Bobolinks and Snipes

Posted on June 11, 2013 by Richard

The fog was just lifting this morning when the dog and I launched out on a wet birding adventure at the Sparrow Farm trail.  I was looking for Bobolinks since I had yet to see one in the county this year — and no sooner had we left the truck when I heard and saw several in the large unmowed hayfield before us.  They were fun to follow with the binoculars and were very actively flying, courting, and calling.  Taking photos of them was a challenge: they were up and then back down in the grass before I could focus on them.  They were pretty heavy for the wet stalks and sort of drooped down out of sight.  Here’s one just to prove I was there.

I logged six into eBird but think that probably a dozen were there. It was encouraging to see, given their challenges due to the lack of grassland.

I logged six into eBird but think that probably a dozen were there. It was encouraging to see, given their challenges due to the lack of grassland.

I also heard Wilson’s Snipes winnowing – something I had heard before there.  Today, they were flying, high in the sky like remote controlled model planes, winnowing as they zoomed and dove.  I tried some flight shots — what a joke?   They were fast and quite a ways up there.  Here are a couple of lame photos.

You'll probably have to take my word that this is a high-flying snipe. It is an amazing flier,

You’ll probably have to take my word that this is a high-flying snipe. It is an amazing flier,

 

I tried to get this one coming in for a landing. In retrospect, I probably should have tried the video option since they were calling the whole time.

I tried to get this one coming in for a landing. In retrospect, I probably should have tried the video option since they were calling the whole time.

We had a nice walk through the marshy area into the woods and picked up, by ear and site, about 28 other species.  As we finished, the high pitched call of Cedar Waxwings alerted me to a couple just behind me on a low tree.  Here’s one of them.

It's hard to beat Cedar Waxwings for looks - they are cool characters.

It’s hard to beat Cedar Waxwings for looks – they are cool characters.

And then, in a birding bonus, a young woodchuck posed for us.  The dog was on her leash and never saw it — fortunately for my arm muscles.

 

"I know I'm just a rodent but I am pretty cute."

“I know I’m just a rodent but I am pretty cute.”

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Posted in Birding Bonus, County Big Year, Local Birding, Vermont Birding, Washington County | Tagged , | Comments Off on Bobolinks and Snipes

Honda Generator is Handy

Posted on June 8, 2013 by Richard

For three years, we have tried to use a solar panel to charge our Airstream’s battery with mixed results. There’s too much shade and too many trees here in New England, especially in Vermont state parks where there are no hookups, period. So I bought a Honda 2000i and tested it out here at home and then took it with us to Ricker Pond SP last Sunday. It worked like a charm – it’s easy to see why they are so popular.

We found it to be quiet while just charging the battery and a liitle noisier when making coffee. Toasting bread was louder but short-lived. I baked some Johnnycake in our small toaster oven and the noise was annoying – although not to others since we had no nearby neighbors. The bread was good, though. We’d only use the heavier demand tasks when all by ourselves, or when our neighbors’ generator is loud.

At about 50 pounds, it’s easy to load in the truck. We know that we can’t run A/C without another linked unit but we rarely have used air conditioning in our travels. The initial reaction is very positive- probably should have done it before. It is nice not to have to worry about battery drain. Now if I can just keep ethanol from screwing it up. Happy Trails.

 

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Bonus Birding

Posted on June 8, 2013 by Richard

Most of us, when we stop to think about it, have encountered things while birding that we likely would not have seen otherwise.  Birders on the VTBird listserve recently had a short exchange on this subject which was very interesting.  Roy Pilcher started it (I believe) by writing:

Most of us who spend  a reasonable amount of time birding have from time to time welcomed a non-birding experience.  Today was such a day!

In a field a doe.

Not any doe but a doe with a fawn.

Not any doe with a fawn but a doe with a suckling fawn!

Very nice!

