clearlyconfused

Vial Family Reunion - A Worthy Tradition

2012-02-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

Though I don't know who to credit it with, I have long embraced the quote "There are only two lasting bequests we can give our children, one is roots and the other is wings." I really feel like the concept of "family reunion" is one of those traditions that fulfills both of these objectives. The "Vial" family reunion is now a couple of decades old. A gathering of my dad Armand "Jean" Vial and his descendants, it has been held often at the Oregon coast, but in 2011 was the inaugural event of Scholls Valley Lodge! Held over the 4th of July, all of Jean's boys were there.

The flowers had been planted, the furniture just barely delivered from Vermont, and the weather was great.

We had scareplane rides.

And Fireworks!

And birds! Like the Red Tail Hawk and the Turkey Vulture.

The field had just been plowed, and The Vultures were out hunting in force.

Night

And Day

It was all about the people.

We even celebrated a few birthdays!

A worthy tradition for a great family!

A Typical October - A Fighting Grandson, Zombies and a Crazy Bird

2012-01-26T23:04:00.000-08:00

Another catch up post. If I don't document it I am not sure it all happened!

Early in October I was sitting in the bedroom one morning at Rainbow and heard a hooting call out the back near the river. Looked out several times and didn't see anything. Suddenly the noise seemed to come from just under my window. What is it grandchildren? This is the mystery critter for this post. Ten bucks to the first to guess the bird's name.

On a beautiful Saturday morning our very tough grandson Jacob Van competed in his very first Martial Arts meet. Kid was really amazing.

Finally, its not a Halloween party, but our crazy niece Heather, mother of 4 and serious fitness guru, sponsored a "fun" run called the Zombie run. People actually paid upwards of $30 each to run in the mud, wearing goofy costumes, and being chased by military looking goofballs. Some of the costumes were pretty outlandish.

Yup, that's a diaper!

It really was a family affair.

Cousin Spencer's wife Jasmine looking hot in her Momma Camo!

While Spencer and his Bro's are scaring the kids.

Heather with her partner and some happy guests.

The "chase" crew.

And Jake Vial with Alicia. One of the great stories that came out of this day was Jake carrying a runner up the hill who had been stung and was going into shock. By the time he got her up to the paramedics, she wasn't breathing and just got a shot in time. Best part of the story, Jake took her on a date the other night and said she was really cool!

Just a typical Vial October?

San Diego in September - 3 Life Birds and a Blackout

2012-01-22T22:30:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it's good to remember the good weather when it's not so nice outside. Last September there was a conference in San Diego that we were participating in. I met several of the lawyers from Salt Lake as well as brother Mikey to attend. On the 7th, I got out for a few hours, and then very early again on the 8th.

On the 7th in the afternoon, I got some time to go to "Bird Rock". This is a famous place just north of the city that has a particular rock on which the Brown Pelican and Cormorant numbers are pretty high. All I had was the D7000 with the Sigma 50-500, but I with the good light, I got some ok shots.

Later that afternoon, I spent about 4 hours at the San Diego Zoo. Many amazing birds. Great place to practice shooting in understory light. Later I plan a post just on the zoo, but this White-Crowned Robin-Chat is just one example. It is a Middle Eastern/Northern African bird.

That evening, while talking with some of the other conference attendee's, I met Greg Baker, a forensic engineer also from Portland. He talked a bit about birds, and we decided to go birding the next morning. Greg turned out to be a serious (really serious) birder and the next morning took us to a location north of town where I got 3 lifers!!!

Lifer 1 is the California Thrasher.

Lifer 2 is the Clapper Rail. I had looked for this bird a couple of times before, especially up in the Bay Area, but got a good close look here.

Lifer number 3 is the California Towhee. Like the other two, very local and fairly rare.

Anna's Hummingbird was also around. This female was pretty cooperative.

And it is always fun to get a close look at a House Wren.

We also saw a number of Ring-Billed Gulls.

So here is the weirdest part of the whole trip. We were sitting in a very large conference room at the Marriott Hotel next to the bay. About 3 in the afternoon, the lights went out. We thought that it was just local, but it turned out that some guy had messed up clear over by Arizona, and all of the southern border of California, including all of San Diego, and clear down into Mexico on the Baha Pennisula was completely without electricity. No elevators, traffic lights, or any other power anywhere!!!! As downtown tried to clear out, it just clogged up and ground to a halt. And talk about really weird, walking around without any street lights, shop lights or anything except car lights was outright scary. Had to open the window of my hotel to keep from roasting to death, but literally no lights. Amazing to see the stars from downtown San Diego. Sure made me think a bit about how to prep for that kind of emergency.

Birding Argentina 2011 - Final Post

2012-01-04T17:54:00.000-08:00

Short and sweet. Argentina was amazing. Buenos Aries was very fun. Paula and Michelle went to a Tango show on our last night and had a blast. Brig and I slept!

Our hotel was near the park where we started this birding trip. Brig and I went out before our plane departed and spent some time in that park. First thing I noticed was that the Troupial didn't look like it had a couple of weeks earlier. Tough light but here is what we saw this last day.

Notice that the bird has a nearly full black head. Note that the one in the earlier post has just a black mask. Turns out the bird that is rare to this area has more than one cousin here!

Otherwise it was fun to see right here in the city birds like the Spectacled Tyrant

Our friend the Guira Cuckoo

The Black Hooded Parakeet

Walking along the waterfront it was fun to see some really progressive architecture and a vibrant society.

In the background in this next shot is the bridge behind Brig, Chelle and Paula.

This beautiful bridge known as the Women's Bridge was donated by a local businessman.

Click on this one.

Really a fun trip.

Birding Argentina 2011 - Post 11, Iguazu Falls Day 2

2011-12-31T11:15:00.000-08:00

First thing Monday morning, the 15th of August, Daniel took us out to the catwalk to Devil's Throat, where most of the river goes over the falls. We were alone because of his unique access, and the experience was truly breath taking. Right in the parking lot, we got some very fun birds including:

Chestnut Bellied Euphonia, both male and female

The beautiful Purple Throated Euphonia

The very large Green Ibis

One of my trip favorites became the very cute little woodpecker with its polka dot cap. The Ochre Collared Piculet.

As we began the hike out to the falls themselves, we got a great look at a Linneated Woodpecker. Tough to get a clear shot, but this is an amazing bird. It is about the size of our Pileated.

As we were hiking out, we were on constant lookout for the Guan which is actually Daniel Somay's featured bird on his website. Unfortunately, we did not get it, but did get a very striking Anhinga.

We also began to see Grey Breasted Martin. It is one of the "swallow" type birds that live under the falls.

The other is the White Winged Swallow

Again, the falls themselves were incredible. Pictures cannot do them justice. The views were amazing. We couldn't stop looking at the swallows swooping in and out of the falls.

In this next shot you can see the birds swooping around the water.

Walking back we saw more of the Martin's, Swallows and some Shiny Cowbirds along the elevated boardwalk.

On of the famous stops for all birders in Puerto Iguazu is the incredible Hummingbird Garden located right in the middle of town. Started by a woman who simply loves birds, she has improved it to the point that there are literally hundreds of birds there all the time, and she charges a modest entry fee. The light was a little tough for photography, but I loved seeing so many birds up close. Here are just a few:

Black Jacobin

The juvenile of which has a very distinctive brown mark on it's cheek.

Blue Tufted Star Throat

Gilded Sapphire

The Glittering Bellied Emerald

And the Versicolored Emerald

The White Throated Hummingbird

And the Fork Tailed Wood Nymph

There were also some non-hummer's in the yard including what I think was a Eared Pygmy Tyrant.

The Banaquit

And even a House Wren!

We then did the obligatory siesta, after which Paula and Michelle did laundry while Daniel took Brig and I out for one last bird walk. The light had gotten really bad, but we saw some fun stuff!

Close looks at a Squirrel Cuckoo

A long experience with a very loud Tropical Screech Owl

A very well mannered Ochre Breasted Foliage Gleaner

A very shy Green Headed Tanager

A backlit Plain Brown Woodcreeper

A very cute Southern Beardless Tyrannulet (which looks like it has a beard to me!)

