Birdingonthe.Net Recent Postings from The Tweeters List > Home > Mail > Alerts Updated on Thursday, March 18 at 05:20 AM ET The most recently received Mail is at the top.	Auklets,©David Sibley

18 Mar Barrow's Golden Eye Population Decline? ["Heide Narte" ] 18 Mar Tufted Duck still present at Drano Lake [citybylight ] 17 Mar Say's Phoebe in Auburn ["Buddha's Ghost" ] 17 Mar Re: A Shady ST.Patrick's Day in Edmonds [Bill Anderson ] 17 Mar Video links to swarming herons at Black River rookery, March 16 [Al Wagar ] 17 Mar Odd Red-Tailed Hawk in TV Commercials [Hans-Joachim Feddern ] 18 Mar Reporting Swan Collars [] 17 Mar A Shady ST.Patrick's Day in Edmonds [Bill Anderson ] 17 Mar Re: Spicy Suet Correction [Carol Stoner ] 17 Mar Okanogan country ["Andy Stepniewski" ] 17 Mar Swan release ["Martha Jordan" ] 17 Mar FOY White crowned Sparrow Song [Doug Plummer ] 17 Mar Re: Spicy Suet [Carol Stoner ] 17 Mar Rufous Hummingbird on March 17 at hiking area on Coal Creek Parkway [Sharon Cormier-Aagaard ] 17 Mar FOY Rufous Hummingbird - Bellevue (Eastgate) [] 17 Mar Ongoing foraging at Lincoln Park [Trileigh Tucker ] 17 Mar Re: Squirrels, birds, and chilis [] 17 Mar Happenings at Brooks ["Nancy Wallwork" ] 17 Mar Updated cumulative county year list file available online [] 17 Mar Updated cumulative county year list file available online [] 17 Mar Nisqually WR Report- Monday- I enjoy all photos- $1 - $100, 000 and Appreciate the Substantial Time & Effort that Others Take To Make & Share Them- We Are All in This Together [] 16 Mar Highlights from the Winter Wings Festival in Klamath Falls [David Hewitt ] 16 Mar Black River Heronry eagle nest down. ["BobnBernie" ] 16 Mar Re: Great Blue Herons in Renton [Carol Stoner ] 16 Mar Sparrow slam down at Spenser Island ["Rob Sandelin" ] 16 Mar Wenatchee Eurasian Widgeon [Larry Schwitters ] 16 Mar A good day birding in Lewis County ["Dave Hayden" ] 16 Mar Nisqually [Eric Cannizzaro ] 16 Mar RE: please stop this ["Muul, Kersti" ] 16 Mar RE: please stop this [JEFFREY COHEN ] 16 Mar FOY White-Crowned Sparrow Song.... ["Mary K." ] 16 Mar Re: please stop this [Paul Sparks ] 16 Mar Re: please stop this [Hans-Joachim Feddern ] 16 Mar please stop this ["Muul, Kersti" ] 16 Mar Squirrels, birds, and chilis ["Guttman,Burt" ] 16 Mar East Lake Samm, redux [travel girl ] 16 Mar Apology, misspelled name [Jim Greaves ] 16 Mar Eagles Nest by Hwy 508 ["Darlene Sybert" ] 15 Mar Franklin County Goodies ["Rick Taylor" ] 15 Mar Franklin County Goodies ["Rick Taylor" ] 15 Mar Snipe Hunting in the Edmonds marsh [Bill Anderson ] 16 Mar Brandt at Semiahmoo [] 15 Mar FOY: Rufous Hummingbird ["Dave Hayden" ] 15 Mar sno-falls peregrines [dave templeton ] 15 Mar Photos from Discovery Park [Kevin Mack ] 15 Mar Re: John Stubb's commentary [Jim Greaves ] 15 Mar Flight photography techniques (was Re: camera equipment) [John Puschock ] 15 Mar Re: Re: camera equipment [] 15 Mar Northern Shrike at NWR [Tony ] 15 Mar Steller's jays nest construction [Tracey Cummings ] 15 Mar Re: Re: camera equipment; apology [Lee Rentz ] 15 Mar Snoqualmie Valley Yellow-headed Blackbird yes, Western Bluebird no ["Bob Schmidt" ] 15 Mar Re: camera equipment; apology [Jim Greaves ] 15 Mar Re: camera equipment [Jim Greaves ] 15 Mar Re: camera gear [Jim Greaves ] 15 Mar Nesting Pine Siskins, nesting material, Yelm, Thurston County [Yelm Backyard Wildlife ] 15 Mar Northbound Swans [Michael Price ] 14 Mar Female King Eider continues Grays Harbor County ["Grace and Ollie Oliver" ] 14 Mar Cranes and other Othello area birds ["Randy Hill" ] 14 Mar Cranes and other Othello area birds ["Randy Hill" ] 14 Mar Skamania Co birding Saturday 3/13 [] 14 Mar chasing Merlins in Mason and Kittitas Counties ["washingtonbirder.Knittle" ] 15 Mar Great Blue Herons [] 14 Mar Discovery Park this morning [Kevin Mack ] 14 Mar Fir Island Sunday morning [] 14 Mar Bluebirds and Nest Boxes at Chinook Bend [] 14 Mar RE: camera gear [John Puschock ] 14 Mar Re: bird photography: how/where to post photos? [Lee Rentz ] 14 Mar Nanaimo bird alert ["The Backyard" ] 14 Mar Hummer Nest [JEFFREY COHEN ] 14 Mar KGW Raptor Cam - Portland OR [Barbara Deihl ] 14 Mar Vancouver, BC RBA for March 12, 2010 ["Wayne Weber" ] 14 Mar Hawk close up and personal - ID help? [Trileigh Tucker ] 14 Mar Re: re: camera equipment [Marc Hoffman ] 14 Mar GBH [David Hutchinson ] 14 Mar Dubois Grouse Days ["Kit Struthers" ] Subject: Barrow's Golden Eye Population Decline? From: "Heide Narte" <heime AT drizzle.com> Date: Thu, 18 Mar 2010 03:19:19 -0700 (PDT) Hi All, I've been birdwatching at Burien's Seahurst Park since 1999. Over the years I've noticed a significant decline in the number of Barrow's Golden Eyes and other waterfowl (Surf Scoters, Common Merganers, etc.). There used to be hundreds of Barrow's Goldeneyes now I'm lucky if I see three. Has anyone else noticed this phenomenon? Is their a disease affecting Barrow's Goldeneyes? I understand that populations can fluctuate but this downward trend doesn't seem to be abating. Any info much appreciated. Thanks! :) Heidi Narte Gregory Heights, Washington _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Tufted Duck still present at Drano Lake From: citybylight <citybylight AT hotmail.com> Date: Thu, 18 Mar 2010 03:20:28 -0600 Tweeters, When on my way back to my hometown of Longview from Walla Walla University, I stopped at Drano Lake. I spotted the TUFTED DUCK on the Southwest area of the lake. With it's ponytail, I see the Tufted Duck as the "Steven Seagal" of waterfowl. Thank you all who continually updated the Tweeters site regarding the Tufted Duck. What an awesome way to start Spring Break! Kevin Black Walla Walla University Currently chillin' in Vancouver _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail has tools for the New Busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_1 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Say's Phoebe in Auburn From: "Buddha's Ghost" <buddhasghost AT comcast.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 23:52:07 -0700 Wednesday evening around sunset I ran into a Say's Phoebe in the flooded field across from Emerald Downs. Photo here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/18092121 AT N00/4442804634/ Cheers, J Lemons_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: A Shady ST.Patrick's Day in Edmonds From: Bill Anderson <billandersonbic AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 22:20:39 -0700 (PDT) I should note that I first noticed the pileated woodpecker when it was on the side of a tree, but the best photos I got were of it poking around on the ground.  I thought that was unusual as I always think of woodpeckers looking for insects in trees. Bill Anderson; Edmonds, WA. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Video links to swarming herons at Black River rookery, March 16 From: Al Wagar <alwagar AT verizon.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 21:27:50 -0700 When a small group from the UW Retirement Association visited the Black River rookery on Tuesday, 50 or so great blue herons were circling. Links to a very short video are: Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ854cAxsFc Vimeo (better resolution): http://www.vimeo.com/10250675 Al Wagar Shoreline _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Odd Red-Tailed Hawk in TV Commercials From: Hans-Joachim Feddern <thefedderns AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 21:27:45 -0700 Has anyone seen the Farmers Insurance commercial with an odd black and white, but obvious Red-Tailed Hawk? It also features a long lens Photographer setting up and a P&S guy, reminding me of the recent photographic gear discussion! Oh, no sides taken by me! Let us not talk about it again! Hans Feddern Twin Lakes/Federal Way,WA. the fedderns AT gmail.com_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Reporting Swan Collars From: outdoormeals AT comcast.net Date: Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:12:39 +0000 (UTC) Hello, With the recent request put out by Martha Jordan of the Swan Society in regards to notification of swan collars. Please report all swan collars or any other color marked bird to http :// www . pwrc . usgs .gov/bbl/homepage/ recwobnd . cfm   They compile all data and make notifications to the appropriate agencies that affixed the color marker to the bird. If then you want to share it with another group or organization afterwards, great! Regards, Brad Otto WDFW Wildlife Technician Whatcom / Skagit County_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: A Shady ST.Patrick's Day in Edmonds From: Bill Anderson <billandersonbic AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 20:38:23 -0700 (PDT) Today my son and went to a new location for us, Yost Park.  I got shots of a pileated woodpacker, varied thrush, and spotted towhee.  It was very difficult taking photos in the shade created by the tall fir trees.  I pumped the ISO up to 3,200 to get the shots, and still had to lighten them with the computer at home. It was the same story at the fish hatchery, where I got a shot of a red breasted sapsucker picking an ant off a tree and eating it.   Again, I had to pump the ISO so high that the shot become horribly grainy when I enlarged it on the computer to see the ant. Bill Anderson; Edmonds, WA. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Spicy Suet Correction From: Carol Stoner <stonefam AT gte.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 19:30:16 -0700 Hi Burt, I think my typo may have left a misconception. My trial of suet with chili pepper was a commercially available product. It was not "chili powdered" but chili powered, i.e.spicy. The birds did not appreciate this exotic fare at all, so we went back to the tried and true suet with seeds. Carol Stoner Renton WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Okanogan country From: "Andy Stepniewski" <steppie AT nwinfo.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:26:43 -0700 OKANOGAN RIVER MOUTH NORTH TO OSOYOOS 13-14 MARCH 2010 Ellen and I hit Okanogan County starting at Bridgeport State Park The highlight there were 100 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS snipping buds of introduced locust trees and flycatching, though the temperature was only 42 0 F, from the tops of these trees. Wanting to explore the shrub-steppe, we headed north of the park a couple miles on Jack wells Road. The first ravine from the bottom of La Grande Road looked inviting so we took a hike. We noted the shrub component here was (in descending order of cover) big sagebrush, Bitterbrush, rabbitbrush, threetip sagebrush, and purple sage" here. Western Meadowlark was the only bird we noted here in the shrub-steppe. Red-tailed Hawks and Common Ravens were in the sky. This slope certainly invites another hike later in the breeding season to see what other sage species might be about. Our next site was Washburn Island near the mouth of the Okanogan River. We walked a two-mile "perimeter loop, encountering planted hedgerows, planted crops (for waterfowl), embayments, marsh, and open waters of Lake Pateros. Here we were hoping for sparrows. Ellen spotted one LINCOLN'S SPARROW; otherwise saw Dark-eyed Juncos were everywhere but we saw no other sparrows except Songs. We scoped lots of waterfowl (Canada and Cackling Geese, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Greater and Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, and Ruddy Duck), Common Loons, Horned Grebes, Double-crested Cormorants, and Herring Gulls. There was one singing Marsh Wren in the cattails and the brushy growth had many dark-eyed Juncos and a few Yellow-rumped Warblers, N. Flickers, and one Downy Woodpecker. Raptors included Northern Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, and Bald Eagles. Killdeer were calling from the plowed fields. All in all, we enjoyed this walk! We climbed the Cameron Lake Road for late afternoon, hoping to spot a Snowy Owl atop one of the many glacial erratics. Several white rocks nearly tricked us. We thrilled at watching a flock of about 50 SANDHILL CRANES flap and bugle their way over emerald-green wheatfields. Dawn on the 14th we hit Wauconda east of Tonasket for some owling. A one-hour stint here beginning an hour before sunrise yielded one each of Great Horned, Northern Pygmy-, and Northern Saw-whet Owls. On the Mt. Anne Road just west of Wauconda, we took a a short walk uphill from near the Okanogan National Forest entrance sign. The forest was pretty quiet. Notable were three WILLIAMSON'S SAPSUCKERS, all drumming and calling. The forest here was composed of Douglas-fir, western larch, and Engelmann spruce. Brown Creepers called here, too. We found another Willys in aspen/Douglas-fir forest a mile east at Wauconda. At Beaver Lake Campground, fog lingered into late morning, fooling the owls. We heard a Barred Owl and two Northern Pygmy-Owls calling. Pileated Woodpecker called from the old-growth Engelmann spruce and Douglas-fir forest here. From the moss and brush-grown side slopes, we spotted a Winter Wren, another sign of spring. For the third time this winter we found the Sitzmark Ski Area (corner of Hungry Hollow and Havillah Roads) good for five or six WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS. As we drove along Mary Ann Creek northwest of Chesaw, we noted a loose flock of 75 or so COMMON REDPOLLS, flying north along the drainage. Other winter birds included several Rough-legged Hawks and Northern Shrikes. However, though there was still snow mantling much of the higher parts of the grasslands in the Okanogan Highlands, we did not see any Snow Buntings. They were present on my last visit here 2-3 March. We ended our trip with a scan of Osoyoos Lake. A stiff southerly breeze probably kept many waterbirds out of sight. We managed a few Canada Geese, Common Goldeneyes, and Common Mergansers on the lake. A Townsend's Solitaire perched nicely near some junipers. Andy and Ellen Stepniewski Wapato WA steppie AT nwinfo.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Swan release From: "Martha Jordan" <swanlady AT drizzle.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:15:01 -0700 Hello Birders, You may have read or heard that over the past few weeks several trumpeter swans have been released from two wildlife rehab centers. These are the fortunate swans, having hit powerlines and survived. With a few weeks of care, they have been deemed healthy enough to join the spring migration. All of them have been marked with neck bands. If you see one of these marked birds this spring we really want to hear from you. The collars are red codes M90, M91, M92, M93, M94 and yellow M26 and M27. Another swan, the one from the Port Angeles rescue, will be released tomorrow afternoon at Lake Terrell. I will post the collar number once I know it. This is a truly remarkable swan, found in a small wetland beaver pond adjacent to Hwy 101 west of Port Angeles. Rescued after 9 weeks of being down, by myself, and a great group of volunteers including 2 from WDFW. We thought the swan would have to be kept for many months. However, spunky swan gained a lot of weight and is getting slightly airborn in the large holding area at the rehab center. So, tomorrow, freedom. If there is anyone who would like to come out and take pictures please let me know off list. I can give you time and details. Martha Jordan www.swansociety.org "Perception is your sense of reality, Perspective is your grip on reality." _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: FOY White crowned Sparrow Song From: Doug Plummer <2doug AT dougplummer.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:44:17 -0700 "Oh, it's a parking lot bird," is what we say when we hear a WCSP, invariably, in a parking lot. Doug Plummer Seattle Doug Plummer, Photographer 206.523.2525 www.dougplummer.com Have you read my blog today? Seen my Daily Photo? _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Spicy Suet From: Carol Stoner <stonefam AT gte.