Whooping Cranes on the Move!

The following is the latest information on the 2008 Whooping Crane migration from Charlie Luthin, Natural Resources Foundation

March 26

Eleven of the 17 ultra-light led juveniles from 2007 have begun their northern migration! Yesterday afternoon, 6 of the cranes left the pen site area at the Chassahowitzka NWR and flew to southwest GA. This morning, biologist Richard Urbanek saw the birds and noted that they had split into groups of 4 and 2. The group of 4 resumed migration today, but the other 2 have not. Today, another group of 5birds left the pensite and are currently flying north. Only 6 birds now remain at "Chass".

March 25

We received the sad news that DAR 43-07 collided with a power distribution line in a corn field in Fayette Co., IN and died. The photo we received showed a large cut above her bill. 43-07 and 5 other 2007 DAR subadults began migration from the Hiwassee NWR in TN on March 16. They stopped in Adair Co., KY their first night, then moved to Clark Co., IN on the 17th. On March 21, they resumed migration and stopped in Fayette Co., IN, where 43-07 died the next morning. As is the case with all eastern flock Whooping Cranes that are found dead, the carcass is being transported to the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison for necropsy.

Whooping crane 1-01 was the first to return to the Necedah NWR, completing migration by March 14. Female 2-01 was the next to arrive, on March 23. Only 3 birds now remain on FL winter territories -- male 16-05 in Marion Co. and DAR 27-06 and DAR 28-06 (both males) in Pasco Co.

Two cranes who had been missing for quite awhile, males 7-03 and 12-05, were reported together in Houston Co., MN, on March 14 & 15. 7-03 had last been reported with 5 other whoopers at a migration stop in northeastern GA on November 30. The signal of 12-05 had last been detected in the Paynes Prairie area in FL on December 29. These birds may have wintered together at an undetermined location in FL. On March 23, 7-03 was back at Necedah.

Another group of 3 Whooping Cranes was sighted in MN (Morrison Co.) on March 18. Biologists speculate that these are males 8-04 and 14-05, and female 19-05, who left FL together on February 26. W1-06, the wild-produced female, left FL by herself on March 9. She spent her first night in Thomas Co., GA, and has not been observed since then.

DAR 40-07 (the female that has associated with Sandhill Cranes all winter) remained with large numbers of migrating sandhills near the Jasper Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area in northwestern IN through at least March 22.

Reports of sightings of migrating Whooping Cranes are coming in frequently now, including sightings in La Crosse Co. (March 13) and Green/Lafayette Co. (March 23).

Keep your eyes to the skies and report your whooping crane sightings to the International Crane Foundation at 608-356-9462. Pay close attention to color bands on their legs and note the sequence these bands are in, as that is how individuals are identified.

Big Morongo - Hard to Find Desert Riparian Birding

I noticed recently that on my birding bookshelf I had a couple of copies of some old Birdwatcher's Digest (BWD) from the 1980s. The January/February issue contains a good article by Chuck Bernstein on a little known, but very cool, birding spot - Southern California's Big Morongo Reserve. The article inspired a visit to the place while on my spring break as a graduate student at Washington State University. It was the possibility of seeing a strikingly beautiful bird - the Vermilion Flycatcher - that lured me down there. Indeed Bernstein talks about making a pilgrimage there every year, if possible, to "get my symbolic blood transfusion" that keeps him going for another year.

Bernstein quotes the curator of natural history for the San Bernadino County museum, and conductor of a breeding bird survey for the area, as saying that "the desert riparian ecosystem has the highest density of breeding land birds in North America". Cardiff's survey records show an incredible 1400+ singing males per square kilometer. Unfortunately, very little of this habitat remains in the American West. Cardiff talks about how 95 percent of this habitat has already been wiped out.

Besides the spectacular Vermilion Flycatcher, other birds of note include:

• Summer Tanager
• An endangered subspecies of the Bell's Vireo
• Lucy's Warbler 
• Brown Crested Flycatcher
• Black Throated Sparrow
• Costa's Hummingbird
• Gambel's Quail

I enjoyed my visit to this reserve and I was fortunate enough to see a male Vermilion Flycatcher - right after I entered the reserve, as I recall. I also remember seeing my life lister Lucy's Warbler and having to work to see and figure that one out (which I loved doing of course). I also saw the very handsome Gambel's Quail, also a life lister for me.
Big Morongo is a great place to bird - if you get the chance, by all means, check it out. Hopefully you will get to see the Vermilion Flycatcher and it will remind you, as it did for me, why you love to bird so much.

Amargosa River and its Riparian Habitat and Erosion Pattern, Mojave Desert, California, USA

Miller, Marli

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A Vermillion Flycatcher Perches on a Tree Branch on Santa Cruz Island 

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Male Summer Tanager 

Adam Jones 

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Gambel's Quail, Callipepla Gambelii, Vocalizing 

John Cancalosi 

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Gambel's Quail (Callipepla Gambelii) Female 

Jack Michanowski 

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Male Gambel's Quail Scratching for Food, Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve 

James Hager 

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Anna's Hummingbird 

John James Audubon

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Costa's Hummingbird, Calypte Costae, Feeding at a Flower, California, USA
Charles Melton
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Black-Throated Sparrow, Amphispiza Bilineata, Texas, USA
John Cornell
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A Vermillion Flycatcher Perched on a Moss-Covered Branch

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An Intriguing Bird Sighting

In the mid 1970's I went on a backpacking trip to the San Juan National Forest in southwestern Colorado with some college buddies. Unbeknownst to me at the time this trip was to provide me with one of my most interesting life list sightings.

