The newsletter of the Baltimore Bird Club

Dr. Stott's Birding Course
By Claudia Burns

Claudia Burns took an Ornithology course with Dr Bill Stott, who left a very favorable impression on those who attended his "Waterfowl and Wetlands" Lecture in December's Tuesday lecture to the BBC. (Ed.)

Dr. Stott's course is called Ornithology I--An Introduction to the Study of Birds. It is billed (pardon the pun) as a college-level introductory course, but is not limited to beginners. It certainly contains plenty of information that is new and useful for birders who have enjoyed the activity for years but may not ever have formally studied biology, ornithology, etc.

Dr. Stott is a wonderful instructor and the course is worth the 1.5 rush-hour traffic drive to Fairfax. Books/reading and attendance are required, as are four field trips, but there are no tests--at least not for this course.

We had our first field trip on Saturday. It was quite successful and informative. Dr. Stott focuses on teaching, while of course also searching for birds. When identifying waterfowl he insists that we pay attention to such things as head and bill shape, rather than merely color. When identifying birds such as brown creepers and brown-headed nuthatches, he emphasizes flight patterns, habits and habitat.

Winter Escape from Baltimore
By Steve Sanford

In early February I was thoroughly sick of our unusually cold, snowy, icy, windy winter. Bet you were too! I longed for an escape. It occurred to me that one warm spot would be southern Arizona, and I also remembered hearing that there was a place near Albuquerque, NM where Rosy-Finches were abundant and easily accessible in winter. Pretty soon I was talking to Gail Frantz, and not long after that we got in touch with Bea Nicholls in the Tucson area, and not long after that we bought tickets to go out there for the week of March 4-11. Bea, of course, was active in the Baltimore Bird Club until she moved to warm, sunny Green Valley, AZ two years ago. Some of you may remember she organized a trip to Trinidad and Tobago and to Crane Creek, Ohio before her move, and came to most Lake Roland walks.

Bea picked up Gail and me at the Tucson airport, put us up in her new home, and we birded and traveled in her car. Thank you so much, Bea, and thanks to your patient non-birding husband Arthur.

The first two full days we birded around Madera Canyon, Continental, Patagonia Lake and the town of Patagonia, and Tumacacori. (Say "Tumacacori" three times fast - or even once for that matter!) We failed to find many special birds we were hoping for, such as a Rose-throated Becard, Elegant Trogon, and Rufous-backed Robin, but there were plenty of more common local birds, and the weather was delightful - sunny and about 70°. So, after a cold winter in Baltimore, who really cares! One of our birding treats was a host of unusually visible Verdins on the road to Madera Canyon.

Then we blasted off on a four-day, three-night expedition to New Mexico. We flew on two rocket ships - known unimaginatively to some as Interstate Routes 10 and 25 - to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge near Socorro, home of Elfego Baca. The Bosque is like Bombay Hook in the desert, and is famed for it's over-wintering Sandhill Cranes. The cranes had already left for the most part, but we did see and hear a few flocks in flight. And one flock in a field, watched over by a coyote, was a memorable sight. There were scads of waterfowl, especially Shovelers and Pintails. And we had great close-ups of a Roadrunner and a Yellow-headed Blackbird.

The main goal of the next day was the Rosy-Finches at Sandia Crest east of Albuquerque. We went to the end of Route 536 that goes most of the way to the top of Sandia Peak where there is, of course, a gift shop and restaurant. What else would you expect at 10,000 feet! The snow was several feet deep but the road was well-plowed (being a skiing area) and it was about 40° and sunny. From inside the shop we watched feeders where the Rosy-Finches usually come in for 5-10 minutes at a time several times a day in the winter. Sure enough, about 45 minutes after we arrived, an active flock of about twenty ravenous Rosy-Finches descended on one feeder like Nazis blitzing Poland. They appeared to be all Black Rosy-Finches except for one "Hepburn's" race of the Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch. Most years this site gets some Brown-crested Rosy-Finches but they were absent this year. The predominance of Blacks was fine with me since I think they are obviously the prettiest of the Rosy-Finches, with their mainly black plumage highlighted with pink sides and a pale gray crown. In fact, I think they are the prettiest of American Finches - and not easy to see, especially if you're from Baltimore! Of course, some of you may remember that I was obsessed with seeing this species for years until I finally found one in the mountains of NE Utah in July 2001. (See Chip Notes, Oct 2001)

