Getting out of the rain...Turkey Vultures take a breather

This afternoon as I set out feeders in preparation for this weekends Big Sit! at Avimor, I noticed a scene right out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie...about 20 Turkey Vultures roosting in the tall cottonwoods along Spring Valley Creek. It was neat to see them spreading out their wings, perhaps to dry out or simply to catch thermals. A little further north, just above Foothills Heritage Park, there were two separate huge kettles of 150+ Turkey Vultures soaring and circling in the thermals. A pretty amazing sight!

Idaho Birder: Russ Manwaring

This will be a new weekly blog segment, posted on Monday's, profiling Idaho's best or at least most enthusiastic (thanks Cheryl H.) birders. Part of my reason for doing this project is due to my selfishness in wanting to learn from the best. Yet, it mostly stems from my curiosity about the people behind the names reporting their fantastic birding from around the state. I hope you enjoy learning about your fellow Idaho Birders as much as I do.

If you have recommendations for Idaho Birders that I should interview for future features or even more stimulating questions to pose, please e-mail me by clicking on "Ask the Avimor Bird Guy" in the right column of this blog page.

First up...

Russ Manwaring

Emmett, ID

How and when did you get your start in birding?

Russ: Although I was always actively aware of bird species as a kid in Blackfoot, ID, I officially started birding in 1973 in Pocatello, ID.

How often do you go birding? And where do you regularly go birding?

Russ: I often do not designate a trip as a bird trip. I am just always aware and willing to stop and look-see. In the spring and winter I do make a more regular effort to follow a route around Gem County.

What Gem County birding locations can you recommend to other Idaho Birders?

Russ: In the winter I check the Seven Mile Slough along hiway 52 near Letha a lot for peeps. It is only good when irrigation water is out. The Seven Mile Slough through Letha is a great place of ducks, although the trees and willows are getting so high it is hard to see them. They quit running cattle in there and now the vegetation along the slough is really wild. I always make a loop of Little Rock Road around Thornock Lane to check for Sandhill Cranes and in the spring time a good place for Snowy, Cattle and Common egrets as there is a rookery near by.

Where is your favorite place to bird in Idaho? in the USA? in the world?

Russ: I have always enjoyed American Falls Reservoir and the Snake River below. We enjoyed birding in Texas the couple of times we have been there. And I wish I had been more into birding when I was in Vietnam, and Korea but there seemed to be other priorities.

Which branch of the military were you in and what was your role?

Russ: Air Force. I was an aircraft mechanic specialized in the fuel system maintenance

How would you describe yourself as a birder? A "watcher", a "lister", both, or something else?

Russ: I am more of a watcher than a lister although I do keep a life and yard list. I usually do not chase birds for listing. As a watcher I am always interested in what a bird is doing and why... more so that just counting it up.

How do you keep track of your bird observations?

Russ: I use an Excel spreadsheet. I list life birds and details of my initial sighting. Also use it for yard bird list; as well as more details on each species. I also make notes in my field guide

What kind of birding equipment do you use?

Russ: I have a Fujinon 20x60 scope, Bausch & Lomb 10x42 binos and Swift 8x44 binoculars

What is your favorite bird sighting and what is the story behind it?

Russ: We almost didn’t go to the Harris Neck Refuge in Georgia as storm clouds were threatening. So we ate at Mickey D’s and watched the storm roll by, which is did quickly in a torrent. So we drove out and the place was deserted. We knew nothing about it, layout, roads, etc. We drove around a bit avoiding mud puddles in our rented sedan. We heard a lot of noise, so we drove a bit down this muddy lane, that might have said not to, then walked some more. The racket was really growing loud. We stepped around a bend and there was a large swampy lake with the sun just breaking through the mist and with nesting Snowy & Common Egrets, Great Blue Herons, Green Herons, Yellow-crowned Night Herons, wood storks, anhinghas, white ibis, and probably more. We were amazed and just sat and watched for quite some time. Then we saw the alligator that would cruise around each island waiting for a fall from the nest victim. Seemed like each little island or colony of birds had its own alligator on patrol.

Great story! What took you to Georgia at that time?

Russ: We were there for a conference in Savannah, then took an additional week to tour around, we really enjoyed seeing the birds and investigating the history.

Which birding publications, websites, blogs do you read and recommend?

