Early Signs of Winter

It can’t be a good sign that the Willow Ptarmigan are starting to molt to their white, winter plumages:

Willow Ptarmigan Male

Sure, winter comes every year, whether we want it or not, but July 31 seems terribly early. The females are more reassuring still mostly in their lovely summer plumage:

Willow Ptarmigan Female

But a careful look at her shows the tell-tale whites starting to come in under her primaries and on her flanks, too.

WC understands that complaining about it accomplishes nothing, but a bird photographer depends on lots of bird species and light practice the craft. A Fairbanks winter offers neither.

Mental Health Break: King Penguins

As important as the crises of government may be, WC needs to take a break from crises once in a while. Avian photography, as readers must know, if WC’s shelter from the storm.

Here are a series of semi-abstract photos of King Penguins from back in December 2010 on South Georgia Island.

King Penguin - Side View

Another angle:

King Penguin - Sky Pointing

The view from the back is pretty cool, too:

King Penguin - Back

King Penguins are primarily flock animals, so a few group shots seems appropriate here:

King Penguins - Right-Leaning Trio

We managed only a few late evening landings, when the low polar light is sweet. Here’s one to close:

King Penguin Flock

WC hopes that you’re refreshed. We’ll get back to the usual stuff soon enough. Thanks for stopping by for a break.

The Kids Are All Right

Most of the purpose of bird migration is to increase the chances of successfully reproducing your genes. And there’s a lot of success wandering around Interior Alaska right now. Here’s a sampler:

Semi-palmated Plover Kid

Shorebird kids like this Semi-palmated Plover can walk almost from the moment they hatch. This little guy is halfway between down and adult plumage.

American Widgeon Ducklings

Most ducklings can paddle around fairly well almost from hatching. This impressively large group was accompanied by just one adult. But it’s probably two clutches worth of eggs.

Canada Goose Goslings

Canada Geese raise goslings cooperatively; these three are part of a mixed group of seven goslings and three adults.

American Dipper Chick

This is an American Dipper chick, out of the nest but still half in down and dependent on mom and dad for food. Baby dippers dip, bounce up and down, like adults, and this is one of the few times WC wished he worked in video.

Red-necked Grebes with Kids

A final photo of some spooky Red-necked Grebes. The parents take turns hunting food, diving deep and for a surprisingly long time. The other parent guards the kids, frequently by carrying them on his or her back. These Grebes always call a few times after a feeding. It’s tempting to think they are arguing over who has to guard the kids.

But it’s been a reasonably successful breeding season. The kids are all right.

Breaking the Rules

WC thinks bird photo composition can be rule-bound. The rules are good in principle but they are really guidelines, not rules, in WC’s view. Here’s a specific set of examples.

This is a Yellow Warbler in a standard composition.

Yellow Warbler, "Standard" Composition © 2011 Frozen Feather Images

The bird isn’t centered, but set to one side under the “Rule of Thirds.” The bird is unobstructed, there’s a catchlight in the eye, the background is not a distraction and there’s a distinct head turn. This shot is so common that it has an acronym among avian photographers: BOAS. Bird OnA Stick. It’s a good photo in technical terms – okay, there’s a hot spot on the bird’s flank – but for WC, at least, it’s nothing special.

This White-crowned Sparrow photo “breaks” some of the rules:

White-crowned Sparrow, Bending the Rules © 2011 Frozen Feather Images

The bird’s body is slightly obscured by foliage,and “pushed” a little closer to center. The main focus for the viewer’s eye, the caterpillar the sparrow has, is in fact centered in the photo.  And most importantly, the background is busy with sticks and leaves, “busy” in photographer’s slang. The photo tells more of a “story,” what the bird eats, where it lives, how it holds food. To WC, this is a more interesting photo even with a composition that bends the rules.

Lastly, here’s a Spotted Sandpiper that seriously breaks the photo composition rules:

Spotted Sandpiper, Breaking the Rules © 2011 Frozen Feather Images

Obviously the bird is partially concealed by the reeds and grasses. The bird is on the ground, and its feet and part of its leg are concealed; one leg is concealed entirely. The tail is up against the edge of the frame and, by usual standards, the bird is “tight” in the frame. There’s not much space around it. And the photo is from ground level. The bird’s eye is actually above the lens.

