Conowingo Dam

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Kim

The Conowingo Dam on the Susquehanna River in Maryland is a 4,648 foot long power plant with 11 turbines capable of producing 572 MW of electricity when running at peak capacity. Also known as the Conowingo Hydroelectric Generating Station, when it was constructed in 1928 it was the second largest hydroelectric project in the United States, bested only by Niagara Falls. With a maximum height of 94 feet, it consists of four distinct…

“WAIT!” you’re saying. “This is supposed to be a nature blog! Why are we talking about a DAM? What could possibly be of interest to us there?”

Well…

This:

And maybe this:

And even this:

Five Bald Eagles in one shot? (And there’s a sixth in the picture somewhere. Can you find it?) Yes, folks, this was taken just downstream of Conowingo Dam, and those eagles represent maybe 5% of the eagles present there on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. 154, by one very approximate count. Every fall, in November and December, eagles gather downstream of the dam in large numbers. 50, 100, sometimes even more.

“What for?” you ask. Fish, of course. When the turbines are running, fish get sucked through the intake tubes and are discharged below the dam, stunned or dead. Easy picking for piscivorous (fish-eating) birds like Bald Eagles.

“Why late fall?” you ask. The dam only operates when electricity demand is high. In other words, late fall and winter. By January, most eagles are returning to their nesting sites to raise a new family, and they will be tied to those sites through the summer. But in the fall, they are free to go where the fish are, and in my area, that’s Conowingo.

Birders in the know flock to Conowingo to watch the spectacle. Photographers, too. All the cold weather gear was necessary; it was 25 degrees. Definitely not for the faint of circulation. I lost my feet after the first hour.

You have to be prepared to wait a long time; it’s not non-stop action. Even though several turbines were running when I arrived at 8 AM, the eagles were very quiet, content to perch on trees or rocks across the river and wait. One or two were obliging enough to perch in trees directly behind us and pose. Or maybe they were amusing themselves watching all the stupid humans shiver.

The wait paid off after more than an hour when more turbines started up. Fifteen minutes later it was like someone had thrown a switch: suddenly it was a Bald Eagle Bonanza. There were eagles catching fish. Eagles dropping fish. Eagles fighting over fish. Eagles stealing fish from other eagles. Sometimes I didn’t know which bird to follow. Other times they flew so close overhead I couldn’t zoom out fast enough.

Bald Eagle diving on a fish in the Susquehanna River. Note the four other Eagles in the tree in the background, waiting for their chance.

Approach Landing gear down In-flight food service.

And away we go with dinner.

Conservation Piece: This bird looks worried. About the American shad, perhaps? This migratory fish lives in the ocean, but returns to freshwater rivers like the Susquehanna to spawn, usually during the spring or summer. Their numbers have been seriously depleted by fishing, water pollution – and the construction of dams like Conowingo, which block passage to their spawning grounds. Exelon, who operates the dam, has been working to restore the American shad to the Susquehanna River through the operation of two fish lifts at Conowingo Dam. The company has also built a Fisherman’s Park at the foot of the dam, for fishing, bird-watching, and photography. They even run an annual Bald Eagle Photo Contest!

Coming up: The Kids’ Table

Hawk Mountain

Posted on November 20, 2013 by Kim

Welcome to the Endless Mountain, a long ridge known as Kittatinny that stretches 300 miles from Maryland northeastward through Pennsylvania and New Jersey into southern New York. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary sits on that ridge, and is internationally known as a premier place to watch the spectacle of fall raptor migration. Cross winds that hit face of the ridge create updrafts that southward migrating raptors use to carry them over the mountain.

On a clear fall day, with a northwest wind after a cold front, one might be treated to hawks, falcons and eagles flying past in large numbers and at close range. The day Colleen, Erika and I went to Hawk Mountain was not one of those days. It was a fun fall outing for us anyway.