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:14:32 -0700 Burt et al, I tried chili-powered suet, and my bird regulars (both chickadees, bushtits, red-breasted nuthatches, dark-eyed juncos) refused to dine. I went back to my traditional suet and all was well. I'd be interested to hear if your experience is different. Carol Stoner stonefam at gte dotnet Renton WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Rufous Hummingbird on March 17 at hiking area on Coal Creek Parkway From: Sharon Cormier-Aagaard <scormieraa001 AT hotmail.com> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:08:59 -0700 Mark and I saw our first of the year Rufous Hummingbird while hiking the trail along Coal Creek (this lovely urban trail through the woods and along Coal Creek connects Coal Creek Parkway to Cougar Mountain Wildland Park). Sharon Cormier-Aagaard Bellevue WA scormieraa001 AT hotmail.com _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_3 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: FOY Rufous Hummingbird - Bellevue (Eastgate) From: Pterodroma AT aol.com Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:04:51 EDT Had my FOY Rufous Hummingbird joining the menagerie of ANHU at one of my feeders this morning, 1056hrs to be exact, here in Eastgate. A FEMALE no less! I don't think I've ever seen a female ahead of my first adult male here before, especially at this early stage in mid March. Richard Rowlett Bellevue (Eastgate), WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Ongoing foraging at Lincoln Park From: Trileigh Tucker <tri AT seattleu.edu> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 12:58:48 -0700 Hello Tweets, This morning I found not one but two species foraging almost simultaneously in the same fireweed patch: Bushtits and Anna's Hummingbirds. I've seen my neighborhood Bushtits working busily on this year's nest, but would have thought that the hummingbird nests might be pretty well constructed; this time last year, there were hungry babies in them. But perhaps substantial nest fluffing goes on even with eggs or chicks? In any case, now I'm planning to let the fireweeds take over a photo-convenient corner of my yard this year! (Some new photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/trileigh/4440812759.) Good birding, Trileigh * * * * * * Trileigh Tucker Lincoln Park, West Seattle _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Squirrels, birds, and chilis From: jbroadus AT seanet.com Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 09:31:24 -0700 I use the suet that has chili peppers already mixed in - I can tell you that the rats don't like it ! Widely available from the Fred Meyer, Mc Lendons etcClarice Clark Puyallup, WA. 98371 mailto:jbroadus AT seanet.com _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Happenings at Brooks From: "Nancy Wallwork" <nancywallwork AT comcast.net> Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 06:26:56 -0700 Good morning Tweeters, The first of this week Turkey feathers were found at the day use area in the park. While cleaning up the area I found a foot, part of a wing, and a leg bone that had been bitten in half. Yesterday, a stunning Sun Conure literally fell from the trees; no doubt a lost pet from either travelers or from folks nearby. We have not determined which as yet and if not claimed today, we will lay him/her to rest this afternoon. On the brighter side, the circle of life is just getting started at Brooks. Late yesterday afternoon, I noticed Ravens gathering nesting materials. Western Bluebirds are checking out nesting boxes and Red-winged Blackbirds are singing from the tree tops. I find it fascinating that there have been posts of nests and eggs from some of you while we are just beginning to enjoy the arrival of our spring birds. Nancy Wallwork WCC Specialist Brooks Memorial State Park Klickitat County, 12 miles North of Goldendale, WA Hwy 97 My favorite weather is bird-chirping weather. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Updated cumulative county year list file available online From: mattxyz AT earthlink.net Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 05:32:27 -0700 Hi Tweeters & Inland-NW-Birders - An updated version of the 2010 county year list project is up at Washington Birder. We've received updates from almost all the counties with details through the end of February. Moving forward, county compilers, especially for the underbirded counties, would appreciate receiving reports of any birds seen in their counties. The posted version of the list only covers results through the beginning of March -- at this point, many counties are over 100 species with many/most of the winter species found. Now comes the big spring influx that will keep things interesting. As of the end of February 241 species had been reported across the state, 210 species in western WA and 185 in eastern WA. I did a quick comparison of the list at this point with the same list from last year -- hard to make any pronouncements based on kind of random timing , but a couple things were noticeable -- one hypothesis some of us have been playing with was whether or not the warm winter had allowed some of our 'regular rarities' to stay further north this winter -- sure enough, no rare geese, swans or ducks showed up this winter [until the Skamania Tufted Duck], and arguably rare gull numbers are lower -- with only 8 counties reporting Glaucous Gull thusfar this winter compared to 17 counties having one to report last year at this point. Also, we've had 4 counties with Loggerhead Shrike already this year, compared with zero at this point last year -- maybe a sign of a species willing to linger further north this year. If you'd like to take a look at where things stand, the list and many other interesting files are at the Washington Birder website: http://www.wabirder.com/ A direct link to the 2010 county yearlist & the list of county compilers is: http://wabirder.com/bartel.html Thanks to all the compilers and all those pitching in to sketch a picture of another year's birds in WA. Matt Bartels Seattle, WA_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Updated cumulative county year list file available online From: mattxyz AT earthlink.net Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 05:32:27 -0700 Hi Tweeters & Inland-NW-Birders - An updated version of the 2010 county year list project is up at Washington Birder. We've received updates from almost all the counties with details through the end of February. Moving forward, county compilers, especially for the underbirded counties, would appreciate receiving reports of any birds seen in their counties. The posted version of the list only covers results through the beginning of March -- at this point, many counties are over 100 species with many/most of the winter species found. Now comes the big spring influx that will keep things interesting. As of the end of February 241 species had been reported across the state, 210 species in western WA and 185 in eastern WA. I did a quick comparison of the list at this point with the same list from last year -- hard to make any pronouncements based on kind of random timing , but a couple things were noticeable -- one hypothesis some of us have been playing with was whether or not the warm winter had allowed some of our 'regular rarities' to stay further north this winter -- sure enough, no rare geese, swans or ducks showed up this winter [until the Skamania Tufted Duck], and arguably rare gull numbers are lower -- with only 8 counties reporting Glaucous Gull thusfar this winter compared to 17 counties having one to report last year at this point. Also, we've had 4 counties with Loggerhead Shrike already this year, compared with zero at this point last year -- maybe a sign of a species willing to linger further north this year. If you'd like to take a look at where things stand, the list and many other interesting files are at the Washington Birder website: http://www.wabirder.com/ A direct link to the 2010 county yearlist & the list of county compilers is: http://wabirder.com/bartel.html Thanks to all the compilers and all those pitching in to sketch a picture of another year's birds in WA. Matt Bartels Seattle, WA_______________________________________________ Inland-nw-birders mailing list Inland-nw-birders AT uidaho.edu https://www.lists.uidaho.edu/mailman/listinfo/inland-nw-birders Subject: Nisqually WR Report- Monday- I enjoy all photos- $1 - $100, 000 and Appreciate the Substantial Time & Effort that Others Take To Make & Share Them- We Are All in This Together From: notcalm AT comcast.net Date: Wed, 17 Mar 2010 10:56:35 +0000 (UTC) Hello Tweeters Community Members, Monday, at Nisqually, two adult Great Horned Owls, female & male and two young juveniles were present. Like last year, one was reluctant to leave the nest cavity and probably will be more visible in the near future. I was also very fortunate to observe and share with others, an American Bittern. I watched it hide (in plain sight and almost invisible), hunt and swim. I continued to be awed by the beauty of wildlife in our stunning Western and Eastern Washington. We are fortunate indeed. Thanks to all who post, photograph, share and enjoy, with the acceptance and gratitude of other community members the wonder of birds, environment and beauty of the remains of the our Earth and all of you who in your own way, work to enjoy, record, maintain and restore what we share with other species. Best regards, Dan Reiff Mercer Island "Dan Reiff, PhD" _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Highlights from the Winter Wings Festival in Klamath Falls From: David Hewitt <dhewitt37 AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 22:35:16 -0700 Tweeters, It was great to see so many people from Washington at the Winter Wings Festival in Klamath Falls this past February. The 3-day festival was a huge success. Over 550 people registered and nearly all of the field trips sold out. The workshops, presentations, and other activities were well attended too, and post-festival evaluations from participants have been overwhelmingly positive. We hope to build on our success next year with an even bigger and better festival, and we hope you'll join us. We were very fortunate this year to have a number of top-notch experts assisting with field trips, workshops, and other aspects of the program, including: - Scott Weidensaul (keynote presenter and trip leader) - Bill Clark (presenter and trip leader) - Rick Sammon (Canon photography) - Jeff Smith (HawkWatch International) - Dick Ashford (American Birding Association) - John Alexander (Klamath Bird Observatory) This year's festival drew in folks from all across the western US and from as far away as Arizona and Texas. We put together a Google Map to show the geographic "footprint" for this year's festival -- check it out: http://bit.ly/ciHpC7 We hope to see more Washington birders in 2011! Field observations during the festival were tracked with eBird (http://ebird.org). We recorded 93 species over the three days. As usual, raptors and waterfowl stole the show. Of particular note was a count of over 130 Bald Eagles leaving their night roost in Bear Valley National Wildlife Refuge during the flyout field trip on Sunday -- this is a high count for recent years. Some other notable highlights included: - Western and Clark's Grebes - American White Pelican (3 stuck around all winter in town) - Eurasian Wigeon (many) - Northern Goshawk - Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk (juvenile light morph; found by Bill Clark) - Peregrine Falcon - Loggerhead Shrike - Barn Owl - Short-eared Owls (putting on a show in the evening at the LKNWR auto tour route) - Tree Swallow (arrived very early) - Rock and Canyon Wrens - California Towhee - Cassin's Finch Wrap-up information, including a summary of the bird observations, will be posted to the festival web site soon: http://www.winterwingsfest.org/ Finally, we'd like to thank our title sponsor Pacific Power, our host Oregon Institute of Technology, and all of the other presenters, leaders, sponsors, vendors, and the nearly 100 volunteers that made it all happen. With field trips and activities again planned for a full 3 days during the 2011 festival, we hope you'll join us in observing and recording the diversity and abundance of bird life in the Klamath Basin of Oregon and California! -- Dave Hewitt Klamath Falls _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Black River Heronry eagle nest down. From: "BobnBernie" <bobnbernie AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 22:18:42 -0700 The nest went down sometime yesterday. Pam Chan was doing a survey of the heronries in the area and made the discovery. At that time there were no heron in the area. They informed Suzanne Krom of Herons forever and she relayed the massage to us last night. We visited today around noon and there were 40 to 50 heron in and around nests. One eagle was near the ex nest tree. We are going tomorrow for our usual Wednesday visit and will give an update. We think it is too late for them to build a new nest in the colony for this year. They have a secondary nest about a half mile away if she wants to lay more eggs immediately. We think she was on an egg or eggs last Wednesday. The heronry has lost about half of its nest count to the eagles and is why they are so late coming again this year. Maybe this is the break they need to build their numbers again. Until today, we were not sure the heronry would last. Time will tell. Bob & Bernie Renton, WA BobnBernie at Comcast dot net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Great Blue Herons in Renton From: Carol Stoner <stonefam AT gte.net> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:53:57 -0700 The GBHs have returned to the Black River Heronry in Renton. Last night about 6 and this morning about 7:30, 30+ herons were visible in the sky between the sewage treatment plant and fields between Oakesdale and Lind Avenues south of 405. An eye-catching spectacle. Carol Stoner stonefam atgtedot net Renton WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Sparrow slam down at Spenser Island From: "Rob Sandelin" <nwnature AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:37:01 -0700 Took a group of students around Spenser island this afternoon. There was a scuffle ahead on the trail and it turned out to be two song sparrows in a serious wrestling match. They broke apart, stood 6 inches away from each other for a moment, then jumped back into it, one pinned the other on the ground and pecked at its head 4-5 times. They separated a second time and the "loser" sparrow hopped into the brush, the winner flew off. As we passed by, the loser was still on the ground in the brush and one of my students summed it up with: "Dude, you got dusted!" Rob Sandelin Naturalist, Writer, Teacher Snohomish County New email: nwnature AT verizon.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Wenatchee Eurasian Widgeon From: Larry Schwitters <lpatters AT ix.netcom.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 18:15:29 -0700 Tweeters, The 500 or so Widgeons at Walla Wallla Point Park includes one good looking male Eurasian. The two females that were hanging with him looked like all the others. Also worth mentioning today are 5 violet-green Swallows on downtown wires, a fly over Long-billed Curlew, and for Diann M, a Turkey Vulture circling over the Wenatchee north end. Larry Schwitters Issaquah _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: A good day birding in Lewis County From: "Dave Hayden" <dtvhm AT nwrain.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:02:18 -0700 I started at the Cowlitz Trout Hatchery. This place was justing flitting with birds this morning. 5 Ruby-crowned Kinglets (most were singing) 32 Bufflehead 4 Lesser Scaup 12 Hooded Merganser 1 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Osprey (flying up river) 2 Spotted Sandpiper 2 Red-breasted Sapsucker 1 Belted Kingfisher 5 Yellow-rumped Warbler 3 Violet-green Swallow 1 Tree Swallow A quick stop at Mayfield Dam produced; 4 Violet-green Swallow 1 Northern Goshawk (Calling for the hillside across the dam. This was a surprise indeed.) Mayfield County Park was quiet with; 4 Bufflehead 3 Common Goldeneye Swofford Pond still has fairly good numbers of waterfowl. 