Birder Profile: Eric Zabinsky

Eric Zabinsky
North Central Texas (Mineral Wells)

How and when did you get into birding? 

This past June, I upgraded my camera and lens. The wife got tired of having a lens in her face, so I started walking the neighborhoods of my small Texas town shooting everything that moved. One day I was capturing an interesting looking yellow breasted bird with a "wound" on the top of its head. It disappeared! I looked up and saw a large grey raptor soaring off with what looked like my subject. It had a white head and black tail. I was mesmerized. The yellow bird was identified as a Western Kingbird. That red was no wound. The grayish looking raptor turned out to be a Mississippi Kite. Don't they eat insects? Why was this guy in my neighborhood? My eyes were opened and my passion for birds was born. Research led me to two sites that have been invaluable during these early days. Extraordinary! I could write volumes detailing the stories of how they have guided me through my initial trials; always steering me back on course. Jim Peterson from http://www.texasbirdimages.com/ and http://www.nctexasbirds.com/ has been one such gentleman. You can read about my spark bird and initial birding experience here on my blog.

Where do you regularly go birding? Where is your favorite place to bird?

Daily walks lead to daily birding activities. Mineral Wells State Park, Holland Lake Park and Possum Kingdom Lake are weekly to monthly adventures. Canoeing up Rock Creek to "Lost Lake" can lead to some nice finds for our area. There is enough in Region 2 Osage Plains and my tri-county to keep me busy. I've traveled all over the U.S. and spent several years in the orient and the South Pacific; if only I had known the joys of birding during those years. The wonders I missed.

How would you describe yourself as a birder? A “watcher”, a “lister”, a “chaser”, “ticker”, “twitcher”, an “ornithologist”, all of the above, or something else? 

I am a "watcher / lister" hybrid. I thoroughly enjoy watching activity and studying habitat. My friends are counters / tickers. I am 45 and getting started, many of my friends pick at my count and limited listings but I am diligent.

What kind of birding equipment do you use?

Current equipment includes: a Canon T3i with a 70-300 IS USM lens, Fujifilm XS-1, binoculars, and lost of patience.

How do you keep track of your bird observations?

Constantly firing my camera, the Flash by Z Bird Blog, and a Osage Plain (Region 2) Texas Park and Wildlife list that is available for my area. Also, there is a Mineral Wells State Park and Trailway bird list that I use extensively. I check off on both list. My goal: complete the Region 2 list within the next couple of years.

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

The one described above; my initial "sighting" will always be my favorite. That Kite and mate ended up nesting a couple of blocks from my house. I watched the pair for weeks. Another favorite was a recent event. I took two 4" diameter limbs (18" long) and drilled several holes in each with a paddle bit. Then I mixed some seed, nuts and lard and created homemade Suet feeders. I placed large eyebolts in each and hung them with D-rings. As I was hanging a "Suet Feeder" up at one locale, a (initial sighting / story on blog) red-breasted Nuthatch landed on the limb upside down while I was still holding the limb by the eyebolt. I did not want to breath… stretching the moment for as long as I could and dreading the moment of departure. I felt the vibration of the "strike" of the bill on the wood. The bird looked me in the eye, "oh crap!" I could visualize the birds thought and off he/she went.

Which birding publications and websites do you read and recommend?

Birds and Blooms and AllAboutBirds (Cornell Labs), and Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Macaulay Library are all excellent. So many choices… I am looking for a solid North Texas bird blogger that will pass on bird and event information. Chasing locally sounds fun.

Which is your favorite field guide and why?

Birds of Texas Field Guide – Stan Tekiela was my first. I love "Stan's Notes" on each bird. Great photography shots for identification. Now I have the full array of field guides for Texas and North America. My 1960's Texas blue book is kind of cool.

Do you use any birding apps for smartphones or tablet-like devices?

Scott's Feed Bird Guide for Android. Not bad but missing tons of birds (even commons).

Which book from your personal birding library would you recommend to other birders? 

The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Birdsong -Donald Kroodsma. Wonderful writings.

What is your current nemesis bird? 

Black Phoebe…

Any birding related pet-peeves you’d like to vent about here? 

Noisy people interrupting bird traffic when I am trying to observe.

Outside of birding, what are your other interests or hobbies?

Biking, swimming, boating, reading, programming.

