Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Redux

Back in May, I posted about this bird, as well as a few pics.   I've gone back to the same spot many times since then in hopes of seeing (and photographing) this individual again.  Finally this past weekend, I was lucky enough to see her again...

Now I am getting ready to head off to the Midwest Birding Symposium - hope to have some great pics and stories to share when I get back!

American Avocet(s)

When we last left our dynamic birding duo (aka my wife and I) we had left Massachusetts's north shore about an hour before some really cool bids had been reported in in two different places.  There were reports of an American Avocet at BOTH the boat ramp in Salisbury Beach State Park (a spot we regularly visit in the winter when there is no fee) AND at in Hampton NH, just north of Salisbury, MA - and it didn't take long for folks to work out that these were two different birds.  First - they were being reported from the two different locations at the same time, and if that wasn't enough, the Massachusetts bird had some rusty color on the head, while the NH bird was clean white.  Having seen this species before, we felt that the responsible thing to do was to NOT drain a half tank of gas to head back north in hopes that the birds might stay put on the rising tide.  Instead we decided that since we'd probably be heading north to go birding again on Sunday that we would try the next day.

Thankfully, the birding gods looked upon us with benevolence - something that many a birder will tell you doesn't necessarily happen often!  We were even forgiven for getting a bit of a late start, as when we arrived in Hampton NH (where I decided to go first as the light would be better for pics if the bird was there) one of the first birds i put my bins on was the Avocet.  I grabbed my bins and camera and headed down to the beach to fire off a few shots in case the bird decided to fly.  But it didn't - in fact, the bird really didn't seem to care about birders or photographers or beach goers, or boats.  I plopped down in the wet mucky sand and the bird worked it's way towards me - love it when that happens.  I continued to enjoy crippling looks and take pics until it was well past me, then drove to the other end of the beach and enjoyed the show again.

 

Eventually the bird flew to some more distant sandbars to try it's feeding luck there, so we packed up and decided to try for the bird with a little more color in Salisbury, and while certainly nowhere near as close/cooperative as the Hampton bird, we enjoyed some great looks at this one too!

With 'shorebirds' that look like this, I can get into shorebirding!

Stepping out for my 'peeps'

I took the opportunity of the holiday weekend to get out a bit for some birding and photography.  I am working with a new piece of equipment - the Canon 500mm f/4L lens and I am absolutely loving it for bird photography.  With the 1dMkiii body I can throw a teleconverter into the mix and get 700mm or even 1000mm of reach while keeping autofocus. (The quality seems to drop off a bit with the 2x teleconverter and 1000mm but it's not too bad.)

But this post (and for that matter, this blog) is not about equipment, it is about the birds.  Not much happened with birding on Saturday (that day we enjoyed a cookout and some kayaking with friends) but started out early on Sunday and were rewarded with what I can only assume was a still storm-strewn bird from Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene a few weekends ago - a juvenile White Ibis!

We spotted this from the road at the Stage Island Pool at the south end of Plum Island - not a bad little find for MA. After trying to get the word out so that others who wanted to add this bird to their state and/or Plum Island lists would have the chance to do so, we continued on towards Sand Point - the beach that is at the very southern tip of Plum Island - a great place for a variety of shorebirds, and especially so for migrants at this time of the year.  Earlier in the season, this is also a good spot for studying Least Terns (see my previous post) and Piping Plovers.  We arrived about an hour or so after high tide and were able to spot the common/expected species pretty easily (I'm not particularly good at parsing out 'peeps' so there could have been some more interesting species that I missed) - Semi-palmated Sandpipers, few Semi-palmated Plovers, many Black-bellied Plovers in all stages of plumage, Sanderlings, a few dowitchers (mainly Short-billed), as well as gulls and terns (Common, Forster's, and Least).  I tried to keep an eye out for Buff-breasted Sandpipers which we've seen here pretty regularly in the past as well as for Black Skimmers which had been seen in the area, with no luck with either species.  I settled in to take photos of some of the Black-bellied Plovers and after shooting for a while (and having all the shorebirds moved by an immature Peregrine fly-by) was told my another photographer that there had been a Hudsonian Godwit there just before I had arrived.  I scanned for the bird but did not see it so wandered on to check out a spit where there were several terns, gulls and cormorants resting.  Best bird of the spit was a Great Cormorant mixed in with the Double-cresteds.  Wandering back up the beach, the godwit had returned, so I chose a spot distant enough to not bother the bird (and that wouldn't interfere with another photographer that was already taking pics) and dropped myself down to kneeling in a few inches of water to try and get some pics.  The bird was quite content to feed, preen, and rest and after getting a some photos I was happy with, I backed away, leaving the bird resting in the same spot as when I'd arrived.  OK, that's a big wall of text for me - here's a few pics to break it up...

Black-bellied Plover

Sanderling

Hudsonian Godwit

As we headed back north on the island, we stopped in to check on the crown that had gathered at the Stage Island Pool to learn that only a few others had managed to see the ibis before it flew off in an unknown direction.  Thankfully, is was re-found soon later at the north end of the island, and many birders enjoyed good scope-views of the bird.  Stopping a the famed Newburyport boat ramp, I was able to pick out a Baird's Sandpiper among the 3 or 4 White-rumped SPs that were there, but when I went to grab the camera, somebody drove down the ramp to put in some kayaks, scattering all the shorebirds that were there and they did not return while we waited.  With errands calling, we headed back home for the day with a great morning of birding (and not a few photos).  Of course, (and as many birders will tell you this can often be the case) as we were approaching home, we checked the MA and NH bird reports (and got a call from a friend) to discover that an American Avocet had been spotted  in Salisbury, MA.  A cracker of a bird for New England with some rust on the head still, AND that another American Avocet that had been seen periodically along the NH coast was foraging very close to shore at an inlet in Hampton - both locations close to where we had been just a hour or so earlier.  We decided to take the chance, not drive back, and hope that at least one bird would stay until the next day.
 
I'll let you know how we fared in the next post...

Least Terns

Even though the time between posts here has been growing longer and longer, I've not yet given up hope that this is something that I will come back to regularly updating again. I simply have not had it in me to write, and as much as I want to share pics, I feel like this might become a bit boring to some. Nevertheless, here are some pics I took recently at Sandy Point, which is the public beach at the south end of Parker River NWR on Plum Island. This is a pretty well know spot for nesting Least Terns and Piping Plovers, and the photo ops can be pretty good, assuming that you are able to read behavior, and know when you are not stressing the birds. The terns, interestingly enough did have some chicks, yet there were also several 'nests' (scrapes in the sand really) that had eggs with parents who were doing their dutiful best to incubate them while still keeping predators at bay (beach-walkers.) Unfortunately, many of these nests were beyond the boundaries that were set up to help protect the nesting birds, so unsuspecting beach-goers who aren't paying attention could potentially destroy a nest. I certainly hope that has not happened, and that the protective areas have been extended to include these additional nests.

Indigo Bunting

Just some more photos from this spring to keep the blog afloat...

As always, click the photos to see larger images.  ('Original' size tends to look the best)

Least Bittern

Well, spring migration has pretty much wrapped up here in New England.  The birds moving through to their breeding grounds in the northern boreal forests have done so.  But that doesn't mean the birding stops - we still have plenty of local breeders that are fun to see and photograph.  I've enjoyed some great experiences in the last week or so including watching a pair of adult Barred Owls feeding three owlets this past Friday around dusk.  I managed precious few photos, but this one came out pretty well considering the circumstances.

But as you can probably tell from the title of this post, this isn't just to share an owl pic.  Yesterday I was treated to great views of a Least Bittern for a full 5 minutes. Although I have seen these birds well in the past, they have always been a scope bird, remaining safely distant from both people and the length of my lens.  This bird was a bit more confiding.

PS - as always click on the photos to see larger versions!

And to see some great bird photos from around the world, check out:

The Birds of Spring

If there is one family of birds that defines spring for me, it has to be the Wood-Warblers.  These brightly-colored (mostly) sweetly-singing (usually) little gems that migrate back here from warmer climes as winter releases is icy grasp on us (usually, seems the last year or so it has been rather reluctant to let go), are often what gets birder's hearts pumping.  We look and listen for those regulars like old friends, as well as hope for that rare or uncommon one to cross our paths.  I am also spending a bit more time trying to improve my photography, and although nowhere near the level of some of the pros out there, I like to think that I am getting a bit better.  Honestly, I would rather make a good photo of a more common bird than go chasing a rarity and come up with a bad one.  Some folks might think that I am less of a birder because of it, but I beg to differ.  This in fact, forces me to slow down a bit and spend more time watching and studying a bird - to learn its behaviors and patterns a bit more so that I am prepared to take the photo when the opportunity is right, rather than just blasting away when something crosses my path (yes I still do that too) and then running to find the next bird.  One down side to this is that I seem to have less of a variety of species that I have photographed this year (or at least that I am happy with). Nevertheless, Spring migration is a great time for photography, as there is a great variety of subjects, not to mention some beautiful settings if you can force yourself to widen your view beyond just the bird.  Here are a few photos that I am relatively happy with from the last few weeks.  Is there room for improvement? Hell yes! But I am continually learning and hope that you'll keep on checking back in occasionally to see how I'm doing.

Nashville Warbler - Vermivora ruficapilla

Black-Throated Green Warbler - Dendroica virens

Magnolia Warbler - Dendroica magnolia

Black-and-White Warbler - Mniotilta varia

Northern Parula - Parula americana

Prairie Warbler - Dendroica discolor

 Chestnut-sided Warbler - Dendroica pensylvanica

And although not a warbler, this Rose-breasted Grosbeak definitely deserves his place among the colorful migrant songbirds.  I had the great fortune of watching this male attend a female while she was collecting nesting material (and driving away another rather persistent male who was trying to get in on his action)

Rose-breasted Grosbeak - Pheucticus lodovicianus

PS - as always click on the photos to see larger versions!

And to see some great bird photos from around the world, check out:

Prairie Warblers are back

Each year, I spend a few evenings trying to photograph the Prairie Warblers that nest just a mile or so from where we live. This afternoon, I think I had my best "sitting" yet with these bright little warblers.

"Prairie Warbler - Dendroica discolor

PS - as always click on the photos to see larger versions!

And to see some great bird photos from around the world, check out:

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk

While the writing and posting here at the ol' PicusBlog has been slow lately, the birding (thankfully) hasn't been.  Spring is now in full swing here in eastern Massachusetts, with a lot of early migrants lighting up the list-servs like so many colorful christmas tree lights.  Warblers that we don't expect to see for a few more weeks are already being seen in many places, and I hope to have lots of posts over the next few weeks of birds seen and photographed.

BUT, I simply could not let this go more than 24 hours without posting.  Yesterday afternoon I finally caught up with an individual bird that I've been hoping to see for some time now, and was lucky to even get off a few photos. I've seen reports of a leucisitc Red-tailed Hawk posted in our area occasionally over the last few years - usually somebody who has seen the bird soaring just out of sight as they are cruising down Rt 95/128.  Not too long ago, I received a tip that a large white bird had been seen somewhat regularly near a small swampy area in an office park a few miles down the road from where I work.  I figured it HAD to be this same bird. Interestingly, this is a location I visited a lot in the last two years as I can usually see Eastern Kingbirds, Tree Swallows, Kingfishers, Great Blue and Green Heron, as well as a number of dragonflies.  So I've started going back in the last two weeks when I have some time after work or if I was able to get away from the office for an hour.  And I finally saw her yesterday.  I'll definitely be heading back more hoping to get better photos - hopefully a bit closer (pics are pretty heavily cropped) and in better light, but for now, I really wanted to share these.  I hope you like them!

I've been asked already a few questions from Facebook friends and family about this bird (easy to post to FB right away).  Questions like - how do you know it's a Red-tailed Hawk, how do you know it is female, and what does leucistic mean?  Even draining away the typical color on a Red-tailed Hawk, once you've seen a large number of them (and honestly, I see them easily over 300 days a year while traveling the highways of the area), you can pretty quickly ID them by size and shape.  In the raptor world where this is sometimes little to no sexual dimorphism (i.e. males and females look the same), and particularly in hawks and falcons, the females are bigger than the males, and this particular bird struck me as quite big and bulky, so I am presuming a female.  And finally, what is leucism (and why isn't this an albino)?  To answer that I go to Cornell Lab of Ornithology for a more scientific explanation (click the lin kfor a fuller explanation and examples.) My non-scientific summary of this is that both leucism and albinism are genetic mutations that affect the way an individual bird looks.  In albinism, the mutation prevents the production of melanin (which is needed to create the darker colored feathers in the bird) and these individuals show pink in bare skin areas like legs and usually have light or pink eyes.  In leucistic birds, the melanin is produced but the mutation prevents it from being deposited properly in the feathers. Therefore, sometimes you get "partially leucistic" birds that might have white patches, or birds that are almost all white as with the hawk above, or anywhere in between where the bird looks pale or "bleached."