Spring Mountain Ranch State Park

When I told people that I was going to Las Vegas on a birding project (and to visit some old friends) people thought I was a little nuts.  Vegas in August?  The timing may not have been ideal, but there were birds there.  Most people tend to think of the casinos and great shows (by the way, we saw the Penn & Teller Show--highly recommend it, we had a GREAT time) in Vegas and my earlier posts have focused on the urban birding potential.  However, in just a short drive into the mountains, you can find some fabulous natural scenery:

This is Spring Mountain Ranch State Park.  Rita at Red Rock Audubon Society recommended this site to our group and I'm so happy we took her advice--isn't that gorgeous?  Totally worth the $5 fee to get into the park.  It's recommended that you visit this park on a weekday when there are fewer people, on the weekends this park gets packed with people.  We were here on a Thursday and there were times when we felt like we were the only people in parts of the park.  We didn't have a chance to do it all, but if I ever go back to Vegas, this park will be at the top of my list to revisit.

We were greeted by a western kingbird in the parking lot with a lone raven calling overhead.  The park's cooler temperatures were instantly noticeable when we stepped out of the van.  It was still hot, but this park is 3,800 feet and averages about 10 - 15 degrees cooler than Las Vegas.  The drive from our hotel to this park was about 40 minutes, so if you have a rental car, it's an easy day or early morning trip.  One of my favorite sparrows was in the parking lot too--lark sparrows!  Such a classy looking brown bird.  Here's a video:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0XAqZKuaEQ[/youtube]

While we were in the parking lot, we could hear a TON of house finches in the distance.  As we all went our separate ways to record video of birds, WildBird on the Fly, Non Birding Bill and myself headed towards the finches.

The sound came from this pear tree with branches laden with ripe fruit.  The house finches were going crazy eating the pears.

Here's a female Bullock's oriole chowing down on a pear.  She worked this one for a good ten minute.  It was interesting to watch her wedge her bill inside the white flesh and then open her beak to cut out a morsel to swallow.  Western tanagers also flew in to take advantage of the tree's bounty.  We could also hear other cool birds around us including lazuli buntings (Which almost caused an argument with me and my husband, it's a nemesis bird for me, I always miss it.  As a matter of fact NBB got a clear look at a male before I saw a bunting period.  I did not get the best look of lazuli bunting, but I at least got a countable look).

I had WildBird on the Fly try out some of my digiscoping equipment and lo and behold, she actually got a good shot of a black phoebe at the park.  This was using my Swarovski scope and DCA adaptor with a Cannon Powershot A570, not bad for a newbie.

Check out this Say's phoebe I got with my new SLR.  I was experimenting with my new Nikon D40 that I got right before I left...which Non Birding Bill pointed out, "Don't you tell people in your workshops to not get their equipment right before they leave?  But I figured that Vegas was not the trip of a lifetime and my beloved Fuji FinePix E900 died.  The Cannon A570 is a serviceable digiscoping camera but not my favorite.  The D40 worked but I did have a strong learning curve.  I have to look through the view finder and not at a digital screen with the SLR.  All my shot look perfect in the view finder, but had I paid attention to the shots as they showed up for a few seconds after been taken, I would have seen that they were under exposed.  So, I thought I was getting 50 great shots at a time, but in reality when I downloaded them, I discovered that I got 1 or 2 for every 200 photos taken.

Again, that is advice that tell people about digiscoping.  For every good photo, there are 200 utter crap ones.  I think once I get my groove down, I'm going to like this camera, but I'm still trying to figure out how to carry this larger SLR camera and my binoculars.

Check out his cutey!  The park was full of these tiny critters and when they ran away from you, they had tiny white tails--like a rabbit.  My cute mammal centric husband enjoyed these far more than he enjoyed the birds.  After checking out my Peterson Mammal book, I learned that this is an antelope squirrel, small social critters that are adept at climbing cactus.  We also saw a mountain cottontail and the park brochure said that if you go into higher elevations mule deer, big horn sheep, and kit foxes are possible.

More on this park in the next entry.

