Fall Migration

Kennesaw Mountain park is the site of tons of history for our area. The park preserves important sites in the Atlanta Campaign. This was an epic battle between Sherman and Johnston, and the mountain itself was a killing field for something like 4000 soldiers.
It's kind of nice that now it's one of the most heavily used parks in the area. If you arrive BEFORE the place opens, you have a chance of getting a spot to park. Otherwise, plan to park and walk in. It's also nice that it's ranked as an Important Birding Area.
I love taking guided walks with Audubon Society Guides. I have never met a guide who wasn't wicked smart, not just about identification, but about overall birding behavior. They will give you tips about optics, and help you distinguish between even the most similar birds. And for us, the day began with a caution.
Fall migration is one of the best times to bird in this location. It's described as a huge landing strip for all the birds heading to warmer climates. Unfortunately, the weather here as been GREAT. That's a problem. Because GREAT weather doesn't drag the birds to the ground like a nice wet and cold front would. So, instead of stopping here to fill up and get a happy meal for the teenagers, the birds do the equivalent of "driving until nightfall." Sounds like lots of them won't slow down until Florida.
Now, there are pros and cons to being alone and being with guides. We had a large group today, around 30 birders. Loud birders. The things I like about birding include nature, solitude and quiet, so that's a big consideration for me. On the other hand, I love being with the pros. Today, we were led by Chuck.
Imagine getting your morning exercise in - over a mile on a fairly steep grade. Imagine heading back down the moutain, thinking about that great breakfast you're planning. Imagine hearing this.
"YOU HAVE GOT TO SEE THIS! IT IS A BLACKBURNIAN! OH THAT MAKES THE TRIP FOR ME."
Chalk up another positive to birding with a group. I love the geekiness attached to it like a veil of morning dew on an open field. There's no set meeting point for the bird walk in Kennesaw Mtn., but you have absolutely no difficulty locating the birders. Muted colored clothes, cargo pants so no one has to carry bags, low profile caps, binoculars in one hand (often with harnesses to avoid neck strain), and Sibley guide books tucked in back pockets.
You can also find them on any trail, if they are walking in a group. They are the big blob of humanity that moves in unison, stopping, staring into trees and pointing with binoculars. And though all the action takes place yards away, the collective gasps also come in unison.
Look! he moved!
Over there!
Between the V of the tree! Up there!
I admit it. I did it too. Particularly when I saw the Peregrine Falcon and the Yellow-Billed Cuckoo.
More than once, walkers on the way up or down would stop, try to follow where we were looking, and then walk on. One even said, "I wish I knew what they were looking at."
Yep. I like that too. We had the keys to secret knowledge on top of the mountain.
So, what did we see?

White-eyed vireo
Red-eyed vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Swainson's Thrush
Blue-Grey Gnatcatcher
Sharp-shinned hawk
Peregrine falcon
Yellow-Billed cuckoos (beautiful, and I think my favorite spotting today
Cliff swallows
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Black and white Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Black-throated Green warbler
Eastern Wood Pewee (which I thought was a Phoebe)
Goldfinches
Red-Bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Summer tanager
Scarlet tanger (who aren't scarlet right now, but a sweet greenish yellow)
Rose-breasted grosbeak-who sounded his night migration call rather than his usual daytime squeak)
Eastern Phoebe
Brown Thrasher (our state bird)

Not a big day for the pro maybe, but a big day for me. Now to upgrade to the 8x40 binoculars. Or maybe 10x50.

--Laura

Bird Identification

This weekend I discovered the Chattahoochee Nature Center. I'm already a fan.

The Nature Center starts as a place to rehab wild animals who've been abandoned at birth or have been injured. The layout reminds me of a summer camp for kids, with lots of flat areas to play and have picnics, and old fashioned wooden directional signs. In fact, quite a few kids were there. As I arrived, there was even a birthday party going on. I imagined how a kid would feel wandering through all the critters which were immediately available for viewing. Because before you even leave the nature store, you can visit snakes and turtles. A steps beyond, there's a butterfly garden that's swarming with butterflies of all sizes and colors. Some, unfortunately, were incredibly camera shy.

Beyond the butterfly garden, the raptor display, with hawks, owls, an eagle with exhibitionist tendencies and slinking vultures. These guys can't be reintroduced to the wild, for whatever reason. And circling through their pens are dozens and dozens of smaller perching birds. I was even able to see them with the naked eye. I wrote down some physical features, and I've been trying to identify them since Saturday.

One was simple to identify - I saw a cardinal. But I also saw what I think was an eastern kingbird. There was also a black one with a red racing stripe along his eye, and another one with beautiful row after row of white on black stripes on his wings. I don't know what they were -- yet. I'll get introduced to them in good time. It's okay, because when I wasn't sure what I was looking at, there were always the clearly labeled fellas - the barred owl, the turkey vulture, the red-shouldered hawk -- to keep me company.

That and the lazy beaver of unusual proportions. He lifted one eye haughtily at me as I disturbed his sleep.

And after my walk through the wetland marshes, where I spotted a great blue heron and canada geese, I returned and he was swimming. Pesky thing.

They have scientists there. Toward the end of the month they will have a bird walk.

I will be there. Let's see what I learn.

--Laura

About Birding: Part II

Now for some other observations about birding.

Number two: Birders like accessories.

I'm not sure why this is the case. Could it be that they have more disposable income, given their age? Could it be that the neck strap on their pair of binoculars is excruciatingly painful, therefore making a shoulder harness absolutely necessary?

