Secondary call notes - 07 Nov 2009

It was sunny and mild this November Saturday morning, but a bit breezy in SE Michigan. I drove down to Lake Erie Metropark in Southern Wayne Co. for a quick walk through the woods next to the Marshland Museum.

Stopped just long enough to say 'hi' to Luc, the park's resident/recovering Bald Eagle, before continuing along the Marshland Trail. Things were very quiet until a few 'tsiit' calls belonging to the White-throated Sparrows were heard. A few moments later an annoyed Winter Wren began chattering (lower, raspier chatter relative to House Wrens) in the underbrush. It appeared just briefly on a log several yards away, but scampered away before I could get binoculars on it.

A Rusty Blackbird appeared near the creek and chattered away before flying off. I walked on, finding a pair of Yellow-rumped Warblers feeding up in the trees overhead. I was able to capture a few pics using the Better Beamer and flash unit on the D300.

Along the boardwalk a Gray Catbird flew out of the phragmites and landed just a few feet away from me. Startled, it flew back into the brush, but appeared long enough for several quick frames.

As I returned to the car I heard a short, bubbly 'gggroiiip' and spotted a Carolina Wren for brief moment. I heard this same call a few minutes later when I drove over to Campau Rd. Being able to recognize these short little bursts of call notes really help to identify these birds in winter time, especially when primary song is absent. This time the wren appeared in a tall tree long enough to get a long-distance shot or two from the car.

Pt. Mouillee HQ was quiet. The Huron River was choppy so few birds were near enough to photograph. I stopped by Riverside Park and found no birds there. However, across the road in the large pond off of Harbin Road was a huge flock of 300+ Bonaparte's Gulls swimming among a couple hundred Ring-billed Gulls. Unfortunately the birds were too far off to digiscope.

Water levels were high along Mouillee Creek and no birds were present. Winds were still blowing, so I headed home.

Lunch w/ Bonaparte! - 05 Nov 2009

I stopped at Bishop Park in Wyandotte during lunch break and parked facing the Detroit River. For the first time ever I spotted a Bonaparte's Gull perched on the railing normally reserved for the scads of Ring-billed Gulls.

For days I've been watching groups of 3 - 5 Bonaparte's Gulls working the river upstream and down. I've noticed that the adult birds tend to stay in the middle of the river, while the younger birds will drift closer to shore.

Today I spotted a young bird back in the corner of the pier, casually swimming and feeding on minnows. I grabbed the camera and tripod and hiked down to get some shots. The sun broke through the clouds on occasion and illuminated the water, which reflected the red and golden hues of the trees above.

The bird paid slight attention to me, and continued to fly several feet before diving and retrieving a minnow. I took over 300 frames before leaving the bird to to continue its lunch.

Nice 20 minutes!

Transitions - 01 Nov 2009

October has ended and the brown season is upon us. Leaves are falling and the trees are becoming bare. I don't mind, because this transition period brings anticipation of a great winter of birding promise. In the meantime, things can get a bit slow around here.

I drove down to Pt. Mouillee HQ this morning to look for anything feathery. A half-dozen Great Egrets linger in the canal off of Campau Rd. A pair of Bonaparte's Gulls were feeding out in the Huron River near the North Causeway. A few Pied-billed Grebes lingered near the boat launch.

A stop at Riverside Park yielded three Forster's Terns feeding 50-100 yds. out. I managed a keeper digiscoped image of one bird atop a bright green channel marker.

Checking out the bridge over Mouillee Creek I found a large flock of Rusty Blackbirds feeding along the muddied shoreline west of the bridge. On the east side of the bridge I found a flock of 20+ Dunlin feeding in the mud just below the bridge. I grabbed the scope and cameras and headed toward them. I was able to get a few digiscoped images before they flushed and joined another group of 10+ farther east along the creek. They soon returned, and I captured a few flight shots as they approached me. Unfortunately the birds were severely backlit by overcast skies, so their basic plumage was even more muted.

Sadly, I also found 4 dead Dunlin on the bridge. Its easy to guess that the flock flushed into oncoming traffic, since they barely clear the bridge when they fly across the road.

Just inside the turn at Roberts Rd. I found a pair of Eastern Meadowlarks singing atop a willow tree and in the grass on the other side of the quarry fence. Several Rusty Blackbirds were present, along w/ several hundred European Starlings. I was unable to get close enough for any photos.

Rheaume Rd. held a single Red-tailed Hawk and American Kestrel.


A quick stop at Sterling State Park yielded a few American Goldfinches and a Song Sparrow. I walked out onto the burm next to the lake, but the area was quiet.

A half-hearted attempt was made to look for the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher reported earlier in the week by Phil Van Daele. I drove west into Dundee and Milan, then headed home.

Birding @ the Detroit Zoo - 25 Oct 2009

I've always made it a point w/ this blog to report only bird sightings. So my personal ethics were challenged this past Sunday when Robin and I visited the Detroit Zoo. It was a wonderful day, and we saw (and photographed) lots of animals. So I'm facing the dilemna of showing my favorite animal pics, or just sticking w/ the bird photos I took.

After a long, personal struggle I decided to stick to my ethics and show only my bird photos. So here they are:

Blackburnian Warbler (male, I think....)















Golden Eagle (check out those talons!)















Snow Goose (note the grin patch)









Savannah Sparrow (at rest)





Red-faced Warbler (rare for these parts)















Black-and-White Warbler















and finally,

Marbled Godwit (note the two-toned, upturned bill).














Good birding!

Possible Cackling Goose at Detroit Zoo - 25 Oct 2009

Gorgeous day to be out, so Robin and I headed to Royal Oak to walk around the Detroit Zoo. Neither of us had been there in decades, so it was truly a wonderful afternoon walking among the fall colors and the many animals.

As we were leaving the park I spotted a flock of Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) feeding on the lawn to our left. Among them was a single bird that I suspected to be a Cackling Goose (B. hutchinsii hutchinsii) based on its extremely small size relative to the flock. I quickly took several portrait shots of the bird w/ the Nikon D300/Sigma 400 before it wandered off into the shade. The short neck, short, stubby bill, and well defined light-edges to the wing feathers alerted me to a possible Cackler.

Standing there, I wished I had a smaller lens since I was too close to get comparison shots w/ the other birds. But I at least photographed a nearby Canada Goose (left) to show differences in coloration and bill size.

David Sibley gives a wonderful narrative regarding Canada vs. Cackling Goose description, referencing works by Angus Wilson and Mark Stackhouse to summarize differences between the many subspecies of Branta sp. Bill Schmoker has some nice images of Cackling Geese vs. Canada for reference, as well. Other good references include Harry Krueger, and our own Matt Hysell.

The geese feeding nearby were significantly smaller than those I regularly see at Pt. Mouillee (B. c. maxima) , so I'm guessing that these birds are the interior race (B. c. interior). My goose-in-question shows traits described by all as short-billed, sloping forehead, and light-colored (besides overall smaller size). I was lucky enough to hear it honk - a much higher-pitched honk that we normally associate w/ the larger Canada Geese. So this appears to support descriptions of Cackling Goose. What makes me hesitate is a statement that Mr. Sibley writes in his description:

Cackling Cackling Goose B. h. minima is strictly a Pacific population, with few if any acceptable records east of the Rockies (they are fairly common in captivity). It is also the smallest and shortest-billed, with no overlap in size with Lesser Canada Goose. Aleutian Cackling Goose B. h. leucopareia is a rare goose with a very limited range and few records east of the Sierra-Cascade mountains. Taverner's Cackling Goose B. h. taverneri nests in Alaska and apparently winters mainly in Washington and Oregon, and must be rare east of the Rockies. Richardson's Cackling Goose B. h. hutchinsii nests in Arctic Canada and winters mainly in Texas and Mexico.

Since I was at the zoo, I have to question whether this is a bird he mentions as being a captive? Am I looking at a Richardson's bird (B. h. hutchinsii)? It certainly shows no evidence of being a zoo bird, but my experience w/ these birds is poor... Still, I've learned something, so its worth documenting...