Birding

[Turtle]

Had a few unusual customers in the driveway today..

 

I don't know where my bird book is at the moment...:hyper:

 

They were like a Starling in shape and beak.. But were greyish and a bit larger. The male had red around his face, and all 3 had a black triangle on their brest...

 

They were grubbing worms after the new rain fall.

 

Can you help me identify?

I normally don't see these birds in the neighborhood on a regular basis.

 

Sounds like a Northern Red-Shafted Flicker - Colaptes auratus. They are woodpeckers, but they feed on the ground too. Do they look like this?

YouTube - Northern Red-shafted Flicker - Colaptes auratus http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEVUrvdl9TY

[Racoon]

You might be right Turtle..

 

But these guys were mature and didn't have black spots along their breasts..

They were greyish-white with a definitive black triangle.

 

I didn't hear a bird call. Just that they were lookin for a meal.

 

They very well could have been woodpeckers looking to captalize on a soft rain and a few worms after some hot summer days.

 

Thanks!

[Cedars]

Someone posted an update on the Whoopers which had left the Burnett county area October 16. All three are now located 40-50 miles from Necada where they were raised. Found an interesting update page on the release cranes and various sightings.

 

Crane Updates - Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin

 

Pretty interesting reading. Lots of these guys disappear for months at a time, such as this one:

 

One more wayward crane recently returned to the Necedah refuge. #16-03 was observed on October 23 and 28 after not being seen since March 30.

[freeztar]

The locals were unable to name this ubiquitous bird in both the jungle and beach settings. One local claimed that this bird was a cousin of the crow. They resemble crows, but their wings shimmer azure in the morning sun. What is this bird?

[Cedars]

The locals were unable to name this ubiquitous bird in both the jungle and beach settings. One local claimed that this bird was a cousin of the crow. They resemble crows, but their wings shimmer azure in the morning sun. What is this bird?

 

Its a type of grackle. Not sure of your location so I cant ID it further.

 

Try this page description:

 

http://www.tropicalbirds.com/grackle.html

[freeztar]

Thanks Cedars. I believe it is the great-tailed grackle after doing some research.

The place I saw the most of them was in Playa Del Carmen (about an hour south of Cancun).

[Cedars]

Thanks Cedars. I believe it is the great-tailed grackle after doing some research.

The place I saw the most of them was in Playa Del Carmen (about an hour south of Cancun).

 

Excellent.

 

If anyone is interested in more on the Great-tailed Grackle:

 

Quiscalus mexicanus - Great-tailed Grackle  

[Turtle]

Not feeding the birds this year, but a couple red-tailed hawks roosted in a tall doug-fir a few minutes on tuesday the 22nd and i got some video. lighting is tough because of snow glare & image shaky because of wind (i opened my window to get the window pane reflections out). that's all i got. :smilingsun:

 

YouTube - red tail hawks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S29jZn6pkDI&feature=channel_page

[belovelife]

i love hanging with birds

(on the windmill thing, have you heard of turby, it could easily have a cage for bird safety and the desighn is more efficient)

anyway

i try to communicate

try this

make your own whistle

and be able to say it loud

then do you call a few times

then listen

and mimick the bird calls around you

then when one flies near you do your call again

 

after a few times everywhere i go the birds will do the same thing

they will fly directly at me while i am watching, and then fly up

with their wings spread and they showoff their pattern under their wings

 

its so awsome

then just join the song

[Cedars]

Not feeding the birds this year, but a couple red-tailed hawks roosted in a tall doug-fir a few minutes on tuesday the 22nd and i got some video. lighting is tough because of snow glare & image shaky because of wind (i opened my window to get the window pane reflections out). that's all i got. :smilingsun:

 

Nice to get some video of the raptors. They can be difficult to do, due to their learned behavior of fleeing people.

 

Bird seed has gone up in price significantly this year. I intended to reduce my feeding greatly this year due to financial issues. At thanksgiving I couldnt take it no more. Been feeding daily since.