But WC thinks this is the most effective of the three photos. It tells the viewer more about where the bird lives, how the bird hides, the size of the bird and a just conveys a better “story.” If you are going to break the rules like this, WC thinks it is critically important that the bird itself be tack sharp in the photo, and the exposure as close to perfect as possible. And because eye contact is so important for communication, the eye itself must not be obscured.

Of course, WC is hardly a world-famous bird photographer, and can count his photo sales on two hands with digits left over. So take WC’s opinions with the proverbial grain of salt. But look at all three photos before you make up your mind.

Getting Down to Business, Part 2

Many species of birds migrate extraordinary distances to Alaska to breed. It’s a complicated trade-off: the hazards of migration and the very short breeding season here, in exchange for abundant food and, perhaps, reduced competition. Birds aren’t the only animals to use the strategy, but they do it the most enthusiastically. The very short breeding season leaves them a very tight interval to court, breed, feed and fledge the kids.

Savannah Sparrow

Savannah Sparrows like brush margins to fields, or stands of willows along alpine tundra. The male’s call – “sa-sa-savannah” – names the species for you.

Say's Phoebe

At one time, WC thought the Denali Highway was the northern limit of this pretty little flycatcher’s breeding area, but they also nest in the rocky valleys between 12 Mile Summit and Eagle Summit on the Steese Highway. The odd background color is a hillside of dwarf birch and alder that hadn’t greened up yet.

White-crowned Sparrow

WC thinks that only American Robins are more successful than White-crowned Sparrows at adapting to a wide range of habitats. At the peak of their singing, there’s no place you can stop along the Denali Highway you won’t see and hear a White-crowned. This one has a caterpillar, which implies the eggs are already hatched.

Wilson's Warbler

No collection of Alaska bird photos would be complete without at least one warbler. Wilson’s Warbler, with its shiny black cap and hyperactivity, is one of the harder warblers to find, but worth the effort.

It would be sweet if these beautiful birds stayed longer. But they are here on business. A few days after the kids are fledged, they start their long migration south again.

Kleptoparasitism in Gulls

There’s some dispute whether this was “real” or “faked,” in the sense of inviting the Gull to engage in larceny. You can decide:

 

It’s pretty amusing either way.

Thanks to Mia MacPherson for the tip.

Merlin

Alaska has four breeding species of falcons: Gyrfalcon, Peregrine Falcon, Merlin and American Kestrel. Merlins are next to smallest – although a male Merlin isn’t much bigger than a female Kestrel – and not commonly seen. This male was photographed along the Denali Highway; the white blur across the middle background is the Alaska Range.

Merlin

There are three subspecies of Merlins in the United States; this is the Boreal subspecies, Falco columbarius columbarius, which breeds here and across the forested portions of Alaska and Canada. The Latin species name, columbarius, reflects its English name, the Pigeon Hawk.

For those who may be curious, this photo was taken with an Olympus E-5 camera, using a 300mm f2.8 lens, combined with a 2.0 teleconverter, all propped in a pickup window.

For a birder like WC, seeing a Merlin is a mixed experience. They are an elegant, graceful species, beautiful perched or in flight. But they forage mostly on small birds, meaning that where you find a Merlin you are not likely to always see a lot of other birds. Still WC can’t look at this species – or photograph this species – without delight.

Getting Down to Business, Part I

WC had a chance to do some birding along the east end of the Denali Highway this past weekend. And got photos of two of his favorite birds.

Arctic Warblers, really and truly, migrate to Alaska from southeast Asia. They are an Old Word warbler, one of the few that breed in the Western Hemisphere. Despite the length of the migration flight, the moment they arrive they begin singing.

Arctic Warbler

WC shouldn’t complain about long tedious jet travel; these little birds travel further under their own power, and only then get down to the serious business of courtship and reproduction.

Another WC favorite is the Horned Lark. This species manages the competition problem by nesting and breeding above the vegetation line, up where all that is left is lichens and a few patches of alpine tundra.

