Well-the 12th annual Great Backyard Bird Count is history. Feb. 13-16 were the dates of the count. The GBBC is a low key, effortless activity for me. Simply count the birds and enter the data on the GBBC website. I participated on the first and last days of the count and rested for the weekend. And I only counted my feeder and yard birds through my kitchen window (see my previous post of the same name). But it is always good to pay attention and to take stock. I saw the usual chickadees, titmice, woodpeckers (hairy and downy), doves, cardinals, nuthatches (red-breasted and white-breasted), jays, goldfinches, and juncos. European Starlings were present and unwelcome. On the other hand Pine Siskins showed up in abundance and I was happy to see them, even though they are eating me out of house and home. I have waited years to see siskins and I cherish them now that they are here. The surprise of the count was the appearance of two Common Redpolls at my feeder. I surmise that these redpolls had visited the feeder before and I missed them. Not paying attention as I said.
Nationally, over 85,000 checklists have been submitted to date, counting over 600 species and over 10,000,000 birds. Wow. In Vermont a more modest 693 checklists have been submitted, counting 79 species and 39,313 birds. A respectable showing for a small state. Looking down the list of Vermont birds there was an astonishing number of Wild Turkeys (almost 1000) reported and, not surprisingly, a huge number of Pine Siskins (6359 up from 49 in 2008), reflecting the remarkable Pine Siskin irruption this year. A surprise (to me) was the number of Red-bellied Woodpeckers reported (79). Climate change? And am I gloating over the fact that I was the only birder in Vermont to report a Snowy Owl (at Royal Drive in South Burlington) this year? You bet. You can explore all of the results of the GBBC at their website http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc. See you next year for the Great Backyard Bird Count.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Ice is Nice
I've been a fisherman from the time I was 4 years old. Ever since I caught a "calico bass" on a handline while fishing from the Memorial Bridge at Island Grove Pond in Abington, Massachusetts, with my grandfather, I've been an enthusiast. I recall that my grandfather fileted this fish, but I don't recall eating it. No matter. I was hooked. Years later I caught a 4 lb. Largemouth Bass from this exact spot with a ridiculous lure of my own devising. As a teenager, I became a fishing fanatic.
Ice fishing came later. I don't recall ice fishing in Massachusetts (we played hockey on the ice), but when I came to Vermont in 1962, I promptly took up the sport. Ice fishing in Vermont is not for the faint-hearted. These days I have a 20-20-20 rule for ice fishing-more than 20 degrees F., less than 20 mph wind, and more than 20 inches of ice. With 50 degree F. temperatures today and less than 10 mph winds, I was golden.
Maybe I'm getting too old for ice fishing, but cutting holes in the ice is a lot of work. Right now there is 2 feet of ice at Keeler's Bay, one of my favorite ice fishing spots. I have never owned a gas-powered augur, preferring to cut my holes by hand. And I have never owned a shanty. One of the keys to successful ice fishing is mobility and it is hard to move a shanty around the lake. But some days I wonder. Wouldn't it be easier if.....!
Whatever. February and March are dependable ice fishing months in Vermont. Today was a glorious February day and folks who decline to go forth on the ice, flaunting my 20-20-20 rule, do not know what they are missing. The warm sun is a refreshing hint of Spring and the majestic Green Mountains are simply breathtaking. And the fishing is good. Using a simple ice fishing rod and a double hook set up of a Rapala ice fishing lure and a single gold spinner with perch eyes attached, I caught about 30 Yellow Perch in less than an hour. I caught no pike or pickerel this time, my main quarries, but they will come soon. The spawning season is less than a month away. For the moment-the ice is nice!
Ice fishing came later. I don't recall ice fishing in Massachusetts (we played hockey on the ice), but when I came to Vermont in 1962, I promptly took up the sport. Ice fishing in Vermont is not for the faint-hearted. These days I have a 20-20-20 rule for ice fishing-more than 20 degrees F., less than 20 mph wind, and more than 20 inches of ice. With 50 degree F. temperatures today and less than 10 mph winds, I was golden.
Maybe I'm getting too old for ice fishing, but cutting holes in the ice is a lot of work. Right now there is 2 feet of ice at Keeler's Bay, one of my favorite ice fishing spots. I have never owned a gas-powered augur, preferring to cut my holes by hand. And I have never owned a shanty. One of the keys to successful ice fishing is mobility and it is hard to move a shanty around the lake. But some days I wonder. Wouldn't it be easier if.....!