Hawk Mountain is in the Ridge and Valley ecoregion, and is completely different from the flat Atlantic Coastal Plain of Heinz Refuge and southern New Jersey that I spend so much time in. For starters, there are hills. LARGE hills. Then there are the rocks. These range from small stones to enormous boulders. Like these at Bald Lookout (above).

From South Lookout we could see the River of Rocks below, a geologic feature that looks like water but is actually an Ice Age boulder field.

The Lookout Trail was easy at first, well-groomed and relatively flat. Along the way we spotted a few small birds, including this Hermit Thrush (above) and a Tufted Titmouse (below), who was not giving up his leaf toy without a fight.

After Bald Lookout, the trail became much more rocky and challenging. There’s lots to see along the way, though, and stopping to look is a great excuse to catch your breath. The variety of mosses scattered among the stones made for an interesting vignette (above). A lot of the rocks like this one (below) are covered in lichens.

We finally arrived at the North Lookout, and here I learned a valuable lesson: camera and binoculars go INSIDE the daypack at Hawk Mountain while on the trails. I overbalanced on a boulder and sat down VERY hard. I was lucky, just a scraped shin and bruised bum, but I could have done some significant damage to my equipment.

Okay, folks, we’re here and ready for the Raptor Show! Apparently the hawks didn’t get the message. On this day, the birds that flew over the ridges were so far away as to be no more than specks. The official spotters, who were armed with scopes, told us that we saw Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, and even a Golden Eagle, but they all looked like little black dots to me.

Dear Mom and Dad, I went to Hawk Mountain and all I got was this lousy Turkey Vulture…

Even the hills were shrouded in mist, muting the brilliant fall color and making landscape photography difficult. Nestled in among the trees were some farms and little towns, just visible through the haze.

Of course, within ten minutes of leaving North Lookout, the sun broke out and the sky turned brilliant blue. No doubt the hawks were laughing at us hapless humans. I think even this little chipmunk was laughing at us. But we enjoyed the day, so we had the last laugh!

CONSERVATION PIECE: During the Great Depression, the Pennsylvania Game Commission paid $5 for each hawk killed, which led to the widespread slaughter of raptors. Hawk Mountain was a popular place to stand and shoot hundreds of passing hawks for sport. Conservationists began to oppose the killing, and one ornithologist recovered and photographed the abandoned carcasses. Those photographs reached a New York activist named Rosalie Edge, who in 1934 leased 1,400 acres on Hawk Mountain and immediately imposed a hunting ban. The next year she opened Hawk Mountain to the public to watch the hawks migrate. She then purchased the land and gave it to the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association in 1938. Hawk Mountain has been a wonderful place to witness the marvel of migration ever since.

Want more information? http://www.hawkmountain.org/

Historical photo courtesy of Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association http://www.hawkmountain.org/who-we-are/history/page.aspx?id=387

Looking For Fall

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Kim

Has anyone seen Autumn?

I’ve been searching for her everywhere. Autumn is an elusive elf, playing peek-a-boo among the trees, teasing us with glimpses of bright color, evading us when we look too hard, then turning up where we least expect her.

Could September’s seaside goldenrod be a feather boa in her wardrobe?

Maybe her early colors adorn Tuckahoe trees.

Perhaps Autumn’s paint pot anoints the Sassafras leaves.

Has anyone seen Fall?

Did you see her pixie cousins darting among the marching jack o’lanterns?

Strange things lurk in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. An elven queen knows better than to flout her presence along the Mullica River…

Though occasionally she can’t entirely hide her exuberance.

Could the tea-colored waters of the Wading River be her magic elixir?

Has anyone seen Fall?

Lady Autumn played hide-and-seek with me one morn amid the dogwoods and the maples in my small Eden at home.

Oh, look! Here is one of her Ladyship’s attendants. The first Dark-eyed Junco of the season awaits her wishes.

Have you seen Autumn?