And a handsome pair of Dusky Capped Flycatchers

Just as it got dark, and we were almost back to the truck, Brig spotted something way off in the trees with his binoculars. It turned out to be a Saffron Toucanet, yet another lifer for both of us!

And then it was dark!

Birding Argentina 2011 - Post 10

2011-12-22T18:40:00.000-08:00

Iquazu Falls was an afterthought for this trip. Boy are we glad we did it! Nate Chappell and his group all headed back to the states, but Chelle, Brig, Paula and I wanted to go up to see what we had read was a lifetime experience. It truly was, and while the birds were great, the falls were incredible.

Take a look at the following site, and then explore about this incredible place. LINK TO IGUAZU FALLS

We found a great guide online. A fellow named Daniel Somay, a former park ranger. He spoke great english, and was very bird knowledgeable. Best though was that he was a local and had special privileges to the park at all hours.

We started out before first light on Sunday, August 14, in the parking lot of the visitor's center. Great birds right off the bat, but I also dropped my Sigmonster and ended up using the Nikon 400 2.8 with a 1.7 telecon for most of the shots. This was another place where the D3 with the Bigma (Sigma 50 - 500) was a great choice.

Chopi Blackbird

A very gregarious Red-Crested Finch

We were hearing the very beautiful call of the Surucua Trogon long before we saw it, but finally got a great look.

A huge Black Headed Vulture flew in.

A couple of new Parrot's, including the Scaly Headed Parrot

And the Blue Headed Parrolet

Very quick looks at the Swallow Tailed Manakin

And the Blue Dacnis

And a nice long look at the incredible Swallow Tailed Tanager

We were really impressed with what we were seeing, but once we got a glimpse of the falls, we were totally blown away. These are one of the most incredible sites ever! My photo's do no justice to it at all.

We did have some fun taking pictures of each other.

We all had to take our turn under the falls!

The trails built by the Argentinians around the falls are really great. Between sections of the falls we saw more birds like the Red Rumped Cacique.

And a very interesting pair of Chestnut Eared Aracari

We got a Fawn Breasted Tanager just under a waterfall.

And for the mystery critter, what is this thing?

Even the butterflies seemed especially beautiful here.

They call their flicker the Campo Flicker here.

And both the male and female of the Saffron Yellow Finch were vibrant.

One of the real highlights was a White Cheeked Puffbird seen right along the road into the park.

A couple of nice flycatchers, the Fuscous,

And the Short Crested.

Right in the parking lot was a crazy Rufous Collared Sparrow fighting with itself in a car window!

Right at the edge of the falls was a Rufous Hornero building it's nest. Amazing that they form them so perfectly.

Can't leave this post without featuring two of the real stars of the Iguazu area. First the Toco Toucan

Often maligned for boisterous behavior, and their tendency to prey on other birds, the Jays are uniformly among the real lookers in the world. The Plush Crested Jay seen everywhere at Iguazu is no exception.

From the steps of the old colonial age hotel, now abandoned

to the falls themselves, I am really glad we didn't pass this one up.

Birding Argentina 2011 - Post 9

2011-12-20T17:00:00.000-08:00

On our final day at Rincon del Socorro, we spent a lot of time together. In the morning we saddled up with our guide Arturo.

Arturo, though young was typical of many of the guides we had throughout this trip. Very articulate, curious, and attentive. He had spent a good deal of time among an indigenous group, and was particularly interesting in anthropology. He wasn't necessarily a bird guide, but had paid attention during the year he had worked on the ranch and knew what and where stuff was.

On Friday, August 12, 2011, Chelle, Brig, Paula and I joined Arturo on a horseback ride out to a local village. Although kinda spare in the bird department, this was really a fun excursion.

We did see a couple of fun birds including the ubiquitous Southern Crested Caracara

And a Red-Winged Tinamou peeking out of the brush at us.

Upon arrival in this tiny village, we were met by our host Valerie

While Arturo returned back to the ranch with the string.

This little church was far and away the nicest building in a village with perhaps 6 or 8 tiny homes.

But in the garden of one of the homes we saw this beautifully perched Epaulet Oriole.

A very handsome White-Browed Mockingbird,

And a Savannah Hawk soaring overhead.

After returning to the ranch, I went out to near the horse barn to sit in a blind as see what would come in. Nothing did, but on my way over I saw this really fun display by a Kiskadee. Note that it's normal look can really be modified!

Also right around the lodge we got close to the Bare-Faced Ibis.

That afternoon we went out in search of the White-Fronted Woodpecker, but had a hard time finding it. We got more good looks at the Checkered Woodpecker however.

But finally our hunt was rewarded, and the very striking White-Fronted Woodpecker allowed us some good looks.

Most woodpeckers are not often seen at feeders, and when they are, they tend to be clumsy. This is partly due to the tendency to brace themselves with their tail further down the tree, which isn't available on most feeders.

Just before sundown we decided to go back out on our last evening here to the edge of the swamp/lake. On the way out, Arturo got us really close to the Burrowing Owl sharing it's burrow with the Plains Vischacha.

Along the road we got another really good look at the Yellow Cardinal.

It was beautiful out next to the water. No mosquito's surprisingly, and perfect temperature. Arturo got up in a tree to scout for interesting birds, but about all that showed up were a couple of young grey fox.

This pair was very curious and kept circling us for a long time.

They kept coming closer until we almost had too much lens to get any good shots.

And then the sun

Was replaced by the moon.

The next morning we got up early and took a 12 hour jeep ride up to Iguazu, passing through several old villages with a great deal of history. Click on the description below.

Hey guys, what is this mystery critter from northern Argentina?

This has been a great trip so far. Our next post will feature the incomparable Iguazu Falls on the border of Argentina and Brazil.

Birding Argentina 2011 - Post 8

2011-12-19T20:31:00.000-08:00

Thursday August 11, 2011 found us at Rincon del Socorro. I should have taken pictures of the facility itself, as it was really amazing, but if you are interested look at it's web site . The staff is great, and I would highly recommend it for birders or anyone else.

Early, we went just outside our rooms, and the variety and quality of birds was amazing. Here are some of them.

The Checkered Woodpecker is small and primarily eats fruit!

And of course the Golden Fronted Woodpecker

As well as the Field Flicker

Some of our best looks at the Monk Parakeet were here, as it was a fairly open area.

And the White Mojita

The Grayish Saltator

And a really close encounter with the Narrow-Billed Woodcreeper

One of my favorite shots of the Argentine national bird, the Rufous-Sided Hornero

Several ponds surrounded the lodging facilities. Apparently they have a full time guy who guards the perimeter at night just to keep the Capybara from making a mess of the grounds.

Brig (son-in-law) was either the curious or the subject of curiosity, I am not sure which!

Course he wasn't paying too close attention most of the time to what was behind him.

This was my first look at Plumbeous Ibis. They are one of the largest of the Ibis family.

It was pretty fun to get close to the very rare Yellow Cardinal. Both the female and the male are striking.

The Male.

A bird I still can't seem to find much information on is the Brown Chacolote. Try to Google it!

While we were having an incredible lunch in the gazebo behind the lodge, this very beautiful Cream Backed Woodpecker hung out.

So I am going to make the mystery critter very easy on this one. Surely one of the Grandchildren will recognize this very common raptor from this trip. Taken just as the sun was about to set with a trick exposure.

Back out on the main highway (dirt road nonetheless), we got some of our best looks at the Strange Tailed Tyrant. This is really one of the highlights of birding this area.

The tyrant flycatchers do just that. They dart off the perch, catch an insect in the air and come back to the same spot.

With it's very interesting tail, even the female is extremely unique.

A fun but challenging bird to photograph. Quick, small and shy.

Another shot at the Tropical Screech Owl later that night proved once again successful just outside our room.

Birding Argentina 2011 - Post 7

2011-12-08T08:55:00.000-08:00

While many of the days we spent in the Ibera area had thunderstorms at night, Wednesday August 10 dawned without having had a stormy night, and was beautiful and warm at about 65 degrees Fahrenheit and not getting above about 75. Because we were moving to Rincon del Siccorro that day, we actually slept in until about 7 and while Paula started packing, I went back out to get some shots in the yard at the photo/feeders that Nate Chappel had set up.

