I’m like that in all aspects of life and birding is no different.  I plan ahead to increase the odds of having great experiences.

Since I started birding in Feb. 2015 I have seen a lot of the usual winter suspects that are now turning up such as the Common Goldeneye ducks so I don’t feel a huge urgency to get out there (although I do want that flock of Evening Grosbeaks still).  I do hope this week to get out to Mount Uniacke to hunt about for a Black-backed Woodpecker and some White-winged Crossbills with a birding friend, and at some point in January to the Valley to look for Short-eared Owls but other than that no big plans.  Just the usual walks in the woods that I always did even when not a birder.

And so I must plan.  I will have to travel to New England in the Spring for work so will make a day on the weekend to visit “warbler mecca” in Kent, CT.

It’s funny how a dirt road in a town I’ve never visited could be something to look so forward to isn’t it?  This post I found in a birdie google search turned up this fellow’s account of River Road:

River Road, Kent Trip Post

And I do so hope to see a Cerulean Warbler.  We do get them in NS but I don’t think they are easy to find.  It would seem they get a nice variety of both warblers and non-warblers in the Spring in Kent.  I can’t wait!

Closer to home, I am looking forward to a trip to Cape Breton in June of this year.  I have family in Sydney so can always make a trip in the summer.  Not to mention how wonderful Inverness Beach is, but I digress.

You will find me some morning in June at Money Point at the crack of dawn hunting for Bicknell’s Thrush.  Thank you for this tip and location Richard Stern.

Bicknell’s are not plentiful these days from what I understand and it will be tough for me to distinguish them from the other Thrush species I’m told by anything other than sound.  I do love a challenge and think this will be as fun or more fun than looking for a Cackling Goose in a large flock of Canada Geese.  Not for everyone, but great fun for a field birder.

Up until now the only Thrush I’ve been able to identify and photograph is the one that fills our forests with it’s beautiful sound all summer in Nova Scotia, the Hermit Thrush (and you know Joel Plaskett likes this one right?).

As lovely as all this is to dream of, the ground is covered in snow and these adventures are many months away and so I have started to watch the BBC series “The Life of Birds” to keep it together in the interim  😉

I finally quit Facebook altogether.  I was only hanging on to it to communicate with birders (I unfriended everyone 2 years ago but kept the account for communication) but personally I find FB to be antisocial, not social.  And I have very little patience for people who don’t even know one another squabbling about things that upset me online so have finally rid myself of it in the name of my sanity.  If I stayed on one more day I was going to start to hate birding.  Although many people love FB, I do not and I gotta be me.  Anyway, in case you wonder where I went there you have it.  Mark Zuckerberg created that thing for a different type of personality than mine, clearly.

Anyway, I will continue to meet birders (and yes call me a hypocrite if you like as  I met a few through FB…LOL), go to NSBS meetings in person, and watch and study birds.  If we have met or communicated about birds in the past and you want to plan a cool Nova Scotia birdie daytrip or a quick jaunt around the birdie hood please do not hesitate to reach out.  It is my goal to continue to learn from people in the field and share any knowledge I have as well.  We have a lot of cool birders here in this province – and a lot of cool birds.

A few weeks ago I went with 3 other wonderful nature lovers on a day trip to CSI (Cape Sable Island) to see if we could find the Mountain Bluebirds who have been hanging around.  None of us on that trip were particularly twitchy people so we were prepared not to find anything.  We were however treated to a biscuit coloured juvenile Glaucous Gull and a Dovekie in addition to our lovely little Bluebirds.  Mark Dennis volunteered as our tour guide for the day and was the perfect host to the area and made our day extra special.

 

In the Spring I’d like to get a few carloads of people together and do it again!  Who’s in?

And a few weeks before the CSI trip Tony and Angie Millard were kind enough to take me to Sober Island (just past Sheet Harbour) for the day which was a definite highlight of my first year in birding.  PS – great spot on that Veery Tony!

I learned a lot from Marian Kemp while she was in Nova Scotia too.  So I guess I have a natural affinity for British birders  🙂

Today is December 28^th.  Looks like I will end 2015 with 175 Nova Scotia lifers.  This is respectable for a first year although honestly I had hoped for 200.

But more than ticking off numbers, bird behavior is what interests me and bird study.  I sure have a long way to go before I earn a new camera by my standards.  Taking nice photos is always a bonus when birding.  There are not many birders who do not think so.  Not too many years ago we had to shoot the birds with a gun to make a proper ID.  Now we can shoot them with a camera.  Aside from the ID abilities that a camera provides, who doesn’t love a great photo?

Back to learning though I have many years ahead of me to learn about the birds.  There is so much to know.  Molt for example.  Sigh…

As well my sweet little Canon PowerShot SX50 HS “bridge” camera has a plethora of wonderful manual settings and I have not mastered one.  I heard a little rumor that the NSBS might be doing a photography workshop in the New Year which would be wonderful!  As well at some point I could in fact just go spend a few days practicing on everyday birds and subjects.

When I have mastered what I believe to be an acceptable personal amount of knowledge of both my camera and our local birds, I will look at investing in a DSLR.  I’m in no rush just enjoying the ride.

My latest birdie puzzle was to distinguish the female Gadwalls from the female Mallards.  Sounds easy perhaps but look at them and see what you think for yourself.

Things like this will keep me busy for some time to come I would imagine, and they are not even rare birds.

I have a tremendous thirst for knowledge regarding the birds and their behavior it seems.  Had I spent my earlier years more wisely (that’s a book not a blog post) perhaps I would be an ornithologist now, alas I’m a just a poor sales rep who loves nature.  Although some think I am rich to have the freedom not to work 9-5 and travel to such wonderful places.  I know I certainly do.

Education and conservancy are definitely on my mind for the future.  But for this winter I will focus on reading the 4 bird books I’ve chosen to get prepared for spring.

Because as much as I enjoy reading and winter birding (my winter list sits at 58 today), let’s be honest – we are all dreaming of warblers aren’t we.

PS – if you want to get outside this winter and learn about some winter birds and their habitat the NSBS has several great field trips coming up:

http://nsbirdsociety.ca/index.php/events/field-trips

Fleece is sexy right?

Happy Birding and Happy New Year all the best for 2016  and please enjoy the birds however you love best!