Any funny or embarrassing birding experiences you could tell us? 

Walked off into a deep ravine with a camera attached to my face. Self-explanatory.

Your mission in life as a birder?

Create happy, healthy habitats for the local singers.

Any birding-related projects in the works?

I create handmade bird feeders, houses and boxes. I converted my geek blog over to a bird blog: Flash by Z – Bird Blog . Enjoying every second of it.

Eric Zabinsky on Google+

Merry Christmas!

...nothing like a Northern Cardinal in the snow to make the season bright! 

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

Barnegat Jetty, New Jersey

Merry Christmas!

I have wanted to visit Barnegat Jetty for several years.  Last Christmas I ventured down to Barnegat for the first time and I plan on doing so again this week.  

There are many species of birds and wildlife that call the jetty home during the winter.  Harlequin Duck, Long Tailed Duck (formerly Oldsquaw), Common Loon, Red Throated Loon, Red Breasted Merganser, Surf Scoter, Black Scoter, Common Eider, and Brant. Shorebird species include; Purple Sandpiper, Dunlin, Ruddy Turnstone, Black Bellied Plover, and Sanderling . I have been told that Harbor Seals have also been seen at the jetty.  The stars of the jetty for me are the Harlequin Ducks.

These ducks are difficult to come by during the winter unless you travel to coastal Maine where a large portion of the North American population spends their winter.

I was lucky to be able to capture some decent images given this was my first time to the jetty.  Swimming images are fairly common but I am told that ducks on the rocks and good flight captures are tough to come by.  I really like the flight capture above.

One word of caution.  The Jetty is a dangerous place.  You need to do your homework before you head out onto the rocks.  And please, take a friend along, this is not a place to be alone.

Images captured with Nikon D700, 600mm f/4 on Lexar Digital Film

I wish all our readers a happy holiday season and much prosperity in 2013.  I hope you are all able to spend quality time with loved ones over the coming days.

Happy Birding!

A Very Strange Kingbird

A couple of weekends ago while I was in northwest Ohio to lead one of the Black Swamp Bird Observatory Lake Erie pelagic trips, some photos of a very strange kingbird were posted on the Birding Ohio Facebook page. The bird appeared to be one of the yellow bellied kingbirds but something just did not seem right. Several people started to suggest that this bird was likely a hybrid between a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher and either Western or Couch's Kingbird. Kenn Kaufman and I decided to run over to Sandusky the next morning to see if the bird was still around and try to get some photographs of it.

We arrived at Pipe Creek Wildlife Area in Sandusky shortly after sunrise and found that several other birders had already arrived. No one had seen the bird yet but it was still quite cold out so we weren't too discouraged by that. After searching all over the area for awhile, one of the birders started to quickly motion for us to hurry over! The bird was just sitting in a tree about 20-30 yards from the road! We spent the next couple of hours watching and photographing the bird. It was also quite vocal so we attempted to get some recordings but they did not really come out very well.

Below were the best photos I took of the bird. It was quite dark while we were there so my photos are not as sharp as I would like but they do a good job of showing a lot of the features of this bird.

While it may never be known what species hybridized to create this bird (without DNA analysis), it was absolutely awesome to see it in person. I know some people will not go see this bird because it does not "count" on their life lists, but they are really missing out!

-Rob

A Trip to the Arctic

For this months post, and given it is Christmas, I thought I would take you on a small journey out of the UK, up through Lapland and into Arctic Norway. Back in the summer of 2010, I made arrangements to spend 10 days on theVaranger Pennisula at the the top of Norway which was to be my first overseas photography trip. Now I could right pages here on the visit but will just stick to the highlights. If you want to read the full account then please visit my blog and 'Inside the Circle' into the search bar.

There are two notable points about Varanger in June. Firstly it is still very cold and secondly being well inside the Arctic Circle has 24 hour light. The latter plays havoc with your body clock and you seem to completely lose track of time, especially when the birds seem to start their dawn chorus at midnight. I will never forget the song of a Willow Warbler as one was constantly singing outside my bedroom window as I battled to try and sleep in the perpetual light.

I flew into Finland and drove northwards. Driving through mile upon mile of pine forest becomes a little tedious after a while and I stopped en route to call in at a well known feeding station located around the back of a roadside motel and cafe. This immediately produced two new species for the camera in the shape of Pine Grosbeak and Arctic Redpoll.

