Soggy Shoes

Jeff Cherry shares his private backyard with us on this beautiful morning

One of my missions this summer was to revisit several important sparrows.  In fact, this was a summer of sparrow study.  During my stay in Maine, and in Wisconsin, I focused on habitat and breeding requirements.  We'll visit 3 different tidal salt marsh hotspots today in this post that explore these amazing birds. 

Glossy Ibis

Our first stop is the popular Scarborough Marsh outside of Portland, Maine. Here, we searched for Glossy Ibis and shorebirds.  It was a gorgeous day out.  I think Kathie and I had a lot of fun on this day observing nesting Least Terns in beautiful weather. 

Scarborough Marsh. Photo by Kathie Brown

During the day, it became quite windy. I really liked the salt marsh habitat the most because we don't have this in Arizona. This is a great spot and I highly recommend it to birders. It covers a great expanse of marshland.  Here you can find Saltmarsh Sparrows, egrets, herons, shorebirds and lots of ocean birds.  This marsh obviously connects to the ocean which is yet another great and separate ebird hotspot.

Great Egret

Yet during another day out, Kathie introduced me to a wonderful man by the name of Jeff Cherry.  I really really liked him.  He was a kind soul and a natural birder. We focused on Nelson's Sparrows around his private property known as Cloudmarch. What an amazing place!  A Brown Creeper on this day was visiting a nest in loose bark on a tree.  

We hike around Jeff's large property discovering nesting and migrating birds

Along the way, we observed the eastern species of Willet better.  It may be split down the road as a separate species so I wanted to study this current subspecies better. 

Eastern Willet

During our treks to these beautiful salt marshes, we'd find clammers at low tide filling buckets with these tasty treats. 

A common sight in Maine

We'd often face drizzly weather during our searches. 

Wet cloudy mornings with coffee

The Swamp Sparrow is a gorgeous bird and one I don't see often in Arizona.  I can say that this summer was great for observing them.  I added lots of data for the atlases in Maine and Wisconsin. 

A Swamp Sparrow

I think it was after our visit to Scarborough Marsh that we stopped at this great seafood place.  I have to watch my weight so I held back on lobster rolls in Maine until we arrived at this popular restaurant on the drive back from Scarborough. I was proud of myself.  Normally I make several stops for these highly delicious caloric treats.  Anyhow, it was a popular place for locals.  And I love to people watch.  And listen to local dialects.  I tried unsuccessfully to speak like a Mainer.  Kathie even told me so:)  I loved listening to their way of speaking.  In many ways Wisconsin and Maine have much in common, especially when it comes to accents. 

Instead of a perch fry like you'd have in Wisconsin, these Mainers were enjoying their lobsters and clams. And any good fish or seafood dish requires delicious coleslaw and rolls.  Amen. 

Nelson's Sparrow

Close to Kathie's home, we stopped at a tidal salt marsh.  I braved the ticks(and there were plenty!) and hiked a bit into the salt marsh.  Here I heard the "coins drop in a metal bucket"sound of a Nelson's. Then I felt another presence in the force as well. I heard the unmistakable call of a Saltmarsh Sparrow.  My heart raced. This would be a lifebird!

Saltmarsh Sparrow

Both Nelson's and Saltmarsh Sparrows look similar. They also hang out in the same habitat BUT behave differently.  A Nelson's Sparrow sits on top of his flat dropping coins.  The Saltmarsh Sparrow dens in ravines along the salt creeks of the marsh. I also had to be absolutely sure I didn't have a hybrid on my hands. Another goal for my summer checklist had been achieved. Some birders love owls.  I love love love my sparrows. I mean look at that orange tinge in their plumage.  

Kathie celebrates 500 lifers!

Kathie picked up Saltmarsh Sparrow for the state.  And during our marsh adventures, she eventually reached 500 after we spotted the Little Egret(a rarity) at low tide at a local Audubon center. 

A Little Egret, photo taken in Wales this year is a rarity to the US.  It looks similar to the Snowy Egret.  However, this bird has two floppy plumes that helps with the ID:)

We still have several more adventures in Maine. Until next time.....

The Bridges of Lee County

A Muscovy Duck watches her chicks in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Cape Coral, FL.  Kathie and I both spoke about this bird and how she had found them there.  These birds count in Florida on the ABA.  I meet Olga who watches out for their safety....and maybe go out for a date.   

So I have this friend who decided to go to Cape Coral, FL with her mother.  Little did I know that we both were heading to the same place at different times!  Then Kathie begins to bird those areas without me!!!  I mean really, Ms. Brown!  So what's a friend to do while she's there?  Team up.....via the phone and internet!

Monk Parakeet-another bird we spoke about in great detail (although we went to different places to find this bird)

Somewhere along the way, I remember her telling me that she was going to Florida, but I had forgotten where it was that she was going to visit.  Until she gets there.  I'm excited about all the birds she's seeing.  She's excited about all the birds she's seeing.  And I'm thinking, "Where are you?"  Cape Coral.  No way.  Then she tells me that I never listen.  It's true.

Mottled Duck-I had NO idea that there was such a creature until she told me to keep an eye or two open for these VERY Mallard looking ducks

Then she starts telling me about the places she's visiting.  While we're on the phone, I'm researching all the spots that she's visiting.  She tells me some of the birds she'd like to find.....which also happen to be some of the birds I'D like to find.  And while we're only several millions of miles away, we're still working together as a team.  Almost every night, we chat on the phone for an hour or two about her day.  If you don't know Kathie, she does like to chat.  I hate talking on the phone, but with Kathie it doesn't phase me.  She's one of the most positive people I know.  Plus we both like to do a lot of reading and research together about....birds.   

"Keep your eyes open around the canals", said Ms. Brown.  After some near car crashes, I learned to both bird and drive at the same time in Florida.  Glad I did!  Found this Glossy Ibis hanging out.  

We've been apart now for over 2 months.  Each time I find a new life bird, I get a little emotional because she isn't here to share in the fun.  That's what we did together.  We'd enter data for ebird during the week from our patches and then on the weekend, we'd work for new birds. So when she was in Florida, we worked on the various patches each day.  I'd read her reports and her Facebook updates and then at night research areas where the birds were being seen.  We'd talk everything through thoroughly to maximize our time out in the field.  Florida, like Arizona, is a rich area full of bird life and one of the states one must visit when doing a big year. Not that I'm doing one.  My mission is to seek out new life and new civilization. 

"There are Osprey everywhere!"  She wasn't kidding. Here a Juvenile Laughing Gull wants to share the meal. 

But Ms. Brown had been so busy with her own life that she hasn't had a moment to breathe.  So when she found the rare Florida Scrub-Jay, she had that moment I have been experiencing since she abandoned me. Deep intense sadness. She couldn't go on with her life without me;) I'm joking of course, but I knew it would happen eventually. Her birding buddy, me, wasn't there to share in the exciting experience.  I was so happy and excited for her but I knew how she felt.  The same thing happened to me while I was looking at the Rosy Finches on Sandía Crest in New Mexico. I had to walk to the shirt rack in the far corner of the store away from everyone. That was something she had wanted to do, but couldn't because of her move back to Maine.  

"Bald Eagles fly over your head!"  They sure did.  WOW!

Both of our spouses joke about us being married.  We're not.  We're just awesome friends who love birding a little too much. Perhaps it's a bit obsessive. But growing up on a National Geographic made me want this life.  Speaking Spanish gave me the keys to explore.  And meeting Ms. Brown was like being back in college again.  We were friends who could spontaneously go out on a birding trek.....anywhere.  Arizona holds many secrets unknown to the public, but the birds exposed us to this incredible world. We're both very curious individuals who like to explore every nook and cranny. Florida was a new playground we both could discover together. And did.

I find it interesting that such a common bird like this Blue Jay is so difficult to get on camera.  So I used my secret weapon.....nuts!

So we never did get to bird together in Lee County, Florida. It was such a bizarre event. So while I was writing this post, I began to laugh at the title. There are several major bridges in Lee County and we crossed them nearly every day to get to all the hotspots! The quote below is from the first book that made me cry. Who knew books could do that to a person?!!!  Anyhow, you might recognize it. 

"There are so many Palm warblers here!"  It wasn't a lie. 

“It's clear to me now that I have been moving toward you and you toward me for a long time. Though neither of us was aware of the other before we met, there was a kind of mindless certainty bumming blithely along beneath our ignorance that ensured we would come together. Like two solitary birds flying the great prairies by celestial reckoning, all of these years and lifetimes we have been moving toward one another.” (Quote from the Bridges of Madison County)  This of course speaks of the love relationship that develops in that book, but it also works with friendship.   

"You'll have Gray Catbirds on almost all your counts."  No kidding!

As for the bridges of Lee County? Well they cost 2 dollars to cross and 6 bucks if you're heading over to Captiva Island.  But that is another story.....

For more on birds from around our world, check out Wild Bird Wednesday!