Spreadin' the Love

Posted by Laurence Butler

Of all the desert specialists to be found throughout North America, perhaps none is so colorful or vivacious as the Rosy-Faced Lovebird. Also known as the Peach-Faced Lovebird, this small and extremely social parrot is a native of the west African deserts, but in recent years has established populations in Florida, California, and Arizona.

Gregarious by nature, the Lovebirds get their name from their monogamous mating and affection for sitting and cooing in pairs for the greater part of an afternoon. Compared to the extremely arid Namib Desert in Africa, Arizona must seem like a tropical paradise to the Lovebirds, and their population in the Phoenix area has been growing exponentially these last few years. I remember occasionally seeing or hearing a Lovebird along the Phoenix canals as a kid, when it was still a pretty uncommon and cool sighting. While seeing the Lovebirds some ten years later is still very cool, they can now be found all over the Metropolitan area, and they're just as consistent a sighting at any of the city parks as Abert's Towhees or Curve-Billed Thrashers. With their ability to adapt and excel in the Phoenix habitats, their population will only continue to grow. The Lovebirds have not made the official ABA bird list yet, and they're also excluded from various field guides despite the inclusion of other non-native and even less common species. However, they're fast becoming one of the staple and eye-catching birds of the Phoenix area.

The Desert Botanical Gardens host substantial Lovebird clans through the warmer months, and provide them with a number of different habitats. This group was contentedly foraging among the fallen mesquite seeds, seemingly oblivious to the idea of other desert predators. They can also be found among the sunflowers, eucalyptus, and fig trees. While providing feedback to my post, Robert Mortensen mentioned that he birded the DBG regularly in 2006-2007 and never saw them, so this must be a pretty recent development. The Lovebirds are some of my favorites to see at the Gardens because they have an immediate WOW factor. I can introduce other bystanders to the Lovebirds with a much more satisfactory reaction and interest then when I point out a Thrasher or Towhee. Their loud colors and behaviors are immediately endearing to even the most aloof DBG patron, and I daresay they serve as a great gateway into the birding world.

I've heard some pretty endearing stories about the DBG Lovebirds from the weekend docents that speak to the birds' charming and sometimes disastrous devotion to their little communities. Apparently, the DBG Lovebirds have not adapted well to the dense and treacherous cholla cactus that abounds in the Arizona desert. When one Lovebird gets stuck in the thorny mesh, his buddies will all cheerfully fly in after him, either to help extricate the poor bird or just keep him company. On what must have been a very somber Saturday morning, they removed eight dead Lovebirds from the same cholla. I find this behavior to be totally adorable.

I'm not sure if the difference between Rosy-Faced and Peach-Faced Lovebirds is simply one of perception or naming preference. Some birds certainly seem to have a much darker red on their foreheads, which may designate them as rosy when contrasted with the duller peach colored birds. The rich green is maybe the most eye-catching attribute--uncommon as it is in the desert--and just to make sure they appeal from all angles, they've got nice blue rumps too.

Other variations of Lovebird have been bred for domestic pets. The Lutino Lovebird is probably the most common, and it is predominantly yellow on its body instead of green. I have not seen a full Lutino outside of captivity, but did see one Lovebird that appeared to have some yellow mottling, meaning it was perhaps a second generation or something.

These last couple of photos are the most recent. Far removed from the figs and eucalyptus that they enjoy so much, these Lovebirds were happily foraging in the bermuda grass on a soccer field. Imagine having these colors wandering all over the Phoenix parks; soon it'll be the most colorful city in the U.S!

I'm not aware of a kinder, sweeter looking face in the bird kingdom (though I'd welcome any suggestions). Just remember, if you're ever stuck in a cactus, this bird is dying to keep you company...

ABA Bird of the Year Outreach

I just posted to the ABA Blog a simple way you can participate in the ABA Bird of the Year program and share your birding passion with the public. Click here.

Seeking our signature species

Posted by Ken Schneider

In a random but unknowing act of kindness, the construction worker tossed his half-eaten sandwich on a snowbank along the road, and returned to his job. A small flock of dark-feathered birds flew down and shared the treat...