Las Vegas And Urban Burrowing Owls

Las Vegas is a strange world that I cannot quite fathom.  I get the spectacle of it, I love how just as a visitor, you yourself become a part of the overall Vegas ambiance, you become part of the background of someone else's vacation.  I love that I can go into a casino and have my photo taken with parts of Barry Manilow's wardrobe (I know that looks like something Liberace would wear, but believe me, that is classic Manilow). I love that there is a store that sells nothing but Barry Manilow items--a whole store, in this economy, a whole store dedicated to Mr. Copacabana himself (a note--Donny and Marie have a case as a casino shop, but not their own store, that's how big Barry rates).  I love that I can turn my phone from a mere Blackberry to a Blackbarry Manilow.

But other parts of Las Vegas baffled me, like golf courses aka lush areas of grass made to fit in a desert landscape.

And then there is the casino itself.  If someone wanted to torture me or if I believed in a hell, I think that my version would be in the center of a casino surrounded by slot machines and the only way out is desert heat of 105 degrees.  I'm unnerved by the number of slot machines based on my childhood like above Dukes of Hazard or Green Acres (or That Girl, and yes I mean THAT Girl or R2D2 or Indian Jones).  Standing in the middle of a place like the Flamingo surrounded by an overhead speaker pumping in Lady Gaga surrounded by blinking machines all playing a different computerized tune with no outdoor lighting totally freaked me out.  I marveled at people who think, "Yes, this is how I'm going to spend my hard earned vacation money!"

I know I am not one to be putting on airs when it comes to how one should spend relaxation time, we all recharge our personal batteries in our own way.  Just as I am baffled by those who sit in the din of electronic over stimulation of a casino, I'm sure there are tons of people who would find my personal heaven of sitting in a dark box on a cold fallow farm field at the crack of dawn waiting for a hawk to fly by so we can band it equally as torturous. To each their own, I suppose.

Fortunately, there are plenty of birding opportunities in Vegas.  One of the best ways to take advantage of them is to contact the Red Rock Audubon Society who hooked our crew up with Rita Schlageter.  They were happy to help us find birds and suggest locations, one being a spot for one of my favorite birds, the burrowing owl (above, claiming taloned victory over a rather large beetle in the middle of a street).

If you want to enjoy the burrowing owls in Vegas, you MUST contact Red Rock Audubon.  The members are engaged in a partnership with US Fish and Wildlife for the Urban Burrowing Owl Monitoring Project in the Las Vegas Valley.   The goals of this project are to map and monitor the location of burrows used by breeding owls and to educate the public about collecting scientific data and bird conservation.  Rita took us to owls that would be good light for filming and were also not too skittish around people.  She had a specific distance she wanted us to stay from the burrows so as not to disturb the owls.  With her help we got the best view we possibly could have and for me, these were the best looks I have had of this species.

Burrowing owls are a crowd pleasing bird, even my husband Non Birding Bill enjoyed filming the owls.  How can you not enjoy an owl that is active during the day, are about nine inches long (with long legs), who take over old burrows or dig their own and lurk at the entrance like a little boy cautiously defending his tree fort from cootie laden little girls?

Even though we kept our distance, the owls were not disturbed by us in the least little bit.  One burrowing owl we were watching, took off and flew with four feet of our group.  We marveled at its bouncy flight, watched it flip around, heard a faint snap and fly back to its original location.  Clay asked, "Did that bird just grab something?"

Yes it did!  Some sort of ginormous beetle that was flying behind us (yuck, that's what's flying around in Vegas--EW!).  Clay estimated that the owl saw it flying in from behind us and when it came in range, made it's move.  I just enjoyed having the bird in flight so close to us, what a treat to watch its feeding behavior in action.  Rita was a distance away and was impressed by the owl's hunting technique.

Look at the wild look in the bird's eyes as it nom, nom, noms up that crunchy big beetle.  What great pest control for the neighborhood.  Alas, it appears to be on borrowed time.

