"What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." -Aldo Leopold
Typically found in warmer coastal waters of the Americas, St. Louis birders were in for a treat by the visit of this Brown Pelican that arrived about a month ago.
The bird has been seen consistently and may stick around at RMBS for the rest of the summer.
Unfortunately, these photos were strongly affected by heat wave distortion that was prominant on this clear day.
Thanks for stopping by.
-OZB
No, I’m not referring to that no account, poor excuse of a season we witnessed a few months back. What I was finally able to do was capture a few pics of a Winter Wren. I have never been able to get more than a fleeting glance at this skulking bird as it somehow is able to hide by rarely moving more than a few feet off the ground. This spring, however, I was in the right place (Shaw Nature Reserve) and was lucky to find a few of these birds and follow them long enough to get a few poor quality images.
With more than 35 recognized subspecies, the Winter Wren has an enormous range and is the only member of the wren family to be found outside of the Americas.
According to NatGeo, “Per unit weight the Winter Wren delivers its song with 10 times more power than a crowing rooster”. I was able to hear the quite complex and rapid musical songs as I watched one or two of these birds foraging. I could tell they were merely partial songs and not delivered with full attention and voice as is often the case of migrating birds, but I was still awed by the sounds.
The photo above focuses on the quite short tail of the Winter Wren, a distinguishing and obvious field mark.
Although the next photo is quite poor, I like that it captured the typical squat, egg-like shape of the bird.
Finally, I thought I would add an image of a House Wren that I took on the same day, the first of this species that I found this spring. Notice the much longer tail and the lack of any barring pattern on the flanks forward of the legs. A generally paler bird.
-OZB
I have shared images and discussed the Short-eared Owl on a number of previous blog posts. Never did I imagine the “storm” that the “winter” of 2015/2016 was to bring. On many different trips to a few different places, I along with my partners Sarah and Steve, were fortunate to have great looks at great numbers of these fluffy fascinations in feathers. I can’t say for certain if this winter in this region was abnormal for hosting a greater than average number of SEOW, or if my observational skills have just improved, but it certainly seemed easier than in past years to find and watch these birds. I’ve just finished putting together a video with some video clips and highlight images that I wanted to share. Without further ado, here you are…
Oh, the challenges video brings to an inexperienced, unprepared and poorly equipped photographer. Throw in the fact that these birds are utterly unpredictable and it’s hard to believe I was able to capture what I did. So, I learn and take notes and hopefully improve next year.
Other than the simians, is there another species easier to anthropomorphize? Here we have cute and inquisitive SEOW, followed mere seconds later by the evil, harbinger of doom SEOW of which early writers told.
And then we have the indifferent SEOW…
Okay, I’ll stop now before they take my biologist card away from me…
Although I got a few images, I struggled mightily and missed several great opportunities at capturing SEOW in flight this season. The randomness of the encounters coupled with challenges with lighting and equipment make this a true challenge. Funnily, one of my better in-flight photographs was taken with a setting sun at the bird’s back – not the best opportunity…
The image below was taken with the sun in a better position. Notice the catch light, which suggests that the bird was up and in flight with the sun still in the sky. Something else in this photo that I noticed before is the difference in dilatation of the lit pupil compared to the pupil of the shaded eye.
Below is a flight shot from a further distance. I liked the warm light of the golden hour, painting the dead prairie vegetation in fire.
One night Steve and I were fortunate to have an owl perch close to our car well into dusk. It then left its perch and landed nearby in the vegetation. We could not tell if it was after a prey or decided to go back to bed, as it sat there for the short remainder of the day.
The final image I am sharing here is just to show off those feather-covered legs. A great adaptation for the cold climates in which these birds are found.
-OZB
Missouri is home to three giant white swan species that can be difficult to distinguish without a bit of training or education. All three swans belong to the genus Cygnus and rank among the largest waterfowl on the planet. The first species we will consider is the Trumpeter Swan (C. buccinator). Ranked as both the largest waterfowl species in the world and the largest flying bird of North America, the Trumpeter Swan is considered a conservation success. Beginning in the 1600s the birds were collected for their meat, skins and feathers. This unregulated slaughter lasted until the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which provided the species some protection. Their population rebounded from a level as low as 32 birds documented in 1932 to 15,000 – 20,000 estimated today. Trumpeter Swans only winter in Missouri, spending their summer nesting season from the upper great plains up to Alaska. As many as 600 birds have been counted at Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary during a winter season.
The Tundra Swan (C. columbianus) are more widespread across North America compared to its larger relative, the Trumpeter. And, although they far outnumber the Trumpeter in total population, the Trumpeter is actually the more abundant winter resident in Missouri. For reasons unknown, this winter we have seen an unusually high number of the comparatively rare Tundra, giving birders something to be excited about.
In single species groups, especially at a distance, the two species can be challenging to tell apart. However, when seen up close and spaced closely together, the differences are more easily identified. On average, the Tundra is 1/3 to 1/2 the size of the Trumpeter. In addition the border of the black color surrounding the bill is different in the two species and the Tundra usually has a yellow spot on the lores, near the base of the bill. I’ll guide you to your favorite field guide for more specifics. With this information, can you spot the four Tundras in the image below?
Here is a closeup of the two species in flight. Easy to spot the Tundra here. Right?
