Roadside Hunter

Oct 24 2015 104St and Hornby Drive, Delta BC 14c

I had been birding most of the morning (see next blog) and was making my way home with all my photo gear packed away in the boot of the car. On the seat beside me was the Nikon 200mm-500mm just in case I saw something interesting.

Juvenile Red-tail Hawk.

Well, it didn't take long for when I pulled out of 104 onto Hornby Drive I spotted a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk being mobbed by Northwestern Crows. I cut the engine, rolled down the window as the raptor dropped to the ground, grabbing a partially eaten prey and flew off across the freeway. It all happened in a few seconds, the very reason to keep a camera close at hand.

The raptor pounces on prey. 

and off he goes with a meal.

"It's never too late to start birding"

John Gordon

Langley/Cloverdale

BC Canada

Red-tailed Hawk Feedback

Tagged Red-tailed Hawk N2

Thanks everyone for enlightening me about the tagged Red-tailed Hawk. Here is Gary Searing's response posted with his permission. I know some of you registered some concern about the size of the tag but I believe it provides important information as laid out below.  Also check the footnote here and reader feedback from the previous posting.

Hi John

Thank you for reporting your sighting of N2. This is great information.    

  

I tagged her as an After Third Year bird at the Vancouver International Airport (YVR) on 5 September 2013 and released her the next day  in Chilliwack, BC as part of a program to prevent raptors from being struck by aircraft. Yours is the first sighting of this bird since that date. Let me provide you with some information on the program so you understand a bit more why we are doing this:    

  

YVR began a program of trapping and removing Red-tailed Hawks and Rough-legged Hawks in October 2010 in order to prevent them from being struck by aircraft primarily to improve air safety, but also as a raptor conservation tool. Each year the airport has a large number of transient raptors that winter at YVR as well as resident adults and local-raised young birds. Based on information from SeaTac International Airport in Washington, we expect that adult residents are least likely to be involved in collisions with aircraft, but a significant number of young birds and transient birds are struck each year. Therefore, we are attempting to remove those birds from the airport environs by capturing them and releasing them just beyond Chilliwack where there is ample habitat and a reasonable likelihood that they will not return to YVR. I view this not only as an air safety program, but also as a raptor conservation program because, if successful, we may prevent the deaths of a dozen or more birds each year. We expanded the program this fall to all raptors (including owls). To date we have captured and relocated over 225 birds. Most of them were relocated to Chilliwack.     

We are wing-tagging Red-tailed Hawks because we need to know who our resident birds are and are co-operating in a joint program with Seatac and Portland International airports all of whom are wing tagging airport Red-tailed Hawks (using different colours for the tag material). Not only is this program contributing to air safety, we are already learning a great deal about our wintering raptors and hope to learn much more as the years pass. To date we have captured about 100 Red-tailed Hawks of which less than a third, mostly resident adult birds or  long-term wintering residents, have returned to the airport. Less than 20% of the very hazardous juvenile birds have returned. Several of our birds have been seen in Washington State and as far south as Oregon and we have had a few birds from Washington State come to YVR. We have had one sighting of a tagged Red-tailed Hawk near Kamloops. In addition we have captured 10 Rough-legged Hawks of which 2 returned to YVR, 2 Snowy Owls (1 returned), over 70 Barn Owls (only a few have returned), and smaller numbers of Great Horned Owls, American Kestrels, Peregrine Falcons, Coopers Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks and Merlins a few of which have returned to YVR. Raptors are one of the major strike risks at YVR and we believe that we are mitigating that risk significantly through the capture and relocation of raptors.    

It is through the sightings of many interested persons such as yourself that we are able to collect the essential information on bird movements and distribution and learn how well the measures we are using to manage wildlife at the airport and elsewhere are working.       

Thank you for your cooperation and your interest. Feel free to contact me for more information or with any sighting information.

Regards

Gary

-----------------------------

Footnote:

Hi John

Go ahead and post away - the more the word spreads the better since I rely on sightings for my data.

Yes, the tags are relatively large, but this dramatically increases the flightability of the tags and hence the number of re-sightings of each bird. My colleague and I have been using this type of tag for more than a decade with many hundreds of birds tagged. There is absolutely no impairment of flight or other behaviour. Tagged birds that return to the airport resume their territorial behaviour, breed and successfully raise young. If the tags had a negative affect in any way, we would not use them since one of the reasons we are doing the program is for the safety of the birds (as well as air safety).

Regards

Gary

Gary F. Searing, M.Sc.      

Wildlife Hazard Biologist

Airport Wildlife Management International

Executive Director

Bird Strike Association of Canada

9655 Ardmore Drive

North Saanich, British Columbia

Canada V8L 5H5

Office/Home: 250.656.1889

Cell: 250.857.5133

Skype: gfsearing

http://www.airportwildlife.ca

http://www.canadianbirdstrike.ca

A Rapturous Day/Man in the Moon/Sunburn

March 10/2014 Brunswick Point Ladner B.C.  Sunny and first sunburn of the winter.

