Early spring is a time to add a new nest box to your yard, but there is an exciting option to a spring nest box – a nest box that doubles as a roost box during the "off-season" – fall and winter. Imagine the joy of observing bluebirds using one of your nest boxes during the season, and having fledglings on hand for some days as they learn to fly and forage for themselves – then having chickadees use the same convertible nest box to spend cold nights during late fall and winter. In the songbird arena, that's a real possibility with an "all-seasons" nest-and-roost box.
This year marks a milestone for Jay Watch: 25 years of volunteers, land managers, biologists, and conservationists coming together to monitor and protect one of Florida's only endemic bird species, the Florida Scrub Jay. What began as a small collaborative survey at 13 sites has grown into a statewide community science program with volunteers monitoring 47 scrub jay populations across 19 counties in central Florida. Jay Watch provides consistent annual survey data to land managers at scrub jay sites where staffing and budgets would limit the ability to conduct regular surveys.
It turns out that if you are an advanced birder, your interest and activities in birding appear to alter the structure and function of your brain in ways that may enhance cognition – the mental process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses – even as you age. According to a new research study, seasoned birders had denser tissue in parts of the brain associated to attention and perception. Such tissue density may indicate increased communication between neurons, and these structural differences were associated with more accurate bird identification.
In Search of Spring, last Wednesday morning I pointed my car south looking for the most obvious signs of spring migration – flocks of Snow Geese flying north. A mile south of home a potential migrant flew above the road in front of me – a male Northern Harrier. The frozen marsh at mile 7 showed 5 new arrivals – Canada Geese – and a dozen miles farther south an adult Bald Eagle was also a pretty obvious potential migrant. It appeared the day had high potential to find a true vanguard of migrants, and at mile 19 I was shocked to see a bright yellow color beaming from the edge of a tree grove. I needed to double-check what I thought I had seen passing by at 60mph – a super-early male Yellow-headed Blackbird!
The highest-quality Nikon birding binoculars, the Monarch HG 8x42 Binoculars provide brighter views of birds with up to 92 percent light transmission and natural color fidelity, a feature of the high-quality multilayer coating that's applied to all lenses and prisms, along with the dielectric high-reflective multilayer coating applied to the roof prisms. Their phase-correction prism coating also enhances resolution and contrast to give you beautiful views of the birds you encounter. As expected, Nikon engineered the optical system of Monarch HG Binoculars around its ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass.
Introducing the Kingsyard Dual-Chamber Metal Bird Feeder: This innovative feeder allows you to provide 2 different types of seeds or seed mixes simultaneously to attract a variety of birds to your yard. Its durable construction ensures long-lasting use, making it a perfect addition for any birder. Providing a hefty 4 pound capacity, this hanging feeder measures 9 inches in diameter and 12 inches high and it is available in copper- or black-colored models. Crafted from high-quality metal that makes it durable in the outdoors, one side is metal mesh for birds to cling to when feeding.
Be prepared when birding this spring with the Watertight II Jacket made with Omni-Tech to provide fully seam-sealed, waterproof, breathable fabric that protects you from rain, water, and wind while hiking or on the water. This lightweight jacket will keep you comfortable and dry, and it is available in your choice of 12 colors. On sale now, the attached, adjustable storm hood seals out elements and a drawcord permits you to adjust the lower hem for a custom fit. There are also zippered hand pockets to secure valuables and an abrasion-resistant chin guard.
A big surprise for Montana birders was the sighting of a First State Record Tundra Bean Goose near Great Falls, while Chicago area birders have been delighted by a series of rare gull sightings in Waukegan, including a First State Record Common Gull and an Eighth State Record Glaucous-winged Gull. A Second State Record Purple Sandpiper was found in New Mexico, and a Third Provincial Record Golden-crowned Sparrow was documented at St. John's, Newfoundland. A Fourth State Record Lazuli Bunting was photographed at a feeding station in North Carolina, and there's more.