53 Ring-necked Duck 40 Double-crested Cormorant 19 Commen Merganser 13 Lesser Scaup 5 Gadwall 3 Bufflehead 1 Scrub Jay At the east end of Riffe Lake, before the winds came, I had; 2 Common Goldeneye 1 Common Merganser 1 Common Loon 7 California Gull As I continued eastward through the windy forest (Cowlitz Wildlife Area), I was able to find; 1 American Dipper at the Cowlitz Falls Dam 2 Pine Siskin and 4 Evening Grosbeak at Leonard Allen Park/Cowlitz Falls Campground After that, the rain caught up with me, so I finished my day of exploring the Cowlitz Wildlife Area. I also had 4 American Kestrels along Hwy 12. Dave Hayden dtvhm AT nwrain.com Centralia, WA_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Nisqually From: Eric Cannizzaro <oporornis.p AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:22:33 -0700 I spent some time at Nisqually this morning, a few highlights were... Tree Swallows FOY Rufous Hummingbirds FOY Lincoln's Sparrow Eurasian Wigeon Eric Cannizzaro Evergreen State College_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: RE: please stop this From: "Muul, Kersti" <muulk AT seattleu.edu> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:16:15 -0700 Hello Paul, I'm glad that you responded. In no way did I insinuate that all photographers are trying to conquer nature. I am saying that when it sinks to the level of people arguing about their gear and flexing their egos, it loses all touch and association with, and of, its beginnings which is in fact, nature. Out competing in the field to get the best shot is indeed exploitative of nature as well as the methodology involved behind getting that shot if it in fact requires rubble rousing or habitat destruction or disruption. Upgrading cameras all the time is also exploitative of nature's resources. Kudos to our abilities to remember our technology free moments in nature which are free and last forever and don't exploit anything or one... Of course, I too, take pictures of birds; they are beautiful and yes I study them and enjoy the photos as I reflect on my experience with them. I appreciate you learning all you can about our wonderful companion species and would not ask you stop photographing them. My request was simply to stop the destructive force of argument on a page intended to foster love and education in the birding community. I now have become involved in an argument, so this is where I bow out. Happy birding, and I would be more than happy to go with you. Kersti P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Kersti E. Muul First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010 206-651-6637 muulk AT seattleu.edu Research Intern College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option University of Washington 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its extraordinary loveliness only when you revolt against everything - organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - so that you as a human being find out for yourself what is true. Not to imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' - Krishnamurti ________________________________ From: Paul Sparks [mailto:paul.sparks AT gmail.com] Sent: Tue 3/16/2010 3:55 PM To: Muul, Kersti Cc: tweeters AT u.washington.edu Subject: Re: [Tweeters] please stop this Hello, This is also my first post. I joined this list because I'll be visiting Seattle at the end of April and wanted to get a better understanding of the birds and the area before I came to visit. I had no intention of joining the argument until now. Kersti, I think your choice of words is unfortunate. I am a photographer who loves photographing birds as well as other subjects. Photographing birds has helped me learn more about birds and see them when I'm not photographing them. Not all bird photographers are trying to conquer nature. Some are just trying to preserve it. I still look forward to my visit and if anyone wants to bird or photograph with me at the end of April, please feel free to send my an email. Paul Sparks Glendale, Wisconsin www.paulcsparks.com www.flickr.com/photos/bookguy On Tue, Mar 16, 2010 at 4:03 PM, Muul, Kersti wrote: Hello all, This is my first time writing, and I have a small request. Please stop this ridiculous arguing over gear and ego. I have these sent to me so that I may enjoy what others are experiencing in nature, not to get caught up in the destructiveness of the human, trying another angle at conquering nature, under the guise of wildlife photography. If you so need to document every tidbit of a bird's life that you end up missing the beauty and inner growth provided to you by outer experience, well that is unfortunate. You are behaving no better than paparazzi in my opinion. Let the birds be for God's sake, so that we may enjoy them, and each other, respectfully... Thank you, Kersti P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Kersti E. Muul First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010 206-651-6637 muulk AT seattleu.edu Research Intern College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option University of Washington 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its extraordinary loveliness only when you revolt against everything - organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - so that you as a human being find out for yourself what is true. Not to imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' - Krishnamurti _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: RE: please stop this From: JEFFREY COHEN <kokobean2 AT hotmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:09:56 -0700 Kersti and members of the Seattle U. Wildlife and Ornithological Society, Sooooo, um, like, um, do you guys, like, sit in an um forest glade, or like meadow a with wildflowers and like chant until some birds come in on their like, um own? Or do you use binoculars and field guides with pictures like, um the rest of us? What you are reading on Tweeters in regard to photography is neither ridiculous nor arguing. It is an intellectual discussion and a technical exchange of information. It's a concept you should have picked up by now in college. Study of wildlife, be it through photography, direct observation, banding, or some form of electronic monitoring are all vital to the study, and therefore understanding of a species. I can't believe you haven't learned this from Seattle University if you have taken any kind of biology courses. Photography is among the least invasive of these techniques. With the long lenses photographers use, they rarely have to get closer than someone using a pair of binoculars. Most bird photographers are bird lovers and are doing what they love because they actually care about their subjects. I have regularly seen photographers (not 100% I grant you) give up a shot if it might disturb the bird. Understanding a living organism and educating others who are not able to be there, is what allows us to generate understanding and caring, leading to the preservation of species....not conquering them. So the next time you look at a picture of a bird, use a field guide, watch a movie or television documentary, remember the photographer who had to sit days in a blind, lie on their belly in pond, wade in a swamp up to their ass in mud and skeeters, dive in freezing Arctic waters, or hang from a cliff, often at their own expense, just so you could experience "the beauty and inner growth". Jeff Cohen north Seattle Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:03:32 -0700 From: muulk AT seattleu.edu To: tweeters AT u.washington.edu Subject: [Tweeters] please stop this Hello all, This is my first time writing, and I have a small request. Please stop this ridiculous arguing over gear and ego. I have these sent to me so that I may enjoy what others are experiencing in nature, not to get caught up in the destructiveness of the human, trying another angle at conquering nature, under the guise of wildlife photography. If you so need to document every tidbit of a bird's life that you end up missing the beauty and inner growth provided to you by outer experience, well that is unfortunate. You are behaving no better than paparazzi in my opinion. Let the birds be for God's sake, so that we may enjoy them, and each other, respectfully... Thank you, Kersti P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Kersti E. Muul First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010 206-651-6637 muulk AT seattleu.edu Research Intern College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option University of Washington 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its extraordinary loveliness only when you revolt against everything - organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - so that you as a human being find out for yourself what is true. Not to imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' - Krishnamurti _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_3 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: FOY White-Crowned Sparrow Song.... From: "Mary K." <catbird54 AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:00:33 -0700 in East Bremerton, at the strip mall (ugh) that houses the Olympic Cinema complex! This is the bird that for me really says it spring! Mary E. Klein Bremerton WA catbird54 -AT- Comcast.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: please stop this From: Paul Sparks <paul.sparks AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:55:32 -0500 Hello, This is also my first post. I joined this list because I'll be visiting Seattle at the end of April and wanted to get a better understanding of the birds and the area before I came to visit. I had no intention of joining the argument until now. Kersti, I think your choice of words is unfortunate. I am a photographer who loves photographing birds as well as other subjects. Photographing birds has helped me learn more about birds and see them when I'm not photographing them. Not all bird photographers are trying to conquer nature. Some are just trying to preserve it. I still look forward to my visit and if anyone wants to bird or photograph with me at the end of April, please feel free to send my an email. Paul Sparks Glendale, Wisconsin www.paulcsparks.com www.flickr.com/photos/bookguy On Tue, Mar 16, 2010 at 4:03 PM, Muul, Kersti wrote: > Hello all, > This is my first time writing, and I have a small request. Please stop this > ridiculous arguing over gear and ego. > I have these sent to me so that I may enjoy what others are experiencing in > nature, not to get caught up in the destructiveness > of the human, trying another angle at conquering nature, under the* guise*of wildlife photography. If you so need to document every tidbit of a bird's > life that you end up missing the beauty and inner growth provided to you by > outer experience, well that is unfortunate. You are behaving no better than > paparazzi in my opinion. > Let the birds be for God's sake, so that we may enjoy them, and each other, > respectfully... > Thank you, > Kersti > > P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail > > ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ > Kersti E. Muul > *First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society* > > *Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010* > 206-651-6637 > muulk AT seattleu.edu > > *Research Intern* > *College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option* > University of Washington > > 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made > of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its > extraordinary loveliness *only* when you revolt against everything - > organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - > so that you as a human being find out for *yourself* what is true. Not to > imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' > > - Krishnamurti > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters AT u.washington.edu > http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > >_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: please stop this From: Hans-Joachim Feddern <thefedderns AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:38:19 -0700 Kersti, Amen! Well spoken! We need to hear from you more often! Regards, Hans Feddern Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA. thefedderns AT gmail.com On Tue, Mar 16, 2010 at 2:03 PM, Muul, Kersti wrote: > Hello all, > This is my first time writing, and I have a small request. Please stop this > ridiculous arguing over gear and ego. > I have these sent to me so that I may enjoy what others are experiencing in > nature, not to get caught up in the destructiveness > of the human, trying another angle at conquering nature, under the* guise*of wildlife photography. If you so need to document every tidbit of a bird's > life that you end up missing the beauty and inner growth provided to you by > outer experience, well that is unfortunate. You are behaving no better than > paparazzi in my opinion. > Let the birds be for God's sake, so that we may enjoy them, and each other, > respectfully... > Thank you, > Kersti > > P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail > > ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ > Kersti E. Muul > *First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society* > > *Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010* > 206-651-6637 > muulk AT seattleu.edu > > *Research Intern* > *College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option* > University of Washington > > 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made > of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its > extraordinary loveliness *only* when you revolt against everything - > organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - > so that you as a human being find out for *yourself* what is true. Not to > imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' > > - Krishnamurti > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters AT u.washington.edu > http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > >_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: please stop this From: "Muul, Kersti" <muulk AT seattleu.edu> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:03:32 -0700 Hello all, This is my first time writing, and I have a small request. Please stop this ridiculous arguing over gear and ego. I have these sent to me so that I may enjoy what others are experiencing in nature, not to get caught up in the destructiveness of the human, trying another angle at conquering nature, under the guise of wildlife photography. If you so need to document every tidbit of a bird's life that you end up missing the beauty and inner growth provided to you by outer experience, well that is unfortunate. You are behaving no better than paparazzi in my opinion. Let the birds be for God's sake, so that we may enjoy them, and each other, respectfully... Thank you, Kersti P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Kersti E. Muul First President; Seattle University Wildlife and Ornithological Society Environmental /Ecological Studies 2010 206-651-6637 muulk AT seattleu.edu Research Intern College of Forest Resources; Wildlife Conservation Option University of Washington 'Life is really very beautiful, it is not the ugly thing that we have made of it; and you can appreciate its richness, its depth, its extraordinary loveliness only when you revolt against everything - organized religion, against tradition, against the present rotten society - so that you as a human being find out for yourself what is true. Not to imitate but to discover - that is education, is it not?' - Krishnamurti_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Squirrels, birds, and chilis From: "Guttman,Burt" <GuttmanB AT evergreen.edu> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:44:11 -0700 We have gray squirrels the way some people have mice or termites. I've come to accept the fact the squirrels are going to share the sunflower seeds in the big feeder with the birds--they're intimidated by the mallards who come up to feed anyway. But I'm jealous of the suet, and some of the squirrels have learned to jump way up to the suet cages, hang on, and nibble. I checked Frank Gill's Ornithology (2nd ed.) to confirm my belief that birds have a much poorer sense of taste than mammals and was amused to find the note that birds like chili peppers, with their flaming capsaicins, which generally repel mammals (like me--I grew up in Minnesota, where we don't eat the strong chili foods that folks from the Southwest, like my wife, love so much). So I'm thinking of spraying some suet cakes with that terribly hot sauce that chili-lovers sometimes use, to see if the squirrels will learn to leave it alone. If they do, I won't have to use it for long, though if birds really love it, well, I guess it wouldn't hurt. Anyway, I'd appreciate any comments and advice. Burt Guttman The Evergreen State College Olympia, WA 98505 guttmanb AT evergreen.edu Home: 7334 Holmes Island Road S. E., Olympia, 98503 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: East Lake Samm, redux From: travel girl <travelgirl.fics AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 09:54:00 -0700 Six eagles found along the commute this morning: three juveniles about 1/2 mile south of Weber Point, 1 juvenile and two adults about 1/2 mile north of the point. Can anyone tell me why I'm seeing more and more eagles along this stretch over the last month? It's not abnormal to see an eagle or two, but six, and so regularly every morning? Thanks... 