As we sat about 50 feet away, a lot of birds visited this set up, which allowed natural looking shots like the following:

Tropical Parula

Saffron Finch

Golden-winged Cacique

The Epaulet Oriole

The Red-Crested Cardinal

Being this close allows clear frame filling head shots that just can't be done without some kind of control.

The Blue-Grey Tanager

A few of them didn't get up on the perches, but were nearby on the ground.

The Southern Lapwing, showing it's spurs.

The very large, Spot-winged Dove

And the Argentine National Bird, the Rufous Hornero

Interestingly, there were also birds that would not come down to the feeders, but were perched in trees nearby, and allowed some pretty close shots.

The Tropical Kingbird

And the Gilded Sapphire Hummingbird, who was even kind enough to hover nearby!

Over head we had a fly by from a Yellow Headed Vulture

And a Southern Crested Caracara

One of the fun things to watch are disagreements among birds. Sometimes they happen between different species,

But more often, you see what I presume are siblings or family members squabbling. This pair started by yelling at each other...

And soon escalated into full blown chest bumping...

And ending with them all yelling at something else?

All of this while sitting in a chair for about 1 hour and never having to move. I love that kind of bird photography. I also love striking out to search for stuff, but sometimes it is just fun to be able to see so much happening without having to move the gear.

Mid morning we loaded up and headed back to the south along the road that brought us up to Pellegrini, down to Rincon del Siccorro. This was a very productive trip as we had much better weather than the day before when we were actually birding the same area. A couple of shots taken from the car window.

A Pair of Crested Caracara

A lone young female Strange-tailed Tyrant.

And an incredible opportunity to catch a Long Winged Harrier flying along side the vehicle.

I will write more about the incredible Rincon del Siccorro in a subsequent post, but suffice it for now to observe that it was a very different enviornment that what we had been seeing anywhere else. Upon arrival we were met by the Ostrich like Rhea. This is a comical bird, flightless, but it flaps it "wings" as it runs either at or away from each other.

One of my favorite things about the Rhea is their crazy ears.

One of my most memorable experiences of the whole Argentina trip, was the Rufescent Tiger Heron just across the road from our rooms. It was working a swampy area, and really rewarded an hour long stake out. Check out this amazing bird.

He finally got the catfish speared, and.......

Fun. This was a very fun spot. Very flat, and seemingly sparse as can be seen in this photo of Paula, but an amazing diversity of birds.

On this day, we saw all three of the Caracara resident in this area.

Our friends the Southern Crested

The smaller Chimango

And the subtle but gorgeous Yellow-headed Caracara

The Monk Parakeet were plentiful

And another of my personal favorites, the Purple Throated Eleania

Another of my favorite birds is actually mechanical. I love to fly, and was surprised to see a hanger which had among other birds a Cessna just like the one I fly at home. I was laughing at the Field Flickers fighting with themselves in the reflection of the chrome on the plane. This is actually a common behavior that we often see, when birds fight with themselves in the window, a car mirror or a chrome object.

Ok, time for the mystery critter. This interesting rodent shares its burrow (that's a hint) with the Burrowing Owl. For $10 grandchildren, what is this?

Later in the evening we were treated to a Grey Fox couple.

And in the trees right outside our room, another Tropical Screech Owl was patient as we hit him with the strobe.

Just a few more posts will finish off this incredible Argentina experience. The next one will talk more about the amazing place called Rincon del Siccorro. Peace out.

Birding Argentina 2011 Post 6

2011-11-15T00:01:00.000-08:00

Tuesday the 9th of August was spent again out on the Ibera lake in a boat furnished and manned by the lodge we were staying at. I gleaned from the photos of that day a few that I thought were interesting/fun. Watch carefully, as the mystery critter in this one is buried.

Our group was actually in two boats. Here are a couple of shots of the other boat as we were out and about.

One of the most interesting of the sightings on this day was a young Great Black Hawk. As with many juvenile birds, the coloring is very different. Often it is hard to tell, so things like the beak can be a telltale marker as it is with this bird.

We were actually only about 15 feet from this bird. Incredibly close for a raptor of this size. Normally they are very shy of people. This juvenile however just stood and screamed for quite a while. Finally, the sign for flight was given. After you have been watching birds for a while, you notice that they will void just before flying. With the big raptors, this can be pretty incredible!

Beautiful flight.

A couple of Southern Screamer's flying over about the same time.

While another mom tended her young.

Late in the day we saw a Black Collared Hawk, quite rare some ways off in a tree. We ended up hiking back along the lake and getting some really close looks.

The really large shorebirds are especially accessible here. One of them, the Limpkin, forms the basis for today's mystery critter.

This gangly striking wader often has his head buried deep in the swampy mud.

Sometimes coming up empty beaked.

And sometime coming up with a tasty morsel.

For the mystery critter prize, what is in the Limpkin's mouth?

We have already met the largest wader, the "Jaibaru" Stork.

The Whistling Heron

Anytime you have water around the world you will have the Kingfishers. These are remarkable birds, with powerful beaks and incredible eyesight to see into the water where they dive for food. Here are all 3 of the local species.

The Ringed.

The Amazon.

And the Green.

The "tyrant" flycatchers are always among the most gregarious of the birds. The Cattle Tyrant is especially noticeable as it finds itself onto the backs of many of the other animals.

On the Marsh Buck

And on the Capybara.

Another tyrant is the Spectacled Tyrant. It's name can really be understood with the male.

This female had just been successful in her hunt.

The Small-billed Elania is a little cutie.

And to see the Scarlet Headed Blackbird among the reeds is an amazing experience.

At dusk, we went back out to see if we could get any owls. We were rewarded with this pair of Tropical Screech Owls.

And a Nine-Banded Armadillo!

Whew! What a day!

A Montana Trifecta - Warning Graphic Photo's

2011-11-11T20:15:00.000-08:00

I have a younger brother Jeff who married a girl from Twin Bridges, Montana. Twin Bridges was once called Lott Bridges, and Lynn is a Lott! Once one of the most powerful ranching families in southwest Montana, the Lott family remains an integral part of this community.

Jeff and Lynn's oldest son Clark was a part of the Windsor, Vermont story for a little over a year. He lived with Michelle and worked for Windsor Worx. He is now at BYUH in Laie, Hawaii. Number 2 son Jacob is currently living with Paula and I and working at the law firm.

Last Thursday, Jake, Chris, Nate, our friend Garth and I loaded up the Buick and headed up to Montana.

We had 3 objectives. Harvest wild animals for meat (kill deer), watch cousin Phil play in his high school state champion quarter final football game, and have Jacob ordained an Elder by his dad. Mission accomplished.

We arrived about 2 in the morning Friday morning. Thursday evening, cousin Scott (shown here with Nate's buck head like unto a hat), had gotten his first deer, a doe just out back at Jeff's place.

As we rolled up the ranch dog Hondo greeted us with a deer head in his mouth! It was absolutely the perfect start to a perfect visit. While everyone else was still sleeping, I got up to a beautiful morning and looked out the window to see deer just north of the house.

The view out this upstairs window was as beautiful as anywhere in the world.

Jeff and Lynn moved their house over the Continental Divide from Butte where it was in the old mining part of town about 10 years ago, they have made it very comfortable, but it is not quite finished.

It was from the window in Phil's room upstairs in the white gable that I took the prior pictures. As I walked out that morning, I saw a number of deer as well as birds. The Black-billed Magpies have made a real comeback in this part of the country, and I saw where Scotty had dressed his deer the night before.

Later that morning while I tried to take a nap, the boys set up targets and sighted in their guns just outside the window! But by about 4 pm, everyone was ready to set out to slay the beast.

Chris, Jeff and I went out along the river and toward the back of the property. Jeff and Lynn's 60 acres lies along the Beaverhead River. At the north end of the property, the Big Hole comes in from the west, and once they converge, the river becomes the Jefferson. Look up the Lewis and Clark expedition sometime and you will find that they camped at this confluence, probably right on the property!

Unfortunately, Chris did not get a shot at a deer on this jaunt out the back. He was vigilant though!

We hadn't been out long when we heard shots from the southeast, where Nate, Jake and Garth were hunting. We got a text a few minutes later that Nate had gotten a deer. So we loaded up in Jeff's pickup truck, and headed across town to the area between the town ball field and the cemetery. Sure enough, there were the boys trudging through the swamp dragging a buck! As you can see from the top picture, Nate was pretty happy!