Russ: Audubon Magazine, IBLE, SWIBA, occasionally I check BirdingOnThe.net particularly if I am going into an area and want to see what has been going on.

Which is your favorite field guide and why?

Russ: I use Sibley’s as it is a quick and fairly accurate guide for in the field.

What do you have in your home library birding reference set?

Russ: Sibley’s Field Guide, Sibley’s Guide to Bird Life and Behavior, National Geographic Birds of North America, Kaufman’s Field Guide of NA, Smithsonian Institute Guide to NA Birds

Do you have any formal bird-related education background?

Russ: I have taken only an introductory Ornithology course in 1973.

If a fellow birder had a question about a bird, do you consider yourself an expert (or at least proficient) on any specific family of birds?

Russ: I am likely proficient on most birds in Idaho, lacking finer details in less common sparrows, warblers and peeps.

What does the future hold for your birding past-time?

Russ: Birding has become a central part of our RV snow-birding giving us good reason to get out and hike new country and explore new areas. The future holds more new Southwest birding adventures. Then Australia in another year.

Are you involved with any local or national birding organizations?

Russ: Founding member of SWIBA, member of Audubon

What is your nemesis bird?

For Idaho it seems to be the Golden-crowned Sparrow.

(Check out this eBird map for some sightings of the Golden-crowned Sparrow in Idaho in the last few years)

What is/was your career?

Russ: I retired from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service with 41 years as a natural resource conservation specialist. Currently, I have a consulting business in nature resource management and as a grant specialist.

Anything about your family you’d like to share with us?

Russ: I appreciate my wife Louise becoming an active birder.

How long ago did Louise become interested in birding with you?

Russ: It has just been a couple of years. She likes it for the getting out and hiking, and seeing new things too.

Thank you so much Russ, especially for being the inaugural interview. It has been really nice to get to know you a little more.

Happy Birding!

Ask the Avimor Bird Guy...Nighthawks in AZ

From Blair A. in Gilbert, AZ (a co-worker and friend of the Avimor Bird Guy. We traded text messages while I was at the IBO with my family, so here is the dialog:

What's that name of the bird that darts around in the night skies in the Phoenix valley? They have an erratic flight pattern, almost like a bat, but they're birds.

Avimor Bird Guy: Lesser Nighthawk maybe. White wing patches?

Blair: They appear to be fairly sleek with long wings and I think a white stripe towards the end of the wings but it could be a patch. Hard to see at night. I've seen them most of my life and they seem to be most prevelant in the summer and fall. My son has been noticing them lately and wanted to know what they are. I'll lookup a pic of the lesser nighthawk.

Avimor Bird Guy: Lesser Nighthawk for sure then.

Blair: I looked them up. I think that's the one. Is it common to see several of them flying around in the same area at once? I assume the erratic flight pattern is due to them chasing insects in flight?

Avimor Bird Guy: Yep. You can occasionally see them roosting parallel on a branch or on the ground. Up in Idaho we have Common Nighthawks.

Blair: Thanks. I've always wondered what they were. My son and I have been seeing them flying around a certain farm field lately as we've been driving home from his football practices at about 7:45pm. I think I'll take him out there this weekend to watch them.

Magazine Review: Birder's World Magazine

I just renewed my subscription to this awesome birding magazine. I read it word-for-word from cover-to-cover, including the advertising.

I like the Birder's World magazine because of its balance of articles about birding hotspots, identification tips, birding products, backyard birding info, and bird biology. I like that it focuses mostly on birding in the United States and does occasionally discuss some of the more exotic places. Articles support conservation, but not overbearingly so. In comparing this magazine to other birding publications, I really like that Birder's World is not too scientific. Often, birding publications come across as doctoral thesis dissertations. I just want to read a nice magazine about birds and birding and this is the best one I have found so far. They also have a great website with lots of free features and nice subscriber-only applications.

Price: Approximately $26 annually if you get the special.

Idaho Bird Observatory - Avimor Family Visit

This morning the Avimor Bird Guy and his family took advantage of the kids being out of school and dad taking the day off work to go up to the Idaho Bird Observatory. Once again it was a great delight to see these wonderful birds in the hand. The staff were really great with the kids too by making them feel involved in the whole process. Birder or not, anyone will be impressed and amazed at the IBO.

Here is what we saw:

* A huge kettle of Turkey Vultures made a cloud over the camp. The hawk watch crew estimated 200 of them.