00 caren http://www.ParkGallery.org george davis creek, north fork_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Apology, misspelled name From: Jim Greaves <lbviman AT blackfoot.net> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:43:26 -0600 To John Tubbs. I apologize for mis-spelling your name in recent posts. Senior moments - I knew a John Stubbs, so an aging synapse misfired - Jim Greaves _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Eagles Nest by Hwy 508 From: "Darlene Sybert" <drsybert AT northtown.org> Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:19:22 +0000 Still watching this nest in a short tree beside Highway 508 between milepost 16 and 17. This morning as I drove by, one eagle was flying towards the nest with several long strands of what looked like straw. The other eagle was perched on a branch near the nest. Darlene Cinebar And out of the ground, the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food... Genesis 2:9 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Franklin County Goodies From: "Rick Taylor" <taylorrl AT mindspring.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:02:04 -0700 All, Tina and I had a fabulous day birding in Franklin county on Saturday. We started the day with Mike and MerryLynn's BURROWING OWL at the intersection of US12 and Kahlotus Road. At Ringold, I spotted a MEW GULL loafing on the sandbar. Further north on Ringold River Road, Tina spotted a GREAT EGRET about 1 mile south of the heron rookery. She also spotted one about a mile north of the rookery. We aren't sure if this is the same individual, or a second bird. At the Bailie Youth Ranch, we had a small flock of CANVASBACK and flushed 5 GREY PARTRIDGE. At Scooteney Reservoir, there was a EURASIAN WIGEON on the water and several hundred SANDHILL CRANE in the fields to the west. After such a great day, we decided to try our luck in Columbia county on Sunday. Unfortunately, had used up our ration of birding luck for the weekend. The birds were few and common. Enjoy! Rick Rick Taylor Everett, WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Franklin County Goodies From: "Rick Taylor" <taylorrl AT mindspring.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:02:04 -0700 All, Tina and I had a fabulous day birding in Franklin county on Saturday. We started the day with Mike and MerryLynn's BURROWING OWL at the intersection of US12 and Kahlotus Road. At Ringold, I spotted a MEW GULL loafing on the sandbar. Further north on Ringold River Road, Tina spotted a GREAT EGRET about 1 mile south of the heron rookery. She also spotted one about a mile north of the rookery. We aren't sure if this is the same individual, or a second bird. At the Bailie Youth Ranch, we had a small flock of CANVASBACK and flushed 5 GREY PARTRIDGE. At Scooteney Reservoir, there was a EURASIAN WIGEON on the water and several hundred SANDHILL CRANE in the fields to the west. After such a great day, we decided to try our luck in Columbia county on Sunday. Unfortunately, had used up our ration of birding luck for the weekend. The birds were few and common. Enjoy! Rick Rick Taylor Everett, WA _______________________________________________ Inland-nw-birders mailing list Inland-nw-birders AT uidaho.edu https://www.lists.uidaho.edu/mailman/listinfo/inland-nw-birders Subject: Snipe Hunting in the Edmonds marsh From: Bill Anderson <billandersonbic AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 21:43:55 -0700 (PDT) I saw a snipe once again today at the Edmonds marsh.  For the time being they are hanging out near the west end viewing platform.    From the platform face south, then turn west.  You have just covered their territory, which is about  15-25 yards out from the viewing platform.  This could change as the water  level drops.   Today we could hear one splashing itself as it stood just out of sight behind a clump of rushes.   Look for snipes where vegetation meets waterline.  They like to stand up against the vegetation and dip their beaks into the water so that their protective coloration renders them nearly invisible. Yesterday afternoon the birds took a back seat to a gray whale.  It was swimming back and forth for about an hour in the Sound about 400 yards off Sunset Ave. Bill Anderson; Edmonds, WA.   _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Brandt at Semiahmoo From: dwunsch1 AT comcast.net Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 02:36:15 +0000 (UTC) After reading about a sighting of a thousand waterfowl at Semiahmoo on the Whatcom County birder website, we went up to see what was happening. There were several hundred Bran t in Drayton Harbor, loons  and about ten harlequin duck. Of course, the resident eagle was on hand. Doris Wunsch Bellingham dwunsch1 AT comcast.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: FOY: Rufous Hummingbird From: "Dave Hayden" <dtvhm AT nwrain.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 19:26:41 -0700 We just had our first of the year male Rufous Hummingbird coming to our feeder this evening. Dave Hayden dtvhm AT nwrain.com Centralia, WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: sno-falls peregrines From: dave templeton <crazydave65 AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:28:52 -0700 hi: the falcon appears to have settled in on the eggs in earnest as of today. there are at least two eggs and one report is that the angle of view from the upper sidewalk was such that it could not be seen that there were two pairs of eggs lined up such that they appeared to be one egg each. that makes sense given the time it took for the eggs to appear. i do not know if there is a visual record of the sighting, but i think it's highly likely she is on four eggs. given her past history, it's possible she could lay one or two more, but the incubation period probably has started in earnest today. tony fuchs, pse's biology guy sent the following note regarding accomodations at the falls this year during the remodel period: I just thought I'd pass along to you the plans for the Snoqualmie Falls upper park and observation platform. As you know I'm a Natural Resource Scientist at PSE and have been watching the peregrines at Snoqualmie Falls with you and others for some years now. The park is pretty unique in that several areas in the park are great for watching the birds during the breeding season. PSE's Snoqualmie Falls Park has three public, ridge-top viewpoints overlooking the falls: the "Rim Viewpoint" (closest to the Salish Lodge), the "Falls Viewpoint" (the roofed observation platform), and the "Peregrine Viewpoint" (at the downstream end of the park). We "formally" named the viewpoints this year in conjunction with the improvement work we did in the park the last few months. The 43-year-old observation platform, now closed, is going to be demolished in April and will be replaced with a temporary viewing structure, reopened to the public sometime in April or May. A new, permanent Falls Viewpoint will be constructed this fall and winter. The Rim and Peregrine viewpoints will remain open to the public but may have brief, temporary closures this spring to allow for installation of new Information and Education signage. Since the peregrines look to be nesting on the scrape nearest the falls, the "Rim Viewpoint" area will likely be the best place to view the birds from. Even though portions of that area along the railing will have some short closures for sign installation, much of the area along the railing will remain open all spring so viewing should be good. Please feel free to pass this onto your friends and/or post on tweeters. Thanks guys! that's the news from lake woebegone . . .. regards, t -- dave templeton fall city, wa crazydave65atgmaildaughtcom "Don't worry about the world coming to an end today; it's already tomorrow in Australia." Charles Schultz_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Photos from Discovery Park From: Kevin Mack <kevin_mack AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 16:54:08 -0700 Hi All, I just uploaded 17 photos from yesterday¹s trip to Discovery Park to my New Photos gallery here: http://www.goatislandimages.com/photogalleries/ImageViewMain.html?s=new_phot os Who knew Steller¹s Jays could do such a great impression of Don King? Happy Birding, Kevin Mack Edmonds, WA www.goatislandimages.com http://everydaywild.blogspot.com/_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: John Stubb's commentary From: Jim Greaves <lbviman AT blackfoot.net> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:01:19 -0600 John and everyone, and since John chose to make the personal remarks "public": At 03:32 PM 3/15/2010, johntubbs AT comcast.net wrote: >Jim and everyone, >I'll weigh in only one more time here with two points. > >1.) I find it interesting that the people with the expensive gear >aren't the ones criticizing the abilities of people who choose to >use less expensive gear. I respect people's choices, and in case >people missed it in my first post, almost all the time nowadays I'm >using my $300 superzoom digicam. I think the people with the ego in >this thread are the ones who imply or outright state that people who >make different choices than they do clearly are inferior >photographers. Who has the narrow-minded viewpoint here? Then why, John, did you set up a "straw dog" of a bird 500 feet away at a nest, then make the absurd INFERENCE that we, who use less expensive and less powerful equipment, think our results would EVER be better than someone using high end, MUCH MORE POWERFUL and IMAGE STABILIZED lenses or cameras? YOU did that. WE did not. You've insulted US by implying that we thought we were better than anyone else, and you continue to do so by belaboring, instead of edifying or educating, which we who aren's so well-financed have attempted to do for the "common man". >2.) More importantly, knowing your background as a wildlife >biologist, I'm surprised that you would tout getting a photograph of >a bird while buried deep in a thicket as a good thing. I was NOT "touting" anything. The nesting attempt was already a failure BECAUSE of the cowbird. I was using the example as one to refute your IMPLICATION that the only good photography is of HUGE birds at great distance taken by experts with HUGE lenses and expensive equipment. I do agree that we should all do what works for each of us. That was ALL I was attempting to show. On list and off list. >One of the benefits of large lenses is being able to stay a safe and >biologically reasonable distance away from your subject. And MY (not YOUR) experience with the species I referenced was what led me to KNOW, taking into consideration the complete failure of the host to reproduce, that my presence was not going to adversely impact the nest NOR THE ENDANGERED SPECIES under consideration. The dead vireo eggs in the nest, killed by adult cowbirds, was sufficient to tell me that. Assumptions about others' experiences are getting a bit trying. >I have seen way too many photographers - with the entire range of >equipment, not just high end, low end or no end - ignoring good >birding etiquette to get that all-important shot. I think that type >of behavior gives all wildlife photographers a bad name. Agree. And I do not deny my own mistakes in that regard. But, that was not the topic. >Now you now why I meant to erase the tweeters address rather than >Doris's in my original e-mail - it's because I've seen this "my way >is superior to your way and I'm superior to you" attitude in this >topic before. But, you keep touting YOUR opinion as "the superior" opinion. Situations call for different methods. >As I mentioned offline to several people, the folks in this thread >who attack other people's personal choices and abilities are eerily >reminiscent of other similar attitudes I saw when I was the COO of a >very well-known photographic company. There were a number of >fantastic photographers at that company who I admired greatly >because of their ability to capture all manner of images on film, >and in particular to print prints in the darkroom that would have >made Ansel Adams proud. Unfortunately, there was a high percentage >of these same people who totally pooh-poohed digital photography >COMPLETELY (not just what equipment you chose to buy) and did so in >a particularly strident and personally attacking manner. So? That was NOT what we were doing. > Anyone who gave any credence to digital photographer simply was an > uneducated slacker who clearly didn't know anything about > photography. Stuff like...Obviously people who use digital simply > aren't skilled enough to use film or do darkroom prints; digital > photography isn't and never will be 'art', digital photography > isn't 'real' [and presumably little grains of silver in an emulsion > is 'real', I guess?!] and on and on. Those folks are strangely > absent and very, very silent these days - because their > closely-held universal truths proved not to be so > universal. Anyone remember the days when Tom Till only did > hand-developed Cibachrome prints and swore never to do > otherwise? Interestingly, Tom is not only selling digital prints > now, but he's giving digital workshop tours. The point is that > with a few minor wording changes, the attitude in the "people who > own expensive equipment obviously don't have photographic ability > or a good 'eye' comments reflect exactly the attitude that my old > film-is-king-friends at the company had. I don't think anyone was making any such assertions. YOU are wrong. >'Nuff said, except to thank the off-line responses I got who also >took issue with the attitudes expressed by a couple of other folks >in this thread. Folks...buy whatever you want, respect other >people's choices, and have fun shooting birds (except don't disturb >them in the process). I respect you, John, and YOUR experiences as what led to your conclusions. Respect mine. >John Tubbs >Snoqualmie, WA >johntubbs AT comcast.net >www.tubbsphoto.com_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Flight photography techniques (was Re: camera equipment) From: John Puschock <g_g_allin AT hotmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 22:14:43 +0000 Hi all, I think a lot more is being read into some of these messages than is actually there, but I love everyone, so moving on, I thought the following might be of interest to the photographers out there: Jim Neiger is a photographer who handholds huge lenses for flight shots. He's developed some techniques for getting some amazing flight photographs, notably his "bumping the focus" method. You can read about it at http://www.birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1949. Arthur Morris also talks about it in his blog at http://www.birdsasart-blog.com/2010/02/28/carmens-tale-handholding-the-canon-800mm-f5-6l-is-lens/. (Sorry, I'm too lazy to do the tiny URL thing.) Also, check out Jim's website at http://www.flightschoolphotography.com/ for some samples of his work. The "crazy action images" gallery has some interesting shots. Also, I finally got around to adding another Canon 7D post to my blog. There are some indoor comparison shots between my 7D and 30D at http://zbirdtours.com/blog/2010/03/15/canon-7d-image-quality-comparison/ for those of you who care about such things. Later, John Puschock Wedgwood, Seattle g_g_allin AT hotmail.com http://www.zbirdtours.com & http://www.birdtreks.com _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail has tools for the New Busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_1 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Re: camera equipment From: johntubbs AT comcast.net Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 21:32:06 +0000 (UTC) Jim and everyone, I'll weigh in only one more time here with two points. 