"Maine-iac Birders"

I had arrived at the tail end of migration yet again. The minute I saw Blackpoll Warblers, I knew the game was over. My quest for Bay-breasted and Cape May Warblers would have to wait for another day. 

How does one say gaudy in Maine-ish?

But that didn't stop our grand adventures.  Birding around Maine is as scenic as it gets in the US.  However, the bugs were relentless.  Black flies, mosquitoes and ticks were in full force.  And I thought Wisconsin was bad.  Maine, besides maybe Florida, beats most of the states for crazy bug attacks. Although, I've heard Alaska is a nightmare in summer. They say bird along the coast, but honestly, the coast was just as bad. 

Broad-winged Hawk

Between the odd and fantastical, we discovered many incredible birds together. I loved seeing several bird species better.  Several were on my list of "must see again". 

As Kathie and I both explored beautiful spaces near her home, we observed many birds singing and moving about branches. 

Blackpoll Warblers are one of the last warblers to migrate

Many birds were setting up territories. 

Bobolink males call and set up their territories

And between the constant attack of the blackfly, I was able to get off a couple shots here and there.  It's no wonder why warblers love Maine.  There's plenty of food for them there:)

Then an amazing thing happened!  I was able to get wonderful observations of a bird I had only seen briefly ONCE, the Scarlet Tanager. 

When they are breeding, they are super difficult to observe.  Luckily we hit a fantastic observation window where they were still moving and calling out in the open.  I not only got to see this bird once but MANY times.  We even rescued an injured one!

Purple Finches are wonderfully colored and were in good numbers everywhere we went. 

A finch dipped in raspberry jam, the Purple Finch

Vireos made me cringe.  They all sound similar.  My job was to find a Philadelphia Vireo and separate it from the Red-eyed and Warbling Vireos in the area. 

A pair of Red-eyed Vireos

Some birds are super tricky.  I had some work ahead of me.  Every day we went out and counted birds. 

Even though the migration was coming to an end, there were still a lot of great warblers out there. 

Chestnut-sided Warbler

A Veery popped out into the open. 

Veery

The exciting shrill, "Free Beer!", of the Alder Flycatcher made us smile. 

Alder Flycatcher

The picturesque Cedar Waxwings posed often in budding Apple Trees. 

Cedar Waxwings

Baltimore Orioles collected cattail fuzz for their nests. 

female Baltimore Oriole

Gray Catbirds appeared from behind our backs always watching us from the shadows. 

Gray Catbird

Black-throated Blue Warblers were loudly calling inside the forests. 

Black-throated Blue Warbler

And this Ruby-throated Hummingbird fiercely protected his feeder from other hummingbirds. 

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The electronic warble of the Bobolink was a common sound among the wildflower tinged grasses.

In short.  It was nice revisiting several bird species that I don't get to see often in Arizona.  Once we finished our first sweep of the common birds, we began our journey for the harder ones.  And those stories will be told over the next several weeks. So until next time, use some bug spray:)  This wet and cold summer of the North has arrived. 

Mammalia

Gray Fox

We may love birds, but we're no dummies.  When a mammal, lizard, new plant, frog or bug shows up, we snap pics. And who can refuse those outlandish sunsets or epic landscapes? Our trip to New England was phenomenal in that we were able to observe so many wonderful mammals!

Red Squirrel

I will say that they are much easier to capture on camera than a bird:)  And sometimes while I'm behind the camera, I have to remember where I have my footing so that I don't fall into a pond or get too close to the large elk, bear or moose!  Just a little closer....and BAM! I have a squirrel on top of my head tearing the hair out! Can you tell that I have an active imagination?:)

Luckily, nature has been good to me.  No bear attacks or getting an antler jabbed into my belly.  The scariest encounters with mammals I've had have been with a mother Javelina and her babies!  It wasn't something I had been planning.  We just crossed paths together at the same time accidentally and in that moment, I thought "Oh $#%!".  