Yeah Nate is bad A, but frankly he was pretty bushed by the time we got the carcass in the back of the truck.

The process brings the deer back to Jeff's house where the deer are hung in the garage, skinned and then hang for a day or so before cutting and wrapping. This one was pretty big, and it took some effort to get it hung up.

A lot of testosterone! Lynn was a trooper feeding this bunch the whole time, but I am afraid she was severely outnumbered! Kevin, Garth, Chris, Phil, Nate, Jake, Scott and Jeff! I was behind the camera all the time.

Scott provided plenty of subject matter for photography!

Some half-hearted hunting took place Saturday morning, but it had snowed and was really cold! No luck, and so at noon we all headed over to the high school to watch Twin Bridges play it much larger opponent in the state 8 man football championship. Twin was not expected to win this one, but the final score tells the story of what happened!

Phil is a freshman and yet played an amazing part in this incredible win. He was actually one of 3 players mentioned in the newspaper later that afternoon as a hero of the game. He is number 56 in the next couple of series of photos.

The football dads had all shown up with snow shovels and cleaned the field. It was snowing off and on during the game, but the field stayed pretty clear.

He had a number of sacks on a very tough quarterback throughout the day.

Truly a fun family activity!

Scotty was feeling his oats, and Nate had to help him come back to earth.

Later that afternoon, the boys went out yet again to see if they could fill another tag.

Within a very short time we heard another shot, and headed out in the pickup to retrieve another deer. Once again we saw the hunters making their way across the swamp dragging a carcass.

Take a look at the snow in the back of Jeff's truck!

This time, Chris and Jake had teamed up to bring down a doe. Chris at first thought he had missed, until they dressed it and found two entry wounds.

The evening was spent hanging, cutting and wrapping the animals. All of the extra parts were just thrown out the door of the garage for Hondo to eat. Garth had to tease him a bit first however.

I guess 4 heads are better than 2!

Certainly a successful hunt.

So, I said it was a trifecta. The perfect score. We have seen the hunt and the game, but what happened Sunday morning was really the crowning event. Jake was ordained an Elder after being sustained in Oregon, a text being sent to us in Montana, and following a Fast and Testimony meeting where the Vial/Lott family celebrated the love of family and the reality of spiritual connections among them. After church we loaded the car and made the 12 hour trek home, very happy that we had made the effort. Much love to Jeff and Lynn and thier family for hosting us and making this a memorable 3 days.

Birds of Argentina 2011 Post 5 - After the Rain

2011-10-17T12:26:00.000-07:00

Overnight the thunderstorms and heavy rains really hit the Ibera hard, so when we got ready to go out on Monday morning the 8th of August, the roads were really muddy. Our objective was to bird the roads south of Pellegrini, but frankly the roads were throwing us around in the trucks like crazy, so we had limited success. That said, limited is a relative term as the following pictures will show.

Raptors were common along the road. This first one was especially interesting to me. I am still not 100% sure, but I think it is a juvenile Long-Winged Harrier. At nearly 2' tall, it was one of the biggest raptors we saw.

I really love the flight shots. The Roadside Hawk, (aptly named as this is where you consistently see them) is not very large, at a little over a foot tall, but I was able to get this series from one fence post to the nest as we drove along next to the bird.

We saw many more raptors at the roadside. They included the Yellow-Headed Caracara

And the Chimango Caracara

A couple of mammals seen along the road included the Crab Eating Fox

And a young male Marsh Deer individual

Other roadside birds included the Plain Breasted Ground Dove

The Brown and Yellow Marshbird

I am pretty sure that the following bird is a Warbling Doradito. This english name is not even found in some field guides, but Narosky and Yzurieta has this as one of two Doradito's. In the flycatcher family, this bird definitely displayed the behavior of it's tyrant-flycatcher cousins.

This last roadside example is clearly a Yellow-Browed Tyrant.

Great Pampa Finch

On the way back to the lodge for lunch/siesta, we stopped at the ranger station on the south side of the bridge crossing. Lot's of wildlife can be found within a few hundred yards of the ranger station. One creature however was right among the people. This was very unusual, as this animal is generally very shy. What is this mystery creature. First grandchild to get it right is $10 richer.

As mentioned earlier in this series, the siesta was a required break in our birding day throughout Argentina. At the lodge on the shores of the Ibera however, Nate Chappel, our guide had set up a bench with limbs and feeders to attract the garden birds. So on this Monday, instead of taking a nap, I decided to set up my tripod, sit in a chair and take some more bird pictures.

Nice to get them up close, but this presents it's own challenges in not cutting off parts. Here are a few keepers.

Red-Crested Cardinal

Epaulet Oriole (for the brown "epaulet" on it's shoulder)

The very beautiful Golden Winged Cacique

And the Solitary Cacique, which is essentially all black.

The Shiny Cowbird is similar to the Solitary Cacique, but has a bit different bill and a more iridescent look in the sun.

The Green Winged Saltator is another of the heavy finch/grosbeak species that is pretty tame in this area.

The Spot Winged Pigeon

And the very much smaller Ruddy Ground Dove

The Eared Dove

And of course the ubiquitous Saffron Finch

After "Siesta" we went back out on the boat and the lake. Again, as it had been yesterday, the diversity was incredible.

The mamma Southern Screamer with her chicks.

A number of beautiful shore birds like this Snowy Egret

And this close up Limpkin

And of course the White Necked Heron

A lot of Marsh Deer

Some very close Brazilian Ducks

What I am pretty sure is a flycatcher called the Suiriri

The very cute White-Headed Marshbird

Yet another Screamer on a nest.

Several sleepy Capybara, this one with it's buddy the Cattle Tyrant,

And this one with a Snowy standing guard.

A bunch of sinister looking Yellow-Headed Vultures

Our by now good friend the Giant Wood Rail

A Pair of Mandarin Ducks

A very proud Rosy Pochard

Both a Yellow-Billed Tern and a Yellow-Headed Vulture circling overhead.

A good view of the very yellow underside of the Wattled Jacana's wings.

My last picture really does describe this experience. All this wildlife existing together is really quite inspiring. I feel very lucky to be able to experience these things.

Birds of Argentina 2011 Post 4 - An Absolutely Unforgettable Day!

2011-09-18T22:00:00.000-07:00

No question about it, I am awfully lucky to get the chance to travel and bird and photograph. Not every day in this business is the same as every other, and frankly some are just boring and slow. Then there are those days where you just can't believe how many different birds there are in the world and how much fun it is to watch them in their habitat. Sunday August 7, 2011 was one of those days! Frankly, I woke up before dawn feeling the spirit of the day. The beauty of the lodge we were staying at next to Laguna Ibera (Ibera Lake), was part of it, but the light, the wildlife and just the feeling of being part of so much not altered by man was incredible.

We began our adventure just as the sun was coming up.

Looking back at our accommodations from our boat as the sun came up. We were about to see more than 100 species of birds, deer, Cayman, armadillo, etc., etc., over the next two days. Here are just a few from this incredible day.

The morning was spent in a boat on the lake. Cruising the shores and approaching the islands we saw many cayman and deer, and a huge number of birds.

Crakes are a family of birds related to the rails, and somewhat like the Sora here in North America. This Rufous Sided Crake was shy but really interesting to watch.

Several different Blackbirds were seen on the islands we approached.

The Chestnut Capped Blackbird

And the absolutely stunning Scarlet Headed Blackbird

Of course we saw a lot of Wattled Jacana, some very close.

A couple of Kingfishers.

Green

And Ringed

Masked Gnatcatcher

The Southern Screamer

With the spurs that it, the Jacana and the Lapwing all have.

Cattle and both male and Female (shown here) Tyrants

A couple of raptors were particularly interesting. Both were seen on the islands out in the lake itself. First was the Snail Kite. This bird is endangered in the US where it is not limited to a very small habitat in Florida. I don't know it's status in South America, but I was pretty thrilled to see it.

The next bird was probably my favorite of the day (although that is hard to call with so many amazing birds). The Great Black Hawk is huge, and very intimidating looking. I am sure that the only reason we got close to this one was because of the giant snake that it had in its talons and was reluctant to leg go of even though it was too heavy for it to pick up and fly away with.