* Townsend's Warbler and Townsend's Solitaire. (for more on John Kirk Townsend for whom these birds were named, see the article Birding the Townsend Trail in Birder's World)

Clark's Nutcracker

Hermit Thrush

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

White-crowned Sparrows

Dark-eyed Juncos

Pine Siskins

Spotted Towhees

Orange-crowned Warbler

Black-billed Magpies

Common Ravens

I think my wife and kids really enjoyed the morning. I also got to meet Harry Krueger and his son. It's always nice to meet the folks you see posting online about Idaho birds.

The only downside of the day was that my recently replaced brakes on my old Dodge Dakota went out on the way down the mountain. I try to avoid using brakes in situations like this by using really low gears and letting the engine slow me down. For whatever reason, they went out this afternoon. We made it safely to Big O' Tires in Eagle by down-shifting to stop.

Ah, the joys of outdoor adventures!

Avimor Big Sit! - Strategy

I am pretty confident that I have selected a good site for the Avimor Big Sit! Here is my strategy:

Selecting the Site
1. Good long north and south views of the creek, preferably two branches of the creek which will form a funnel of birds.
2. Good views of the foothills watch for resident and migrating hawks.
3. An elevated view looking somewhat down into trees and shrubs is helpful.
4. Longest viewing window to “see” and “hear” as many birds as possible, knowing that we can leave the circle to identify the bird.
5. Because our Big Sit! will be in the morning, we’ll want the sun to our backs most of the time.
6. Near a restroom
7. Because I am inviting the public I chose a location close to street parking and easy to find, but the disadvantage is the closeness to highway 55 and the street noise. Also there will be a benefit concert starting at 1pm in the park, so I hope the set-up doesn't cause too much distraction.

Pre-Event
1. For at least a week prior, bait the area with wild bird seed of various types.
2. Learn the song and call of all the birds that can possibly be in the area on that date.

During the Event
1. While it’s still dark we can play owl calls and see if we can get any to respond
2. Use list of birds that I know should respond to their own calls
3. Use Identification Patrols for birds seen or heard from the circle
4. Stay connected with 2-way radios
5. If a new bird is seen by the ID patrol, radio back to circle to see if they can see it too.

Any other advice is welcome! There is still room for more participation.

Book Review: To See Every Bird on Earth

Sometimes we birders joke about birding being an addiction or a sickness, but for Richard Koeppel it wasn't a joke. This book both fascinated me and scared me as it told of fantastic adventures in seeing new birds, adventures I only dream of, but also showed the darker side of a hobby turned compulsion at the expense of those things that truly bring a lifetime of happiness. Richard's son Dan is the author and his writing style is captivating. Because Dan's experience with his birder father so directly and deeply affected him, his prose is very compellng and emotional in both it's heroic and apathetic portrayal of his father.

As a self-proclaimed avid birder, it was interesting to see in myself a little Richard. Thankfully I have a wife that supports me in my hobby while at the same time reminding me very plumply when I start to lose that perpetual search for balance. Anyway, a great read that I recommend to everybody, birder or not.

For another great review of this book that really captures my thoughts and feelings as well, check out Mike Bergin's at 10,000 Birds.

Price: Available new and used from various websites, generally under $14.00

Moonlight Hike at Avimor

Please join Avimor's Conservation Director, Charlie Baun, on Saturday, October 3rd for a Moonlight Hike at Avimor. Meet at The Avimor Town Lake. We will hit the trail by 7:00pm so we can watch the Sunset. The 99% full moon should provide all the light we need. You can bring a flashlight just in case. There will be a fire barrel at the mid-point. The hike will be apprx. 4 miles round trip, so wear good shoes or hiking boots and dress appropriately for the weather.

Ask the Avimor Bird Guy...binocular recommendations

From Jan H. (a new SOB to Tom) in Idaho:

My husband is really getting into birding and I need to get a new set of binoculars so I can actually see the birds! Any suggestions?

Avimor Bird Guy: Jan, I'm sorry that you have lost your husband to the birding addiction. My wife and mother-in-law can relate. It is a nerdy hobby, but it helps me give me the thrill of the hunt while enjoying the outdoors.

When it comes to binoculars...if you have even the faintest desire to enjoy birding...it is worth it to buy binoculars in the $300 range. You will see more and see it so much better...trust me! I spent the first two years of birding with $60 Bushnell's and they were horrible in comparison. I love my Eagle Optics Ranger SRT's 8x42. My father-in-law loves his Nikon Monarch 10x42's. I think Audubon Equinox binoculars are in that same price and quality range.

In the binocular world there is an incredible difference in quality and capability between $100 optics and $300 optics. Some big-time birders buy name brands that cost $1500+, but the difference in value from the $300 optics is not that much. But if I had the money, I'd go for the dream binoculars, Zeiss Victory FL's which run about $2400 (I hear they cook and clean for you).

When it comes to the magnification it is best to stick with 7x35, 8x42, or 10x42. These sizes give you the best amount of light and color transmission, best field of view, and best close-focus.

When I am Wrong, I am Wrong...dang Sparrows!

All summer long I have seen a flock of about a dozen sparrow-type birds around the Avimor Town Lake and in the wildflowers on the vacant commercial lot across the street. Earlier in the summer I positively identified them as Lark Sparrows and I had kind of become accustomed to seeing them. As Summer turned to Autumn I continued to see sparrow-types in this area and I wouldn't even put my binoculars on them because I just "knew" they were Lark Sparrows...at least I thought I knew. Even on our September bird walk I pointed them out to the folks as Lark Sparrows. I even directed them to look at the unique face pattern. I actually looked at them through my optics this time and something struck me as different about them, yet I chalked it up to them probably being juvenile Lark Sparrows.

Well, late last week I took a longer look at them and realized they were not Lark Sparrows at all. They had streaky breasts and white bellies, still a strong face pattern, but not as much as an adult Lark Sparrow. What are these confounded sparrows?! Song Sparrows look similar to what I was seeing, but they don't act like them. Could they be Savannah Sparrows? I have only seen them individually before and never in a flock.

So I took another look at them today and I noticed a yellow eye-brow. I had my father-in-law double check in his book "Sparrows of the United States and Canada". Savannah Sparrows indeed!

I'm embarrassed that the Bird Walk group probably thought I didn't know what in the heck I was talking about and now I have a vote of zero-confidence. Oh well. You sure learn a lot by being wrong sometimes!

Video about the Big Sit!

Field Guide Review: The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America

When I first got into birding while living in Arizona, I cruised on down to the Superstition Springs Center mall and browsed through all the bird field guides at Borders. I knew nothing of field guides, how to use them, or how to compare them. The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America just struck me as a good one. I liked the paintings, the descriptions, the maps, and the layout of the pages. It looked very intuitive and the price was reasonable, so I bought it!

Since that day several years ago I have lost three of them and purchased a couple as gifts for other beginning birders. It is still my go-to field guide. No field guide can even begin to display all the possible variations of birds as they may appear at sundry stages, but so far, Sibley's has been there for me to identify every bird that I have come across. I just bought my 4th copy. I may just have to permanently chain it to my body so I don't lose it this time.

Price: as low as $12.20 on several book selling websites

Avimor's Owls

Saturday night, when I finally arrived home from my part-time job at RC Willey and from a quick stop at the grocery store, while unloading the groceries I heard the hooting of a couple of Great Horned Owls down along the creek. I have been seeing them recently on my morning walks and I've been noticing a lot of white-wash on the paver sidewalks below the street lights.

I've been having a hankering to try calling owls to see what variety of species we have here at Avimor. So, last night I caved into my owl curiosity and took my Zune MP3 player loaded with all the owl sounds from BirdJam and plunked myself down at Foothills Heritage Park. Before I even played any of the calls I had two Great Horned Owls hooting away and one turned out to be sitting up high on an old dead snag just 20 yards away.

I played a wide variety of owl calls, but nothing else responded. The highway noise was still a bit overwhelming even at 9 o'clock at night, so when my bottom got too cold I determined to call owls from the comfort of my 92' Dodge Dakota pick-up truck with 345,000 miles on it. I drove up Spring Valley Creek trail to where the road ends and started playing the owl calls again. This time I was rewarded with a Western Screech-Owl returning the call. I figure it must have been about 100 yards away.

I am hoping to be able to call in Northern Saw-whet owls, Flammulated Owls, maybe even a Long-eared Owl. I think I'll need to get up a little closer to the pine-treeline to get a wider variety of species to respond. I know the folks at the IBO have been doing owl banding using the call method to lure them in. It will just take understanding the habitat, a lot of patience and experimenting.