As early spring migration brings new birds into our local areas and beyond, bird photography opportunities expand week by week. We all get excited about seeing a first-of-year (FOY) species, and the first sighting adds to the excitement of getting a first photo too – a “documentary photo.” In essence, every photograph is a documentary photo, and a few rise to the level of a “keeper.” But there are distinct purposes for taking documentary photos of many birds we encounter as new species appear and the potential of seeing an off-course bird increases.
By taking a photograph of a bird whose identity isn’t obvious in the field, you can refer to the image later to confirm the species ID. This digital photo of a bird such as this Stilt Sandpiper in alternate plumage can even be enlarged on a computer screen if you need to check on identifying markings (600mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/1600 shutter speed, 800 ISO.)
Realistically, a camera and lens are just as important as the most basic piece of equipment every birder must have – binoculars. I for one often use my camera and lens instead of binoculars, especially when walking through a birding hotspot where I consider binoculars to be of secondary importance. In my case, photo equipment is not secondary, it is primary! I can’t take quality photos with binoculars; a records committee can’t verify a rare bird sighting without a photograph; and the auto-focus on my camera and lens combination is actually a significant improvement to trying to focus in on a bird.
Documenting a rare plumage type and trying to ascertain whether it may be a hybrid or a partial albino can be difficult under any conditions. This unique bird appears to be a hybrid between a Snowy Egret and Tricolored Heron judging from the plumage, feet, and the long crest of this impressive wading bird (400mm zoom lens, f-8 aperture, 1/3200 shutter speed, 400 ISO).
Often, we emphasize taking quality photos of birds that resemble art – nature’s art – and that’s natural for photographers. But for birders with a camera, we can use our photo equipment as extra-helpful gear that provides the chance to help us identify birds we are unsure about, to verify IDs we make in the field, to document birds we haven’t seen before, and to learn more about the birds we see and tend to study season by season. Take it from me, even beyond the biggest values of photographing birds, taking documentary photos makes you a better birder, and expands our understanding and appreciation of the birds we encounter from our yard to the far corners of our travels.
It is especially difficult to distinguish Ross’s Geese in flocks of Snow Geese, but it’s much easier to document the species in photographs taken of flocks of Snow Geese. Note the smaller head, beak, neck, and overall smaller size of the top goose in this photograph – a Ross’s Goose (600mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/2000 shutter speed, 800 ISO).
A still photo that magnifies the birds reveals much more than we can see in the field when birds are active or even flying. Take something as “simple” as identifying Ross’s Geese mixed among flocks of Snow Geese: In the field, especially when the white geese are flying, it’s almost impossible to pick out Ross’s Geese, even for advanced birders. But when I check my photographs of flocks of Snow Geese, it’s simple to pick out the smaller Ross’s Geese positioned among the white morph Snows.
Documenting rare plumages in birds is especially interesting, like photographing the unique coloration of this partial-albino (leucistic) female Ring-necked Pheasant. Documentary photos are sometimes of lesser quality due to grainy looks or poor lighting, but they may be necessary in the moment to document rare birds or rare plumages (400mm zoom lens, f-7 aperture, 1/1250 shutter speed, 400 ISO).
Similarly, each winter it’s interesting to study the markings and colors of the plumage variations of Harlan’s Red-tailed Hawks, the most varied of the Red-tailed races. I always try to get documentary photos of each Harlan’s Red-tail, not only to document the bird at hand, but to have photo documentation of the individual to see if it remains on a winter territory, or even if the same bird returns during successive years. Just last Wednesday, I was excited to find 4 Harlan’s Red-tails, including a new dark morph, 2 returning dark morphs, and a rufous morph that I first observed 3 weeks earlier – but this time it was more than 20 miles southwest of when I first photographed it.
Photographing immature Bald Eagles has helped me study the plumage variations that lead up to the characteristic adult plumage at about 4 years of age. Some birders may also find it helpful to photograph a young Bald Eagle to compare it to a Golden Eagle and study the differences between the species (600mm zoom lens, f-7 aperture, 1/3200 shutter speed, 800 ISO).
