Archives,
2005

January 1, 2005 [LINK]

A new year of birding

New Year's Day in Staunton is balmy but rather cloudy, probably not much different than in Pasadena right now. On my first birding walk of the year I came tantalizingly close to getting a good shot of this Golden-crowned kinglet, but it moved just as I snapped the shutter. Well, at least you can see the crown, if not the beak. This one happened to be the first male of this species I had seen in some time; they are distinguished by bold orange feathers among the yellow ones, but sometimes they are more prominent than others. I also saw a Ruby-crowned kinglet nearby. Kinglets are tiny, even smaller than chickadees, but move very rapidly in search of small insects. Finally, there was a group of three screaming Red-tailed hawks, possibly warming up for courtship season, as well as several White-breasted nuthatches, Downy woodpeckers, a Red-bellied woodpecker, many titmice, cardinals, and all the other usuals except for no juncos at all.

As in the year before, nearly all the new life birds I saw in 2004 were in Latin America, 31 of 35 to be exact. I looked at the annual data on my Life bird list and noticed that, after declining steadily from 1997 to 2001, the annual number of new birds I've seen has been increasing by greater and greater increments each year. That pace will be hard to maintain in 2005, but there is a strong possibility of another venture south of the border...

January 10, 2005 [LINK]

Life bird: Cackling geese

Thanks to a tip from Allen Larner, one of, if not the most active member of the Augusta Bird Club, I spotted some Cackling geese for the first time ever yesterday. They are close relatives of the much more common Canada geese (in fact, they used to be considered the same species), but they are only about two thirds as big. I saw at least three, in the middle of a flock of 100 or more Canada geese. Two other birders, Brenda Tekin and Tom Pendleton, happened to be at the Bell's Lane location when I arrived, and using their spotting scopes provided a much better image than my binoculars. Thanks, folks! Red-tailed hawks were all over the place; we counted at least eight. Also seen: a Kestrel, a Downy woodpecker, and 15 or so Killdeers.

UPDATE: I just received a letter from Susan Heath, Secretary of the Virginia Avian Records Committee, informing me that my submitted sighting of a Western tanager last March has been accepted as a "Category One" sighting, the highest level of acceptance, based on physical evidence, i.e., photographs taken by Brenda Tekin and me. This was the fifth sighting of a Western tanager in the Mountains and Valleys region of Virginia since records have been kept, but the first ever in Augusta County.

January 12, 2005 [LINK]

Back to McCormick's Farm

I joined yet another Augusta Bird Club trip to McCormick's Farm led by YuLee Larner this morning. It was balmy, as it has been recently, though mostly cloudy. Our most notable sighting was five Gadwalls, which are a rather plain looking duck. If my records are correct, this was only my second sighting of that species, the first being in 2001. I also saw both Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned kinglets, Downy woodpeckers, Red-bellied woodpeckers, Belted kingfisher, and a Red-tailed hawk. We were startled to see two Carolina wrens (obviously males) locked in mortal combat, clutching each other by the feet and rolling around in the underbrush. One pecked at the other quite viciously, and we tried to break it up. The first sign of mating season!

After I got home, this Tufted titmouse appeared outside our window.

January 17, 2005 [LINK]

First snow!

Snow fell last night in the Shenandoah Valley for the first time this season. (I also noticed snow falling in Gillette Stadium on TV yesterday evening, perhaps giving the hardy Patriots the extra edge they needed against the "sheltered" Colts.) This comes rather late, since mid-January is typically the midpoint of winter. The weather here has certainly been a lot milder than in California or the Ohio River valley region. This Song sparrow found plenty of good eatin' along our back porch this morning. Song sparrows are fairly plain, but can be distinguished from the more common House sparrows (a non-native import from Europe, often considered a pest) by their brownish streaks and a dark spot in the middle of their chest. They are aptly named, as they sing boldly and frequently, from February until late summer, and sometimes even in the colder months.

January 19, 2005 [LINK]

Conservation and conservatism

Tuesday's Washington Post had an op-ed column about bird and wildlife conservation issues by Pat Patterson, of the Fairfax Audubon Society. He mentioned "Pale Male," the famous Red-tailed hawk in Central Park, as well as the Cerulean warbler, which is suffering from a loss of woodland habitat in the eastern states. (For some reason, I have seen them in the Blue Ridge more often than some other warblers that are supposed to be more common.) I was pleased to learn that First Lady Laura Bush is a birder, and that the President "claims that he is managing habitat on his ranch for the endangered golden-cheeked warbler," which has a very restricted range in central Texas. I heartily concur with Mr. Patterson's call for Bush to "support $100 million in funding for the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act." As a first symbolic step at the outset of the President's second term, it would be nice to see a bird feeding station set up on the back lawn of the White House.

To me, it is just common sense that conservatives ought to be more attuned to conservation issues, but reality and popular perception both suggest otherwise. Though the Republicans' record on environmental issues is hardly as bad as some hysterical activists such as Robert Kennedy, Jr. would suggest, there is, sad to say, some reason for the Republicans' shaky credentials. Business lobbyists often get regulations waived on economic grounds, and if past Washington Post articles are correct, campaign contributions may be part of the equation. If President Bush really wants to broaden the Republican Party's base, he should broaden the definition of what conservatives want to conserve, and make it clear that good stewardship of the bounty of God's creation is a duty of all Americans.

January 21, 2005 [LINK]

More snow, more birds

We had another light snowfall last night, not as much as in southern Virginia, apparently. The forecast is for much more snow tomorrow and possibly Sunday. This female Cardinal was among the dozens of birds swarmed in our backyard this morning: mostly starlings, juncos, crows, goldfinches, titmice, and white-throated sparrows.

Yesterday Princess and George were frightened by a Sharp-shinned hawk that zoomed into our back yard. They flew out of their room in a panic and didn't return for nearly two hours.

The Photo Gallery page has been updated with newly added photos and some format refinements.