The Ospreys Have Returned!

 Birding Tip #1: Look Up!  It's a simple tip but it really works.

I figured today would be just another walk with my dogs...although I usually have my eyes and ears open for birds.  I had only just begun when I saw an osprey silently gliding along the water's edge close by, occasionally obscured by the trees.  I kept my eyes on him or her (telling the difference between male and female ospreys is rather difficult) as much as possible without missing my footing and going sprawling headfirst onto the sidewalk.  After a few minutes, I lost sight of him.  Then, the familiar high pitched chirping sound of the osprey made me turn my head.  I saw him perched at the top of a tall Douglas fir tree in a backyard.  He (or she) presumed to chirp incessantly.  I stopped and watched, my dogs constantly tugging on the leash eager to continue their walk.  I'm sure people were wondering what I was looking at...or perhaps not, considering people passed by me and no one bothered to look in the direction I was focused on, despite the bird's racket.

Photo by Kim Taylor, Virginia, July 2011

From my experience observing Merlin Falcons, raptors generally vocalize while perched at the top of tall trees for a number of reasons.  The calling may have been to a mate or a juvenile calling for its parents, or vice versa.  Unfortunately, without binoculars and notoriously bad vision I had a hard time distinguishing whether it was a juvenile or not based off of the pronounced white outline on the black feathers on the back of the bird's body.  (Also, given the time of the year, the young may not have fledged yet, aka learned to fly).  I'm pretty certain I was looking at an adult.  Other reasons a raptor may be vocalizing in this manner is to signal that it has food for the nesting parent.  It could have also been territorial, however, ospreys are usually only territorial in the near vicinity of their nests (The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011) and the nest was not in sight. 
 

Photo by Kim Taylor, Virginia, July 2011

This isn't the first time I've seen ospreys near where I live.  They have been returning each summer for years.  Last year, after finishing up a walk, I saw one soar in my direction, flying very low, with something in its talons.  I stood on the sidewalk and watched it perch at the top of a cedar in the neighbor's backyard and rip apart a fish.  It looked up often to make sure another bird wasn't going to steal its lunch.

Osprey are almost exclusively fish eaters, whether it's fresh or saltwater fish.  They're really good at fishing, with success rates reaching as high as 70% (studies examined by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011).  They also create interesting nests...mostly because of their location.  Ospreys generally nest on the top of flat surfaces, such as dead standing trees (snags), cliffs, telephone poles and man-made nesting platforms (The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011).  With all that fish it must get rather smelly...fortunately most osprey nests have good ventilation!

Photo by Kelly Wohlwend (author)

Driving out of Jackson, Wyoming (it's been many, many years since, so I want to say I was heading west) after visiting Grand Teton National Park, I saw one osprey nest after another along the road.  Unfortunately, this was before I purchased my Nikon with a zoom lens...but hopefully you can see the osprey in the nest.  These nests were all built on man-made platforms, specifically made for ospreys to construct their nests.

Allaboutbirds.org (one of my favorite birding websites) has a live web cam set up in Montana of a nesting osprey.  Take a look!

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/page.aspx?pid=2487

Another interesting factoid that I (sadly) was unaware of was the fact that the Seattle Seahawks' name and logo were inspired by the osprey.  Another name for the osprey is, you guessed it, sea hawk.  I guess the resemblance is pretty obvious. 

Image from wallpaperstub.com

Photo courtesy of NASA from nationalgeographic.com

So, just remember, birds are everywhere and you never know what bird you'll see that day...so look up and Happy Birding!

References:


The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011, www.allaboutbirds.org

Sibley, Allen D.  2003.  The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf.  471 pp.  

A Swift Sighting

Pileated woodpecker photo by Aida Villaronga

The Pacific Northwest has been the only place in the continental United States not baking in an oven.  We've been "enjoying" cool temperatures and quite a bit of rain until today...the 4th of July.  I wonder what the birds think of all the fireworks that go off during the day and especially at night.  Most are probably perched in the relative safety of a tree hoping it doesn't get blown to smithereens from a stray firework.  Only if birds had cognitive, human thoughts...I guess. 