We decided to head for Taos for the night. On the way we followed Route 14, the Turquoise Trail, which wound through pinyon-juniper country. We hoped for Pinyon jay but didn't find any. Gail did get a good look at a Juniper Titmouse, which was new for her. We stopped in the tiny revived ghost town of Madrid, which was what Taos may have been many decades ago: a quaint, historic artists' colony. We found to our regret that Taos is a very congested, over-developed tourist trap. In fact, it was so congested, we decided not to even bother with taking a short detour to the heart of the alleged historic district.

Instead, we followed a route around the mountains to the north called the "Enchanted Circle." The scenery was wonderful. It was full of birds in good view, some of which were new for some us: Mountain Bluebird (close!), Mountain Chickadee, Black-billed Magpie, Townsend's Solitaire, and Pygmy Nuthatch. A man in the pleasant town of Red River mentioned that he frequently saw some gray birds that actually dived into the Red River, which we were about to follow, and other streams. Hey, American Dippers! Well, I wish I could tell you we found some Dippers, but, alas, we did not, despite many stops along the waterways. Along the Rio Grande Gorge we were surprised to see a number of Common Goldeneyes. (Yes, the Rio Grande not only flows through New Mexico - it actually starts in Colorado.)

On the last morning we stopped again in Bosque del Apache and saw many of the same birds as before. A Western Meadowlark did oblige us with a little song to give a positive ID. Surprisingly, most meadowlarks farther south are Eastern Meadowlarks. The main thing that will stick in my mind, though, was seeing another Roadrunner - perched high in a tree!

Birding in Costa Rica
By Irma Weinstein

In January of this year, I traveled to Costa Rica on a birding trip with Elderhostel. For the beginning of the trip, sixteen birders from all parts of the U.S. met in San Jose. Our tour guide, Frank, was an excellent birder as was Alberta, the bus driver.

We spent the first three days at Selva Verde Lodge on the Sarapique River which is in the Atlantic rainforest zone of Costa Rica. In spite of almost constant showers we saw four kinds of Kingfishers, Oropendolas and a bird I had seen in Tikal, the Collared Aracari. I also enjoyed seeing various tanagers, barbets and the Keel-billed Toucan.

We traveled on to Monteverde, where we experienced the cloud forest in the high central mountains of Costa Rico. Among a variety of woodpeckers, woodcreepers and wintering warblers we were thrilled to see the Resplendent Quetzal.

Carara National Park was the Pacific coast region and the third area that we visited. There were a variety of Parrots and Parakeet along with the beautiful Scarlet Macaw. We traveled by boat on the Tarcoles River where we saw many familiar wading birds including the oat-tailed Heron. The highlight of Carara was seeing and hearing the Three-wattled Bellbird.

In all, our group sighted over 249 species of birds.

If anyone is interested in my complete list please contact me.

River of Raptors
By Dixie Mullineaux and John Corame

Several years ago I heard Clay and Pat Sutton give a talk at Oregon Ridge on a trip they had taken to Mexico to witness the spectacle of hundreds of thousands of birds and butterflies migrating near the small town of Cardel on the Gulf coast. Soon after that I read Scott Weidensaul's book, Living on the Wind, which included a chapter on that very same migration. I was hooked. I knew I had to see this… the concept of extreme birding has always appealed to me. Who else do you know that went to Nebraska in the middle of winter to watch 250,000 Sandhill Cranes gather on the Platte River?

It didn't take much convincing for my husband, John, to start researching the Mexico travel books, and last October, we set off for two weeks of birding, sightseeing, and Mexican food. We opted to do it ourselves and not go on a tour to have more freedom and save money. You may recall my other article for Chip Notes was about Costa Rica without a list… we are casual birders; serious enough to go to far off places, but also too interested in the local culture to pass that up.

