So much to do, so little birding! 211!!!

Well... since returning from Costa Rica, there has been little to no time to bird - aside from an hour here and there in between work or other things going on. This past week I was able to finally get up to the Salamonie Reservoir in Andrews, IN and spent about 5 hours birding. I had a great time and even added two new birds to my life list - a Blue-winged Warbler and an American Kestrel.

Today, after several weeks, I was able to meet up with the local Audubon group to bird a small portion of Eagle Creek. The overall species count was low during the hour that I joined, however, I was lucky enough to spot three lifers, a Willow Flycatcher (would have never identified w/out help), Orchard Oriole, and a Yellow Warbler.

I have been thinking about next year and where I would like to go birding... at this moment, I think a trip to Corpus Cristi, TX (w/ ABA) and San Blas, Mexico both should be some exciting locations. Been to San Blas, Corpus Cristi?

Costa Rica - WOW!

I (along with 2 friends) just got back from Costa Rica last night and the entire trip could easily be summed up to one word… WOW! Our trip wasn’t all that long, 4 days actually, 2 of which were dedicated entirely to birding. These two days produced 84 new life birds, along with a few others that are common here in Indiana. Some of these new birds left me almost breathless! The most frustrating part of the entire trip is that you don’t always get to focus on and appreciate each bird because just as you begin to look at one bird, here comes another! However, to a birder, this would be good problem to have.

We hired Carlos Jimenez (http://www.ecoexplorercr.com/) to lead our birding adventure to both the Palo Verde Wetlands and the Rainforest in Bijagua at Heliconias Lodge (www.heliconiaslodge.com) - two completely different eco-systems that provided two distinctly different types of Birds. Carlos proved his value at the sighting of the first bird. He was 100% accurate with every sighting and with all of the birds we saw, there is no way we could have done it with out him! If you plan to go to the Guanacaste Region, I would recommend you request his services!

Some, but not nearly all of the highlight of our trip included a great sighting of a group of approx. 6 Scarlet Macaws, Boat-billed Heron, Laughing Falcon, Bi-colored Antbird, Ocellated Antbird, Spotted Antbird, Chestnut-mandibled Toucan and White-fronted Nunbird. A huge highlight for me (since I LOVE Hummingbirds) was sightings of Steely-vented Hummingbird, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Black-crested Coquette, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Green-breasted Mango, and White-necked Jacobin.

Along the trail in the Rainforest, we also encountered two venomous snakes (both on the trail) a Jumping Pitviper and an Eyelash Pitviper. My friend John jumped about 6 feet in the air when he realized he had a large Tarantula next to his feet! Crocodiles, Howler Monkey’s, White-faced Monkey’s, Bats, Frogs, Toads, a Sea Snake, Orchids, etc. were also all welcome additions to the trip! No doubt I plan to go back! You can look at some of my pictures by going to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chaderz911/sets/72157605485786837/show/

Although the trip went way to fast, I was still happy to get back home. As a welcome home present as my family and I were walking a local park I spotted about 19 species in about an hour including two more lifers – a Great-crested Flycatcher and a flock of Cedar Waxwings. The excitement never stops!

In summary… my life list had a great week – a nice jump to 203!

116!

I wasn't able (for the first time in a while) to go Birding last weekend so I was extremely anxious to get out today! It has been a gorgeous day today, perfect for birding and if you are a Indy 500 fan I'm sure you were equally pleased!

The morning started off with a picturesque look at an immature Bald Eagle (approx. 3 years old) that was working the waters pretty hard directly in front of us! Actually, it was probably the closest I have been to a Bald Eagle to date and as usual, I left my camera at home! Some other lifer highlights for me today were a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Least Flycatcher, Canada Warbler, and Prothonotary Warbler. Although not lifers, some other highlights included Red-eyed Vireo (everywhere), Scarlet Tanager, and Indigo Bunting. A very successful and rewarding morning! Aren't we blessed to have birds?!

The Big Day!

Yesterday (5/17) was my first BIG Day ever! I alongside my team of Birdathon (Team Wal-Mart) participants joined forces for what was, I think a good outcome for a group of novice birders - actually, I was the only self-declared "Birder" in the bunch - the remaining members came along for support and a chance to get outside. We birded from about 9a-11a as a team and seen about 20 species! Afterward, I continued on solo for a bit and was later joined by my 7 year old to bird two additional locations. All said and done, I guess I birded for about 11 hours. My total species count was 45! Now, I know this is a shabby number to most BIG Days, BUT, these 45 species wore me out!!! My goal was actually 50 so I didn't fall too short I guess! My highlight birds were a Wilson's Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, and a Wood Thrush. All lifers for me! At the end of the day, we raised $1,210 for our local Audubon Society, way below my goal - so hopefully I can bring in some more money prior to the end of the month.

100! +3

My first milestone! Wow, I feel like I have achieved one of the greatest victories ever! My 100th species on 5/10/08! I owe this victory to the Black and White Warbler. What a great bird to hit 100 with! Of course the two additional birds I added on the same day would have been equally as wonderful. I took a short birding break between watching my kids play baseball and was instantly rewarded by an Indigo Bunting AND a Scarlet Tanager within steps of each other.

Finally, after a stressful day at work, I was able to come home and add one more new bird, a White-crowned Sparrow (two actually) one of which can be seen in the picture. Instantly, my stressful day melted away!

Miraculous Mallards!

OK, so this morning, my daughter comes to me in the kitchen with a green balloon and says, "Daddy, make a wish, what kind of bird do you wish you would see at our feeders?" I say, "a Cardinal" she says "No, something different", "how about a Rose-breasted Grosbeak Daddy" and I say, "Yes, that would be awesome!" My 3 year old son then says "How about a Mallard"... (he LOVES Mallards) and I say "Yes, I hope we see a Mallard too!" Later, my wife called and said, "Guess who came to visit today?" I said very skeptically "who?" and she proceeds to tell me that a female mallard (seen in this picture)came to our yard today and feasted on the seeds around the base! Now, I am not sure how many of you out there get Mallards at your feeders but I for one have never had one, especially since we have no creek or pond within any good view from our house! When I say my son loves Mallards, I mean he talks about them constantly! The thing that makes this even crazier is a couple of weeks ago when we were picking up trash as a family at Eagle Creek Park, my son began to cry because he never saw a Mallard (believe it or not) and just as we were finishing up - here comes a Mallard and drops in the water right in front of him - within 5 feet - as if it flew down there specifically for him! So that plus today's event... he wished for a Mallard and one actually showed up in our tiny subdivision yard at OUR bird feeder!!! There is no doubt that these events were miracles! Oh yeah, there was also a male he never made it to the feeders - my son eventually ran out to touch them and they were scared off!

What Species Will Be My 100th Bird! 99!

After yet another great Sunday of Birding (5/4), I was able to come home and give my list another healthy boost upward! In fact, I didn't realize I had added so many new species until I hit the submit button! I have to admit, it was very hard not to pack up and head back out to find just one more bird.... however, I did. I resisted the temptation and called it a day!

This upcoming Thursday (5/8) several co-workers and me are heading out to support our local Audubon Society by participating in the local Birdathon. This will be my first BIG day ever so I am not sure how my list will fair compared to some of the others that will go out this month but, we are excited for the challenge nonetheless. My goal is 60, which I hope is an achievable number! Of course, all I really need it 1 - new bird that is!

Wish us luck!