We had made our way to Durango, Colorado and after gathering provisions, from there we headed out to the trailhead. We climbed all day and ended up in a coniferous forest at elevation in the San Juan Mountains. With the notable exception of the colorful Steller's Jay that I pointed out to them, none of my friends were too interested in birds. So I set out exploring by myself in this unique habitat. When birding, a lot of times I like to stand in one place for a while and see what shows up. As I stood there about 10 feet away in a pine tree, I spotted a distinctive bird that, if you get a good look at it, is not likely to be mistaken for any other bird - a male Olive Warbler. I knew what it was right away, and I was thrilled because it was obviously a life lister. I pulled out my field guide to check on the sighting and I noticed that the range of the bird did not encompass southwestern Colorado! But there it was right in front of me. Upon reading the description in the field guide, I noticed that the habitat was exactly right for this species - an open coniferous forest at an altitude above 7000 feet. So apparently this adventurous male had decided to colonize the habitat where he knew he could make a living. I think that there are probably individuals in most species that will try a play like this. If they succeed they have no competition - at least for a while. If they do not succeed they are removed from the gene pool and the experiment is over.

This sighting was the highlight of a very fun trip. The scenery and exercise were wonderful and seeing a beautiful and unexpected life lister made it all the better.

Extra Special Birding - High Island, Texas

With the advent of spring tomorrow, I thought it would be a good time to write about my experiences at one of my all time favorite birding locations - High Island Texas.

If you are unfamiliar with High Island, it is special because it is a piece of land that is literally bowed up by a rising salt formation below it (i.e. the surface manifestation of a subsurface salt dome). As such, it allows for the growth of oak trees and other vegetation amidst the coastal marshes. This turns out to be a magnet for migrating passerines who have just made the long trip over the Gulf of Mexico.

I lived in Houston from August, 1981 to December, 1986. Back then, of course, there was no Internet, so in order to find out where the birding action was I phoned the Houston Audobon Society (HAS) and got on their mailing list. It was through them that I found out about the most excellent softcover book "A Birder's Guide to the Texas Coast" by James A. Lane (1980) (Note: I checked and you can still get a used copy of this book at amazon.com). I have used this book extensively and found many great spots to go birding including High Island. One late April day in 1982 I set sail for the coast.

On my way to High Island that day I spotted my life lister King Rail from my car. This got me excited because you figure if you are seeing life listers in the car on the way to the place, how good is it going to be when you get there! I was right to get excited, because over the next four years High Island turned out to be one of the most spectacular birding places that I have ever been fortunate enough to be able to visit.

There were always lots of birds to be found on April days at High Island, but a few observations stand out for me. The most beautiful "routine" bird that I saw every year was the Summer Tanager. Always a pleasure to roll into the sanctuary and fight it right away - a bit of a touchstone for me. The best life lister I found in Boy Scout Woods was the Swainson's Warbler. In those days I visually identified all my life listers - I didn't have any song skills at that time. I worked really hard to find the bird low in the shrubery and persisted to get a good enough look to properly identify it. I felt triumphant upon figuring out what it was.

High Island is a place for spectacular birding, but in 1984 it outdid itself. On that occassion the weather was such that northerly headwinds left the sanctuary literally filled to the brim with tired passerines. When I walked into the sanctuary that day there was a fellow birder with a male Hooded Warbler sitting an his shoe, obviously too tired to move. We made eye contact and a rather bemused look passed between us, and then we started laughing at the site. Later that day I spotted what was to be one of my most memorable sights in all my birding days - a flock of about thirty Painted Buntings feeding on the ground. I had trouble driving home after that day because I was so excited by my day at the refuge!

I was looking at the HAS High Island Information page and the place has changed since I last went there in 1986. They now have added a visitor's kiosk and some grandstands. Unfortunately the sanctuarys also took some hits from Hurricanes Rita and Humberto. Hopefully the place will recover, I'm sure the HAS has done some great work to restore the area.

I hope to get back to High Island someday, and continue on with the transcendental birding experience that it has already provided to me.

The Passion for Birds Begins in a Wondrous Way

Well, I went for a nice walk this morning and it was beautiful, the sun was shining, and the Cardinals were out in full force, singing away. I even saw a flock of Sandhil Cranes flying overhead and bugling. The cranes have been gone for a number of months so it was a lift to the winter weary spirits to see them again. All in all, it seems like agood day to start a blog about a topic that has been a passion of mine for more than four decades - birds. And since it is the beginning of the blog it seems appropriate to start at the beginning of the passion.

When I was five years old, I was a relatively adventurous lad. I was newly enfranchised as a bicyclist and I started riding all over the place and exploring. So one fine early summer day I was out enjoying myself, riding in the neighborhood. Around the corner from my house lived an elderly couple who were skilled gardeners. They had a very beautiful garden filled with colorful flowers that I stopped to admire. As I stood gazing at the flowers, my eyes detected movement. And what to my wondering eyes did appear - a creature I now know to be a Ruby Throated Hummingbird. What a discovery - no one had ever told me about anything like this! I was transfixed and remain so to this day. I rushed home and told my mother and she explained to me what it was. And so it began...

I keep a life list and count the Ruby Throated Hummingbird as #1 on that List. I was fortunate in having the magic and great beauty of birds revealed to me in this most wondrous way.

I can still see that bird in my mind's eye.