Porcupet

Digressing from birds for a moment--but it is SO worth it! Did you know that a young porcupine is called a porcupet? Neither did I! A friend of mine who is a professional wildlife rehabber has an orphaned procupet. It's already socialized to humans so she is continuing that and he will end up at either a zoo or wildlife center.

I'm just a video takin' fool lately and got these must see tvs. First is a nursing porcupet--crank up the sound so you can hear the oh so cute suckling sound as well as his contented little grunts (note the person handling him is wearing leather gloves--those quills are already set for business):

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqc5jJQwVu8&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]

This video is the little porcupet practicing his mad climbing skills on a stool--important to build muscle and strength:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYC0IYuOYLw&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]

There's one more video here of the young porcupine engaging in play but also learning porcupine defense moves. If I had more time, I'd put a Black-eyed Peas song in the background of this one to go with his odd little grooves. This play is important as he is practicing his defensive moves.

I love livin' in a state with porcupines.

UPDATE: as of the end of 2007 he is now living at the International Wolf Center in Ely, Mn and goes by the name Clover. His videos are still a sensation on YouTube.

 

Bring On The Bird Chochkies

I'm having some (good natured) issues over a recent post by Birdchaser. He states that real birders hate the Audubon Singing Bird Clock--we never carried that one at the bird store I worked at, but we did carry this one, and I kind of liked it. The singing loon clock was even better--it would wail like a loon every hour on the hour. Whether "real birders" liked them or not, the clocks were insanely popular with people who feed birds and far out sold items targeted towards hardcore birders.

Birdchaser goes on to say "the same goes for bird mugs, dishrags, or pillowcases--real birders hate 'em. There's a wide divide between bird people and bird mug people."

Well, I'm here to say, "No it doesn't!" Now, I know there are many out there who don't consider themselves a birder, even though they have a field guide (or even more than one bird book), a pair of binoculars, a spotting scope, bird call CDs, a vest, travel at least once a year to a place specifically to watch birds and wildlife, etc (FYI, if two or more items on that list apply to you--you're a birder). I am comfortable in saying that I'm a real birder and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the bird chochkies. Let's take a look at my bird mugs:

These are probably about half of the bird mugs that I own and most of them were purchased by me--not given to me as gifts. That's my second mad bluebird travel mug--as soon as I cracked my first one, I went out and bought a second one. Also, note the glass on the left--that was part of a set that came with a pitcher.

How could I say no to some of these mugs? How often do you find juncos as a graphic on a mug--this was a must have!

And the rosy-finch mug--there's even a rosy-finch on the inside of the mug--that is such an obscure bird to put on a mainstream mug. Cardinals you would expect--but a rosy-finch? Again, how could I possibly resist it? I have so many mugs that Non Birding Bill has tried to put a moratorium on how many we have in the house at one time. However, I can't help it if people give them to me:

Which brings me to one of my newest and most favorite of mugs. During the North Coast Nature Festival, I was marveling at all the turkey vulture merchandise at the Cleveland Metroparks Gift Shops. They ended up giving us swag bag full of turkey vulture stuff: mugs, socks, pins, etc. The above mug looks like a big rainy cloud over the woods when cold.

But, fill it up with hot tea or coffee and the cloud disappears to reveal a flock of turkey vultures--SWEET! As I was setting up the shot, I found another turkey vulture mug and stuck that in.

One of my favorite mugs was given to me by a friend in college. She didn't know it was inaccurate, but that is what made me fall in love with it. It reads house sparrow but is clearly a chipping sparrow. I love it!

And while we're talking about bird chochkies, lets look at my socks. Again, these aren't even half of my socks, but a quick raid of my sock drawer reveals socks with gyrfalcons, sandhill cranes, tanagers, great gray owls...

...turkey vulture socks...

...pileated woodpecker socks--a favorite...

...an ivory-billed woodpecker. Again, these are only half, but there are flamingos, another set of woodpecker socks, more owl socks, more cardinal socks--I'm a sucker for socks. Alas, I only wear them half the year.

Here is a heron/egret frame that I absolutely love. I was given this for pet sitting for a friend. Thanks, Barb.

