Prairie Chickens Of The Sea

I have just got prairie chickens on the brain today! First, I've been booked as the keynote speaker for The Lesser Prairie Chicken Festival in Oklahoma in April (hot dog--an automatic life bird at that fest).

Second, I met my now new favorite bird filmaker at the MOU Paper Session last December, Steve Furman. His latest is a documentary for kids about prairie chickens. What I love about Steve's work is that not only is he giving us a gorgeous view of prairie chickens, but he's also doing it in a fun and hilarious way. Check out this preview and then order his movie.

Winter Robins

I woke up this morning with a headache and the news about the selection of the new Doctor Who doesn't help. I think this picture sums up my thoughts on the matter. However, lots of robins were bustling around the tree branches outside the window and that perked me up a bit. I could not resist my digiscoping equipment and tried for some photos through my dirty storm windows:

Every winter we get robins around the Twin Cities. This winter we seem to have more centered in the heart of the metro area and I wonder if our trees are having a bumper berry/nut crop this year. I see flocks on a daily basis in our neighborhood. Sometimes you can hear one robin quietly singing to itself. I wonder if these are birds hatched in the summer of 2008 and practicing their territory songs for the breeding season of 2009?

This robin had a black bill. I wonder if it's from eating berries? I tried to read through some of the food habits of American robins on Birds of North America Online, but was unable to find anything conclusive about winter food habits. In one study, plant material consisted of 90% of their diet, but varied in other areas. I could guess that they could find some animal material. When I worked at the bird store in Wayzata, there was a bait shop in the same mall. They would toss out old minnows and in the winter, robins would fly down and eat them. They are resourceful creatures. I should go out there and see if I could digiscope that.

Mostly, the robins were eating snow on the roof of the apartment building across the way. Birds will eat snow for moisture if they can't find open water. I got a video of it (and you can hear some Ting Ting in the back ground):

Nikon Australia Contest

This just came into the Inbox and seems like a worthwhile contest. It's a drawing to win a trip to Australia wrapped in a promotion for a the new Nikon EDG binocular:

Nikon® Inc., in conjunction with Australia's Northern Territory and Discover Downunder® proudly announce the "Nikon Downunder" Sweepstakes, offering the chance to win the ultimate birding safari in Australia's Outback and the coveted Nikon EDG binocular.

To enter the "Nikon Downunder" sweepstakes, visit www.nikondownunder.com from Jan. 1, 2009 through April 30, 2009. The prize package, valued at up to $8,657.85, features roundtrip airfare for two from Los Angeles or San Francisco to Darwin, Australia, three-nights accommodation at Feather's Sanctuary in Darwin and a three-day/two-night Odyssey Safari's birding tour with a specialist small group led by an experienced eco-guide.

To catch all of the action in Australia's Outback the winner will also receive one Nikon EDG binocular, the first birding binocular to harness the optical superiority of Nikon's highly acclaimed ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass for high contrast images that are extremely bright, razor sharp and free of flare. Some of the unique birds one can see in the Northern Territory include the White-lined Honeyeater, Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon, Banded Fruit-Dove and White-throated Grass-wren.

* No purchase necessary. Promotion ends April 30, 2009. Open to all legal U.S. residents who are 21 years of age or older. Visit www.nikondownunder.com for detailed prize information and complete Official Rules. Void outside the U.S. and wherever prohibited.

First Bird Seen (and Digiscoped) in 2009

Stumbled down to the kitchen this morning and there were birds everywhere and the first bird seen and identified was a pine siskin. Well, technically there was a junco too, but couldn't fit it into the shot. So, I'm going with siskin.

Also, in my inbox this morning is an interesting story from the Telegraph of a kingfisher photographed eating six different kinds of fish! Check it out. Thanks for sending it, Laura.

Hope you all had a good time last night and here's hoping for getting along, good bees, good bunnies, good times and good birds in 2009. We had a quiet night of me, Non Birding Bill, and Mr Neil playing Wii Fit and watching Father Ted and The Muppets. It was a quiet highbrow affair until about midnight when...well...I think the Muppets did a fine reenactment here.

That Wii Fit is mean. It assessed me out to be a 50 year old, overweight, unbalanced tart. Mr. Neil and NBB both assure me that as I play more and figure out what the Wii wants, I'll get younger and fitter. I've never had a bird do that to me before. Perhaps I will stick to trudging in the woods.