Welcome Back! - Dark-eyed Juncos

One of the great joys of birding is noting the coming and going of the migrating species signaling the change in season. A first-of-season (FOS) Dark-eyed Junco returned to Avimor this morning! I saw it flitting from tree to tree along Streams Edge Way. Once you learn to recognize it, they have a pretty distinct chirp. Dark-eyed Junco's are very common winter birds here at Avimor. You can see them at your feeder and all along Spring Valley Creek gleaning seeds from the various plants. They must like cooler weather as they tend to hang out in the Treasure Valley from late September through March. During the summer I will sometimes find them in cooler mountain areas among the pines. There are a few subspecies of Dark-eyed Junco which can be seen in this area. I believe the one I was looking at this morning was an Oregon variety. You can learn more at All About Birds.

Two More Avimor Firsts: Great Idaho Birding

As the sun peeked over Bogus Basin and warmed the tops of the trees the birds really came alive. Lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers, White-crowned Sparrows, Lark Sparrows, and a noisy flock of American Robins. That is the thing I love about birding. On any given day you may see something new. It is always fun to be surprised with birds you've never seen before at a certain location as we had Avimor birds #94 and #95.

A Red-naped Sapsucker perched briefly on a tall cottonwood and then flew right over my head toward the Boise valley.

Just as I was concluding my morning birdwalk on the way to work I was delighted to have a Wilson's Snipe at the edge of Avimor Town Lake. I surprised it as much as it suprised me and I watched as it bolted off toward the protective cover along Spring Valley Creek.

Other birds of special interest to me this morning were the Great Horned Owl in the same area it nested in last winter/spring and a Warbling Vireo near Foothills Heritage Park.

Here is what else I saw at Avimor this morning:

Red-tailed Hawk

Song Sparrow
Western Meadowlark
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
House Wren
Killdeer
Red-winged Blackbird
Black-capped Chickadee
American Goldfinch
European Starling
Black-billed Magpie
Spotted Towhee
Mourning Dove

Birding Laughs #1

A few years ago, while birding in Patagonia, Arizona, we made the "must-see" stop at Marion Paton's residence. Mrs. Paton, whose property backs up the nature preserve, has been feeding birds in her backyard for decades and all kinds of rare birds stop in there.
I think I added a dozen life birds while sitting in the chairs under the canopy there in her backyard along with dozens of other birders from all over the world. She has a wide variety of feeders with different kinds of seed, hummingbird feeders, and platform feeders with chuncks of fruit to lure the greatest variety of birds into her place. That particular afternoon a cute little group of eldery ladies were there watching the birds. By the looks of their inexpensive binoculars and their Golden Book Field Guides we could see that they were sweet old ladies that simply enjoyed the birds and not gung-ho listers*.

I was sitting next to one of the ladies who said, "I've been watching this red bird forever down on that platform feeder. It hasn't moved a bit. Can you see what it is?"

I put my binoculars on it and replied, "That's a pomegranate."

"Oh. Okay." And she begin to browse through her Golden Book of birds.

After a few frustrating minutes she leaned over and asked, "I've looked all over in the book and I just can't find it."

We all had a good laugh with her after she realized that the pomegranate was just a piece of fruit.

(below is a photo showing the actual platform feeder at the Paton residence, but this time with oranges.

Can you figure out what species of bird that is?)

* "Lister" is birding jargon for a birder whose primary focus is seeing as many birds as they can either in a day, at a location, or chasing around the globe to add to their life list of bird species seen.

My Visit to the Idaho Bird Observatory

After a couple of years of wishing and hoping, my father-in-law, Lynn Davenport and I finally were able to get up to the Idaho Bird Observatory on the mountain above Lucky Peak. It was really awesome!!! (hopefully some pictures coming soon)


I recommend a visit to the IBO for every birder and non-birder alike. The steep, rutty dirt road is pretty tough and a 4-wheel drive high-clearance vehicle is preferred, but a cute little family did make it up their in a minivan this morning. The location and views are beautiful and the birding is excellent. The mountain is right at the tree line and views can be had of the entire Treasure Valley.

The staff at the IBO are incredible. They are super friendly, super knowlegable, do great with kids, and really know how to show people a fascinating time with birds. They have a series of mist nets set up in the brush to catch birds as well as nets to catch birds of prey. The birds are treated with the utmost care while they are removed from the nets, leg banded, measured many different ways, and then gently released back into the woods.