After surviving the ordeal of permanently losing John's luggage first thing in the airport when we arrived, then having some cash extorted from us by the local city policeman, we drove across Mexico and finally found the Hotel Bienvenido, where all the action is. Arriving hot and exhausted, we immediately and accidentally hooked up with a threesome of American guys who said we could tag along with them on a trip the next morning. Little did we know that we just latched on to an expert on shorebirds (who was doing this trip to gather information and photographs for his book), his father and brother, and their friend, who is one of the best guides in the area!

First, the scene at the Hotel is like this… you get up early and go to one of the local birding hotspots, usually not more than a half-hour away. When you return, you go "up on the roof" (4th story) about 10 a.m. You find a chair, plenty of liquid, a good sun hat, and watch. Facing the north, you begin to see birds come out of the clouds in a line, coming towards you. They then form a kettle, swirl around for a few minutes, then stream away to the south. Anything is possible… Turkey Vultures, Wood Storks, Anhingas, Pelicans, Osprey, Hawks, (Swainson's, Broadwing, Sharp-shinned, Cooper's, Gray, Zone-tailed. Also present, but not in kettles, are Merlins, Peregrines, Mississippi Kites, Hook-billed Kites, Scissor-tailed and Swallow-tailed Flycatchers. When it is really swarming, you dare not take your binoculars down. You hear the counters in the background, chanting alternately in English and Spanish, clicking away on their hand held counters. One day we had 5,000 Turkey Vultures in less than 45 minutes. Spotting scopes are always available.

After lunch and siesta, you can drive about 8 miles inland to Chichicaxtle, where Pronatura has set up a viewing platform in the field of the local elementary school. They are educating the children about the migration and it's value to their community. The same types of birds are seen here, just with different perspective.

We did not have a spectacular day, which in the local's minds would be several hundred thousand birds. This is a sample of when we were there: This was a "slow" day according to the seasoned watchers:

Turkey Vulture 30,464, Osprey 43, Red-shouldered Hawk 2, Mississippi Kite 6, Broad-winged Hawk 47,452, Hook-billed Kite 4 , Swainson's Hawk 11,709, Northern Harrier 1, American Kestrel 46, Sharp-shinned Hawk 96, Merlin 4, Cooper's Hawk, 160 Peregrine Falcon 23, Gray Hawk 4, Zone Tailed Hawk 5: Total: 90,119 Just for perspective, the total to date was 2,290,795.

Meanwhile, there are other shows going on. At La Mancha Biological Station, highlights were Northern Jacana, Ferruginous Pygmy-owl, Canivet's Emerald and Rufous-tailed Hummingbirds, Black-headed Trogon, Vermilion Flycatcher, Rose-throated Becard, 9 Warblers, Scrub Euphonia, Yellow-winged Tanager, Blue Grosbeak, Altimira and Baltimore Oriole, and Montezuma Oropendola.

Next morning, at Johnny Angel Beach, we had great views of Scissor-tailed and Fork-tailed Flycatchers. And an Aplomado Falcon that perched for us beautifully in the scope. Also, Collared, Snowy and Wilson's Plovers, and Mexican Sheartail Hummingbird.

Also close to Cardel is the tiny charming town of La Antigua, where you must find Tito and ask him for a boat ride down the river to see birds. At sunset, we got treated (for a fee, of course) to a private ride down the river to see Ringed, Belted, Amazon and Green Kingfishers, plus familiar herons, shorebirds and warblers, and a Whimbrel and Long-billed Curlew. At one point Tito motioned for us to look up underneath a bridge we were passing under, and there we saw a Barn Owl on her nest, with three babies out of sight.

We took a day trip to Xalapa, where there is a reserve left at the top of the town. Our excellent guide for the day was expert in identifying the birds and also finding the best restaurant in town!

We eventually left Cardel and traveled south, deeper into the rainforest, where Hooded and Wilson's Warblers were abundant, and Northern Waterthrushes dabbled in puddles on the road. Four hours later, after bumping over dirt roads, we discovered that the hotel we were looking for was closed. But nearby, in the middle of nowhere, we happened upon some rustic lodging, right on a pristine beach. Frigatebirds and White Pelicans were plentiful. The down side was seeing large tracts of rainforest cleared to raise cattle - I'd heard about it; seeing it was devastating.