It did make a valiant try to get away with the snake however.

At this point it was still only about 9 am. In the distance we saw a Marsh Deer (quite large) in the distance on another of the floating islands.

As we approached, we saw a very nice White-Headed Marsh Tyrant.

An then off in the distance, we saw something quite incredible. Our first Jaibiru and a very beautiful White-Necked Heron feeding together.

The only thing that I can conclude is that these birds have either never developed a fear of humans, or have become used to seeing the boats that bring us. They allowed us to get quite close.

We saw a lot of the Giant Wood Rail

g
Morning is not yet over however. Great Kiskadee's were plentiful.

Even the reeds near our lodge were very productive.

As we were returning from the morning out on the lake, we saw this very nice Black Capped Donocobius.

But perhaps the most unexpected surprise of the morning came as we were pulling the boat up to the dock. In the reeds not more that a few feet from us, a juvenile Ruferous Tiger Heron was hunting and as well arrived, grabbed a big fish and ate it whole.

As an adult, (perhaps it's parent?), flew overhead!

OK IF YOU ARE A GRANDCHILD AND YOU MADE IT THIS FAR YOU SHOULD GET A PRIZE WHETHER YOU GET THE MYSTERY CRITTER OR NOT, SO THROW A GUESS UP EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT SURE. THIS NEXT BIRD IS THE MYSTERY CRITTER AND IS A VERY IMPORTANT BIRD TO THE ARGENTINE PEOPLE.

As of course is the tradition in Argentina, we returned in time for a great lunch, and then a siesta. I was pretty keyed up after that morning however and couldn't sleep. Whether you are taking pictures or just checking off birds, it is always more fun when there are lots of "targets". Hardly ever does it get this rich, and in this case it was almost overwhelming. I really feel lucky to have been on the Ibera on this particular morning. I prefer to be in church on Sunday mornings, and am lucky to have been given the chance to serve, but this particularly Sunday morning was certainly an inspiring experience as we had the chance to observe the beauty of a world virtually unspoiled by the mistakes of men and full of life.

The birds were not taking a siesta , so I sat out on the lawn and was soon rewarded with some great looks at the Guira Cuckoo.

At 3 pm, we loaded up and went north of the village birding along the road and in some marshy areas among the cattle ranches. Among the birds seen in a couple of hours from the road included the following:

Both the Male (above) and Female (below) of the White Headed Marsh Tyrant

The American Kestrel. This falcon is seen frequently in our neighborhood in Oregon, but this was the only one I saw in Argentina.

The White (above) and the Grey (below) Mojita.

The storks are very easy to see, but not real easy to get close to. The Maguri Stork is not quite as large as the Jaibiru, but was very shy and therefore hard to photograph. Here are a couple.

Besides the Roadside Hawk seen in the morning as well, we saw a number of Savannah Hawk

And one Apomaldo Falcon. I once looked for this bird all day in south Texas, and was really happy to finally see it. It was pretty cooperative, sitting on a fence pole about 50 feet from the truck we were in. We all got good looks and shots.

A couple of Woodpecker's were common.

Yellow-Fronted (above) and the Field Flicker (below).

Some BIF's (birds in flight) included the Kiskadee

This pair of Southern Screamers

A solitary Jaibiru

And a Yellow Headed Vulture

Two species of Ibis were found in the marsh.

The Plumbeous Ibis (above) and the White Faced Ibis (below)

A large number of the tyrant flycatcher family were all over the place. Just a few.

Vermillion Flycatcher (above) and the Tropical Parula (below)

A little Masked Gnatcatcher showed up just a few feet from us in a bush and worked it over for a long time. This was a rare chance to get some really close shots.

To illustrate just how crazy this day was, we saw a Burrowing Owl on a fence post, watched for a minute and suddenly saw a Spotted Nothura running around below it. Soon there were two Owls flying around, and a couple of Nothura chasing each other around. Crazy.

The Spotted Nothura is of the Tinamou family which is a South American specialty. This pair was obviously getting frisky and it was fun to watch the antics.

And the end was as beautiful as the beginning. What an incredible day!

End of Summer - Maybe

2011-09-14T23:01:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day provided the virtually only opportunity to get a bit of family pool time in before the summer ended (which it seems to have done!). The lodge really has proven to be the great family gathering place that we hoped it could be.

Cuong is one guy who is not afraid of mechanical things. A bunch of kids were pretty confident in his driving skills!

Kayla didn't have to be swimming to be joining in the fun.

Another baby recently born was to Mike and Christine, a little boy to match Moose, meet T Rex, being held by Liyan. Ok let's look at this family relationship. Maybe someone can help me with what it is. My brother Mike has a baby. It is being held by my daughter in law. So what is the relationship of T Rex and Liyan?

Sarah is really getting comfortable in the water.

Talk about comfortable in the water, Weston at 1 year old is swimming! Alicia pushes him under the water, and he literally swims to his dad underwater. Amazing.

Regan is deadly with the squirt gun! And deadly in other ways too!!!

Meanwhile, Sammy and Felix were playing in the deep end!

Probably the luckiest kid in the world is Weston with a grandma who will get down and dirty with him!

Summer, I hope we get a bit more.

Newest Cousin! Its a DOT!!

2011-09-14T22:31:00.000-07:00

The latest cousin is here. Dot Vial was born today and came in at a whopping 9 lbs. Another real serious cutie, and a decent pair of lungs to boot.

She is actually a very content little one.

Usually I am just the photographer at these events, but Grandma is off in Hawaii and I actually got about a 30 minute hold session all to myself.

Aunt Alicia was actually the star support for this one. She showed up with food just as the baby was being born and provided the sideline support that we have come to expect from this great family.

And little Weston seems to be a bit overwhelmed by the whole thing..

Dad is of course a natural.

And we have a new family that just keeps growing!

Yeah, they are as goofy as they look, but this is one great little family. Oh and by the way, Dot comes from Dorothy, the name of Great, Great, Great Grandma's on both sides. I am not sure of where Dot was in Kenni's family, but Dot Shepherd was the Grandmother of my dad on his mom's side. Yeah, and one more thing, Kenni is a rock star when it comes to this stuff. She was great!

Birds of Argentina 2011 Post 3

2011-09-03T21:45:00.000-07:00

On August 6 we left the Hilton Hotel early for the domestic airport in Buenos Aries to board a regional jet for the very small airport at Corrientes, Argentina. After waiting nearly an hour for our luggage, we were met by our drivers, a couple of brothers from Pellegrini, our eventual destination about 5 hours away.

We weren't very far out of town before the true cow country of Argentina appeared. Huge, wide open country. Not particularly well developed, and as we traveled we realized that there was a fuel shortage going on in the area. We tried a number of different filling stations before we finally got some diesel. The rigs we were traveling in were not much to look at, and were crowded, but tough.

Brig, Chelle, Paula and I were in the Red pickup, with our luggage under the tarp in back. The rest of our group was in the Nissan SUV. 3 across the back in these rigs over very rough roads was a trip. Michelle made it a bit more hilarious by making Brig translate for her while she interrogated our driver about everything from religion to politics and everything in between. She was totally doing her 20 question thing the whole way. Turns out our driver was a pretty bright and well read individual, so this was interesting.

After a brutally long wait, we finally got fuel.

We drove the dirt roads on the way up about 35 to 40 MPH. We didn't stop for any bird photography, so I had to try for some shots out the window. It was fascinating to see the civilization diminish more and more, and we did begin to see some birds.

The ubiquitous Southern Crested Caracara were there, including this one next to a Rufous Hornero.

We also saw a number of other raptors.

The Roadside Hawks were abundant.

After several hours heading southeast, we came to a little ranching community named Mercedes. Here, after a couple of tries we found a filling station that still had some diesel, and filled up.

After leaving Mercedes, the roads got considerably worse.

Occasionally we would see trucks that were "maintaining" the roads. There were a number of long haul trucks working the roads, supplying the villages that serviced the ranches. This was a huge area, probably about the size of the state of Oregon!