1.)  I find it interesting that the people with the expensive gear aren't the ones criticizing the abilities of people who choose to use less expensive gear.  I respect people's choices, and in case people missed it in my first post, almost all the time nowadays I'm using my $300 superzoom digicam.  I think the people with the ego in this thread are the ones who imply or outright state that people who make different choices than they do  clearly are inferior photographers.  Who has the narrow-minded viewpoint here? 2.)  More importantly, knowing your background as a wildlife biologist, I'm surprised that you would tout getting a photograph of a bird while buried deep in a thicket as a good thing.  One of the benefits of large lenses is being able to stay a safe and biologically reasonable distance away from your subject.  I have seen way too many photographers - with the entire range of equipment, not just high end, low end or no end - ignoring good birding etiquette to get that all-important shot.  I think that type of behavior gives all wildlife photographers a bad name. Now you now why I meant to erase the tweeters address rather than Doris's in my original e-mail - it's because I've seen this "my way   is superior to your way and I'm superior to you" attitude in this topic before.  As I mentioned offline to several people, the folks in this thread who attack other people's personal choices and abilities are eerily reminiscent of other similar attitudes I saw when I was the COO of a very well-known photographic company.  There were a number of fantastic photographers at that company who I admired greatly because of their ability to capture all manner of images on film, and in particular to print prints in the darkroom that would have made Ansel Adams proud.  Unfortunately, there was a high percentage of these same people who totally pooh-poohed  digital photography  COMPLETELY (not just what equipment you chose to buy)  and did so in a particularly strident and personally attacking  manner.  Anyone who gave any credence to digital photographer simply was an uneducated slacker who clearly didn't know anything about photography.   Stuff like...Obviously people who use digital simply aren't skilled enough to use film or do darkroom prints; digital photography isn't and never will be 'art', digital photography isn't 'real' [and presumably little grains of silver in an emulsion is 'real', I guess?!] and on and on.  Those folks are strangely absent and very, very silent these days - because their closely-held universal tru ths proved not to be so universal.  Anyone remember the days when Tom Till only did hand-developed Cibachrome prints and swore never to do otherwise?  Interestingly, Tom is not only selling digital prints now, but he's giving digital workshop tours.  The point is that with a few minor wording changes, the attitude in the "people who own expensive equipment obviously don't have photographic ability or a good 'eye' comments reflect exactly the attitude that my old film-is-king-friends at the company had.  'Nuff said, except to thank the off-line responses I got who also took issue with the attitudes expressed by a couple of other folks in this thread.  Folks...buy whatever you want, respect other people's choices, and have fun shooting birds (except don't disturb them in the process). John Tubbs Snoqualmie, WA johntubbs AT comcast.net www.tubbsphoto.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Greaves" To: tweeters AT u.washington.edu Sent: Monday, March 15, 2010 10:11:18 AM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific Subject: [Tweeters] Re: camera equipment John - your "absurd" statement is insulting to those who pioneered in photography before there was electronic circuitry! I'll take an older photo of Ivory-billed Woodpecker over anything shot of the same species recently... :-)  That said, of course you are right, with the example you used. I don't know any "serious" photographer who would even attempt to photograph a flying or perched bird at 500 ft with a skimpy zoom! Apples and oranges? But, I disagree about auto-zooms and mega-teles being "ipso facto" superior to manual focus similar or smaller lenses. AGAIN, it is the photographer who makes the image, by depressing the shutter release, not waiting for the camera's ignorant computer, which even pros will tell you often focus on things unwanted - hence the reason they want a camera that can blast off 10 or more frames a second for several minutes while they pan and watch the lens go in and out of focus at 500 feet. Of course, something only 50 to 100 feet away can be locked onto the focus, and every shot tack sharp, but it isn't likely to happen that ALL will be. I challenge anyone to get better photos of birds in dense thickets with such a megally-wonderful lens. Or a Least Bell's Vireo feeding a cowbird using that recommended "best" equipment... I made the linked photo from inside a thicket at 6 feet with a 28-300 Vivitar zoom on a Konica-Minolta 7D [7 mp] http://blackfoot.net/~larkwick/LeastBellsVireos.html [third image down - the image was cropped a bit and resolution reduced from 4.x mb for use on the web]. Unless one takes his/her mega-zoom or tele and attaches about a 6 inch empty-space tube twixt the camera and lens, they cannot get within about 15 feet - thus the effective distance is BETTER with my 300mm macro-zoom (actually only 280 as I measured against a straight 300) at about a pound than their 500mm at about 6-8 pounds, handheld. And with that tube on that bazooka, the light would be terribly low for focusing, virtually requiring a tripod. That huge amount of "stuff" in the thicket might make any bird suspect it's being invaded... Of course knowing how one's subject will respond dictates the methods and proximity of the photographer. And, as we all know from the "ethics of birding", in order to do so, such an encumbered "professional" would have more than likely had to remove vegetation from the shrub that hid the nest in order to get clear shots like I got without having to remove anything but distance [leaf and twig removal being a no-no - which a "professional" photographer once tried to do when I showed him a vireo nest he wanted to photograph for an LA Times piece - I told him leave the twigs alone and move a foot; he did NOT get what I would call a "pro quality" image -- experience in some realms does not necessarily transfer to others, no matter how large someone's ego may be or expensive and impressive their equipment or clothing] - Jim Greaves At 01:00 PM 3/14/2010, John Stubbs wrote: >For anyone who wishes to dispute the incremental >benefits of better gear , I would propose an >in-the-field experiment.  Let's take someone >with an off-brand, non-autofocus 100-400mm slow >zoom and an older 5 or 8  megapixel digital >SLR, handheld, out to the Samish Flats while the >Peregrines are still hunting Dunlin.  Their >counterpart will have a 500mm prime Canon with a >1.4X teleconverter fast  autofocus lens on a >tripod with a Wimberley head and a 16-megapixel >camera back with four or eight frame multiple >shot mode .  We'll shoot in-flight images for >a morning and do a comparison of the best ten or >fifteen shots after editing and basic >post-processing from each photographer  at the >end of the morning and compare results.  I know who my money's on. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Northern Shrike at NWR From: Tony <tvarela AT hotmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:11:33 -0700 Watched a Northern Shrike hunting in the area west of the dike trail yesterday. First I've seen there. http://tonyv.smugmug.com/Nature/NWR _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Steller's jays nest construction From: Tracey Cummings <teecummings AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:52:23 -0700 Had 2 of my friendly neighborhood Steller's jays collecting dried up vines and other nest materials Sunday. Looking forward to seeing some jay babies later this spring. -- Tracey Cummings Carnation WA teecummings AT gmail.com_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: Re: camera equipment; apology From: Lee Rentz <lee AT leerentz.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:36:43 -0700 I think it is great to start out with what one can afford, and build from there if one has the love of the medium. Many years ago in this forum people were giving advice to a young birder with little money about the best tripods and spotting scopes he should buy--as if he had financial access to the best. Sometimes I think we forget that many of us started out with what we could, and built from there. In my case, some of my favorite nature photographs that I have taken were from the late 70s and early 80s, when I had a lot of vision and not much money. But those photos still stand up today, even though I now have better (still can't afford the best!) equipment. The vision is the thing. I loved Kenn Kaufman's "Kingbird Highway" book, in which he talked about traveling around America during a 1970s quest to see more species of birds than just about anyone. He did it on a shoestring, with a pair of $20 binoculars that he had painted bright gold. He became one of America's top birders. Lee Rentz http://leerentz.wordpress.com On Mar 15, 2010, at 10:24 AM, Jim Greaves wrote: > At 01:00 PM 3/14/2010, Allyn Weaks wrote: >> Allyn Weaks -- good series of points, etc >> relative to photography > > Thank you Allyn for your comprehensive analysis of the ins and outs > of aspects of this discussion. Also, I apologize if I sounded at > all arrogant in my last two posts. Unintended by attempting to be > brief - which seems impossible given the subject matter, as I've > observed over the decades among photographers of all levels of > expertise! :-) Thanks to all for this VERY useful discussion - > though I'm stuck with what I have to use, and try to make the best > of it, I "long for" the day when/if I actually COULD afford the > BEST lenses and BEST cameras. Until, I like others, make do with > what we can... -- Jim Greaves > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters AT u.washington.edu > http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Snoqualmie Valley Yellow-headed Blackbird yes, Western Bluebird no From: "Bob Schmidt" <bobs AT world-wide.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:56:24 -0700 Sunday, my wife Lauren and I started our birding at the Reformatory Farm Pond north of Duvall around 9 AM. We saw about 100 SWANs of which some appeared to be TRUMPETER out on the pond with numerous WIGEON, PINTAILS, and SHOVELLERS. After a short stop we moved to the Crescent Lake Wildlife Area mainly to walk our dogs, but also saw around 150 MALLARD in corn stubble and 50 RING-NECKED DUCKS in the slough (lake) as well as many common passerines. Returning to the Reformatory Farm Pond around 10:30 we spotted a female YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD in a flock of over 50 BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDs in a yard between the barns and pond. Other highlights were a pair of CANVASBACKS, a single EURASIAN WIGEON, and a single RUDDY DUCK among 100s of more common waterfowl. Interestingly the swans had all left to forage. After lunch we searched hard for Westerns Bluebirds around Chinook Bend Park and surrounding roads without success. We did find 2 beautiful male HOODED-MERGANSERS at the small pond east of the river and some CACKLING GOOSE and more distant SWANs near Camp Korey. Even though it got hazy, it was a fine day. Bob and Lauren Schmidt Bothell, WA bobs at world-wide dot com _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: camera equipment; apology From: Jim Greaves <lbviman AT blackfoot.net> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:24:29 -0600 At 01:00 PM 3/14/2010, Allyn Weaks wrote: >Allyn Weaks -- good series of points, etc >relative to photography Thank you Allyn for your comprehensive analysis of the ins and outs of aspects of this discussion. Also, I apologize if I sounded at all arrogant in my last two posts. Unintended by attempting to be brief - which seems impossible given the subject matter, as I've observed over the decades among photographers of all levels of expertise! :-) Thanks to all for this VERY useful discussion - though I'm stuck with what I have to use, and try to make the best of it, I "long for" the day when/if I actually COULD afford the BEST lenses and BEST cameras. Until, I like others, make do with what we can... -- Jim Greaves _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: camera equipment From: Jim Greaves <lbviman AT blackfoot.net> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:11:18 -0600 John - your "absurd" statement is insulting to those who pioneered in photography before there was electronic circuitry! I'll take an older photo of Ivory-billed Woodpecker over anything shot of the same species recently... :-) That said, of course you are right, with the example you used. I don't know any "serious" photographer who would even attempt to photograph a flying or perched bird at 500 ft with a skimpy zoom! Apples and oranges? But, I disagree about auto-zooms and mega-teles being "ipso facto" superior to manual focus similar or smaller lenses. AGAIN, it is the photographer who makes the image, by depressing the shutter release, not waiting for the camera's ignorant computer, which even pros will tell you often focus on things unwanted - hence the reason they want a camera that can blast off 10 or more frames a second for several minutes while they pan and watch the lens go in and out of focus at 500 feet. Of course, something only 50 to 100 feet away can be locked onto the focus, and every shot tack sharp, but it isn't likely to happen that ALL will be. I challenge anyone to get better photos of birds in dense thickets with such a megally-wonderful lens. Or a Least Bell's Vireo feeding a cowbird using that recommended "best" equipment... I made the linked photo from inside a thicket at 6 feet with a 28-300 Vivitar zoom on a Konica-Minolta 7D [7 mp] http://blackfoot.net/~larkwick/LeastBellsVireos.html [third image down - the image was cropped a bit and resolution reduced from 4.x mb for use on the web]. Unless one takes his/her mega-zoom or tele and attaches about a 6 inch empty-space tube twixt the camera and lens, they cannot get within about 15 feet - thus the effective distance is BETTER with my 300mm macro-zoom (actually only 280 as I measured against a straight 300) at about a pound than their 500mm at about 6-8 pounds, handheld. And with that tube on that bazooka, the light would be terribly low for focusing, virtually requiring a tripod. That huge amount of "stuff" in the thicket might make any bird suspect it's being invaded... Of course knowing how one's subject will respond dictates the methods and proximity of the photographer. And, as we all know from the "ethics of birding", in order to do so, such an encumbered "professional" would have more than likely had to remove vegetation from the shrub that hid the nest in order to get clear shots like I got without having to remove anything but distance [leaf and twig removal being a no-no - which a "professional" photographer once tried to do when I showed him a vireo nest he wanted to photograph for an LA Times piece - I told him leave the twigs alone and move a foot; he did NOT get what I would call a "pro quality" image -- experience in some realms does not necessarily transfer to others, no matter how large someone's ego may be or expensive and impressive their equipment or clothing] - Jim Greaves At 01:00 PM 3/14/2010, John Stubbs wrote: >For anyone who wishes to dispute the incremental >benefits of better gear , I would propose an >in-the-field experiment. Let's take someone >with an off-brand, non-autofocus 100-400mm slow >zoom and an older 5 or 8  megapixel digital >SLR, handheld, out to the Samish Flats while the >Peregrines are still hunting Dunlin. Their >counterpart will have a 500mm prime Canon with a >1.4X teleconverter fast  autofocus lens on a >tripod with a Wimberley head and a 16-megapixel >camera back with four or eight frame multiple >shot mode . We'll shoot in-flight images for >a morning and do a comparison of the best ten or >fifteen shots after editing and basic >post-processing from each photographer  at the >end of the morning and compare results. I know who my money's on. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: camera gear From: Jim Greaves <lbviman AT blackfoot.net> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:44:22 -0600 Thanks John. Good points! Another good average consumer priced camera is a Sony (which has its own image stabilization, so you don't need to buy expensive stabilized lenses), for under $500 at Walmart, it is by far superior to the 6 megapixels of my Nikon... It has 10 megapixels (which is important for image resolution - the higher the pixel count the farther away one can be for good results). And, because of the IS onboard, it is not limited to Sony lenses - Vivitar and others make MUCH less expensive and WELL made teles and zooms. I have no argument with Canon as John notes - it is the one I see most often with "shorter" zooms (80-400 range) or with the expensive bazookas on tripods; results I've seen have been, as John says, the result of the photographer, and not the equipment, as I've seen terrible stuff from some folks with apparently endless expense accounts, and tack sharp, cover-quality results from "little old people" with just a camera and IS lens slung over the shoulder! The eye of the bee holder is the critical element in all image making - Jim Greaves At 01:00 PM 3/14/2010, John Puschock at Tweeters wrote: >If you're convinced you want to get into the "art" aspects of bird >photography but aren't already invested in a SLR system, get a >decent lens and one of the cheaper DSLR bodies and see how you like >it. Nikon may be beating Canon in image quality at the prosumer >price point, but for the budget-conscious, I'd still recommend >Canon. I believe they have a better selection of affordable >(relatively speaking) lenses. _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Nesting Pine Siskins, nesting material, Yelm, Thurston County From: Yelm Backyard Wildlife <yelmbackyard AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 05:39:39 -0800 Dear Tweets; I watched a Pine Siskin pick up a wad of dog hair yesterday and fly off into the treeline. Evidently, it is ideal nesting material. Usually I toss out dryer lint for nesting material, but I see why the dog hair is preferred; the lint is sopping wet. Michelle Yelm Thurston County yelmbackyard AT gmail.com _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Northbound Swans From: Michael Price <loblollyboy AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 01:56:55 -0700 Hey Tweets 30+ swans northbound over East Vancouver, about 8.30 am Sunday morning. On the bus, no way to know species. But from now to the end of March, this is about the time the swans leave for the north. Sayonara until late October. Michael Price Vancouver BC Canada loblollyboy AT gmail.com Every answer deepens the mystery. - E.O. Wilson_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Female King Eider continues Grays Harbor County From: "Grace and Ollie Oliver" <grace.ollie AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:53:50 -0700 Hi Tweeters, Today we went in search of the famous Ocean Shores female King Eider that's been hanging around waters between Damon Point and the Sewage Treatment Plant in Ocean Shores for months. The wave action was VERY ENERGETIC. Wave troughs and crests did an amazing job of hiding even large sea birds. After 3 hours of searching Ollie spotted it! Yeah! It is a nice looking sea duck. Wind kept the scopes vibrating. It was a very challenging experience. The energy of the cool weather was impressive. Shorebirds found on the Ocean Shores Jetty were a mixed flock of Black Turnstones and at least 2 Rock Sandpipers of the Pribilof Island subspecies. Flock total size was about 20 birds which was noted when they took flight. The bi-colored (yellow/black) longer and slightly down curved bill of the Rock Sandpiper subspecies was clearly visible, as well as their yellow legs; and also they were much paler on belly and overall. Both Trumpeter and Tundra (2) Swans were observed from Brady Loop Road. It was a good day. (shamelessly stealing from Marv Breece) Grace & Ollie Oliver Redmond, WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Cranes and other Othello area birds From: "Randy Hill" <hill AT smwireless.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 21:31:15 -0700 Back in Othello for the weekend to do a couple of pre-Festival field trip yesterday. Visit the Festival website at www.othellosandhillcranefestival.org for details on speakers, field trips (and ticket availability), and other happenings. Sandhill Cranes continue to move in. McKinney Road south of SR 26 and Road B SE north of SR 26 have several hundred using corn fields to the west. Friday's scouting included Dunlin, a Great Egret and plenty of Tricolored Blackbirds at the Para Ponds. Yesterday we found a few Burrowing Owls, a Tree Swallow at Crab Creek, and several Tundra Swans and Dunlin at the County Line Ponds. Be aware that Highway 24 is closed where it passes under Highway 26. Randy Hill Othello/Ridgefield _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Cranes and other Othello area birds From: "Randy Hill" <hill AT smwireless.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 21:31:15 -0700 Back in Othello for the weekend to do a couple of pre-Festival field trip yesterday. Visit the Festival website at www.othellosandhillcranefestival.org for details on speakers, field trips (and ticket availability), and other happenings. Sandhill Cranes continue to move in. McKinney Road south of SR 26 and Road B SE north of SR 26 have several hundred using corn fields to the west. Friday's scouting included Dunlin, a Great Egret and plenty of Tricolored Blackbirds at the Para Ponds. Yesterday we found a few Burrowing Owls, a Tree Swallow at Crab Creek, and several Tundra Swans and Dunlin at the County Line Ponds. Be aware that Highway 24 is closed where it passes under Highway 26. Randy Hill Othello/Ridgefield _______________________________________________ Inland-nw-birders mailing list Inland-nw-birders AT uidaho.edu https://www.lists.uidaho.edu/mailman/listinfo/inland-nw-birders Subject: Skamania Co birding Saturday 3/13 From: mattxyz AT earthlink.net Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 21:18:13 -0700 hi Tweeters - I headed out early Saturday morning to try for more Skamania Co birds -- and it wasn't disappointing! Saturday I started off super early, heading straight to Skamania. I stopped at St. Cloud Ranch for a bathroom break at a bit before 8:00, only to have the highlight of the trip: PINE GROSBEAK! One was singing away by the bathroom, confusing me with its song and size combo until I deigned to look through my binocs.... I was expecting to find a hidden Purple Finch -- interesting to compare their songs. Over to Drano Lake, where Michael Hobbs was present & soon turned up the TUFTED DUCK From there, we circled around to Underwood, where I've never before birded and where Michael had already 'scouted' earlier in the day. We turned up WILD TURKEY, ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD & CALI QUAIL We also had our first of the year TURKEY VULTURE fly overhead. Also present were huge numbers of very loud Western Scrub-Jays & Steller's Jays, seeming willing to live together. We tried for a bunch of other things as we headed west,. North of Stevenson, at the marsh at, approximately Rock Creek x Red Bluff, a Virginia Rail responded but didn't show itself. Also had a nice pair of Hooded Mergansers fly in. In North Bonneville, we spent a while hiking around Hamilton/Strawberry Island -- none of the 'target birds' showed up, but we did have VIOLET-GREEN & TREE SWALLOWS, and our first of the year RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD - a loud male. At the east end of Skamania Landing, a large flock of white-cheeked geese remain, including at least a few minima CACKLING GEESE -- the others seemed mostly to be of the intermediat range Taverners/Parvipes - Back at St. Cloud Ranch again, our highlight was find a flock of BUSHTITS [5 or so, coastal race]. A stop at Marble Rd. produced WB NUTHATCH heard at a distance & briefly glanced in flight. All in all, a good day -- Matt Bartels Seattle, WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: chasing Merlins in Mason and Kittitas Counties From: "washingtonbirder.Knittle" <washingtonbirder AT hotmail.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 20:59:32 -0700 Marv Breece and I chased Merlins in late Jan. in se Washington and were sucessful so we decided to try for Merlins in Mason and Kittitas Cos. as that is the only 2 counties I have never seen Merlins in. The trip was on and off for most of last week and then Friday night decided to make a go of it. Mason County high-lites seen between 7 am and 2 pm between rain showers are: Skokomish Valley Road near a Christmas tree farm was 1 American Kestrel, previously seen along this road the week before. Shelton along the bay produced 1 Peregrine Falcon Potlatch St Park and Skokomish River mouth is usually good birding and although nothing rare it produced Red Crossbills, Brant, Canvasbacks, Red-throated, Pacific, and Common Loons, Pigeon Guillemot, 5 Eared Grebes along with Red-necked, Horned, and Western Grebes. Schafer State Park we had our first of the year Turkey Vulture. Kennedy Creek we scanned over quickly and noted only Black-bellied Plovers and Dunlin. We could not find a Merlin in Mason Co. Sunday in Kittitas we woke to frosty temps with clear skies in Cle Elum. Birds noted was a Townsend's Solitaire, Evening Grosbeaks, a bright yellow-rumped Red Crossbill, and 1 Eurasian Collared-Dove the furthest west I had seen them in Kittitas Co. Ponds around Ellensburg had Tundra Swans in them. Also while driving through Ellensburg near the college we had a nice looking Merlin. This leaves only Mason Co. for me to try and find a Merlin in. Heading down to Vantage area we had Violet-green Swallows, Say's Phoebes, a Bald Eagle sitting on a nest possibly on eggs, and Chukars. Near Quilomene Wildlife Area we had great looks of Mountain Bluebirds and a Sage Sparrow. Both days produced 59 species. On the way home I noted 900+ white-cheeked Geese in the ponds just after I got onto I-82 after following the Yakima River Canyon south. We looked hard for geese in Kittitas Co., but didn't realized they are just 33 miles south. Not sure what is holding them in Yakima Co. and not moving north into Kittitas Co. Ken Knittle Vancouver WA 98665 mailto:washingtonbirder AT hotmail.com Washington Birder online http://www.wabirder.com/ _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Great Blue Herons From: kenquery AT comcast.net Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 00:59:19 +0000 (UTC) I passed by the GBH rookery off of Pioneer between Puyallup and Tacoma on Friday morning. Something had spooked the nesting herons. There were 60-80 herons in the air circling the area. I wish that I had my camera ready. There is a nesting pair of eagles nearby but I did not seem them at the time. Ken Query Puyallup, WA kenquery AT comcast.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Discovery Park this morning From: Kevin Mack <kevin_mack AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 17:34:18 -0700 Hi All, My wife and I headed to Discovery Park this morning and had a wonderful time in the sun. Birds were everywhere, but the most interesting action was taking place in the South Meadow. It seems the sunshine had woken up the ants, and the crows were taking full advantage of them. There were at least 50 crows hanging around in the trees and they were taking turns flying down, getting the ants worked up and then eating them as well as bathing in them. When the crows tired of this, robins moved in to feast on the exposed ants. I posted a short piece with a couple photos on my blog here: http://everydaywild.blogspot.com/ We walked the loop trail starting and ending in the south parking lot. Along the way we saw activity everywhere. The list of what we saw is below, and I¹ll be posting photos of some of these sightings on goatislandimages.com in the near future. Discovery Park, March 14, 2010 9:30 am ­ 12:00 pm American Crow Steller¹s Jay Spotted Towhee House Finch Pine Siskin Song Sparrow Golden-crowned Sparrow Bewick¹s Wren Winter Wren Dark-eyed Junco Ruby-crowned Kinglet Red-winged Blackbird Northern Flicker Anna¹s Humminbird Dunlin Killdeer Mew Gull Glaucous-winged Gull Double-crested Cormorant Common Goldeneye Northern Shoveler Mallard Gadwall American Wigeon Lesser Scaup Kevin Mack Edmonds, WA www.goatislandimages.com http://everydaywild.blogspot.com/ _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Fir Island Sunday morning From: Calliopehb AT aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 20:09:53 EDT Hi Tweets, Went to the Game Preserve this morning. Highlights include an Audubon's Yellow-rumped Warbler, Tree Swallows, one Violet-green Swallow on the power lines over by the headquarters office trailer. I also saw 3 Lincoln Sparrows on the trail that goes to the right out on the preserve. There were still large numbers of Snow Geese out nearby too today. Great day to be out birding. Happily Birding in Arlington, WA Beth Thompson_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Bluebirds and Nest Boxes at Chinook Bend From: johntubbs AT comcast.net Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:59:46 +0000 (UTC) Hi everyone, Evan Houston just called me (approx. 3:45 Sunday) from his car to let me know that he looked for, but unfortunately did not find, the Western Bluebirds at Chinook Bend.  He also said that he spent some time looking for the bluebird boxes I mentioned in my earlier post, and couldn't find them either.  Mea culpa on that one - the nest boxes disappeared last year, possibly in the big flood, possibly taken down by someone, or...who knows.  I wanted anyone who goes there searching for the boxes to not waste time looking for them as both Joyce and Evan spent time looking for something that wasn't there to be found.  Now that Joyce Meyer has seen the birds again, I may spring for a couple replacement boxes and put them up quickly to see if we get any takers.  