But, wait. I'm getting ahead of this story. I might have started with "It was a dark and snowy morning when we drove to the top of the world..." Instead, let's begin by recollecting our repeated futile attempts to find rosy-finches on the top of Sandia Crest, 10,678 feet above sea level, near our previous home in New Mexico. Several times since moving there in 1993, Mary Lou and I would follow up on reports of rosy-finch sightings on or near the Crest, only to be disappointed.

"It was a clear and cold morning..." in early December, 1999 when we finally plugged three gaping holes in our life lists. We rejoiced as we watched about twenty birds, including all three rosy-finch species, as they devoured the aforementioned bread crusts at the site of the radio/TV transmission towers just across the parking lot from the Crest House Restaurant and Gift Shop.

The next morning we repeated the 13 mile drive up the Crest Road, carrying a supply of wild bird seed. Halfway up, snow started falling and we drove slowly to the top. We scattered seed generously on the snowbank where we had first seen the finches. They did not disappoint us, as within minutes a dozen or more appeared along with some juncos and they swarmed over the seed.

Upon revisiting a few days later we found that a snowplow had distributed the seed all along the roadway, burying some, and exposing the birds to a traffic hazard. This time we spread some seed on a windswept snow-free area on the upper parking lot. Every week until the end of February, 2000 we continued bringing  seed, and birders started noticing the rosy-finches. The next winter we resumed our surreptitious feeding, and found that others were also scattering seed, not only on the parking lot surface, but also on ecologically fragile areas along the observation area at the top of Sandia Crest. We publicized our concerns on the Internet, and this resulted in our receiving dozens of inquiries about the rosy-finches. To manage the requests for information, we set up the rosyfinch.com website.

As Forest Service volunteers, we knew full well that wildlife feeding violated the agency's policies, so we approached our friend Tom Duncan, who was then the resident manager of Sandia Crest House. He talked to Forest Service people and learned that the prohibition against feeding applied only to "undisturbed" land; the Forest Service interpreted any private leases or concessions within the National Forest boundaries to be "disturbed" land, thus exempting the Crest House.

Tom erected a feeder only about three feet outside the main entrance to the Gift Shop, and it immediately attracted rosy-finches. The trouble was that they were frightened away every time someone entered or exited, and they could not be observed from inside the building.

We engaged Central New Mexico Audubon, the US Forest Service, Crest House management as well as a local bird seed supplier in an agreement whereby three feeders were installed, to be maintained by Forest Service volunteers. Spurred on by enthusiastic younger birders, most notably the late Ryan Beaulieu and his friend, Raymond VanBuskirk, the bird-banding operations of Rio Grande Bird Research, Inc., operated by Steve and Nancy Cox, were expanded to include weekly sessions at the Crest House during the winter months. Read more about Ryan's untimely death and how Raymond helped carry on his legacy at the link to the June 2010 issue of Audubon Magazine on this page.

After Gene Romero took over as manager of Crest House, the facility was renovated to include an improved dining area with large picture windows that provide a clear view of the deck feeder. Gene and his staff have become avid watchers and protectors of the rosy-finches and, during the warm months, myriad hummingbirds that frequent their feeders. Local merchants donated feeders and seed, and Mary Lou and I coordinated the feeding program, driving up about twice a week to tend them. We moved away from New Mexico to Florida in 2004, and now Dave Weaver and his spouse Fran Lusso carry on as co-coordinators of the feeding project. For more information about the rosy-finches at Sandia Crest, see my Birder's World article.

Since banding began in March, 2004 through the end of last winter, the team had accumulated a total of over 2200 newly banded rosy-finches.  The species mix of newly banded birds is interesting. So far, 54% have been Black Rosy-Finches. The Brown-capped species made up approximately 28%, and Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches accounted for 18%. A little over half of the 432 Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches banded were Hepburn's race, but of these 159 birds, most (133) were banded during the two winters of 2006-07 and 2007-08. Detailed results of banding are available here 
Although we now have homes in Florida and Illinois, I remain a New Mexican at heart. Mary Lou? Well, she certainly enjoyed most of our eleven years of living at 7000 feet in the mountains of New Mexico, but not the winters. As she says, she was born in December and hasn't thawed out yet! However, we had not seen our five Texas grandchildren since our 50th wedding anniversary reunion in the Colorado Rockies, over a year ago. We planned to fly to Amarillo for a "grandchildren fix" this fall, but it took a bit of effort on my part to convince her that we should fly home out of Albuquerque rather than Amarillo. After all, the cheaper return air fare would offset the incremental cost of a one-way car rental from Amarillo to Albuquerque. I also made sure that the trip occurred after the arrival of the rosy-finches to Sandia Crest. The first ones usually appear around the first of November, but this year they came in late. By November 9, no more than 6 Rosies had been seen at the feeder.