The area we were ultimately headed for, the Ibera Marsh, is in the middle of cattle country. It was once the site of some very large rice plantations, but because the Giant Anteater was hunted nearly into extinction, the anthills and termite mounds have virtually ruined the landscape. Restoration of the wetlands has been the fortunate byproduct however, and the Marsh is now one of the premier birding spots in the world. As we approached, we began to see more and more of the wetland fauna.

Great Egret

It got to the point where we saw virtually no traffic, and only the occasional horseback rider.

Signs that there had once been more people in the area were around however.

Let's throw in the mystery critter before we finish up. By the way, Kayla won $30 this morning by solving the last 3 mystery critters! We began to see a bunch of these critters, and by the time we got to the lake at Pelligrini, they were crossing the road in front of us regularly. What is it?

As we got closer to Laguna Ibera, we began to see more and more birds. It was getting dusk, but we still got a few shots off.

A tree full of Guira Cuckoo's.

Another tree full of our friend the Red-Crested Cardinal.

Wattled Jacana

And White Monjita

We finally saw a sign and knew we were actually going to get there.

At this point we were about 60 miles away, but decided to slow down. I was really glad we did, as one of the birds I had really wanted to see in Argentina was flitting along the side of the road.

The Strange Tailed Tyrant is only found in a small area where a particular reed is growing along the road. Even though it was almost dark, we worked on getting this bird. This picture was taken at only 1/40th of a second so I was really lucky to stop the windy swaying movement to get at least a reasonably decent shot.

Actually enchanting country. The village of Pellegrini mostly exist's for birder and wildlife travelers. I will show pictures of the place we stayed in a future post.

A true adventure...

Birds of Argentina 2011 Post 2

2011-08-27T22:40:00.000-07:00

Because most of us had never been to Argentina before, we decided to spend an extra day in Buenos Aries birding. A local bird guide took us north out of the city to several parks and wildlife preserves. Clearly the Argentinians are very eco conscious, and it was fun to walk the various, often small parks just outside such a big city and see so many birds.

Coscoroba Swan

This was a good test for my Sigma 300 - 800 lens (Sigmonster) and the new Nikon D7000 it was mounted on. This combination gives me great reach and flexibility as the D7000 is a digital crop frame camera. Essentially this set up results in 450 to 1200 mm equivalent. I was worried about the sharpness of this setup, especially on a cloudy day as it became on the 5th, but as you can see from the next photo, this lens and camera combination does a great job. This is actually a very tight crop (about 200%) and was taken at ISO 320, 1/400s, F10 at 750mm (1125mm equiv.).

Gray-Necked Wood Rail

The other camera I was carrying is a D3 with a Sigma 50 - 500 mm (Bigma, non IS version). Because the D3 is a full frame camera with very good high ISO capability, I find this set up give me good results even in very low light. With the two together I get a legitimate 50 to 1200mm coverage!

One of the things I like about using the zooms is the ability to "get on" the bird. With my aging eyesight, I find that the close view of a long lens often makes it tough to find the bird in the viewfinder. By starting with a zoom out and then zooming in, I find I rarely lose a bird. This is especially good for the flight shots which is what I use the D3/Bigma kit for often. The next few shots of a Southern Crested Caracara were taken with the D3/Bigma and are very tight crops of shots taken at ISO 1000, 1/4000s, F8, and 500mm. I probably could have reduced my ISO, which would have slowed my shutter speed down, but on this camera body ISO 1000 rarely is a problem, no matter how tight the crop.

Even this shot of a South American Stilt (similar to the Black-Necked Stilt of North America) which was probably 500 meters away gave me a good id photo.

Let's insert the mystery critter here. This was seen on a small lake just north of the city. It is very similar to a common mammal in North America with big teeth! First grandchild to guess get's the $10!

One of our trip mates was a woman from Saskatchewan Canada. May is 75 years young and an avid bird photographer. She packs her D300s/300mm 2.8 and 1.4 teleconverter mounted on a PROSLIK tripod and never complains. Here she is putting the rest of us to shame to get that perfect shot of some Coot's in a park near BA.

The Coot's that May was shooting are new to me, and I got some fun shots as well. Coots are common water birds in NA, but these two species are only found in SA. The primary difference between the two is the look of the bill and particularly the "shield" which is common to coots, gallinues and jacanas.

Red-Gartered Coot. Notice the red marking between the bill and the shield.

The other species we saw here was the White-Winged Coot.

Notice the very large yellow and almost round shield on this bird.

Another common water bird is the Cormoront. The Neotropic Cormoront however is the species that we saw here.

The Great Egret is seen all throughout North and South America.

And though not nearly as numerous as seen in the US, the European Starling seems to find a way to thrive just about everywhere in the world!

We saw one Limpkin in a park near the city. This is also a bird seen in Florida, however later up north we saw them in numbers which were quite astounding. This is another crop of a long shot taken with the Sigmonster.

An obnoxious, but very beautiful bird is the Southern Lapwing. On an athletic field adjacent to a small wildlife preserve, we found this family including 3 chicks.

In flight this bird is really striking with the black and white underwing display.

One of the very interesting things about this bird is a "spur" on both shoulders that can be extended when the bird is defending itself or its young. Our photographer guide Nate Chappel reported that he had been attacked by one after getting too close to the nest, and was genuinely threatened by the extended spur as he got buzzed! In the next photo you can see the spur just barely exposed as this momma tucked her chicks under her when we began to approach.

In the same close in preserve we saw several water birds on a small lake.

Common Gallinue with a big frontal shield.

Male Brazilian Duck

And the female Brazilian Duck.

We also saw the very beautiful Silver Teal.

This bird was especially impressive when a flock all rose up together and flew around the pond. You can really see why the color "teal" has such a draw.

Finally, in an area that was being recovered from extensive grazing and being restored to a nature preserve, we saw a number of interesting birds.

Monk Parakeet in nest.

Canary Winged Parakeet

A busily singing Rufous Bellied Thrush

The striking Shiny Cowbird.

The Brown and Yellow Marshbird. Very beautiful in an otherwise drab environment.

Stay tuned. We left BA and went north to the IBERA next. Amazing Birds!

Birds of Argentina 2011 Post 1

2011-08-22T23:07:00.000-07:00

South America is to birds is what Africa is to mammals. Over the last few years, I have had the opportunity to bird both Ecuador and Peru. Argentina however was a desired destination because of the Ibera wetlands, one of the largest in the world. With renowned wildlife photographer Nate Chappell and 3 other bird photographers, Paula, Michelle, Brig and I arrived in Buenos Aries on August 4 to begin our 14 day adventure. Over the next few weeks, I will try to highlight the birds of this amazing county.

Reserva Ecológica Costanera Sur is a beautiful wetland just a block from the Hilton Hotel in the Puerto Madero district of Buenos Aries.

Right away we saw the very beautiful Yellow-Billed Cardinal. This was my first look at this bird.

Before we even got to the wetland area, we saw this Great Pampa Finch just outside the hotel.

One of most interesting birds of Argentina is the Wood Rail. There are two species that we saw, and one of them greeted us at the entrance to the Reserve. This is the Gray-Necked Wood Rail which stands about 14" and is very loud!

One of my favorite groups are the Grebe's. My recent trip to Klamath had the very fun and beautiful Western and Clark's Grebes. Here in Argentina, I got to add the Great Grebe to those that I have seen. This bird at nearly 18" can't be properly represented with a photograph. It is really an impressive creature.

It was really amazing to consider how many birds we saw just a matter of a few yards from one of the most thriving metropolis areas in the world. Though quite common, the Chalk Browed Mockingbird was one of the most fun to watch with it's constant movement and antics.

Parrots and Parakeets are just plain fun no matter where you see them. The Monk Parakeet is a very noisy but handsome bird. It is fairly large, about 11", and was seen mostly in large flocks.

Saltators are a group similar to other large finches like the Grosbeaks. This Golden-Billed Saltator has a large seed that it is about to crack.

A big surprise for me was this Troupial. If you look in the Field Guide's, you will not see this bird likely in any of the area's that we visited. Especially not in the city! There was at least one pair in the Reserve, and one that we saw just outside.

While we would see this next bird often on our trip, I was really excited to see my first Golden Breasted Woodpecker.

While generally we see that the male in birds is the most beautiful, the White Lined Tanager is an exception in my book. This female is really striking.

And even though the Shiny Cowbird male is a handsome guy,

In my opinion, the female is even more striking.