Two years ago, the bluebirds were seen most frequently when I was there perching in various places near the bridge access point and fishermen's trail that runs down into the natural area to and through the cottonwood stand.  Sometimes the birds were on the tops of conifers, sometimes on some old poles along the trail, and sometimes on the wires.  However, I also saw them several times on the other side of the Chinook Bend property sitting on top of conifers (this is the area near where Carnation Farm road takes a big bend to the left as you're driving toward Carnation Farm/Camp Korey.)  One nice thing about the improvements being done to the area is that they've expanded the parking area closest to Carnation Farm to make room for a few more cars.  What little parking there is by the bridge gets chewed up very quickly when the fish are running in the river.  If I remember correctly, when Matt Bartels was finishing up his King County species list for 2009 that there were no Western Bluebirds reported in King County in 2009.  John Tubbs Snoqualmie, WA johntubbs AT comcast.net www.tubbsphoto.com _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: RE: camera gear From: John Puschock <g_g_allin AT hotmail.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:23:23 +0000 Well, I did manage to offend a few folks with my posts, enough that I'll respond publicly. Sorry, not my intention, but given the nature of the medium, not really a surprise. I'm not saying anyone in particular shouldn't be using a pro rig. Maybe I wasn't clear enough in my last message, and what I felt was not adequately covered in the previous messages, that there are less expensive options over a wide range of prices that will produce more than acceptable images _most_ of the time for many people. (And some of these things are more or less free, such as working on technique and composition, or as someone else mentioned, shooting in RAW to allow more post-processing.) My reason for chiming in is that, in my opinion, this message can be difficult to find when searching for camera info on the internet, where discussions are often dominated by pro-level photographers and may be misleading for someone just getting into photography. It also has the potential to scare off those who feel they can't afford to get started. In no way did I intend to suggest that a mid-priced camera will produce results as good as the best available, though if I switch equipment with Art Wolfe, I'll bet that he still gets better results than me. My impression of the purpose of the conversation was to offer recommendations to those new to bird photography who may not be as interested in top-of-the-line image quality as they are in getting something between grab shots for ID purposes to something good for online display, though not good enough for the cover of National Geographic. Perhaps I was wrong, but based on that, I felt the mid-priced cameras and lenses weren't receiving adequate coverage. Anyway, the Canon 7D ($1699 MSRP), along with Canon's 100-400mm zoom (~$1600 at B&H) and the 300mm f/4 (~$1260 at B&H) plus 1.4x teleconverter (~$300 at B$H) were mentioned, along with the Nikon equivalent. That's at least a $3200 investment, not counting CF cards and other accessories. You can get excellent results with that, but it still may be beyond the budget and needs of many. If that's you, I'd suggest taking a look at any of the Rebels or the 40D or 50D, all of which can be had for less than $1000, with some as low as $500. The Canon EF 400mm f/5.6 is a good lens for "only" $1200 at B&H. (I don't know Nikon or other brands so others will have to offer suggestions.) So you can get a rig for about $2000 that will enable you to get photos most of the time that are about 75-95%, depending on the situation (and that number is just based on my opinion) of the quality possible from pro equipment. A ~$500 point-and-shoot will get you photos a lower percentage of the time that will probably be of lower quality than the low-end DSLR. On the other hand, if you know you want to get the best image possible, by all means, spend as much as you can. For what it's worth, there were several winners and honorable mentions in the recent Audubon magazine contest (http://audubonmagazine.org/features1001/bigpicture.html) that were using Canon 30D-50Ds, though admittedly only two were using lenses costing <$2000. So if you were offended, I'm sorry, but I wasn't pointing a finger at you or anyone else. I have no problem with anyone using a set-up that costs $20,000+, though I admit I'm still surprised by the proportion of people using that equipment. It's a bit like showing up for a recreational bike ride and over half the riders have Lance Armstrong's Tour de France bike. Anyway, maybe we're arguing two different issues, i.e., the expectations of the end product and the potential for increased demands on the equipment as the photographer develops (pun not intended). John Puschock Wedgwood, Seattle g_g_allin AT hotmail.com http://www.zbirdtours.com & http://www.birdtreks.com _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_3 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: bird photography: how/where to post photos? From: Lee Rentz <lee AT leerentz.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:46:46 -0700 One other web service I use for displaying photographs is the PhotoShelter web portal, which has an elegant interface. PhotoShelter has a variety of options that you can explore; my galleries on PhotoShelter are viewed at this home page: http:// www.photoshelter.com/c/leerentz To explore PhotoShelter, go to http://www.photoshelter.com/index/d Lee Rentz lee AT leerentz.com On Mar 13, 2010, at 12:21 PM, Lee Rentz wrote: > I have found that a blog is a great way to express oneself with > words and photographs. I use wordpress.com, and there are no costs > involved because the site is supported by advertising. There are > many templates to choose from, and there are statistics available > concerning the number of visitors to each post. The bandwidth > allowed is enormous, and as long as you make appropriate-sized > jpegs, the limits should allow you to post for years. If you have > a lot of friends and acquaintances interested in what you have to > say, you will get a lot of hits. Alternatively, the tags and > categories and content will automatically attract a lot of visitors. > > If you want a place to post and archive your photographs as full- > sized jpegs, Flickr.com provides that service for $25 per year. > > Lee Rentz > Shelton, WA > http://leerentz.wordpress.com > > > On Mar 12, 2010, at 12:20 PM, Bill Anderson wrote: > >> On a related note to the discussion on photo equipment, how/where >> do you post photos for others to view? Looking at the posts of >> others, it appears that my two options are to join a photo hosting >> site like Photobucket or to create a personal website. >> >> I like to write, so I am inclined to explore an option which would >> allow me to post commentary as well as photos. A friend from the >> motorcycle side of my hobby world suggested creating a blog where >> I could link in photos from a photo hosting site. My favorite >> photo sites I have seen on Tweeters are the websites of >> professional photographers. Are these expensive to start and >> maintain? How many photos will such a site hold? >> >> Feel free to reply privately to me if this tread is too far off >> topic for Tweeters. >> Bill Anderson; Edmonds, WA. >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Tweeters mailing list >> Tweeters AT u.washington.edu >> http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters AT u.washington.edu > http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Nanaimo bird alert From: "The Backyard" <thebackyard AT shaw.ca> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:38:12 -0800 NANAIMO BIRD ALERT To report your sightings phone the Store at 250-390-3669 e-mail us at thebackyard AT shaw.ca call the Bird Alert at 250-390-3029 Also check the birdstore blog for the latest bird alerts and updates: www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com Post your sightings on this site: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bcbirdingvanisland/messages Birds of British Columbia: http://www.geog.ubc.ca/biodiversity/efauna/SpeciesChecklists.html International Birdwatching Guides http://www.guidedbirdwatching.com Birdwatching contacts and information find a local birder to go birdwatching with: http://www.birdingpal.org/ Please remember, when reporting a sighting, to leave your name and phone Number, along with the date, name and location of your sighting. Sunday March 14, 2010: The Sunday bird walk went to Neck Point Park in Nanaimo. The morning was cloudy and the winds were bitterly cold. Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets caught our attention when they were singing at different times during the morning. A raft of Buffhead, Barrow's Goldeneye, Harlequin Duck, Red-breasted Merganser and Common Merganser were in the protection of the bay at Sunset Beach. A Glaucous Gull and a pair of Pigeon Guillemots were not far from shore. Small rafts of Pacific Loon, Common Loon and Common Murre were further offshore. Ten hardy birders found the following forty species of birds: Canada Geese, Mallard, Double-crested Cormorant, Brandt's Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Wood Duck, Buffhead, Barrow's Goldeneye, Harlequin Duck, Wood Duck, Red-breasted Merganser, Common Merganser, Bald Eagle, Mew Gulls, Thayer's Gull, Glaucous Gull, California Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Common Murre, Pigeon Guillemot, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Northwestern Crow, European Starling, American Robin, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Brown Creeper, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Winter Wren, Bewick's Wren, Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow, Red Crossbill, Pine Siskin and Dark-eyed Junco. Saturday March 13: Twelve Evening Grosbeaks are visiting feeders along Butler Road in Parksville. Friday March 12: A Glaucous Gull was again spotted among California Gulls, Thayer's Gulls and Glaucous-winged Gulls in the grassy area at the Community Park in Parksville. A Turkey Vulture was spotted above Sunshine Ridge in Nanaimo. Thursday March 11: Two Cackling Geese, eighteen Northern Shovelers and a Snow Goose were seen in with over seven hundred Canada Geese at Quennell Lake in Cedar. Wednesday March 10: A Glaucous Gull was seen in with a large flock of California Gulls,Thayer's Gulls and Glaucous-winged Gulls along the grass area at the Community Park in Parksville. Tuesday March 09: The first reported male Rufous Hummingbird of the season was spotted at feeders in the 4100 block of Gulfview Drive in Nanaimo. The Tuesday Bird Walk started in Rathtrevor Provincial Park but we were quickly convinced by the brisk winds to go to the more protected beach at Parksville Community Park. Before we left Rathtrevor we did spot twelve Trumpeter Swans. The morning was cloudy with a strong southeast wind. We were greeted at the Parksville Bay by an estimated one thousand Brant Geese and at least one hundred thousand gulls--Bonaparte's Gulls, Mew Gulls, California Gulls, Herring Gulls,Thayer's Gull, Western Gulls, Glaucous-winged Gulls. We had good close looks and were able to compare the yellow legs, black wingtips and short yellow bill of the Mew Gull with the deep yellow legs, black wingtips and bright yellow bill with a bright red and black marks of the larger California Gull who are in their clean crisp breeding plumage. Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Barrow's Goldeneye and Red-breasted Merganser were seen further offshore. A flock of Black-bellied Plover and Dunlin left the gravel bar in a large cloud flew south down the Strait of Georgia. A Pigeon Guillemot, one Pacific Loon and one Common Loon were seen off the tip of the hovercraft landing pad at the north end of the Bay. We saw two male Yellow-rumped Warblers, one Song Sparrow and three White-crowned Sparrows on the bushes near the RV Park at the north end of the Bay. Eleven birders saw and heard the following thirty-five species of birds: Canada Goose, Brant, Trumpeter Swan, American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Barrow's Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Horned Grebe, Pelagic Cormorant, Bald Eagle, Black-bellied Plover, Black Oystercatcher, Dunlin, Bonaparte's Gull, Mew Gull, California Gull, Herring Gull, Thayer's Gull, Western Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Pigeon Guillemot, Northwestern Crow, American Robin, European Starling, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Song Sparrow and White-crowned Sparrow. Monday March 08: A Turkey Vulture was seen soaring over south Nanaimo. For further information on these sightings or for help in identifying a bird please call The Backyard Wildbird and Nature Store AT 250-390-3669 Toll Free AT 1-888-249-4145 e-mail: thebackyard AT shaw.ca ********************************** Arrowsmith Naturalists Guest Speaker-Colin Bartlett, topic Birds and Bees in the Backyard. Monday March 22, 2010 AT 7:30 pm. Springwood School Parksville ********************************** The Nanoose Naturalists Thursday April 08, 2010 AT 7:00 pm Nanoose Library, Nanoose Bay ********************************** Everyone is welcome to join us for a 2-3 hour bird walk on the Sunday and Tuesday mornings. We leave from the Store at 9 A.M. Sunday Mornings and go to a different location in and around Nanaimo and from the Parksville Beach.Community Park at 9 A.M. on Tuesdays and go to different areas in and around the Oceanside area. ************************************************************** The Tuesday Bird Walk on March 09, 2010 will be going to the Shelly Road side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville. We meet the Parksville Beach Community Park at the parking area near the Lions playground at 9 A.M. or at the end of Shelly Road (ocean side of highway 19a) at about 9:15 A.M. ***************************************************** The Sunday Bird Walk on March 21, 2010, will be going to the Nanaimo River Estuary in south Nanaimo. Meet at the Birdstore at 9:00 A.M. or at the end of Raines Road at about 9: 30 A.M. ******************************************************* Good birding Neil Robins THE BACKYARD Wildbird & Nature Store 6314 Metral Drive, Nanaimo, BC V9T 2L8 250.390.3669 250.390.1633 fax thebackyard AT shaw.ca CHECK OUT OUR BLOG---> www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Hummer Nest From: JEFFREY COHEN <kokobean2 AT hotmail.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:16:23 -0700 Today, while checking out the Arboretum around noon, I found a female Rufous Hummingbird sitting on a nest. While I have seen Rufous earlier (I had a male at my feeder on ferbruary 20, 2008) I have never seen one on the nest this early. I know a couple of people are monitoring them in the area. Has anyone ever had them on the nest this early? I spotted her collecting lichen about 20 feet from the nest. She would line the nest while sitting in it, sit for a few minutes, then go get some more. I watched her for about 1/2 hour, oblivious to walkers and joggers (and me). She would repeat this about every 5 minutes. Jeff Cohen north Seattle, USA _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with Microsoft’s powerful SPAM protection. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/210850552/direct/01/_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: KGW Raptor Cam - Portland OR From: Barbara Deihl <barbdeihl AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:10:58 -0700 Hi, A friend in Portland sent me this link to a Raptor Cam that is presently focusing on a Red-tailed Hawk nest, but also monitors other area raptor nests (see the blog sections): http://www.kgw.com/lifestyle/raptor-cam Barb Deihl North Matthews Beach - NE Seattle barbdeihl AT comcast.net_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Vancouver, BC RBA for March 12, 2010 From: "Wayne Weber" <contopus AT telus.