Coming up: The Search Continues

Back In Business

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Kim

KRTR 99.9 Critter Radio brings you the Critter Traxx Traffic Report, sponsored –

*** WE INTERRUPT REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING TO BRING YOU THIS SPECIAL UPDATE ***

This just in – With the government now open, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge is BACK IN BUSINESS!

Yes, folks, my favorite hangout is up and running. The recent government shutdown followed immediately on the heels of my two weeks at the Shore, and I found myself away from Heinz for nearly five weeks. So it was with eager anticipation that I returned for a bird walk this weekend. Would the Refuge look much different? Would there be any fall color showing yet? What birds would be out and about? Would there be interesting things to see?

The Refuge rarely disappoints, particularly after so long away. Here are some ordinary images of ordinary birds on an ordinary Saturday at Heinz that was somehow anything but ordinary.

Greater Yellowlegs.

Tree Swallows are here in large numbers. They were busily quarreling over a number of nest boxes, even though it isn’t nesting season. We think there might be insect nests inside, and that’s what’s causing the chaos.

It’s fascinating to watch the way Nature changes through the seasons. Every naturalist should have a place they go frequently throughout the year, and Heinz NWR is that place for me. Last October I took my first guided bird walk here, led by Mary Ellen, and the most prominent bird was the Yellow-rumped Warbler. How fitting that exactly a year later, I should go on another of Mary Ellen’s walks, and Yellow-rumps would again dominate the walk. I have now come full circle!

FUN FACT: Phenology: the study of the timing of recurring events in the life-cycles of plants and animals. For instance, the flowering of trees, the birth of baby animals, migration, hibernation; all recur from year to year. Yellow-rumped warblers migrate through Heinz in mid-October. These events are influenced by seasonal changes and their timing may be altered by climate change. If a plant blooms weeks earlier than in the past due to a warmer climate, the insects and birds that depend on it may arrive too late to take advantage of it. And if you’re allergic to it, you may start sneezing a lot earlier!

Green-winged Teal, one of six species of ducks we saw.

Here’s a duck I’ve been trying to photograph in breeding plumage since the spring – Wood Duck. This is the closest I’ve gotten so far, and they’re not very close. But they are spectacular.

Red-tailed Hawk.

I am told that this strange apparition is a Chicken Fungus, that it’s edible, and furthermore that it tastes like – chicken. I didn’t try it.

And with good reason – there are a lot of toxic fungi out there. Best to just admire them for their looks, and leave the taste-testing to the experts. Which I definitely am not.

*** WE NOW RETURN YOU TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING ***

Coming up: The Critter Radio Traffic Report (I promise)

Migration Meanderings: Fallout

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Kim

Imagine that you’re a Warbler, like the American Redstart above. You weigh just a few ounces. You’ve spent a short, frenzied summer raising a brood of hungry nestlings. Or maybe you’re one of those recently fledged young birds. Now that the weather is cooling and food becoming scarce, your biological clock is driving you to make the long flight south, hundreds or even thousands of miles. You want to stay over land wherever possible, but here you are with water pressing in from both sides: the Atlantic Ocean to your left and the Delaware Bay to your right and in front. Soon or later you will have to cross Delaware Bay. But you’ve been flying all night (to avoid predators) and right now you’re hungry and tired. What do you do?

Look! Here are all these nice food-laden trees just below. An all-you-can-eat buffet! Never mind the crowd of birders and photographers standing on people’s front lawns to watch your every move. On this day in September, for you and dozens of your warbler compatriots, Cape May Point, NJ is the place to be. Black-and-White Warbler, above.

Simple geography makes Cape May County a migrant trap – a hotspot for winged creatures migrating south in the fall. Birds by the thousands follow land as far as they can, and the geography funnels them all over Cape May Point. Before crossing the water, many hungry birds must come down to rest and eat. Black-throated Blue Warbler, above.