Horned Lark

This species winters in the southwest, and migrates to, among other regions, Alaska, where it breeds in the harsh, high alpine terrain. The markings on this species are especially nice, and the song is lovely.

WC will have more photos from the trip later in the week.

The Toughest Bird

Adelie Penguin on Nest

WC has written about Adelies before; of the seven species WC saw on his trip to Antarctica, the Adelies were hands down the most endearing.

Adelies are the penguin that resides furthest south. Emperors go further south to breed, but Adelies live in the deep latitudes year round. The build the neatest nests of the penguins WC saw, and they seemed to be the cleanest. And Adelies were always busy. Finding pebbles – stealing pebbles – for the nest, preening, heading out for food, grooming the nest; Adelies are all business, all the time. Other penguins will check out those funny visitors, especially if the visitors sit down and hold still. Adelies have not time for such nonsense.

WC found them utterly charming, less flashy than the Kings or Emperors but indisputably handsome. Photogenic.  And tough as nails.

Happy Father’s Day

Gentoo Penguin with Chick

WC’s photo of an adult Gentoo Penguin with a chick is usually interpreted as mom and kid; in fact, this adult is large enough to be the male, although Gentoos are famously difficult to tell apart. But it is known that the parents share equally in rearing the chicks, exchanging nest duties daily.

WC chooses to interpret this as a male adult. So Happy Father’s Day to all fathers who are readers and readers whose fathers are still around.

Denali Highway Birding

WC had a chance to take a Indiana University of Pennsylvania geology professor birding around interior Alaska recently. It was a very quick trip, far less time than those gorgeous birds deserve, but there are a few good photos that may be worth sharing.

Moulting Willow Ptarmigan

The Willow Ptarmigan were moulting from winter white to summer brown. There was a very moderate amount of courtship singing – if ptarmigan calls can be called “singing” – but because we didn’t see any females at all, it seems likely most if not all of the females were on eggs.

Rock Ptarmigan

The Rock Ptarmigan is just starting to moult; you can see the tan color starting to appear under the white. Because Rocks are usually in higher terrain than Willows, they hold their white color a bit longer.

Gray-cheeked Thrush

This species breeds in the subarctic, but not a lot is known about them. They are a medium sized bird, about the same size as a Swainson’s and Hermit Thrush, but smaller than an American Robin. They winter in South America east of the Andes: Colombia, Venezuela, Trinidad, Guyana, and northwest Brazil. The limits of distribution in South America are poorly known.

Blackpoll Warbler

This species is dramatically different in non-breeding plumage. And its song is almost too high-pitched for WC’s aging ears. This male was working hard at calling in a lady and warning off other males. It was an especially impressive effort because he was competing with a noisy creek and fairly high wind.

The chance to hear and see these lovely birds it brief, but wonderful while it happens. WC urges you to get out and look around.

What Have We Done: All of the rest

WC has had some private email deploring the What Have We Done postings. The series, you will recall, have been honoring birds species in the U.S. that have gone extinct since the country was created. The emails argue that agonizing over the losses serves no purpose.

WC disagrees, but admits the pieces are depressing to write. At the same time, letting species pass from the world without comment seems wrong. So, in one final bummer of a post, WC will set out the appallingly long list of additional extinct U.S. species, their former habitats and their status.