As I headed further northward into Norway these tree became smaller and smaller until they eventually disappeared from the landscape. After only half a mile of heading down the road on to the Varanger Pennisula I had already spotted 2 white tailed sea eagles, a Rough Legged Buzzard and Arctic Skua chasing groups of Arctic Terns. It was looking promising even if the weather was not.

Over the next week I spent my days travelling around various parts of this large pennisula seeing what birds I could find to photograph. It is a place that is beautiful in its bleakness. Here is a small selection of what I encountered.

The following four species were all found on the very small Vardo Island which is connected to the the land by a small bridge.

Red-necked Phalarope were a common bird. These tiny waders, although very confiding, are quite tricky to photograph as they constantly spin on the water surface when feeding. Here is a pair mating. An interesting feature of these birds is the female is more brightly coloured than the male.

Another northern specialist, the Red-throated pipit busy collecting insects for its brood.

Despite several attempts I only managed to get a few photos of the northern coloured Bluethroat. This bird was mimicking the sound of pinging cables of a nearby radio mast which sounded very odd.

Those long distance travellers, the Arctic Terns had formed a large noisy colony at the northern end of the island.

I would frequently stop on the virtually traffic free roads if I spotted a bird and use the car as a mobile hide (blind) for species such as Short-eared Owl. I think that is what you call a penetrating stare!

Out on the areas on tundra there was still large drifts of snow and half frozen ponds despite it being June. I really enjoyed the time on tundra which required using a whole range of different field skills in order to get close to the birds for photography. Arctic Skua were particularly tricky and required crawling over long distances. A dark phase bird.

...and a pale phase bird in flight.

I also encountered Golden Plover on my journey across the tundra tracks. This bird appeared to be fascinated by the appearance of a car and walked over and spent quite a while walking around it.

On the half frozen ponds I found Long-tailed duck in summer plumage and the tiny Temmincks Stint walking around the snow covered margins.

A took a day during my visit to go across to see the sea bird colonies of Honoya Island off Vadso.  Where 'puffin fever' struck. This is a terrible photographers ailment that strikes when in the presence of the charisimatic little birds which invokes obsession to the point of ignoring the other species around you.

Whilst on the island I slipped on a large guano covered rock and nearly broke my arm so to recover decided to lie down on the landing platform to photograph some gulliemots at water level.

There are quite a few photos of other species I could add to this post including cuckoo, raven, shag, kittiwake, oystercatcher, velvet scoter and willow warbler but I am aware this is turning in to a very long post. So I fill finish off with a couple of photographs of one of my favourite species from the trip, the Ruff. These are a bird species I have always wanted to see in their breeding plumage and they did not disappoint. I spent quite a few hours with these birds but unfortunately their favourite place to hang out was on top of a 3ft deep accumulation of decomposing seaweed on one of the beaches. It takes very little effort for me to recall the diabolical smell. Below is just some of the colour variety shown by the male birds.

I intend to return to Varanger in 2014, when hopefully the weather will be a bit kinder for photography.

So with that I will sign off for this year which just leaves one task remaining which is to Wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Bird filled 2013.

Panama-Costa Rica Birding Tour

My Idaho birding friend Kathleen Cameron of Majestic Feathers Birding Tours just dropped me a line about a previously unadvertised tour with just a couple spaces left. This is going to be an amazing birding tour to many of the best and most famous birding sights of Panama and Southern Costa Rica. The tour runs from March 29th to April 13th. The tour is also special in that it includes a history tour at the Panama Canal Zone, white-water rafting on the Savegre River in Costa Rica and other opportunities for recreation if participants choose. People should contact Kathleen immediately to reserve space on this tour and no later than January 10,2013. Click here for details!

Long spurs and Crossed bills

The first day of winter has brought with it our first noticeable snow of the season here, alas only a dusting.  The temperatures are now in the mid twenties here as I write this.  However, for most of the season so far, it has been very mild for this time of year.  Thunderstorms with hail had taken the place of snow and ice.  But this hasn't stopped the northern bird invasion.

While recently looking for any odd grebes and loons that are different from the "regular" species seen at East Fork State Park beach, I spooked up a small bird from the beach.  I recognized the call as a Lapland Longspur.  This would be cool to see one, as I have only seen them a few times.  The bird flew out over the open lake, only giving distant views.  

