2008 ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year

The results of the 2008 ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year Contest have been officially announced!  I (Marcel) won the Photography module in the age group 10-13. Joel won the Notebook and Illustration modules for the same age range.  He also won the overall title of Young Birder of the Year!  Examples of the winning material will be published in a future issue of Birding magazine and will probably be posted on the ABA website at some point.

Thanks to the American Birding Association and Leica for putting on this annual competition. A big thanks also goes to the judges for the time and effort they spent evaluating work and providing thoughtful feedback.  We enjoyed it, learned a lot, and encourage other young birders to participate in this event.

Marcel's Photography Samples

Lincoln Sparrow

Melospiza lincolnii

Neotropic Cormorants

Phalacrocorax brasilianus

Dunlins

Calidris alpina

Laughing Gulls

Larus atricilla

Joel's Illustration Samples

Williamson's Sapsucker

Sphyrapicus thyroideus

Killdeer

Charadrius vociferus

 Juvenile American Robin illustration from Field Journal

Joel's Field Journal Samples

Journal Entry - 2 Page Spread

Journal Entry for Western Scrub-Jay

From the ABA website . . .

ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year

2008 Contest Winners

Congratulations to the winners of the 2008 ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year Contest, and thanks to all who participated in the event.

Overall 2008 Young Birder of the Year

Joel Such (Age 10), Lyons, CO

Notebook Module

Ages 10-13 - Joel Such (Age 10), Lyons, CO

Ages 10-14 - Harold Eyster (Age 14), Chelsea, MI

Illustration

Ages 10-13 - Joel Such (Age 10), Lyons, CO

Ages 10-14 - Harold Eyster (Age 14), Chelsea, MI

Writing

Ages 10-13 - Megan O'Brien (Age 13), San Jose, CA; Dakota Outcalt (Age 11), Rockford, IL

Ages 14-18 - Sarah MacLean (Age 16), Escondido, CA

Photography

Ages 10- 13 - Marcel Such (Age 12), Lyons, CO

Ages 14-18 - Malkolm Boothroyd (Age 16), Whitehorse, Yukon

Another Birding Trip to the Plains

Yesterday we again went out to Crow Valley Campground, the Pawnee National Grasslands, and Lower Latham Reservoir.  This time we were birding with Raymond Davis and John Vanderpoel.

Swainson's Hawk (probably looking for juicy insects)

by Marcel Such

Who's This Brown Bird? - by Marcel Such

Hard to Mistake from this Front View . . . 

A Singing Western Meadowlark - by Marcel Such

Hooded Warbler in Motion - by Joel Such

Magnolia Warbler - by Marcel Such

Horned Lark - by Marcel Such

A Fat and Juicy Grasshopper for Swainson's Hawks

and Other Birds! - by Joel Such

Lark Bunting . . . Another Bird That Enjoys

Grasshopper Snacks - by Joel Such

Black-tailed Jackrabbit - by Joel Such

Evening Primrose - by Joel Such

Horned Lark - by Joel Such

Western Grebe - by Joel Such

Immature Yellow-headed Blackbird - by Marcel Such

Adult Male Yellow-headed Blackbird - by Marcel Such

American Bittern - by Marcel Such

Can you see the bird in this picture?  You have to look hard for some of these birds!  This Virginia Rail is Obscured by the Cattails, as usual! - by Joel Such

Click on the picture for a closer view!

Burrowing Owl - by Joel Such

American White Pelicans - by Marcel Such

Day List (species Joel and/or Marcel saw on the 17th of May).

