Nature Note: A Naturalist's Travels Through Nature

So having looked through my bird lists and tabulating my chances for this year, I've concluded that unless a shit-ton (actual word, just ask any Mainer) of rarities show up on the Atlantic Coast this year, my chances of reaching 400 species on my life list are quite unlikely. So instead I'm shooting for 350 species instead. Still impressive and more achievable especially with the potential to see some more southerly warbler species in the warmer months of the year. I'm also excited for spring migration which means shorebirds, neotropical migrants, and the true harbinger of spring, the Eastern Phoebe ( Sayornis phoebe ). I'll be spending a good chunk of the year in New Jersey which gives me tactical advantage in visiting places like Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in NY, the Pine Barrens of NJ, and the Chesapeake Bay to the south. Below is a list of the top twenty Mid-Atlantic/Southern species I'd like to see while I'm down there. If you guys have tips for where to...

Just as it started snowing this afternoon, I noticed some corvid visitors poking around the front yard. See if you can notice one clearly digging for something. I know that dirt had been turned up by a gas line installation recently, but with many cold nights recently, I would think there would be nothing edible or even soft and chewy in the ground at this time of year. If anyone has any idea that they might be eating, please leave a comment below.

Given that it's been chilly these past few days, I wasn't expecting to see any waterfowl or larger birds at Great Meadows in Concord. I arrived around noon and looked over the frozen, cattail-rimmed marsh beyond and missed the clamor of the geese and ducks that had occupied it only a few months earlier. I distinctly remembered seeing American Coots ( Fulica americana ) and a radio tagged Northern Harrier ( Circus cyaneus ) last January, but today would be just as much of a joy when it comes to finding birds. Here are some of the many, many pictures I took while freezing my nips off.  "Can you see me?" Named redpoll for the small red cap found on both sexes. Males have a reddish wash on their breast. "I see you." Two's Company A frozen waste surrounded by cattails Canine tracks of sorts. Perhaps fox or coyote? The coldest lodging in all the land at the moment Some Giant Canada Geese ( Br...

Sorry for the lateness this week, but I'm determined to get underway. This week's challengers are Ludlow Griscom vs. Sir Peter Scott. This week's theme will feature the philosophies and methods of two completely different men who happened to have a mutual love of birds and the natural world they shared. Griscom is probably most famous for inspiring famed bird artists and field guide author, Roger Tory Peterson to create and market his all important "Field guide to the Birds". His go-get-em style and vigor when it came to birding and identification made him an icon in the initial drives to recognize birds by distinctive field marks present on their bodies and wings and through their behavior and demeanor. Scott on the other hand is famous for starting two organizations with the goal of conservation and preservation hand in hand. While more famous for his work with waterfowl, he also had a hand in founding the World Wildlife Fund. However, the WWT was his first ...

Uh dude....? A little to your left... So as I've mentioned before, I will be year listing this year. I have no set region or state for this so it's more a challenge for me to see how many species I can compile. I must correct people though. It isn't a big year. Unlike the immensely popular film of yesteryear (based on the much better book, as usual), I won't be jet setting around the country to see as many species as humanly possible. I'm not that crazy, nor am I rich. But what's that I hear you say? Kenn Kaufman did his big year for around $1000 and saw just over 660 species! That's true, but he also hitchhiked most of the way and ate cat food at some point. And if eating cat food is a selling point to a birding trip, you're barking up the wrong tree. Besides, I only wanted to announce that I'd recently seen my 100th bird of the year and it isn't even the end of the month either! It was a small group of Common Goldeneye ( Bucephala clangul...

The next round of the Babe Ruth of Ornithology begins now! As the updated brackets show below, Alexander Wilson faces off against Charles Lucien Bonaparte this week followed by Peter Scott vs. Lulow Griscom, Margaret Morse Nice vs. Florence Augusta Merriam Bailey, and Konrad Lorenz vs. Charles Darwin. As I explained last week, the goal of the second round is to determine whose argument involving birds was more persuasive and had a larger impact upon the bird world. So without further adieu, let the games commence! Perhaps the most well known aspect of both Wilson's and Bonaparte's careers was the compilation, editing, and final publication of one of the early crowning achievements of American ornithology. The work known as "American Ornithology" started as the brainchild of Alexander Wilson who was inspired by other naturalists at the time to create a reference guide for the bird species to be found in the relatively new and unexplored world that was North Americ...

The final round of the first round begins now. Famous northeastern bird artist Louis Aggasiz Fuertes vs. the queen of the Song Sparrows ( Melospiza melodia ), Margaret Morse Nice. But first, a quick side note! The next rounds will be focusing on an important idea advanced by the participants who won in this first round. While it might not be a famous idea like Darwin's finches or Griscom's field work, it has to have had a significant impact on the birding or ornithological world in order to have sway. Just wanted to give you guys a heads up for next week. Anyhoo, back to the contest! Lets get it started! As dapper as his paintings, one can see how he grew to rival the work of Audubon Louis Agassiz Fuertes (1874-1927) is one of America's most renowned bird artists behind John James Audubon. He produced thousands of works in his life, usually from fresh specimens he collected himself. An eager practitioner of Coues' Golden Rule (a bird in hand is worth two in the bus...

A lovely time was had in Florida by myself and my friends, but this being a birding blog, I'm going to post the pictures I'm most excited about and I hope you enjoy them too. Poking it's head out of the bush, this Northern Mockingbird ( Mimus polyglottos ) peers around the neighborhood. It didn't seem particularly bothered by my presence, but it did keep an eye on me. The hybrids keep showing up. Mallard x American Black Ducks ( Anas platyrhynchos x rubripes ) are fairly uncommon in the Northeast, but it feels like the Mottled Ducks ( A. fulvigula ) down here have the same problem. It would be interesting to get the stats on the threat to the breeding population from errant Mallard breeding fiascoes. It always seems to be males that are present. Very rarely, if ever have I seen female hybrids. The characteristics of the male Mallard and female Mottled are well noticeable here. A lonely decoy keeps watch over the chaos taking place within the Mottled Duck ge...