Presumed or Possibly Extinct U.S. Birds
Name	Conservation Status	Former Distribution
Camptorhynchus labradorius Labrador Duck	GX	CAN: LB, NB, NF, NS, PE, QC USA : CT, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI
Porzana palmeri Laysan Rail	GX	USA : HI
Porzana sandwichensis Hawaiian Rail	GX	USA : HI
Numenius borealis Eskimo Curlew	GH	CAN: AB, LB, NB, NF, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK USA : AK, AR, CO, CT, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MA, MD, ME, MN, MO, ND, NE, NJ, NY, OH, OK, RI, SC, SD, TX, WY
Pinguinus impennis Great Auk	GX	CAN: LB, NB, NF, NS, QC USA : MA, ME, NH
Ectopistes migratorius Passenger Pigeon	GX	CAN: AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, ON, PE, QC, SK USA : AL , AR , CT , DC , DE , FL , GA , IA , ID , IL , IN , KS , KY , LA , MA , MD , ME , MI , MN , MO , MS , NC , ND , NE , NH , NJ , NV , NY , OH , OK , PA , RI , SC , SD , TN , TX , VA , VT , WI , WV , WY
Conuropsis carolinensis Carolina Parakeet	GX	USA: AL  , AR  , CO  , FL  , GA  , IA  , IL  , IN  , KS  , KY  , LA  , MD  , MO  , MS  , NC , NE  , NJ  , NY  , OH  , OK  , PA  , SC  , SD  , TN  , TX  , VA  , WI  , WV
Campephilus principalis Ivory-billed Woodpecker	formerly GH; status changed to G1 as of 4/28/05	USA: AL  , AR  , FL, GA  , IL  , IN  , KY  , LA  , MD  , MO , MS, NC, OH, OK, SC, TN, TX
Chaetoptila angustipluma Kioea	GX	USA : HI
Moho apicalis Oahu Oo	GX	USA : HI
Moho bishopi Bishop’s Oo	GH	USA : HI
Moho braccatus Kauai Oo	GH	USA : HI
Moho nobilis Hawaii Oo	GX	USA : HI
Moho sp. 1 ‘o ‘o (Maui)	GH	USA : HI
Myadestes lanaiensis Olomao	GH	USA : HI
Myadestes myadestinus Kamao	GH	USA : HI
Myadestes woahensis Amaui	GXQ	USA : HI
Vermivora bachmanii Bachman’s Warbler	GH	USA : AL  , AR, DC  , FL, GA, IL  , KY  , LA, MO  , MS  , OK  , SC  , TN  , VA
Chloridops kona Kona Grosbeak	GX	USA : HI
Ciridops anna Ula-ai-hawane	GX	USA : HI
Dysmorodrepanis munroi Lanai Hookbill	GX	USA : HI
Hemignathus ellisianus Greater Akialoa	GX	USA : HI
Hemignathus obscurus Lesser Akialoa	GX	USA : HI
Hemignathus sagittirostris Greater ‘Amakihi	GX	USA : HI
Paroreomyza flammea Kakawahie	GH	USA : HI
Paroreomyza maculata Oahu Alauahio	GH	USA : HI
Rhodacanthis flaviceps Lesser Koa-finch	GX	USA : HI
Rhodacanthis palmeri Greater Koa-finch	GX	USA : HI

Twenty-eight species. Gone. Forever. Hawai’i, in particular, is ground zero for species extinction, as invasive mosquitoes transmit Avian Malaria from invasive escaped cage birds to the remaining wild species. WC went to a nice party a few nights ago for a career biologist who is leaving Alaska to run a National Wildlife Refuge in Hawai’i. He’d better hurry or there won’t be any bird species left…

What Have We Done: Numenius borealis

Eskimo Curlew Lithograph by Henry Eeles Dresser

At one time, the Eskimo Curlew may have been one of the most numerous shorebirds in North America with a population in the millions. As many as 2 million birds per year were killed near the end of the 19th century. The last confirmed sightings were in 1962 on Galveston Island, Texas (photographed) and on Barbados in 1963 (specimen). There was a reliable report of 23 birds in Texas in 1981, and more recent additional unconfirmed reports from Texas, Canada (1987), Argentina (1990), and Nova Scotia (2006). No confirmed record of this species has been reported in South America since 1939.

Since 1981 there are a scattered handful of uncorroborated reported sightings, but it’s more likely than not that the species has joined the Passenger Pigeon and the Carolina Parrot.

More information is at the U.S. Geological Survey website.

Peeps and Pipes

Among the last arrivals in spring migration are the shorebirds. Peeps and Pipes in birder slang. Small, mostly inconspicuous and difficult to identify, they are nonetheless among WC’s favorites. Here are some recent shots, in no particular order:

Pectoral Sandpiper

One of the smallest of the Sandpipers:

Semipalmated Sandpiper

And one more, one of the more commonly seen plovers in Interior Alaska:

Semipalmated Plover

The arrival of shorebirds means it really is spring, that water really is a liquid. WC advises you to get out there and enjoy it.

