Birds of the Benzie Area
No matter the season, there are interesting birds to see in the Benzie area (and elsewhere). Most of our January photos originated in the "elsewhere" category. (Click on pictures for a larger view.)
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In January Snowy Owls finally showed up at their traditional winter stomping grounds at Chums Corners (outside Traverse City). This almost pure white one (traditionally thought to mean an old male) was nice enough to pose on the gate to the Wuerfel Field parking lot. (Photo by John Ester)
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Carl found this blizzard of Snow Geese not in Benzie County but at the Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge along the eastern shore of Delaware. Hundreds of thousands of these geese winter here, massing together in huge flocks, loafing on the bays in the Refuge and flying out to farm fields to feed. According to Carl, "A photo does not do justice to the experience because the din of the sound they make is deafening." (Photo by Carl Freeman)
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Before heading for Arizona Joe captured this lovely shot of a Black-capped Chickadee, one of our most reliable winter birds. (Photo by Joe Brooks)
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Another winter regular at Michigan feeders is
the Tufted Titmouse. (Photo by Joe Brooks)
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Head to Texas and the version you see may be
the Black-crested Titmouse. (Photo by Jim Bovard) |
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A handsome duck that winters in southern Texas is the Cinnamon Teal. (Photo by Jim Bovard)
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A year-round resident in southern Texas is the buteo-like Harris's Hawk. (Photo by Jim Bovard)
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A raptor more familiar to us in Michigan is the American Kestrel. Texas is a good place to view falcons, as Merlins, Peregrine Falcons and Aplomado Falcons also can be found there in the winter. (Photo by Jim Bovard)
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A spectacular-looking raptor found in Texas and points south is the Crested Caracara (aka the Northern Caracara). (Photo by Jim Bovard)
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And if you are into spectacular birds, Costa Rica is a good place to place to find one, such as this Scarlet-rumped Tanager. Pick up a field guide for Costa Rica and you will find several pages of tanagers. (Photo by John Ester)
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It's nice to find a bird like a trogon that perches patiently. This Slaty-tailed Trogon was in a tree along the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica. (Photo by John Ester)
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| Yes, it's true--on a cruise you may run into monkey business. This was one of several Squirrel Monkeys working their way through a forest at Golfito in Costa Rica. (Photo by John Ester) |
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Club Activities
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For our inaugural program of the new year Brian Allen gave us a tutorial on eBird--the new way of reporting and locating bird populations. The program was offered in conjunction with the Benzie Shores District Library, which was kind enough to provide us with a nice facility with Internet access. (Photo by John Ester) |
| On December 18 the Benzie County version of the Christmas Bird Count ended with our traditional potluck supper and tally at the Benzonia Township Hall. A summary of this year's count can be found on the CBC page. (Photo by Char Ester) |
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Our November field trip started at a blustery Point Betsie, where our sightings included Long-tailed Ducks, White-winger Scoters and a Red-throated Loon. (Photo by John Ester) |
| We then moved to Elberta, where we checked out Betsie Bay and saw the Horned Grebe pictured above. We finished up at the Audubon platform overlooking the Elberta marsh. (Photo by John Ester) |
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Our annual meeting in November featured a potluck dinner, a brief business meeting and Caleb Putnam of National Audubon Society. Caleb directs Michigan's Important Bird Areas program, which identifies areas where important birds--such as Piping Plovers--can be found. Because the plovers nest there, Platte Point is such an area. (Photo by John Ester) |
| On September 24 Bryce and Paula Dreeszen led a Birding by Bike field trip along the Betsie Valley Trail (reported in detail on the Field Trips page). Here Bryce removes the contents of a box while Paula checks her records and Bill Gittlen and Nancy Baglan look on. (Photo by John Ester) |
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Among our discoveries upon opening the boxes was this one, where a House Wren had built a nest on top of an Eastern Bluebird nest. (Photo by John Ester) |
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Our September meeting featured Mike Boyce. As retired resident manager at the Michigan Audubon Baker Sanctuary in southwestern Michigan, Mike was able to share much information about (and many great photos of) Sandhill Cranes. (Photo by John Ester).
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