A Few Of My Favorite Things

A very wet Barred Owl at Acadia National Park

The thing about birding Maine is that there is too much to see in one visit.  Our goal this time around was to explore unknown birding spaces together so that it would be a new experience. On our final trek out, we explored the 2 islands of Acadia National Park.  It was a beautiful trek in rainy weather.  

Along the way, we'd stop to see a lighthouse or check out a Pileated Woodpecker. 

Pileated Woodpecker

At one point, Kathie swore she hit a Barred Owl on the road.  We stopped so that she could pull herself together. Then we went back to the spot to see if she had actually hit the owl.  I saw some live mice on the road and knew why the owl was in the area. In a beautiful and happy moment, I saw the owl fly onto a fallen tree. The bird was okay.  Phew! 

It was something out of a story book.  An owl in a dark forest with rain falling down around us.  You can't make that stuff up.  Acadia was a beautiful visit on my last day in Maine. I wanted to share a few of my favorite things from my visit with Kathie and Gus this past May and June. Here are some cell phone shots that have not made it onto the blog yet. 

Like our Lek trek in New Mexico, Machias Seal Island was a huge birding highlight for me this year.  We watched the birds up close from our hide. 

I couldn't believe how quickly the hour had passed.  We watched Razorbills interact with each other and it was fascinating.  They are very social birds. 

Razorbills begin to "couple" up and some even copulate!  This is a cell phone pic!

 We had a fun trek out to the island and I highly recommend this trip for birders or people who are interested in nature. 

I'll miss my Coda bear.  And Bonnie!  They were so cute.  Every morning I'd wake up to both of them competing for love. 

Gus and I would have a Coda war.  I held a secret bag of doggy treats in my room for her to come visit. For a time, Gus would wonder why she was always waiting for me to get up.  I told him that Coda loved me more:)  LOL!  Coda is unlike any dog I have known.  She reminds me of my own dog Stacy many years ago.  One day I took her in the car and absolutely loved it. I'm a cat person but I don't mind dogs.  I'm just saying that this Coda character is a pretty special friend. She remembered me from the first time I met her as a puppy.  And it's always hard to say good-bye to that furry bundle of love. 

Another fun and absolutely lovely birding outing happened at an alewife nursery.  Alewife in Wisconsin are considered invasive. They are really saltwater fish that got into our Great Lakes.  They breed well but cannot handle the extreme weather changes of the Great Lakes and will often die off in masses creating a stench along the lakeshore.  American White Pelicans came back and now clean up our shorelines naturally instead of the town having a bulldozer come to the beaches and plow piles of alewife off the shore. Anyhow, in Maine, they apparently breed these fish for people to use as bait.  It was a gorgeous spot full of incredible warblers.  It was here that I discovered my lifer Canada Warbler. 

There comes a point when birding needs to take a break.  I used to go go go. Over the years, I have mellowed.  There are days we power bird and then there are days I refuse to pick up my camera or binos.  I'll do light birding, but it's not the focus.  One day I asked Kathie if we could just go shopping at LL Bean in Freeport.  I am a HUGE fan of this store and discovered, thanks to Magill, that there was an outlet near the main buildings.  I spent way too much money, but I love all my new clothes and shoes.  That was SUCH a fun day! I hate malls. I hate shopping.  But it was fun shopping with Kathie. And Freeport is awesome.  I should also mention that Kathie is the only person I will speak to for a lengthy amount of time on the phone. I hate talking on the phone.  I also hated the idea of getting married because I hate weddings. But somehow Kathie makes all of those things I dread, better. That's just one of the things I love about her. She also got me into tea again.

Breakfast in Bar Harbor

 I discovered this top(above) for her at the outlet and absolutely love how it looks on her.  Now if she can keep from staining it with coffee or tea:)  LOL!  I should also admit that I am guilty of doing the same thing.  When we get together, I tend to eat way more than I do at home.  I have a healthy appetite and love trying new things.  Unless there's a taco salad on the menu.  But I will say that I am proud of myself for limiting the amount of taco salads on our restaurant ventures. I'm not a dessert person, but I am a sucker for blueberries. I did splurge and have fresh blueberry pie from Moody's Diner.  One day we stopped along the ocean at sunset for a nice warm cup of chowder. Maine is a real place full of colorful and unique characters.  There is no one cookie cutter type of person.  They are so weird and fun.  I think that's what I love about Maine so much.  The people are down to Earth and they are their own person.  In so many ways Wisconsin and Maine are similar but I think it's THIS detail about people that makes Maine different.  They could give a shit about what the Jones are doing next door. Northern Maine is awesome. From what I understand, the further south you go in Maine, the more you lose that colorful coastal personality. 

