There is something about the turning of the year from summer to fall that makes me restless. I long to be on the road, or at the very least, outdoors. My auntie used to call this urge “gypsy feet”.
Fall mornings are crisp and cool, but the afternoons are still warm. Perfect weather for camping or riding horses or going bird watching! It is also a great time to be a bird watcher as the usual suspects give way to surprise migrant visitors.
It is very likely that you might just get lucky, as Seabrooke Leckie of The Marvelous in Nature reminds us – the right place, the right time and voila’, stunning photos of a Cooper’s Hawk visiting Tay Meadows.
Some of us give in to that gypsy feet urge and travel to see birds we might not see at home. This photo post from Wrenaissance Reflections prefectly captures the reason why birders will go to great lengths to see something new – a bird you’ll never see at home – and by the way, there are some great photos of an Ibis, too.
Many of us are very fortunate to be just a short drive, or even just a short walk, from birding areas such as Wildlife refuges or even just a little urban wilderness. Fall migrants use every little patch of woods or marshy area on their way to their winter homes for a short rest and meal stop, giving birders an opportunity to see and often photograph and share their sightings with the rest of us.
Take a few minutes before you pack up for your trip to read The Top Ten Tips for New Birders from Twin Cities Naturalist.
I read with great interest Body Language from Sarus Scape about the body language of Cranes. I hope to make the trip to the Bosque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge in a week or two, where Sandhill Cranes are the star of the show. Now I’ll understand the dialogue!
Peeps at IBIS will give you a good guide for identifying shore birds. You’re going to need it if you want to visit Ottawa by way of Ohio with 10,000 birds. On the other hand – you just might get lucky with a Delivery from New Jersey.
Walk in the Wilderness has some beautiful photos to help you identify herons. Herons are very popular with our birders this week, so you better bone up on them!
The Evening Fisherman at McGee Marsh shared by Red and the Peanut stars a Green Heron who seems to love the spotlight – or at least the cameras flash.
Madras Ramblings takes us on a walk around their local wildlife and birding spots in India to see more herons, and ducks, and deer and flowers and moths and – well just go enjoy! Take a walk down the Tyers River in Australia with Ben Cruachan for more water birds, and some bright and beautiful singers, too!
The Birders Report takes us on a long, exciting ramble around the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge to see Peregrine Falcons, Great Horned Owls, and test you again on your shorebird and heron identification! Oh yes – Congrats to your Mom on her 93rd birthday!
Ainophila Adventures also combined family visiting with bird watching, and shares a Stellar performance with us!
Sometimes those gypsy feet just aren’t happy with a walk or even a short trip. If you still feel the wanderlust, enjoy a cruise in Ireland on the Celtic Explorer with Anthony McGeehan on Peregrines Bird Blog. You can sleep a little later and go on a Pelagic-o-rama cruise with Great Auk in California where he is really racking up those life birds!
If I’ve finally made those gypsy feet tired, you can always sit back and enjoy the goldfinches right in your own yard with advice on attracting them from the Natural Capital.
I am proud and excited to be hosting the I and the Bird #110. I’ve been an avid reader of this bird blogging carnival, and occasional proud participant for a number of years. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this issue for sharing your posts and helping me to create a great carnival!
I and the Bird #111 will be hosted by Kirk Mona (kirkmona AT yahoo.com) of Twin Cities Naturalist.
Photos courtesy of WikiCommons. Bird Watchers in central park not attributed. Sandhill Cranes by Jerry Friedman. Watching birds by Zereshk.
