With the end of July drawing nigh, the time has come to shift your summer (or winter, depending on your relationship to the Equator) into overdrive. Make this weekend count! What are your plans this weekend and will you be birding? Please share your plans in the comments below.
I am lucky enough to be heading down for a week of family relaxation at Virginia Beach; if anyone has a line on easy Swainson’s Warblers in the Back Bay-Great Dismal Swamp area, I’ll be much obliged. Corey hopes to be out in a boat on Saturday looking for whales and seabirds, making up for last week’s unfortunate flat-tire cancellation. On Sunday, he might make my way out into the muck that is the north end of Jamaica Bay’s East Pond, or he might sleep in. Charlie is off to The Bird Effect on Saturday and, assuming he survives the solo, one-day 500 mile round trip, he might be helping out with a Wiltshire Wildlife Fun Day at the local Conigre Mead reserve.
Whatever your plans this weekend, make time to enjoy SkyWatch Friday. Also be sure to come back Monday to share your best bird of the weekend!
The excellent response to last week’s photo of the avian effigy from Chicken Inferno 2009 encouraged me to share a shot of this year’s guest of honor…
See how this bird was built and burned!
Not in Cyprus, Malta, or Italy, that’s for f’ing sure.
I am pretty psyched for this weekend. I leave tomorrow morning for the 4 hour drive to the Las Heliconias Lodge in northern Costa Rica to help guide the local bird club. This community owned lodge has fantastic birding but the weather is typically bad. They often have Mottled and Crested Owls staked out and have the best hanging bridges in the country (imo) for excellent canopy birding and wildlife observation. Las Heliconias is also a regular spot for goodies such as Ornate Hawk Eagle, Tody Motmot, Sharpbill, Yellow-eared Toucanet, Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, Song Wren, etc,etc,etc.
Like I said though, the weather is often bad so who knows what will happen. I am also going to do a highway bird count along the way- counting numbers of individuals and species. Only birds identified by sight or sound while we are in transit will be counted.
How interesting.
A very strange Bird…but the sky is beautiful 🙂
This is such a funny and fun bird! Do they really eat butterflies? Love the rosy, pastel sky.
haha, this is one funny bird!
If the weather clears I may head to the sanctuary. But gale force winds and ice rain will keep me in for sure.
Not sure if I will stay local or head back out to Jamaica Bay … anyone know if the Pelican is still around?
In any case, thank goodness birding is primarily an early morning activity, before the furnace-like heat of the day kicks in.