Back to Cardel for one more day on the roof and say our farewells. Stopping at a gas station on the way out of town we looked up to see still more streams and kettles, this time, almost all Swainson's hawks. We kept our eye on one that came close and closer to us, till finally it was just over our heads, naked eye. What a lovely way to say good-bye.

Smithsonian and National Zoo Activities

Bird Fest 2004:

On Saturday, May 1 and Sunday, May 2 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, the National Zoo will host an "International Migratory Bird Day" festival to welcome back migrant birds and celebrate their epic journeys. The festival will feature interactive displays by research and conservation organizations, hands-on activities and crafts for kids, live birds, a "bird-friendly" shade-grown coffee tasting, and performances by Evergreen Theater of Alberta, Canada. Admission is free. There will be something for everyone so bring the whole flock! Volunteers are needed. More details and an online volunteer form are available at

Birding Caroline County +
By Joel Martin

Some highlights from a half-day trip to Caroline County and Elliott Island on January 31: First I have to thank Glen and Shelly Lovelace for welcoming me to their home at 7:15 AM to see the Common Redpoll at their feeder. Not quite a Maryland bird (by a few hundred feet), but a life bird for me, thanks to the Lovelace's hospitality.

Since Glen is almost in Dorchester County I decided to make a quick run to Elliott Island to try once again for Rough-legged Hawk. I seem to have a blind spot for this species, at least in Maryland, and this excursion was no exception. Not a lot of birds of any kind were moving with the marsh frozen solid and lightly covered with snow. I was surprised when a drake Blue-winged Teal erupted. Also present were 2 Black-crowned Night-Herons, 2 Harriers and at least 4 Bald Eagles.

From there I drove back through the field bird areas north of Ridgely in Caroline County. There were scattered groups of Horned Larks, but no longspurs or Snow Buntings, or even any American Pipits along Mason Branch Road, where they were numerous this time last winter. On Cherry Lane was a mixed flock of a couple hundred blackbirds, mostly Redwings, but with a dozen or so Rusties and a few Common Grackles. Juncos, White-throated and Savannah Sparrows were numerous along the road edges. But the best Maryland bird of the day came as I was approaching the traditional longspur spot on Sparks Road. A large buteo flew out of the trees beside the road, then circled back in front of me -- a beautiful juvenile light morph Rough-legged Hawk! It circled behind the little woods and landed in a line of trees, where I was able to get the scope on it while it flew from perch to perch and kited in the strong wind. These are such big, beautiful, unique raptors.

So, not a big list today, but a life bird, two state birds and a couple of county birds. And the view of the frozen Chesapeake on the way home was spectacular.

Hello, Beginning Birders
By Georgia McDonald

Let me introduce myself. I am not a "hot-shot" birder. I don't know everything (yet), but I am pretty good with what you can see in Baltimore County. I am working three Atlas blocks, knowing that I know what I don't know and will holler quick as anything for assistance on something I can't ID. So far, I haven't been lucky enough to find anything that unusual. If you are going to put birding knowledge on a logarithmic scale of 1-10, I guess I might rate a 4. I don't know diddly about gulls in general. I guess I'll start looking at them when I run out of other birds.

Having spent many years in that state, I am acutely aware of beginning birder insecurities, of how many of us cringe with our lack of knowledge and keeps our mouth shut. After joining the BBC, I spent 8 years as an "inactive" member, maybe getting to 3 or 4 field trips a year in between the demands of a job and three young kids. Eventually I figured out that if I wrote all the field trips on the calendar as soon as the program book came out, I greatly increased my chances of getting out to see more birds.

Before joining the BBC, I was showing my children the big hawks in the sky at the Christmas tree farm. Five years later, I found out the "hawks" were vultures. My previous knowledge of vultures came from TV westerns in the late 50's. I was totally unaware vultures occurred in the east and that they really had no interest in me unless I had been already been dead a few days. We all have to begin somewhere.