We had a very nice visit with our son, his wife and their five children, in Amarillo, Texas. On November 12, we drove west on I-40 to New Mexico. As we approached Albuquerque, we could see the snow-capped mountains of Santa Fe and Taos to the north, a promising sign, as snow cover tends to concentrate the rosy-finches at the feeder. We arrived at Sandia Crest around noon. It was a cold 29 degrees Farenheit, with a brisk southerly wind with gusts to 50 miles per hour.

This is the view to the south from the deck of Crest House.



There had been a dusting of snow the previous day, but the deck of the Crest House was clear. The feeder hangs over the far end of the railing; a hungry Abert's Squirrel can be seen running along the top of the rail towards it (click on photo to select larger views).



We saw a total of six Rosy-finches on November 12. Among them, we identified three Black Rosy-Finches and one that looked like a Gray-crowned. This is a Black Rosy-Finch.



This bird that we first thought to be a Gray-crown was more brownish, but close examination of the photo reveals it to be an adult female Black Rosy-Finch. The angle of light caused reflection that made the bird look lighter than it really was.



An Abert's Squirrel was dominating the feeder, and we had to chase it away repeatedly. The Rosies avoided the feeder when either the squirrel or a Steller's Jay was present.



Mountain Chickadees shared the feeder...



...with Red-breasted Nuthatches...



...and the local Gray-headed race of the Dark-eyed Junco.



The next day, the forecast called for snow, but we ventured up Crest Road again. It started to rain as we checked for Pygmy Nuthatches at Doc Long Picnic Area near the base, and clouds enveloped the mountain. We turned back, deciding to bird around Albuquerque. We returned to the Crest on November 14, negotiating snow-packed areas on the road. Near the top, the moisture from the clouds had condensed to form a thick layer of hoarfrost on the trees.



Now there were flocks of up to 13 Black Rosy-Finches at the feeder. Here, two are perched on a frosty branch.



Before the banders introduced a degree of sophistication into our identification of the rosy-finches, we gave up on identifying many of the hatch-year birds, especially early in the season, as all have buffy brown tips on their contour feathers. At first we simply called them "Rosy-Finch sp.," or "Buffies." Now we know to take a closer look at the bases of the feathers. If they are black or very dark brown, and the bird has a whitish crown, it is a Black Rosy-Finch. Immature Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches have more cinnamon-brown feather bases. Male Blacks, even immature ones, show rather extensive pink on their underparts and wing coverts, while in females the color is very subdued. Even adult Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches show relatively little pink. This indeed is an immature (hatch year) female Black Rosy-Finch. Note the hint of pink on her shoulders and lower belly.



Our disappointment at not being able to positively identify any Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches was tempered by the appearance of the first Brown-capped Rosy-Finch of the season. Note its lack of a light crown and the more intense rosy undersides. A band from a previous season confirms that it is an adult.



Although the temperature had dropped to 22 degrees, the winds had died down, and photography conditions were much better than two days previously. Somehow, this beautiful adult black-Rosy-Finch had escaped the banding traps in previous years.



Though my fingers were about to freeze and drop off, I was able to get a nice shot of a Mountain Chickadee against a natural background...



..and a Red-breasted Nuthatch in a typical pose.



I shot this photo of a Steller's Jay from inside the windows of the Crest House. Staff had spread the seed around to allow the finches to visit without being harassed by the jays.



Sandia Crest, just east of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the most accessible site in the world where all three North American rosy-finch species can be seen at one time. We maintain the Sandia Crest Birding FORUM, where you will find interesting discussions on identification as well as updated sighting reports of not only the Rosies, but also such more unusual birds as Clark's Nutcracker, Red Crossbill, Cassin's Finch, Northern Pygmy-Owl and American Three-toed Woodpecker.