Later, Alison Wagner, another outstanding birder, wrote:

When kids ask me, “Why do you like birds so much?”  I usually respond, “because they are easy to see.  If I go birding, I’ll be sure to see a bird. If I go bobcatting, chances are I won’t see one.  IF I go birding and SEE a bobcat, that’s a bonus! ”

Kids do this all the time, starting out on a bird walk and seeing so many other forms of nature.  Yesterday, with The Hinesburders, we found a muskrat.

It got me thinking about what non-birding things I have seen and I sort of was drawing a blank — until yesterday.  Penny, our Vizsla, and I were out in our woods walking quietly, listening to bird songs, when I noticed some movement up ahead and saw a Coyote, or CoyDog, quietly moving through the ferns and underbrush, nose to the ground.  It was close and I got my camera on it but the trees and ferns kept blocking it.  It never saw or smelled us but it was moving closer, and Penny was behind me and doing her own thing.  So I yelled, and it wheeled and ran with my red dog chasing right behind it.  I yelled and yelled at the dog and fortunately, she gave up after just a few hundred yards and came running back, all cranked up and ready to rumble.  We retreated back toward the house and all is well.  It was probably the kind of bonus that I don’t need with a dog along, but even then, a thrill.

You'll have to take my word that this is a wild coyote or coy dog - it was hard to tell. I was surprised that it got so close to us before I spooked it intentionally.

You’ll have to take my word that this is a wild coyote or coy dog – it was hard to tell. I was surprised that it got so close to us before I spooked it intentionally.

On a less exciting vein, I thought about some birding walks we took at Ricker Pond State Park earlier this week and thought of the Pink Lady’s Slipper that I found along a trail.  It was definitely a birding bonus.

LadySlipperW

What are your bonus birding stories?  Send me a few paragraphs at vtbirder at gmail.com.  I’d love to publish a few collections of experiences that others have had.  What is the most interesting thing you have seen while birding that you likely would not have seen otherwise?

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Posted in Vermont Birding | 3 Comments

Young ‘Uns

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Richard

Seeing the influx of juvenile Purple Finches discovering our bird feeder each morning, I get another sign that birds are nesting, chicks are fledging, and juveniles are chowing down.  Here are a few photos I took of momma birds doing their thing:

Canada Geese and a couple of youngsters at Berlin Pond. Others on the pond had larger groups of kids -- makes one wonder what happened to the rest of this hatch.

Canada Geese and a couple of youngsters at Berlin Pond. Others on the pond had larger groups of kids — makes one wonder what happened to the rest of this hatch.

A female Mallard at Ricker Pond with quite a group of chicks.

A female Mallard at Ricker Pond with quite a group of chicks.

 

The state has an active loon program that places nesting sites (and warning signs for paddlers/boaters) on many ponds. Here is a floating platform at Ricker Pond being used. (Photo taken at very long range from opposite shore.)

The state has an active loon program that places nesting sites (and warning signs for paddlers/boaters) on many ponds. Here is a floating platform at Ricker Pond being used. (Photo taken at very long range from opposite shore.)

 

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Ricker Pond State Park

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Richard

After the exciting arrival I detailed previously, we had a couple of easy-going days at quiet Ricker Pond State Park.  The kids are still in school and this park, because it is mainly lean-to and tent sites, tends to draw a quieter crowd.  The shakedown went well except that the hot water heater quit the last day after running fine.  Better to find out here than in West Texas.  Here are some shots that I took during our stay:

Patches of Bunchberry were all along the roadways. 
There are about a dozen private camps on the pond — most of them quite old and modest.  They do have electricity and satellite TV.  Many can only be reached by boat or winding footpath.

The large rock blocked off a road from vehicles.  It was not cut — it is naturally like this. 
A Pink Lady’s Slipper tucked in along the trail.

The state campground is tucked into the trees along the western edge of the pond.  Here are a few lean-tos with one, with the red canopy, in use.

Ricker Pond (95 acres) is located in the central portion of Groton State Forest along VT Route 232 just south of Lake Groton.