I wasn't until I arrived home Monday evening that I realized I had sunburn. I had been birding all day, so engrossed by all the activity around me I had completely forgot the sunscreen. Sunscreen in March, who would have thought it, eat your hearts out Winnipeg! It was cloudy in the morning but by midday the light was fantastic for photography. Blue skies allowed the use of fast shutter speeds, just enough to catch up with the speedy Prairie Falcon. I had photographed the bird before but I wasn't quite happy with the results. 

The first signs of Spring were everywhere. The trees are filing out, buds waiting to explode for the soon to arrive waves of warblers and flycatchers. A Turkey Vulture circled overhead, a pair of Lincoln Sparrows looked to be staking out a nest site, even the Tree Swallows have arrived, what a time to be a birder!

The day began with a trip to 104 St and Hornby in Ladner to see if I could re-locate the Leusistic Red-winged Blackbird (see previous blog) but the bird could not be found. From 104 to 72 I counted forty or so Bald Eagles, six Red-tailed Hawks, and a smattering of Northern Harriers. I couldn't find the Glaucous Gull. 

At Tsawwassen kite surfers took up much of the real estate but a small flock of twenty Brant bobbed about on the waves, Common Goldeneye dove for shellfish but the wind made photography difficult.  Then on through the Indian reserve and onto Brunswick Point which is where the real fun began.

The first picture in this series came about when I observed what I thought might be a hawk in a hedge. The bird turned out to be the Prairie Falcon. It normally perches high up on poles or trees so to see it so close was quite a surprise. I stopped the car and grabbed my camera. Unfortunately the bird was flushed by a passing pickup but as it flew into the air and away from the tangle of branches I was able to get this clean shot with the blue sky as background. Finally a half decent shot .

Prairie Falcon (Falco mexicanus) chasing off a Coopers Hawk that had wandered into its domain. I estimate this birds territory to be 400-500 acres of open farmland. For those who know the area, that is from River Road to the Container Port. While I watched the falcon it not only bullied the Cooper's Hawk (below) but also had a run in with several Northern Harriers, a Bald Eagle and an American Kestrel.  

This Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) was hunting songbirds when it was set upon by the Prairie Falcon.

The Prairie Falcon then flew along over a fallow field chasing a Norther Harrier.

The Prairie Falcon glides at incredible speeds often snatching prey from other raptors but occasionally catching its own.

Red-tailed Hawk N2. Anyone know anything about the markings or who I should report to?

Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus) was about the only raptor not to be bothered by the Prairie Falcon. I think the bird has the long beak syndrome. Anyone have an opinion.

A distant grainy, greatly cropped shot of a mid air tussle between Northern Harrier (top) and
a Red-tailed Hawk. Both birds were fighting over territory. On one stretch of road alone five species of raptors
fought over territory. Note the setting sun and the golden glow on the birds.

A  female American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) tears apart a hapless Townsend's Vole. A bone from the rodent is stuck in the telephone wire although it looks quite large, possibly from a previous kill. The bird first skinned the animal before feasting on the juicy meat. The setting sun also gave this image the orange hue.

At the End of the Day

             Can you see the 'Man in the Moon' The two distinct eyes, a nose and puckered mouth.

What can I say. Another great day out of the house, not a care in the world except making sure that I didn't get run over by farm traffic. As I mentioned the weather is changing here in B.C.and soon we can all expect a flood of migrants including the sandpipers and warblers. I for one can't wait.

Good Birding 

John Gordon 

Sumas Prairie Raptors

Jan 24/14 Sunny Sumas Prairie, Abbotsford B.C.

Sumas Prairie, Abbotsford B.C Jan 24 2014

With Boundary Bay fogged in due to a week-long inversion I decided to head out to sunny Sumas Prairie in search of an elusive Gyrfalcon and some much needed sun. It wasn't long before the Gyr was found but it was too far away to get even a half decent picture. I was happy with the sighting and moved on to search for a Golden Eagle that had recently been seen in the vicinity. 

Following an hour of driving around, scanning every large tree for signs of the Golden Eagle a large silhouette in a distant tree promised success. Even with binoculars the bird was too far way, it was either an immature Bald Eagle or the Golden but I couldn't be certain.