This Week's Best in Bird Blogging #9

White-faced Ibis at Farmington Bay, Utah.  
Can Utah residents pick out the landmark in the background?

From the BiF! Contributors:

* Laurence Butler: Wednesday's with Audubon & Autumn Staples (nice Ring-necked Duck close-ups!)
* Donald the Birder: Cooled down it has...
* Ken Schneider: White-eyed Towhee and Green-eyed Lynx
* Lillian Stokes: it was all good this week at Stokes Birding Blog. See for yourself!
* Greg Gillson shared everything from a successful Brambling chase to wing diagrams at Pacific NW Birder
* Kelly Riccetti posted a book review and some awesome Bonaparte's Gull paintings.
* Rob Ripma was interviewed about birding for a news article.
* Dan Huber had great posts all week too. I especially liked the Snow Bunting and Sanderling photos.
* Rob Fergus successfully chased a pink-footed goose and is now on his way to New Zealand. Lucky!
* Kathie Brown went In Search of Sandhills Cranes and got some lovely photos.
* Steve Creek shares A Different Kind of Snow in Oklahoma, a Mugging, and a Frost-covered Owl.
* Scott Simmons had a fantastic series helping us learn Heron and Egret i.d.'s with stellar photography.
* Jeremy Medina's classroom Show and Tell was extra special. See why!
* Mia McPherson posted more fabulous bird photography. Don't miss a single post!
* Pat Bumstead's BirdCanada sure has had some nice guest blog posts the last couple weeks.

More of This Week's Best in Bird Blogging:

* Snowy Owl Mania: Tails of Birding, I used to hate birds., and The Nemesis Bird among many others!
* Alex Vargas bird photography rocks! So does Jill Wussow's.
* Nice Little Owls at Owls about that then!
* Old Woman Chicken by Nate Swick
* Landscaped Nesting by Jim Braswell
* Three Phoebe Day by Rich Ditch

Awesome new follow-worthy bird blog: i heart florida birds by Tammy

Some other Must-Follow Birding Blogs with nice posts this week:

* ABA Blog - Don't you already follow every post! You'll see posts from there now and then related to the ABA Bird of the Year. Check out the cool auction items...amazing stuff!
* I always enjoy the witty flavor of Seagull Steve's Bourbon, Bastards, and Birds
* Rick Wright's Birding New Jersey and the World.
* Jim McCormac's Ohio Birds and Biodiversity
* Greg Miller Birding

Great-tailed Grackle - Farmington Bay, Utah
Perched on the luggage rack of a duck hunter's SUV. I liked the high fashion pose and feather iridescence  revealed by a brief moment of sunshine.

Utah Canyon Winds Cause mini-Disaster

December came in like a lion as David County, Utah was hit yesterday morning with high speed canyon winds reaching over 100mph in some locations. My neighborhood was hit pretty hard. Trees down everywhere; even swamp coolers blown off roofs. We had a large pine tree come down crushing the fence and even part of the neighbors roof. Ouch! We didn't have power all day and radio commentators predicted 48 hours without electricity for the county. So I was surprised and delighted that they had power restored by 11pm last night.

Funny how disaster sometimes brings us together. It was heart-warming to see so many neighbors helping each other out. Even one pack of high school aged kids roamed the neighborhood as a group aiding any and all who needed it. The clean-up will go on through the weekend, and perhaps longer.

It was also kinda fun to play several rounds of UNO with the kids by candlelight.  I also read to them for an hour, finishing up book four of a series I've been reading to them each night. We were all in bed by 8:30pm, the kids snuggled into sleeping bags to stay warm in our stick-and-brick tent - without power and heat.

Below are some of the pictures from our yard:

This pine's trunk separated in two a few feet up. I should have known the tree was in trouble when I saw mushrooms growing out of the split a couple months back and recalling Julie Zickefoose's posts last May about her fallen oak tree. In this photo you can see that each trunk fell in a different direction. The one in the back is leaning on the neighbors house. The trunk in the foreground crushed the fence, took out one of the neighbors trees and ripped the power line down...so they are still without power.

