Mangove Cuckoo Magic, Ding Darling NWR 2/28/14

Mangrove Cuckoo which we were lucky to see today in J.N Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. Note the yellow orbital ring, curved bill and yellow lower mandible.

Note the long tail with bold white tips to feathers.

Mangrove Cuckoos are secretive and often stay quietly sitting in the mangroves.

Here's another view of the remarkable tail.

We led a Stokes Birding Tour as a fundraiser for the refuge and had the refuge to ourselves as it took place on friday, a day the refuge is closed to visitors.

We were able to see the cuckoo because we ran into the Mangrove Cuckoo research team of Rachel Frieze and her husband, Steve, from the Ecostudies Institute and they were observing this cuckoo. 

Don and I led a Stokes Birding Tour as a special fundraiser for J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and our whole group got to see a Mangrove Cuckoo, the holy grail bird of southern Florida and on every serious birders want list who visits here. We took two trams through the refuge on friday (when the refuge is closed) and saw wonderful birds. How lucky for us that we ran into Rachel and Steve, who are researching Mangrove Cuckoos in the refuge, and they had one in view!! What a thrill for all of us!
There is still lots to learn about Mangrove Cuckoos, who are very secretive and uncommon and exist in the U.S. in mangrove habitat only in southern Florida. Ecostudies has been studying the life history and ecology of Mangrove Cuckoos in this refuge since 2012. They track the cuckoos during the year to understand their seasonal movements and habitat requirements. It is important to learn about this since the Mangrove Cuckoo population in southwest Florida has been declining.
You can help support the Mangrove Cuckoo research by making donations through the Ding Darling Wildlife Society (who helps support the cuckoo research) and earmark the donations for the Mangrove Cuckoo research.
Thank you all for coming on our Stokes Birding Tour!
I took all these photos with my Canon SX 50!
(FYI, it is not legal to play tapes in Ding Darling NWR in order to lure out birds.)
Lillian Stokes

White-crowned Pigeon, Ding Darling NWR, Sanibel, FL

White-crowned Pigeon at Ding Darling NWR, on the Shell Mound Trail, when sun came out.

White-crowned Pigeon

Preening

This afternoon we saw a White-crowned Pigeon on the Shell Mound Trail at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. This is a very unusual bird for here, although there have been a very few sightings previously on Sanibel. Their status is listed as Threatened in FL. They live in the very southern tip of FL. Research has indicated that the total distribution of this bird occurs in the Caribbean Basin, the Bahamas and extreme southern Florida, but they make long over-water flights between breeding and wintering areas within this region. They are threatened due to loss of habitat and hunting and poaching in their range. White-crowned Pigeons feed mainly on fruits of hardwood trees and they are an important dispersal agent for these trees. It was nice to see this bird on the Shell Mound trail, which had a lot of fruiting hardwood trees, thus providing the type of habitat crucial for this bird species. What a special bird for us to see!!

Bald Eagle Attacked by Red-shouldered Hawk

This young Bald Eagle (2nd yr.) was sitting in a large tree near our Sanibel, FL backyard, minding its own business.

When all of a sudden this Red-shouldered Hawk flies right at it and the Bald Eagle opens its wings

and decides to get out of there. The Red-shouldered Hawk is about to attack it.

Looks like a mid-air collision. The Bald Eagle continued to fly off and the Red-shouldered Hawk left. This Red-shouldered Hawk is nesting near where the eagle was sitting and it decided it was not going to tolerate the eagle, at least not today. Lucky I had my camera (Canon 1D Mark IV) nearby.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Roseate Spoonbills

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hope your day is "Rosy"

Lillian and Don

Pileated Woodpecker drumming

Pileated Woodpecker, male

We just had a Pileated Woodpecker drumming on our house. Fortunately, it was on the metal roof so no damage done. Drumming is a woodpecker's way of communicating. Woodpeckers do not sing. Each woodpecker species has their own drumming version. In the case of the Pileated, it is a loud continuous drumming sound, trailing off at the end. Drumming is used in pair communication and territorial encounters. It is so thrilling to see a Pileated up close, we did not mind the drumming!

Marbled Godwit beauty, one of the prettiest shorebirds!

Marbled Godwit, one of the prettiest shorebirds

Doing shorebird yoga

Beautiful pink bill

How many Marbled Godwits can you find hiding among the Willets?