Canada Goose

Wood Duck – a pair on WCR5

Gadwall

American Wigeon

Mallard

Blue-winged Teal

Cinnamon Teal

Northern Shoveler

Northern Pintail

Green-winged Teal

Redhead

Lesser Scaup

Common Merganser

Ruddy Duck

Ring-necked Pheasant – FOY

Pied-billed Grebe

Horned Grebe

Eared Grebe

Western Grebe

Clark’s Grebe – maybe, not counted

American White Pelican

Double-crested Cormorant

American Bittern – a couple at Lower Latham Reservoir

Great Blue Heron

White-faced Ibis

Bald Eagle

Northern Harrier

Swainson’s Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

Golden Eagle

American Kestrel

Virginia Rail – 1 

Sora – heard only

American Coot

Killdeer

Black-necked Stilt

American Avocet

Baird’s Sandpiper – one on WCR 42

Long-billed Dowitcher

Wilson’s Snipe

Wilson’s Phalarope

Red-necked Phalarope – life bird

Franklin’s Gull

Ring-billed Gull

Forster’s Tern

Rock Pigeon

Eurasian Collared-Dove

Mourning Dove

Common Nighthawk – Crow Valley

Common Poorwill – at Home

White-throated Swift

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Belted Kingfisher

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Dusky Flycatcher

Cordilleran Flycatcher – Crow Valley Campground

Say’s Phoebe

Western Kingbird

Eastern Kingbird

Loggerhead Shrike

Plumbeous Vireo

Warbling Vireo

Steller’s Jay

Blue Jay

Pinyon Jay – Davis’s house

Black-billed Magpie

American Crow

Horned Lark

Tree Swallow

Violet-green Swallow

N Rough-winged Swallow

Cliff Swallow

Barn Swallow

Black-capped Chickadee

Mountain Chickadee

White-breasted Nuthatch

Pygmy Nuthatch

House Wren

Marsh Wren

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Western Bluebird

Mountain Bluebird

Swainson’s Thrush

American Robin

Brown Thrasher

European Starling

Cedar Waxwing

Tennessee Warbler – one at Crow Valley Campground

Orange-crowned Warbler

Virginia’s Warbler

Yellow Warbler

Magnolia Warbler – one immature at Crow Valley

Common Yellowthroat

Hooded Warbler – one male at Crow Valley

Green-tailed Towhee

Spotted Towhee

Chipping Sparrow

Brewer’s Sparrow

Vesper Sparrow

Lark Sparrow

Lark Bunting

Savannah Sparrow

Lincoln’s Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

McCown’s Longspur – lifer, a couple on Murphy’s Pasture

Black-headed Grosbeak – a couple at Crow Valley

Bobolink – a few at McCall Lake

Red-winged Blackbird

Western Meadowlark

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Brewer’s Blackbird

Common Grackle

Great-tailed Grackle

Brown-headed Cowbird

Bullock’s Oriole

House Finch

Red Crossbill – two males at Davis’s house

Pine Siskin

Lesser Goldfinch

American Goldfinch

House Sparrow

Birding in Estes Valley

Veery - by Joel Such

This afternoon we stopped at Matthew-Reeser Bird Sanctuary in Estes Park.  One of the first birds we found was a Veery.  There were also oodles of other migrants around . . . Common Yellowthroats, Yellow Warblers, Orange-crowned Warblers, Yellow-rumped Warblers, a MacGillivray's Warbler, lots of Lincoln's Sparrows, and a few Empidonax flycatchers (none of them sang, so we could not identify individual species).

MacGillivray's Warbler - by Joel Such

Note:  We just heard our first of year Common Poorwill tonight at 10:20 PM.

Biggest Day Yet at our House!!!

We saw 50 bird species at our house yesterday.

Highlights:

Dusky Flycatcher

Western Wood-Pewee

Warbling Vireo (new yard bird)

Plumbeous Vireo

Northern Waterthrush (new yard bird)

Virginia's Warbler

Orange-crowned Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow-breasted Chat

Western Tanager

Warbling Vireo - by Joel Such

Orange-crowned Warbler - by Joel Such

Dusky Flycatcher - by Joel Such

Common Merganser Chicks

There are ten Common Merganser chicks and two Canada Goose goslings at "Merganser Pond" in Lyons. Two of the merganser chicks were riding on the adult female's back, while the rest were swimming right behind.  There are two Canada Goose nests that I know about near Merganser Pond.  One of the nests is on the bank of the river.  One of those eggs did not hatch. The other nest is at the shore of Merganser Pond and those two eggs hatched successfully.  I think that the two goslings shown in the first photo hatched at the pond. We don't know where the Common Mergansers nested. I've been going by the pond to photograph the mergansers almost every time we go to town.  They are a lot of fun to watch!

Photos by Joel Such

Common Mergansers and Canada Geese

with their chicks.

Common Merganser chicks watching adult dive.

Common Merganser with chicks.

Common Merganser with chicks.

A Nuthatch with Zebra Stripes?

