Category Archives: Digiscoping

A Couple of Storm Birds

In spite of forecast for high winds and some rain, we escaped Hurricane Sandy with just a little wind and showers.  And so while we we likely didn’t get any rare birds blown in, we also are much more fortunate than our southern neighbors in New York, New Jersey, and the mid-Atlantic region.  The scenes of destruction put things in perspective.

Yesterday in the late morning, I drove down to a doctor’s appointment.  I had put the scope and binos in the truck, just in case.  As I drove by the Wrightsville Reservoir, just down the road from my house, I saw a couple of specs of white on the water as I raced by.  I turned around, drove down to the boat launch, and set up my scope.  A Bufflehead and a grebe were across the water, just resting in place.  I digiscoped a couple of shots and jumped in the truck to get to the doc in time.  Here’s what I saw:

After the appointment, I stopped on my way back.  The grebe had moved away from the Bufflehead and was even further off.  As I was driving off, two birder friends, both more skilled than I, drove up and we spent some time scoping the bird.  It was diving frequently and the light was bad but we settled on a Horned Grebe.  One reason is that the Red-necked is quite a lot larger.

The Bufflehead and the Horned Grebe are nearly the same size so having them side-by-side was a big help.

This is my first Vermont Horned Grebe and thus, first in Washington County.  I’m hoping that we might get a few more strays today.

Images by Dick Mansfield

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Digiscoping at Plum Island

I try to make it over to Parker River NWR every time we visit this area and today I grabbed a few hours to check things out and practice some digiscoping.  There were few tourists and birders and lots of ducks.  Most of the ducks were feeding heavily so I gave up after taking way too many “duck butt” shots.  I saw Gadwalls, Mallards, Teals, Pintails, Wigeons, Ruddy Ducks, Black Ducks, and a probably a few more.  Four Mute Swans were in the Salt Pannes –here’s a shot of one preening.

Mute Swan preening

We always check Mute Swans hoping for a Tundra…. some day.

Some of the highlights of the day were the hundreds of Double-crested Cormorants (with probably a Great or two in there) heading southward.  I enjoyed watching two Northern Harriers hunting, using the northwest wind to hover and swoop.  They are perhaps my favorite hawk.

Lots of sparrows still hanging out — Swamp, White-crowned, Savannah, Song, and several others too vague for me to identify.  I need a sparrow guru with me on Plum Island.  One Song Sparrow posed for some digiscoping:

On the way out, about a dozen Yellowlegs were resting.  Here is one that was up and about and looking good.

In addition to good weather and good birds, it was nice to be at Parker River between hunting seasons.  The adjacent waters are hunted heavily and it’s nice to have some peace and quiet — for us and for the ducks and geese.

Harbor Seal Spotting


Every fall and winter, harbor seals come into the Merrimack River. They congregate just opposite to the campground -they are very much a local attraction — to campers and day visitors to Salisbury State Park Reservation.  Mary and I drove over today to see them as the tide was receding.

Named common seal throughout Europe, this seal frequently observed around Long Island lives along the shores of eastern Canada, New England and in the winter, as far south as the Carolinas in a variety of habitats. Their scientific name loosely means “sea calf” or “sea dog.” This latter nickname is well suited as these seals closely resemble a dog when their head is viewed at the surface of the water.

“Hey Guys, stop loafing and get to work. The fish are running.”

They were out on the rocks, lying with their heads and hind flippers elevated in a “banana-like” position. They were “talking” to one another and enjoying the fall cloud-filtered sunlight.

A Great Black-backed Gull posed as we watched the seals.

While harbor seals don’t do the tricks of the seals at Sea World, it was delightful to see them in their natural habitat, feeding, playing, and resting. Nice images to take back to a pending Vermont winter.

Mallards Get No Respect

“Ah, just a couple of Mallards.”  How many times have we said that when scanning through a group of waterfowl, looking for the rock stars: the Teals, the Hoodies, the Redheads … anything but plain vanilla Mallards.  Like Black-capped Chickadees or American Robins, or even Blue Jays, it’s easy to take a “just another” attitude toward the feathered friends we see quite often.