I have stared and stared at a Carolina Wren in my yard, trying to decide if it was a Rock, a Carolina, a House, a Bewick's or what. It took a while to learn that you will NOT have a Rock or Bewick's Wren in a Baltimore County yard. That the cute little wren on the screen porch who lost its tail really had all the tail it needed because it was a Winter Wren, not a House or Carolina. We all have to begin somewhere. On a recent trip to Cape May, a nationally well known birder (who probably rates a "10" on that logarithmic scale) misidentified a Cooper's hawk, calling it a Sharp-shinned. We ALL make mistakes. If you miscall a bird--- no biggie, nobody dies, the world doesn't end, life goes on.

On BBC field trips, introduce yourself as a beginner and/or new member. You may find people trying harder to make sure you see the bird. In addition to BBC field trips, go out by yourself or with another beginner. You learn a great deal from puzzling out a bird on your own. And if you misidentify it (we've all done that at some time or other), somewhere down the road you will learn something that will show you your mistake.

Become familiar with your field guide(s). You will be more prepared to identify a bird when you see it. You will begin to "get a feel" for different appearances of the same bird. I remember seeing pictures of many lovely birds, knowing I would never see them in my drab corner of the world. Then, I found a Rose-breasted Grosbeak in my own back yard and a Bufflehead Duck in the middle of Loch Raven Reservoir. Impressed the heck out of my canoeing buddy by knowing immediately what the Bufflehead was.

Come out with me, either at Cromwell Valley or in one of my Atlas Blocks*. I enjoy the company and we can take our time so you have opportunity to see what YOU need to see. See you in the field. *

*Check your Baltimore Bird Club Program booklet for details.

Summer in Coastal Washington
By Elise Kreiss

Birding the Olympic Peninsula for a week in early August, we saw 111 species. Some birds we see on the east coat birds were a little more common. We enjoyed Wilson's Warblers; White-crowned Sparrows, and a Golden Eagle that really shone some mellow gold. West coast specialties included numerous Chestnut-backed Chickadees and Red Crossbills; and a variety of western warblers. We also had lovely cliff-side views that included Tufted Puffins, Heermann's Gulls, Marbled Murrelets, Common Murres, Pigeon Guillemots and Rhinoceros Auklets. Exciting surprises included two Leach's Storm Petrels floating on the water, close enough to see their slanted heads and caramel wing-stripes (from a small boat on a mini-pelagic in Neah Bay); also, a single Blue Grouse on Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park cautiously crossing the road at nightfall. Magical moments included about 75 noisy Black Turnstones making their way down a drizzling beach. There were also shorebirds on migration, and a different variety of passerines.

But my most desired bird was the American Dipper. A kind Olympic Park volunteer drew us a map of a fast running stream under a bridge where we might find, "fishermen, kids drinking beer - - and maybe, a Dipper." With great luck, we found a family of four. They were little gray birds resting quietly on rocks in the stream; each itself looking like a round, slaty-colored stone. Until it moved. Each would bob up and down, warming up in place before moving along. You'd see them checking out the rock bases, and hopping into the water. You might see a bird's back just breaking the surface; or lose it altogether under the water.

It was a wonderful trip. I'd be delighted to share information on reference materials.

Activities Updates

APR 6 (Tues) 7:30 pm Tuesday Evenings at Sherwood. The Brown-headed Cowbird, a Conservation Challenge, David Curson. (Original lecture was to be From Kruger to the Cape - Our South Africa Adventure, with Gail Mackiernan, which was switched to March.)

The APR 17 (Sat) 8:00 AM to 12:00 noon Saturday Monitoring Walks at Fort McHenry is CANCELED due to an Aquarium Clean-up Day which will necessitate having large numbers of volunteers working in the marsh.

The Following Trips Were Left Out of the Booklet:

MAY 5 (Wed) evening 6:00 8:00 Fort McHenry Wednesday Evenings. Meet at 6:00 outside the park at the Fort's gate (Fort Ave & Wallace St). Canceled if raining. Leader: Jim Peters, (410) 429-0966

JUL 7 (Wed) 9:30 - 12:00 noon First Wednesdays at Fort McHenry. Meet at Fort McHenry by statue of Orpheus. Canceled in bad weather (high winds, fog, rain, snow). Leader: Jim Peters (410) 429-0966