This is the small lot where we found the owls.  There's another one across the street and between these two lots were about a dozen owls, perhaps four family group.  Rita said that according to Red Rock's numbers, there are about 27 pair in and around Las Vegas.   These two lots are slated for development, but thanks to the recession, all construction on the two lots is currently on hold.  Once the economy bounces back, construction will begin and all of the burrowing owls will have to move on.  Where will they go? Flat open space without trees and buildings is harder and harder to find.

I think we got some great footage for a birding segment here.  I'm glad we had an opportunity to experience this spot chock full of cute owls.  Consider giving Red Rock a call if you are interested in seeing and learning about burrowing owls in Vegas.  Here is some raw footage of burrowing owls, I especially love the little guy lurking in the burrow.  I think you will see four individual owls in this clip.  One is eating another ginormous beetle.  Note how the burrowing owl eats it like parrot by holding it with its foot.  Also, I recommend having the volume down, there's quite a bit of wind in this footage:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-2A0AU-6Vg[/youtube]

Birding Around Henderson Wastewater Treatment Plant

That's right, we did some birding at Henderson Wastewater Treatment Plant and is also known as Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve (doesn't that sound better), which is just a hop, skip and jump away from downtown Las Vegas, about 13 miles southeast. This is a popular destination for birders visiting around Las Vegas and certain times of year will be more productive than others.  We didn't spend too much time here, it's hours vary depending on the time of year.  In summer when it is beastly hot, viewing is only allowed between 6am and noon.  You also have to get buzzed in, sign in and out at the visitor center.  Non birding readers of this blog must be imagining all sorts of sordid smells and disgust by birding at a wastewater treatment plant in hot august.

However, the view was quite lovely--isn't that a cute hat worn by WildBird on the Fly?  When we first arrived, there were a few black-necked stilts around, but they were rather cagey and took off.  We also noticed a few flocks of white-faced ibis.

We were there about an hour before it closed, but this place would be loads of fun at 6 am and especially in spring and fall based on what we saw.  Above are a couple of Wilson's phalaropes in their non-breeding plumage.  A far cry from the beauties I saw in North Dakota a couple of months ago.  There were also quail, mourning doves, common yellow throats, one lone snowy egret and a green heron.

Earred grebes (above) nest at the preserve and one of the men working the preserve showed me some of his photos of a pair with a chick--that he took the day before we visited. There were also quite a few male and female ruddy ducks, although the males lacked the sky blue bill (already transitioning into their nonbreeding plumage, even though we did see at least one female with chicks).  Here's a video of one of the male ruddys:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPY3TfXpV0w[/youtube]

This is definitely a place I would put on my list for birding if I happened to be in Vegas.  If what little we say doesn't tempt you, another one of the workers at Henderson showed me a photo on her camera and got a shot of a black-throated gray warbler around the preserve--this is a great birding spot, so close to urban Vegas.

Whirlwind In Vegas

So, our weekend in Las Vegas went from easy paced fun in the heat to holy crap this is really happening go, go, go, go, go! We got all kinds of footage and now that we have completed the filming and I don't feel like I'm going to jinx anything, I can say I went to Vegas to film some birding segments for the Internet. Some of the filming involved Amy from WildBird on the Fly but the other involved someone you may not think would have an interest in birds.

I have to say, you can get some GREAT birds in and around Las Vegas and if you are married to someone who isn't interested in birds or you aren't into the spectacle of the strip but you spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend needs to go for a convention, you can find some fun stuff.  There are a few good spots right in urban Vegas and some great places just outside the city where on a weekday you can feel like the only person for miles.

One of my favorite things was going to view some burrowing owls.  Here is some raw footage and I would have your speakers on mute, the wind was pretty beastly.  This was filmed on the north end of town:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhWK4TE68Bg[/youtube]

And to give you a hint of the other segment Non Birding Bill and I are editing...here is a hint--below is a photo of WildBird on the Fly and I with the person I did not watch birds with:

Birding In Sunset Park, Las Vegas

Well, I don't know how I survived it, but yesterday, my buddy Clay Taylor and I (and my poor husband Non Birding Bill) went to Sunset Park in Las Vegas for a little afternoon birding...in 104 degree heat.  I was a tad moist at the end of it.  I wasn't wearing too many clothes, yet I felt about as soaked as I would working my hives in a full bee suit.

We went for Crissal thrasher who hang around in the mesquite by the administrative building, which we saw but did not digiscope, but we did see tons of Gambel's quail which made NBB hum the Benny Hill theme every time they ran--too cute and too funny.  The quail loved to lurk and watch us from the brush, can't blame them for seeking shade.  As I was getting photos of the above male, something walked into the shot:

Oh, hello there outdoor kitty.  Fortunately for the quail, the cat was more worried about me and the scope than the intended quarry in the brush.  I looked up from my scope and the cat skulked away.

Clay found another critter as I was trying to get this hidden quail.  Can you see signs of another animal in this photo.  Take a quick look above.  See it?  I didn't either and would have missed it had Clay not pointed it out.  I'll give you a hint if you can't see it, the animal part is on the bottom towards the center left...see it?  It's a rabbit ear.

Here I focused on the rabbit.  Look at how crazy long those ears are!  From this angle I thought that it must be some sort of hare, but it seemed to small in the body.

I adjusted my position for a better view and saw that it had more of a rabbit body than a hare body.  I quick look on the internet and I found out that it's a desert cottontail.  Rabbits use those ears for thermal regulation.  Where I live in Minnesota, the cottontails have tiny ears.  If you are in the Vegas desert, you need big ole honkin' hears to deal with the heat.  My non birding hubby was hidden under some shade marveling that Clay and I could bird and digiscope in the heat.  I walked over and told him about the rabbit and asked if he wanted to see it.  He declined but said some small yellow bird was coming down from the trees and feed a few feet away.  I waited and...

...down popped a Wilson's warbler.  How fun to have such a cooperative warbler!  We saw these all over in Guatemala and I see them from time to time during migration in Minnesota, but this guy was so cheerful and perky in the heat.  We also saw a butt load of mourning doves, black-tailed gnatcatchers and verdin.  Not bad for a quick afternoon spot in oppressive heat.

Interview About Twitter

Not sure how it happened, but I was interviewed on Harvard's Radio Berkman about Twitter and how it relates to birds.  You can listen to it here.

Midwest Birding Symposium Bird Blogger Discount

Hey, fellow bird bloggers! The 2009 Midwest Birding Symposium is looking to have bird bloggers come to this HUGE birding event happening in September! They've made special arrangements for WiFi access in the vendor hall and have a number of bird bloggers already coming to the MBS (including myself).

There will be talks about these emerging trends in birding.  Mike Bergin from 10000birds.com will be giving a talk on blogging about birds. Jeff Gordon will be giving a talk about how technology can enhance (not clutter) your birding experience, and there will even be a blogging station set up in South Auditorium for you to share your blog with others.

There's a special Blogger's Discount ($25 off the normal registration fee!) if you are still on the fence about attending 2009 MBS.  Contact editor at birdwatchersdigest dot com ASAP to get the special bird blogger registration form.  What have you got to lose?  Plenty of bird blogging fodder and plenty of celebrity birders will be there.  Also, we can share tips and tricks about the fun of nature blogging.  Check out the list--I'm so excited the oh so dreamy Scott Weidensaul is going to be there!

OpenSky

As a blogger with good regular traffic, you will be approached with all sorts propositions and marketing ideas. Usually, it's amounts to an affiliate link that will get you a 3% interest on products sold--not very enticing. Especially since most people will see a blogger affiliate link and may keep that product in mind, but at the end of the day when the product is purchased, they go to the site directly or google someplace cheaper. However, if you love to blog and like to do it as often as possible, you need to find some way of supplementing your blogging habit and it's not easy to get paid to blog (and have total creative control of your content and own it at the end of the day). It's kind of like trying to find producers and advertisers for tv shows. I was recently approached by a company called OpenSky that asked if I would make videos about birding and products that I personally own and use. They will use the videos to create an online shop and if someone buys the item based on my video, I get a good percentage and at the end of the day--I own my own content that I created.

I am under no obligation to blog about any product I don't like and I can make the videos as educational as I like. So, I'm going to give this a whirl, these will not be infomercial style videos (not like Vince from SlapChop).  Almost everything I post here already involves some birding product (especially all the digiscoping I do or birds that I get at feeders).  So, when I post about woodpeckers feeding on the suet sandwich and I mention that I like it because it's fairly raccoon proof, there might be a link to a video or other information that I made for my OpenSky shop. We're in the process of editing some videos now, they should be popping up soon.

I see this as kind of like the days I managed a wild bird store but I don't have to carry products I don't like. Back then, the motto I gave to all of my employees was, "We are a nature center that happens to sell bird seed.  Information first, sales second."

I promise this blog will not become all ads, but this is just a heads up that if you see OpenSky mentioned, that's my shop.  And if you like the blog and want to support it, you can purchase an item there.  All of the products are ones that I either use at my home, my friend's yards, give to family and friends as gifts for a particular bird issue and have a 100% satisfaction guarantee.  There are some up now and we're hoping to add more soon (especially in the form of shade-grown coffee).

On The Way To Vegas

Don't forget that there is a Birds and Beers this Saturday at 6pm (I'm going to miss it, I'm on my way to Vegas for a project). I'm a bit nervous about this Vegas project.  Non Birding Bill is coming along with his mad film-making skills and he's going to meet WildBird on the Fly and my buddy Clay Taylor.  I prepare for personal Armageddon, cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria here as my birding and non birding worlds collide.

Meanwhile, my beloved Fuji FinePix E900 that I use for digiscoping died over the weekend while at the fair.  The final photos were of some disapproving rabbits in the 4H area, I blame them.  I met up with Curt Rawn and Kevin Smith at National Camera Exchange (the one in Golden Valley and the only one to visit in the Twin Cities) to see if they could help me out.  They set me up with a new camera, but it's a digital SLR and not a point and shoot.  I'm not sure I'm ready for this change over.  I love using point and shoots like my old Fuji for digiscoping--they are small (and fit in most pockets) and they can do video.  The Nikon D40 they set me up with is larger, does not do video...but takes really sweet photos.  I have 30 days to decide if I like it.

Speaking of National Camera, this weekend is their big tent sale, be sure to stop in for some great deals.

I tried out the set up this morning on one of my ranger walks (I love days like today--this morning I'm in Minnesota in full ranger uniform, tonight I'll be in Las Vegas...wearing considerably less...because of the heat).  I got a couple of shots on the fly of a green heron:

This was taken through some grasses so this image is kind of cloudy...my goodness is the camera responsive!  I like that, I have to look through an actual view finder and not the viewing screen, I like that too.  I think where I'm going to miss the point and shoot is going to be taking video.  I can take a video camera with me, but it's always nice to have it in the same camera body...and yes, I know I can get a DSLR with a video camera included...but I don't have that kind of money at the moment.

Check it out, the green heron went from crouch to stretch--almost doesn't look like the same species of bird!  Well, we'll give the camera a go this weekend and see if I like it.  The awesome thing about National Camera is that I have 30 days to decide whether or not I like it.  I think I'll know by the end of this weekend.

Indigo Bunting At The Finch Feeder

I was walking by the kitchen window when a glimpse of blue caught my eye on the finch feeder.  Among the oodles of goldfinches was a male indigo bunting.  I'm not sure why, but he is usually a cagey little fella.  When I see him at the feeders, any movement causes him to take off in a panic.  You would think the other birds chilled out at the feeder would help him keep his cool.  I pressed myself against the refrigerator to try and blend my shape to get some photos of him. I even tried video and you can see in the video for the first few minutes, he is very suspicious.  He takes a few pecks, but then keeps a hairy eyeball in my direction, eventually, he gets a better perch (at least for me and filming):

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wf2NcClecX0[/youtube]

He stayed for a few minutes this time, rather than me catching a streak of blue fleeing the feeder at meteorite speed as I walk by a window.

I love this time of year--a male indigo bunting next to a male American goldfinch.  There was also a male purple finch bebopping around, but couldn't work him into the shot.

Here's a bit more bunting for your viewing pleasure:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_ZGlDYrn4s[/youtube]