Photographing you tiny warblers is a challenge. If you’d only stop moving! Add to that the challenge of identification. In fall you’re out of the more obvious breeding plumages, plus there are juveniles mixed in, who look different from their parents. I’m not really up to par yet on naming these birds, and so rely heavily on more experienced birders. When all else fails, I fall back on my photos and the field guides. Cape May Warbler (above) – I think.

Are you this flexible? Black-and-White Warbler again, leaving no food tidbit unturned.

Warblers show up in other places, too. Palm Warbler, Ocean City.

FUN FACT: A tiny Blackpoll Warbler needs to double its weight to fly from New England to South America each year. In human terms, that means a 150 pound person would need to gain 15 pounds a day until they reached 300 pounds!

It’s not just warblers on the move in the fall. Imagine you’re a raptor, soaring on the thermals over Cape May Point. Bald Eagles, Kestrels, Red-tailed Hawks and more join you in the sky; Northern Harriers hunt over the marsh. See that wooden platform filled with people? That’s the Cape May Hawk Watch, and the people are there just to watch you migrate. They keep score, too!

The Osprey above was lingering at Tuckahoe WMA before departing for warmer winter digs.

Maybe you’re one of these Tree Swallows, hunting mosquitoes at Corson’s Inlet State Park in Ocean City.

You might be one of the shorebirds, waders, gulls and terns that are fueling up to move south. Here a few fish try to evade a hungry Laughing Gull at Corson’s Inlet SP.

Is this prehistoric looking bird a friend of yours? Glossy Ibis, South Cape May Meadows.

Ho, hum, not another Egret? Actually, no. This is a juvenile Little Blue Heron. Mature adults are a dark dusky blue, but the juveniles are white, and look a lot like Egrets. Cape May Point SP.

Perhaps you are a dainty Forster’s Tern, flying slowly, head down, looking for prey. There it is! A sudden dive straight down, and you’ve got lunch. Edwin B. Forsythe NWR.

Black Skimmers at Forsythe NWR.

Well-fed and rested, you’re ready to continue your journey south. But you’ll have company; after all, birds aren’t the only winged creatures migrating in the fall.

Coming up: Migration Meanderings: The Flight of Kings

Salt Marsh Safari

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Kim

The day started quietly, with a drive through mist-shrouded farms and forests tinged with early fall color. The calendar said “October”, but by the time we arrived at the dock, the day was already doing a fine imitation of summer. We were here on Cape May Harbor for the Salt Marsh Safari, a two-hour tour on the 40-foot Skimmer through the back bays of Cape May. Before we even got on the boat, we had some great looks at Snowy Egrets (above.)

FUN FACT: Here’s a Semipalmated Sandpiper. A big name for a little bird! Its feet have short webs between the toes, hence the name. The holes in the mud are made by crabs, a few of which we’ll meet in an upcoming post.

Some of those aboard were veterans of springtime Skimmer trips, and reported that there weren’t nearly as many birds this go-round. It didn’t bother me, as I still saw two life birds this trip. Quality over quantity! Here’s the first lifer, Tri-colored Heron.

These are not the Skimmer, but a couple of fishing boats anchored along the harbor.

Speaking of fishing, a couple of times our captains scooped up marine life with a bucket for us to examine. There were sea urchins, shrimp, crabs, and a sea star at least six inches across. We also found a couple of large whelks. Most people know these for the empty shells found on the beach, but they are actually snails. Every time the captain tickled the soft creature inside the shell, it fired back with a jet of water.

Here’s the second life bird, Whimbrel. The captain brought the boat in for a really close view. Being on a boat has its advantages. As does that long downturned bill, for the Whimbrel. It’s perfect for digging yummy tidbits out of the mud.

Shameless plug: if you’re in the Cape May area and want to learn about the wildlife of the marshes, or just want a relaxing boat ride, check out the Skimmer. The captains are friendly and really know their stuff. http://www.skimmer.com/default.html

After lunch, we went for a land-based trek through Cape May Point State Park. With marshes, ponds and forests, there’s always a lot to see here. As the afternoon wore on, the unseasonable heat was getting to animals and humans alike. A couple of Mallards found a nice patch of shade.