Frustrated by the situation (the bird was on private land) patience again would have to come into play. Hopefully the bird would take flight and in my direction.
A great deal of birding I am finding is part research and the other half, plain good luck. A cold wind buffeted the car while I ate lunch and waited. The waiting reminded me when I used to fish for carp and tench back in the UK. Sometimes waiting hours or even all night for a bite. To bird you need patience, there's no way around it. I once spent ten days in silence at Buddhist retreat so waiting for an hour of two for a bird to move is not really a big deal.
I remember one particular day when after meditating for six or seven days with only minimal sleep my mind was in a quite a tranquil place. The internal chatter of the mind had died down and everything seemed well with the world..so I thought. Just as I was thinking I was getting the hang of the "meditation thing" a flock of birds landed just outside the monastery window. The flock burst into a noisy chatter and all the calm I had acquired suddenly vanished. Bloody birds, I thought. That night, we could if needed ask the monks a question and so I asked her was about the noisy birds and how they disrupted my 'precious' meditation.
Her answer was simple and became the title of my blog "Listen to the Birds". With those few words I understood the concept of letting nature be itself and not to try and impose any thoughts upon it. Those wise words are with me today as I bird and photograph our avian friends.

Suddenly out of nowhere a Bald Eagle flew toward the tree. It became clear the bird in the tree was indeed a Golden Eagle and a fierce battle for territory was suddenly being fought overhead. The Golden Eagle soared in an ever increasing spirals suddenly swooped down to drive the intruder away. No contact was made but there was no doubt who now ruled of the roost.
Who needs the National Geographic channel when we have this in our own backyard!
Here is one the resulting shots.

Golden Eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos)

The day continued with sighting of one Rough-legged and seven Red-tailed Hawks, five American Kestrels and one Gyrfalcon and a large flock of Western Meadowlarks.

Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus)

A long distance ID shot with some nice backlight. 

The day ended with a quick coffee run to the Great-blue Heron Reserve where we were alerted to the possibility of a Lincoln Sparrow hanging out with the Song and Fox Sparrows. An hour later, the shy and diminutive sparrow posed for pictures.

Lincoln Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)

Good Birding

John

A Few Hours Well Spent.

Sept 18 2013 104th Delta, B.C.

After looking for the elusive Smith's Longspur without any success I decided to walk east on the dye path. I wanted to check a freshly ploughed corn field that I thought might attract the small flock of Longspurs that had been near 96th Ave. As much as I wished no such miracle of miracles prevailed.
However I did find many Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-rumped Warblers, a Song sparrow, one Lincoln Sparrow and numerous Barn Swallows.

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)

I also chatted to a few birders before making my way back to the car. Just by the railway line a juvenile Red-tailed hawk was surveying the ground from a telephone poll. I took a few pix and waited until it flew off before pressing the shutter for an action shot.

A few hours well spent, it's as simple as that!

Waiting for just the right moment .








Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

A Mixed Bag and a 'Lifer' to Boot!

9.00 Leave home after leisurely breakfast


Mar 8th, 2013 Burnaby Mountain. Blue skies and sunny.


9.30 A.M.
A few feet above me a flock of Pine Grosbeaks are gorging themselves. I can't believe I've found them on my first try. It wasn't a question of finding the quarry myself as much as locating another photographer who had already found the birds! I suppose that's just another facet of the 'Total Birding' experience. anyway I digress....I best shut up and just take pictures!

Female Pine Grosbeak (Pinicola enucleator)

The Pine Grosbeak is a beautiful bird, even though the more brilliant male was missing from the flock  the females with their yellow-olive heads were stunning. I spent an hour with them.

Pine Grosbeak feeding on cherry buds.

The flock spent a good hour eating the tender cherry buds, disregarding some very loud groups of tourists passing directly underneath them. The flock kept on feasting, eventually retreating into some higher branches andout of range, most probably to take a rest from eating.. or to take a break from us humans!



11.30 A.M.  Deas Island Regional Park Sunny

Deas Island would seem to be the perfect resting place to go bird watching. The Fraser River skirts one side of the park, another sheltered body of water inside the park is used by the local rowing club offers shelter to ducks, herons and kingfishers. High above gulls and bald eagles circle in the air. A very vocal Winter wren makes checks me out, coming within inches of my shoulder, high above a flock of Yellow-rumped warblers search for insects and scores of Black-capped chickadees and Ruby-crowned kinglets flit from tree to tree.
The rattle of a kingfisher draws my attention away. There are so many branches obscuring the bird but eventually I find a small opening to shoot through. The aperture is set at F4, later I am surprised by the clarity of the files despite all the branches in the way.

Belted-kingfisher (Mecaceryle torquata

2.00 P.M. Ladner Trunk Rd.72nd Ave
Having found nothing of note at the base of 72nd Ave I decided to make my way home. As I reached Ladner Trunk Rd I spot a Red-tailed hawk perched up on a snag. I managed one static shot before it took off and I 'lucked out' with this flight shot.

Red-tailed  hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

4.00 Arrive Back Home after yet another wonderful days birding in the Lower Mainland.