The Ballad of the Catbird

I am in a Creative Writing class in which we have to write poetry... including ballads. A ballad is a poem in quatrain format, with an alternating rhyme scheme, that is supposed to tell a story. Here is the story of the catbird.

There once was a bird, dapper and gray

With a rump of russet, a cap of coal

And he meow’d constantly, every single day

Then one day the sun rose, he thought of a goal

His life was too boring, too lame, too bland

He became restless and soft

He decided to set off and find a new land

So with a flick of his wings he took off!

It was blistering and dry

The canyon echoed his meow!

The sun was so hot he could hardly fly.

He found a curious creature, and said ciao

It was named a quetzal

A brilliant green,

He insisted his name was Paul

And long did he preen.

The catbird thought how pretty Paul was

How could he hope to contend?

But he didn’t care, ‘cause

Paul was his new best friend!

The catbird left the canyons in search of some food

He left the desert sands for some berries

He met some waxwings who lightened the mood

And soon the catbird was merry

See also here.

After his night of drunken fruit

He left for the west

Where he found a bird who was off route

The bird said, in an accent, “I wish I had never left my nest!”

The bird, it explained, was a finch

It had been blown away from its home in a storm

He said that his home was over the ocean, a thought that made him flinch

He was hoping to get home before it got too warm

The catbird was curious of this cold-weather wonder

And asked if he could fly back home.

The little bird answered “I’m afraid of the thunder,”

“I will end up as part of the loam”

The catbird bid the finch farewell

Since he had places to go.

The catbird couldn’t dwell

Or else there would be snow.

South the catbird went, to tropical shores

He ended up on an isle

Where the ocean roars

And the humans smile.

The catbird had seen humans before

But never ones like this

These humans were watching him, for

A reason he missed.

These peculiar people roamed in packs

And pointed out every bird

The catbird watched these atypical acts

And didn’t utter a word.

The catbird heard a familiar mew

On this tropical patch

He sang his song- “I love you!”

And he found a lady catbird, his match!

The couple of catbirds left their tropical paradise behind

To find a place to settle down

With a perfect nest in mind

They settled near a human town

The first egg was laid, smooth and blue

Soon there was two, then three, then four

All an azure hue

In the bushes by a front door

The catbird was now happy with his life

He had soon-to-be young

And a great catbird wife

Meea! He happily sung!

Credit for pictures, in order:
"Grey Catbird" by Wolfgang Wander - self-made / http://www.pbase.com/wwcsig/image/44482560. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grey_Catbird.jpg#/media/File:Grey_Catbird.jpg
"Eared Quetzal (Euptilotis neoxenus)" by Dominic Sherony - Flickr: Eared Quetzal (Euptilotis neoxenus). Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eared_Quetzal_(Euptilotis_neoxenus).jpg#/media/File:Eared_Quetzal_(Euptilotis_neoxenus).jpg
"Fringilla montifringilla -Poland -male-8" by mmlolek - JerUploaded by Snowmanradio. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fringilla_montifringilla_-Poland_-male-8.jpg#/media/File:Fringilla_montifringilla_-Poland_-male-8.jpg
By Daniel Schwen (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
"Another catbird" by John Benson. Link to his Flickr page here. The actual link to the photo here.

By Dennis Murphy from USA (DSCN4834  Uploaded by Snowmanradio) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Migration!

Okay, so the photos in this post aren't the best, but I'm still really excited about the migrants!

Watching these weather maps, it really gets me excited to see the masses of little blue blips flare along the Gulf Coast and the southern tip of Florida. Thousands of tiny birds are racing their way north, trying to reach their breeding grounds before their rivals. These feathered jewels brighten the forests with their color and song, and as I've ranted, us the winter-weary birders are eager to greet them.

Except, I need to go greet them.

I started Driver's Ed for a few weeks, which means basically I'm stuck at school for another two and a half hours. Which means no more after-school walks. Ugh.

But here are a few migrants I've been seeing, despite the fact I haven't been able to bird as much as I want.

First, let's start things off from the beach. If you remember the Painted Bunting, while I was in Myrtle Beach I saw a few migrants, including Eastern Kingbird and Chimney Swifts.

Prairie Warbler

I also saw a cooperative female Prairie Warbler and quite a few Ruby-throated Hummingbird males.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Red Buckeye

I also saw a few Yellow-throated Warblers as well.