Here are some recent shots I took at J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge where 2 Marbled Godwits are hanging out among the other shorebirds, much to the delight of the birders and photographers. This has got to be one of the prettiest shorebirds. This is a shorebird you can see in winter on mudflats in southern coastal areas of the East, West and also on the Gulf Coast. In summer they breed in wetlands and grasslands in the northern plains areas and into Canada. Enjoy their beauty.

Ding Darling Sunset Beauty

As sunset approaches, at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, the light gets beautiful. The Double-crested Cormorant stands, lone dark figure against the white snow of the White Pelicans.

A Wood Stork flies into shore, backlit against the lowering sun.

A Snowy Egret guards the shore,

and flies after any intruder, full out fury.

White Pelican take-off, centered below the lowering, glowing ball.

Beauty in Birds through digital photography

Roseate Spoonbill, has pink angel wings.

Brown Pelicans are beautiful when viewed close up, look at the eye.

There's much beauty in birds, some of it undiscovered until you take a digital photo and realize all the things you have not looked at before. Digital photography and telephoto lenses give you new eyes and new appreciation for birds. These photos were taken with my Canon SX 50 HS camera, a superzoom bridge camera.
Lillian

How to Help Bluebirds Survive in Winter

The weather this winter in northern areas has been brutally cold and unpredictable and it's just getting started. Some of you have written to us expressing surprise and concern that you are seeing bluebirds in northern areas in winter. Here's some tips to help them survive. You can make a difference.

1. Bluebirds can roost together in bird houses to keep warm. Insulate your bird houses by closing off all cracks, drainage holes, etc., with some sort of insulating material so less drafts and cold get into the bird house. Just leave the entrance hole open. Face bird houses away from prevailing winter winds.

2. Bluebirds mainly eat fruit and berries in winter. Plant your property with an abundance of crabapples and native, berry-producing shrubs such as viburnums and hollies (like winterberry holly). Place these berry plantings in sunny, protected areas, blocked from winter winds. The bluebirds will have a warm place to eat and use less precious energy.

3. Some bluebirds will come to food such as, hulled sunflower, suet, dried mealworms, and some of the many "bluebird meal mixtures" or nuggets. Generally most bluebirds do not do this but they may learn to do so, especially if you get them used to these foods in spring and summer when bluebirds are nesting near you. You can certainly try putting out these foods in winter and if bluebirds come to them, keep feeding all through the winter. Your best bet is to also have lots of berries planted in your yard.

4. Bluebirds like water (may help with processing the berries) and will visit bird baths and heated bird baths. In general, when it is very severely cold, some people think it is a risk for birds to bathe. Holding off on the water, or placing sticks over the bird bath to only allow birds to drink, not bathe, may be a good idea in this situation. Many birds will eat snow in winter to get water.

Most bluebirds move out of the northernmost areas of their range in winter. Even ones that may linger eventually move on, once their berry sources are depleted or ice-covered. For bluebirds, and many birds, there is a trade-off of staying more north in order to be first to claim prime breeding territories, yet risking survival due to bad weather. Some of these tips may help them survive and you feel you're helping them. Bluebirds are truly beloved. Make sure and have nest boxes cleaned out and ready when bluebirds return in spring.

For more complete information see Stokes Bluebird Book.

For the very latest identification information and range maps on the birds of North America, including all three species of North American Bluebirds; Eastern Bluebird, Mountain Bluebird and Western Bluebird, see our new best-seller, The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America 

Happy Holidays From Lillian and Don Stokes

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and we hope you have a wonderful

bird-filled 2014!!

Lillian and Don

Cedar Waxwing Glory of the Season

Cedar Waxwings

Our Christmas Bird Count team, l. to r., Don and Corgi Phoebe, me and Corgi Abby, Meade Cadot, Sandy Taylor, Jonathan Atwood (photo taken by Polly Pattison)

Cedar Waxwings move in flocks and look for berries in winter.

They love crabapples.

We did the Christmas Bird Count here, in southern NH, last weekend on one of the coldest days it has ever been held. After tramping around in the cold, we came across this glorious scene, a group of Cedar Waxwings feeding on crabapples. What beautiful birds, looking like velvety apparitions against the seasonal colors of red crabapples and white snow. I quietly enjoyed them and, from a distance, took these photos in the overcast winter light. Enjoying nature in each season is what it's all about. (Canon SX 50 photos.)