It was such a treat being able to watch a group of Tundras carrying on…
Finally, our last (and quietest) of Missouri’s Cygnus – the Mute Swan (C. olor). The Mute is native to the old world and exists in North America as a naturalized resident. Still raised and sold on the captive market, the Mute is typically a year-round resident in these parts, moving only to find open water in the dead of winter. These birds are easily recognized by the large, orange-collored bills, often with a bulge at its base. I photographed this pair at Binder Lake S.P.
There you are, a quick overview of the Missouri’s white giants.
Thanks for the visit.
-OZB
Wow. I’ve been looking for an evening like this for a number of years. I have heard and read that Short-eared Owls will often start their night early and often will often be up and active with several hours of day left. I have seen them before at dusk, right before sunset, but last night at B.K. Leach C.A. we had several on the move with almost two hours of light left. We were able to count a minimum of eight SEOW, but there may have been more. Immediately before sunset I was able to observe somewhere between 25-30 Northern Harriers along with the owls. It was quite a treat, listening to the Owl’s peculiar barks and screams as they were dog-fighting with the other owls and the Harriers who were looking for their spots to spend the night.
-OZB
I’m finally ready to share a few more images from a float down the upper third or so of the Current River that Steve and I had the great fortune to experience this past October. We started at navigable mile 8.0 at Cedar Grove Access and pulled out three days later at mile 51, the confluence of the Current and that other, oh-so desirable, Ozark stream – the Jacks Fork. If one floats slow and quiet, the opportunity to see wildlife is very high in this National Park (Ozark National Scenic Riverways N.P.). I’v shared a couple of images of these guys previously. I believe we found 8-9 Mink during the first day of this float. It was enjoyable watching them busily hunt along the stream banks, mostly oblivious to our presence. As usual, Steve did a great job in keeping us quiet and pointed in the optimal direction for capturing some images.
It was quite a challenge to keep up with these guys as they fished. This one below had caught a nice-sized crayfish and barely slowed to stop and enjoy his snack.
Here is a photo of one investigating the water prior to dipping back in.
Not only does a float down the Current allow for great observations of wildlife, but many geological features are most easily seen by being on the river as well. Cave Spring can now be accessed via a nice newer trail, but it is much nicer accessing it by boat. The endpoint of a vast and interesting karst drainage system, Cave Spring rises from the back of a short cave. At the rear of this cave one can guide a boat over the vertical conduit of the spring, which is ~155 feet deep! What an eerie sensation it is to shine your light down and still see no more than a fraction of the length of the conduit shaft. In the image below, I am on a dry exposed shelf adjacent to the spring’s outlet and Steve is guiding the canoe towards the river.
Pultite is a spring found on this upper stretch of the Current River that is surrounded on all sides except the river by private property. This means that one must boat or wade/swim to visit it. At only ~ 1/10 the output of Big Spring, Pultite is still quite a good-sized spring with and average daily output of ~ 25 million gallons. The effluent channel on this one is quite attractive and I hope to visit more often.
If day one was for the Mink, day two was our River Otter day. We had no Mink, but 5 or 6 of these large weasels were spotted.
Not to forget the birds! These days, a trip to nearly any permanent Missouri water source will likely bring an encounter with a Bald Eagle. Observing these guys in the Ozarks will never get old to me.
Another constant companion on these floats are the Fish Crows, here pictured finishing up a little Ozark lobster.
We were fortunate in having mostly clear and dry skies on this trip, which allowed us to throw our bags directly on whatever gravel bar that struck our fancy and sleep directly underneath the stars. A morning fire was necessary – not only to burn the dew off of our sleeping bags, but of course, for the river-water French-press coffee. Dark skies on these streams afford great opportunities for astrophotography. My only wish for this trip is that I was a little more tolerant of the cold, tiredness and laziness that limited my patience for getting better nightscape images… 😉
I will be posting more images of this trip on my Flickr account in the near future. Thanks for visiting and I hope to post again in the near future.
-OZB
I was able to catch this male Kestrel hovering along a patch of grass at RMBS, hunting for insects and small rodents. Kestrels don’t always hover-hunt, but will do so when they have a good source of wind to work with, as is often the case at Riverlands.
-OZB
As has been my luck with the rarities lately, if I can find them at all, it will be under poor light. This is the pair of Surf Scoters that have been spending time lately at Binder Lake, just outside Jefferson City. This was my first trip to the lake and it held a number of interesting waterfowl species.
Surf Scoters typically winter on almost any coastal waters of North America. My best guess is that these guys were on their way to gulf waters and decided to have an extended stay in a midwestern lake during this quite autumn we have had so far.
In my opinion, this is a couple of hens, but I am no expert.
Steve and I took advantage of a long holiday break by making a pilgrimage to Squaw Creek NWR. Even though the temps were in the 50s and 60s, you can see we still had white out conditions… 😉
Take a look at the video below…
Today I am presenting the final images that I plan on sharing from the trip that Steve and I made to Quivira NWR way back this past May.
These Hudsonian Godwits were a pleasure to watch. See below for a shot of them in rest.
Surprisingly, we seemed to have more Yellow-headed Blackbirds than Red-winged, but we did have plenty of Red-winged to watch as well.
No trip to the grasslands is complete without a Quail…
We watched this female/juvenile Yellow Warbler take a bath in one of the creeks that run through the reserve.
What a collection of birds, photos and memories these few days in the Kingdom of Quivira provided. We can’t wait to visit again.
-OZB
A Thousand Acres of Silphiums 