Looking Back-Bird Island

"Looking Back" is a series of posts that force me to go back into my files and use pictures that I thought weren't very good to post.  And yet at second glance, they look pretty good to me.  But this post didn't happen because of "Looking Back".  It happened because of EBIRD.

Over the past couple of days, I've been documenting my work.  And it has been rewarding beyond belief!  I've been to many places and in those places, I've witnessed many incredible sightings.  Just didn't realize it until taking the time to really look.......

It has been an exciting trip for me because I am re-examining photos for the first time that have birds.  The photo documentation does not lie.

EBIRD asks..."Are you sure there were that many birds?"  Yes.  Because of Spanish, I'm able to speak with the locals and get the 411 on hotspots.  Some spots are common while others are known only by local people who don't want tourists in those areas. However, they are much friendlier to those who speak their language:)  I am always thankful for that ability.  And I hope to continue that tradition while abroad.   Bird Island in Mexico is really for people who are serious about birding.  The boat ride is not fun at all.  It's miles of rocky ocean waves and you need a strong stomach to find the boobies. Okay okay.....I know that sounds funny...but it's true.  Look at the very small part of this island on the pic above. Just how many birds ARE there?

Red Billed TropicBird!

And while thousands of Boobies fly around you, things like this Red Billed Tropicbird pass you by and you say to yourself, "HOLY $%#*!"  Did I just see that?!!!  And the camera reveals all.  A quick hand on the manual focus captured this shot....and yet....I didn't post it.  The lighting was my issue.  But for documentation, this was a very important find!

And I didn't include the gulls because they are not my favorite birds to observe.  I grew up with them in Wisconsin on Lake Michigan and I think they are dirty rats flying in the sky.  And yet, when it comes to a life list and documentation....every bird is important.  Sorry for those of you who love gulls.  They are just not my thing.  It's a cheesehead thing:)

Booby or gull?  I'll take a Blue Footed Booby anyday!

Heermann's Gull

That gull was scary!  One time I watched one take out a human's dinner near Pier 5 in San Francisco.  While I laughed, I was horrified when all tens of gulls descended from their hiding places.  Let's just say that people cleared the walkways quick!  Bye bye clam chowder.  The Alpha gull fought my Marine brother in-law and WON!

The Booby babies are much cuter, aren't they?  Love their nesting on the rocky shores of these human-less islands.

So I reluctantly searched through every gull pic and sat with my bird guide and ID'd.

But when you have Cormorants, Tropicbirds, Boobies etc all around you, it's hard to focus. Blow that pic up and count the birds!!!  I dare you:)  And that's only a small part of that island.

Seals are cool mammals but we had to watch out as they were coming close to our boat.  There was a family that was feeding them which included their little boy. Mom and Dad thought it would be a great idea to bring him along.  Instead all 3 of them were on the floor throwing up for most of the trip.  And then they threw their plastic vomit filled bags into the water where these seabirds could get snagged.  Mexico has a long way to go on conservation.  One of my challenges is to hold my tongue in countries like Mexico. My challenge is to find programs that are working in this country over the next several years and visit them.

But back to EBIRD.  While many of the shots didn't turn out, I could successfully ID birds that I knew I had seen in the wild. But the question remained....how do I count a sky blackened by birds in the thousands? This year it has been Sandhill Cranes, Yellow Headed Blackbirds and Boobies.

Snowy Egrets

Ebird suggests breaking down a photo or a location into bubbles. In photography that is easy.  But without a camera, it can be challenging.  In the case of the Booby on the San Jorge islands, most of the island chain was covered with nesting birds.  I counted one bubble and multiplied it times the "bird clusters" in the photo.  It was conservative but by the end of my count from what I could only observe, I had counted nearly 4000 Blue Footed Boobies!!!

And that's a lot of Booby!  So it has been a fun journey through the photography.  I've nearly added 60 species to my lifelist....and I wasn't even birding at the time.  Just trying to get a pretty pic.  Which in hindsight aren't very pretty.  My eye in photography is getting sharper as are my skills in birding. And I'm finding so much more.  More tomorrow....

Boobies Galore!

This post today will probably get a lot of hits....and all for the wrong reasons.  Even saying the name out loud makes me blush.  Even typing it out makes me cringe a little.  Booby. And it's all about them today:)  But before I begin, have you ever written something that has information that is considered "out of the norm"?  For example, I find that a post I wrote about two years ago on meth and my garden is still quite popular today as it was when it first hit the internet waves back in 2010 or a post mentioning nude hiking last year still gets a lot of hits.  And clicking on the stats "What was typed in" part, is quite humorous:) So I imagine this post today will have the same appeal but for all the wrong reasons:) But hey, maybe they'll learn something.