As I was walking back to my car to head for home, a small bird landed not far in front of me.  It quickly disappeared among the grasses that border the beach.  I carefully moved in the direction of the bird.  I then spied some movement and this is what I found.

A Lapland Longspur!  And only about 5 ft. in front of me.  It seemed to calm down and started to feed on grass seeds along the edge of the beach.  This is the closest I have ever seen one.  I took time to watch and study the bird.

Notice that the bill looks identical in shape as the Snow Bunting's.  They both feed on grass seeds and are very similar in behavior.  

And just as fast as the bird appeared at my feet, the bird ran to the center of the sandy beach and looked at me one last time as to say "goodbye" and flew out over the lake.

After seeing the longspur, I wanted to see some more northern birds that are usually not so easy to find in SW Ohio.  I have been seeing reports of both crossbills being seen at a cemeteries and parks on the west side of Cincinnati.  Both crossbills would be a life bird for me.  Since these places are a good drive for me since I live on the far east side of Cincy, I want to see them as close as I can.   The west side of Cincinnati has something that is very hard to find on the east side of Cincy:

Hemlocks!

Since this is the preferred food of the crossbills, I decided to head west on my next nice off day.  I have been told that the crossbills that are being seen at Spring Grove Cemetery are far up in the hemlocks and very active/flighty.  However, this is the only place where both species have been seen.   I have also seen reports from other birders that you could see White-winged Crossbills fairly close at the small county park named Mitchell Memorial Park.  I just read a report that 7 WW crossbills were there earlier in the day, so I decided to go chase them.  

Upon arriving at Mitchell, I could hear several Red-breasted Nuthatches calling.  As soon I got out of the car, I could hear and then saw Pine Siskins.  I said to my girlfriend who was with me, "I think we are in the right spot."

I found some hemlocks, but no crossbills.  Then another birder had pulled up in a car and recognized me and told me he had seen one female up on top the hill in a hemlock.  So, I decided to head that way.  

Just like that, he showed me the bird.  My lifer White-winged Crossbill!

The bird was just chowing down on the hemlock cones.  It was kind of funny watching it stretch to get the cones.  

Very cool bird!  It is so adapted and specialized for feeding on cones.  I am hoping to be able to go back out west and see some more and hopefully a male White-winged or even a  Red Crossbill!

Pacific Wren

It was only a couple of years ago that the Pacific Wren was split off from the more easterly Winter Wren. I've seen both in their ranges, but don't consider myself any sort of expert on the differences between the two. David Sibley did a couple of nice presentations on them: Distinguishing Pacific and Winter Wrens and New Draft Range Maps for Winter (& Pacific) Wrens. I kinda like the name "winter" as this is a species I've only seen in December and January. I suppose the name "Pacific Wren" is okay, but I'd not be opposed to changing it to "Western Winter Wren" though that might disgruntle those on the Pacific coast that see them year round. See the eBird sightings map below.

The little Pacific Wren shown here was only the fourth one I've ever identified and recorded. I've seen one each year for the last four years. On this crisp December Saturday morning, we took a group of 11-year old Boy Scouts to the MK Nature Center in Boise to work on the achievement of identifying 10 animals and 10 plants. We far surpassed the requirements just in the parking lot. We ended the hour with 22 bird species and loads of cool mammal and fish sightings as well. 

Images digiscoped with a hand-held iPhone 4S through a Swarovski ATX spotting scope.

Fa-la-la-la-la Y'all!

“Tis the season! It’s Christmas Bird Count time and as many of us do our duty to count every last single feathered thing in our prescribed circles, certain things have become evident to me after twenty-four years in the tallying trenches and now seventeen years as a compiler. First, let me congratulate every one of you for your dedication and diligence to the birds. Each and every one of you is a foot soldier in the citizen science army. Without you, we’d know little about the species that grace an otherwise drab and somber winter landscape. But then, after all these years, there are certain-truisms and phenomena that seem to keep repeating themselves. I thought in the spirit of giving and the season, I would share a few. So here goes!

