Wood Storks at St. Andrews Picnic area

Last Thursday, I was out with Judy. We start the Ramble at the St. Andrews Picnic Area. She was learning about her camera so we spent some time working on composition. As an artist, I am always thinking about composition so it was a blast. Walking south toward Jekyll Point, there were lots of opportunities to work on composition. The sky and the birds were very helpful. There were some Wood Storks on the beach. They were great models. The Wood Storks are here because there is some easy food. Here are a group seining for shrimp. The birds just wait for the net is brought up and enjoy the fish that are throw back into the water.

Machi, A Whimbrel's Story

Since August 2009 when a small solar power tracking device was put on Machi, a Whimbrel, the Scientists at the Center for Conservation Biology have been following her life. For 756 days they followed her learning about the life and travels of Whimbrels. She summered in the Hudson Bay area and then wintered in Brazil. She made 7 nonstop flights of more than 2,000 miles. One of those flights was in September 2010. It was a staggering 113 hour flight that covered 2673 miles without stopping. She flew right over the Caribbean to land in Suriname. This year she spent the summer about the same place in the Hudson Bay Area. She then started her southward flight. She ran into Hurricane Irene in the Eastern Shore of Virginia. She made it through that storm floating on marsh wrack. She then had to fly through Topical Storm Maria. She didn’t have the reserves to make her long jump to South America. She had to land in Guadalupe in a “shooting field.” This is where Machi was killed. She was not shot for food. She was shot for one person enjoyment. Her life ended on a man- made mud field constructed especially for people to go out and shoot every bird that lands. (This is an unbanded Whimbrel that is visiting Jekyll right now. Sorry I do not have a picture of Machi. )

I first heard of these shooting fields just a few weeks ago. I was talking to Abby from Little St. Simons Island. She had just gotten back from an International Shorebird Working Group Conference. Being an avid shorebird person who works for the conservation of these amazing bird, it is hard to believe that people would enjoy just gunning them down. Abby told me of the in creditable numbers of legs of shorebirds that are brought in to counted and logged. Among the species identified are endangered shorebirds like Red Knots.
She went on to say that there are groups trying to buy up these shooting field and closing them down. There is hope.

Just not for Machi. We did learn a lot about what Whimbrels are doing and the amazing life they lead through Machi so she will not be forgotten.

Post Script there are islands in the Caribbean, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Barbados, which do not honor The Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This act was passed, in part, to protect dwindling numbers of birds that migrate across country borders. Shorebird hunting within these areas continues to be unregulated to the present time.

I just learned that another Whimbrel, Goshen, was shot in Guadeloupe. Read the full story from the source

She was tracked 399 days and spent some time this past spring in the St. Simons Area of our Georgia coast.

Follow the two other Whimbrels Hope and Chinquapin at: http://ccb-wm.org/programs/migration/Whimbrel/whimbrel.htm
This tracking project is a collaborative effort between The Center for Conservation Biology, The Nature Conservancy, The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, and Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences.

Thanks folks, keep up the great work that you do.

week of Sept 4 thru the 10

I almost let the week go by with posting last weeks list. It looks like migration is ramping up. For me it is the shorebird migration that I love to see here are a group of Sanderlings resting on the south end beach

but I did enjoy some very nice warblers. There was a good gathering of Wood Storks
I had to share this picture of George Smith and Tricia on the beach. It was so much fun to sharing the amazing beach with them.
It is always fun to learn about Jekyll.

Here is the list

WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 6-11, 2011
Species 70
Weather for the week: Cool and party cloudy skies, perfect weather