I was pretty excited about finding the Blue Footed and Brown Boobies nesting on Bird Island because they are normally found further south.....as far down as the Galapagos Islands, Gulf of Mexico etc. So this was a real treat to see in person.  And that's why this post is dedicated to these birds.  If you look closely at the beak or feet, you'll see the light blue colors on this interesting bird.   And like Betsy always says on her blog, "click on the pics to make them larger."  PS.  Betsy, you've coined that phrase.  I say copyright and earn some money off of it:) 

As you approach the islands, you'll begin to see a different kind of bird flying around your boat.  The gulls are still around, but the Brown and Blue Footed Boobies clouded the skies!  There were more Brown Footed Boobies than Blue Footed.  BUT!!!  The cool part?  The nesting habits of these birds....

Check this shot out above.  I've got better ones below.  Savage and brutal...here's the story.  Much like an Owl, their nest isn't anything special.  They take over a rocky area and usually lay 2 eggs.  They have to watch out for gulls because they will eat the eggs or babies.  Growing up with gulls, I don't really care for them too much.  Don't get me wrong.  They are cool, but for my little town of Two Rivers, they were considered cockroaches of the sky.  And I realize how wrong I was back then about these birds, but they are opportunists....just like people.  Maybe we are the cockroaches of this planet.  In fact, I'm pretty sure we are.  Anyhow, during my shoot, I saw a gull snatch a newly born chick.  Okay...it was kinda cool:)

Colonies upon colonies of these birds covered these rock islands.  I can't express how many thousands of birds were found here.  My camera couldn't do justice capturing their nests en masse.  They look like little black blurps in the background.   So here is another interesting fact about the nesting.  While it's common for 2 eggs to hatch in the nest, it's not uncommon to see only one chick survive.  The stronger one will always win....just like anything in nature.  If all of my 5 cats were placed outside to fight and survive here in the desert, my bet would be on my grey cat.  She's a tank! That's why she gets a little extra cream:)  Our pampered white kitty wouldn't have a chance.

Here's some more fun.  Parenting is done by both male and female.

These chicks are also very adorable.  They cling closely to their parents for assistance.

This is a "teenager" below getting ready for take off. 

This Double Crested Cormorant watches on and approves:)  This could be the next great Pixar film!!!

Here is a good example of nesting.  One parent has a chick while the one in the back has two.  My observations saw more one chick nests over the two chick nest.

You may ask how they feed?  The parents regurgitate the food into their beaks and the chicks go inside and help themselves to lunch:)

Look at how this chick is looking at the parent with "hungry" eyes...."open your beak!!"    The parent is saying, "I got nothing here kiddo.":)

I like to joke around a lot because it's fun to get people to react.  But I have an expression I like to use with my other half and others..."Momma bird baby bird."  A lot of bird parents "chew up" the food for their chicks. When my nephews or nieces want their food cut up without using "please", I ask them, "Momma bird baby bird?"  And they get grossed out.   Especially so in my family because my mother has raised lots of parrots and parrokeets.  Have you seen the liquid stuff they eat?  It looks like the food we feed our Senior Citizens at hospitals and retirement homes!!  My first job was at a kitchen hospital in high school. I don't think there was anything nastier than seeing "PUREE" on the menu.  Oh and finding dentures in a soup bowl.  That's pretty gross as well.  My point here.  I don't EVER want to be put in a retirement home.

In fact I write this blog for my later years.  If I start having symptoms of dimensia, I'll have these pictures and stories to remember and be remembered by!:)  I think I am already showing the first signs of it.  You all should hear my father.  He loops!  Seriously, how can a man talk about weather for an hour?!:)  I think he missed his calling as a weather forecaster. Love you Dad:)

This shoot was very special for me and I hope you enjoyed the trip to bird island.  There are some posts that I like to call, "the million dollar" ones.  This is one of them.  They are the posts that allow me to escape roads and humans for days or hours just to experience a world without electronics, people, and chaos.  The ones where I have to keep an eye open for crocs or sliding to my death on muddy trails.....or being thrown overboard by a rogue wave. It's just me, the camera, some water and a few snacks with good friends.  It's not for everyone, but for me, it's perfection.  Tomorrow, we'll finish my series at Puerto Peñasco, Mexico.