Kauai Part 2: All the magic seabirds that live by the sea... (#243-248)

So things are getting down to the grind...final assignment due this week, taxes due sometime soon...(?), photos to edit, social appearances to make, garden to get growing, trips to plan, guests to host...all to say I'm doing some mega-procrastinating and find myself here. at least I'm still getting something done that needs to get done, right?

So it's now a month ago but let's close our eyes and transport ourselves back to the beautiful island of Kauai, at the beginning of my trip. Need a refresher? Wave-crashed lava coast, secluded beaches, green mountains, smell of the ocean and freshness in the air, windswept and salty hair, awesome surf, teeny tiny bikinis and fresh avocados and papayas on the side of the red dirt road (oh wait! this calls for an INTERLUDE! i know I said we were only going back to Hawaii in March 2013, but let's actually go a little farther east circa 2003...just for a second!)

Right of the bat, on day one, we headed to Kilauea Lighthouse, which was close to where we are staying and a great spot because a) it is beautiful and b) it's a great spot to see seabirds. I should mention right away that Matt took almost all of these shots as I'm apparently quite useless photographing moving objects and he's quite useless shooting still ones...how's that for yin and yang?

ok, I took this one.

#243: Red-footed booby; Kauai, March 2013

Love the colours on the bill of this bird! There were so many of them at Kilauea, nesting on the cliffsides. 

#244: Laysan Albatross; Kauai, March 2013

Don't be deceived by this picture of a kind of average-looking bird. There is nothing average about it, with a six-foot wingspan, the Laysan has a big story to tell. I first became familiar with this bird when I watched the midway videos by photographer Chris Jordan. If you haven't seen them, you must, but you are fairly warned: they are heartbreaking. They will change how you live your life. Laysan are a threatened species. They have a large breeding colony on Midway in the middle of the ocean in abandoned navy buildings. Chicks eat chips of the lead paint from the buildings and are poisoned. The parents also mistake plastic floating in the ocean as food and feed it to their chicks, who them die because their bellies are full of plastic. It is horrifying. So STOP USING PLASTIC. NOW.

You probably can't see it in this web version of this image, but Albie here has a band on his leg. You can report sightings of banded birds to the U.S. Geological Survey/Environment Canada's Canadian Wildlife Service, which helps them monitor them. They break down the types of bands by material and colour and what those things mean for you. So rad! Go science!

Banded Bird Encounter Reporting

#245: Great Frigatebird; Kauai, March 2013
I had seen magnificent frigatebirds in Mexico, and they sure look similar but these are different. During our trip I had to have faith in the guidebook that there were no Magnificents in Hawaii so I knew for sure I was looking at a lifer. I like to know what I'm looking at because I can see all the identifiers, not just trust the map. Of course, we have to remember that the keys to identification work together, and ranges is one of those things (for more on the others, see Cornell's Birding Basics). I've just never really trusted maps because they can change, and if birds wander like I do you could never rely on a map.

I've done some more research and can now positively identify this as a female Great because of the white throat/breast. Not surprisingly, these birds were hanging around Kilauea, where there is a huge booby colony, whose nests they harass (means birds).

#246: Red-Tailed Tropicbird; Kauai, March 2013
I can't believe this amazing shot Matt took...it's like an angel...

#247: White-Tailed Tropicbird; Kauai, March 2013
White-tailed tropicbirds seemed fewer than red-tailed. And equally difficult to photograph.

Shearwater nesting sites are all around this part of the island. It's majorly difficult because of cats get at the ground nests, and people let their dogs of leash and they kill the birds too. The park staff said if we wanted to see thousands of shearwaters, all we had to do was come at dusk. Unfortunately we never made it...

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Later on in the week, we took a catamaran trip along the Na Pali coast. This wasn't really meant to be a birdwatching outing, but we still managed to get a lifer! Plus breaching humpback whales and the amazing scenery didn't hurt at all! This laughing gull hung around the back of our boat for a while, while a humpback was jumping beside us. I think everyone thought the camera was facing the wrong direction!

Laughing gull

And later on, around sunset, I saw this one off in the distance...a lifer! We didn't see these at Kilauea, so that was pretty exciting.