GISCO MARINA ROAD
8 Roseate Spoonbill
DOWNING MUSGROVE CAUSEWAY
7 Wood Stork
3 Double-crested Cormorant
5 Great Egret
2 Snowy Egret
2 Turkey Vulture
30 Laughing Gull
1 Royal Tern
6 Mourning Dove
Welcome Center Wildlife Viewing Tower
40 Black-bellied Plover
35 Semipalmated Plover
8 Willets
2 Whimbrel
20 Semi-western type peeps
1 Short-billed Dowitcher
JEKYLL ISLAND CAMPGROUND SANCTUARY
1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
2 Downy Woodpecker
1 White-eyed Vireo
4 Blue Jay
8 Barn Swallow
6 Carolina Chickadee
2 Carolina Wren
2 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
2 Northern Mockingbird
1 Brown Thrasher
1 Black-and-white Warbler
1 Northern Parula
2 Eastern Towhee
1 Summer Tanager
10 Northern Cardinal
6 Boat-tailed Grackle
8 House Finch
CORNER OF ST. ANDREWS AND MACY LANE OUT TO BEACH
10 Black Vulture
10 Turkey Vulture
2 White-eyed Vireo
1 Red-eyed Vireo
3 Barn Swallow
3 Northern Mockingbird
1 Black & white Warbler
3 Black-throated Blue Warblers (males)
1 Common Yellowthroat (female)
5 Northern Cardinal
3 Bobolink
1 Empidonax flycatcher
I did not good enough look to get to species. The bird was more brownish on the back, big headed with a large white eye ring. The wing bars were also bold and the white extended into the edges of the tertials. The upper bill was dark and the lower bill was mostly yellow-orange. The throat was whitish.
JEKYLL POINT
1 Wood Stork
1 Osprey
15 Willet
20 Ruddy Turnstone
19 Red Knot
180 Sanderling
200 Laughing Gull
3 Ring-billed Gull
1 Caspian Tern
50 Royal Terns
2 Forster's Terns
250 Black Skimmer
SOCCER FIELD
9 Killdeer
AMPHITHEATER POND AREA
3 Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
HISTORIC DISTRICT (WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED)
1 Common Yellowthroat
2 Painted Bunting
4 House Finch
JEKYLL CREEK BRIDGE AREA
1 Osprey
1 Bald Eagle
1 Blue-winged Teal
GOLF COURSES (INDIAN MOUND)
1 Pied-billed Grebe
3 Anhinga
1 Great Blue Heron
1 Little Blue Heron
1 Black-crowned Night-Heron
3 Turkey Vulture
1 Osprey
1 Red-tailed Hawk
1 Solitary Sandpiper
4 Eurasian Collared-Dove
7 Mourning Dove
1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
1 Belted Kingfisher
2 Red-bellied Woodpecker
1 Downy Woodpecker
2 Pileated Woodpecker
2 Great Crested Flycatcher
1 White-eyed Vireo
5 Blue Jay
15 Barn Swallow
10 Carolina Chickadee
12 Brown-headed Nuthatch
2 Carolina Wren
1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
8 Eastern Bluebird
6 Northern Mockingbird
9 European Starling
3 Northern Waterthrush
2 Yellow Warbler
6 Pine Warbler
2 Prairie Warbler
10 Northern Cardinal

Coast to Coast for Audubon

You know the proverb: " A journey of a 1000 mile begins with one step." Today the big adventure begins for Brad Storey. It is a 3000-mile walk to connect with birds and Audubon Groups across the country. He is starting right here on Jekyll. You can follow his travels through his blog.

Being the Birding Ambassador for the Georgia Coast, I had to show him the Bird Sanctuary in the Campground. The Northern Parula showed off and a Black and White Warbler was working the trees. One Ruby-throated Hummingbirds buzzed by. Naturally, I gave him directions to the Amphitheater Pond. My wish is to start him off with a good list of birds and habitats.
Have fun out there Brad. See a couple of good birds for me, a grounded bird gypsy.

It was a good week on Jekyll. The nest of Anhinga are growing up. The warblers are still around on the Pine Lakes Golf Course and the beach was loaded with gulls terns and shorebirds. There were Red Knots but there were no bands on them.

