In this time of Covid-19 virus, it may seem awkward - if not incongruous - to highlight the pursuit of some potentially far-off rare bird that may have appeared in March. In fact, it's probably not the time to run off to see this or that rare bird.
Still, there were some wonderful and rewarding rare birds that folks enjoyed during March, the very month when Covid-19 erupted across the country. Fortunately, some of the rarities could be found near where birders lived and regularly visited, including the following:
- Siberian Accentor in Woodland, Washington, last month's rarity that actually remained through March,
- Pink-footed Goose with a few thousand Snow Geese at Wood's Edge Park, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, for most of the month, and another Pink-foot at Horseshoe Pond, Merrimack Co., New Hampshire, and a third individual that spent most of March in a cornfield with Canada Geese and 2 Barnacle Geese in Rochester, Plymouth Co., Massachusetts,
- White Wagtail at Roy Guerrero Park in Austin, Texas, often along the gravel river bars, for much of the month,
- American Flamingo that has been present since October at St Marks NWR in Wakulla Co., Florida,
- Garganey present for a couple of months in Varner Harbor at the Salton Sea Headquarters and Campground (State Park), Riverside County, California
- and two Rufous-capped Warblers that reappeared in Florida Canyon, Arizona, and were present through the month.
BIRD CLUBS, MEETINGS, FESTIVALS, AND COVID-19
In the past number of weeks, most of the world entered a new period of serious medical concerns in response to Covid-19. Accordingly, the last month has witnessed the cancellation of many bird-related events that were scheduled for early spring. These included virtually all local bird-club meetings, most conferences (e.g., Western Field Ornithologists, moved to mid-August), a number of bird festivals scheduled for April (e.g., Galveston Feather Fest [TX], Lesser Prairie-Chicken Festival [OK], Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival [LA], Godwit Days [CA], Whitefish Point Bird Observatory Spring Fling [MI], Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival [WA]), and virtually all of the planned celebrations for the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.
As of this writing, many May events are also being canceled (e.g., The Biggest Week in American Birding in NW Ohio) as well as other activities into June and the summer. This, of course, also includes most bird-tours across the continent, the hemisphere, and beyond.
Readers are well advised to keep updated day by day about the practical and expected cancellations and postponements of these events, as well as keeping up to speed with the status of this growing medical emergency.
ACCESS MATTERS: NWRs
Many regions with "shelter in place" or "stay-at-home" orders are still considering some outdoor activities to be essential, and you may be able to still engage in some as long as you do so alone, or with your immediate family, and in the context of respect for the new social distancing norms.
As communities practice social distancing, spending some time outdoors offers numerous benefits for both physical and mental well-being. A recent study from the University of Maryland and Cornell University found that 10 minutes or more of time spent in nature can improve mental health and attitude. An activity as simple as walking around the neighborhood or local park can provide exercise for our bodies and relieve stress. And birding can be part of this process!
If you live close enough, and if the current policy prevails, you might consider a visit to a National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) auto-tour route. While NWRs around the country have closed their offices, nature-stores, visitor centers, etc., their wildlife drives - where the Refuges have them - usually remain open and are free of charge.
Access, relaxation, and social distancing are built into the visit, virtually automatically, but be aware of the status of outdoor policy in your state, locality, and the NWR itself. And of course, please stay home if you are not feeling well. For news on changes in Refuge status, you can monitor this page:
TIP OF THE MONTH: FEEDERS
!
During this time of social distancing, travel limitations, and following appropriate health precautions, you may not want to step outside. Or that may not be an option for you. Under those circumstances, this might be a good time to clean out your bird feeders and even put out some new ones!
Bird feeders of all sorts - seed, suet, fruit, sugar-water - can provide constant education and entertainment. If you have a backyard, increase its attractiveness to birds. Add a simple birdbath to the scene. And keep your binoculars by the window.
Staying indoors? Well, make the most of it!
RIP: GEORGE H. PETRIDES, SR.
While on the subject of feeding birds, we have some sad news to report. The backyard bird-feeding and bird-conservation communities have lost a friend and leader with the recent passing of George H. Petrides, Sr. on 6 March at the age of 77.
George received his BA from Michigan State University in 1965 and an MA in Education from the university in 1968 as part of a Peace Corps program for teachers in Nigeria, where he taught English and supplemented the local diet through training his students to run a chicken farm. He went on to serve at the post of Peace Corps administrator for East Africa in Washington, DC from 1968 to 1972.
George loved the outdoors, birds, people, and creative business. Based on these passions, he founded a national birding-feeding franchise company in 1986: The Wild Bird Centers of America.
He served on the Wild Bird Feeding Industry's Board of Directors for more than 20 years and helped establish the WBFI Research Foundation. George also served on the "Birder's Team Task Force," sponsored by the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Wildlife Refuge System which sought to better serve visitors at Refuges.