Being that this home is a rental property, I've not allowed myself to become emotionally attached to the landscaping or the trees in particular. Though I did have plans for this pine, including a Screech-Owl box. It did regularly host a good variety of species that seem to prefer pines, so now my yard is left without a pine. Another large stand of pines in an adjoining property that hosts a lot of birds lost seven of their trees, so more than half. It'll be interested to see how this affects the variety of yard birds. Surprisingly, I didn't come across a single bird nest in all the pine tree debris.

My neighbor ran out and bought a really nice and expensive chainsaw. He and I spent all day clearing the trees from the neighbors property and helping out a couple other neighbors in similar circumstances. It was a lot of work, especially for flabby-fleshed me who has Jell-O for muscles. That Jell-O is sure sore and hard today.

One heck of a brush pile for the birds, right? This chest-high pile of pine tree debris runs the full length of the west side of my yard. I'll salvage all the firewood that I can, leave some for a somewhat smaller brush pile for the birds, and dispose of the rest that the city says they will collect soon. My wife - always one to make lemonade of life's lemons - rescued two garbage bags of pine cones to use for arts and crafts.

Now, I'm not one to pass up an opportunity of enjoying the birds nor of sharing my passion for birds, no matter what the situation is..."Always be birding!" right?! Throughout the day there were plenty of the usual Robins, Scrub-jays, and Black-capped Chickadees. But the special sighing of the day was a mature Bald Eagle soaring low over the neighborhood. It was a happy omen in the middle of some distress. I showed it to the group of high school kids, some of which had never before seen our national symbol in the wild. Awesome!

Birder Profile: Laurence Butler

Laurence Butler
Phoenix, Arizona

I got into birding when I was pretty young, but I can’t say that I was really a birder until recently. My Dad had been interested in birds and birding for a while before I really started paying attention. As a pilot and lifelong appreciator of aviation, it must’ve come naturally to him. The frequent traveling also provided nice opportunities to briefly bird all over the country. We had some great family trips in Florida, California, and even Hawaii, but I was usually preoccupied looking for snakes or frogs. My appreciation of birds took a huge leap forward when we took a trip to upstate New York. I was probably 15 or 16 at the time, and we went on a trek through a wildlife preserve near the Finger Lakes. Laurence Butler Sr. pointed out a female grosbeak looking rather brown and lonely on an outstretched tree branch. He set off after some Cerulean warblers in the distance, but for some reason I decided to sit and watch the grosbeak. No sooner had I plopped down then the handsome male Rose-breasted flew in and let out his song. It was totally stunning. He was big, beautiful, and unmistakable, even though I didn't know such a bird existed at the time. I was pretty well hooked from then on, which means I've been birding for about 8 years. I haven't been diligent with lists or recorded sightings until recently though, and keeping a blog along with photographs has really helped to that effect.

On average I bird two times a week, 1-2 times during the weekend and once during the week if I can. I'm right in the middle of Phoenix, so my non-holiday birding options are limited until next summer. For the time being, I'm quite content birding at the Desert Botanical Garden, the Riparian Preserve in Gilbert, and some of the larger parks and water features in the Phoenix area. There are many good birding spots within a 2 hour drive from the city, and of course the birding gems (Madera Canyon and Chiricahua Mtns.) farther southeast that I hope to visit again this spring. Belize is the most exotic place I've visited, but I largelly missed out on the birding opportunities there. Birding down in Harlingen, TX was pretty great though. In the 3 times I've gone, we've seen Green Jays, Altamira Orioles, Anhingas, Kiskadees, Vermillion Flycatchers, Flamingos, Chachalacas, and lots of other first-time birds.

I've never chased after a rare bird, but that's probably because I've still got lots and lots of common birds yet to see. That being said, I'm pretty impatient with my birding, and I often romp around and chase after the birds more than I should. It's harder to sit and wait for the birds in the desert, I think, since the surrounding scenery is not always as beautiful as in other locations. So, as a birder (and as a bird), I'd describe myself as a Bumbling Gawker.

I have some Bushnell 8 x 42 Binoculars and a Sony Alpha 33 camera with a 300mm lens. I do most of my birding with the naked eye though, and since I move around a lot I don't consider a scope to be a good investment right now.  I'm pretty bad about keeping track of my sightings. I realize the benefits and the virtues of eBird, but whenever I try to set up an account I'm overcome by the hastle and just default to the list I keep on my website.