WEEK OF AUGUST 29-SEPTEMBER 4, 2011
Weather for the week: The week started hot humid and still on Wednesday there was a few showers Thursday still hot but very nice breeze Friday morning was like a fall morning temp 74 degrees.
ISLAND WIDE
It is butterfly time on the island. There lots of Gulf Fritillary on the beach GISCO MARINA ROAD
15 Wood Stork
30 Great Egret
40 Snowy Egret
DOWNING MUSGROVE CAUSEWAY & VISITOR CENTER
10 Wood Stork
5 Black-bellied Plover
2 Wilson's Plover (juveniles)
25 Semipalmated Plover
1 Spotted Sandpiper
6 Willets
1 Whimbrel
30 Semi-western Sandpiper
10 Short-billed Dowitcher
10 Laughing Gull
15 Bobolink
JEKYLL POINT AREA
2 Snowy Egret
1 Black Vulture
5 Turkey Vulture
16 Ruddy Turnstone
16 Red Knot
240 Sanderling
3 Willet
251 Laughing Gull
4 Ring-billed Gull
2 Common Tern
77 Royal Tern
6 Sandwich Tern
450 Black Skimmer
2 Mourning Dove
9 Eastern Kingbird
60 Barn Swallow
10 Tree Swallow
SOCCER FIELD
7 Killdeer
AMPHITHEATER POND AREA
1 Double-crested Cormorant
2 Anhinga
1 Great Blue Heron
1 Little Blue Heron
1 Green Heron
2 Black-crowned Night-Heron
22 Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
6 Black Vulture
2 Turkey Vulture
2 Mourning Dove
2 Red-bellied Woodpecker
2 Downy Woodpecker
2 Pileated Woodpecker
3 White-eyed Vireo
2 Red-eyed Vireo
5 Blue Jay
4 Barn Swallow
5 Carolina Chickadee
6 Brown-headed Nuthatch
2 Carolina Wren
1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
3 Pine Warbler
2 Prairie Warbler
2 American Redstart
1 Worm-eating Warbler
1 Summer Tanager
5 Northern Cardinal
HISTORIC DISTRICT (WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED)
1 Osprey
1 Pileated Woodpecker
4 House Finch
3 Northern Cardinal
3 Carolina Chickadee
2 Painted Bunting (immature)
3 American Redstart
1 Yellow-throated Warbler
GOLF COURSES (PINE LAKES)
5 Anhinga
1 Great Blue Heron
5 Great Egret
2 Snowy Egret
1 Little Blue Heron
1 Black-crowned Night-Heron
4 Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
3 Black Vulture
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Osprey
1 Bald Eagle
1 Spotted Sandpiper
4 Mourning Dove
1 Great Horned Owl
2 Red-bellied Woodpecker
2 Downy Woodpecker
1 Pileated Woodpecker
1 White-eyed Vireo
2 Red-eyed Vireo
6 Blue Jay
4 Fish Crow
3 Barn Swallow
2 Carolina Chickadee
8 Brown-headed Nuthatch
2 Carolina Wren
2 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
2 Eastern Bluebird
2 Northern Mockingbird
1 Black-and-white Warbler
3 American Redstart
3 Pine Warbler
2 Yellow-throated Warbler
5 Prairie Warbler
1 Eastern Towhee
CLAM CREEK AREA
4 Brown Pelican
1 Great Blue Heron
2 Great Egret
2 Snowy Egret
2 Tricolored Heron
50 Laughing Gull
100 Royal Tern
1 Black Tern
2 Mourning Dove
1 Downy Woodpecker
2 White-eyed Vireo
3 Carolina Chickadee
1 Carolina Wren
1 Brown Thrasher
3 Yellow Warbler
1 Prairie Warbler
1 Northern Waterthrush
1 Eastern Towhee
1 Summer Tanager
3 Boat-tailed Grackle (tailless)
JEKYLL ISLAND CAMPGROUND SANCTUARY
2 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
4 Carolina Wren
2 Tufted Titmouse
1 Carolina Wren
1 Brown Thrasher
1 Worm-eating Warbler
1 Eastern Towhee
10 Northern Cardinal
1 Painted Bunting

Missing Boat-tailed Grackles help bring back bird list

About a week and half ago, I saw a post on our Georgia Birders Online (GABO) that got me reviewing my old lists for birds of Jekyll. I mention to some birder friends for Atlanta, that I missed Boat-tailed Grackles along the Jekyll Causeway and the historic District. There are always Boat-tailed Grackles in fact they can be a nuisance some time. They are still interesting birds as far as their social behavior. They can be anyway around our Golden Isles. They nest in the wax myrtles on the causeway and in a couple of fresh water sloughs on the island. So at the end of June when for no obvious reason, they disappeared from the causeway, I was curious where they went. They had to go somewhere but where?
I asked people who lived in the area that birded regularly. When I asked some visiting birding friends from Atlanta to look around, they got curious as well. They made a comment and that comment went on GABO. So I replied about the missing grackles.
Well, this got a response from a South Carolina birders. He said that these were anecdotal observations. He went on to expound on the fact that Boat-tailed Grackle do not nest on our coast. They leave to go inland. Hum? I pondered his comment. I have notes on nesting Boat-tailed Grackles on Jekyll. So I went back to my weekly lists. I have a note book for every year from 2001 to 2008. These were great birding notes with weather. I include notes on places I went on Jekyll. In 2005 I added picture of birds and birders.
I had my information right at my fingertips. It was inspiring so this week I did my list using the establish format. This format was developed for me by Marjorie Clark. I want to thank her for encouraging me and for helping to establish this thorough data.
Here is this week’s list and a few pictures.