But, there’s a lot to be said for bird watching, rather than birding from time to time:  taking the time to observe, to admire, to just be present with …  some call it slow birding.  Here is one online description of the differences:

One person can be both a birdwatcher and a birder. Many bird lovers change their style of birding from day to day, some days more casually enjoying their familiar backyard birds, while other days focusing on chasing that new lifer or identifying a unique visitor. What both types have in common, however, is a love of birds that withstands any name rivalry.

The other day, I watched two pairs of Mallards feeding in the morning sun, oblivious to me scoping them from across the inlet.  They just dabbled and preened and had a great time — it reminded me of hanging out in a great coffee shop, nibbling and sipping, just having a leisurely breakfast.

I watched a couple of Mallards leisurely feeding and dabbling, partly hidden by the foliage, enjoying the morning sun.

I’m usually not the most patient of birders — I have to consciously slow down and observe rather than just ticking the bird off on my iPhone and moving on.  There’s a time and a place for that, but it’s also fun to make time to not only study the details of plumage but to learn more about what the birds that we see and hear are doing.  It’s a work in progress for me.  So Mallards, if I have maligned you in the past, remember deep down I think you’re cool-looking and acting ducks.  Dabble on!

Southern Birds

Mary and I drove three hours southeast to northern Massachusetts yesterday and it is like we became southerners.  Not only have we changed stick season’s chilly rain and fog for mid-seventies and pretty foliage, I’m hearing and seeing birds that I thought I had seen the last of until spring.  Seven Eastern Bluebirds this morning!

I have a walk from Jen’s house that I take nearly every morning I’m visiting — it’s a little over a mile down a busy road lined with oaks and often, very birdy.  I got out yesterday morning early before the homeowners got their leaf blowers going, and before the traffic picked up.  In spite of fog and a little drizzle, what a mix of bird noises greeted me.

We get a lot of Tufted Titmice here and I love their feistiness and constant chipping and singing.  They are sparse in our Vermont woods but dozens were out and about, and a couple were pretty brassy, watching me at about eye level.   I heard, and saw the whole woodpecker gang, missing only a Pileated.  The other real noisy bird was a crew of White-breasted Nuthatches joined by a couple of Red-breasted cousins.  Here’s the list from the hour-long walk:

Cooper’s Hawk  2
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  1
Downy Woodpecker  3
Hairy Woodpecker  1
Blue Jay  2
American Crow  1
Black-capped Chickadee  13
Tufted Titmouse  6
Red-breasted Nuthatch  3
White-breasted Nuthatch  6
Eastern Bluebird  6
American Robin  6
European Starling  12
Yellow-rumped Warbler  2
Dark-eyed Junco  6
Northern Cardinal  4

Later, Mary and I drove over to Cherry Hill Reservoir after doing some errands.  There were lots of ducks on the water but the light was horrible.  We did see a cooperative Northern Mockingbird who posed on a fence rail for quite some time, but flew off just as I got my digiscoping rig set up.  We also saw a duck species I hadn’t seen since 2010 in Texas — Ruddy Duck.  I took some photos through the scope but the light is not helpful other than for identification.

Ruddy Duck

Ruddy Ducks are one of the “stiff-tailed” ducks.

We are going to be here for several more days so I hope to get out to Plum Island and up the Cape Ann to see what migration may be bringing in. Check back here for results.

September Birds

September was a great birding month — I got out quite a bit in wonderful Fall weather and got six species for my life list — and missed several more.

It was also a month where I struggled with digiscoping, starting off with my big Canon 60D with a 50mm lens and remote shutter control but found it very bulky and shaky.  I switched back to my little SD4000 point and shoot and tried shooting in bursts.  Here are some results — not quite ready for primetime.  They do capture for me some of the places and birds I ran into in MA and VT.

A gaggle of Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, and a few juvenile Little Blue Herons at Parker River WNR

A flock of Greater Yellowlegs flew in while I was walking the Hellcat Dike at Parker River.