Porcupine

I've been mobbed by a nesting Northern Mockingbird in a parking lot.  And a Zone-tailed Hawk swooped down on my head when I accidentally got too close to her nest.  So for the most part, the trails have been kind to me:)

Red Fox

In Kathie's world, there are so many furry critters.  Everywhere we went, there was a new life mammal.  I had never seen a Groundhog or Weasel before!

Groundhog

But the most exciting find came from a secretive patch of forest near the New Hampshire/Maine border.  A big man in a teal rusty truck drove towards us and asked in strange drawl, "You folks wanna see a moose?!  There's one down this way feeding in the pond. " So we all looked at each other and forgot about birds for one brief moment and high tailed it down "the road" as quietly as we could.  Now the man must have said something to someone else because a noisy motorcycle from New York sped loudly in from behind us. 

Moose

Thankfully, he shut off his loud motor and we were able to observe this incredibly beautiful moment together.  For quite some time, we stood and just marveled at some classic New England beauty.  

A Chipmunk

I'm not sure which of the critters were my favorite because they were all so cool, but if I had to pick one.....

It would be the Gray Fox.  There is an intelligence with these creatures and many times while we were birding in Kathie's backyard, they'd come to visit us.  

So while mammals aren't our primary targets, they are still loved and admired.   Nature is awesome and should be enjoyed as a whole.  More to come....

As Far As The Condor Flies

We had an adventure planned to the North Rim this past weekend.  It was to find as many nesting birds as we could.  And we did. We discovered so many nesting Williamson's Sapsuckers, Western Bluebirds, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, and Brewer's Blackbirds!

Nesting Brewer's Blackbird

For many of us, it was to exhaust our pent up energy from being trapped inside of our homes. The desert is too hot right now to explore.  And so our hungry eyes and eager ears went to work as we scoured every nook and cranny of the much cooler North Rim.

Western Tanager

For many of us, our journey to the North Rim began with the infamous California Condors at Marble Canyon.  In many ways, I consider them the sentinels of the North Rim.  Travelers have to cross a magnificent bridge into a magical area known as the Vermilion Cliffs. It was here that the Condors circled and soared around us. For many in the group, these birds were lifers.  For me, I watched the birds and the people's first time reactions as they all stood in awe of these massive creatures in flight. 

California Condor

Our journey would lead us into the canyon down gravel and dirt roads. 

We set up our base inside an unknown and remote area.  No bathrooms or hotels.  Just our tents and coolers.  And it was magical. 

The rough camping isn't for everyone, but I thought it was a lot of fun.  I haven't done this kind of thing since college! Plus I got to camp with my birding buddy Gordon. 

Weidemeyer Butterfly

The area is not birded very well and so we did a lot of research on habitat as well as ask ourselves, "Can we find these birds here?"
So we searched for the elusive Dusky Grouse, Three-toed Woodpecker, and Flammulated and Northern Saw-whet Owls.

Two large vehicles of people drove through the dirt roads while sitting outside their windows and in the back of trucks filming everything around them....including the birders:) It was fascinating! They wore handmade outfits and unique hairstyles that I haven't seen in about two decades. Anyway, there were a lot of happy faces in the group waving at us. 

What lies beyond the horizon? On the following day, our incredible group of birders continued surveying the area along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We had plenty of laughs in our exhausted bodies.  The Flammulated and Northern Saw-whet Owls kept me awake!

In my zombie state, I pulled out my recorder to capture the Flammulated owl's soft calls.  It was a lifer for me.  

Having a couple laughs with Magill and Gordon

I watched Stellar's Jays go after nests.  Sometimes they would snatch a fledgling and eat them.  The parents would desperately chase them or try and lead the Jays away from the nest.  In the wild world, anything can happen at any moment. Everything must fight to survive. 

Evening Grosbeak

On this trip into the cool wild west, we made many wonderful discoveries.  It also allowed us to escape the heat and enjoy the majestic Grand Canyon. 

I'd like to thank Eric Hough for organizing this trip through AZFO. It was a real pleasure helping out. For more birds from around our world, check out Wild Bird Wednesday. 

And the adventure continues next week from another part of the world......