Whatever. February and March are dependable ice fishing months in Vermont. Today was a glorious February day and folks who decline to go forth on the ice, flaunting my 20-20-20 rule, do not know what they are missing. The warm sun is a refreshing hint of Spring and the majestic Green Mountains are simply breathtaking. And the fishing is good. Using a simple ice fishing rod and a double hook set up of a Rapala ice fishing lure and a single gold spinner with perch eyes attached, I caught about 30 Yellow Perch in less than an hour. I caught no pike or pickerel this time, my main quarries, but they will come soon. The spawning season is less than a month away. For the moment-the ice is nice!
Friday, February 6, 2009
Walking in Audubon's Footsteps
In 1821-1822 John James Audubon spent several months in New Orleans, perfecting his technique for painting birds in lifelike poses. Audubon was in his mid-thirties at the time and was fully devoted to the task of completing his great enterprise, having been wiped out financially in the depression of 1819 (sound familiar?). This past week Pam and I flew to NOLA to visit my daughter Molly in her new digs, enjoy this wonderful city's unique blend of food, music, and culture, and to follow in Audubon's footsteps.
When Audubon arrived in NOLA he lived on Barracks St. at the eastern edge of the French Quarter. Later, he moved to the Pirrie plantation, Oakley, north of Baton Rouge to teach young Eliza Pirrie the elements of drawing and to continue his pursuit of new specimens for his folio. Today this plantation forms the core of the Audubon National Historic Site. When Audubon returned to NOLA in 1822, he resided at 55 (now 505) Dauphine St. in the Quarter. Unfortunately, I found little evidence of Audubon's presence on Dauphine St. These buildings are now privately owned, though registered as a national historic site, and are called the Audubon Cottages (Audubon lived in cottage #6, I was told.).
Among the many specimens that Audubon collected (i.e. shot) while residing in NOLA were the Brown Pelican (plate #251 in Birds of America)-now the Louisiana state bird-and a Fish Crow (plate #146). I visited Audubon Park and City Park in NOLA precisely with the intent of identifying these two birds. I was not disappointed. Both species were abundantly present. Furthermore, there was no lack of other choice specimens to add to my hypothetical life list. My favorites? A dozen Black-bellied Whistling Ducks resplendent with black bellies, tan heads, a white eye ring, and red bills. Other favorites included a close-up look at a Red-shouldered Hawk, a variety of herons, egrets, and ibises, a Carolina Chickadee, two Common Moorhens, two Brown Thrashers, two Northern Mockingbirds, and an Anhinga or two. In just a few hours I spotted 35 different species of birds. Imagine how many different birds Audubon must have seen during his many forays into the Louisiana countryside.
Perhaps most impressive to me were the swans that I saw. Despite the fact that both species that I encountered are non-natives, the several Mute Swans and the pair of Black Swans that I saw were astonishingly beautiful creatures. I have no doubt that Audubon would have been as impressed as I was by these majestic birds. If only he had had the opportunity to paint them.
When Audubon arrived in NOLA he lived on Barracks St. at the eastern edge of the French Quarter. Later, he moved to the Pirrie plantation, Oakley, north of Baton Rouge to teach young Eliza Pirrie the elements of drawing and to continue his pursuit of new specimens for his folio. Today this plantation forms the core of the Audubon National Historic Site. When Audubon returned to NOLA in 1822, he resided at 55 (now 505) Dauphine St. in the Quarter. Unfortunately, I found little evidence of Audubon's presence on Dauphine St. These buildings are now privately owned, though registered as a national historic site, and are called the Audubon Cottages (Audubon lived in cottage #6, I was told.).
Among the many specimens that Audubon collected (i.e. shot) while residing in NOLA were the Brown Pelican (plate #251 in Birds of America)-now the Louisiana state bird-and a Fish Crow (plate #146). I visited Audubon Park and City Park in NOLA precisely with the intent of identifying these two birds. I was not disappointed. Both species were abundantly present. Furthermore, there was no lack of other choice specimens to add to my hypothetical life list. My favorites? A dozen Black-bellied Whistling Ducks resplendent with black bellies, tan heads, a white eye ring, and red bills. Other favorites included a close-up look at a Red-shouldered Hawk, a variety of herons, egrets, and ibises, a Carolina Chickadee, two Common Moorhens, two Brown Thrashers, two Northern Mockingbirds, and an Anhinga or two. In just a few hours I spotted 35 different species of birds. Imagine how many different birds Audubon must have seen during his many forays into the Louisiana countryside.
Perhaps most impressive to me were the swans that I saw. Despite the fact that both species that I encountered are non-natives, the several Mute Swans and the pair of Black Swans that I saw were astonishingly beautiful creatures. I have no doubt that Audubon would have been as impressed as I was by these majestic birds. If only he had had the opportunity to paint them.
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