We got to see up close and in the hand several different species. This morning they were catching dozens of Ruby-crowned Kinglets, White-crowned Sparrows, juvenile Western Tanagers, and Mountain Chickadees. While I was observing at the banding station they had a very cute little Golden-crowned Kinglet, a Lincoln's Sparrow, a pink-sided Dark-eyed Junco, and an Oregon Dark-eyed Junco. They also caught a Wilson's Warbler and a Townsend's Solitaire. It is so amazing to hold these birds in your hand.

They also do hawk-watching from the hilltop. I saw my life bird #310 up their today, the Broad-winged Hawk. We also had a flyover of dozens Townsend's Solitaires and even an early Varied Thrush. My eBird list today had over 30 different species, and a few more were seen or heard by others.

All I can say is that I can't wait to go back again!

Thank you Jay Carlisle, Jay's mom from Connecticut, Caroline, Nate, Erin, the guy from Upstate New York, the guy from PA, and the couple other of you whose names didn't stick in my brain.

Ask the Avimor Bird Guy...dirt bank with bird holes

From Mary D. in Eagle, ID:

"I noticed a picture of a wall with holes on your home page.... There is a wall like that right by my house... I have always wondered what type of bird does that. Can you tell me?"

Thanks for asking Mary! The picture shows a Bank Swallow nesting site. Bank Swallows like to tunnel into the sand or dirt banks to nest.

Barn Swallows tend to build mud nests under bridges or under protected covers of buildings. We've had Barn Swallows nest in the covered entryways of a couple of homes here at Avimor. If you don't want the mess, I'd encourage you knock the nests down before they finish building them and lay eggs. Cliff Swallows build gourd-shaped mud nests on very sheer rocky cliffs.

At Avimor, we currently have a few Barn Swallows swooping around, but the other swallow types have already migrated south.

To learn quick-ID tips for swallows that can be seen in our area click here.

Another Avimor First: Belted Kingfisher

Because Avimor is up in the foothills north of Eagle, Idaho, except for man-made ponds and a couple wide spots in the creek, we don't have much open water. That's why I was surprised to first hear the unmistakable rattling cry and then to see the Belted Kingfisher flying over Spring Valley Creek this morning. Perhaps it was on its way from the Payette River to the Boise River. The Belted Kingfisher is Avimor's official record bird #93. An interesting blog post and photogrpahy about the Belted Kingfisher can be found here on the Pacific NW Backyard Birder blog.

I found a momma raccoon and three babies in the abandoned Swainson's Hawk nest near the Avimor entry towers. They looked snuggled and cozy. Perhaps they are the reason the nest failed in the first place. Avimor residents have been reporting raccoons eating their cat and dog food.

Anyway, another great morning of Idaho birding at Avimor. Twenty-one species total including a handsome little House Wren, a flock of Cedar Waxwings flying overhead, and a pair of super cute Black-capped Chickadees feeding on a sunflower.

Avimor Quarter Big Sit! - Saturday October 10th

What in the birding world is a Big Sit?!

A Big Sit is like a tailgate party for birders. On a specific day, birders from all over the world select a spot that has good views of a variety of habitats in which they will hopefully see as many different bird species as possible in a 24 hour period while confined to a 17' diameter area.

The official Big Sit! put on by Bird Watcher's Digest will occur on Sunday, October 11th. I am not quite up to that challenge this year, but I figured why not have a small-scale Big Sit in the foothills in lieu of our regularly scheduled bird walk.

So here's the scoop:

Avimor Quarter Big Sit!
Saturday, October 10th
5:00am to Noon

We will comply with the official Big Sit! rules of play with exception to the date and duration.

I plan on choosing the principal location for the morning. If we have enough interested participants, we will create multiple teams. At that point other viewing locations at Avimor would be selected. If you want to form your own team and select your own location, you are absolutely welcome to. A little friendly competition would make it even more fun!

Birders of all ages and experience levels are invited! You don't have to be there the entire time.

What should you bring? Binoculars and spotting scope if you have them, something to sit on, and snacks to get you through the morning.

I'll provide coffee and hot chocolate, a small table for my circle, checklists of birds, plenty of bottled water for everyone participating, two-way radios, and maybe even some prizes.

If you are interested, please let me know by clicking "Ask the Avimor Bird Guy" in the right column to send me an e-mail.

Come on out and Sit with me! It'll be fun!