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:00:07 -0700 This is Wayne Weber with Nature Vancouver's Rare Bird Alert for Friday, March 12th, sponsored in part by Wild Birds Unlimited, with stores in Vancouver and North Vancouver. The RBA telephone number is (604) 737-3074. If you wish to leave a rare bird report, please press the star button at the end of this message to go back to the menu, press "2" for the rare bird reporting line, and follow the instructions given there. RARE BIRD ALERT for a WESTERN SCRUB-JAY in the 21900 block of the Lougheed Highway in Maple Ridge, which has been present for at least 9 months. Sightings for Friday, March 12th Two GRAY-CROWNED ROSY-FINCHES were seen along the West Vancouver seawall near the foot of 23rd Street. Sightings for Wednesday, March 10th A male EURASIAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL, as well as a hybrid between the Eurasian and American forms, was seen at the Beach Grove lagoon in Delta (east foot of 12th Avenue). The TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was still present in Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver. Sightings for Tuesday, March 9th The three AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS were seen again on Iona Island in Richmond, near the base of the South Jetty. An early TURKEY VULTURE was seen near the Port Mann Bridge in Surrey. Three GYRFALCONS were seen in various locations around Delta. Sightings for Monday, March 8th A RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD in the 5500 block of Highbury Street in Vancouver was the first report for the year. A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE and a HERMIT THRUSH were seen near the lawn bowling pitch in Vancouver's Queen Elizabeth Park. A WESTERN MEADOWLARK and two BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS were seen at the Maplewood Conservation Area in North Vancouver. Five GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE were present along Beach Avenue in Vancouver, where they have been for several weeks. Sightings for Sunday, March 7th Two TREE SWALLOWS were seen at Deer Lake in Burnaby. Sightings for Saturday, March 6th The long-staying WESTERN SCRUB-JAY was seen again near 220th Street and the Lougheed Highway in Maple Ridge. The two TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES, one on McDonald Road on Sea Island and one in the 12600 block of 17A Avenue in Surrey, were both seen again. A HERMIT THRUSH and a RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER were seen in Camosun Bog, near 19th Avenue and Camosun Street in Vancouver. A HUTTON'S VIREO and 6 BAND-TAILED PIGEONS were near 16th Avenue and Enderby Avenue in the Beach Grove area of Delta. Sightings for Friday, March 5th Four VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS were at the Alaksen Natl. Wildlife Area in Delta, and a GYRFALCON was still being seen along Deltaport Way near Arthur Drive in Delta. A HUTTON'S VIREO was singing near 4th Avenue and 172nd Street in Surrey. Sightings for Thursday, March 4th 200 AMERICAN PIPITS on Westham Island near the entrance to the Reifel Bird Sanctuary was a high number, and 23 WILSON'S SNIPE on 41B Street south of River Road was also a good count. A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was seen in a crabapple tree on McDonald Road on Sea I., Richmond, and another was seen in the 12600 block of 17A Avenue in Surrey. Three AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS and 2 WESTERN MEADOWLARKS were seen at Iona Beach Regional Park in Richmond. Sightings for Wednesday, March 3rd Several VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary were the first reported this spring. A BLUE GOOSE was seen with 6500 SNOW GEESE near the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta, and a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER there was noteworthy. Sightings for Monday, March 1st Two BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS and two SANDHILL CRANES were at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta. Nearby, a WILLET was seen near the Westham Island Bridge, on a log floating down the channel. Two BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS were seen on the Tsawwassen ferry jetty in Delta. An AMERICAN KESTREL was seen near 41B Street at 33A Avenue in Delta. Sightings for Sunday, February 28th The WESTERN SCRUB-JAY was seen again in the 21900 block of the Lougheed Highway in Maple Ridge, and a HERMIT THRUSH, rare in winter, was seen nearby. Five TREE SWALLOWS were seen at Serpentine Fen on the King George Highway in Surrey while observers were checking swallow nest boxes. Sightings for Saturday, February 27th At the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta, an AMERICAN BITTERN and a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL were seen. Sightings for Thursday, February 25th A BLACK OYSTERCATCHER was seen at the Maplewood Conservation Area in North Vancouver. Sightings for Wednesday, February 24th A MARBLED GODWIT was reported from near the foot of 96th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta. Sightings for Monday, February 22nd The long-staying WESTERN SCRUB-JAY was seen again in Maple Ridge near the intersection of Cliff Avenue and Cliff Place, close to where it has been seen repeatedly since June 2009. Another early TURKEY VULTURE was seen over the Vancouver Aquarium in Vancouver's Stanley Park. Five TREE SWALLOWS were seen briefly at the Alaksen National Wildlife Area in Delta, and the NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL was seen again at the nearby Reifel Bird Sanctuary. Four more TREE SWALLOWS were seen at the rowing complex on Burnaby Lake in Burnaby, as were 7 GREATER YELLOWLEGS. Sightings for Sunday, February 21st The LONG-BILLED CURLEW was seen again on the east side of Blackie Spit in Surrey, but the MARBLED GODWITS which have accompanied it all winter could not be found. Sightings for Saturday, February 20th A flock of 43 MOURNING DOVES was seen near Ladner Harbour Park in Delta, and 3 SHORT-EARED OWLS were at Iona Beach Park in Richmond. A brief account of 31 of the best birding locations in the Vancouver area can be found on the Nature Vancouver website at http://www.naturevancouver.ca/Birding_Birding_Sites If you have any questions about birds or birding in the Vancouver area, please call Wayne at 604-597-7201, Viveka at 604-531-3401, or Larry at 604-465-1402. Thank you for calling the Vancouver Rare Bird Alert, and good birding. Wayne C. Weber Delta, BC contopus AT telus.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Hawk close up and personal - ID help? From: Trileigh Tucker <tri AT seattleu.edu> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 12:46:41 -0700 Hello Tweets, When I came back home this morning after birding in Lincoln Park (West Seattle), I heard a hummingbird chittering, so I looked up, hoping to spot a nest. I was quite surprised and thoroughly delighted to find instead a hawk perched low in a tree that arches over my driveway almost to my front door -- about 2' from my upstairs bedroom window. Of course, now I couldn't come in the front door and go up to the window, since that would undoubtedly scare the hawk away. So I circled around my house, knocking on windows and then rattling the back door to try to get my partner's attention so I could sneak in the back door and go upstairs to the bedroom window. The cats were intrigued, but no partner appeared. Finally I realized he was in the shower, so I gave up trying to get inside for a while and snuck around the back deck for photos. Finally my partner saw me and opened the back door. You can see the resulting closeups and some full-profile shots at http://www.flickr.com/photos/trileigh/4430222927/ and beyond. I'm thinking this is a Cooper's rather than a Sharpie because of the head side relative to the body, but would love either confirmation or disconfirmation of that initial assessment. Thanks! Good birding to you, Trileigh * * * * * * * * Trileigh Tucker Lincoln Park, West Seattle _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Re: re: camera equipment From: Marc Hoffman <tweeters AT dartfrogmedia.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 11:04:45 -0700 I have been photographing birds with DSLR equipment for about 5 years now. I've probably taken 50,000 shots or more. My skills have definitely improved, but without upgrades in equipment I know I would never have gotten my better shots. Sharpness, accurate color, and adequate resolution (including enough pixels to crop down to the area that contains that warbler at 50 feet), are all limited by equipment quality. Before I bought my first DSLR, I had an $800 Konica Minolta and I can barely stand to look at any of the pictures it produced, except for a few where the compositional aspects outweigh the technical deficiencies. Since then, I have had various Canon DSLR's: 30D, 40D, and now a 5D Mark II. Mostly I've shot with the 100-400mm Canon zoom lens that is rated well by virtually all bird photographers. As Nate has mentioned, there are other options in the same price range that can give slightly sharper photos. But I always return to the 100-400 because of the zoom capability. I do a lot of shooting from a kayak, so I might be photographing a Great Blue Heron at 12 feet when a Kingfisher suddenly swoops in at 35 feet. No time to change lenses, so the 100-400 is a life-saver. Something to consider when buying a camera for bird photography is its ability to focus quickly. The Canon 5D Mark II is actually slower to focus than the 40D, but overall I prefer its superior image performance and higher pixel count. Here's a link to a slide show (with audio) of my trip last year to Costa Rica. Virtually all the photos were taken with the 5D Mark II and the Canon 100-400 lens. Many also utilized flash, which makes a huge difference in either very dim light where the light is inadequate for a fast exposure, or very bright daylight where there is too much contrast between shadow and light and the flash helps reduce the difference: http://www.dartfrogmedia.com/costaRicaSlideShow2010 Marc Hoffman Kirkland, WA email: tweeters "at" dartfrogmedia "dot" com At 03:18 PM 3/13/2010, Nate Chappell, Trogon Tours wrote: >Hi everyone, > >I follow tweeters threads regularly but this is my first post >here. Some of this may have been covered in previous posts but I do >a lot of bird photography (I lead bird photo tours and workshops) so >I thought I would give some of my thoughts on camera equipment. I >use Canon and am familiar with all of their larger lenses as well as >being somehwhat familiar with the Nikon and other brands >available. Canon's 300F4 and 1.4 teleconverter are an excellent >option and a bit cheaper than the Nikon version -which is also >excellent. You can purchase the Canon 300F4 lens and teleconverter >for about $1,600 and they produce sharp images. My wife uses this >combination and is quite happy with it. The Canon 100-400 zoom is >also a good option and costs roughly the same. It's not quite as >sharp as the 300mm combined with the 1.4 however. The main >advantage is the zoom ability, this may be important to people who >also want to do some landscape work and/or photograph larger mammals. > >If you don't want to spend too much on a camera body the Canon Rebel >XSI is a good option for Canon, it can be had for about >$500. Another good option would be to buy a used or refurbished >Canon 40D. This camera performs better in lower light than it's >successor the 50D which has more megapixels but isn't a very good >performer in low light. So a good birding option that produces >high quality images would be a used 40D or new Rebel XSi with the >300F4 and a 1.4 teleconverter for a total of about $2,200. It's >lightweight enough to be handholdable for most people as well. I >personally use a Canon 1DMkIII and 500mmF4 lens which have a >combined price of about $10K. This equipment can also be handheld >with some practice but it's much heavier. I have just purchased a >7D which from everything I've read is quite a step up from the 40 >and 50D's but also costs about $700 more at $1,600. > >As far as off brand lenses for bird photography if you are >interested in getting high quality images the only brand I would >really recommend is Sigma which has some nice offerings. > >If anyone would like to take a look at some of my images I have >galleries from all over the world and here in the Northwest at >www.trogontours.net/galleries . > >If anyone has any equipment related questions feel free to email me >at >nchappell AT trogontours.net >. > >Best regards, >Nate Chappell > >www.trogontours.net >_______________________________________________ >Tweeters mailing list >Tweeters AT u.washington.edu >http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters_______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: GBH From: David Hutchinson <flora.fauna AT live.com> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 11:00:26 -0700 At the Kiwanis Ravine Heron Sanctuary next to Discovery Park, there are currently about about 30 GBH nest "guarding". In case you are interested in this beautiful phenomenon, this might be your last best chance before the trees leaf out and the herons go about their business. The least invasive, but excellent viewing site is at the south end of the footbridge over the B.N. railroad tracks, just above the locks. Please stay out of the woods and people's backyards. DH -- David Hutchinson, Owner Flora & Fauna: Nature Books Discovery Gardens: Native Plants 3212 W.Government Way Seattle,WA.98199 http://www.ffbooks.net/ 206-623-4727 _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail has tools for the New Busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID27925::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:032010_1 _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters Subject: Dubois Grouse Days From: "Kit Struthers" <kit619 AT ida.net> Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2010 10:48:02 -0600 8th Annual Dubois Grouse Days Fostering Partnerships for Grouse Conservation What: A two-day event to celebrate the shrub-steppe ecosystem and the animals that call it home. Where: Dubois, Idaho (about 45 miles north of Idaho Falls on Interstate 15) When: Friday April 16 doors open at 5pm for registration and light supper Saturday April 17, all day activities starting at 0600 with tours to grouse leks. Saturday April 17, Banquet and awards ceremony start at 5pm Why: To promote education and conservation of our western rangeland heritage. Activities: Guided tours to grouse breeding grounds to view Greater Sage and Sharp-tailed Grouse courtship and The Nature Conservancy's Crooked Creek Ranch and other local highlights, banquet, arts and craft booths, kids activities and art contest, presentations by biologists and ranchers and the Teton Raptor Center; raffle and silent auction. Plus, dedication of the Kent L. Christopher habitat rehabilitation project at Camas National Wildlife Refuge. Sponsored by: Dubois Grouse Days Committee, The North American Grouse Partnership, the Upper Valley Sage Grouse Local Working Group, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Clark County Stockgrowers, the North American Falconers Association, NorthWestern Energy, Rocky Mountain Power, and the people and businesses of Dubois, Idaho. All proceeds go towards conservation and education, including the Kent L. Christopher Conservation Scholarship for a local high school senior. Contact: Jeff Lidey Jeff_lidey_179 AT hotmail.com 208/313/2730 Website: www.grousedays.org Kit Struthers Snake River Audubon Society Idaho Falls, ID 208-529-2028 kit619 AT ida.net _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters AT u.washington.edu http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters