Thousands of eared grebes crash landed in Utah winding up on football fields, a Walmart parking lot and highways in Utah. At least 3000 live grebes were collected but a low estimate of 1500 grebes died on impact. You can listen to Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Kevin McGowen talk about it on NPR.
An article about song sparrows and how taped predator calls affect them. An interesting article, but how often is a bird like a song sparrow going to be exposed to predator calls 24 hours a day, four days in a row by birders?
A huge discussion was started on the American Birding Association’s group page about birders and why the uniform appears to be ill fitting khaki pants, vests and floppy hats. Why is this our uniform? Why the vest?
Remember the mystery hummingbird in Chicago (they one they tried to ID based on poop)? Well, they got a feather and they now know exactly what species it is based on DNA testing. Find out the id here (or listen to the podcast).
A hooded crane has been reported in Tennessee. Now the question is if this bird is truly a vagrant from another country or an escapee from a private collection.
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My summer birding outfit consists of shorts, tshirt and Vans. The Sibley goes in my back pocket. Oh yes, all my clothing fits me.
I definitely want the trekkie birdhouse!
So what’s the deal with the snowy owl? It’s not endangered, is it? And Sharon talks about it being unusually common this year. But on this podcast and a couple previously, she talks about it being cool and a big deal to see one. Is it just that they’re so hard to see?
I know what you mean by being surprised about correct ID and information in a mass news story. I’m always surprised when a story about high-end computing or physics is even half-way coherent or correct.
So–do I understand correctly; Grebes can’t walk on land, or at least well enough to take off? That completely surprises me; even super-adapted birds like Penguins can waddle around, although not very fast.
About the whole baggy clothes vs. not: Companies marketing unisex clothes is its own thing.
As far as what people wear, I suspect it’s partly a matter of outlook and intention, which closely tied to age and purpose. Wearing form-fitting or revealing clothes tends to be something under-30 types do (mostly on bright, sunny days) because they look good and they’re in it to be out in the warm sun, and they’re not going to go out if it’s not. I’m not grossly overweight, but I’m close to 40 and have a physique formed by working in front of a computer all days, so I do tend toward baggy clothes anyway.
I would think that birders mostly aren’t under-30, and their field gear is going to be targeted to a much wider range of temperatures and sunlight (and precipitation) ranges. I don’t do a lot of outdoor stuff, but when I do, I do tend to wear a T-shirt or something and then something with long sleeves to give some sun protection (that I can take off if it does get really hot).
As far as vests–yeah, digital cameras should obviate the need for tons of little pockets; unless you’re using lots of filters or something.
Craig Steffen
@gevmage
Picture yourself kayaking. What kind of clothes do you want to wear? You’re going to be physically active; you’ll want to dress light so as to avoid overheating. There’s a chance you’ll get wet, whether that’s just cuffs, which can dip into the water a bit, in which case a short-sleeved shirt might be best, or if you think it’s likely that you’ll roll the kayak at some point, swimwear might be the best option. And it’s not like you’re going to be kayaking in the early morning before it warms up; you’ll likely be out when the sun is high. And you’re not going to want a lot of stuff with you, since you can lose it in the water if you roll, and some things you might keep in your pocket don’t take well to water even if they don’t fall out, so pockets aren’t a huge priority.
Picture yourself birding. What kind of clothes do you want to wear? You might be plagued by mosquitoes. You might be moving through brush. You might be sitting in the pre-dawn chill. You may be out in the sun for a long time. You’re going to want layers, with the outermost layers being long. Unless you’re birding on a beach, swimwear is probably a bad choice. And even if you’re not shooting film, pockets are useful; you’re going to want your phone, keys, wallet, etc.
@Matt
You can have bugs and cold when kayaking just like you can get wet and be physically active when birding. A bikini top isn’t appropriate for MN in January but there situations where it’s fine.
@Craig
Snowies nest and usually spend the year in the Arctic. Though it’s generally possible to find one or two in northern states in the winter, this year there are hundreds reported all over the US.
I feel disloyal; I have a backlog of *gasp* FOUR (ok 3.5) unlistened-to podcasts because I have been a bit obsessed with “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” for the last few weeks. However, now that I am stuck in bed with a cold and I am catching up I have a couple things to say:
1.) Wait until Sharon gets a look at the hat(s) I am going to buy this summer (Google “sun grubbies” )*much snickering here*
2.) I bet I know why bird photographers, with digital cameras, wear baggy photography vests in Florida: we’re all packing heat down here! *runs away snickering*
3. Buy convertible pants from Bass Pro Shops, they’re like $25. Bass Pro does also make CUTE feminine-cut pants of the same lightweight nylon material. They will be too long for Sharon unless she gets them hemmed. The pockets, while numerous, are smaller than the convertible pants though, and unacceptable for concealed weapons.
4. I do wear my Birdspot “Harlot” baby doll shirt out and about regularly, does that count?
Ok I am finished now. :-p