A juvenile Least Tern which was raised on the beach at Sandy Point SP on Plum Island, MA

Semi-palmated Sandpipers huddled up in the wind at Sandy Point.

A Wood Duck at Berlin Pond, VT.  Morning light always makes shooting a challenge.

Female Black Duck at Berlin Pond

Backyard Digiscoping

I’ve fiddled with digiscoping for the last year, reading a lot of forums, shooting a lot of poor shots — both with my point and shoot and with my SLR.  Because of camera shake and problems with picking up images on my SD4000, I’ve decided to work with my Canon 60D and 50mm lens.  I also decided to practice, practice at home on the birds in my yard and patch and work on settings, technique, and just picking up birds in the scope.

So, for that last few days, I’ve lugged my heavy camera, scope, and tripod around our woods trails on my many walks with the dogs and started practicing.  Of course, the dog is a wonderful help.  Every time I try for a Common Yellowthroat or Song Sparrow in the brush, she sees me looking and decides to take a look for herself.  So, a certain amount of “you idiot” or worse accompanies my digiscoping.

Here are some shots I’ve taken in the last couple of days:

Here’s a young Common Yellowthroat hiding in the bushes.  They constantly move and are a real challenge for me to digiscope.

 

Two molting Goldfinches at the thistle feeder.  They seem to be really hitting the food these days.

 

We are getting a lot of hummers to the feeder.  They like to rest in the old crabapple tree.

 

We have quite a crop of song sparrows enjoying the bugs around our yard.  No singing but very active.

Enjoying the birds of summer

While activity has dropped off in our woods, I’m starting to get the feeling that birds are getting ready to head on out — and trying to enjoy the ones I see during my daily dog walks in our woods.  Last evening, I watched a Cedar Waxwing for some time as it worked a low berry bush, noting the spectacular coloration and trying to envision the feather patterns that made that happen.  Today, we were inundated with Goldfinches on the feeders — just a whirlwind of yellow and black.

We still have Hermit Thrushes and Ovenbirds although only the thrushes are singing.  The other regular on the low-lying bushes is the Common YellowThroat.  They chip pretty steadily as they feed and respond quite well to pishing, hopping up on a branch to check things out.

It’s been hot and muggy for Vermont — not great weather to lug camera gear around the woods.  A cold front is coming through tonight so I think I’ll try to capture some digiscoped shots of our yard birds before they head south.  The hummers are still hitting the feeder during the cooler parts of the day but all in all, it’s the dog days of August.  Birds and birders don’t like it.

Digiscoping With Frozen Fingers

Two weeks ago, I was birding in shorts and T-shirts.  That was then, today in Vermont it was 28 degrees with blowing snow flurries as I birded early this morning at Berlin Pond.  A Bald Eagle was spotted there yesterday but I dipped on it today but saw a nice array of birds before quitting to thaw out a bit.  I used my point&shoot to try some digiscoping with so-so results.  Here’s a couple:

A Common Grackle looking pretty sharp on a Saturday morning.
Ring-necked Ducks are reliable visitors each spring.
A pair of Tree Swallows posed patiently but the photos were blurry.  May be the wind.

I fumbled with cold hands trying to set iso and aperture but ran out of patience.  So, it’s time to read the manual again.  One “expert” advised me to shoot automatic and let the camera figure it all out.  I think I’ll continue to work on settings and see if I can get the Canon SD3000 working the way others have it working.  Next time, it will be in a freezing-free temperature without a gale blowing.

Some Southern Birds

I’ve been shooting with the Canon, with varied success, as we’ve stayed at several state parks on our trip.  I’ve also been experimenting with digiscoping.  Here are a few of the birds we’ve encountered:

A Brown Nuthatch feeding at Fountainebleau. Note grub in beak

American Coot at Fountainebleau
A nesting Great Horned Owl again at Fountainebleau

A flight of White Ibis on a foggy morning

A Pine Warbler visits us at Clarkco State Park, MS

Same Pine Warbler

A Red-headed Woodpecker digiscoped at Fountainebleau SP