Does it matter? You can get one at Wild Birds Unlimited for $24.99. This is good to know. A time will come when I want to sell things to birders, so it's nice to know they like to buy things.

Now, if I can just spot birds. I had trouble with this while I was out, but I was using stadium binoculars, which have a magnification of 3-4X. According to the reading I've been doing, it's better to have something in the 7-8X range, like one of these.

Who knew?

Oh, another observation. Number Three: Biologists are geeky coolness. Our guide for the morning was Chris. I had a feeling if he weren't being a BIRD guide, he'd more easily do the kind of exploring I prefer, which means stopping for anything and everything that looked interesting. But while we were out, he identified plant and animal life, told us interesting facts about barred owls (their hearing is so acute they can hear your heatbeat from 5 feet away), and he explained why trees that are drought stressed will uproot in a heavy rain.

Besides, he knew a lot about birdcalls.

If you've never listed to bird calls before, I recommend two sites. One is the site hosted by Cornell University's lab of ornithology, called All About Birds. Cornell University is the organization that Wild Birds Unlimited partners with as well, and with the right software downloaded, you can listen to all kinds of birds.

Another features all the birds of North America - WhatBird.com. I like this one because it also has a bird identification feature, which lets you narrow down birds you've spotted by color, size, habitat, etc., in the hopes of locating the birds you saw on the trail. I haven't put this to good use yet, but I hope to in the future.

Finally, I want to mention that the Fernbank Science Center is pretty neat. If you live in the Atlanta area, it's a great place for kids, gardeners, and all budding or closet scientists. After the birdwatching, I relaxed for a show in the planetarium, to find out what was going on in the night sky. On Friday nights, if the sky is clear, they invite you to come to the Observatory. They do all kinds of exhibits on butterfly gardens, composting, the latest Mars mission and native plants and animals.

And if you aren't a closet scientist, maybe you should be. There's nothing like hands on experience to get you interested in your surroundings. There are worse hobbies.

--Laura

About Birding: Part I

Saturday morning I got up pretty early and drove to the Fernbank Science Center in Atlanta. This should not be confused with the Fernbank Museum, which has clear signs leading to it from all major streets. No, to get to the Fernbank Science Center, you need to take the ramp leading to the Carter Center, then PASS the Carter Center and drive to Moreland Avenue before reaching Heaton Drive.

Located nearby is the King Center (as we southerners pronounce it, KANG), the contested foundation in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. And had I been in the shape to sit in a bar and have a beer afterwards, I would have gone to Manuel's Tavern, an Atlanta institution for 40+ years, if you're a Democrat. They have great nachos.

Anyway, enough of that. I went to the Fernbank for the birds. Only, I got there late, owing to the wrong turn. Shoot. Birders don't sit in the parking lot and drink coffee and gab for a few minutes, sharing equipment tips, trading industry secrets, bragging about birding expeditions.

When I arrived, the birders had already entered the forest. I was dismayed, walking around the entire perimeter of the center to see if I could spot them. But you know, I was born in the country. So when I noticed that the gate to the "backyard" of the complex had a padlock, but the padlock wasn't shut, I snuck through. And when I noticed that the padlock to the forest was in the same condition, I snuck through that too. Then I hoofed it down to a small clump of birders, and took my place in the group like I'd been there the entire time.

I had driven a long way, and I didn't want it to be a wasted effort.

As this was the first time birding in a group, I make the following observations.

1. Birders are skinny. Like runners. Like bikers. They are primarily waspish middle aged women who do not sweat. Darn birders. There wasn't wasn't a single "Person of Color" in the group. Now if you're a big girl like me, you're going to be welcomed, because that's the polite thing to do, but you're going to sweat in an old growth forest with a full tree canopy and no access to moving air. Given this situation, you're going to feel a little self conscious. Struggle to tame this urge.

I say this because if you jump in and talk to people anyway, they are going to be helpful, because they are still women, and women like to share secrets. If they were stunned by the amount of sweat I could produce, and why wouldn't they be when I am stunned by the amount of sweat I produce, they didn't mention it. And when I told one woman where I had been already, and how it seemed easier to spot birds alone than in a group where right that minute we were CLODDING ALONG IN THE FOREST TALKING ABOUT BLUEBERRY PIES, she agreed.

"You attend these walks because you have free access to a biologist who is experienced. You learn a lot more and gain experience faster when he is able to pave the way for you. But when you are able to spot birds on your own, it's better to be alone or with a partner who doesn't grow impatient being with you quietly for hours. This is a learning environment. But it's not the best way to find birds."

That made sense to me. In fact, the woman I spoke with was more of an outdoor camper, not quite as pale and skinny as the rest of them. She had come to birding because she enjoyed camping, and wondered about the birds who produced the songs she heard.

When I was alone, I found dozens of fascinating things and took lots of pictures. With the group, I couldn't stop when I wanted, so I only took a few. But I did learn (I think) the difference between the call of a titmouse and a warbler. I learned that bluejays can mimic the sound of a hawk. I learned that you shouldn't play sound recordings in a forest to draw birds, because you can actually kick them out of their territory if your recorded bird "wins." I learned that the crow population is in trouble from the west nile virus. And while listening to bird calls online, I learned that I can really draw my dog Mollie's attention when I play the sound recordings. She's mighty stinking cute when she's trying to figure out how a bird got into my laptop's keyboard.

I have other observations, but I'll save them for another time.

--Laura