New Bird Course from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Several years ago I took the basic Bird Biology course from Cornell by correspondence and loved it. It has changed a lot since then. I talked to someone else who took the newest version of the course, and they were learning a lot.

I recently received an email from Cornell concerning their newest on-line course, "Investigating Behavior--Courtship and Rivalry in Birds." It looks great, but at $255 for Lab members ($295 for non-members) it is probably a little steep for me right now. But as soon as I can put my fingers on that amount of $$$, you can bet I'll be signed up. If any of you take the course, let me know what you think (although it will probably just make me jealous.)

Good birding!

Save the Date! Christmas Bird Count

The North Texas Bird and Wildlife Club will host the Wichita Falls area Christmas Bird Count on December 19. This is the 110th CBC. I am not sure how long Wichita Falls has been participating. The counters are primarily members of the club, although we had a few Rolling Plains Texas Master Naturalists participate last year. You do not have to be an experienced or expert birder to take part. Extra eyes and someone to help keep up with recording the birds is very important on every team. However, if you want to improve your skills identifying birds in the field, this is a good way to do it. Every group will have one or more experienced birders in it.

During the CBC, birders canvass a 25-mile circle and count every bird they see. This information is then entered into the Audubon Society CBC database for use by researchers.

Participants pay $5 each to take part. This money is sent to Audubon to support the work of entering and maintaining the information.

We divide our 25-mile circle into three areas to make it easier to cover in one day. We start at sunrise and continue until mid-afternoon, then break up and meet for our traditonal potluck spaghetti dinner at a member's home to eat and compile the data from all three teams. Our compiler, Debra McKee, inputs the data for the group.

The three areas are:
Lucy Park: the park and much of the city. This is primarily a driving route.
Lake Wichita: The lake, a small area of the city, and the county surrounding the lake. Although there is a fair amount of driving, there is several miles of walking (along the dam and the hiking trails in Lake Wichita Park.)
Iowa Park: which comprises primarily the county between Wichita Falls and Iowa Park. It unfortunately skirts Lake Buffalo. This is primarily a driving route due to the large area to be covered, although there is some walking.

In addition, those who cannot (or don't wish to) get out, can participate by watching birds at their feeders and recording the numbers.

It is within the rules to include birds seen in the count week that may not have been counted during the count day for one reason or another. I am not sure what we are considering the count week yet.

If you would like to take part in the count, you can contact me at txbirds@gmail.com or Terry McKee at dgm59@aol.com. I will have the Lake Wichita team and Terry the Lucy Park team. I am not sure who will be overseeing the Iowa Park area yet.

Good birding!

Smorgasboard

When you put up feeders and attract small birds, you have to expect predators to come to the smorgasboard. Thursday I saw a fast-moving larger bird shooting past my kitchen window. When I looked out, a sharp-shinned hawk was perched in the tree. Due to the size, I believe the hawk was likely a female (the female sharp-shinned hawk is twice the size of the male.) She then circled a few times and went from tree to tree in hopes of a meal. I wish there was a way to direct the birds they take--I have plenty of house sparrows. I didn't see her catch any birds Thursday, but I am sure she'll be back.

Good birding!

Super Sunday Morning on the Chat Trail

I went out the Lake Wichita Park and walked the chat trail (picture left), around the tank and back. What a beautiful morning! The weather was just about perfect when I got out of the truck. I almost decided I didn't need to take my long-sleeved shirt with me. I'm glad I did as soon after I started down the chat trail, a front moved through, bringing clouds, a breeze and the threat of rain. However, the front passed through in about 2o minutes and the bright sunshine came back.

There were several highlights to the morning. First, at the entrance to the chat trail was a ladder-backed woodpecker I had a chance to watch for some time. He flew from the willow to a live oak. When I followed him there, I was able to watch him break open a gall and clean out the inside.

I also had some first of season birds: gold finch, yellow-rumped warbler, and a white-crowned sparrow. I was also lucky enough to watch a song sparrow singing as well as several others along the walk. In addition to these birds, I saw large flocks of house finch, starlings, and red-winged blackbirds. Other birds included: ring-billed gull, Canada goose, mockingbird, great-tailed grackle, eastern phoebe, cardinal, spotted towhee, American coot, American widgeon, pied-billed grebe, ruddy duck, killdeer, pigeon, great blue heron, robin, and double-crested cormorant.

Good birding!

Sandhill Cranes

Almost every time I have walked out of my house during the past couple of days, I have heard sandhill cranes. They have a very distinctive call. However, I haven't seen them yet.

Bob at Wild Bird Rescue had the wonderful experience of seeing A LOT of sandhill cranes today--see his blog entry for more information.

I'm jealous.

Good birding!

Super Film Clip of Hummingbird

OK, this is not a bird in/around Wichita Falls, TX, but it is so neat, I had to share. I love David Attenborough's programs on the BBC. This looks like it will be another hit.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8338000/8338728.stm

Good birding!

Project Feederwatch Starts Soon

One of my favorite activities is Project Feederwatch, a citizen science project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The season starts the second Saturday in November (November 14). Although I have some feeders up year around, I have several others to clean in preparation for bird feeding season. It's also time to visit Berend Brothers and Atwoods to stock up on seed and suet.

I have participated in varying degrees for many years and enjoy reading the reports at the end of the year.

If you enjoy watching birds at your feeders, this is a fun and low cost ($15/$12 Lab members) activity for the entire family. This would be an educational activity for home schoolers and classrooms.

Good birding!