So along the way, we discovered the Kraut Haus near Waldoboro and Oh Mah Gawd.....Kathie ate her first real delicious sauerkraut at this fine German establishment.  We have them in many places around Wisconsin, but in Maine, it is a rarity.  One day, we had the most amazing lunch at this place. 

I love this feeder at Kathie's place.  A Tufted Titmouse and American Goldfinch share in a brief lunch

Maine, for me, is all about the people, scenery, ocean, food and friends.  The birds are great too but you can see most of them in Kathie's backyard. For the first time in my life, I recognized that I love Maine for Maine and not the birds. The birds were fun, but it was really just about getting out and meeting people.  I was in "vacation" mode and had planned several power birding days out.  But it was more fun enjoying the cool weather with the windows open and listening to the birds call bright and early.  I loved cuddling with Coda and having coffee with Kathie, Gus and Chris.  I enjoyed getting my hair cut by her talented daughter Renee. Birds were always around us, but it wasn't the "Maine" thing:)

A Blue Jay sits out by the feeders waiting to get a sip of water

By the end of my stay, I was sad to say good-bye.  The whole trip flew by so quickly. I watched the Browns work together at home and help each other out.  It was my turn to do the same for my family in Wisconsin.  With my Dad recovering from his triple bypass surgery, I was anxious to analyze the whole situation myself instead of hearing progress reports from people. Those birding and family reports are coming up. I want to thank Kathie, Gus, Renee and Chris for such a fun time.  You guys are the best. Next time Kathie, we'll go visit the Golden Girls down in Connecticut:) The Wisconsin adventures are next.  Until next time....

A Mere Fact

At the tip of Merepoint, ME

 Our trip to Maine was so much fun.  I wish Kathie were closer so that we could bird more often, but we knew the time would fly by quickly. 

I won't forget the first night Gus made us Lobster rolls!  I had watched birders salivate while telling me their stories of Maine and their love for....lobster rolls.  Now I understand better why they went crazy over the mention of Maine. 

Chestnut-sided Warbler in Kathie's backyard

For me, birding is about great observations on new birds. It's also about getting better observations on older birds that I've previously seen. Sometimes the work is difficult but it's also very rewarding. 

Many times we didn't have to go far to encounter new birds.  We'd find them everywhere around Merepoint, Wharton's landing, Brunswick and other areas. 

Pileated Woodpecker near Brunswick Landing

The primary targets for the Maine adventures were finding all the "Eastern" versions of our "Western" birds like the Eastern Whip-poor-will, Eastern Towhee, Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Eastern Kingbird, etc etc.  Because I don't live on the eastern side of the US, many of these birds were new!  For many others, these are common birds around their feeders. 

Copulating Horseshoe Crabs

The other targets for our Maine journey focused on the Atlantic Puffin and Bicknell's Thrush.  Those required special trips out to the various areas and were planned well in advance. 

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

As our checklist and time narrowed, we chose our destinations carefully. I think over the course of two weeks, we took two days to do some light birding around Kathie's house. These days were meant for relaxing and recharging our birder batteries:)

These days allowed for us to closely examine several already seen birds and their nesting habitats better.  For example, we watched a Yellow Warbler family nest near the landing by Kathie's house. 

Yellow Warbler

Without disturbing the nest, I took some photos and watched the parents feed their young ones over the course of several days. 

Nesting wasn't just limited to the Yellow Warbler family.  Song Sparrows were busy feeding their young ones as well. 

Song Sparrow

There was a lot of great habitat around Kathie's house. 

She had nesting Bald Eagles and a field full of Bobolinks!

Bobolinks in the fields of gold

And when we weren't walking around, we just sat and watched the feeders together.  Hairy Woodpeckers, Purple Finches and Tufted Titmice came to visit.  

Hairy Woodpecker parent feeding juvenile

Common Grackles lived up to their name. And looking back at it all, Kathie's backyard was a wonderful place of discovery.  The entire drive up and down her magical Merepoint was a wildlife experience.  I will forever remember driving down that several mile road along the forest and ocean.  It was always relaxing and peaceful.  So on the 4th of July when we had to say good-bye, I was sad to go. We didn't have fireworks but we did have fireflies:)

Common Grackle

It is always hard to say good-bye to dear friends.  Everyone was exhausted by the time the trip came to an end, but it was a pretty exciting ride! At the end, I added 35 new bird species to my list and Kathie added several more to her Maine and Life Lists as well. 

I'd like to thank Kathie and Gus for a wonderful time.  It's now time for me to reciprocate the love.  She will need to come and visit in the spring of next year to Arizona so that I can help her find the LeConte's Thrasher and several others she needs for her list:)  Life is short.  It is to be enjoyed and explored.  Our adventures continue back home in Arizona. Until next time Maine!

Micheal discovers L.L. Bean in Freeport, ME

For more birds both near and far, check out Wild Bird Wednesday. 

