May 18, 2009

2008 ABA/Leica Young Birder of the Year


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

May 14, 2009

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.

May 9, 2009

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

May 7, 2009

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