Now that you've saved Snowy Owls, help save Bald Eagles, warblers from slaughter on Lake Erie

Bald Eagle

Nashville Warbler

Black-throated Green Warbler

Sign near globally significant bird area on Lake Erie

Snowy Owls were just saved from killing when the NY Port Authority reversed their decision from shooting the Snowy Owls to trapping and removing them at JFK airport. The outcry of bird lovers on social media, TV, internet, etc. had an effect. Now Bald Eagles, warblers, and millions of migratory birds need your help!

These birds could face slaughter on a major migration flyway on Lake Erie by poorly located wind turbines. We are in favor of wind energy and wind energy is beneficial when sited in the right place, but not when massive wind turbines are placed smack in the middle of a major migration route where hundreds of thousands of migrating warblers pass by and where there is the largest concentration of breeding Bald Eagles in the lower 48 states! This could be a disaster for these birds.

Magee Marsh, the "warbler capital of the world," and nearby areas are under heavy pressure from the threat of wind energy development. Birders flock to Magee Marsh each fall to witness the many thousands of beautiful warblers and other migratory birds who fly through this area using Magee as a stopover and feeding area. More than 50 active Bald Eagle nests are nearby. There are plans to place numbers of large turbines along Lake Erie's shore in this area. In fact, several of them are already up and operating in these highly bird-sensitive areas. Future plans for even more turbines must be stopped! Black Swamp Bird Observatory is leading this effort.

Birders are an important voice for bird conservation, as well as an economic force. The tens of thousands of birders have who have visited Magee Marsh for warbler watching have brought significant money to the local economy.

If you are a birder or bird lover, here's how you can help:

Go to this link and SIGN THE PETITION and email these politicians and protest.

Good News, JFK airport will now trap and relocate Snowy Owls, not kill them!

Well, good news for Snowy Owls! The NY Port Authority, which has allowed Snowy Owls to be shot at JFK airport has now changed its mind and they are starting a program to trap and relocate the owls instead of shooting them.

I was interviewed for the NY Daily News exclusive story that broke on Monday which said the NY Port Authority had put the owls on their kill list and had already shot 3 of them. While I understand that birds can pose a threat to planes, I expressed my dismay and told the reporter there was a better way to treat the owls. I told the reporter to also interview Norm Smith, a raptor bander, who, at Boston's Logan airport, had been successfully trapping and relocating the Snowy Owls for years. I also gave her the name to interview, of Jeff Gordon, president of the American Birding Association.

Once the story broke birders sprung into action to put pressure on the NY Port Authority to change its policy. Through facebook, blogs and social media, the word spread. There was an online petition (which I and over 3,000 other people signed) addressed to Gov. Cuomo, asking him to stop the killing of the owls. The TV news stations got on the story. The pressure from bird lovers and the birding community was successful!! Thanks to everyone who made an effort!!

Snowy Owls, a tundra breeding species, have been appearing in unusually large numbers in the U.S. this winter and seeking out tundra-like habitat such as large airports, coastal dunes, fields. Some think it may be due to a lack of enough food availability in their usual range or a population surge of the owls. Snowy Owls have been seen now as far south as NC and Bermuda. Snowy Owls eat lemmings on their breeding range and in winter can eat rodents and waterfowl.
I and my husband Don, saw 9 Snowy Owls in the coastal NH area on Nov. 30th, when I took the above photos.

Lesson learned. Birders are a community who can be effective at bird conservation when they join together and lobby for safe treatment of birds.

NY City JFK Airport Now Shooting Snowy Owls!

Showy Owls are in the crosshairs at NY City Airports

The Port Authority has shot three of them so far.

Update, Tues., Dec. 10th.
Good news, since I wrote the blog post below, the NY Port Authority has changed its policy and will stop shooting the Snowy Owls and instead trap and remove them. Read my update here.

I was interviewed for a story in today's New York Daily News whose headline and tease is is "Hoot To Kill... Exclusive: Whooo'd be so cruel? Port Authority declares open season on adorable snowy "Harry Potter' owl at JFK airport." This is terrible news for Snowy Owls, especially when there may be a better, safer way to handle the issue that these magnificent birds, who leave their tundra home in times of food stress, seek out tundra-like habitat, such as airports, coastal dunes and fields in the lower U.S. I told the reporter that Boston's Logan Airport has a ace raptor bander, Norm Smith, who traps and removes the Snowy Owls who show up at Logan Airport, safely releasing the elsewhere. She did also interview Norm and there is a separate story on him in the paper.