WEEK OF AUGUST 22-27, 2011

Weather for the week:

Hurricane Irene is gathering strength and head north. On Friday August 26, 2011 the storms passes well east of Jekyll. Temperature averaged in the 90's f. There were widely scattered showers especially on Friday.
(Marjorie added this notice for the important bird area for educational reasons. )
THE SOUTH END BEACH OF JEKYLL ISLAND IS CALLED JEKYLL POINT
THIS BEACH AREA IS A MAJOR RESTING AREA FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF BIRDS. THEY SPEND THEIR TIME HERE RESTING AS THEY PREPARE FOR THEIR NEXT FEEDING TIME
MANY OF THESE BIRDS MIGRATE FOR MILES AND MILES.
EVERY TIME THESE RESTING BIRDS ARE DISTURBED, OR SENT FLYING BY PEOPLE COMING TO CLOSE TO THEM, THEY LOSE VITAL ENERGY THAT IS NECESSARY IF THEY ARE TO FIND FOOD.
IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE ENERGY TO FIND FOOD, THEY DIE!!!
PLEASE BE AWARE OF THE NEEDS OF THESE BIRDS.
NO PETS ARE ALLOWED ON THIS BEACH.
PUSH BIKES AND/OR WALK SLOWLY AROUND THESE BIRDS.
YOU WILL BE REWARDED FOR YOUR EFFORTS BY KNOWING THAT YOU MAKING A VERY IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TOWARD THE WELFARE OF THESE BEAUTIFUL CREATURES!!!
DO YOUR PART TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE LIFE CYCLE OF THESE IMPORTANT BIRDS!!!!
HAPPY BIRDING AND THANK YOU

GISCO MARINA ROAD
10 Great Egret
2 Wood Stork
DOWNING MUSGROVE CAUSEWAY
1 Osprey
VISITOR CENTER VIEWING TOWER
4 Double-crested Cormorant
1 Great Egret
1 Snowy Egret
1 Tricolored Heron
2 Roseate Spoonbill
1 Turkey Vulture
2 Clapper Rail
10 Black-bellied Plover
30 Semipalmated Plover
1 Willet
1 Whimbrel
60 Semi-Western Sandpiper***
3 Short-billed Dowitcher
10 Laughing Gull
3 Gull-billed Tern*#
1 Forster's Tern
2 Northern Mockingbird
5 Red-winged Blackbird
This is Eugene P. Keferl’s list Saturday 27
Comments: This was part of the Coastal Georgia Audubon Society field trip. The first visit on this date was at high tide and the second visit was when the tide was going out and exposing some mud banks. 12 species
Early morning
6 BLUE-WINGED TEAL (Pretty early)
3 Wood Stork
1 Great Blue Heron
6 Great Egret
1 Little Blue Heron
1 Tricolored Heron
40 ROSEATE SPOONBILL
2 Clapper Rail
7 Laughing Gull
5 BLACK TERN
2 Mourning Dove
3 Barn Swallow
2 Marsh Wren
1 Northern Mockingbird
142 Red-winged Blackbird They came in to get freshwater in groups of 20-25. Easy to keep track of.
Boat-tailed Grackle 6

Double-crested Cormorant 1
Late morning
1 Great Egret
2 Snowy Egret
1 Tricolored Heron
2 Clapper Rail
1 Black-bellied Plover
100 Semipalmated Plover
2 Willet
1 WHIMBREL
200 Western Sandpiper There is a mud flat that is close enough to the tower to identify the species and the ones nearest the tower were Western Sandpipers.
6 Laughing Gull
4 Boat-tailed Grackle
JEKYLL ISLAND CAMPGROUND SANCTUARY
2 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
4 Carolina Chickadee
1 Carolina Wren
1 Brown Thrasher
1 Eastern Towhee (male with yellow eyes)
14 Northern Cardinal
2 Painted Bunting
4 House Finch
4-H AREA
AUG 27, 2011 8:02 AM - 10:17 PM
3 HOODED MERGANSER These birds are early
SOCCER FIELD
1 Killdeer
CENTRAL BEACH AREA
20 Sanderling
8 Ring-billed Gull