Yesterday evening I (Joel) saw an odd looking zebra-striped bird at the thicket acting like a nuthatch . . . a female BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER!!!  Great bird for around our house!!!  I also saw a Virginia's Warbler, a couple Orange-crowned Warblers, and lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Black-and-white Warbler photos - by Joel Such

Downy Woodpecker flying into photo

Today Marcel and I got up at 5:30 AM to try relocating the Black-and-white Warbler.  We found it plus 200 or so Yellow-rumped Warblers.  We also found an Orange-crowned Warbler, a Virginia's Warbler, and one Plumbeous Vireo singing on and on.  The Ponderosa Pines uphill and south of the thicket were loaded with Yellow-rumped Warblers.  It was also the location of the Virginia's Warbler and Plumbeous Vireo.

Black-and-white Warbler - by Marcel Such

Plumbeous Vireo - by Joel Such

Joel's Big B-Day

Yesterday was my birthday and my dad always takes our birthdays off and we get to pick what we want to do for the day.  I asked to go birding from Lyons to Pawnee National Grasslands. We took a route that took us by Beebe Draw, Lower Latham Reservoir, and other Weld County wetlands.  We were out all day and our trip list ended up being 114 species.

Immature male Red-winged Blackbird

doing his best to attract a mate - by Joel Such

American Avocet - by Renee Haip

Wilson's Snipe - by Joel Such

Western Meadowlark - by Joel Such

White-crowned Sparrow - by Joel Such

Barn Swallow - by Marcel Such

Marsh Wren Singing Its Head Off - by Joel Such

Marsh Wren - by Joel Such

Marsh Wren Habitat - Can you see the Marsh Wren nest?

Click on photo to get a closer look!

White-faced Ibis - by Marcel Such

Lark Sparrow - by Marcel Such

Pronghorn - by Joel Such

Pronghorn Showing Alarm with its Flared White Rump Patch - by Joel Such

Trip List:

Canada Goose

Gadwall

American Wigeon

Mallard

Blue-winged Teal

Cinnamon Teal

Northern Shoveler

Northern Pintail

Green-winged Teal

Bufflehead

Common Merganser

Wild Turkey

American White Pelican

Double-crested Cormorant

American Bittern (state bird)

Great Blue Heron

Great Egret

Cattle Egret

Green Heron

White-faced Ibis

Turkey Vulture

Northern Harrier

Swainson's Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

American Kestrel

Sora

American Coot

Black-bellied Plover (state bird)

Killdeer

Black-necked Stilt

American Avocet

Spotted Sandpiper

Greater Yellowlegs

Willet

Lesser Yellowlegs

Upland Sandpiper (life bird)

Marbled Godwit

Semipalmated Sandpiper

Western Sandpiper

Least Sandpiper

Long-billed Dowitcher

Wilson's Snipe

Wilson's Phalarope

Franklin's Gull

Ring-billed Gull

California Gull

Herring Gull

Forster's Tern (state bird)

Rock Pigeon

Eurasian Collared-Dove

Mourning Dove

Great Horned Owl

White-throated Swift

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Western Wood-Peewee

Say's Phoebe

Western Kingbird

Eastern Kingbird

Loggerhead Shrike

Steller's Jay

Blue Jay

Black-billed Magpie

American Crow

Common Raven

Horned Lark

Tree Swallow

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Cliff Swallow

Barn Swallow

Mountain Chickadee

White-breasted Nuthatch

Pygmy Nuthatch

Canyon Wren

House Wren

Marsh Wren

American Dipper

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Western Bluebird

Mountain Bluebird

American Robin

Northern Mockingbird

Brown Thrasher (state bird)

European Starling

Cedar Waxwing

Orange-crowned Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Common Yellowthroat

Green-tailed Towhee

Spotted Towhee

Chipping Sparrow

Brewer's Sparrow (life bird)

Vesper Sparrow

Lark Sparrow

Lark Bunting (state bird)

Savannah Sparrow (state bird)

Song Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Red-winged Blackbird

Western Meadowlark

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Brewer's Blackbird

Common Grackle

Great-tailed Grackle

Brown-headed Cowbird

Bullock's Oriole

House Finch

Pine Siskin

American Goldfinch

House Sparrow

TOTAL SPECIES: 114