The NY Port Authority gave permission for Snowy Owls to be exterminated at NY City airports and three have been shot so far. Owls are an issue for plane safety since they could be sucked into a plane engine. The news story has a quote "Even a wildlife specialist didn't understand why they were being killed because they are not part of a large population and they are easy to catch and relocate, unlike seagulls." Norm said that even though a Snowy Owl could get sucked into a jet engine,"its not like a flock of geese that is going to take out more than one engine and bring down a plane."

Snowy Owls are showing up in the U.S. in huge numbers this year and have been seen as far south as NC and Bermuda. These owls live in the tundra and must leave in winter when there is not enough food because of a drop in their prey (the lemming population) or there is a bumper crop of owls. They then irrupt south in large numbers and seek out tundra-like habitat and hope to find things they can eat like rodents, waterfowl, etc. Don and I saw 9 on the NH Coast on Nov. 30th, and I got the above photos taken from a distance in a car. See my blog post and more photos on the Snowy Owls here.

Birders across much of the eastern part of the country are being thrilled at seeing Snowy Owls, a lifer for many. One issue has been to educate people to keep a respectful distance from the owls for observing or photography, so as not to disturb them as they need to conserve energy and hunt for food. Now this! When are we going to be more sensitive to the needs of wildlife and find win-win solutions when the presence of wildlife may come in conflict with human needs.

Snowy Owls, Historic Irruption Underway Now!

Snowy Owls are coming down into the U.S. in possibly historic numbers. (note, all photos on this post taken with long telephotos lenses from a distance, mainly from a car, so as not to disturb the owl.)

We saw 9 Sat. on the NH and MA coasts. This one was sitting in a parking lot.

I love the soft feathers around the bill, all the better to keep it warm.

This owl preened

and sat in the wind.

 Grassy flat areas, dunes, marshes, and anything like its tundra home are the habitats these Snowy Owls seek out.

Here it is in front of a New Hampshire Parks vehicle.

There are actually two of then on this breakwater way out there.

Here's a closer view taken with the powerful telephoto lens (up to 4800mm) of the Canon SX 50.

There is a mega irruption of Snowy Owls coming down from their tundra areas taking place now, with reports flooding birding listserves across the northern parts of the U.S., southern Canada, and there has even been a Snowy Owl reported in Bermuda. Birders in St. John's, Newfoundland are seeing 150 Snowy Owls in a day. There more owls on the way and this could be a historic event. You can see a map of Snowy Owl sightings on ebird.

Saturday we saw 9 on the NH and MA Coasts, with birders reporting many more owls from those areas. Owls are showing up more in coastal areas but also some from inland. They are attracted to flat or rolling, grassy or marshy tundra-like habitats. We saw our owls in coastal dunes and marshes, but they can be in other places. There are Snowy Owls showing up at airports, and one was seen hunting the grounds of the Budweiser plant in Merrimack, NH. They can perch on buildings, rocks, houses and lamp posts overlooking favorable habitat. Keep your eyes open, they could be anywhere!

If you do see a Snowy Owl do several things:
* Report your sightings to ebird, the national database that tracks birds, so this event can be well documented.
* Do not get close to the owl to view or photograph it so as not to scare it away or harass it. These are birds that have left the far north because there is not enough food there. They are hungry and may be starving and need to conserve energy to hunt for food.
*Enjoy watching and appreciating these, usually rare, Snowy Owls for this is a special event. Some of these birds, unfortunately, may not make it if they do not find enough food.

Snowy Owls breed in the far north and in winter some come down into Canada and the northern half of the U.S. Sometimes when there is a food shortage in their usual areas, they may irrupt in large numbers and move south as they are doing now. They are diurnal hunters and eat lemmings and other small mammals and rodents, sometimes ducks and seabirds.
Male Snowy Owls are generally white overall with a suggestion of grayish barring. Females are heavily barred overall and young birds are the darkest of their sex with first year females being the darkest.

To learn more about Snowy Owls, and how to identify other birds (including all those you photograph!!) see our new field guides:

The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America contains over 3,400 bird photos (many of them from me and other top bird photographers) and is the most complete photographic guide to those birds ever done.

It is also available as eastern or western regional editions,

The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern Edition

The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Western Region

If you want to learn more about how to take photos with the Canon SX 50 Camera, go to my blog post here, where you can find out about my extensive tips.