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| Golden-winged Warbler |
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| Mourning Warbler |
Sunday, May 25, 2014
WHAT'S IT ALL FOR?????????????
Sometimes I need to ask myself "what's it all for? Why do I even do this blog?" I love birds but I often trail off onto subjects that may directly affect my bird watching such as my current job situation or my health or the latest trips I have been on. My health related to my job is iffy (I am working on it). My job should be secure and I do plan on staying on - fighting whatever it is that is trying to knock me off my game. Latest trip??????? Just back from a trip up north near Brainerd, Minnesota. Wow!!! Identified 76 bird species over the course of 2 days. Nothing new but loads of fun and added some new bird photos to my collection. And now I can share with you.
Saturday, May 17, 2014
LAKE BYLLESBY HELPS ME REACH 290 MINNESOTA BIRDS
After our Men's Bible Study today I loaded up the car with tripod, scope, and binoculars and headed south toward Randolph, Minnesota. Scope was needed to spot 3 new Minnesota birds (1 a Life Bird). Today I tallied the Common Tern, Sanderling, and Willet. I have now seen 290 different bird species in Minnesota. It was a long drive to the lake - a long day - and I opted out of searching for a White-eyed Vireo due to the possibility of getting ticks. It's that time of year. I guess I will stick to the tar paths for a while. From now on I plan to have more concentration on my Savior and less birding during the week days. I will try to post once a week. God Bless.
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| WILLET (ON LEFT) & SANDERLING - taken during a trip to Texas 2011 |
Thursday, May 15, 2014
SKY THE BIRDMAN IS DOWN BUT NOT OUT
It has been a long time since my last post and as things have a tendency to change, the postings here will no longer be as frequent. My work situation is now in the balance and I may be searching for new work. A recurring sickness due to my work van is the cause for this concern and possible change. This could cause a change in the frequency of bird sightings, but not my love for birding. As I sit home today (taking a sick day) I have seen a Northern Cardinal, Gray Catbird, Brown Thrasher, and a White-crowned Sparrow all in our back yard at the same time. If you know what our back yard looks like, then you know that it is intimate and small and having the wide variety of species is a joy!!! Although there may be changes brewing, I know that the Lord never changes and his love is unfailing. And also the knowledge that my Lord and Savior is alive and well. He is active and living in me and I have nothing to fear. Thank you Lord!!!
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| GRAY CATBIRD |
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| WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW |
Friday, May 9, 2014
NO MORE MR. NICE GUY - NOW I NEED TO REACH 90
A very early start to the day and I worked late too. That opened the door of opportunity to lots of bird watching and I tallied my Biggest Big Day of my life - 86 bird species in one day!!!
Wow!! It seemed like every time I turned around something new was coming my way. And... I had a lot of missed birds today as well, so that means I could someday get an even bigger Big Day number. So far this month I have seen 106 different bird species. And God created each and every one. Thank you Lord!!!!!!!!!!
Wow!! It seemed like every time I turned around something new was coming my way. And... I had a lot of missed birds today as well, so that means I could someday get an even bigger Big Day number. So far this month I have seen 106 different bird species. And God created each and every one. Thank you Lord!!!!!!!!!!
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The last bird I saw today - the Yellow-throated Vireo
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Wednesday, May 7, 2014
5 FOYs - No Counting Today
Today I had a late start and a short day and was pooped from yesterday's 14 hour day. So today I did not count birds, just enjoyed them. I found 5 FOY birds (first of the year). They are: Green Heron, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Least Flycatcher, Black-throated Green Warbler, and Swainson's Thrush. So far I have seen 89 bird species this month. God is good!!!
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| Black-throated Green Warbler |
NEW PERSONAL BIG DAY RECORD - 68 IN ONE DAY
The Big Day record has been broken. And now I need to set my sights on reaching 70. It was an unbelievable birdy day yesterday. I was knocking them off left and right when I was stuck at 65 bird species - tying my all-time high. I needed to return my last client of the day and then I was going to be done for the day. As I cruised down Larpenteur Avenue I came to an unexpected "T" in the road at Lake Phalen. I guess I didn't look at the map close enough but I needed to get to the other side of the lake and I could either go left or right. I decided to go right and it's a good thing I did. Looking out in the middle of the lake I saw the bird that broke the record; a Trumpeter Swan. Later I also saw a Common Loon and then a couple of Turkey Vultures to add icing to the cake.