Ah more gifts--my nondescript bird candle holders (part of a set of four) and who can forget my wren house with bunny wall paper on the outside? Now that was a gift with some thought--I'm a birder and I have rabbits--how could I not love that bird house.

I even have a beanie baby--a purple and blue condor/vulture. Again, this is just the tip of the iceberg. I'm sure if I dig a little deeper I could find more (oh, I forgot to post my yellow-rumped warbler throw cover--thank you thoughtful mother-in-law). But you get the idea. I'm Sharon. I'm a real birder. And I love the bird chochkies. Keep 'em coming manufacturers, keep 'em coming.

Perhaps this has more to do with male vs female shopping habits? I'm not sure I could picture Birdchaser wearing my pink flamingo socks. How about you? Anyone else out there got love for the bird paraphernalia?

That's One Dirty Bird

Tonight, I was putting away groceries and Non Birding Bill was talking on the phone He came into the kitchen flailing his arms at me while still carrying on his phone conversation. After a few seconds of wild flapping, I finally understood that he wanted me to look out the window. Much in the same way Timmy would talk to Lassie, "What's that, girl? You want me to look out the window? Timmy's stuck in a well again?"

Lo and behold, there was a young female Cooper's hawk sitting in the puddle on the roof of the apartment building across the way. We had our screens down and I tried to take a few photos through the spotting scope as well as a video. She appeared to be nervous and taking her time with bathing. We slowly lifted the screen to get better photos. The above photo was taken after we lifted the screen, she appears to be aware that we are watching her.

The only birds we could hear out and about were chimney swifts. When they would fly over she would follow them--always an eye on potential food! She was so big and so close, I had trouble fitting her whole body into the frame with my digiscoping equipment--I was backed up against the wall as far as I could go and still could barely fit her whole body into the shot.

It was funny to watch all the squirrels hopping on to the roof to drink from the puddle, realize there was a hawk in front of them and then sprint off back in the direction they came from. Whoopsie! The hawk eventually was completely soaked and she flew off--albeit a bit unsteady into the trees.

We did get some videos of the Cooper's hawk bathing. She was doing this very weird kind of butt slap against the water. I apologize for the narration...you may want to just keep your computer on mute while watching the one minute video--I was just kind of excited and caught up in the moment.

There are two other videos you can watch here and here (this was the first video we took with the screen still down). Each are about a minute long.

The Latest Craze

Raptor Skiing!

Check out the photos here, here (sweet doubles!), and here. They'll have fun, fun, fun until daddy takes the red-tail away.

Alan Stankevitz got photos of a red-tailed hawk while it was being harassed by red-winged blackbirds chasing it out of their nesting territory.

Be A Host For I And The Bird

I just got a notice from Mike at 10,000 Birds that they are in need of hosts for I and the Bird. If you are a new bird blogger or one who has been at it for awhile and would like to jump start some of your site traffic, this is a great and free way to do it.

Basically, you host it and people send you one of their best bird posts from the last two weeks. You put them together in one blog entry--linking to their sites and posts and put it together as a theme. My theme was a tabloid format--oh my gosh, I just had a memory that one of the people who submitted an entry to that one complained I didn't take him seriously. I pointed out to him that I didn't take anyone seriously in that post, even myself. He warned that I should treat him with more respect because well known people read his blog, like David Sibley among others. Ooooooooooo. I wonder if that blog is still going, it was kind of a one trick pony. I'll let you see if you can figure out who it was.

Boy, that was a tangent--didn't expect to go down that road! Anyway, I and the Bird needs hosts and if you haven't done it before, it's a fun way to learn about different blogs and get traffic to your site. Here are the dates for the next few months:

6/14
6/28
7/12
7/26
8/9
8/23
9/6
9/20

Contact Mike at 10,000 Birds to sign up.

Bird Protection or Cat Humiliation?

You be the judge!

Those free thinking Australians have come up with a device to attach to your cat that reduces their ability to catch and kill wild birds called the Cat Bib.