1. Does anyone ever REALLY count all the birds? I mean, after the 110,678^th Rock Pigeon—how much more counting can you do? And besides, they don’t really count anyway. Do they?
2. What’s up with that person in your sector who always turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. You know, that guy who sees a half dozen varied thrushes skulking where everyone else saw six American robins; or the woman who somehow makes the cardinal into a vermillion flycatcher — all before lunch. Even the subtle hints to consult a field guide and consider the common thing first don’t seem to work as they insist on the goldfinches being evening grosbeaks because it’s an irruptive year. Yeah, and your count is in South Florida.
3. Ummm yeah--foot miles. So who’s wearing the pedometer in the group? If I’m brush busting for sparrows around huge ag fields - leaving shreds of flesh in bramble tangles and stumbling in and out of muddy furrow canyons, then rest assured that by the end of the day my foot miles will have swollen to at least 3 times the actual distance I've walked.
4. The bird count doldrums. Yes, that horrifically and excruciatingly boring time - typically between noon and three or so, when you the birds all decide to siesta somewhere other than where you’re counting. As tumbleweeds roll through the streets and paint dries somewhere at a rate faster than you‘re piling up species, even that fifth can of Red Bull Xtra Octane doesn't do the trick. My suggestion? Try toothpicks as eyelid supports. A bit painful but…
5. Sooo…it’s a BIRD COUNT — not a BIG DAY. So you've got those folks who stake out some rare bird for a week, surrounding the location in super secrecy and swearing everyone else to keep the whereabouts hush-hush until the compilation when they can spring it on everyone — BAM! A SCOOP! Meanwhile, they report no crows or gulls from their sector — which contains a landfill full of rotting fish. They may have watched “The Big Year” one too many times.
6. Post Note to #5 --Ever notice how the last hour of the count is like an episode of “The Amazing Race” as you rush frenetically to find the species you should have on your list? Somehow Carolina Wrens - birds you saw everywhere just the day before - have been extirpated from your area. Not one, not a single solitary loud-mouthed wren can be found. Oh the shame of it all! The humiliation of missing the “can’t miss bird” cannot be drowned by even the fanciest scoop—or that third grande cerveza.
7. What the duck?!? Waterfowl have decided not to come south of like—North Dakota—for the past few years. Some call it short-stopping as the hordes of web-footed, winged things find open water far to the north and leave us down south with nary a mallard for the tally. Even the feral Canada geese make themselves rare. If this doesn’t convince you that global warming is real then you should invest heavily in coastal development futures.
8. Caution. Don’t sit in front of that dilapidated hovel of a house (the one with the 1978 AMC Pacer on cement blocks and the confederate flag painted on the door) with binoculars waiting for the lark sparrow to show up in the weedy field that’s really the home’s front yard. As folks who look like casting call rejects from the movie “Deliverance” pile out of the house eyeing you with suspicion, three teeth (and maybe armed to protect their castle), drive away—quickly. The sound of banjos you hear is real and the lark sparrow wasn't confirmed anyway. By the way, if you continue to insist on counting birds at Honey Boo Boo’s place, you might want to learn to squeal like a pig. Just sayin’.
9. The "Super-spisher". Yep. That guy. You know, the one who sprays a fountain of spit into the brush to pull out the bird so that everyone can I.D. it. Not only do his absurdly loud salivary solicitations assure that every skulking sparrow will flee to the opposite side of the woodlot, but those that do remain hidden are likely to be drowned in the subsequent shower of spit.
10. Recipe for Post Christmas Count Recovery:

10a. Ditch the winter weather, Carhartts, heavy coats and Keen boots for a hot shower, bathrobe, jammies and thick socks.

10b. Secure copious amounts of beer and/ or other libation (tequila and/or single malt scotch dulls the pain of dawn to dusk ticking and herding the cats that a group of counters at a compilation can become).

10c. Commandeer the most comfortable chair possible in front of a wide screen HD television with opposing groups of 11 heavily-padded, hyper-muscularized, uniformed men running around on a green field and intent on smashing one another to take possession of a brown spheroid - otherwise known as a football. This activity can salve the long hours spent counting. Keep the remote nearby to switch to your favorite reality show (Honey Boo Boo maybe?) or perhaps swoon into dreams of your own as you...

10d. Fall deeply into a dreamless sleep as a result of combining 10a, 10b and 10c. The next count is coming and data entry can’t be far behind!

Have Fun Birding Y’all and Happy Holidays! - Drew