Now on my 3rd day of taking allergy pills and so far all is getting better. These are terrible terrible things to deal with and I don't wish that on anyone. Hoping for a full recovery soon of whatever is causing me the trouble. "In this world you will have trouble" says Jesus. "But take heart, I have overcome the world." Thank you Lord. Thank you. We can rest in your care. Amen.
Now on my 3rd day of taking allergy pills and so far all is getting better. These are terrible terrible things to deal with and I don't wish that on anyone. Hoping for a full recovery soon of whatever is causing me the trouble. "In this world you will have trouble" says Jesus. "But take heart, I have overcome the world." Thank you Lord. Thank you. We can rest in your care. Amen.
.JPG) |
| Black & White Warbler |
| American Crow |
| American Goldfinch |
| American Kestrel |
| American Robin |
| Bald Eagle |
| Baltimore Oriole |
| Barn Swallow |
| Belted Kingfisher |
| Black & White Warbler |
| Black-capped Chickadee |
| Black-crowned Night Heron |
| Blue-headed Vireo |
| Blue Jay |
| Blue-winged Teal |
| Brown Creeper |
| Brown-headed Cowbird |
| Brown Thrasher |
| Canada Goose |
| Cedar Waxwing |
| Chimney Swift |
| Chipping Sparrow |
| Clay-colored Sparrow |
| Cliff Swallow |
| Common Grackle |
| Common Loon |
| Double-crested Cormorant |
| Downy Woodpecker |
| Eastern Bluebird |
| Eastern Phoebe |
| European Starling |
| Golden-crowned Kinglet |
| Great Blue Heron |
| Great Egret |
| Hairy Woodpecker |
| Hermit Thrush |
| Herring Gull |
| House Finch |
| House Sparrow |
| Killdeer |
| Lincoln's Sparrow |
| Mallard |
| Mourning Dove |
| Northern Cardinal |
| Northern Flicker |
| Northern Rough-winged Swallow |
| Northern Waterthrush |
| Orange-crowned Warbler |
| Palm Warbler |
| Pileated Woodpecker |
| Red-bellied Woodpecker |
| Red-tailed Hawk |
| Red-winged Blackbird |
| Ring-billed Gull |
| Ring-necked Duck |
| Ring-necked Pheasant |
| Rock Pigeon |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet |
| Savannah Sparrow |
| Solitary Sandpiper |
| Song Sparrow |
| Swamp Sparrow |
| Trumpeter Swan |
| Turkey Vulture |
| White-breasted Nuthatch |
| White-throated Sparrow |
| Wild Turkey |
| Wood Duck |
| Yellow-rumped Warbler |
Monday, May 5, 2014
MAY IS GOOD FOR BIRDS AND ALSO ALLERGIES
A good day of birding, but a better health diagnosis has now come my way. It now appears that I have an allergy to the current tree pollen and have started on allergy pills. So far so good. My God is alive and present and I love how He protects me. He made this beautiful day and allowed me to go to work today and I tallied 50 bird species. I counted 7 sparrow species (counting the Dark-eyed Junco which is thrown in with the sparrows). And identified 5 warbler species today as they are continuing to move in. I got beautiful views of a Common Yellowthroat (warbler).
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| Common Yellowthroat (warbler)
And there are plenty of Brown Thrashers out and about. I have an early start tomorrow and may get to go explore a different park. We'll see what I can come up!!! God Bless
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Saturday, May 3, 2014
HEAVEN IN MAY
Hello once again. There is no better time to bird in Minnesota than in May. I was back at work yesterday and tallied my best ever (while at work) 62 bird species in one day. 2nd highest Big Day that I have ever recorded. Some highlights were: 4 different swallow species (Bank, Barn, Cliff, and Tree), Northern Waterthrush (warblers starting to move in), Winter Wren, and Sora.
And here is the list of birds I saw on Friday, May 2nd.
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| Sora |
| American Crow |
| American Goldfinch |
| American Robin |
| Bald Eagle |
| Bank Swallow |
| Barn Swallow |
| Barred Owl |
| Belted Kingfisher |
| Black-capped Chickadee |
| Blue Jay |
| Blue-winged Teal |
| Brown-headed Cowbird |
| Brown Thrasher |
| Canada Goose |
| Cedar Waxwing |
| Chipping Sparrow |
| Cliff Swallow |
| Common Grackle |
| Common Loon |
| Common Merganser |
| Double-crested Cormorant |
| Downy Woodpecker |
| Eastern Bluebird |
| Eastern Phoebe |
| European Starling |
| Field Sparrow |
| Great Blue Heron |
| Great Egret |
| Hairy Woodpecker |
| Hermit Thrush |
| Horned Lark |
| House Finch |
| House Sparrow |
| Killdeer |
| Mallard |
| Mourning Dove |
| Northern Cardinal |
| Northern Flicker |
| Northern Waterthrush |
| Osprey |
| Pied-billed Grebe |
| Pileated Woodpecker |
| Red-bellied Woodpecker |
| Red-tailed Hawk |
| Red-winged Blackbird |
| Ring-billed Gull |
| Ring-necked Duck |
| Ring-necked Pheasant |
| Rock Pigeon |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet |
| Rusty Blackbird |
| Sandhill Crane |
| Song Sparrow |
| Sora |
| Tree Swallow |
| Turkey Vulture |
| White-breasted Nuthatch |
| White-throated Sparrow |
| Wild Turkey |
| Winter Wren |
| Wood Duck |
| Yellow-rumped Warbler It truly is heaven in May. I (as Paul states) would prefer to be with my Heavenly Father - but it appears that I have more work to do. God Bless |
Thursday, May 1, 2014
SOME PHOTOS FROM THE TEXAS TRIP
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| Black-bellied Whistling Duck |
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| Fulvous Whistling Duck |
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| Great Kiskadee |
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| Olive Sparrow |
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| Plain Chachalaca |
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| Scissor-tailed Flycatcher |
BLESSED WITH BIRDS
Just back from 5 days in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. High temps anywhere from 105 - 90. It feels odd to be back to this cool weather and not as many birds. My trip list totaled 115 bird species with 4 new Life Birds. My new birds were: White-collared Seedeater (a code 3 bird), Scaled Quail, Least Tern, and Red-crowned Parrot. My wife played a big part in finding the parrot. I was looking around this park in Harlingen, Texas for what seemed like an hour until I was ready to give up. We decided to go to our favorite birding spot by the airport so I turned the car around and headed back in the direction we came from. Right after turning around she says "there's one." It flew right in front of our car. What luck. Thank you Lord. The seedeater find was a great team effort. My wife thought she saw some movement deep in the cane (a plant where the bird likes to hang out) and then I heard it shortly after. It popped out long enough to get some diagnostic photos and then it was time to give high fives. It was a very brief look at the Scaled Quail as well; an awesome 50th birthday present. We drove about 7 miles north of Rio Grande City, Texas to a ranch that allowed interested parties to go birding (for a small fee of course). Upon arriving we were looking for the owner but bumped into one of his tenants first. After introducing himself, he motioned to movement in the brush and noted that there was a Scaled Quail passing through. I just got the binoculars on it in time to see the beautiful white crest on top of its head and then it was gone. The Least Tern is the smallest of terns (only 9 inches) and is simply beautiful to watch as it dives into the water for food. It was quite busy at South Padre Island's Birding Center all day on Monday the 28th. It was a fun getaway and a fun way to celebrate my birthday. We were blessed with birds, great gulf views, tasty food, and safe travel. My North American Life List now totals 426 birds; a small number compared to many. But I love my hobby and I love my Lord. God Bless
P.S. I will post some photos from our trip soon. Also I am looking forward to bird guiding on Saturday the 10th.
P.S. I will post some photos from our trip soon. Also I am looking forward to bird guiding on Saturday the 10th.
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