My Birding World – Page 3 – A Bird Blog by Elizabeth Olin

It’s the Great Backyard Bird Count!

February 12, 2021 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Red-crowned Parrot: One of several species I saw in my first GBBC

One of my earliest memories of doing a real bird count and submitting a checklist goes back exactly ten years ago when I participated in my first Great Backyard Bird Count. With my interest in birding starting to bud, I was down in SoCal visiting my family when I learned about this annual birding event. The rules were different, something about only recording the highest number of birds you see at a single time unless you were positive you were not recounting the same bird(s). You also noted things like your skill level, habitat, weather, and snow level – data that the birder no longer needs to enter into eBird checklists.

Armed with a paper notebook and pen, I was excited to participate in this activity for the first time. We scoured Irvine and Costa Mesa for birds. One new location yielded the non-native Egyptian Goose, several hummingbirds, and dozens of crows. But what I remember the most was popping up over a hill and feeling my head whirl when I found a couple hundred waterfowl crammed into a little pond. Everyone in my party moaned at the unbelievable task before us of counting them all. This was my first experience attempting to count what felt like a huge number of birds. I diligently ticked off every single bird for a total of 78 American Wigeons, 88 Mallards, and 23 American Coots. What a huge number for my first ever GBBC experience!

I did my first GBBC checklist of 2021 while looking out the apartment window this morning, thinking how much has changed in ten years. These days it’s easier than ever to record bird sightings. Our smartphones allow us to use eBird, automatically capturing data like distance traveled and time spent birding. It’s now permissible to give an estimate of the number of birds seen. Submitting a checklist do not require transferring data from a notepad to your desktop computer at home. Very convenient.

I hope you will join this annual event over the next four days. If you’ve never done it before, I encourage you to give it a try. Not only do your sightings contribute to bird conservation, it’s a great way to decompress and be in nature. Grab a friend or a Valentine sweetheart and have fun!

New Birder Toolkit

January 9, 2021 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Red-Crested Cardinal, Hawaii. One of my favorite birds that I saw early in my birding career.

You see a bird outside your window. You hear bird songs welcome the day. A flash of brilliant colors flies by during a neighborhood walk. You are noticing birds and want to appreciate them or learn more about them. You are now entering into the birding world… But now what?

I am excited to introduce a new page on my blog: New Birder Toolkit. Here you will find a step-by-step guide on gear, field guides, and online resources to help you throughout your new birding adventures. I hope you enjoy it!

Nature Journaling

December 30, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 1 comment

Harris’s Sparrow

A few months ago, I started keeping a nature journal. The idea was to jot down observations about birds and nature, write mindful reflections, or even get creative, such as tracing tree leaves to create my own personal field guide (I am lacking in illustrative skills, so tracing an object is about the best I can do).

In researching ideas for nature journaling, I found that a common suggestion was to get a notebook that can be carried into the field for in-the-moment writing opportunities. Since I prefer to immerse myself into nature completely on my walks, I ended up buying a standard composition book that I keep at home. When inspiration strikes, I jot down a few notes on my phone, and then carve out some time later in the day to write in the nature journal.

My mom suggested that I include a reflection on the entire year for future reference. I easily filled a page with notes including: the initial Shelter-in-Place in March that resulted in reduced pollution from less traffic and planes, the concerning lack of rain, and the extended fire season. I noted that Townsend’s Warblers and Hermit Warblers were seen more on the ground rather than the trees this year (some have wondered if insect populations are declining causing the warblers to forage in different locations). There’s been an explosion of Pine Siskins in the neighborhood due to the irruption year. All these things will be interesting to look back on in future years.

Nature journaling is quite popular, and a Google search will yield a ton of hits on how to approach it. If this is of interest to you, my advice is to first think about your goals, and then determine how you can meet those goals. Don’t get caught up in which an article claims a nature journal “should be.” Approach it in the way that is best for you.

Here’s to a calm and hopeful new year!

Birding with Codes

November 29, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Snowy Egret: SNEG

I’ve been a user of eBird for several years now. It’s a database of bird observations. The data collected is then used for research purposes. I find it cool that a simple effort on my part is contributing to science and bird conservation efforts. (To find out more, check out ebird.org. There’s also a free online course on the Cornell Lab Bird Academy website that explains how to use it.)

I prefer to use eBird on my smartphone, as it’s super convenient to use. At least, it felt easy until I got carpal tunnel syndrome earlier this year. My smartphone suddenly felt like a brick – awkward to hold and very heavy for my already-pained fingers.

Time to adapt. For now, I’m starting an eBird checklist on my phone so that it can calculate the distance I’ve traveled. Then I tuck my phone into my pocket for the rest of the trip. To record my observations, I have a lightweight notepad and a gel pen, which glides easier than a ball point pen.

To lessen the amount of writing, I use the standard four-letter bird codes – a shorthand for recording bird observations. This is widely used in the birding community and is featured in eBird as an option for inputting a bird’s name. When I get home, I transfer my written observations onto eBird in a way that is better for my hands.

Black-crowned Night Heron: BCNH

I’ll admit, the codes are daunting! However, the more I use them the more I realize that there’s a clear pattern that emerges making it easy to figure out codes on the fly. It did take some practice, and I started off with practicing the codes for just the birds at my feeder.

Below are my observations about the codes – but use whatever shorthand that works for you! I use the Institute for Bird Populations for reference, using the PDF that organizes it by English name.

Boat-tailed Grackle: BTGR

Bird Names with One Word

For birds whose name is only one word, such as Bufflehead or Killdeer, all you have to do is take the first four letters of its name to come up with the code.

Bufflehead = BUFF
Killdeer = KILL

Bird Names with Two Words

For two words, you typically take the first two letters of each word, then combine them to create the four-letter code. There are exceptions, but overall this is the general pattern.

Anna’s Hummingbird = AN + HU = ANHU
Black Phoebe = BL + PH = BLPH
Lesser Goldfinch = LE + GO = LEGO
Snowy Egret = SN + EG = SNEG

Exception: California Towhee is CALT instead of CATO. There may be other exceptions but I haven’t come across them yet – at least for Bay Area birds.

Bird Names with Four Words

I’m going to temporarily skip the three-worded names because it’s more complex and I’ll bet I’ll lose you instantly. Instead, this category is much easier as there’s not as many birds with four words in a name.

For this category, you simply take the first letter of each word to create the code. There’s no concern about whether or not the words are hyphenated. There are some exceptions to this pattern, of course.

Black-crowned Night Heron = B + C + N + H = BCNH

Exceptions:
There are two in particular I’m aware of, but there’s probably more: Black-throated Gray Warbler and Black-throated Green Warbler. The problem with these two birds is that they would both end up as BTGW! So instead, the codes reflect the last letter of the third word.

Black-throated Gray Warbler = BTYW
Black-throated Green Warbler = BTNW

Bird Names with Three Words

I find this category the most difficult. It seems to depend on whether there is a hyphen present and where. I don’t always remember where hyphens are in names, so that can present a problem. This may be a category where it’s easier to create your own shorthand.

For no hyphens, the general pattern is to take the first letter of the first two words, and the first two letters from the third word. For example:

American Tree Sparrow = A + T + SP = ATSP

When there is a hyphen, the rule I’ve observed is that the two hyphenated words offer only one letter to the code, regardless of their position.

Examples where the first two words are hyphenated:

Black-headed Grosbeak = B + H (hyphenated) + GR (no hyphen) = BHGR
Golden-crowned Sparrow = G + C (hyphenated) + SP (no hyphen) = GCSP

Examples where the last two words are hyphenated:

Western Screech-Owl = WE (no hyphen) + S + O (hyphenated) = WESO
Northern Pygmy-Owl = NO (no hyphen) + P + O (hyphenated) = NOPO

A Day at Colusa NWR

November 15, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

For the last several years, we started a tradition of driving out to Sacramento NWR on January 1. It’s a great way to ring in the new year with thousands of wintering geese that fill the air with their brilliant white feathers and calls. This year, we added Colusa NWR to the tradition. It’s a smaller refuge (a three-mile auto tour compared to six miles), but it has a more intimate feel to it.

Today we did something drastic. It’s not January 1 yet (although many of us are ready to kick 2020 to the side and start a new year), but we decided to drive out to Colusa – in the middle of November! I’m a creature of habit, so this was a big adventure.

The air was crisp and cool, but not freezing like our January trips. The sky was a brilliant blue that highlighted the white and black features of the Snow and Ross’s Geese as they circled in the air. Thousands of Red-winged Blackbirds noisily lifted up in large groups to relocate to another spot. I scanned each group for signs of Yellow-headed Blackbirds, but only found shining red shoulder patches glinting in the sun.

Other birds were less hyper. Dozens of Black-crowned Night Herons roosted in trees along a stream, savoring the stillness. A Red-shouldered Hawk eyed us suspiciously as we drove by, but never left its concealed post in the tree. I exchanged hoots with a Great Horned Owl that started calling as the sun started to hide behind the hills.

Camouflaged Sora

A special treat was finding a Sora expertly camouflaged against the reeds. And to add to the excitement was spotting a couple of flying Sandhill Cranes. Turning off the car engine and sitting in the still peace of the refuge with the cranes sounding their rattling bugle calls was as good as it gets.

Sandhill Cranes

Although I had my camera at the ready on my lap, I largely ignored it in favor of savoring the moment. It’s exactly what I needed to refresh my soul and appreciate the sights, colors, and sounds of nature.

Fall is Here!

October 24, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Golden-Crowned Sparrow

After a scorching summer with record-breaking heat and long days of choking smoke, fall is finally peeking through. The sun is casting its light from a different angle, colors are more saturated outside, and the days are getting shorter and cooler. These all signal the beginning of my favorite season of the year.

Singing White-Crowned Sparrow

Fall migration has largely settled down, so now can I switch into a more relaxed pace of enjoying our winter friends and their behaviors. The days of the White-crowned Sparrow finally kicked off and I hear their cheerful song from my window in the morning. Sometimes I catch the solemn song of Golden-crowned Sparrow mixed in with the morning chorus. Crows are starting to merge into large gatherings to roost in their communities. More and more peeps (sandpipers) are showing up to winter in the Bay Area.

Least Sandpiper

Now is a great time to brush up on waterfowl, gull, sandpiper, and sparrow IDs. Fall becomes more of a visual birding experience rather than a listening exercise, as many birds fall quiet and resort to whispered calls and chirps. I look for rustling leaves and try to figure out if it’s the wind or a bird hiding in a bush.

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

A group of smaller birds suddenly flying away may indicate a raptor nearby.

Northern Harrier

And while you’re looking up for a raptor, you may spot a flock of American White Pelicans floating against a clear blue sky.

American White Pelicans

Enjoy the fall, stay safe, and stay healthy. Birding is a magnificent way to relieve the stress of these times.

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Chasing Warblers

October 3, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Chestnut-Sided Warbler, 2020

My current nemesis bird is the Chestnut-sided Warbler. Each fall, at least one visits the Bay Area when it gets lost from its normal migration route. Despite my best efforts and multiple outings, I seem to keep on missing this one. Then I have to wait another full year before the narrow window of opportunity presents itself again the following fall.

Warblers are usually prized sightings in the spring when their plumage is colorful and vibrant. By the fall, many shed their spring feathers in favor of a duller appearance more conducive to winter activities. Despite that, I’ve really wanted to see this particular warbler in its fall plumage. It doesn’t sport its namesake chestnut sides in the winter, but it has a lovely bright green that spills from the back of its head down its back. Combined with a sharp white eye ring, it’s a fall warbler that looks very unique to me and I have been wanting to witness it in person for years.

Fall migration has been underway and the rare bird alerts and listserv emails have overwhelmed my inbox after a notable summer lull. I’ve been keeping a close look for any signs of a Chestnut-sided Warbler in the notifications, as well as proactively seeking out areas where I think it might pop up. Would 2020 be the year?

Yes – I hope! One was spotted nearby! It was at a new park we’ve never been to. I love chasing after rare birds because it so often introduces me to new local birding spots. This warbler was spotted at a little city park in a nearby city.

After pulling into the parking lot, I was a little skeptical about the prospects of finding the bird. There was a group relaxing with loud old-school hip hop in the parking lot, but no other birders to be spotted (usually identified with binoculars hanging around their necks and poking around the bushes and trees). We got out of the car and sniffed around a bridge where it was said to be located. My husband and I split up and I stayed near the parking lot while he walked down the bridge to explore. There were lots of other birds around –European Starlings and American Robins filling the air with songs, competing with the hip hop – but no Chestnut-sided Warbler.

After a moment, he came back across the bridge and motioned me to join him. Another birder was in fact on the other side and had seen the warbler some time ago. She left, leaving Gabe and I to search on our own. I followed every warbler chip I heard, yielding a Yellow Warbler, Townsend’s Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, and several Wilson’s Warblers, but none were our target bird.

Chestnut-Sided Warbler, 2020

Gabe was the one to finally see it. What a beauty! It sported the lime green head and back with a bold eye ring. What surprised me was how cooperative it was. The warbler allowed us to observe it feeding and got unusually close allowing for great looks. We watched it pluck out insects from the air, on branches, and under fallen leaves on the floor. It was completely focused on gorging on food. We watched the warbler until my legs started to burn from the sun and we left, feeling joyous.

Hermit Warbler, 2020

Pushing our luck, we continued to two additional birding spots. We spotted the rare Northern Waterthrush (this one was not cooperative, only allowing a 15 second look before magically disappearing into the brush), and later came across a very friendly Hermit Warbler. The latter is not rare here, but I’ve only seen one once, rather I heard it way up in a tree in the Sierras. This was my first really good look at a Hermit Warbler, and it was foraging in a similar pattern as the Chestnut-sided Warbler.

I love looking for local and rare warblers in the fall, and what a day this was!

Northern Waterthrush, 2020

Walnut Stories: Part 2

September 11, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

American Crow Visitor

The year 2020 continues to deliver difficult challenges. For those of us on the West Coast, we’re dealing with fires and smoke, either directly or indirectly. I hope the continuation of this story will bring a moment of joy for you during these times.

See Walnut Stories: Part 1 for the first portion of this story.

Day 3: Morning

A single crow was waiting on the gutter, just below my window. They are getting bolder. I told it to retreat to the roof of the nearby building. Interestingly, it obliged and I tossed the walnut piece onto the graveled roof. The crow ate part of the walnut, then flew to a nearby tree to finish it off. It then returned to the roof and sat on a fat pipe for a while before begging again at the gutter below my window. However, I’m limiting the crows to one walnut a day. No need to get spoiled here.

Day 4 and Beyond

I’ve been feeding the crows for several weeks now and have watched with interest their behavior towards each other. The smaller one is the more cunning of the pair. It started to come by on its own in the morning, cawing at my window. After getting a walnut piece, it would either eat it immediately or stash it. Later, it would come by with its friend. I would throw them each a walnut, so now the little guy gets two pieces! This went on a for a few days.

Then the little guy started a new behavior. It would show up with its friend and beg at the gutter. When I opened the window, the larger friend would fly to the roof, but the small one would stay at the window watching me. I would toss out two walnut pieces, one at a time. The little guy would quickly collect the first walnut, watch me intently, and then dart after the second piece. The little crow nabbed both pieces and left its friend with none! That cunning, small crow was figuring out ways to get more goodies. I wised up to this behavior and can now manage to throw both pieces at the same time onto the roof of the nearby building.

It’s been fascinating watching the crows interact and scam each other for food. Their intelligence and strategies around getting a piece of walnut is really fun to observe. Next time you see a crow in the neighborhood, watch it for a while and see if you can find anything unique!

Walnut Stories: Part 1

August 23, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

American Crow Visitor

I have a bag of walnuts. I don’t particularly like walnuts, but I got them from our CSA (community-supported agriculture). I remember reading that crows liked walnuts, and there an idea was hatched.

I live high in an apartment building tucked between commercial businesses. From my window, I can see the top of a medical building, which sports a maze of pipes, gravel, and a constant water drip from a cooling unit. It’s the perfect playground for crows. Last summer I watched a pair and their young play in the water drip and use it to wet crusty bread. This summer, a larger and smaller crow have come to play in the pipe maze. I decided to see if the crows would take a liking to locally grown and organic walnuts.

Day 1: Afternoon

Two crows were on the roof of the medical building cawing, unaware of my peering at them. I tossed open my window, which startled the smaller one. The larger one seemed to look at me inquisitively. I tossed one walnut piece onto the roof, which cemented the fear in the smaller crow who immediately ran away. The larger one, however, ran up to the walnut, grabbed it, and proceeded to parade around the roof with the walnut in its mouth until I lost track of it.

I threw another piece to the smaller crow. It eyed the walnut suspiciously for a few moments before deciding it was safe. The crow cautiously slinked towards the walnut, nabbed it, and immediately flew to another spot on the roof to gulp it down. So far, success!

Day 2: Morning

The smaller crow was on the roof by itself. I opened up the window, which did not seem to startle it this time. Instead, it watched me with curious eyes. I threw a walnut piece, and the crow grabbed it, shoved it between its toes, and picked at it for a while.

After a few nibbles, it walked around with the remainder of the walnut in its beak. Then, to my surprise, it stood in front of a brick that was holding up pipes, and the crow placed the walnut remains into a crevice. It then grabbed a few gravel pieces, covered up the walnut, and flew away. It stashed it for later use!

Check back soon for a continuation of this story!

Hints of Fall

August 6, 2020 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Marbled Godwit, Emeryville Marina

Like many birders, I get the summer blues. Breeding season has wrapped up, bird songs have quieted, fledglings are growing up, and frankly it’s too hot for humans and birds alike to be out and about.

But fall is right around the corner. This morning I saw a gaggle of Canada Geese flying silently southward in their V-formation. It reminded me of the flocks of Snow Geese, Ross’ Geese, and Greater White-fronted Geese that winter at the Sacramento NWR. Seeing that V-formation over my apartment was enough to awaken my excitement for the upcoming fall migration season.

Another sign of fall is that shorebird migration has commenced. Already I’m seeing reports of shorebird rarities popping up across the Bay Area. I realized that I’m quite rusty on shorebird ID, so I brushed up my skills by watching a Cornell Bird Academy webinar series on shorebird ID. (Side note: This is an excellent resource if you’re willing to pay $30. It reviews many aspects of shorebird identification, including behavior, habitat, shape, and more.)

One important thing about finding shorebirds is to time your visit with the tides. For example, I like to visit the Emeryville Marina and depending on the tide, I will seek out a different spot. At low tide, a thin mudflat emerges in the harbor, which entices peeps to poke around for goodies. But it’s at high tide that a variety of shorebirds, large and small, collect at the rocks against the trail facing the bay. They are pushed closer to the shore by the rising waters, giving birders a closer look. The same goes with Hayward Shoreline – you want to visit at high tide because the birds are nudged closer to the shore and within viewing range. Take a moment to observe how the tide affects your birds at your favorite shorebird spot!

Look for tide predictions at https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/.