(For those who may be curious, these photos were all taken in one area near Fairbanks on May 20. The low perspectives come from laying on the ground, a technique WC learned from his friends at NPN. All were taken with a hand-held Olympus E-5, using a 300mm lens and a 2.o teleconverter.)

What Have We Done? Conuropsis carolinensis

Most Americans are unaware that there even was a kind of parrot that was native to the U.S. But there was. From John James Audubon’s Birds of North America:

Carolina Parakeet, Conuropsis carolinensis

Our Parakeets are very rapidly diminishing in number; and in some districts, where twenty-five years ago they were plentiful, scarcely any are now to be seen. At that period, they could be procured as far up the tributary waters of the Ohio as the Great Kenhawa, the Scioto, the heads of Miami, the mouth of the Manimee at its junction with Lake Erie, on the Illinois river, and sometimes as far north-east as Lake Ontario, and along the eastern districts as far as the boundary line between Virginia and Maryland. At the present day, very few are to be found higher than Cincinnati, nor is it until you reach the mouth of the Ohio that Parakeets are met with in considerable numbers. I should think that along the Mississippi there is not now half the number that existed fifteen years ago.

The last wild specimen was killed in Okeechobee County, Florida, in 1904, and the last captive bird died at the Cincinnati Zoo on February 21, 1918. This was the male specimen “Incas,” who died within a year of his mate “Lady Jane.” Coincidentally, Incas died in the same aviary cage in which the last Passenger Pigeon, “Martha,” had died nearly four years prior. It was not until 1939, however, that it was determined that the Carolina Parakeet had become extinct.

What Have We Done? Ectopistes migratorius

From John Muir’s autobiography:

I have seen flocks streaming south in the fall so large that they were flowing over from horizon to horizon in an almost continuous stream all day long, at the rate of forty or fifty miles an hour, like a mighty river in the sky, widening, contracting, descending like falls and cataracts, and rising suddenly here and there in huge ragged masses like high-plashing spray. How wonderful the distances they flew in a day–in a year–in a lifetime! They arrived in Wisconsin in the spring just after the sun had cleared away the snow, and alighted in the woods to feed on the fallen acorns that they had missed the previous autumn. A comparatively small flock swept thousands of acres perfectly clean of acorns in a few minutes, by moving straight ahead with a broad front. All got their share, for the rear constantly became the van by flying over the flock and alighting in front, the entire flock constantly changing from rear to front, revolving something like a wheel with a low buzzing wing roar that could be heard a long way off. In summer they feasted on wheat and oats and were easily approached as they rested on the trees along the sides of the field after a good full meal, displaying beautiful iridescent colors as they moved their necks backward and forward when we went very near them. Every shotgun was aimed at them and everybody feasted on pigeon pies, and not a few of the settlers feasted also on the beauty of the wonderful birds. The breast of the male is a fine rosy red, the lower part of the neck behind and along the sides changing from the red of the breast to gold, emerald green and rich crimson. The general color of the upper parts is grayish blue, the under parts white. The extreme length of the bird is about seventeen inches; the finely modeled slender tail about eight inches, and extent of wings twentyfour inches. The females are scarcely less beautiful.

“Oh, what bonnie, bonnie birds!” we exclaimed over the first that fell into our hands. “Oh, what colors! Look at their breasts, bonnie as roses, and at their necks aglow wi’ every color juist like the wonderfu’ wood ducks. Oh, the bonnie, bonnie creatures, they beat a’! Where did they a’ come fra, and where are they a’ gan? It’s awfu’ like a sin to kill them!” To this some smug, practical old sinner would remark: “Aye, it’s a peety, as ye say, to kill the bonnie things, but they were made to be killed, and sent for us to eat as the quails were sent to God’s chosen people, the Israelites, when they were starving in the desert ayont the Red Sea. And I must confess that meat was never put up in neater, handsomer-painted packages.”

The last captive Passenger Pigeon, “Martha,” died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1914.

