Crested Owl at Selva Verde
The last minute of totality at the Helen B. Katz Natural Area near Meadville, PA, complete with a chorus of Spring Peepers and a Bald Eagle flyover! (Turn on the sound.)
Searching for the Pheasant Cuckoo on the road to Black Rock Lodge. Many thanks to Isaias Morataya for finding this bird for our IndiGo Birding tour group in Belize last week!
Snow Geese at Goose Pond FWA, Linton, Indiana
Snow Geese at Goose Pond
Snow Geese from the south end of main pool of Goose Pond on 2/11/24. South of Linton, Indiana.
When the Violet Sabrewing shows up at the feeder, all the other hummingbirds clear out! One of the highlights of the IndiGo Birding Nature Tours stop at Green Hills Butterfly Ranch on our tour of Belize.
Fallout Warbler Migration
The Chicago area experienced one of the largest migration events in decades on Thursday. Weather fronts and rain pushed birds south by the tens of thousands. I was leading a bird walk for the Chicago Ornithological Society at Park No. 566 on the south side, where we had a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Here is a brief video where you can hear and see the birds passing by… multiply it by three hours and the totals get astronomically high! I went back out in the afternoon with my camera, so look for photos of some of the species soon.
The downside of this event was the record numbers of birds that collided with buildings in Chicago. This tragedy shows the importance of Lights Out programs that can reduce collisions. Read more about it at this link: https://news.wttw.com/2023/10/05/birders-joy-turns-shock-massive-migratory-wave-leads-mass-mortality-due-collisions
Warblers and Vireos popping up all over Chicago this weekend! 😍 #indigobirdingtours #birding #chicagobirding #warblers #birdmigration #birdwatchers #chicagoparks #montrosebirdsanctuary
Collared Aracari feeding on palm nuts at Lamanai Archaeological Site today! Also saw a Keel-billed Toucan and two species of trogons.
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher building a nest
On yesterday’s tour we found a gnatcatcher putting the final touches on its nest. They put lichens on the outside for full camouflage!
Henslow’s Sparrow, Columbia Mine
Day 1 of this year’s warbler trip turned in 16 species of warblers and 80 species overall. One of the highlights wasn’t a warbler, but this singing Henslow’s Sparrow. We birded Patoka River NWR, Columbia Mine and Eagle Slough Nature Preserves, and the Wetlands at John James Audubon State Park. Big thanks to Sycamore Land Trust for their work in protecting places like Columbia Mine and Eagle Slough!
(Maybe tomorrow we’ll find a Blue Jay! 😂)
Sandhill Cranes at Beehunter 5 of Goose Pond
There are still thousands of Sandhill Cranes here at Goose Pond, but they won’t be here much longer. I have openings for tours on Monday and Wednesday of this coming week. I’d love to have you join me!
Snow geese at Goose Pond
Guess who’s back?!?
I’m back in the U.S. and the Snow Geese are back at Goose Pond! Video from today’s tour. Public tours scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday this week.
Wait for it…..
Where does a Collared Aracari spend the night?? Here!
This was the last of four to enter this cavity before dark on my last tour to Belize. Looking forward to going back in a couple weeks!
Howler Monkeys at Lamanai
Yesterday morning… turn up the sound!
The coast of Belize
Today we flew out to Ambergris Caye over the Belizean coast. Took a little time-lapse video on Maya Island Air. Now for a couple days of sunshine, seafood, and snorkeling with tour participants as part of the Island Extension!
Rufous-tailed Jacamar catching insects in Belize