Yellow-throated Warbler (Yellow lored)

Back at the patch, I found a few boisterous White-eyed Vireos, who basically yelled their explosive song from the cover of privet.

A few Common Yellowthroats returned, but they were skulkier than usual.

And last but not least, a new bird for me- my lifer Northern Waterthrush! I always love getting lifers at my patch!

I've also been hearing Hooded Warblers and Northern Parulas at the patch too!

And most recently, yesterday was another trip to Pee Dee, this time with a few other members of the CYBC. We heard a TON of migrants, but only saw a scant few-like these Prothonotary Warblers and American Redstart.

Next Saturday I'm going to be helping out with the Spring Count, which is basically the Christmas Bird Count, but in spring! Hopefully we'll see more than hear!

Conquering a Nemesis

Nemesis Bird: a bird you have tried to see/observe multiple times without success. This bird may be common locally, or a recurring rarity, but every time you try for it, you fail to see it.

Note: I'm currently in Myrtle Beach, SC, and this all happened at Huntington Beach SP's feeders.

"HE'S HERE!"

The older couple paused, binoculars in hand, eagerly scanning the scrub. I strained to spot any motion, any indication that he hadn't flown off.

Conditioned by the cardinals at the feeder, I figured that this splash of red was nothing more. But wait- was that blue? An azure head contrasted the red, and my heart skipped a beat.

"I JUST SAW HIM, HE WAS BEHIND THAT OAK!" I sputtered, hoping they would believe me. Of course, he did not show himself. It wasn't enough. Some birders might count it, I guess. But this bird was special. I couldn't count it and leave it at that. I also eagerly wanted to show it to these people. But alas, it seemed to have flushed.

People came and went, and I asked almost every single one if they were looking for him too. Most stayed for a minute or two; a few hung around longer. But I waited. And waited. I watched the Red-winged Blackbirds attack the feeders in small gangs. I watched the bossy female cardinals squabble. I watched the egrets fly past in the distant marsh. I waited for the bird to come.

There.

In the tree sat a red bird. A glance- just another cardinal. Hold on, it was too small. There isn't enough red. Wait, is it him?

He perched somewhat conspicuously- to the casual observer, he was just another redbird. But I wasn't a casual observer, and I knew what I was looking at.

He made the handsome Chipping Sparrows, crisp with their neat little rusty caps and sharp eyeliner, suddenly turn into little LBJs. He dulled the scarlet of the many Northern Cardinals that surrounded him. With a flick of his verdant wings, he landed on the caged feeder, in full view.

"Whoa, whoa! Hey, come look at this!" I shouted to a random passerby. They probably thought I was crazy, but the girl with a camera, binoculars, and scope was a curious sight to begin with- seeing her get excited over something was special. I pointed it out to them. "That's the most beautiful bird in North America. Look through the scope!" (I had the scope preset on the feeders.)

You probably have guessed what this bird is. Arguably the most colorful bird on the East Coast, and maybe in all of North America, the Painted Bunting.

I swear, even these terrible photos bright up a room... how can you pack such a punch of color onto a five-inch bird?

If you haven't heard my tale of my nemesis, the Painted Bunting, I'll try to keep it short. I visit coastal SC and Florida almost every single year. And I've gone to Arkansas in mid-April, when they should be there. But did I see one? No, of course not. It isn't my nemesis for nothing.

I'll be honest. I did not feel a rush of adrenaline or excitement when I saw the bird; I felt pretty relaxed and my reaction was more of a mix of "About time" and "Neat. Cool bird." I kind of wished it did leave a good impression on me, like Hooded Warblers do, but it didn't. I hardly ever saw his green back and when he perched to feed, he sat in the shade. (Of course.)

One thing about him that I liked was that he was banded, and I love banded birds. I went inside the nature center and told them I had seen the bands on his legs. (In the picture above you may be able to see a purplish/pinkish band). They gave me a few sheets of paper with the info of the Painted Buntings banded there at Huntington Beach State Park.

One of three pages. From left to right- ID # for the individual; it's on their silver (S) band, Age (SY= Second Year, ASY= After Second Year; aka adult), sex (U means unidentified) and bands (L= left leg, R= right. Too lazy to post all the color codes.)

I have yet to match this guy to one of these, but I do think he was banded here. According to the Painted Bunting Observer Team, one of his bands appears to be a blue/pink split band, meaning he was banded in South Carolina.

http://www.paintedbuntings.org/faq

Back to the bird. He sat at the millet feeder, perched like a king at the topmost perch. A few other birders and bird watchers came by and photographed him, but he was flighty. He bounded back into the myrtles, patiently waiting for the traffic to die down, but it still made him nervous. Eventually I watched him fly off behind the nature center, and that was the last glimpse I saw of the bird.

I hope to have more, better encounters with this species. It wasn't really soul-satisfying in the way when I see a Northern Pintail in the scope or hear the hauntingly beautiful song of a Hermit Thrush. This particular individual wasn't as confiding, but I'm hoping in the future he's a bit more cooperative!

Congaree Scouting Trip

Today's trip was to Congaree National Park, a huge park with excellent boardwalks in a virgin bottomland forest. This park boasts some of the largest trees of some species, including Loblolly Pine and Sweetgum. It's an excellent place for birds and it's always a fun trip.

First off.

SO. MANY. PARULAS.

Last night there was a cold spell that caused some frost to form up here by Charlotte, so that halted all migrants. I guess it was like a mini-fallout because there were at least 50+ parulas swarming and buzzing their heads off throughout the park.

We found a small flock of them in a scrubby, but leafy (budding) area, which was full of sun. We had many close encounters with this flock of around 10, with quite a few coming within feet of us.

There were also a few Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, but in much lower numbers. I think they're more spread out, as they're a bit hardier than the parulas.

We also heard (and I saw only one) Yellow-throated Warblers, which was also a year bird. Their downward song was quickly learned and we heard many.

This was taken last year, however.

Along with the early migrants were a few very skulky White-eyed Vireos, which sang their chick-brrrrrrr-ow-chick song loudly. It's one of those songs I love to hear, and I'm glad they're back already!

Bad picture, I know. Skulkers...

However, we did miss a few things. We did not see any Pileateds but heard a few, which is a bit odd for the park, and no Barred Owl, which is understandable. We attempted to look for Black-and-Whites, Louisiana Waterthrush, and maybe even Prothonotary Warbler, but we missed them all. I think the frost may have halted any more migration or killed them.

But worry not, northern birders! Despite your many feet of snow, the migrants are coming, as proven by the woodcocks, phoebes, and other arriving hardy birds!

Coming to a forest near you!

Impatiently Waiting for Spring

I hate March.

March is a dead time for me- the ducks start leaving, the early migrants aren't quite here yet, and the days are bipolar. I don't even like winter to begin with, since my part of the world doesn't get any major rarities (the phalarope was nice, but it's mainly things like goldeneye and stuff) and anything good is far, far away. For instance, a White-tailed Kite and a Ruff are three hours away, while the Smith's Longspur in VA is four. The earliest migrants- if you can call them that, they're almost winter residents by now- such as Blue-headed Vireos, Black-and-White Warblers, and Common Yellowthroats haven't moved too much in my area yet, although I wait eagerly for their return.

How I await the sweet song of a vireo...

or the bold black and white stripes of the B&W Warbler...

...and the bright colors of a Northern Parula.

I have so much planned for April, including possibly 2 trips to Congaree National Park, lots and lots of trips to the neighborhood patch, and I'm really excited for my spring break trip to Myrtle Beach, SC. My life list is at 286 and I'm really hoping #300 is something special- I want it to be a Painted Bunting, a bird I consider my nemesis. A Peregrine Falcon or a Golden-winged Warbler would be nice too- but I'll admit, I don't want it to be something like a Western Sandpiper or Mottled Duck. If I don't reach 300 during spring break, then hopefully I'll hold out until July when we head to Florida. I would love to get Nanday Parakeet or Short-tailed Hawk or another neat Florida bird as 300. 

Anyway, I digress. It's been rather slow with not many lifers or yearbirds- my latest year bird is Ring-necked Duck and Osprey. I had some Common Ravens in my county, which is uncommon enough to put on the listserv (no way am I adding to the "feeder bird" craze) and yesterday a Hermit Thrush whisper-sang its amazing song. I never get tired of that beautiful sound!

Love is definitely in the air, with courting Red-shouldered Hawks screaming and soaring around, robins fighting, mockingbirds and thrashers breaking into song, and aforementioned Hermit Thrush singing. It's great to hear the morning chorus, but I long for the voices of warblers to join. 

I had a lot of Cedar Waxwings spreading privet berries in my patch- the ground was littered with their droppings. Privet is a serious problem in my neighborhood, along with Japanese Stilt-grass. But the waxwings love it, and they seem to be stocking up for breeding season.

Waxwings are sharp looking birds.

Another masked bird of note is a Loggerhead Shrike that gave Matt and I great views. Shrikes are declining a bit around here, so it's always nice to see one.

I got to watch this individual barf up a pellet, which I thought was pretty cool. I wanted to find the pellet so I could see what it had eaten, but daylight was limited, so we got out of there.

Other than all that, it's been rather slow. Birding is happening, but birds are not. Hopefully our beloved spring migrants arrive soon, and safely! Happy birding!

Finding a Rarity

Chances are, if there's a rare bird, I didn't find it. The only birds that are flagged by eBird as rare are something not quite rare- uncommon, late, or early, really. The only notable thing I've found on my own was a Kentucky Warbler in my neighborhood- not a terribly uncommon bird in North Carolina, and certainly special to me, but otherwise nothing too fancy.

Well! All that changed today when my friend Matt called me this morning to see if we could go birding. Today we had the day off (why? I don't know. It's hardly iced over anymore) so we drove to Pee Dee NWR, which I had posted about before. It had started off fairly well, with me FINALLY seeing some Fox Sparrows, a bird that I hadn't seen in a couple of years. 

I almost forgot how pretty you are!

We looked for bobwhites, which can be found there, but fell short. We found some Wood Ducks on the main pond, with a nice mix of sparrows and Winter Wren, Hermit Thrush, and a Brown Creeper. The boardwalk through the forest got us most of our winter passerines. I thought I saw a Bufflehead out on the water, but lost it as I set up my scope.

As we continued up the drive, keeping an eye out for any ducks, grebes, or snipe, we paused to watch the Wood Ducks take flight. I spotted something small and white on the water, and pointed it out. A small white bird was floating on the water, Our minds first jumped to a Forster's Tern or Bonaparte's Gull. But this bird was swimming, and bobbing its head! I had seen Bonaparte's swim in the water, but this was no gull...

So what was it?

A phalarope!

We thought it was a Red-necked, as it seemed small and had a thin bill. I've been told it's a Red. Either way, it would be a lifer, but it would be nice to know exactly what it is. (Edit: It's a Red and do NOT count on your Sibley's for phalarope ID. Terrible, terrible!)

Phalaropes are pretty uncommon in North Carolina, with the only reliable way to see one being on a pelagic. They are much rarer inland, where they normally pop up after storms. With the cold front and wintry weather, it's plausible that this bird got pushed south and inland. It's an amazing stroke of luck that Matt and I found it; if it wasn't for the weather, school, location, etc. we would've never found it!

I'll give an update when a verdict is reached, but it's probably Red.

Edit: And yes, it's a Red. Sibley's was the only reference material we had, as Matt's phone died, taking the digital Peterson's with it. Red-neckeds have a crazy mix of darks and lights on their backs, while Reds are the solid pale gray. In Sibley's, the two nonbreeding birds look almost exactly alike, which caused our confusion.

Carolina Bird Club Meeting- Nags Head

Most birders can drive. A lot are retired. This is the perfect thing for a lot of birders, since they have a lot of time to go and chase rarities/go to lots of places. Young birders generally do not have the time, money, or ability to drive, so we are stuck begging our (non-birding... if you have birding parents, you have all of the above) parents to get out of the house and drive us somewhere, whether it be a stunning state park, a wheat field, or an Audubon meeting.

I am lucky enough to know a fellow young birder, Matt, who just got his driver's license and has a super nice mom. I am also lucky I work at a Wild Birds Unlimited, where most of my funding comes from. So I managed, with the help of a few adults, to go to the 2015 Winter Carolina Bird Club meeting.

The Carolina Bird Club is the biggest bird club in the Carolinas and spans both North and South Carolinas. They have three meetings each year, in Winter, Spring, and Fall. Technically, the Carolina Young Birders Club is the 'youth' version of it. I had never gone to a meeting before and I figured since I had a ride (Matt's awesome mom) and a room (thanks to Ron Clark, the amazing guy who planned the whole thing and got me a room!), I went! Needless to say, it was two days of EXTREME BIRDING!

Look into the eyes of this heartless gull. He will eat your Hooded Mergansers without mercy. Deep down, they only want to be appreciated, and appreciate I did. Lifer #275.

I have birded in cold weather before, plenty of times- in the Piedmont. In coastal South Carolina. Nothing really prepared me for the deep chill I would experience at Nags Head. The first day of birding was cold, wet, and windy, and we started the day with rain. Not the best, but we birded inland first and got me a lifer, Red-breasted Nuthatch. The rain didn't let up, so we stayed at Oregon Inlet Marina for a bit, while Steve Ritt, our trip leader, pointed out gulls and how to ID them. Steve was an extremely knowledgeable guy and he knew a lot more about gulls than I ever cared to learn!

For example, this is a juvenile Great Black-backed because of the "salt-and-pepper" markings on the mantle, lack of mirrors on the wingtips, rather pale head, and very heavy, solid black bill.

As the rain died down, we moved to the other side of the inlet, where the wind was intense. I, being the naive Piedmont birder, was not prepared for the wind and cold that awaited me. The wind lashed my hair (which is decently long) in front of me, obscuring my vision, and tore any heat away. My hands and face became very numb and red- it felt very weird to move the muscles, but I was afraid of getting frostbite. The jetty itself was very rocky, and we hoped for Purple Sandpipers on the rocks or Ammodramus sparrows in the marsh. We found neither, but we did have a Northern Gannet fly right over our heads. Next time I'll remember to bring a hat, scarves, gloves, and a better jacket.

In the afternoon, I was on Steve's trip again. We first checked out Wanchese Harbor for a reported Iceland Gull, and we found two!

Icelands are slightly smaller and daintier than Herring Gulls.

They're very pale gulls.

Notice the lack of wingtips on this guy. Aside from being very pale, their lack of wingtips is another good way to find it.

I am not that good at gulls, and normally avoid them, so seeing this very pale gull was a treat. After these trips, I think I respect gulls a bit more now.

The other notable bird we found that afternoon was a late Green Heron.

Definitely going south next winter.

Day 2 was just as fun and, if not more, exhausting. I was on the 'Young Birder's Rarity Chase' although it was only Matt and I, really. We tried looking for the reported rarities- a Parasitic Jaeger, Little Gull, Razorbill, and Dovekie were reported at one pier, while there was a Harlequin Duck to go chase too, along with the Iceland Gulls. We tried first for the Iceland, dipped, then went to the pier for the alcids. Dipped on those too. We traveled to the Harlequin when we found out it was not seen that morning, so we turned around to try for some uncommon, but not rare birds- American Bittern and Purple Sandpiper. Also dipped.

We tried for the Iceland again. I'm sure you can guess this one- we dipped.

So the rarity chase turned out to be the worst chase ever, but I did see from the car my lifer American Avocets and Snow Geese. Last-minute I signed up for the afternoon trip to Pea Island NWR, where the two were reported, to get a better look at them.

And better looks were had. I estimated from 150 to 200 avocets at the time, but after counting I lowered it to 130.

I didn't know avocets had blue legs. Did you?

American White Pelicans are majestic birds. This is the first time I've ever seen the knob on the bill- breeding season is coming soon!

I forgot to mention that on Friday, we spotted a leucistic/albino Redhead. That was the first odd duck I saw that weekend, with this American Black Duck x Mallard hybrid being the second. This is the first wild hybrid I've ever seen, and the green sheen was very hard to see.

That evening, after the meeting, the Northern Saw-whet Owls were re-found. They hadn't been reported for a while now, and I heard in the elevator that someone was going out to see them. I ended up hitching a ride with Nate Swick, the eBird reviewer for North Carolina and the ABA Blog editor. I never imagined actually going out to listen to the owl (when I first saw the reports a few months ago, at least) but there I was, standing in the middle of a moonlit road being very quiet. The owl did start tooting for a good five minutes or so, sounding very close. I decided to count it, since they are really hard to see, so that was lifer #282.

On Sunday, the day of departure, I spent the early morning ocean watching with a few of the other birders there. We spotted some Razorbills, Red-throated Loons, and Black Scoters along with many dolphins. Matt and I tried for a Sora he had seen the day before with great views, but it didn't come out. However, we did see the continuing Yellow-crowned Night-Heron along with its black-crowned cousin, Snowy Egrets, and Tricolored Heron.

Yellow-crowned didn't want to be in the picture.

It was a great weekend and definitely worth the trip/missing of school. I'm looking forward to the one in May, which would be in Clemson, SC. I learned a ton from it and met so many great birders. I highly recommend it to anyone who was thinking of coming!