Osprey in Interior Alaska

Osprey are uncommon in Interior Alaska. Although they breed a little further north and much further west, our area is near the limit of their range. WC was pleased to find an active nest yesterday, and a very impressive nest it is, too.

Osprey Pair on Nest

Consider the the sticks are brought up one at a time. Osprey really are “prodigious builders.”

Alaska’s short summers work against successful breeding. There aren’t many studies of breeding this far north, but estimates are that egg-laying occurs 7-14 days following arrival. Eggs take 35-40 days to incubate; chicks take 55-60 days to fledge. Remember too Osprey can’t feed themselves until there is enough open water to allow fishing. And that it’s a long flight back to winter range in Central and South America. It’s a tight schedule.

Osprey Launching

But WC is happy to have Fish Hawks in the Interior. Their spectacular dives and wonderful adaptations are a pleasure to watch. In their northern breeding areas, global warming may actually benefit them; in their southern, winter range, it’s more problematic.

As an aside, they are famously tough to photograph: the stark whites and very dark browns are easy get wrong. A careful view of the Osprey taking off will show a loss of detail in the parts of the whites and parts of the browns. Ah well.

Herring Gull with a Problem

Herring Gulls breed in Interior Alaska (which is one reason why birders dislike hearing them called “seagulls”). Herring Gulls are opportunistic feeders, and their diet includes carrion. Along the Denali Highway, where this photo was taken, carrion often includes road kill. And it was probably dining on road killed porcupine that caused this guy a problem.

If you look closely, you can see a porcupine quill stuck in the lower half of his bill, in his mandible. It’s a real problem. Quills work inward. WC has no idea what became of this bird, but it’s not good.

Herring Gull with a Porcupine Quill

As is often the case, WC didn’t see the quill in the field; only at home on the computer monitor. Luck places more of role in nature photography than most nature photographers are willing to admit.

Slow Day at Denali Nat’l Park

WC headed down to Denali National Park Sunday, forsaking better birds for a chance at some charismatic megafauna while at least part of the road is open to private vehicles. It was pretty slow. There were far for private vehicles than critters on Sunday afternoon. And, oddly enough, birds captured most of the excitement.

Mammals? One Caribou, two Arctic Ground Squirrels, two Moose, one Snowshoe Hare and ten or so Dahl Sheep. Well below average.

Birds? an American Kestrel, half a dozen Northern Harriers, two Golden Eagles, dozens of American Tree Sparrows and a Hairy Woodpecker. And two genuine rarities: a flock of 5-6 Rusty Blackbirds and a Mountain Bluebird, a species listed as only hypothetical on the bird list for the Park. Oddly, there was only one Willow Ptarmigan, a female in transition plumage, at Savage River bridge. Which resulted in a fairly mediocre photo:

Willow Ptarmigan Female

Usually, the species is everywhere. But it was a pretty nice day, with only a few scattered snow flurries. A surprising amount of the snow is already gone and the road is in excellent shape.

Still, WC has not made his annual trip to Denali N.P. Maybe again in the autumn for the tundra colors. But not until the crowds of visitors thin out.

Spring Migration: Waterfowl

WC spent some time yesterday wandering around Fairbanks’ birding hotspots to see what had arrived. It was mostly waterfowl, but that’s all right because they are decked out in breeding plumage and look particularly spiffy. Here are some samples:

Greater White-fronted Goose

While they don’t commonly breed around Fairbanks, Speckle-bellies are reliable early arrivals at Creamer’s Refuge. This guy was suspicious about WC and that big lens even at 40 meters. WC has always thought White-fronteds has extraordinarily big feet, even for a goose.

American Wigeon

This Wigeon drake was at Tanana Lakes (neé South Cushman Ponds). Wigeon do breed in the Interior, and are one of the more common puddle ducks. The males are at their very brightest right now.

Barrow's Goldeneye

Barrow’s are a diving duck, and generally breed in mountain lakes. They are in Fairbanks mostly on spring migration. The male is distinguished from the Common Goldeneye by the shape of the white patch under the eye; the females, at least for WC, are indistinguishable, although the males can obviously tell them apart. This pretty pair was at the Peat Ponds on Goldstream Road.