Birdlog #8 - 4-7-14: Another list

I went birding again with a friend, and this is what we saw:

• 1 Turkey Vulture
• 1 Sharp-shinned/Cooper's Hawk
• 2 Mourning Doves
• 1 Downy/Hairy Woodpecker (heard only)
• 1 American Crow
• 4 Black-capped Chickadees
• 1 White-breasted Nuthatch
• 8 American Robins
• 1 European Starling
• 1 Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored)
• 5 Northern Cardinals
• 1 Common Grackle
• 4 Brown-headed Cowbirds
• 5 House Sparrows

I organized an event called the Big Week, based on the Big Year and the Big Day. Basically the same thing, but it lasts for a week. I used a checklist by the North Central Illinois Ornithological Society (NCIOS) to count the species. I'll probably post a list of all the birds I've seen every day this week (but don't count on it).

End.

Birdlog #8 - 3-27-14: Birding at a lek during migration...

... Rocks.

You're probably wondering what a lek is (unless you're an obsessive bird nerd who knows every obscure term ever used anywhere). A lek is where adult male birds can do courtship displays, and females will come and watch. I think they're only used by plovers, grouse and some birds-of-paradise.

Anyway, here's the list:

• 5 Canada Geese
• 2 Mallards
• 1 Turkey Vulture
• 3 Bald Eagles
• 1 Red-tailed Hawk
• 20-30 Sandhill Cranes - The first I've seen in Illinois!
• 11 Killdeer
• 1 Peregrine Falcon
• 1 Blue Jay
• 2 American Robins
• 1 European Starling
• 1 Cedar Waxwing - possible
• 3 House Sparrows

The species that really stick out to me are: Bald Eagle, Sandhill Crane and Peregrine Falcon. The Killdeer were the only ones actually using the lek, but there were other birds around. Here's the really crazy part: We saw all of those birds in twenty minutes!

And once again, I didn't have my camera with me - It's outta battery, anyway.

End.

Birdfest #2

Today was a birdwatcher's lucky day! We saw a TON of birds. Here's another list of the species we saw:

• 0 House Finches (hooray!)
• 1 Gray Squirrel (UGH!!!)
• 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
• 1 Downy Woodpecker
• 1 Brown Creeper (cool!)
• 3 Northern Cardinals
• 5 Black-capped Chickadees
• 6 White-breasted Nuthatches
• 20 or more Dark-eyed aka Slate Coloured Juncos (again with the Juncos!)

But there weren't as as many birds on the feeders as I might have expected. These are my favorite pictures:

There's a male Cardinal. Looking heroic, as usual

A cute little Junco

Now who can tell me what that is?

Aww, how cute!

It's the best (and only) picture I have of the Red-Belly

This is the second time I've ever seen a Brown Creeper!
Last time it was fall 2012

I just love Nuthatches. Have I ever told you that?

It's really, really, really hard to see, but sure enough, it's a Chickadee.

It practically posed for the making of the picture! The blurriness
is just frost on our super old window

A nice-looking female Cardinal

Normally, birds don't visit our birdbath in the dead of (snowless) winter,
but we got a water heater for our birdbath recently

Okay, last picture:

I got to see the male, but I didn't have my camera ready.

That's a lot of birds! I've never seen so many in my life! I hope you can have (so-called) birdfests like me. Happy birding!

-Mr. Bird

P.S.: Okay, I take it back. My camera isn't THAT terribly bad. :)

The first birdfest of the year!

Wow! What happened in our backyard today was absolutely amazing! Me and my brother have seen lots of birds in one sitting before, but not like today. Here's a list of the species we saw:

• 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
• 1 Downy Woodpecker
• 2 White-breasted Nuthatches
• 3 Pine Siskins
• 3 Blue Jays
• 4 Northern Cardinals
• 10 or more Black-capped Chickadees
• 10 or more House Sparrows
• 15 or more Hose Finches
• 15 or more Dark-eyed aka Slate-colored Juncos

That's a lot of birds in one day! They usually come for half an hour at breakfast, an hour before lunch and a couple minutes before dinner. Sorry I couldn't provide photos; my camera wasn't ready. Oh well. Happy birding!

-Mr. Bird

That's a lotta crows!

I looked out our window today, and guess what I saw? Two male Cardinals. Then, later, I glanced outside, and that was when I saw an absolutely massive flock of crows! I got out my Bushnell binoculars, and counted, "one, two, three, four..." I counted more than 25 crows, all sitting right next to each other! That was amazing! Then I saw a goose. Completely unrelated, I know, but I want to count every bird I saw. Happy birding, and happy New Year!

-Mr. Bird