water, plantings and bird houses for birds in your yard - observing birds in your yard helps hone expertise - it can also provide a great deal of pleasure - and it can help the birds as well
9. Use the Internet as a resource - SussexBirdClub.com - go to SBC Links page for lots of additional information on the internet - consider DE-Birds to be notified of rare and noteworthy bird sightings - Also Google a bird’s name, or Google-Image a bird’s picture - also use Google maps to get details on a possible birding location
10. Visit the top nearby birding locations as often as you can - Prime Hook NWR - Cape Henlopen State Park - Mispillion, DuPont Nature Center (especially May) - Trap Pond State Park - Bombay Hook NWR - Indian River Inlet (especially winter) - Cape May/Lewes Ferry
11.Travel and Bird - new habitat means new birds - definitely research where you plan to travel - there are many very nice lodges which cater to birders as well as the general public
12. Enjoy what you see! - yes, Cardinals are beautiful, as is the Scarlet Tanager - common birds sometimes do uncommon things - and toucans are really cool as well - enjoying the birds is why you go birding
So please, scan through this list compiled and condensed from from 40+ years of birding.......
by me and my birding spouse, Sally.
Bill’s Top 12 Birding Tips
1. Go birding with groups led by an experienced birder - he/she will know what species to expect - he’ll know the key field marks and help you hone in on them - he’ll know the bird songs and help you learn them - and he’ll have a spotting scope
2. Buy the best optics you can comfortably afford - many good brands: Nikon, Swarovski, Swift, Leica, Zeiss - avoid compact, zoom and high power binoculars - magnification 7 to 10x, objective lens 30 to 50 mm - mid range and my choice is 8.5x42 - try binoculars first, especially if you wear glasses - when it comes time to purchase a spotting scope, you’ll know
3. Purchase at least one good field guide - Sibley, Kaufman, National Geographic, Peterson - better yet, with 2 different field guides, you can cross check what they say - some come with an Eastern edition which narrows options
4. Learn the common resident birds “like the back of your hand” - when new species arrive during migration, you’ll know you have somebody new - learn the songs of the most common birds
5. Use and trust published literature, such as - range maps, birds do get out of their normal ranges, BUT this is rare - check-list abundance is quite useful and accurate - if the check list says your ID is a rare species, you may wish to recheck your ID
6. Bird year round - 85% of DE birds are migrants, which means only 15% do NOT migrate - when possible spend extra time birding during migration, which is: - spring: April-May, with peak the first 2 weeks in May - fall: Sept-October-November, with peak the last 2 weeks of Sept
7. Learn habitat preferences of the birds you seek - most warblers don’t hang out on the beaches - most shorebirds don’t hang out in the woods - “waders” do like to wade in shallow water impoundments
8. If you can, provide food, water, plantings and bird houses for birds in your yard - observing birds in your yard helps hone expertise - it can also provide a great deal of pleasure - and it can help the birds as well
9. Use the Internet as a resource - SussexBirdClub.com - go to SBC Links page for lots of additional information on the internet - consider DE-Birds to be notified of rare and noteworthy bird sightings - Also Google a bird’s name, or Google-Image a bird’s picture - also use Google maps to get details on a possible birding location
10. Visit the top nearby birding locations as often as you can - Prime Hook NWR - Cape Henlopen State Park - Mispillion, DuPont Nature Center (especially May) - Trap Pond State Park - Bombay Hook NWR - Indian River Inlet (especially winter) - Cape May/Lewes Ferry
11.Travel and Bird - new habitat means new birds - definitely research where you plan to travel - there are many very nice lodges which cater to birders as well as the general public
12. Enjoy what you see! - yes, Cardinals are beautiful, as is the Scarlet Tanager - common birds sometimes do uncommon things - and toucans are really cool as well - enjoying the birds is why you go birding
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