Category Archives: News

2014 Panama Target Birds 21-30

Posted on by
2

Previously I posted 2014 Target Birds 1-10 & 11-20.  Today we will look at 21-30.  These represent the most commonly reported birds in Panama in late January in eBird.  I am using what eBird refers to as Frequency of Checklists.  This is a number that uses the total number of checklists that have a particular species checked divided by the total number of checklists submitted.  It is the percent of checklists that have reported this species.  eBird data was accessed on 8/26/2013 to retrieve this list.  Late January? Yes.  This is to coincide with Wildside Nature Tours trip Panama Canal Zone and Pipeline Road Birding with Greg Miller, January 18-25.  Ready for those target birds?  Here we go:

Most Frequently Reported Birds in Panama for late January #21-30

21. Pale-vented Pigeon
22. Orange-chinned Parakeet
23. Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
24. Yellow-headed Caracara
25. Scarlet-rumped Cacique
26. Southern Rough-winged Swallow
27. Tropical Mockingbird
28. White-shouldered Tanager
29. Yellow Warbler
30. White-necked Jacobin

2013 Fall Festivals

Posted on by
Reply

Where in the world is Greg Miller?  Well, this fall, he is many fun places.  Here is a visual that plots out my course.

 


View Larger Map

Ha!  I’m going to be touring a fair portion of the U.S. over the next 9 weeks.  Here is my line up.  Why don’t you consider joining me at one or more of these fine events!  You can click on any of the logos below to get more information.

2013 Midwest Birding Symposium logo

Ontario Field Ornithologists

Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory

Eastern Shore Birding and Wildlife Festival

Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival

Athol Bird and Nature Club logo 2

2014 Panamanian Pondering

Posted on by
Reply

Yes. I have got the Tropics on my mind.  I’m already thinking about cold weather and winter and that white stuff on the ground.  And if you live in the Great Lakes Region like I do you already know that late January can be wicked cold.  In fact, the third week of January is often one of the coldest periods of the year.  The deep freeze of winter temperatures bare their teeth in January.  This is part of the genius of the timing of the 2014 Panama Canal Zone and Pipeline Road Birding with Greg Miller coordinated by Wildside Nature Tours.  The dates in 2014 are January 18-25.  Perfect.  And did I mention the birds?  OH.  MY.  GOSH.

Broad-billed Motmot. Panama. Photo by Kevin Loughlin

Broad-billed Motmot. Panama. Photo by Kevin Loughlin

Continue reading →

Planning for Panama 2014

Posted on by
1

Woo-hoo!  It’s back to birding on the this birding blog.  I have a busy upcoming fall with events here in Ohio, Ontario, Colorado, Virginia, North Carolina, and Massachusetts.  Check out my calendar (you can access it by clicking on the Calendar tab above or by clicking here).  Today I have Panama on my mind.  Yup.  January 18-25, 2014 with Wildside Nature Tours!  Check out the details for Panama Canal Zone and Pipeline Road Birding with Greg Miller!

Did you know that is only about 21 weeks away?  I know you are thinking to yourself “That’s a long time–waaay into next year”.  And being completely bored with summer you are probably thinking of innovative ways to use up all your extra time.  Haha.  I am speaking in jest, of course.  Reality for most folks is “When will I get a breathing moment to do anything for myself?”

Magnificent Frigatebird

Magnificent Frigatebird near Tampa FL March 2013. Photo by Greg Miller

Continue reading →

2013 Ecuador with Wildside Nature Tours

Posted on by
Reply

Long-tailed Sylph. Ecuador. Photo by Kevin Loughlin, Wildside Nature Tours

Wow! Check out this Long-tailed Sylph! What a stunning creature!

I will be co-leading this trip with Edison Buenaño of Wildside Nature Tours . I met Edison this year at Biggest Week in American Birding. I’m sure many of you also met him. He has a delightfully bright personality and is a keen birder. The tour dates for this trip are August 10-25, 2013. The tour covers a number of fabulous birding areas in Northern Ecuador and the high Andes Mountains. We will also bird in humid rainforests and the Amazon Basin. It will be an exciting itinerary with a wild diversity of birds!

Crimson-mantled WoodpeckerEcuador. Photo by Kevin Loughlin, Wildside Nature Tours. .

And this Crimson-mantled Woodpecker. Jaw-dropping.

Continue reading →

2013 Memorial Day

Posted on by
1

I hope all of you were able to share some fun time with friends or family today. We live in a world that can be pretty difficult to understand at times. Tough things happen for which we have few explanations. On this Memorial Day my thoughts and prayers are with families that have paid the ultimate price with the loss of a family member. I wish you all my deepest gratitude and thankfulness for your sacrifice. I can never bring them back to life. But at least I can give you the honor and respect that you have earned.

And to those of you in active service–thank you from the bottom of my heart. Big political decisions by powerful people often cloud out the work and service each of you perform each day. I’m glad you choose to be there for all of us here at home. Every day. And every night. Often without any thanks. Or praise. You do it with dignity and honor. We have this special day called Memorial Day. It’s just one day. But you all serve our Country every day. Thank you all for your service. And tonight I’m giving a special shout out to my friends at Andrews Air Force Base! You all are awesome!