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Wren’Streamer

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Richard

My brother Barry and his wife, Mica DeAngelis, have restored two vintage Airstreams and have travelled to the South and Southwest for Habitat For Humanity builds and general travel.  They have always been watchers of birds but recently have sort of caught the birding bug.  Barry got a new camera a few months ago and has been testing it out here and there — and captured this wonderful shot of a House Wren in their backyard.

Barry and Mica originally thought that this birdhouse was a gag gift but Momma wren has called it home for the last two years. photo by Barry K. Mansfield, Burlington, VT

Barry and Mica originally thought that this birdhouse was a gag gift but Momma wren has called it home for the last two years. photo by Barry K. Mansfield, Burlington, VT

Posted in Backyard birds, Photography, RV Travel, Vermont Birding | 1 Comment

Wren’Streamer

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Richard

My brother Barry and his wife, Mica DeAngelis, have restored two vintage Airstreams and have travelled to the South and Southwest for Habitat For Humanity builds and general travel.  They have always been watchers of birds but recently have sort of caught the birding bug.  Barry got a new camera a few months ago and has been testing it out here and there — and captured this wonderful shot of a House Wren in their backyard.

Barry and Mica originally thought that this birdhouse was a gag gift but Momma wren has called it home for the last two years.  photo by Barry K. Mansfield, Burlington, VT
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Shakedown – Day 1

Posted on June 4, 2013 by Richard

As I wrote in the last post, I hitched up the Airstream last night and we began to load. This morning, when I brought some more items out to the refrigerator, I found that the inside was room temperature. “One more glitch, and a serious one,” I thought. We were getting ready for church, the temps were heading to 80, and for a few minutes, I thought that the trip was not going to happen. But then I had a revelation – the tow hitch was lower and I had rolled off the levelers, so the rig was far from level. And reefers don’t work when the are not level.

So, I pulled down the driveway and then backed the rig, in four-wheel-drive up the winding driveway, missing the big ledge on one side and the ditch in the other, ending on the one level spot we have. I brought out some freezer packs to protect the food we’d just loaded, and went off to church. To cut to the chase – it was working fine when we got home.

After a rest, we finished loading and headed out, worrying about dark storm clouds to our west. It was an easy trip until it wasn’t. With about ten minutes to go, a deluge hit. I was on a snake path of a highway, VT 232, fighting to see the road and no pulloffs to stop at when we rounded a corner and encountered two trees across the road. Here’s what we saw through the window wipers:

You can’t see the intensity of the downpour but believe me, it was raining hard when I ran out in shorts and flip-flops to tug on these.  Two of us pulled, slipped, fell, but moved the darn things.

During a brief lull, I ran out and tried to move the trees with no luck – getting drenched in the process. Three or four cars showed up heading toward us and finally, one guy got out and started tugging. I joined him and we got both trees moved to the edge of the road. I was soaked and covered with pitch and bark but we were on our way – with one more delay for downed trees.

Ricker State Park is set up for lean-to and tent camping with onlybabout five RV sites. And they are tough to negotiate. I had reserved the one that looked the biggest and most remote, but when we got to it, we had several trucks sort of in the way and a real tough back-in. Plus it was raining just enough to make Mary’s job of helping challenging.

So, I got smart. I asked our neighbors, “Any of you good at backing up trailers?” They allowed how Kevin was a pro at it and sure enough he was. With Joe giving directions, he turned that rig around, backed it carefully down the narrow access, and was done in five minutes. I’m not sure I might not be still at it. Turns out that Kevin drives big trailer trucks for a living.

The rain has pretty much stopped and the warblers are singing as night falls. There goes an Ovenbird “disturbing” the silence. Hope to get the boats on the water tomorrow – it looks like a pretty pond. Glad we are here.

– Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

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Shakedown Cruise Tomorrow

Posted on June 1, 2013 by Richard

It’s been 14 months since we have used the Airstream so it’s no wonder that I have been dealing with glitch after glitch with the rig and our gear.  I got the furniture and the systems running and about everything inside cleaned up.  There was a lot of grime from the polishing of the aluminum and the floor was filthy from all the traveling in and out with work boots.

