Birding for Conservation

The year 2013 was great for birding and conservation. Multiple individuals across the United States dedicated their birding years to raising donations and awareness for the need for increased co...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2014/01/photographic-big-year-in-review.html

Well, 2013 has passed and my photographic big year has ended. When I originally started this project, I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know how much I would be able to travel (I knew I coul...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2014/01/to-new-year.html

My final days in Texas were very enjoyable. On 12/20, Mike and I met up with my good friends from Michigan, Mark and Joanie Hubinger. They volunteer in the Valley and I was excited to spend the d...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/final-days-in-texas.html

For our first full day in the Texas valley we decided to go to my favorite birding location; Salineno! This spot is known for being the only "reliable" place in the Valley (and ABA Area) to see w...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/texas-1219-day-2.html

The last stronghold for new year and new photo birds for the year was south Texas. I had yet to visit Texas this year and I found a really cheap, non-stop ticket from Minneapolis to Harlingen rig...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/texas-day-1.html

Yesterady (12/14) was a day of birding I will never forget. There was excitement right from the get-go. I had planned on driving to Duluth in the morning to look for the King Eider and left St. P...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/a-great-day-with-some-great-grays.html

In the ABA Area, Ross's Gulls are usually only seen in Alaska... and usually in Barrow (with a few exceptions). However, once in a while a stray bird will venture too far south, much to the delig...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/rosss-gull-fun.html

For Thanksgiving, I made the drive from Minneapolis to Lansing, MI to spend some time with family. Although my stay was short, I certainly made the most of it. After spending Thanksgiving day wit...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/12/thanksgiving-family-and-birds.html

All of the recent Great Gray Owl sightings at the Sax-Zim Bog persuaded me to take a drive on Sunday (11/24). I spent 5 hours in the afternoon/evening searching for the reported Great Grays witho...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/11/sax-zim-bog-letdown.html

On this dark and wet day in Minneapolis, I didn't wake early to go birding. Instead I slept in, had a great breakfast, and by 1pm was ready to go look at birds. It had been a full two weeks since...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/11/two-weeks-is-too-long-2.html

Apologies for my lack of posts lately. But, since my trip to Hawk Ridge almost 2 weeks ago, I haven't been out... at all. Its horrible. I've been very bogged down with school the past two weeks. ...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/11/no-birding-no-birds.html

I visited Hawk Ridge on 11/2 with one goal in mind; photographing a Northern Goshawk. When we arrived at 930am, there were Rough-legged Hawks and Bald Eagles already moving. A nice start. After a...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/11/hawk-ridge-and-duluth.html

This past weekend I ventured into northern Minnesota, leaving very early on Saturday morning. I first stopped at the Sax-Zim bog. Battling snow squall after snow squall, I finally made it just af...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/10/boreal-weekend.html

I haven't been birding much lately, and that is a direct result of grad school. But hang in there, I'll be searching for Winter Wren around the cities sometime in the next few days. On Friday or ...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/10/hang-in-there.html

Today was a lot better for finding migrants than yesterday. I spent a couple hours this morning at Old Cedar Ave Bridge area near the Minneapolis Airport. Things started off with a bang. Right as...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/10/oh-there-they-are.html

... everywhere except where I am looking that is. The past few days have seen a huge rise in the amount of Harris's Sparrow, Winter Wren and Rusty Blackbird reports on eBird. I finally had some t...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/10/new-photo-birds-are-everywhere.html

It has been a while since I have updated folks with how the fundraising has been going. Huge thanks to the eBird team for supporting this endeavor by advertising it on their website. With the gen...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/10/pledge-update.html

I'm glad I talked myself out of bed this morning considering my first class didn't start until noon. And I only had to hit the snooze button once. Then it was off to my new favorite birding spot ...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/09/persistence-pays-off.html

My last get-able goose of the year (if I don't go to the east coast this winter) came in the form of a Ross's Goose. Two had been reported the past two days from Hugo, MN, just outside the Twin C...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-last-of-geese.html

Saturday morning I went to Felton Prairie in Minnesota to look for Greater Prairie-Chickens and Chestnut-collared Longspurs. It was very windy, cool and shortly after arriving the storms came thr...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/09/nothing-new.html

I haven't been getting much birding in lately. With grad school and a surprise visit by some non-birding friends, my birding has been minimal. However, after watching the Lions win their home ope...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/09/plover.html

It is quickly becoming obvious I am going to have to change the way I have been birding, especially now that it is fall migration and breeding birds are no longer singing or on territory. All sum...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-terning-point.html

Having settled in to my apartment (kind of) in Minneapolis/St. Paul, I decided I needed to get out and explore the area. I saw a post of some Buff-breasted Sandpipers at the A&L Sod Farms just no...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/08/minnesota-birding.html

On 8/21, my last day in Michigan, I went to Pt. Mouillee in SE Michigan with a friend. Word on the street was that there was great shorebirding to be had and I wanted to clean up a few species be...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/08/pt-mouillee-triple-play.html

During my last full day in the Ruby Mountains, I photographed a very large hawk that I identified as a Ferruginous Hawk. However, I started to second guess myself so I sent some pictures around t...

http://birdingforconservation.blogspot.com/2013/08/ruby-mountain-ferruginous-hawk.html