Yet another Cowbird is the Bay Winged, which was also seen frequently.

And now for the mystery critter of this post. First Grandchild to get it right wins $10. This bird has been featured in another post from last November. It is related to another bird that we have already featured here.

Ok, this next bird is one of my favorite's so far. The Ultramarine Grosbeak literally glows in the sun.

The Picazuro Pigeon is a big and very agressive dove. Remember than in addition to the water going down the drain in the opposite direction from North America, in South America, August is springtime!

Not too much different from our American Robin is the Rufous Bellied Thrush.

Of course the raptors are among the most impressive birds in any environment. The Hawks, Eagles etc. are certainly the most powerful of all the birds. In South America the Caracara of which there are 3, are really impressive. Here is the first and smallest of these. It is the Chimango Caracara.

Two Gulls, the Brown Headed, and the Kelp were present in the Reserve.

Of course my favorite bird is my birding companion Paula!

Stand by, the birds in Argentina are amazing!

Mothers Day Piano and Birds

2011-07-23T11:00:00.000-07:00

Mothers Day this year was once again a family event. Interestingly it corresponded with an explosion of Western Tanagers. I usually see one or two a year of this beautiful bird, but on Mother's Day we saw literally dozens of them at the feeders at Rainbow. Didn't see them anywhere else.

Paula had the grand kids that are piano students do a little recital for us. Mia was diligent in filming the event.

In order of age we had:

Lyann

Vivian

Kayla

Sarah

Eva

Dillan

Victor

Meanwhile the Tanagers were amazing. When you see an explosion like this you have to wonder what causes birds to show up at a particular place seemingly out of the blue. They only stuck around a few days and we haven't seen them since.

Both the male and the less colorful female are a bit smaller than a Robin.

The Mother;s Day cake was the focal point for a gathering of mothers.

From left to right, Lian, Chi, Thuy, Su Lu, Paula and Linh

Let's do the Mystery Critter now. Lot's of birds on Mothers Day. What is this one?

Others that we say that day included the Bald Eagles who swooped in trying to nail birds at the feeders!

Both the Stellar and the Scrub Jay

Also around a bit later in the day were Mario and his family and Mike and his family. It was great to see them.

So just a couple of last pictures of the amazing Western Tanager.

Fun Stuff.

Klamath Basin NWR Birding with Bro. John

2011-07-17T16:49:00.000-07:00

In the spring of 2006, my younger brother John and I took a trip to the Klamath Basin birding. I flew the Cessna down from Hillsboro, and John drove over from his home in Medford. We got at it fairly early, and got in a good 100 species day! Since then I have wanted to go back with him and concentrate this time on trying to photograph some of the amazing birds in that area. We got that chance this last May 7, and it was really fun. Lot's of romance in the bird air!

The Klamath Basin NWR is one of the largest concentrations of open water in the NWR system. A nesting spot for many shorebirds and a stop off point for many passarines, it is really a goldmine for anyone with a few hours to spend. Much of it can be birded by car, making it possible to get very close to many of the birds.

Great Egret

Canada Goose family.

Pied Bill Grebe

Black Crowned Night Heron. This was one on a roost of at least a couple of dozen including several juveniles.

A couple of my favorite Blackbirds including the Redwing,

And the very proud Yellowheaded.

Ring Billed Gull

One of the really fun things to watch is the Coot's running across the water. Later in the post I want to show the Grebe breeding dance which is similar, but the Coot's do it as part of a long takeoff!

As I have stated in an earlier post, this year seems to have particularly good for Yellow Rumped Warblers. This Audouban variant was seen along the river in Bend.

A lot of the ducks were seen this day including:

Redhead

Greater Scaup

And the following are the Lesser Scaup and a Lesser Scaup Pair.

Common Merganser

Cinnamon Teal

And Northern Shoveler

The aerial show being put on by the Forster's Tern's was really spectacular.

One of the most interesting nesting display's was the Bank Swallow. Collecting mud from the edge of the river and the lakes, it was building nests under every bridge and against virtually every abutment we saw.

Collecting the mud.

Starting a nest.

Fighting for territory.

At the visitors center in the south unit on the Tule Lake road (California side), there is a very high cliff with owls nesting. These shots of a fledgling and an adult were probably taken from about 400 yards.

A variety of Raptors was seen including the following:

Red Tail Hawk

Ferruginous Hawk

And one very large Golden Eagle. (Alas no Balds this trip even though they are usually very easy to see on the Klamath unit.) To give you an idea of how big this Golden Eagle was, we saw an araiel dogfight between it and a Red Tail Hawk. Look at the size difference in these pictures.

Ok, let's throw in the Mystery Critter here. Should be pretty easy. Klamath in May!!

And now for the Grand Finale of the Klamath trip. The Western and Clark's Grebes are very similar and very unique birds. They both share a mating ritual that is remarkable to see. First the difference. The Western Grebe is slightly smaller (almost no difference), but is distinct in that the dark patch on the head covers the eye, whereas on the Clark's Grebe it does not. See the following portraits:

Clark's Grebe

Western Grebe

While most of the rest of these pictures are of the Clark's, there were equally as many Western's as Clark's all exhibiting the same behavior.

Eating and Courting was the primary activity that was being observed.

The dance that they do when they court starts with a series of bows to each other.

Then they literally rise up and run side by side across the water.

We took some video, but I found this BBC video which is better than the stuff we were able to get on what was a grey and overcast day. This is definitely worth watching. If it does not open in your browser properly, click here to go to youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1XAFo_uVgk&feature=player_embedded.

Seeing this with my brother John was fun. Here is to more of these kind of experiences.

Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

2011-07-15T11:00:00.000-07:00

Just up the road from Portland on I-5 is a little known gem of a wildlife photography location. Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge is a beautiful area along the Columbia River that was the site of a former Native American village. Lot's of geese, shorebirds, hardwood forest dwellers and mammals. I spent an afternoon on May 2nd of this year, (a little late for best bird counts) cruising through in the convertible with the lens hung out!

Ruddy Duck

Pied Bill Grebe

Cinnamon Teal Pair

Beautiful Northern Shoveler Male

And now for the Mystery Critter. You know where I saw it and otherwise this one needs no clues.

Yellow Warbler

Yellow Rumped (Audubon) Warbler

Marsh Wren

Common Yellowthroat

And one seriously ugly haircut on a Red-Winged Blackbird!!

Peace Out

A Walk in the New England Spring

2011-07-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

In and around Windsor, Vermont are many, many jewels. The history and natural beauty are remarkable, and one place where those two are combined is in the amazing village of Woodstock. Once owned almost exclusively by the Rockefeller family, it has been carefully preserved and cultivated to retain a quintessential New England spirit. One of the many gems of Woodstock is the Marsh - Billings - Rockefeller Farm National Historic Park. It was there that we decided to do a Saturday hike with Chelle, Brig, Anders, Maddie and Eddie this last April. The snow was just then melting, and The Pogue, a lake up in the hills above the farmstead was not yet clear of ice. It was muddy, exhilarating and really fun . With Chelle on the map, we had no worries! Brig had the "bazooka"

On the way up the mountain we heard and finally saw several Yellow Bellied Sapsuckers pounding away.

When we got to the lake we had a picnic while Eddie looked for and found all of the puddles.

All around the sunny edges of the "Pogue" were the most beautiful Painted Turtles.

I did get a shot of the crew before we left the lake, but Maddie was too busy chewing snow to smile!

On the way down the hill we heard another woodpecker pounding away and thought we would see our Sapsucker friends. Instead we saw this nice little Downy male working the trees for bugs just starting to hatch in the bark.

A far off Hermit Thrush was singing it's Vermont birdsong. We managed to get a look at it and got a couple of shots.

And down a bit lower we had the chance to watch this White Breasted Nuthatch busy building it's nest.

One thing I can really say for sure is that Eddie loves his Grandma Paula.

As we came down back into Woodstock, we saw an amazing sight. I think I will make this the mystery critter for this post. Remember this was seen in April in Vermont!!!!!

