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| We were very fortuneate to be able to see a bison herd with many babies against the backdrop of the beautiful Arrowwood Refuge. |
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June 26th, 2010
It is now 5 days after the summer solstice. It doesn't get dark until 10:30PM and one can still see light in the northern sky at midnight. It is the most awesome time of the year. Warm, sunny, green, birds singing everywhere and endless light.
The Potholes and Prairie Birding Festival finished on June 13th. We are still basking in the afterglow of the festival. So many folks from all over the country were thrilled to see what they came for-- the Baird's, LeConte's, and Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrows, Sprague's Pipits, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Chestnut-Collared Longspurs, plus well over 100 other species of nesting ducks, shorebirds, grassland birds, and raptors. Short-eared owls were abundant this year. It was great to be with wonderful friends again and watch new friendships being forged through the passion folks have for birding.
See the photo gallery "Potholes and Priarie Festival and ND in June" for photos.
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May 22, 2010
In the course of looking for burrowing owls in a pasture, we found a meadowlark nest. It is a "life nest" for me. When I was a child, I spent hours every day looking for nests--- even so, I never found a meadowlark nest, even though meadowlarks were much more prevalent then.
We are in the peak of the warbler migration, my favorite time of year in North Dakota. Every day yields a new warbler. This morning my favorite was the Chestnut-sided warbler.
I am anticipating sharing North Dakota's bounty with the birders who will be here for the Potholes and Prairie Birding Festival starting June 9th. For more information, visit www.biridngdrives.com.
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Raptor Evening, April 28th
The migration and return on the nesting birds is alwasy so exciting. This evening we saw a juvenile Sharp-shinned hawk, a juvenile American Kestrel, both allowing very close looks. A Short-eared owl sat very close to us on a fence post and there were several hunting. Hunting Northern Harriers and Red-tailed hawks were abundant. On our evening drives, we have found 2 active Red-tailed hawk nests and an active Northern Harrier nest. I am looking forward to watching chicks through the spotting scope. They should still be present for the enjoyment of the folks coming to the Potholes and Prairie Birding Festival, June 9th through the 13th.
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Migration TX and ND April 20, 2010
April 20, 2010
Just a week ago I returned from 2 weeks at our family home in Rockport, TX on the Gulf Coast. We had great birding in several habitats. Life birds for me were the Blue Grosbeak, Summer Tanager, Long-billed Thrasher, and Phainopepla. The first 3 are relatively common there, but I just have never had the opportunity to get to their habitat before. A special thrill was the Phainopepla, a rare bird at the ranch where we were birding near San Patricio, Texas.
It was great to return to North Dakota. It has been so much fun birding. The Snow Goose migration is finished, but the Sandhill Cranes are still flying over. There have been spottings of Whooping Cranes. Last evening we found 2 active raptor nests, a Norther Harrier nest and a Red-tailed hawk nest. Duck species abound in every pothole including Green-winged Teal, Blue-Winged Teal, Shovelers, Mallards, Pintails, Gadwall, Canvasbacks, Redheads, Lesser Scaup, Ruddy ducks, and Ring-necked ducks. Many of these will nest here. My favorite thing of last evening's birding was a really close-up look at an eared grebe.
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Early Migration
March 28th
The sight and sound of literally thousands of geese flying overhead in migration is one of the most spectacular events of nature. I never tire of it and it is just as amazing every spring as it was the last. Snow geese are my favorite, as there are so many of them, and they are so beautiful. Huge flocks in the sky look dark for a moment and then, all of a sudden, the geese turn and become a sea of white against the blue sky. Their voices are loud--- one can hear them all night flying overhead.
There are also huge numbers of Canadian geese and smaller numbers of White-fronted geese, and Ross's geese. All are passing through, though we have a small number of Canadian geese who stay and nest here.
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Costa Rica
Posted on 1/14/2010
Archived Blog Articles
2010
- Jan
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