According to Reuters, "Research has found that of 56 cats examined over a six week period, the cats’ ability to catch animals was markedly reduced with the bibs. The bibs prevented 81 percent of the cats from catching birds, 45 percent from capturing mammals and 33 percent from taking amphibians and reptiles. Some 89 percent of cats in the study became quickly accustomed to the bib." You can read more research here.

I'm not sure how easy it will be to get cats to wear this--I mean, how many of us have had to put the lamp shade on our pets after a visit to the vet? That generally goes over like a fart in church with cats. Personally, I think the birds are still at risk for being so overcome with laughter when seeing a cat with a bib that the local Cooper's hawk will swoop in for the kill.

Random Bird Entry to Post Photos

I have a hunch that it's gonna be a good year for monarch butterflies. I have seen quite a few already and I am seeing eggs everywhere! Way more than I did this time last year. In the above photo you can see two eggs on the young milkweed plants in the front. If you're having trouble seeing them, here is a close up photo:

See the white speck--that's the monarch egg. Normally, I would start collecting these eggs for some monarch ranching (raising monarch caterpillars indoors and then releasing them when they emerge as butterflies) but I'm going to one more bird fest next week. I'll start when I get back from that one.

Hey, anyone want to take a last minute trip to North Dakota for the Potholes and Prairie Festival, let me know. I got a great deal on a cabin. Plus, if you say you're with the Birdchick Posse, I think you can still get the Early Bird Registration festival rate. I would have mentioned it sooner, but the offer was last minute. Don't forget, you get to meet the fabulous Julie Zickefoose and Bill of the Birds.

I found a pair of savanna sparrows singing where I saw the bobolink last week. I just really sat and listened to them for awhile, trying to really work out what they sound like in real life compared to the grasshopper sparrow I saw and heard on Friday. I think I'm going to make this the summer of sparrows for me and just really try to spend enjoying their songs. In depth brown bird enjoyment--it's a sickness, I know.

Most of the goldfinch males have finally made the transition into breeding plumage. Some birders have been lamenting that the warbler waves are done and the excitement for spring is gone, but I think color can still be found for quite some time.

Speaking of color, I think I've stumbled on a new and better name for the red-bellied woodpecker...red-eyed woodpecker! C'mon, it's easier to see the eyes than the red belly.

Disapproving Rabbits Band Aid

Okay, Disapproving Rabbit fans, I know the disapproval entries have been slow this spring--but hey, that's how the bird readers of the blog feel in winter when the birding is slow and I load up on Cinnamon entries. So, here's a little Cinnamon report:

I took Cinnamon with us this weekend--she did not go with us out to the bee hives but did get some quality time with Non Birding Bill and myself--whether she wanted it or not. We brought along her leash and did a good job of keeping her away from Cabal the Wonder Dog. I was sitting outside with her and had her on her extra long leash. We attached her leash to the legs of a trampoline and I sat with her, just in case she got tangled. Someone who had never met Cinnamon came down to experience the disapproval and when Cinnamon had had enough of people stroking her velvety soft fur, she hopped away.

As she hopped away, I noticed the leash was loosely wrapped around her back paw. Not wanting her to get tangled, I crawled over to move the leash. Cinnamon must have thought I was going to grab her and take her in, because she ran the other direction and sure enough, the loop acted as a noose on her back paw. When a rabbit is scared, they panic and try to get away in any way possible--this can help save them by making a last minute jump away from a golden eagle, or in the case of Cinnamon--tangle her up further.

Cinnamon then tried to jump in every direction and squirm out of her harness, which somehow wedged the whole front section of her body into the harness, binding her front paws...that's when I heard the sound no rabbit owner ever wants to hear--the rabbit scream. I tried to twist around and grab Cinnamon but she kept going around behind me and hopping up my back--she was slippery and I couldn't grab her. The screaming and the idea that Cinnamon could be breaking bones tangled in the leash boiled panic in my mind. I forced myself to try to keep calm and just take time to do it right. I finally grabbed hold of Cinnamon (still screaming) and asked for a knife to cut her out of the harness. But before anyone could move, I found the quick release and she was out and the screaming ceased. It felt like it took ten minutes to get her out, but Non Birding Bill assured me that it was barely a minute and was surprised at how fast I moved and got her out of the leash.