#248: Brown booby, Barking Sands/Na Pali Coast, Kauai, March 2013

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The day after Kilauea we headed to Hanalei Wildlife Refuge for marsh birds of Kauai. Also expect some local sightings coming up too. Stay tuned!

Kauai Part 1: Two Chickens in Paradise (#237-241)
Kauai Part 3: In a land called Hanalei...(marsh birds) (#251-256)
Kauai Part 4: Coming soon!
Kauai Part 5: Coming soon!

And now, we interrupt your scheduled programming...(for another owl!) (#242)

I know I promised another Hawaii post, but there are lots of exciting things on the local bird scene as the mercury slowly creeps up (and back down again, and back up, every few days it seems). Spring is in the air, and so is the song of bird courtship. The signs are all there...those birdies are getting ready to make babies!

Several weeks ago, I caught wind that there was a great-horned owl in the area. With no real specific leads, I went with a hunch and managed to find it with some sleuthing and keen observation. Nadia was in town so she was brought along on this adventure too. She was a great sport.

matching earmuffs and bird seed at the ready

The owl was snoozing and had its head tucked in and behind a bunch of branches. It didn't seem to be moving anytime soon, so we left to walk for a bit. On the way back, we passed by again, and it was being mobbed by 5 or 6 rowdy crows. The crows left as soon as we did, so hopefully it got a few minutes of peace. We left again, since we still couldn't get a very good look--only the bottom half.

After we dropped Nadia off at her destination, we decided we'd try another shot. This time Matt asked his principal if she wanted to join us, as he's apparently been recounting our birding adventures to his teaching colleagues to much awe and wonder (maybe I'm exaggerating a little...). I guess she must have been curious what it's like to go on a birding adventure. It seems everyone thinks "Big Year" (a la Owen Wilson/Jack Black/Steve Martin) when they find out we are birders---and it's something like that, to an extent I guess. She brought along her two kiddos, who learned what it's all about...the great outdoors, and sometimes, a ton of patience. It's nice to see kids out there learning about this stuff and being outside...I think I'm going to grow a little army of mini birders...yes?

This is the 5th species of owl we've seen this year alone (actually 6th...there was one in Hawaii but it was too far to tell what kind it was). When I started birding, I dreamed of seeing owls, but I could never spot them. They are so hard to see; in the day, they don't move much or make sounds, and those are the main ways we spot birds. There are really two ways to spot owls, I have determined:

1. getting a tip from someone in the know.
2. extreme luck. 

This leaves me with only a few owl species left to spot, in these parts anyway--a barn owl is my next target!

#242: Great-Horned Owl; Ottawa, Ontario. March 2013

oh, hey there. well aren't you handsome?

I'm getting older so it took me awhile to catch onto this YOLO thing. But I thought this is pretty cute. And true. 

Violet and Donovan stop to feed the chickadees.

via Etsy http://www.etsy.com/listing/66662663/upcycled-dictionary-page-upcycled-book

On they way home, we headed to Hilda. Found this cute little one along the road.

The redpolls were still there in huge numbers. It was the end of the day and I didn't feel like revisiting the differences between the subspecies so we just snapped a few pics and went our merry way.

When I went home for Easter, I was disappointed that dad told me I had missed the huge rafts of migrating ducks at the island (why doesn't he just call me and tell me??). I always seem to miss them by a week or two. We still saw lots of duckies on the way though, and my fave ones at that.

hooded mergies...one of my faves

Looks like somebody forgot to account for the wire when casting their line 

found another little buddy!

Too bad the focus was on the male when this happened.

lots of river friends today!

beautiful wood ducks...love these too!

Spring is definitely on its way...can't wait for the warblers to start showing up! Ok, next post will be Hawaii, Part II--that's a promise! Come back soon!

Kauai Part 1: Two Chickens in Paradise (#237-241)

Surprise! we just got back from an amazing trip to Kauai. Our long series of plane rides landed us at Lihu'e Airport just about as the sun was setting. Over the traditional Hawaiian music that a small band was playing at the open-air baggage carousel, I keyed in to what I had been waiting for--bird song. I kept having urges to abandon the baggage and run after birds. We had a lot to do that night--eat, drive up to where we were staying and get to bed since we were pretty excited, so the best looks I got where from a car speeding along Kuhio Highway (not really what you think of as a "highway"). However, at least a few birds where immediately apparent--the chickens and roosters...everywhere(!), the mynas, house sparrows (they've got those too!) and the doves.