Today the weather is turning around.  Dubbed the first day of summer in Seattle, the 4th of July has been comfortably warm with a slight breeze.  After getting home from work (yes I unfortunately had to work today) I decided to soak up some rays (not too upset I missed the sun bath because the rest of the week is supposed to hit the mid-80s).  I've seen a number of strange birds from my backyard, or maybe not strange but birds I wouldn't expect to see in the suburbs, from pileated woodpeckers to varied thrushes and even western tanagers.

Varied thrush, photo by Kelly Wohlwend

Western tanager  photo by Stephen Parsons

Barn swallow, Photo by JMK Birder

But the one I saw flying over my house today was one of the most exciting...black swifts.  A very uncommon bird (not even described by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011), I had to do a double-take as I saw it erratically flying in the clear, blue sky today.  At first I knew it wasn't a swallow because of it's size.  Swallows have an average wing span of 12 inches and I could tell even from my land-locked place on Earth that this bird was bigger and much darker.  Black swifts are also recognizable by their tail, which is larger and more pronounced when they fly, unlike most swallows.  A majority of swallow species have a forked tail (watch out, not all of them, check the cliff swallow!), which is very distinguishable. 

Black swift, photo from the Slater Museum of Natural History

As I sat on my deck, soaking up the evening rays I watched these amazing birds dance in the sky, intertwined with the smaller, white (on the belly) tree swallows.  I could easy separate the tree swallows from the swifts by their bright, white underside and smaller, pointed tail.  Trying to get the swifts in my binoculars was the biggest challenge...but once I had one on my radar I was able to confirm my sighting.  Just another bird to check off my life list...













References:

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2011, www.allaboutbirds.org

Sibley, Allen D.  2003.  The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf.  471 pp.

Here Chickadee-dee-dee

My love for birding...where it really began...

My grandparents live near the city but when you stand in their gigantic backyard you feel worlds away.  The trees are tall, the grass is green and the flowers are vibrant, alive with the hum of bees.  Standing in this mini forest you feel as if you've entered a small oasis in the middle of a rapidly developing suburb.  Birds congregate in this safe haven to search for worms in the dirt, stop at the bird bath for a quick spritz or grab some take out sunflower seeds at the feeder.  

Wandering around their yard one sunny afternoon, I decided to get a closer look at the birds which were frequenting the feeder.  Most of them were a small bird with a black hat and striking white bars over their eyes.  Their eyes were tiny yet piercing and it seemed impossible for them to remain still for even the slightest moment.  They were rattling off a cacophony of "chickadee-dee-dee's" while constantly turning their bodies and moving their heads from side to side.  

As I approached, slowly, not wanting to scare them away, I was surprised at how brave these tiny birds were.  Were they just mocking me and saying "you're too small to be any threat to me" or were they so adamant about eating they knew a young girl wasn't going to keep them from their buffet?  Whatever the reason, I continued to walk closer to the feeder and the Chickadees continued to poke their tiny beaks inside to grab a single black sunflower seed.  They would then fly to a nearby branch where they would vigorously peck away at the shell and consume the meaty goodness inside.  

Realizing just how close I could get to a wild bird I ran back to my grandma's house.  The door was open to let the heat of the day inside so I bolted inside and ran downstairs to the cool basement.  Opening the large tin that housed the black gold I scooped up a handful of sunflower seeds and ran back outside.  The birds were still there.  I approached slowly, my palm full of their favorite food and I inched closer and closer to the feeder until I stood only a foot away.  I watched.  The Chickadees turned their heads to the side and watched me from a safe distance, calculating my threat level.  Deciding I wasn't a danger, they proceeded to fly onto the feeder, grab their snack and land on the nearest branch to eat.  

I smiled.  I opened up my palm with the seeds and held my hand as still as I could only inches from their smorgasbord.  At first, they ignored me.  Only rewarding my efforts with a sideways glance.  There was the occasional "chickadee-dee" but other than that I was merely a distraction worth ignoring.  Then, after what seemed like hours, it happened.  A Chickadee, who had decided my open palm was more appealing than the full tube of seeds, landed on my thumb.  He was so light I barely felt him but the gentle "tap tap" of his feet was enough to make me aware he was there.  At first, he was hesitant...unsure...questioning.  I didn't want to scare him away, I didn't even breathe and then he bent over, snatched up a single sunflower seed and flew to the nearest branch and pecked away.  As the shell went flying and he scored his reward I couldn't help but think "I love birds."