My favorite bird sighting? I mentioned the rose-breasted grosbeak earlier, and that probably takes the cake. I also saw a pileated woodpecker attack an iguana in Belize (in a territorial fashion), which was pretty awesome. When I was climbing some bluffs near Florence, CO I also saw an amazing display of raptorial dexterity. While climbing atop one of the higher plateaus, I saw a buteo hovering maybe another 200 feet in the air. It was riding the thermals quite contentedly, but was soon swarmed by a conspiracy of crows. I watched this mystery buteo endure their harrying swoops for several minutes without much reaction, wondering why raptors put up with this sort of disrespect. Then, quite unexpectedly, the bird flapped its wings with one great lunge and turned with its momentum over to its back, talons now facing the approaching crow. This barrel roll caught the crow completely by surprise, and it was already committed to the attack. The hawk made one clean, precise swipe before continuing in its rollover so that it was again right side up. With the occasional feeble flap, the smitten crow plummeted towards the earth. Like a WWII plane with its tail on fire, the bird spiraled down, strings of viscera visibly trailing and flailing in its wake as the crow disappeared into the canyon. The conspiracy was over. The other crows got the heck out of there, and the hawk resumed its smug soaring over its domain.

As far as yard bird stories, unfortunately I don’t have a yard right now…I loved seeing the Scott’s and Hooded Orioles at my parent’s house, along with the adorable Gamble’s Quail. I lived in a dingy apartment complex in Dallas for several years while I was going to school, and one night while I was heading towards the library, I passed the fishpond near the exit of the complex. Much to my surprise, there was a Yellow-Crowned Night Heron prospecting at the water’s edge. I’ve never seen these elusive birds anywhere else, though late at night/early in the morning I’ve seen up to five around this tiny pond. Once, while sitting on an adjacent bench with my then fiancé, we even saw the Night heron pull a massive crawfish out of the water. The crawfish was too big to eat, and after thrashing around for a bit, the heron just left it by our bench. Obviously we took the crawfish home and ate it with garlic butter sauce. There was much pomp and circumstance. How many people get to eat seafood that was fresh-caught by a night heron? That could be a new and expensive restaurant concept…

Birding websites I read and recommend: Well, www.BirdingIsFun.com takes the cake. I visit the ABA websites from time to time as well. Scott Simmons, Mia McPherson, Ron Dudley, and Ron Bielefeld all have amazing photography blogs that I frequent, and I check the websites of all the other BiF! contributors regularly as well.

I’ve only used a couple different field guides. When I started out, it was with the Golden Field Guide and the Peterson’s classic. Since I’ve gotten more serious/diligent about accurate identifying, I usually use the Peterson’s or Sibley’s guide to narrow it down, and then verify it with different pictures and descriptions on the Internet. I haven't built a birding library yet. However, my wife and I did recently receive some really old (published 1897) copies of Audobon and his Journals. The two volumes bring together Audobon's early journal entries with commentary and context provided by his granddaughter Maria R. Audobon. I haven't been able to read through much yet, but it seems like quite the prize.

Do I consider myself an expert (or at least proficient) on any specific family of birds? Ha! Answering this question seems like tempting fate. At the risk of Graecian hubris, I can say I'd feel comfortable talking about Gambel's Quail, Rosy-Faced Lovebirds, and maybe Verdins—cerainly not as an expert.

I would like to see and photograph all of the North American birds before I die, so I plan to do that...at least those that are resident for some part of the year. This spring/early summer I'm hoping to make a trip down to southeast Arizona to see a Trogon and some of the other sky-island gems to be found down there. I bird a lot at the Desert Botanical Garden so I know some of the docents and other birders there pretty well, but that's the extent of it.

I feel like I have more nemesis birds than ally birds. There are a couple warblers that have continually frustrated my photographic efforts, but just in terms of seeing a bird I’d have to say it is the Yellow-Headed Blackbird. It seems like in all the guides, websites and even those little informational plaques you see at nature preserves, the Yellow-Headed is listed as ‘locally common’ or ‘year-round resident’. That’s never been the case for me. I’ve been dying to see them, but have had not luck at all.