One last little story. My last post had some birds from behind WalMart in Lebanon, New Hampshire. After our hike we went to get some grub at the Burger King across from WalMart. But we thought we would cruise the back parking lot quickly before we ate. A few days before this we had been over at the "Blow Me Down" pond at St Gauden's, and seen a dead beaver which had appeared from under a snow bank. The kids named him "Dave the Dead ", and we talked about him for days. Behind WalMart we saw his cousin Barry, who was still alive, and he really didn't care that we were there!

Another great memory with a great family.

Birds of WalMart

2011-05-21T23:46:00.000-07:00

One of the great secrets of our day is how many birds can be seen in our own backyards. Walmart has a bunch of those backyards all over the country, and many of them contain wetlands that were created when the excavation was done for the project. Many jurisdictions have required wetland mitigation as a condition of the development of shopping centers where these big box stores are located, and these can and often are a gold mine for birds. They are particularly good for photography as the birds have gotten used to humans. A good example is how close to these Kingfishers I was able to get.

This particular WalMart is just off of Interstate 89 in Lebanon, New Hampshire. It is in a larger shopping center, but the best spot to bird is just behind the WalMart. These photo's were taken in April of this year.

Common Mergansers are really common this time of year. The Female's of this species (above) are in many ways more impressive than the males.

For the Hooded Merganser however, the male is really spectacular, and even though the female is nice as well, nothing quite matches the hood of a Male Hooded.

I also had some Green Herons and Kingbirds in this same location in the summer of 2009. See the post here.

Here is the female Hooded. I really like the way she can also puff up her head feathers.

Here is a pair of Hooded's relaxing, and below is a common display when the males are competing for a female. This guy was really trying, but I think she had already made up her mind.

So this was one of the fun wildlife exchanges I witnessed at WalMart outside the store. ( There are obviously plenty of wildlife experiences inside many of the stores of course.)

Kingfisher is sitting on a stick, and Grackle comes by to talk. Kingfisher is busy hunting and not interested.

Grackle pretends not to be troubled by this and feigns indifference.

Really wants to talk however and just can't help himself.

After a very long wait, the Kingfisher turns to engage, but the Grackle is coy, and doesn't want to look too eager.

Not sure what the Grackle said, (one of the many languages I don't speak), bit whatever it was, Kingfisher wasn't interested.

Which just got the Grackle even more determined to get his point across.

Kingfisher is honestly trying to give Grackle a chance, but the guy just isn't very interesting.

And so it is that on sticks and stumps behind Walmart things work like they do on buses, trains and elevators.

I just love birding (Walmart)!

Liberty Park, Salt Lake City, Utah

2011-05-17T21:28:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago while working yet another 14 hour day, this time in SLC, I decided to take a lunch break and found myself at Liberty Park. These are pictures I took at the Tracy Aviary. This is a project under construction in Liberty Park containing some really great birds.

I hand carried the Sigma 300 - 800 on the D3. I didn't have the tripod, and just rested it on a post or rock.

Canvasback

Redhead

Ringnecked Duck

The White-Faced Whistling Duck breeds in Sub-Saharan African and South America.

This pair of Golden Eagles was beautiful. Almost unreal in their regal bearing.

The Chilean Flamingo's were really fun to watch as they groomed each other.

The Golden-Eye's are really fun to see close up.

Craziest bird on the planet perhaps is the Southern Ground Hornbill from Africa.

Puna Teal, another South American specialty.

This post's mystery critter. This duck like bird is also from South America, and is related to a beautiful North American bird.

Both the male (above) and the female (below) golden eyes are very distinctive. The Barrow's have a bit of a crown on the head, while the common's are more round headed.

American White Pelican are plentiful in Utah in winter, and seemed to be breeding in Liberty Park.

Easter and a New Arrival!

2011-05-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday seems a long time ago now (really just 4 weeks), but we had an event that needs to be documented and preserved. One of the big things about this event at Rainbow was Hai and Kyle's celebration of the birth of little Jayden. Though just barely arrived, and home asleep!, he nonetheless was a big part of the party!

We set the camera up on the rail, and Tucker ran to get into the picture.

The luckiest guy there (he got Hai didn't he!), Kyle also found the Golden Egg with the $20 bill. As a new father it will come in handy for diapers!

Jayden was born on the 6th of April (also Dillan's birthday), a scheduled procedure, and was and is perfect in every way. We just learned a couple of days ago that they are also finally getting out of the apartment into a home in a couple of weeks!

Hai is a lucky girl to have two such beautiful baby boys!

And of course Paula and I are lucky to have the best grandchildren in the world (all counting their haul)!

Mystery Critter for this post is a bird that has just exploded in numbers here in western Oregon this year. Two different variants exist of this species. What is the English name and the two subspecies names for the $10 prize?

An SVU Graduation

2011-04-30T18:07:00.000-07:00

During the summer of 2007 Christian was on a cross country road trip with his friend Steve and was coming north out of Florida headed eventually to Vermont to visit his sister Michelle. It was actually mid August, and he had still not found a college who would accept him. Having dropped out of school very young, even though he got a GED, he had not taken a college entrance exam and just wasn't getting anywhere. Out of the blue, I got a call from Chieko Okazaki. Chieko is a renowned author and former member of the Relief Society Presidency for the LDS Church. She had stayed at our home on a couple of occasions, and really liked Chris. One night I remember waking up about one in the morning to find her teaching Chris and Kevin Yo-Yo tricks.

On the day in question, Chieko called me about 1 in the afternoon Pacific. She asked where Chris was and wanted to talk to him. When I told her where he was, she said she would call me back soon. Within an hour, Chieko called and said to let Chris know he had an appointment with President Smith of Southern Virginia University the next day at 11 am. Long story short, Chris met with President Smith, who (on Chieko's recommendation I am sure) admitted him (on academic probation) and here we are with a graduate on our hands! According to some of the professors I talked to, a graduate that made a contribution to the spirit and culture of a very unique university.

Certainly more important than any degree however is the fact that he found Kenni at SVU. Married just about 6 months after they met at SVU, now they have Zuri and another on the way!

Oh, and I forget to mention that Kenni graduated today also! An art major, her work was prominently featured in a show that was still on display at the alumni house. It was really fun to see her work.

Her professor was very effusive in his praise not only of her work and work ethic, but for the influence she had had on the other students.

Ok, let's take a minute and put a mystery critter into this one. Some of the Grand-Children are really starting to get a fair amount of cash built up on these!

This bird was seen on campus during the graduation activities. It is deceptive in it's name, but beautiful in it's song.

President Smith told me last night that Chris represents the "Sweet Spot" for students at SVU. He is very proud of Chris and Kenni and spoke particularly about Chris' work ethic during college.

This sentiment was echoed by several of his professors, include Dr. John who was his senior advisor.

Chris is serving as a counselor in the bishopric, and his bishop is the son of a friend of ours, Bruce Olsen who is the public information director for the LDS Church. Burke Olsen made the same comment about Chris' work ethic when we talked today.

A wonderful day. I could not be prouder of Chris.

Why we love Windsor

2011-04-19T15:32:00.000-07:00

Birds like the Red Tail Hawks seen frequently in the area behind the Inn and throughout Paradise Park.

Spending time with family, like this outing for Chinese Food in Claremont with Mario, Angie and Josh. Mario graduates from Harvard Law School in a month!

The swallows swooping around and landing almost on top of you from time to time. (Tree Swallow)

Little guys growing up and learning all sorts of new things! Eddie is really the little man now.

Though at times, he is a bit dubious about his big sister Maddie!

Seeing amazing critters like this mystery critter. What is it? First grandkid to id get's $10!

Or a Bald Eagle sitting in a tree literally outside your door?

Or for that matter one of the Larson brother cousins (here Lars) covered head to toe in mud. They really do have a mud season in Vermont!

This female Common Merganser was headed out over the lake with her prize!

The male was trying to get her attention!

The Hooded Mergansers are my favorites among all of the ducks.

The Eastern Phoebe is the first of the flycatchers to return.

And of course the Tom Turkeys are strutting their stuff for the ladies.

One of the most amazing finds was this giant Snapping Turtle. This critter was 3 to 4 feet from nose to tail!

Out across the lake behind Michelle's house is a pagoda on a bit of a peninsula. Look carefully at the log to the right of the pagoda down near the water.

Just walking around town is so interesting to look up and see the variety of landscapes.

We love this place and love seeing the family when we are here.