Anyone that has ever done a ‘Big Day” of birding will tell you the importance of getting your birds as quickly as possible and moving on to the next one. Not only do you have to know where to go one also has to have a great deal of luck along the way. Our luck…

Sharp-tailed Grouse In the hills of the front range of Colorado we were able to view a private lek of Sharp-tailed Grouse. The display of these grouse, as you see, is very different from the Greater Sage Grouse previously posted. The Sharp-tailed Grouse spend much more time posturing against other males and even their dance…

Dark skies and two hours of heavy rain accompanied us on our drive northwest into the South Central Florida Pinelands. As the rain let up four Swallow-tailed Kites flew across a short grass field and in front of us, heading off together for the mornings hunt. This region of central Florida is dotted with a…

This was my favorite video from our Colorado Chicken Odyssey. This was my first time doing this tour with Adrian and I had a blast! Our weather was unusually warm, and we saw many fun species and enjoyed many grouse and chickens performing on their leks. I hope to get more videos posted on our…

Continuing up the eastern coast we stopped in at the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station, a small rehabilitation center that successfully released a Red-footed Booby several months back. It had been returning in the hopes of being fed but on this day it was undoubtedly feeding elsewhere. There was excellent close up looks at Brown Pelicans…

This may well be the first trip that I have lead that is an all male group! Jim, Dave and the boys from Canada, Art, Bill and Rick were all set to go at first light for a day of urban birding – Miami style! With the exception of Hawaii, Florida ranks as the state…

I am currently in Florida on a 10 day tour of Southern Florida and the Dry Tortugas. I thought that I would begin with introducing you to South Florida’s most ubiquitous bird, which just happens to be the State Bird of Florida. Wait for it….. it is none other than the Northern Mockingbird (below). On…

The 2009 National Junior Duck Stamp Contest winner was announced today, and it goes to a young man from Ohio for his rendition of a male Hooded Merganser. This science and art program, and competition, is open to school children from kindergarden through high school, and is designed to connect them with the outdoors, learning…

I know that it is hard to top the popularity of Molly and McGee, the Barn Owls whose UStream video I mentioned March 28, who are in the process of raising four youngsters. But another interesting UStream shows extraordinary footage, taken from above, of Red-tailed Hawks that have been nesting at the Franklin Institute in downtown…

Spring is in the air at John Heinz NWR aka “Tinicum”. A walk around the main impoundment produced many Tree Swallows (above) pairing up, displaying and visiting nest boxes. American Robins, already in pairs, had begun to build their mud nests. An American Goldfinch (above), whose plumage had yet to attain his vivid colors, was…

It was a treat to sleep-in today, the last morning of our trip. After a tasty breakfast and coffee at the local Mountain Buzz cafe (above), we were on our way a few minutes after 8 am. We drove slowly around the small historic district of Georgetown, admiring many buildings, churches and houses constructed during…

What a fabulous show of Greater Sage Grouse this morning! The birds congregated barely 40 yards away from our roadside location, giving great views of all the action. The scenery was stunning, enhanced by coyotes howling in the distance. In the pre-dawn darkness, we were able to discern the bright white chests of 10 oversized…