I sat with her for several minutes snuggled in close next to my chest--her breathing was raspy from all the screaming. NBB forced me into the house so we could look her over and see where she was hurt--I kind of didn't want to, imagining the worst possible damage. We set her on some carpet and she hopped normally, no limping, no favoring of any paws. She flopped onto the floor and I laid down next to her to pet and stroke her ears and apologize for not getting her out of the leash sooner. After a few minutes, she got up, shook her ears and nudged me hard as if to say, "Hey, I'm over it, now you get over it. It was far more embarrassing for me."

That night when I finally went to bed in the guest room, Cinnamon was sleeping on my side of the bed with NBB (that big pile of sheet behind Cinnamon is NBB). She seems to be saying in this photo, "Want to make it up to me? Then YOU sleep on the towel on the floor."

I don't think she hurt herself too badly. I think she just got bound up and couldn't get free and that freaked her out, causing her to panic and scream. It's so strange, I've heard the rabbit scream many times before in the wild--I've even mimicked it to call in hawks, owls, coyotes, and foxes. But, man o man, is it different when it's your very own disapproving rabbit.

But all is well and she's snoozing in her little Fortress of Solitude at home.

Bird in the Hand

I'm fairly certain I've said this before in the blog, but I'm going to say it again.

I get that hummingbirds are incredible birds, but I don't get it in photos. I will look at magazines with incredible photos and I'll glance at them and think, "Yes, that's a pretty bird." But I don't get the wow factor until I see one in front of me at a feeder or flower and then it hits me, "How is that a bird and not a bug?"

Unfortunately, today I got to experience one in the hand. We get hummingbirds from time to time in the nets at Carpenter, but the more experienced banders are the ones that get them out--which is fine with me. Today, I heard a loud thump on the windows at Mr. Neil's (a bird hit the glass)--a problem we've been trying to fix. It's hard to stop Cooper's hawks and sharp-shinned hawks from driving birds into the windows. When I first heard the thump, I thought is was finch. I poked my head out the window and found a female ruby-throated hummingbird splayed on the grass. I dashed out and picked her up.

She was breathing and there was no visible blood from her beak. The hummingbirds have been fighting over feeders and territory, so I wonder if she flew into the window after being chased away from the feeder. No other bird species were in a panic when she flew like when the hawks are around. Several finches continued at the finch feeder oblivious to what happened.

You could see around her bill that she had little traces of spider webs--she has been gathering nesting material. Ruby-throated hummingbirds use spider webs to bind the nesting material together.

I took a moment to photograph her feet. Ruby-throated hummingbirds are unable to walk with their feet. They are pretty much there just for perching. If she is sitting on a branch and wants to turn around, she will have to use her wings to fly up, turn around and then land back on the perch facing the other way. Dear me, I'm looking at my finger tip in this photo and realizing I need to exfoliate.

Right as I took this photo, her eyes started to ope nand you could see her tongue slipping out at the tip of her bill. I quit taking photos and tried to keep her perched on my hand, facing away from me, so she wouldn't see me behind her--I thought that might help keep her calm. I had some nectar with me and set a drop of nectar on her bill, she licked it up. I did that a couple more times and then she straightened up, buzzed her wings and before I knew it she was hovering above my hand and then headed for the cover of a nearby pine tree.

It was an honor to have a hummer in hand, but I really do wish it had been under much different circumstances. There was something kind of surreal holding something so seemingly fragile yet has the ability to survive and nest outdoors and migrate single handedly across the Gulf of Mexico.

After a few minutes in the tree of preening and rest, she flew back over to one of the hummingbird feeders and I was able to digiscope a photo. She's the one on the left--you can see a couple of feathers on the back of her head are still out of place. It was interesting that this time a second female came in to feed and not chase her off. We have three nectar feeders going, but at the moment this Hummzinger is the most popular with the hummingbirds.

This photo isn't the best. But I love it. I had turned off the camera accidentally while I was digiscoping the hummingbirds. I turned it back on and as I was zooming in, I took a photo--that's why you can see the vignetting around the image. Anyway, as I shot the photo, a goldfinch flew in front of the feeder. Just cracked me up.