JUL 10 (Sat) 9:00 p.m. Family Birding at Banneker Park. Join Keith Costley for an easy hike around the trails of this historic site. Bring your grandchildren, sons or daughters ages 5 years and up to enjoy watching nesting Bluebirds, Wrens, Robins and many other natural happenings at this facility. The park also has a museum which you will visit. Directions: From 695... take US Rte 40 west to Rolling Road; turn left at Rolling Road to second traffic light; turn right at Old Frederick Road; proceed approximately 1.3 miles and turn right onto Oella Avenue. Continue 0.2 miles to park entrance on the left. Leader: Keith Eric Costley, (410) 521-5366 or e-mail

Back Yard Birding and Beyond By Gail Frantz

Patterson Park

Jan 9, Keith Eric Costley: Upon arriving at the park, I walked to the boat lake first and then along the boardwalk which passes along side several Magnolia trees. I saw a Red-tailed Hawk, two American Crows, lots of Mallard and over eighty Ring-billed Gull. I walked up hill toward the Pagoda when the crows started making a fuss near the pond. When I looked into the Magnolias I noticed whitewash on the main trunk of one of the trees - and the Great Horned Owl that dropped it, right above! The owl did not seem to mind me. Probably because there was a backhoe only forty feet away that made way more noise than me.

Hampden

Jan 26, Cathy Carroll: ...with six inches of freshly fallen snow on the ground, while shoveling my backyard walk to the rear fence. I noticed House Sparrows chirping away in a large, dense pruned hedge in a neighbor's yard. An erect immature Cooper's Hawk was perched on the fence!

I backed away and went in for my binoculars and came back out in time to see the hawk for perhaps another ten seconds before it flew directly into a twenty-five foot tall Arborvitae. Within seconds the hawk flew out of the Arborvitae then beneath the deck roof of the neighbor's house before flying up to the roof of that house. When the bird took off again, it had a House Sparrow dangling from its talons. It flew down into the snow of an empty lot and within easy view began to eat its freshly caught meal. Quite a sight for the center of the city.

Loch Hill

Jan 28, Georgia McDonald: We had a very busy raptor yard this month which included a mature Redtail, an immature Red-shoulder, a mature and an immature Cooper's and a mature Sharpie, all of whom include our yard on their regular rounds. We have moved the birdseed to more protected areas and the accipiters have to make zig-zag strafing runs to try to pluck any bird that sits on top of the bushes.80% of our yard birds are house sparrows and we hope that's all the raptors manage to get. We have had the Cooper's sitting calmly in the garden, eating its catch and ignoring my van as I drive up into the yard. The bird did not move until I opened the car door. I don't know if the buteos have ever had any luck in our yard.

Better than the hawks, however, has been the appearance of a Pileated Woodpecker. I have twice had visuals of an adult male, and you can hear Pileated calling in the early morning. We hope he will set up housekeeping in the neighborhood.A pox on this weather, I want to look for owls.

Cylburn

Feb 1, Mark Linardi observed two Great Horned Owls on. Two days later Mark and Cathy Carroll tried again but were not successful. During the rest of February one owl was sighted at least four times. Mark goes on to say that: We (Cathy Carroll) did see a number of other "good" birds. Highlights were several Golden-crowned Kinglets, a single Hermit Thrush and numerous Woodpeckers.

Loch Raven

Feb 9, Paul Noell: I spotted a Lincoln's Sparrow. Then, out again today for four miles, hauling myself over countless fallen trees, trudging the crusted snow, but good for some goodies: Brown Creeper, Field Sparrow ("gray" variety-Sibley's), Song and White-throated Sparrow, Towhee, Sharpie, Mute and Tundra Swans, Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Coot, Black Duck, Gadwall, Hooded & Common Mergs, both Nuthatches, other assorted birds and a beautiful Red Fox.

Baltimore

Feb 23, Ruth Culbertson reports: I was surprised to have a beautiful Red-breasted Nuthatch at my feeder the last couple of days.

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The Baltimore Bird Club offers merchandise for sale through its mail order section. The following items are available. All prices include shipping costs.

Please make your check or money order payable to "The Baltimore Bird Club" and send your order to: Joseph Lewandowski, 3021 Temple Gate, Baltimore, Maryland 21209.

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