On another note, I will be co-leading a birding trip with Wildside Nature Tours to Ecuador in August of this year–yes 2013, less than 100 days away. There is still room on this trip. Check out the details at Wildside Nature Tours (http://wildsidenaturetours.com/tours/ecuador-northern-andes-and-amazon/?nggpage=2)

 

Upcoming Events as of 4/9/2013

Posted on by
Reply

Wow. A whirlwind month is coming. Migration is here and I am on the road.

Now I think I am fully armed with stuff to keep you all updated! I am cautiously optimistic I will be able (if I have Internet) to send updates to Twitter, Facebook, Facebook fan page, and this blog with photos, too on a daily basis! Sound exciting? You betcha!

I will be carrying my iPad, loaded with Photogene for photo editing, connectors to load live photos from my camera, lenses for camera, digiscoping adapters, and the Blogsy app for iPad updates to my blog. I am really excited!

Here we go:

Tomorrow, April 10, I will lead a Bird walk at Secrest Arboretum in Wooster, OH sponsored by Friends of Secrest Arboretum from 10:00am-noon, open to the public.

Then I give a talk, My Big Story, about my Big Year birding North America and how it became a book and a Hollywood movie and what it was like being a bird consultant on the set. 1:30pm-2:30pm Fisher Auditorium of OARDC in Wooster, OH with a video link to Columbus.

And a meeting at Wooster Memorial Park in Wooster, OH at 7:00pm sharing My Big Story again

Thursday morning I leave Canton-Akron for Oklahoma City, OK and then drive to Woodward, OK for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Festival where I will be a keynote speaker and return again late next Tuesday night.

Wednesday, April 17, I do wash/errands and put in a full day of work at my day job as a database report writer for EMP (Emergency Medicine Physicians).

Thursday I fly back to Florida for the 3rd time this year to attend the weekend festivities for the Florida Ornithological Society. I will be sharing the stage with the author of The Big Year, Mark Obmascik! How exciting!

FOS Spring Meeting

Stay tuned right here for updates!

 

A Test Post With Blogsy App For iPad

Posted on by
Reply

I got a new app to update my WordPress blog from my iPad. The goal is to have something easy but functional in the field. Yes. Worpress has an app. But I can't add captions to photos. And I can't add the More tag. It's not too bad. I could write text in between un formatted photos. I don't know. Just feels clunky to me. Blogsy is an iPad app that is quite easy to use with multiple blog formats including WordPress. I just finished a neat blog for Biggest Week but it keeps failing when I try to post. So I am trying now with a new simple post with no graphics. Yeah. This is just a test.

Openings Still Available for Dry Tortugas Tours 2013

Posted on by
Reply

There are several openings still available with Florida Nature Tours (http://www.floridanaturetours.net) with Wes Biggs and other fine leaders this month (April 2013). I went to the Dry Tortugas April 24-27, 2012 with Wes and company and had a blast.  The birds were in good supply, the weather was phenomenal, and the exotic blue waters were as magical as ever.

The brunt of the available spaces occur on the last trip in April 26-29, 2013.  Is this a good time to go?  If you check on eBird, you will find that almost 300 species of birds have been recorded in just the Dry Tortugas and Key West in Florida.  Of those 300 species, 221 have been recorded during the last week in April (the best week of the year in this area).  A whopping 39 species of warblers have been recorded in eBird for this area and 34 species during the last week of April.

I really love the mild weather and beautiful blue waters.  And the birds are fabulous.  You can walk around the Fort or you can sit on a bench and watch the show.  The show, you say?  Yes.  The Fountain.  A fresh water fountain is in the middle of the Fort.  Most all of the species of birds there will eventually show up at The Fountain for a drink.  It’s also a fun place to set up for photography (if that is your inclination).

The Dry Tortugas are a must-see spot for any birder.  A few specialty birds occur in the Keys and the Dry Tortugas including Mangrove Cuckoo, Antillean Nighthawk, White-crowned Pigeon, Black-whiskered Vireo, Gray Kingbird, Brown Noddy, Sooty Tern, Brown & Masked Boobies, and Magnificent Frigatebird.  Excited yet?  You should be.  It’s a great place to go birding.

Here is info from Florida Nature Tours:

Dry Tortugas photo & message for Florida Nature Tours

Dry Tortugas 2013 info sheet for Florida Nature Tours

And here are some photos from my trip last year to the Dry Tortugas with Wes Biggs (and a host of other fine leaders):

American Redstart adult male displaying - Dry Tortugas FL - 2012-04-26 IMG_5154

American Redstart adult male displaying – Dry Tortugas FL – 2012-04-26 photo by Greg Miller

 

Black-throated Blue Warbler - Key West FL - 2012-04-24 IMG_3859

Black-throated Blue Warbler – Key West FL – 2012-04-24 photo by Greg Miller

Continue reading →

The Big O Birding Festival part 2

Posted on by
Reply

Well it appears that medium size for photos means a pretty small pic in the post as well as when you click on it. Here are some pics of a larger size (I hope). I’m making changes from an iPad app so be patient. If I can do what I want, then changes to this blog can happen closer to the actual event instead of a month lag.

20130329-162339.jpg

20130329-162412.jpg

Continue reading →