J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge

Great Blue Heron

Coming from the desert southwest, I was looking forward to my trip to tropical Florida.  It was a state I have never visited. So I knew it would be an overwhelming experience. Lots of new birds and new bird calls.  There were also lots and lots of tourists to avoid!  As a Spanish instructor, I found the Cuban culture around town (and their restaurants) to be quite exciting. Nothing gets the blood pumping faster than some wonderful Spanish speaking.  And of course.....the birds:)

Little Blue Heron followed by the White Ibis

My friend Sydney had invited me to come and stay with her.  She didn't have to do a lot of convincing, but I did warn her about my obsessive addiction to birds. She didn't mind at all:)

Snowy Egret

I'm the easiest person to have around the house.  She didn't have to do any planning because I had done all the research ahead of time.  My only concern was that I'd wear her out with all these bird searches!  I was absolutely shocked that she could keep up with my intense pace.  Most people, like my parents, grumble about me planning every second of their vacation.  It's the teacher in me. There is no moment like now because there may not be tomorrow. Eat, drink and bird!  No TV, some exercise......and a whole world to explore!

Osprey

So one of the first places I knew we had to visit was J.N "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge. This refuge is a protected area of mangrove swamp forest on an overpopulated island.  It also happens to be the number 1 destination of tourists....for it lies on the infamous Sanibel Island which connects to the even more popular Captiva Island.  The bridges and causeways were at times a nightmare with traffic.  People would be stuck in traffic for HOURS!  The secret?  Before dawn, get in your car and leave.  Generally, human tourists are lazy and won't leave until 9 or 10 AM.  But the fisher people and birders understand that 5 AM is the best time to find parking, empty roads, and lots of magnificent wildlife!

Tricolored Heron

Everything involving a road had a charge.  To get to Sanibel, we had to pay 6 bucks.  To get into "Ding", we had to pay another 5!  My goal for our first day visit was to find all of our egrets, herons and possible Roseate Spoonbills.  However, I found much more!  This post today reflects my inability to focus on the landscape.  I promise that my future work will include some of the beautiful vegetation.  I was just so excited to find new birds!

Reddish Egret

The refuge has a wonderful network of roads that wind through the mangrove areas. However, there was one thing I wasn't expecting.....NO-SEE-UMS!  I saw a birder get out of the car with a fine mesh net around his head and thought, "This isn't good."  And it wasn't.  The minute I stepped out of the car to observe the incredible pink birds known as Roseate Spoonbills, I was covered in these tiny bugs.  I felt them crawl all over my skin and I knew it was over.  

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

A week before my visit, there weren't any bugs but the weather had changed and everything became VERY WARM and HUMID.  These bugs are most active at dawn and that's when birders do their thing. 

A shot of pink courtesy of the Roseate Spoonbill

We arrived in time to see at least TWO Roseate Spoonbills!  One flew off and another stayed for a little while longer before it also disappeared. 

Even if you're not a birder, these odd pink birds will grab your attention!  Mission was accomplished!  My issue here is that these birds are common to many Florida birders, but they were new to me.  So I couldn't do the specialized birding that I do in Arizona, California, etc.  I heard the Mangrove Cuckoos but didn't see them.  I was with 2 other birders who counted them on their list.  I didn't do it because I wanted to see them.  Some will say count them and others will understand.  I made a note in my journal that I heard them.  Cuckoos are sneaky birds. And there were many other specialized birds that I knew were in the area, but they require a great deal of time and patience to find.  

Pileated Woodpecker

The refuge was wonderful.  We stopped at nearly every parking pull off to count birds. There was the infamous Shell Mound trail and overlook tower.  Needless to say, I could spend A LOT more time here, but I met my objectives and found every Egret and Heron on my life list.  Next time, it will be the specialty birds!

Fish Crow

My friend Sydney is amazing.  She is such a wonderful hostess and friend.  We had such a fun time together.  While on the trails, she learned about some incredible places to take her future guests.  We both laughed a lot about some of the spots we went to find birds.  Sometimes we were exhausted.  We brought lots of water to stay hydrated.  Sydney has the birding ability within her.  She's always loved birds and can spot them quickly.  For me, I need to hear them.  And like every team, birder or non-birder, I become the ears and they become the eyes.  Thank you Sydney for an amazing week in Southern Florida.  Next time we'll find the American Flamingos together and ride the Everglades!

Finally, here is a little historical information on this strangely named wildlife refuge. Established in 1945 as the Sanibel National Wildlife Refuge, the refuge was renamed in 1967 in honor of pioneer conservationist and political cartoonist Jay Norwood "Ding" Darling. "Ding" headed the U.S. Biological Survey (forerunner for the Fish and Wildlife Service) and is also credited as one of the key people in the development of the National Wildlife Refuge System.