Christmastime Birding near Seattle

The Christmas Holiday season is always busy and birding usually takes a seat behind other commitments and activities. This year, Kathy and I headed west to spend the holidays with our daughter Melissa and her family. They live on a heavily wooded 2-acre lot south of Seattle. On previous visits to their home, I have placed bird feeders in several locations to see what bird species I could attract. Various species usually find the feeders within a day or so, but because of a lack of time, the feeders are usually not refilled on a regular basis after we leave.

Shortly after our arrival last week, I managed to sneak out of the house and fill the feeders with sunflower seeds. Amazingly, within several minutes, chickadees began using the feeders! Both Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees were surprisingly abundant and fun to watch. Other feathered visitors included several Bewick's wrens. They were much more secretive and mostly stayed on the ground gleaning sunflower seeds that had been scattered from the feeders. Groups of Bushtits were also frequently noted in the vicinity, but they pretty much confined themselves to working on the suet block that I had placed nearby. During the 5 days that we visited, I ID'ed about 20 bird species on this 2-acre area. Not bad for winter birding and the limited time I spent looking. The Western Redcedar, Western hemlock, Douglas-fir, and Bigleaf maple that dominate this landscape should provide for a nice variety of breeding birds this spring - which I look forward to documenting! In previous visits, Steller's jays had used a large platform feeder I had erected but in the intervening months, the squirrels had taken over the platform and it was taken down. People often ask me what my favorite bird is, and I usually struggle to come up with just one. But on this trip, that question was easily answered. It was a little bird named Railey, our 20-month old granddaughter who was overwhelmed by the first Christmas she was able to enjoy!

Eastern Montana: Images of Recent Man's Habitation

Scattered across the prairies and breaks of eastern Montana are the relics of European peoples relatively recent occupation. To me, these artifacts provide a great opportunity to document the history of the area through digital photo images. Much of what you see in the following photos are "artifacts" that are mostly less than 100 years old, and in many instances no more than about 50. But whatever the age, they document the progression of habitation by man as he eked out a living on these relatively dry and sometimes severe landscapes.

The family ranch buildings we visit each year sit unobtrusively in a draw fed by a spring that once provided sustenance and a natural campsite for Native Americans. Even in times of severe drought, the clean, pure waters have continued to flow. These days, the spring provides water for several families, livestock, and gardens and landscaping. And the draw - or "coulee"as these landscape features are sometimes referred to in Montana - along with its cottonwood, boxelder, and ash trees provides relief and protection from summer suns and winter blizzards. The homesteaders of the early part of the 20th century lived in much more austere dwellings. This home - below - on the ranch was occupied by a family of 6 until the mid 1900's. Old barns frequently continue to house remnants of important transportation means of the past - horses. And many ranchers still depend on these animals for certain needs of modern day ranching. Of course, farm machinery and vehicles have also changed markedly with the times. And what was once accomplished with wagons is now the venue of continuing improvements in petroleum propelled vehicles. This old GMC pickup was once the vehicle of choice to transport my wife to the local one room school house she attended through early grade school in the 1950's. Uh oh! Am I in trouble with her because some of you are now mentally calculating her age?? When I first viewed some of these relics in 1969, they were not all that old. In the dry climate of these northern Great Plains regions, many or most of the relics pictured here will likely still be around late into this 21st Century. At least I hope they are so that future generations of the family will be able to explore some aspects of the history of the ranch - by just walking over the hill!

Eastern Montana: The Natural and Cultural

Almost every Thanksgiving Holiday for the past 40+ years, we have headed east to "The Ranch", not far from the N. Dakota border, to spend time with family. In most years, winter has already arrived and the landscape is covered in white. This year, there was no snow and the temperatures were in the shirtsleeve range. These eastern Montana landscapes, while not as physiographically spectacular as the mountains of the western part of the state, have grown on me over the years and they beckon me every day spent there for daily bouts of exploration.

The early winter landscapes are muted in color and contrast compared to other seasons but on close inspection, the wonders of nature reveal themselves to the camera. No, this is not another blog about birds! By this time of year, the diversity of birds is rather minimal and I only saw about 12 species during our stay. But I did find some landscape features that I had not encountered previously, and I will focus on them in this epistle. I also revisited some of the cultural history of he area in the form of relics that recent inhabitants have scattered over the landscape. Some folks might refer to these as junk or trash. I prefer to think of them as photographers' treasures. A pictorial essay of these relics will be posted in a followup blog.

From a distance, these "rough breaks" landscapes effectively hide many of their unique features. Remember to click on the images to enlarge them. But a closer look often reveals remarkably diverse and sometimes moonlike features! OOOPPS! Nineteen month old grand-daughter Railey slipped in here so I guess I'll just leave her to explore on her own! Cap-rocks are a fairly common feature of these breaks areas. A probable bison leg bone protrudes from an eroding bank. Many millions of years ago, large trees occupied these landscapes as evidenced by this petrified tree stump. And then there is "gumbo". Most Montanans are familiar with this stuff. For others who are not, they should experience it at least once. It is as slick as ice but it sticks to shoes or tires or whatever and makes foot or any other type of transportation virtually impossible. Wildlife are an integral and abundant component of this natural landscape. And if you really do want a little more color to heighten your enjoyment of the eastern Montana winter landscape, an occasional brilliant sunset will sometimes fill the bill!

Feeding Clark's Nutcrackers!

Although I have had bird feeders at my home for 15 or so years, it has been only in the past several years that Clark's Nutcrackers have been visiting them. And they are picky feeders - only taking peanuts in the shell and working on suet feeders. The question as to why these neat birds have shown up here only recently is an interesting one. A good guess would be that the major infestation of pine bark beetles that is killing off huge numbers of Ponderosa Pine trees in the surrounding hills has resulted in a shortage of conifer cone seeds, a major food source for Nutcracker's.

Clark's Nutcrackers are members of the Corvidae Family along with crows, magpies, and jays. And it doesn't take too many hours of observing them to get a good idea about their intelligence. When they come to take peanuts(in the shell) from my platform feeder, they are very careful about which one they pick to carry away. They pick one up and quickly shake it as if to make sure that there are some nuts inside. Then they usually put it down and try another one, seemingly trying to see which one is the heaviest. Once they make up their "mind", off they go stash the peanut in some safe place for future use. Occasionally, they will stay at the feeder and expertly peck open the shell to extract the nuts. Some are swallowed whole and others may be broken into pieces that are more easily swallowed. The other day, I watched one bird carefully swallowing as many nuts as it could fit in its crop. The last one tried would not fit, so the bird regurgitated several of them and then carefully re-swallowed to see if there was room for the last nut. It was successful and flew away with a bulging crop.

It is quite obvious that there is a distinct pecking order among the Nutcracker's. Of the 5-6 of these birds that I see in the mornings, two of them are very brave and dominant. They will approach within 2 to 3 feet of me when I stand by the feeder. Others will not approach unless I am inside the house. And these more hesitant birds will not go to the feeder when one of the "brave" ones is there. Rarely will more than one bird at a time be present on the feeder. If it is a "sub-dominant" one it will immediately fly away at the approach of another.

On most days, as soon as the Nutcrackers come to the feeder to begin their process of stashing peanuts for future use, magpies also show up. These are not my favorite birds so I "shoo" them away from the feeder. Being every bit as smart as the nutcrackers, I noticed that the magpies would sit somewhere nearby where they could watch the Nutcrackers hiding the peanuts. Then they would go looking for the nuts as soon as the nutcrackers flew back to the feeder. I haven't yet figured out a legal way to deal with these robber magpies - but I'm working on it!!

I have taken some video of the feeder antics of Nutcrackers, but have not yet mastered video editing software that I need to get this footage attached to this blob. That is one of the "chores" that is on my "to do" list for the coming winter. Until I have mastered that new skill, you'll have to be satisfied with the still images I embed in these blogs!!

I'm having a bit of trouble lately with the formatting/layout of these blogs so please bear with me until I get that sorted out. The undated editor that is now available has caused some problems for me!!

I just finished putting some video clips of Nutcrackers together and will now experiment with putting the result into this blog. OOOPS! Guess it won't take the format that I converted to - and the .avi files ar e too large. So back to the drawing board!!

A Break from Montana Birding

In the process of moving data and pictures from an older computer to a new one over the past several days, I have taken some time to review the folders I've been transferring to make sure they contained something I would want available on a relatively frequent basis. One of the folders I looked at in this review process contained the photo images from a trip to Florida with my wife Kathy last April. Computers make access to memories such as these much more convenient than albums of photos stored away in the corner of a closet.

On this trip, we visited several different locations in Florida, but the one aspect that stands out most vividly was the several days we spent with great friends Jim and Wendy at their condo on the east coast. They organized a wonderful reunion for us with some old high school friends of mine, several of whom I had not seen since 1961 - almost a half century ago! In this image, it is easy to tell who is the one individual not living in Florida by looking at the bare legs!And for the following day, Jim, being an avid photographer and birder like me, scheduled an air boat ride through a wetland for Wendy and him, and Kathy and me at the nearby Blue Cypress Recreation Area. These tours are conducted by Capt. Steve Hayes of Stumpknocker Tours and I high recommend him. It was a beautiful Florida day and the company and scenery were equally great. Of course, the one critter you would expect to find in a marsh such as this was an alligator and it didn't take long to find our first one. But our real goal was the bird-life that these marshes or swamps or whatever you want to call them are famous for. And we were not disappointed! These subtropical habitat types are truly amazing for their productivity and biological diversity. Here is a Common Moorhen chick begging for a handout! Egrets and heron are among the most common of the larger birds found in these habitats. While osprey are now commonly found associated with water bodies throughout the country, they are especially abundant in Florida. One of the most exciting moments of this air boat ride was watching a Peregrine Falcon capture and fly away with what looked like a Common Moorhen. In a series of photos I took of this interaction, the falcon can be seen reaching down and breaking the neck of its prey while it flies away. There was one bird species in particular that I had targeted for this excursion - a Snail Kite and we were fortunate enough to find a pair of them. This was a life bird for me!

Thanks Jim and Wendy for a memorable several days and a lifetime of friendship!!!!

Birding at the Dump!

Birding outings are generally thought of as occurring at locations with some serenity and beauty! And, of course, this is normally the case. But at this time of year - at least in the Helena Valley - many or most of our migrants are already far to the south and the migrant species from the north that winter here are just beginning to arrive. So from mid-October into mid-December, one of the locations I frequent on my jaunts into the valley usually includes the Helena Valley Landfill - or "dump" if you will! Not the neatest place to visit but sometimes quite rewarding.

As long as there are some appropriate open water bodies in our area, like Lake Helena, and Hauser Reservoir, large numbers of gulls gather in our valley and use the landfill as their "refueling" station. Often, they number in the thousands. And very often, one can find some uncommon and even rare gulls species among them - at least for Montana. Some gull species can be among our more difficult birds to ID, especially because of differences in plumage among age classes and the relative frequency of hybridization. Recent advances in genetic analysis are sorting out some problems with species separation but may be adding confusion to other situations.

With so many gulls to sort through at the landfill, it can be difficult to separate out the rarer ones, especially with the adults. But with juvenile birds, which are very much in the minority, at least they stick out from the crowd. The largest percentage of the makeup is usually ring-billed gulls with Californias coming in next. Then there are the herring gulls whose larger size, pinkish legs and lighter eye color usually make ID fairly straight forward. But because their numbers are always in the lower single digits, mostly only one or two, the rarest are difficult to separate out. These include glaucous, glaucous-winged, Thayer's and maybe a Bonaparte's or Franklin's gull. And there is always the anticipation that one of the truly rare species like Slatey-backed or lesser black-backed gull might show up. One of my favorites is the glaucous gull whose great size and ghost-like coloration make the them pretty easy to pick out.

In Montana, there are several other locations where gulls, -with the possibility of rare ones - congregate. These places include the Kalispell landfill, and the open water areas of the Missouri River at Great Falls and below Ft. Peck dam. Most of the rare gulls found in Montana are found at these locations, especially below the dam at Ft. Peck. Veteran and expert birder Chuck Carlson who lives at Ft. Peck has documented a number of "first-of-state" gulls at this latter site, including Montana's first lesser black-backed gull in 2008.

Upland Bird Hunting vs. Birding vs. Dragonflies!

This is really not a competition per se but a discussion/analysis of three great outdoor pastimes of mine that have been competing for my recreational hours over the past several years. The genesis of this blog is the recent realization that for the first fall since probably 1955, I have not yet been upland game bird hunting.

A little history first! I grew up in a family of upland game bird hunters where the opening day of the season was a highly anticipated event, one not to be missed. From the time I was of legal age to hunt, opening day was a really big deal. My years in college put a bit of a crimp on this but I still managed to do some bird hunting no matter which state I was attending in. As soon as I began my working career, opening day again became a much anticipated day. That is until this year - when I didn't even realize I had missed opening day until several weeks after it occurred. So what is going on?

From my days of youth, I have always had some interest in birds. This interest intensified a while during college days because of some of the courses I took toward my degrees. But in my working years, my efforts at birding could pretty much be described as casual - pretty good with the larger birds and waterfowl associated with work or hunting, but mostly bird feeder watching during other times of the year. It was not until I retired that I became a very active birder who spent much of my leisure time learning and pursuing all categories of birds. Interest in wildlife and outdoor photography was a peripheral spin off that accompanied birding.

I think it must have been the digital photography "bug" that lead to my interest in dragonflies. While pursuing birds, these intriguing insects caught my eye - and my camera interest. Of course, once you have a picture of something, you - or at least I - have to know what it is! So about July last year, my interest in dragonflies began and it intensified very quickly into a passion.

Now for some analysis and comparisons of these outdoor pursuits. Seasonality, physical exertion required, active vs. passive pursuit, and mental acuity/learning curve required are all aspects that seem germane to this comparison.

Of these 3 pursuits, birding is obviously the only one not limited to a specific season, although in Montana, the winter season is less productive. Dragonfly season runs from mid-May to early October, and upland bird hunting has the shortest season - from Early September to December. As for physical demands required, bird hunting is tops with dragonflies next and birding probably following. Of course, birding of some types can require considerable physical efforts, but it can also be mostly pursued from inside or near a vehicle. For dragonflies, one has to exit the vehicle, but walking distances vary with the species sought. Because some dragonflies species are only found at higher elevation mountain sites in Montana, considerable hiking can be required to locate them. As for the amount of study/learning that is necessary to become proficient in any of these endeavors, birding likely has the highest requirement followed by dragonflies and bird hunting. With more than 400 species of birds possible in Montana and their sex and seasonal differences in plumage, there is a lot to learn to become proficient with these beautiful creatures. With dragonflies and closely related dameslflies, there are only about 80 Montana species.

The final comparison I'd like to make here is whether there is "active" or "passive" pursuit associated with each pastime. Bird hunting requires the active employment of a shotgun to target the quarry. In contrast, birding is almost entirely a passive sport with quality optics and good field guides the only requirement for proficiency. During my first season of pursuing dragonflies, a partial one beginning in July2008, binoculars and camera were the only equipment items I used. So for the most part, I had to locate dragon/damselflies that were perched in order to attempt identification. Prior to the 2009 season that just concluded, I purchased a butterfly net that could be used to capture and identify dragonflies that were often seen flying, but very difficult to find perched. This added an entirely new dimension to my dragonfly hobby, and one that required some persistence and skill. Initially, it was very frustrating to try to capture some of the larger dragonfly species - whose speed and reflexes are almost beyond description. But through perseverance, my skills and knowledge for netting these amazing insects increased to the point that it was really enjoyable. Was I consistently successful in netting them? Certainly, that was not the case, but it sure was fun trying. My efforts frequently lead to very amusing and sometimes wet conclusions. However, in most instances, the results were rewarding and this new approach to dragonfly chasing added greatly to my enjoyment.

So as the years keep gaining on me, birding will likely remain a mostly year round interest of mine with dragonflies coming in second and bird hunting fading into the twilight. But I'll have to revisit this scenario occasionally in the future, for who could have guessed several years ago that dragonflies would now consume most of my discretionary time in the summer months.

For the present, my task at hand is to get more of you interested in the pursuit of dragonflies! I don't think you will regret joining me and a few others!!

The Tradition Continues!

Last weekend, my son Matt and I headed out of Helena about 5am toward Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area (WMA), near Fairfield, Montana. That Saturday was the beginning of the 2009 waterfowl season in Montana. And for me, it was the continuation of a tradition that now entered its fifth decade. By no measure could I be considered a fanatic or even an avid waterfowl hunter. But this place and this tradition flow in my blood. Some of the great memories that these opening days have etched into my brain over these 42 years have faded a bit, but others are still vivid. They will likely remain with me and hopefully sometimes evoke a chuckle for all of my remaining years. As I recall, the only opening day I missed during those many years was 1977 - when daughter Melissa was due to enter the world sometime during October. She waited until mid-November!

This Freezout Lake opening day waterfowl hunt tradition began in 1968 with my brother Cliff. Over the ensuing years, various other friends and family joined in, and most subsequently bowed out for various reasons, too often because they are no longer with us - except in spirit. One of the first to join us was John Beitenduefel, a giant of a man with a heart and repertoire of jokes just as big. He always kept us laughing, sometimes not intentionally. One time John followed us out into the marsh wearing an old pair of felt-soled hip boots - with the felt worn off but rubber rims remaining. Cliff and I reached our usual hunting spots about as shooting hours began, but John was no where to be seen in the dim light. After a while we could hear someone cussing and struggling to make it thru the marsh. Of course, it was John. His felt-less hip boots were acting like suction cups in the famous Freezout mud. A usual 20-minute walk turned into an energy sapping effort for our favorite comic. After catching his breath, John joined us in laughter, and the story was retold for many years thereafter. Opening day 1992 was the last time I hunted Freezout with John. The fact that he had to stop to catch his breath several times that morning while walking a road out to our chosen hunting spot should have given me and our other hunting partners a clue. About 3 weeks later, while John was teaching some young kids how to hunt safely, he died of a heart attack at age 57!

We were fortunate enough to have our father join us for many Freezout opening day hunts. One of the more memorable ones was in the mid-1980's. At that time in his life, his eyesight was temporarily compromised because of cataracts, and he could see very little out of his dominant right eye. The solution? Shoot left handed! This is a very difficult adjustment for someone to make who has been shooting right-handed 70 or more years. We were fortunate that morning to find an area on the marsh where the mallards wanted to land and feed. As they approached us we called out their direction, and Dad had a respectable day - shooting left handed! His last day on the marsh with us was 1988.

Cliff's son Steve joined us for the tradition when he turned 12 years old in 1974. Those first several years of waterfowling can be tough on young hunters as they learn to connect with the fast flying birds. Matt's first year was 1992, and he struggled as well with hitting birds. But learn they did. In the image below, the leather strap Matt is using to carry his ducks was made by Dad out of some moose hide about 1980 or so.And these days, the success rate of bagging birds has shifted in their favor! Steve continues with the tradition when work responsibilities don't interfere, and hopefully Matt and I will continue for as long as my legs are able to master the mud in the marsh. Good friend Vern Schneider was the latest member to accompany us. Although he has not been able to join us for the past several years, hopefully he will return to join us when his ensuing retirement comes to be next year.

Over the years, my love affair with this marsh and the tradition have evolved. At first, bagging a bunch of birds may have dominated my/our enjoyment. As the years passed, love of the marsh and its biota, friendship and camaraderie, and watching our dogs retrieve birds took their rightful place. The gorgeous sunrises that often accompany opening morning speak for themselves. And Freezout is not just an opening day experience. Toward early November, when waters farther to the north in Canada freeze up, tundra swans and white geese use Freezout as a way-point on their long journey south. Laying on a dike on a "bluebird" day watching tens of thousands of geese pouring into the lakes and marshes of Freezout is a sight to behold. From many thousands of feet high, their V-formations disintegrate into a mass of twisting and turning white bodies as they spiral downward toward a much needed rest.

While Freezout Lake WMA was established primarily for habitat protection, and for hunters and hunting, it has taken on a new dimension in relatively recent years. Fall waterfowl migrations are a great natural phenomenon, but springtime brings an even greater spectacle of nature. Numbers of geese and ducks and swans using this area sometimes reach into the hundreds of thousands in spring. And a new tradition has now begun for many Montanans and others from out of state. A late March or early April visit to Freezout is now penned on many calendars to remind folks that the white geese and swans will be stopping here in huge numbers, and it is time to plan a trip there. The upsurge of interest in birding has also changed the visitation pattern to the area. Over 200 species of birds have been recorded as migrating through and/or breeding at Freezout. I frequently visit in late spring just to enjoy the many different species found breeding there and in late summer to revel in the the concentrations of shorebirds frequently found on the mudflats. Indeed, even on opening day, my binoculars are now often focused on winged visitors other than waterfowl.

Were we successful on our hunt last weekend? That depends on how one measures success! From my present day perspective, any day spent with friends and/or family in an outdoor setting like Freezout is immeasurably successful, regardless whether or not any game are harvested!

Over the past decade or so, my interest in hunting - and for that matter fishing - has waned to the point that other outdoor interests now dominate my days. But Freezout has become an integral component of my mind and flows pretty much continuously in my blood. May my last days - hopefully many years from now - be spent enjoying and absorbing the wonders of this very special place!