It just takes patience.  I found some gas pipes hanging a little loose underneath, and then noticed a nut missing off a bolt holding a pad on to its leg.

When I got our gear ready, my bike was in need of a little TLC and lubrication.  The tires were low and when I found my good bike pump, the hole had been plugged with a mud dauber — no big deal.  The fancy security cable for the kayaks had apparently been run over at some point – so kiss that baby goodbye.

I got hitched up this evening and tested the lights again (we just did it several weeks ago) and one turn signal was dead.  I changed the bulb — same thing.  A little scraping of the contacts got it going fine.

So, we will attend church tomorrow — it is the last Sunday this Spring for formal choir — and finish heading out mid-day tomorrow.  We have reservations at Ricker Pond State Park — a very small park with just a few RV sites — about an hour and a half away in Groton.  Thunderstorms are predicted so it may be an interesting journey — but we have plenty of time and no schedule.  It will be nice to get the boats out and do some paddling although I did get out yesterday for some birding by kayak.

There’s definitely no wifi and likely no 4G signal but we’ll survive.  Mary has downloaded two new books for her Kindle and I am bringing a thick book that I picked up at the library.  A real book – what a concept.  We’ll let you know how we did when we return next week.

Just a about ready to go.  Can you see the two or three items not ready for the road?  (The roof vents are open, the step is down, and the radio antenna, which you can barely see, needs to be stowed.)
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Kayak Birding

Posted on June 1, 2013 by Richard

Five years ago, when I would kayak early in the morning, I’d strap on my iPod and crank workout tunes and paddle hard up and down  the placid waters of our local Wrightsville Reservoir.  I was sort of oblivious to my surroundings as I worked on technique and speed.  That was before I was a birder.

Yesterday, I let the birds provide the music — and did they ever.  I wore my binoculars, covered with a plastic bag, and carried my camera in a dry bag in the cockpit and set out on a quiet, fog-shrouded journey.  Four Canada Geese came honking in and landed with a splash quite near me — we seemed to be the only critters on the water.

Heading north on the reservoir with the still air punctuated by the songs of Ovenbirds and White-throated Sparrows .

Heading north on the reservoir with the still air punctuated by the songs of Ovenbirds and White-throated Sparrows .

I’m not great at bird call identification but had dozens to chose from as I cruised along — I think I had 25 species in the first 15 minutes.  Kayaks let you cruise up close to the shore and approach some birds rather closely.  I was gliding toward a perched Belted Kingfisher for a photo but made the same mistake I can make on land: I moved too quickly raising the camera and spooked him.

Up ahead, a Common Merganser was feeding in the shallows.  I approached her slowly, hardly paddling, and she seemed undisturbed, but just easing away from this big approaching object.  Here’s a shot I took from the kayak.

It's a tough life being a small migratory bird. Studies estimate that half of all adult Ovenbirds die each year. The oldest known Ovenbird was seven years old.

It’s a tough life being a small migratory bird. Studies estimate that half of all adult Ovenbirds die each year. The oldest known Ovenbird was seven years old.

Merg1W

The North Branch River runs into the reservoir on the north end resulting in a short stretch of quiet water with narrow banks and overhanging trees.  It was easy to cruise up to warblers and sparrows — I got some great looks at a Mourning Warbler.

Returning, I spooked two beavers out for an early sapling breakfast and approaching the takeout ramp, saw a gull that seemed out of place.  It let me get pretty close so it was either used to people or not feeling well.  I snapped a few shots and let it be.

A Ring-billed Gull on the shore, perhaps waiting for me to feed it.

A Ring-billed Gull on the shore, perhaps waiting for me to feed it.

It was a great paddle and I logged 35 species, getting a mild exercise session in while enjoying a perfect Vermont morning.  It was the first, but won’t be the last, birding by kayak outing of the year.  Nice way to multi-task.

Posted in Kayak Birding, Local Birding, Vermont Birding | Tagged | 2 Comments