 

New Critter in the Yard! Got my first ever Fisher! Didnt have time to photograph it before it hopped away.

[Cedars]

i love hanging with birds

(on the windmill thing, have you heard of turby, it could easily have a cage for bird safety and the desighn is more efficient)

anyway

i try to communicate

try this

make your own whistle

and be able to say it loud

then do you call a few times

then listen

and mimick the bird calls around you

then when one flies near you do your call again

 

after a few times everywhere i go the birds will do the same thing

they will fly directly at me while i am watching, and then fly up

with their wings spread and they showoff their pattern under their wings

 

its so awsome

then just join the song

 

Just something to think about here.

 

It appears by your description, the calls you mimic are territory singing. You are attracting birds which are defending their territory and this will cause stress. Your not joining the song, you are threatening them.

 

I would suggest doing this at a minimum especially during the mating/brood raising season. It has been suggested for some types of birds, the presence of a human doing this repeatedly in a territory can drive a male bird away as he feels he would lose a fight with this larger competition.

[belovelife]

i have been doing this for years

i've had birds fly next to me while hitchhikin, not just one

i had a bird hop in front of me and lead me into the woods

to a spot where in this grove there were like a thousand birds

flying back and forth singing a very happy song

 

now the territorial thing

i think those are different words

i ususally describe my state of mind through tones

and i even was allowed to pick up the same humming bird twice

 

i never intentionally emit bad vibes

and i think the birds in general like to play with me

although just like people somtimes they are grumpy

[Cedars]

i have been doing this for years

i've had birds fly next to me while hitchhikin, not just one

i had a bird hop in front of me and lead me into the woods

to a spot where in this grove there were like a thousand birds

flying back and forth singing a very happy song

I certainly hope you were not doing your "come out come out and see me" whistle while hitchhiking. If your on the road enough, I am sure you've come across many of these too... See attached picture.

 

OK. So what kind of bird lead you into this woodland bird playground?

 

Is it possible the bird was leading you AWAY from its territory? Away from its nest? Away from its young? A Lookie... Heres a whole bunch of birds for you to dispute territory with, or eat, or do whatever it is you want, but leave me alone.

 

Did the leading bird disappear shortly after that?

 

now the territorial thing

i think those are different words

i ususally describe my state of mind through tones

and i even was allowed to pick up the same humming bird twice

You HOPE (now that I brought up the territory issue) these were not threat whistles, but I would guess the reality is, it never occurred to you this possibility existed. I have no doubt you had no ill-intent with this throughout these years, but at least now you may wonder a bit about what is really happening and adjust your song/whistle accordingly.

 

As far as you describing your state of mind through tones, thats fine. But too assume the wild birds are attracted to this as anything beyond what they naturally do is a bit far-fetched and seems to be you transposing your wants onto perfectly natural reactions of varied animals.

i never intentionally emit bad vibes

and i think the birds in general like to play with me

although just like people somtimes they are grumpy

 

And the only grumpy wild birds I have ever seen are being threatened, whether by my presence around their territory, or another bird, cat, dog, predator or other perceived threat to their natural state of existence.

[belovelife]

i do not not mean to sound rude

but all these comments have negative connotations

 

as far as the bird that lead me to the grove

it flew up then landed an a branch and started whisleing

a mimic of my call

and all the birds sang a merry song

 

now hitchihikin there were these bushes spaced on the road

and as i walked the birds would play hopscotch from bush to bush

probly like 20 miles worth on the 1 from santa barbra towards big sur

 

and on the vibration part i would try to explain

you know how when 2 dogs meet they circle and get near eachothers throat

its to see if eachother is a threat and how much

now the same ting applies to all life

now with birds, they play all day

and it seems to me when i go to play with them

they play with me in a light hearted way

 

like this one time i went hiking with this girl

i told her its like a dream, and you need to invite the birds in with the right energy

well she wanted to play also

so we walked around and did various calls, while looking for birds

then we sat in this cove

and all of a sudden we heard some bird chirps

so then i mimmicked them a few timesin rythem with their words

then once i knew they knew i was mimmicking them

i did my call again

and like 60 birds flew into the cove we were in

she was amazed, and so happy

then she started to do her call again

and the birds did the fly at her and open wings and fly up to show off their pattern

i think that is like a greeting for them

 

sometimes i wear a poncho and put it like wings open

then usually more birds hang with me

[Cedars]

i do not not mean to sound rude

but all these comments have negative connotations

Negative because it doesnt fit into your ideas of cause/effect?

 

Humans are a danger to the birds. That is the reality. Between roads and cars, cats and dogs, windows and habitat loss, we are a danger to these animals, with intent or not. Its not my fault that it did not occur to you the potential negative side effects of your behaviors when surrounding yourself with creatures of the wild. You have no idea what you are communicating to these creatures, you dont even know what they are beyond "singing birds". Simply put, to "play your game", you are lying to these animals. Yours is a game of deception. And the ones you do manage to fool become less protected from the reality of people.

 

now hitchihikin there were these bushes spaced on the road

and as i walked the birds would play hopscotch from bush to bush

probly like 20 miles worth on the 1 from santa barbra towards big sur

See. To me it sounds like hunting birds. Looking for bugs most likely. Could have been teaching their young foraging methods.

 

Nothing to do with playing hopscotch.

 

like this one time i went hiking with this girl

i told her its like a dream, and you need to invite the birds in with the right energy

well she wanted to play also

so we walked around and did various calls, while looking for birds

then we sat in this cove

and all of a sudden we heard some bird chirps

so then i mimmicked them a few timesin rythem with their words

then once i knew they knew i was mimmicking them

i did my call again

and like 60 birds flew into the cove we were in

she was amazed, and so happy

then she started to do her call again

and the birds did the fly at her and open wings and fly up to show off their pattern

i think that is like a greeting for them

Birds will become acclimated to human presence. The bird flying up to show off their pattern... Kinda like they do infront of a window when they see their reflection? Sorry dude, but thats territory/dominance. Some birds will aggressively attack the reflection, others just strut their stuff and show their colors.

 

While you wish to assign 'negativity' to my response, if your going to encourage others to participate in such behaviors, you should expect someone may hold a different point of view on this very behavior and may post a counterpoint to your suggestion.

 

You appear to have no idea what these birds are, not even to the point of being able to describe them as sparrows, or warblers, or any hint of specie type. As I said in my first response:

 

"I would suggest doing this at a minimum especially during the mating/brood raising season. It has been suggested for some types of birds, the presence of a human doing this repeatedly in a territory can drive a male bird away as he feels he would lose a fight with this larger competition."

 

NOTE: I did not say you should NEVER do this, only put some thought into when and where you choose to mislead these wild creatures. Ya know.. like not leading them out onto the busy highway while waiting for someone to pick you up hitchhiking.

 

Ebird - california

Birding News and Features — California eBird

 

Another source:

California birds during FONT Birding & Nature Tours

[Racoon]

My kitty cat Oreo Loves birdwatching.

...From her window sill .

 

A Chicadee flew into the glass the other day and she jumped a mile in the air.

 

I apprerciate a hunters instinct, but I also prefer to Not have to dump another dead birds body.

 

She loves watching the stellar and scrub jays mingling in teh thundercloud plum tree.

 

:)

[Cedars]

My kitty cat Oreo Loves birdwatching.

...From her window sill .

 

A Chicadee flew into the glass the other day and she jumped a mile in the air.

 

I apprerciate a hunters instinct, but I also prefer to Not have to dump another dead birds body.

 

She loves watching the stellar and scrub jays mingling in teh thundercloud plum tree.

 

:evil:

 

I have birds hit my window especially from January onwards. I built a little box that I keep them in until they recover (the ones who knock themselves out). Around 1 out of 10 end up dying from the impact. Most recover within 30 minutes and some I keep overnight. The box keeps them from dying from shock outside.