George, a talented and warm individual, is survived by his wife Bette, son George, his two sisters Olivia and Lisa, and his three grandchildren.
LOOSENING T
HE RULES IN NORTH DAKOTA
Last month, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service eased some of the legal restrictions on farmers in North Dakota who construct drainage tile systems that impact wetland easements. There are over 28,000 wetland easements in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Montana protecting over 1.5 million acres of wetlands, according to the Interior Department. Funded through the Duck Stamp program, these easements compensate landowners who agree not to drain, fill, levee around, or otherwise damage their wetlands. If wetlands dry up naturally, they can be worked.
This North Dakota experiment will have landowners "coordinate" their tile planning near easements with the FWS. The Service will no longer pursue legal action against the landowner if it is later determined that the process failed to protect wetland areas from drainage.
Conservation critics think this will put more bird-friendly wetlands at risk, encourage some bad planning, and leave some waterbirds high and dry.
Still, FWS Director Aurelia Skipwith said that these new guidelines will "greatly improve clarity for landowners and will offer a clear process to help settle potential compliance concerns in a fair and timely manner."
Time will tell.
BOOK NOTES: PETERSON BLENDED
Roger Tory Peterson (1908-1996) was a remarkable American naturalist, illustrator, educator, and a founding inspiration for the 20th-century environmental movement. He is also credited with being the primary inspiration for the popular pastime of American birding. Without his practical approach to field identification, it is hard to imagine modern bird watching, accessible today to the general public. Nevertheless, having passed away almost two dozen years ago, Peterson's contributions have receded in memory, and an entire generation of bird watchers has arisen without the presence and day-to-day impact of RTP.
Given that reality, now is the perfect time to welcome a second edition of the Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America. Curiously, the first edition, published in 2008 - in celebration of the centennial of his birth - did not appear during Peterson's lifetime. Indeed, RTP never saw this amalgamation of his famed Eastern and Western field guides between two covers.
Now we all get a second look at the effort.
As we wrote in 2008, '[e]nhanced and updated by a team effort of well-known birding experts, the book deserves serious attention by anyone looking for a welcoming and practical guide to birding."
The same goes for this second edition, with the contributions of four bird experts. Moreover, this edition includes species occurring in Hawaii (in 25 plates). In addition, the text and accompanying range maps have been updated, and much of the original art has been touched up to reflect current ID knowledge.
The book holds up very well. If you need a reminder of how important Peterson was - and is - or if you never had the opportunity to engage in the use of "the Peterson system," you need only get this book. You should be pleased.
NEW SCIENCE MAP FEATURE IN eBIRD
In mid-February, the eBird team unveiled new and creative maps for 610 bird species, revealing migratory movements and abundance across parts of two continents
The underlying map data can be combined in totally new ways. These can enable composite maps, which birders can use these to understand bird movements better. You can access a primer here to show you how it works:
Curious birders and scientists can now study abundance and distribution at a resolution previously unimaginable - and use the information to plan for conservation. You can explore the full set of maps here:
SAVING CALIFORNIA DUCKS AND MORE
California fields of winter wheat and triticale -a hybrid of wheat (Triticum) and rye (Secale) - are locations where ducks, grassland songbirds, and other ground-nesting and low-nesting species can nest. These fields are particularly attractive when found near wetlands.
However, when harvest for these crops can start between late May and early June, it is often before the majority of ducklings and other birds can hatch and leave the fields. Nests and birds are thereby potentially destroyed.
This year, the California Waterfowl Association has introduced a Delayed Wheat Harvest Incentive Program, giving farmers $30 to $40 per acre to delay wheat and/or triticale harvest until July 1-15. These incentives should offset costs connected with delaying harvest.
The California Waterfowl Association has accepted incentive applications from growers in Butte, Colusa, Sutter, and Yolo counties who have planted winter wheat or triticale in close proximity to a water source, such as planted rice, managed wetlands, creeks or irrigation canals.
This program is expected to protect ducks and various other species as well, and you can find more details here:
EAGLE THRUPLE
If you haven't already heard of the latest relationship trend that threatens the sanctity of conventional marriage, you will now have to deal with a growing and ongoing possibility: kinky eagle threesomes.
This is taking place in the backwaters of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge near Lock and Dam 13, at Fulton, Illinois, on the Mississippi River. A trio of Bald Eagles on the Refuge - two male and one female - have formed a wholly indecent and inappropriate relationship, something that anything-goes heathens will call "a throuple."
Apparently, this naughtiness has been going on for a few years now. Pam Steinhaus, visitor services manager at the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, has said "It's definitely our own little soap opera."
You can find more information here from The Chicago Tribune:
Voyeurs may watch this debauchery at the Stewards of the Upper Mississippi River Refuge eagle-cam:
