forward migration

First things first – a trip to the Manomet Center for Conservation Science for some bird banding. The Center, located in Plymouth, MA, looks out into the whole of Cape Cod Bay. Not well marked, the Center is not the easiest place to find. Once you are there though, it is the place to be. The Center is high on a cliff looking over the bay. It makes it easy to look below to see Great and Double-Crested Cormorants along with sunning seals. Off to the right is the town of Sandwich and viewing from right to left you view the whole of Cape Cod Bay.

The center was just starting the new bird-banding season. Although we didn’t get to see the amount of birds during peak migration in May we did learn a lot from the staff at Monomet. The center has been banding around fifty years. It was amazing to hear why and how birds migrate and what the center and others are doing to help conserve land so birds will continue to have places to migrate from and to and all places in between.

During the banding season the staff go out every forty-five minutes to checks the nets. The nets are mist nets and are probably fifteen yards long. There are fifty on the property. We didn’t see many birds while we were there. We got to see two Blue Jays and two White-throated Sparrows. The birds, along with being banded, get weighed and measured.

The most interesting part of the morning was the stark concern over climate change and loss of land not only in breeding and wintering grounds, but also all the migratory lands between the two and the concern over land conservation. Between the two issues it is not hard to imagine that many birds will have a hard time surviving.

This day was a reality check for many birders. We need to not only take care of our planet, but look forward to creating areas of conservation so the birds, animals, and land we walk on is here in the future.

[photos coming soon.]

my quest to see it all

In a quest to see it all – or, well, a quest to see more of it - I have set an ambitious goal for myself this year. I want to see 31 (more) life birds for the year. More - because I already have 7 life birds for the year.  With 31, I would have a life list of 200. Right now, I stand at 169.  

The seven new life birds this year aren’t just any ordinary birds, either. The Eastern Meadowlark, a bird I have been after for two years now. While trespassing through a farmer’s field we spotted the splash of yellow of the Meadowlark. I also saw my first Northern Pintail and Harlequin Duck – two of the loveliest ducks around. I took part in the Snowy Owl invasion this winter and saw my first snowy on a sea rock on a beautiful March day in Rhode Island. And lastly, I saw my first Pileated Woodpecker, my white whale, just two weeks ago. It would be a satisfying year if it stopped there – but it won’t. I’m on the quest for 200!

How do I plan on getting there? I hope to start in two weeks as I go up to Mt. Auburn, a birding hotspot in Cambridge, Mass., with the Bird Club. It will be the real start of the spring migration for the area, and a great time to see warblers and the like. The week after I will be taking part in a 24-hour bird-a-thon with MassAudubon. I not only hope to see many birds, but to meet other birders in the area. In the summer I will be taking a trip with the family to Michigan. Although we’ll miss the famous Kirtland’s Warbler, we should be around to see other warblers and other birds starting their fall migration back to warmer weather. Lastly, in the fall I hope to finish up the year with some great bird walks on the quest for 200.

For now I am at 169.

balanced birding

When it comes to birds I’m becoming more obsessed. It’s really become my passion and what I want to do with my time when I am not with my family or at work. I’m not sure how equally busy people do it. With 8 hours at work each day why would I want to spend time away from my family? This year – I’ll be looking at that balance as I fuel a passion for birding and a desire to spend more quality time with my family. No, this isn’t my New Year’s resolution. This is every birders’ nightmare: I’m stuck at work and can’t look at birds. Even beyond that for me is wanting to use the little time that I do have (that is, the time I am not sleeping or exhausted - I have a 4 ½ month old) birding or thinking about birding.

The great thing about birding is that you can see anything anytime anywhere. It can be that great. That is also what makes it so difficult – to find anything in the trees or the bushes or out at sea. It takes more than a keen eye to identify a bird sometimes. For me, I want to get better at identifying birds and in these cold winter months when migrants are enjoying South America or just the Miami sun I’m eagerly waiting their spring arrival.

crazy like your baby

As a new parent I’ve noticed that our culture has created a world where we take care of babies like crazy people. No? Don’t believe me? Here are my four reasons why. You can make a judgment after.

1.    Back in the day people put their babies in these crazy dangerous contraptions called cribs. People wrapped up their babies in blankets to keep their baby warm and put toys in the crib to help the baby entertain himself when need be. Today, the “crib” is a highly sophisticated place to keep your baby safe.  That includes having nothing in the crib with the baby. The toys: a danger. Even blankets are considered choking-hazards. Simply put, the only thing in the “crib” is the baby. The baby is kept in a safe “crib” or “room” alone with nothing to harm himself. Does that remind you of anything?

2.    Since parents are not allowed to keep anything in the crib with the baby including blankets, the popular alternatives today are cocoon blankets. You know, those blankets that you wrap around your baby to keep him warm. The blankets that have excessive amounts of Velcro to keep your baby from getting his arms out of the blanket. In adult terms, this “blanket” is simply called a straight jacket.

3.    In a recent NPR story many parents today are going to their pediatrician to demand drugs for their babies reflux “problems”. The story stated that parents wanted similar drugs that helped adult reflex for their babies. It concluded with the advice from a doctor to parents, suggesting that they not depend on drugs, but first change the baby’s diet. The doctor affirmed that this worked most of the time. The alarming part was in the middle of the story when NPR stated that research on the infant reflux drugs indicated that they didn’t work any better than placebos or sugar pills and in some cases aggravated the problem. In a world where we are increasingly giving people more drugs for their problems, this story substantiates the idea that in some cases we are helping people in the wrong way.

4.    Back in the day… Can I use ‘back in the day’ again? Anyway, back in the day people used to just throw their kids in an open seat in the car and just drive off. Not anymore. Babies have to be put in the back of the car, facing backwards, all locked up and secured. I find it eerily similar to this.