Life at Boomer Lake with Deb, Wednesday November 20, 2013

The Bird Police Blotter

Birds getting arrested is now a common practice. This time an eagle was picked up, and those birds one should not take lightly. If you irritate them too much, they really do have the power to kill. For more on this new sport, read:

Here is everything that you ever wanted to know about the wild turkey, and this is certainly the perfect month to do it. Did you know that this bird could have been our national symbol, but instead the Bald Eagle was thought to be more fitting? Learn more on why some of our wild turkey populace is plummeting.

This will show you how to be just a little more savvy on how to be able to locate Screech Owls a little better. They are quiet sorts, but if you keep a sharp eye on snags, you might just get better and better on your owl search:

I’ll show you a banker that has a heart of gold. Not all of them are in the business for the money, as you will see here. Thanks, Mr. Banker, from Spokane, WA. You are tops in my book! !

Another week has passed and a few notable birds have come into view in my camera lens. This week, we started out spending a little time in the Northern Reaches, which actually proved very fruitful. With fall here, and the leaves rapidly making their exit from the trees, I captured the Eastern Bluebird, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and American Goldfinch. Sadly, the White-breasted Nuthatch speeded his way through my area and kept me constantly flipping dials to no avail. This little speed demon will keep you on your toes, and years ago, the best way that I have found to tame this little racer is with an ample supply of peanuts, black oil sunflower seeds, or nutty suet. Had I known that I would have been privy to this little beauty, I would have brought something delectable with me. Oh, well, perhaps better luck next time.

Our usual birds of the season, the Double-crested Cormorants and Canada Geese, have been especially entertaining. If the cormorants aren’t trying to snatch the spoils of fishing from new friends, they are on the move searching for more victims, I mean friends. They are rather social, yes, but they consider their own stomachs above everything else. Don’t get me wrong, they are very good fishermen, but sometimes, they just tend to take things overboard a little.

We are also sharing time with our precious and endearing little Buffleheads now. They are in the process of courting and choosing what mates are available at this time. The single males tend to arrive before the females, and I have seen some very interesting showmanship from the boys. What few females there are tend to go about their business in a most nonchalant way, and they take their time in choosing the best of the best. At this early stage of the game, what’s the hurry, girls? Right?

The Greater Scaups are also here, and there are some very handsome examples intermingling among the Ruddy Ducks. Most of the ducks really don’t have any problems mingling, and the truth of the matter is that the more eyes there are to spot predators, the better. Ever see most of the ducks diving with one lookout always around? That’s the plan, and it works rather well.

Not only do we have the Pied-billed Grebes, one of our usual visitors, on-and-off, today I spotted a distinct pair of non-breeding Horned Grebes. This is a very poor quality photo, but even though it was 53 degrees, I had 40 mph wind gusts to battle. Hence, the picture is quite distorted. Hopefully, they’ll be around a little while longer.

Last year I managed to spot a Western Grebe a little later in the season, and I will definitely be watching for them, as well.

Keep your eyes to the ground and your head in the clouds until next time. Migration is still occurring, and even though eBird has shut down their active mapping for the season, they will return again in the spring. Do use the tool if you can, for it will let you know what is on the way, as well as leaving in your areas. If I don’t speak to you before then, have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.