For the most part, it's always nice to encounter other birders during my excursions. Swapping stories, recommendations, and sharing company can build up any experience, and is often invaluable for a young birder such as myself. However, it can be bothersome when people are just looking for an excuse to boast about their life lists or diseminate their haughty opinions on other birders or birding behavior. The eagerness among birders to share their wisdom and experiences can sometimes slip into condescension, or at least come off that way. In that vein, I've had people disparage my camera/lens in my photographic endeavors. That always seemed pretty inappropriate.

Outside of birding, I love soccer and try to play as much as possible. I got married this summer, so my best and brightest interest is my wife, who is very supportive of my other hobbies.

Embarrassing birding experiences? I once observed a large black vulture flying high in the distance, probably for a good 3 or 4 seconds, before realizing it was actually a garbage bag.

If I were a bird, which species would I be? This is a difficult question for which I still don’t have a complete answer. Of course, being a raptor at the top of the food chain would be pretty nice. Soaring high and eating meat seems much more illustrious than living as a grackle or gull. Herons seem to have it pretty good though too. They have a much more plentiful/consistent food supply and little to fear from predators. They really get to take life slow, speding their time snoozing and casually hunting when it suits them. There are also the swifts and the swallows. I sure would love to have that sort of speed and in-flight dexterity. I may not be able to ever pick a favorite until I've tried them all. Maybe I'd be an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, and instantly endear myself to birders all across North America…

I haven’t been birding long and hard enough to have much to brag about. My life list is pretty humble as is my range of photographed species. I am deliberating starting a birding club of sorts at the grade school where I teach. It would be open to students and faculty, maybe with excursions once a month. I try to catalogue my birding experiences, as well as birds I’ve seen/photographed, at my and my wife’s blog: http://butlersbirdsandthings.blogspot.com/. Of course, I’m now also proud and privileged to contribute to the great "Birding Is Fun!" enterprise!

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Birder Profile is a weekly blog segment at "Birding is Fun!" spotlighting a fellow birder.  If you would be interested in sharing a little about yourself and your birding experiences, please send me an email.  Is there a birder you'd like to see featured?  Please nominate that person by sending me an e-mail too.  Enthusiasm for birding is the only prerequisite!

Kimberly Kaufman on BiF!

Hello Everyone!

My name is Kimberly Kaufman and this is my first official blog post to "Birding is Fun!"  I'm honored to be part of the BiF! team and thrilled to be able to share my love of birds and birding with all the BiF! readers.

I'm sure most of you have no idea who I am, so a bit about my birding creds.  =)

I live in northwest Ohio and I'm the Executive Director of Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO).  BSBO does migratory bird research, education, and conservation, and we're also the host of a spring birding festival called The Biggest Week In American Birding.  I'm a contributing editor to Birds and Blooms magazine and have written for other national publications as well. My husband and I work together to get people interested in birds and nature, and we also work hard to promote bird conservation. (More on that, later!)

While you probably don't who I am, you might know my husband, Kenn Kaufman.  Kenn writes books about nature, and his Kaufman Field Guides now includes birds, butterflies, mammals, and insects.  I can say without bias that they are wonderful guides because I fell in love with his books before I fell in love with him! =)  He also wrote Kingbird Highway, which chronicles his Big Year attempt in 1973; Lives of North American Birds, Flights Against the Sunset, and his more recent book, Advanced Birding, just came out last spring.

Prior to falling in love and marrying Kenn six years ago, I had lived my entire life in NW Ohio, rarely traveling beyond the state line. Suddenly, I found myself married to a famous birder who also happened to be a world traveler, and it wasn't long before he was taking me all over the world with him!  Our travels have taken us to some extraordinary places where we've encountered some of the most bizarre and spectacular birds on the planet. 

I thought it might be fun to share a few of my favorite experiences, so far!  

First stop, the Galapagos Islands!  

  The Galapagos Islands are famous for Darwin's Finches.  But it's hard for drabbish finches to take center stage with birds like the Blue-footed Booby around.

The bird is aptly named, eh?!
This is what color my feet will be after several NW Ohio Christmas Bird Counts! ;-) 

The fields of cooled lava of Punta Morena tell tales of a violent past. But beauty can exist even in the most desolate of places.  In the upper left of this picture, you'll notice a tiny wrinkle of green.  In that green wrinkle we found a bird glorious enough to conquer the bleakest of landscapes.

  As we reached this splash of green on the edge of the lava fields, we peered down into a small basin of fresh water, and we were stunned at what we discovered.

 Like a volcanic eruption of the avian persuasion, this American Flamingo shocked our retinas with a blast of feathered fire. This was the first flamingo I had ever seen in the wild, and if I am blessed with a long life, I pray that I never forget that moment.

Okay, I know this isn't a bird, but...

Ho. Lee. Cow. (er, tortoise!)
 What an incredible experience to be this close to a living dinosaur.  The Galapagos Tortoise seems more like science fiction than fact.  It's hard to wrap your head around a beast that seems to have crawled out of the Jurassic period. 

And now, a destination where Ice is spectacular enough to be a place on the globe.

Antarctica!

Of course, the main goal of birders traveling to the White Continent is to see penguins, and our trip with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours did NOT disappoint!

This is a tiny fraction of the King Penguin colony at Salisbury Plain on South Georgia Island. The brown ones are the big woolly youngsters.
Don't you think they look like bowling pins in fur coats?!

What could be more astonishing than standing on the edge of a colony of more than 100,000 pairs of King Penguins?
.....
....
...
..
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Having my own personal encounter with two.

Here's a Black-browed Albatross tending its young on Saunders Island.  Being right on the edge of this nesting colony of Black-browed Albatross felt like a supreme gift. We also had a Wandering Albatross follow our ship for several days and nights, and it was all I could do to tear myself away for meals, sleep, and other trivial things.

To wrap up this cyber birding trip, let's go to one of my favorite places:
Asa Wright Nature Center in Trinidad.

The birding from the comfort of the veranda at the AWNC is fabulous.

Check out these birders exercising their "veranda rights!"  
 

From the veranda, dozens of feeders are visible and they are always hoppin. 
The staff at the Center fill and clean the feeders several times a day.

 Here are a few of my favorite veranda birds.

Purple Honeycreeper (Check out those shocking yellow "stockings!")

The absolutely magnificent White-necked Jacobin

Trinidad Motmot: very recently split from Blue-crowned Motmot and found only on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.

It's tempting to stay on the veranda all day.
But if you did, you'd miss out on these glorious birds of the surrounding area. 

 Golden-headed Manakin

Blue-headed Parrots

The breathtaking Scarlet Ibis of Caroni Swamp

The bizarre but beautiful Common Potoo. This is a chick.  The adult had moved off to another perch, offering us great looks at this adorable baby that Kenn described as looking like a cross between tree bark and dryer lint! 

I'm still working to understand the video capabilities of my camera. (As my dad used to say, "I don't understand everything I know about this.")  But videos are super fun, so here are a few of my favorites from Trinidad - even though they're not that great.

Here's a fun video of the Bearded Bellbird

The ringing squawk of the bellbird cuts through the air and is quite impressive, even when heard from a mile away.  But to stand surrounded by native forest and actually watch this bird do its thing was just incredible. 

And finally, here's a video of what might just be the most bizarre bird I've ever seen.


Pay close attention to the nest / fruit basket.  It's constructed of regurgitated fruit.
The rushing sound you hear is the sound of a gushing stream that runs through the grotto.  

Oilbirds are the only nocturnal fruit eating birds in the world, using their hooked beak to pluck fruit while the bird hovers in the air. They nest in large colonies on rocky cave ledges, often a good distance into the cave, using batlike ecolocation to maneuver.  However, unlike bats (whose echolocaiton is supersonic), Oilbirds use a series of high-pitched clicking at a frequency of 7,000 cycles per second, which is easily detected by the human ear.


Fed on rich, oily fruits, young Oilbirds get very fat, reaching twice the adult weight at their maximum size.  Historically, baby oilbirds were captured, and their fat boiled down for torch oil, hence their name. Fortunately, conservation efforts have prevented this practice, and there are several stable populations of Oilbirds found in northern South America.

I hope you've enjoyed our little cyber birding trip.  I look forward to sharing other birding adventures with BiF! readers, and learning from all of the other authors. Birding really is fun, especially when you have a group of friends to share your experiences with!

Until next time, take care, and remember, BIRDS RULE!

  Continue following Kimberly Kaufman at Birding with Kenn and Kimberly