A Green Frog knew how to keep cool.

Seaside Goldenrod was in bloom everywhere, and attracting lots of butterflies and bees. This bee is loaded with pollen.

Here’s the Bird of the Afternoon. This is a juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron. We found him at the base of a footbridge crossing a small stream. He couldn’t have been more than ten feet away, and he barely budged the whole time we were taking his portrait.

It may have felt like summer, but the golden hues hint at autumn to come. What better way to spend a glorious fall day than soaking it all up in Cape May.

Coming up: Migration Meanderings

More Winter Birds

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Kim

Yes, I know it’s barely fall. While we’re waiting for the leaves to turn here in the East, it seemed a good time to look back at some images from last winter. To remind us what lies in store when it gets cold…

The Dark-eyed Junco (above) and White-breasted Nuthatch were feeder visitors in my backyard. Also the first subjects for my new 400mm zoom lens.

Northern Pintail, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge

Northern Shovelers, Heinz NWR

Sanderling, Ocean City, NJ

Mute Swan, Cape May Point, NJ

Common Merganser female, Heinz NWR

Carolina Wren, Heinz NWR

Snow Geese at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Lancaster County, PA. Snow Geese gather by the thousands on their winter feeding grounds. I had no sooner pulled up to a hill covered with geese when they took off. A giant cloud of geese, whirling and spinning as one. It was an amazing sight.

I like to look at this image at the right, pick out a goose, and imagine what he may be thinking.

“Does anyone know where we’re going?”
“Mom always told me not to follow the crowd.”
“Can’t a guy get some peace and quiet around here?”
“Why is everybody following me?”
“If you’re not the lead horse, the view never changes.”
“I wish that goose next to me had used deodorant this morning…”

Coming up: Something more seasonal, I promise!

Cold Duck

Posted on September 25, 2013 by Kim

Let’s take a little trip back to the images that inspired this blog in the first place. In February I went on my first trip with the Heinz Refuge Photo Group, to Barnegat Light on the Jersey Shore. In the winter the Inlet attracts a variety of ducks and shorebirds you don’t get to see other times of the year.

The challenge is getting to them! To get close you have to walk out on the stone jetty, which can be dangerous when it’s wet or icy. People have been known to fall between the rocks and get stuck.

The day of our visit was sunny, cold and very windy. Fortunately the jetty was dry, and we walked the whole length of it. The ducks were very close in, I saw 6 new bird species, and it was a great photo day for me and my new zoom lens.

All of these birds were new species for me.

Long-tailed Duck

Long-tailed Duck with an itch, and demonstrating a perfect belly-flop.

Red-breasted Merganser, well-coifed, and on a bad hair day

Common Loon – my first view of Loons. They were silent though. So I didn’t hear their signature eerie calls.

What the well-dressed photographer wears at Barnegat Inlet. Double mufflers! Colleen, trying to keep warm.

The stars of the Barnegat Show are the Harlequin Ducks. The colors of the males’ plumage are amazing. They were out at the end of the jetty, so we had to walk a long way to see them. Hopping from large boulder to large boulder was slow and tiring. The payoff was worth it, though!

Harlequins like the surf rough, and had no difficulty standing up to the waves, even if it meant getting a face full of water. Cold water.

Coming up: More Winter Birds

Michigan’s Shy Wildlife

Posted on September 9, 2013 by Kim

I went to Michigan hoping to come home with lots of amazing wildlife shots. Last year I saw minks, for gosh sakes. And this year I have this great new long telephoto zoom lens. Confoundingly, Michigan critters are quite camera shy. No mink, no deer, only one chipmunk.

Birds – oh, yes, there were birds. I could hear them all around me, nattering away constantly. But they insisted on playing hide-and-seek with me, teasing with brief flashes of black and yellow, but never settling down long enough to visit.