Photographing immature Bald Eagles and referring to raptor-specific field guides has helped me to learn how to determine ages or plumage types better in the field, and this is true for any birds, such as the seasonal plumages of shorebirds, ages of broods of ducklings, and fledgling songbirds including robins, orioles, and bluebirds. You can also document the birds that visit your yard, feeders, and water feature year-round, especially zeroing in on first-time visitors, and rare birds that you attract. I enjoy photographing feeder visitors, especially rare sightings such as a male Scarlet Tanager (a first-time eastern visitor), a Black-headed Grosbeak (a first-time western visitor), and a Canada Warbler that was a first-time northern forest visitor that graced my wooded yard.
Documenting a rare sighting in your extended neighborhood, like this Common Loon that was present at a nearby lake last November, is a personally satisfying activity. The especially foggy conditions created a very black-and-white, grainy looking photograph of the loon, even with an increased ISO setting to compensate for dim lighting (600mm zoom lens, f-7 aperture, 1/640 shutter speed, 1600 ISO).
During each of the past two summers, I documented a state record bird in my yard – a Calliope Hummingbird that created a Fourth State Record I managed some nice images over a couple days two Septembers ago. And a flash of a bird turned out to be a Third State Record Carolina Wren, which had me grabbing my camera so I could take the worst-looking photo possible last July, but it showed the necessary identifying characteristics that proved my surprising observation without question – a worthy documentary photo. It’s also exciting to document unique-looking birds with partial albino plumage, as well as hybrid birds that were created by a coupling between different species that are close enough genetically to hybridize – like a White-fronted Goose x Cackling Goose hybrid I photographed 2 autumns ago.
A documentary photo of the only Yellow-bellied Sapsucker to visit my yard to date is also my best photograph of the eastern species. Photographing birds in your yard and at your feeding station is a rewarding aspect of backyard birding, and it is fun to have a collection of photographs of the different kinds of birds that visit your yard (550mm zoom lens, f-7 aperture, 1/500 shutter speed, 400 ISO).
Even when I’m reviewing photos and deleting images that don’t make my grade, I do keep some photos in my files to prompt memories of local birding activities and longer birding trips. When I first started reviewing digital photographs and filing them, I only kept the photos that were worthy of editing for publication, and in retrospect, that was a mistake. Now I keep many, many photographs in my files that provide insights into the legacy of this enthusiastic birder, for family members if nothing else. But I enjoy reviewing the photos from time to time when looking for a specific image to illustrate The Birding Wire and other publications.
While we always try to get the best photo of a given bird, getting the best possible documentary photograph is just as important, so let’s try to keep a quality level the best we can. When taking a photo to document a feeder sighting or a rare bird beyond its normal range, it may provide an opportunity to take a more quality photo of the bird than you expect – sometimes it’s a matter of getting an initial photo, then waiting to see what the bird might offer next as a photo op, or repositioning for better sunlight direction. Some documentary photographs are especially good, and that fact shows up among some of the bird photos taken by birders who post photographs attached to their eBird reports. Meant to document their sightings and augment their reports, some of these photos are top-quality images that rival many professionals' work.
Many birders would question the identity of this sandpiper in the field, so a photograph is helpful to study the image with the aid of a field guide (it’s a Red-necked Phalarope in basic plumage). Photography is an especially important part of birding, and photographing birds will definitely help anyone become a better birder, while providing rewarding images of the birds you encounter (400mm zoom lens, f-10 aperture, 1/1000 shutter speed, 800 ISO).
It's really part of human nature to get better and become more successful and more productive at any endeavor, and most photographers find that is especially true for their photo efforts. At the same time, our cameras provide a means toward personal fulfillment and a lot of fun. The use of a telephoto lens or zoom lens is universal to taking the best quality photos of birds. The better photos we create, the more fulfilling the activity is. As spring progresses, let’s all make a conscious effort to hone our photo skills, take more documentary photos, and improve the quality of our documentary images – Good Luck!