Even though the windows were shut at the hotel, I could hear the roosters crowing at the first light of our first day. That's ok, because I was up before that anyway (thanks jet lag!). When we stepped out onto the balcony, it was just a matter of picking one bird to focus on...there were lots of birds, and every one of them a lifer.

These pictures and posts won't be in chronological order, but since there were so many birds I thought I'd do it in a way that makes sense. So let's get started!

#237: Nēnē (Hawaiian Goose); March 2013; Princeville, Kauai, HI
Turns out these geese like the pool as much as people do. Only they got to stay at the hotel for a lot less than we did! While they look like our Canadian friends the Canada Goose, don't confuse them. Nenes can only be seen on three of the Hawaiian islands and are considered a vulnerable species.We did have the luck to see lots of baby nenes!

Later in the week after a day in Koke'e State Park

There were two doves in Hawaii, neither of which are here at home. The spotted dove is about the same size as a mourning dove.

#238: Spotted Dove; March 2013; Kauai
This introduced bird from Asia is roughly the same size as our mourning dove, an looks pretty similar too.

#239: Zebra Dove; March 2013; Kauai 

The zebra dove is much smaller and so absolutely cute. They get busy with up to 5 clutches a year! These ones were imported from Malaysia in 1922---they are everywhere.

Kauai has house sparrows too! This was one of the few (3 or 4) types of birds we saw that we also have at home.

I've never included chickens before because they are always on farms and not wild. Hawaii is an interesting case. Since Hurricane Iniki destoyed chicken coops in 1992, the chickens have escaped and have multiplied and are just about everywhere. And since there are no predators (aside from the feral cats I suppose)...they multiply quite successfully. I've investigated if I can count this bird since technically it wild; however, it is not listed on the ABA checklist. And while we're on the topic, why not check out this great article on the many types of chickens and none of them can be counted. There were lots of little chicks around when we were there...so cute!

#240: Common Myna; March 2013; Kauai
The mynas were one of our favourites. We just love how they look so angry. ANGRY BIRDS! We saw them bathing in the hotel fountains and I wish I got a shot of it, but I never caught them red-handed again. They were introduced in 1865 from India to control army worms in sugarcane crops and pastures.

#241: Japanese White-Eye; March 2013; Kauai.
Introduced in 1927 by the Hui Manu. This is another angry looking bird!

The hotel grounds were dripping with birds...I was a bad birder and took much enjoyment feeding them an watching them run after the cracker bits. Sadly I wanted the cardinals and the mynas to get some but the chickens were always too fast:
To sum up, of the birds in the post, the Nēnē is the only one that's actually native to Kauai. Sadly, the island's endemic birds are generally harder to find, and the easiest to spot have all been introduced. That doesn't mean that I don't find them amazing to watch and great to see.

*In case you were wondering, this post's title is a phrase that I modified from Jimmy Buffet's Cheeseburger in Paradise (which is extra funny since I'm vegetarian) and Eddie Money's "Two tickets to Paradise." I belted it out without warning and whenever I pleased (to the tune of Money's song, of course). Just thought I would clarify since everyone who has seen the Facebook album has asked who the two chickens are (since they assume I'm referring to Matt and me).

Kauai Part 2: All the magic seabirds that live by the sea... (#243-248)
Kauai Part 3: In a land called Hanalei...(marsh birds) (#251-256)
Kauai Part 4: Coming soon!
Kauai Part 5: Coming soon! 

Wuk, wuk, wuk!

You know how sometimes the universe just lines things up for you? I've been trying to spot the pileated that hangs out in my hood with no luck. Then yesterday (I mean yesterday when I wrote this...about two weeks ago!) while I was at home the gas guy came to replace the meter, so I threw on my jacket to take him around to the backyard, and there is was, right in front of the house. On my way back around, it was still there so I ran furiously inside to grab my camera, but by the time I was out, it was gone.

So I settled back in to work, and even though it's winter so the windows are clearly shut, I can hear the loud call of the pileated and I race back out--this time it's a few houses down, then it flies off and stops at my house (!), and then back to where I spotted it first. Finally it stayed put for a few minutes...

you know you are a crazy bird lady when you hear and identify a pileated call even though all the windows are shut and you grab camera, memory card and bolt for the door like a bat out of hell...

Lots of posts around the corner...lots on plate right now but I will do my best to get them up. do check back soon :)

Year of the Owl (#235-236)

I've been holding off on this post for a while, but I think it's finally time to post. I hit the trails (I'm intentionally being a little vague here...) a few weeks ago on my birthday, hoping for another birthday lifer (remember last year?) This was probably a little optimistic but it was still a beautiful walk. The woods were feeling particularly magical with beautiful snow falling (and there ended up being a pretty major snowstorm that night). 

There were lots of deer and even a not-so-wild turkey that approached. I seriously thought I was going to have to run....

Someone has created a sweet little memorial with bird and deer feeders and beautiful little handmade wind catchers and a sign. I don't know if Deer George was a dude or a deer, but I thought that that is a very nice way to be remembered. 

Very keen nuthatch--normally they are a little more shy than this, but this one kept coming back again and again!

I did go back on the weekend as I was on a mission. While walking the trail, this white mass passed right overhead--I swear, I wouldn't have seen or heard it if I hadn't been looking in the right direction.  Some people farther down the trail spotted it where it had landed. We continued on for a 1-2 hour hike and when we came back, it was still sitting in the exact same spot, not giving a hoot (ha) about its onlookers (including several ankle biters located directly underneath it). 

#235: Barred Owl

heart-shaped face---love

orange feeders on the trail

There has been quite a bit of hubbub around here about even more owls. I finally spotted this one with some tips from a few birders. It was best the first time I saw it--when there was nobody else there. Now the area is getting pretty ridiculous in the same way Green's Creek is.

I adore this owl--it is quite tiny but very intense looking. He cocks his head to try and figure you out and rolls his head around on his neck and it's quite hilarious to watch.

#236: Northern Hawk Owl

It looks pretty aggressive in this next shot but it was actually just stretching its wings...slowly one wing came all the way down and then they both went up and it settled back down...moving in much the way a hobbit does.

need to fix the colour on these..I don't know what the heck happened

And finally, another wildlife sighting, something a little different, not too far from home. Spotted this coywolf/coydog (the jury is still out) in a farm field beside Eagleson and very close to home. Looks healthy anyway...

Winter wonders

I decided I wanted to have a look around the west end this weekend to see what I could see. After last week's misfortunes I'm much more careful about what's laying around on the back seat of the car, so everything gets brought in and taken back out every time. The plan was to ski first and then do some birding. We got to the trailhead and I looked at Matt--you grabbed the camera right? And he gives me this blank stare.....sigh. So there we are with this huge lens that comes in its own bag which we now have to lug around *with no body* while skiiing so it doesn't get stolen. Luckily the camera was not needed on the trails and there it was strangely quiet--only saw an Eastern Cottontail and few birds. However it was a great ski and we got to head out onto the river for part of it--wanted to check out the ice shacks but didn't quite get that far--and I just had my skis waxed so I was good and fast...wheeeeeee!

The geocaching has started up again so we headed to a nearby spot on Grandview to grab one, where I noticed 200+ bohemian waxwings and pine grosbeaks in a tree in someone's front yard. So back to the house it was to get the camera body--luckily it wasn't terribly far away. I'm glad since I've had such a hard time getting close to a pine grosbeak for a decent shot. I didn't get any shots of the huge flock of waxwings unfortunately--it's a really incredible feeling when so many of them swoop around over your head and do the murmuration thing. Does anybody know what that fruit is? I'm still working on my plant identification...

Waxwings kinda make me think of Rupaul. They got the serious eyeliner wings goin' on. Rupaul aside, they are so awesome.