Here are some of the animals I did manage to capture, mostly of the winged variety. Above is a Northern Pearly-eye Butterfly in Ludington State Park. Check out the natty striped antennas.

American Redstart, Ludington State Park.

Song Sparrow, Mitchell State Park.

Chickadee, Mitchell State Park.

Unidentified Warbler, Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area. Maybe a female or juvenile Blackburnian? A little help, anyone?

A juvenile Bald Eagle searches for prey, spots his quarry, closes in, and – IMPACT!

To the victor goes the spoils.

Looks like fish for lunch today.

Great Spangled Fritillary, Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area. Who comes up with these names, anyhow?

Common Buckeye, Ludington State Park.

Widow Skimmer, Ludington State Park.

Eastern Pondhawk, Ludington State Park.

Sometimes dragonflies, butterflies and birds of the same species come in different colors. Usually it’s a male/ female thing. For instance, here’s a Ruby Meadowhawk female. Not particularly Ruby, is it? But here’s the male Ruby Meadowhawk, and now it’s obvious where the name came from. Mitchell State Park.

And now, for some scaly things: Midland Painted Turtle, Mitchell State Park. The front fellow’s a little shy, typical of most of the critters I saw – or didn’t see – in Michigan.

Near misses: Occasionally along the Mitchell Heritage Nature Trail I would hear “shish-shishhh-shish” as a small snake slithered off into the grass. I rarely actually saw them. I also heard the distinctive banjo-like “twang” of a Green Frog a few times.

Ending on a furry note: Chipmunk, White Pine Village.

Coming up: Mich-mash

Baby Steps

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Kim

How did we go from this tiny little fellow looking up at his parent…

to this broad-shouldered young Eagle soaring among the trees…

IN JUST ELEVEN WEEKS?

Yes, folks, the Bald Eagle chicks at Heinz Refuge have fledged! They took their first flights over the last weekend, and were already accomplished veterans by the time I saw them on Tuesday. Admittedly, they don’t go far, just fly laps around their Oak Island home, and they still spend time in the nest. But they are flying!

It looked to me like they were doing a fine job of maneuvering and landing in the trees. They have a new favorite perch, on a large bare tree to the right of the nest. I photographed one Eaglet there, and it wasn’t until I got the photos on the computer that I saw the other was right next to him, but hidden behind some foliage.

Even more surprising was this photo, where I was focused on one Eaglet (center) landing, and only discovered in processing that I’d caught the other Eaglet (upper left) in flight!

The last flight we saw was a little rocky for one young bird. Seems a few Red-winged Blackbirds decided to chase him, even hitting him on the back a couple of times. I’m sure he was thinking “Mom! Help! What IS this?” Life out of the nest is all new to these guys.

I’ve been watching birds fly for many years. It never gets old, and watching the raptors fly is especially awe-inspiring. But nothing has moved me as much as these young Eagles’ short flights. What a thrill. It’s been a privilege to watch them grow.

Here are a few other young birds at Heinz right now. For starters, Yellow Warbler. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers in a row (above)

Red-winged Blackbird (right)

Barn Swallow (below)

Female Mallard and ducklings (above)

Female Wood Duck and ducklings (below)

FUN FACT: Baby Wood Ducks have a big obstacle to overcome right from the start. The parents choose a nest cavity, either in a tree or man-made boxes. The nest is as much as 60 feet off the ground, and although it’s often over water, it may be over dry land. Soon after hatching, the ducklings have to make their way to water. Mom calls to them from the ground below. They can’t fly yet, so that means they have to JUMP from the nest! It doesn’t hurt them though. I’ve never seen this in person, only in documentaries, but apparently, Wood Ducklings bounce!

For en excellent video of one duckling’s leap of faith, check out this clip from Nature on PBS: http://video.pbs.org/video/2295315469/

Coming up: Pine Barrens Ramble

The Wild Edge

Opening eyes to the wonder around us

Tag Archives: Birds