CORNER OF ST. ANDREWS AND MACY LANE OUT TO BEACH
3 Eastern Kingbirds
1 White-eyed Vireo
3 Blue Jay
25 Barn Swallow
2 Carolina Wren
2 Northern Mockingbird
1 Common Grackle
JEKYLL POINT
5 Brown Pelican
1 Black Vulture
1 Osprey
1 Willet
15 Ruddy Turnstone
77 Red Knots (4 flagged green**)
50 Sanderling
1 Least Sandpiper
30 Laughing Gull
1 Ring-billed Gull
10 Least Tern
2 Common Tern
40 Royal Tern
6 Sandwich Tern
75 Black Skimmer
Added to the list Saturday 27 by Gene Keferl
21 White Ibis
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Semipalmated Plover
1 PIPING PLOVER
2 Killdeer
2 Willet
20 Ruddy Turnstone
6 Red Knot
1 Least Sandpiper
200 Laughing Gull
2 Ring-billed Gull
1 Gull-billed Tern
1 Caspian Tern
1 BLACK TERN
2 Common Tern
100 Royal Tern
3 Sandwich Tern
100 Black Skimmer
35 Barn Swallow
2 Northern Cardinal
HISTORIC DISTRICT (WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED)
3 Painted Bunting (green birds)
Carolina Chickadee
7 White Ibis

GOLF COURSES (PINE LAKES COURSE)
Aug 24 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
10 Wood Stork
5 Anhinga
1 Great Blue Heron
3 Great Egret
3 Little Blue Heron
12 Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
14 Roseate Spoonbill
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Bald Eagle
1 Red-tailed Hawk
2 Eurasian Collared-Dove
6 Mourning Dove
3 Red-bellied Woodpecker
2 Downy Woodpecker
1 Pileated Woodpecker
2 Eastern Kingbird
1 Red-eyed Vireo
8 Blue Jay
6 Fish Crow
2 Barn Swallow
4 Carolina Chickadee
8 Brown-headed Nuthatch
5 Carolina Wren
4 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
6 Eastern Bluebird
8 Northern Mockingbird
1 Worm-eating Warbler
1 Tennessee Warbler
1 Northern Waterthrush
2 Black-and-white Warbler
6 American Redstart
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler
2 Pine Warbler
2 Yellow-throated Warbler
10 Prairie Warbler
1 Summer Tanager
10 Northern Cardinal
NOT VISITED
BOAT RAMP/ROAD TO JEKYLL CREEK
TIDELANDS NATURE CENTER AREA
AMPHITHEATER POND AREA
JEKYLL CREEK BRIDGE AREA

NOTES:
**Red Knots 4 flagged green
Codes were X5C, VP6, E4K, 2YJ
*# Gull-billed Tern There was one adult feeding 2 fledglings
*** Semi-Western Sandpiper too far away to identify so I just lump the two species

Exploring nearby back roads

On Saturday, my friend Sheila came by and we went exploring. Our goal was to find kites. There is a traditional area for around Glenville Ga. This is a small community just outside of Fort Stewart.
This year the kites are gathering at Skeen's Farm. The family is used to birders stopping by to see the kites. For they just waved as they drove back and forth to their chores. This day there were 5 Mississippi Kites and 4 Swallow-tailed Kites. When the kites started feeding over the field, it was all I had hope it would be. The two kite species have very different feeding styles. The Swallow-tailed Kites would gracefully soar down and pick June bugs out of the air. The smaller Mississippi Kites tended to swoop and grab. Those Mississippi Kites would fly so high they were just dots. Then they would go into a stoop similar to Peregrines Falcons. They would pull up with a June bug. Both species ate their food while flying. My little camera just was not up to the task of capturing these graceful birds. I watched a while and then sketch awhile. Mostly what I was sketching was gestures. But I when I got home I did a full sized sketch.

We watched and "ooed and awed" for about two hours. It was noon. Lunch in Glenville's Rusty Pig barbecue was in order. This was a busy place and I could see why. The food was good and very reasonably price.

We took our time on the way back. On Georgia highway 57 there is a tiny town of Ludowici. In the late 1890's it was famous for it red clay tiles which was used in roofing.

Further down the road we turned on Georgia highway 251toward the Cox, a crossroads, near the Altamaha River. We got curious and went looking for Fort Barrington Park. The fort is no longer there but it is a pretty view of a lake just off the Altamaha. I always learn about native plants when I go exploring with Sheila. Here is an oak that is called a runner oak. Fascinating it just grows about six inches.
Our last discovery was an active Gopher Tortoise colony. I have seen them on state parks but this one was wild and right on the side of the road. Here is Sheila pointing at an active Gopher Tortoise borrow.Thanks Sheila for helping me to explore some back roads near the coast.