Afterwards we stopped at Hilda on the way home where there were two snowshoe hares. We also stopped at March Valley to see if the owls were around.  There was a large convoy of cars with plates from Maryland, Vermont and New York. They'd come up and struck out at both Green's Creek and in the West End. I can't imagine coming that far and missing a bird that's been here so reliably, but of course it happens  and that's the risk you run! Hopefully they stayed over and had better luck the next day...

Sunday involved an unsuccessful attempt to locate evening grosbeaks and white-winged crossbills. However it did end in inadvertently finding Maple Hill Urban Farm, very close to home with fresh eggs, and the farmer, Don, was so friendly and invited us in to see all the awesome animals--chickens, ducks, a cow, a couple horses, a pony, a donkey, two goats, two dogs and three hilarious barn cats (including two KITTENS!), and then we got DQ to top it all off (open on Family Day...yessssss!), so all's well that ends well.

Birding burns #234

I'll try to stay optimistic and not to let the rotten mood that I am ruin this post. I was having a great day until...well, I'll get to that.

It was a beautiful day winter day and we had a few birds on our radar today. First we drove some of the farm fields not far outside of Kanata looking for snowy/northern hawk owls. We didn't look too long before heading to the Lime Kiln Trail, which I had actually been avoiding since it was closed this summer after a large, 100-acre brush fire on NCC lands. Bad birder though, not recalling the woodpeckers that actually seek out recent burn areas. Luckily, someone else reported the black-backed (actually quite some time ago, when my bird radar was off...luckily it kicked back in on time!).

We parked at P10 and started the walk into the burn area, stopping about 50m in after 20 or so chickadees made clear it was time for lunch. Stopped to feed them for a bit, and then continued on.

Once we were close, we started stopping to listen every 50m or so for pecking, and following the source if we heard it. This method found several woodpeckers. As it turns out, it seems hairies are fans of burn sites too. Hairy peckers still get me...who came up with that anyway?! I brushed up on the differentiating features between hairies and downies after a man said he saw huge downies...but I'm pretty sure they were hairies. I usually guesstimate based on size, but you never know if you are looking at a large downy or a small hairy--so the key is the length of the bill and whether there are (downy) or are not (hairy) dark spots on the outer tail feathers.

Tree damage from fire

Then we were looking at a hairy on a tree, when I realized that there was a second woodpecker on the same tree further up...only its back was all black! Found it!

The birds didn't seem to mind observers at all and would go about their business until they moved on to a new tree. I only observed one black-backed, a female (I believe that's all that's been reported). Lifer!

 #234: Black-backed Woodpecker; Lime Kiln Trail area; February 10, 2013

Peekaboo!

Pretty lady. Love the fine bars on her side. Only the males have the yellow on top of the head.

Stopped to do a little preening. Nice to watch!

Today I learned a few things about me and my lens:
1. I need to develop some stronger shoulder/arm muscles to hold that sucker up for any length of time
2. I experienced a crazy thing that hasn't happened to me birding...I was TOO close to focus.Well, that doesn't happen often.

Was really hoping a bird would perch in that little spot, but no such luck today so I made Matt do it instead

Things started to go a little sour when we got back when I went to get in the car and realized something was wrong with the window--mainly that it wasn't there. And that all that was left was little shards. There was also a drill hole near the handle. It's unfortunate that people are getting out there outside, enjoying nature, and this is what they get. So, if this can be a reminder of anything to you birders, whenever you leave your car in an isolated parking lot (or anywhere really), do not leave things in your car! We didn't even have any valuables in sight, but we had a lot of junk that was in bags/boxes and could look like there might be something worth grabbing.

people are jerks. because this is just what I needed.

If you go to check out the BBW, don't forget your sunflower seeds, and if you must take valuables, take them with you on the trail. Snowshoes would help once you are off the main trail, but we just trudged it. Good little cardio workout that was, after the snowfall the night before!

On the way home we drove down Rushmore and spotted a snowy on a far-off pole. i wasn't keen to hang around though, since I was freezing with no window!

This morning I headed to March Valley to see if I could spot some of the west-end greys. I did, beautifully silhouetted by the rising sun. It was so nice to see them in a more peaceful setting being left alone! Didn't stay long though in the classy garbage-bag-over-the-window car.

Here's another really nice, informative post with great shots from another Ottawa blogger on the BBW at Lime Kiln.