A couple of weeks ago I got new hearing aids. I've had one for my left ear for about 5 years, and the Costco lady convinced me to get one for the right ear as well. I'm still getting used to them and I think they will need some adjustments, but last week I discovered that Blue-gray Gnatcatchers […]

Every Tuesday is TACO Tuesday!

A lot of #birding is being at the right place at the right time, like today, when I finally saw the American Bittern in my region. Well, part of it is planning: I had missed it yesterday, so I changed my plans to be there today. ZZ Top, who was amongst the […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I saw three gulls & automatically checked the Ring-billed Gull box. Then an alert showed up. Three Laughing Gulls were down the river at another hot spot. I took a second look at those gulls, and sure enough, they were Laughing Gulls. OK I unchecked the […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Another crisis averted! The HOA was going to paint every door in the subdivision black. They didn't tell anyone until a few weeks ago, and the color was buried in an attached .docx file. One board member resigned. Lots of neighbors preferred the original colors (blue or red). The lawyers started […]

[Nature] OMG I think Athena the Great Horned Owl ate her remaining owlet after the younger one died. Around 10 am this morning local time. Her mate was MIA & not bringing in food. Probably the right decision by her. #birding

At today's club bird walk we had a hawk. The lead took a look at it and started telling us it was a Red-shouldered Hawk with its black windows etc. I was scratching my head because there was no window and the hawk was uniformly light-colored with rounded […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Vance has now seized the top seat in the Death of Expertise Hall of Fame: He has lectured the pope—the pope, the leader of a billion and a half Catholics—about being too sloppy with theology. The queen of all vices: Pride. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

@hpcgal

An American Bittern was posing in the open yesterday afternoon. When I finally got there today, it was gone, of course, but it turned out the place was full of surprises. I found the Grasshopper Sparrow almost right away but never found the Vesper Sparrow or Savannah Sparrow. #birding

So yesterday after the recital I went home to drop off the violin, feed Gravy the Cat, get into normal clothes, and headed out to Ticksville. Reports of Grasshopper Sparrows have come in during the recital, but my objective was something more mundane: a Wild Turkey. I've never gone to […]

Grasshopper Sparrows have finally arrived, but I'm at the Adult Recital, the only one I could fit into my schedule

Ooh...the guy that posted a bad photo of a pair of Least Sandpipers and called them Pectoral last year claimed to have a Pectoral Sandpiper yesterday...not sure I believe it, but I'll be on the lookout...#birding

And we have our first shorebird: a Solitary Sandpiper, all by itself in a pond next to a well-manicured lawn and fenced-off pool in the suburbs. #birding

Really short on time today, so I went to Area Lake early, before the fog had lifted. On my way there three Great Egrets flew over the road, so I was not surprised to see three there, but then a fourth one flew in. Also got my targets today, Palm Warbler […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

So this happened www.smbc-comics.com/comic/sphere... #smbc #comics #math

Had my first-of-the-season Caspian Tern today, and lots of them. At first it was 7, then 8, then 12. Every time I looked there were more. As the tide came in and more of them appeared out of nowhere, I finally decided to put down 15 and be done with the counting! #birding

Damn the End of the World is scheduled for tonight! I still haven't seen a Palm Warbler!

I hope all the people who voted against Genocide Joe are feeling good this morning

The US BLM is considering revoking the 10-mile buffer preventing mining/drilling around Chaco Canyon, a place of huge significance for Indigenous peoples and for #archaeology The public comment period ends tomorrow. Here's the link to submit a comment, please share with others too! […]

A lot has happened since I was last there. Earlier in the week the nest failed and both baby owls, too young to have accidentally fledged, fell out. They were rescued, examined, and given a clean bill of health. A wildlife expert rigged up a basket and a tree […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I didn't want to go on the club's field trip about an hour away, so I went to the big lake to see if the Purple Martins have returned. They indeed have but would not sit still for a portraits. There were three Common Loons in the lake and I saw two flying […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

There were many Ruby-crowned Kinglets singing today. Unfortunately there were so many groups there too. One kinglet stopped singing and sat very very still as the native plants group stopped to admire the Bluebells and Trilliums. I tried to take a picture of him and the sticks won #birding

During yesterday's birding outing I received notification that a Surprise Bag was available. It's taken me months to get notification to work, so I reserved it. My.$10 Surprise Bag from Whole Foods had four blocks of cheese, including a $9 block of the […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

On this very gray and misty day I went to Area Lake hoping to find a Palm Warbler. I never found it. IMHO they are not here yet, but I got a pair of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, managed to flush a Black-crowned Night Heron (who did a double back so I had plenty of […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

May God grant me the confidence of this new birder #birding

So annoying! Got a spam titled "you've been HACKED!" They wanted bitcoins, of course. Spent all morning backing my stuff up just in case it's real -- although I'd think if I were really hacked I'd not get a chance to back everything up, would I?

I'm glad my hobbies keep me busy enough to write retrospective blogs about my career(s).

I had a Red-breasted Nuthatch on Jan 1 but I took it off my list because my look of it was so short -- of course ZZ Top found one at the same place a few days later! AI was afraid that they've moved on after the cold spill! It's taken me until today to get […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I stopped at a neighborhood pond today, hoping to see some shorebirds. The water was still too high. I didn't see the Wilson's Snipe until I was ready to go: it was in a little clearing next to the paved path. As I was leaving, I saw another birder, so I […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Don't know how I missed this at the time https://www.computer.org/csdl/magazine/co/2025/08/11104179/28MaT9KU2ly

This morning I saw an Osprey perched on a snag, so I checked the box. Later, another Osprey chased it off, and I was like "cool" and checked the box again, and the entry became flagged! Both Ospreys were then chased off by a Great Blue Heron into a tree […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

We rarely talk politics on bird walks. Today's bird walk was cold and windy so migrating sparrows and early warblers stayed low & out of sight. One guy bailed early so he could make it to his #NoKings event. Our lead, a Civil War buff, wondered out loud if […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I'm losing my mind! A few weeks ago I couldn't remember if I changed the litter box. Last week I may or may not have put sugar in the loaf of banana bread I made for the old guy that runs the birding tour at the Plains. These are things I've routinely done over decades. This is worse than the […]

There must have been $100K worth of equipment on the path, all waiting for the two owlets to poke their little heads out #birding

Well I went to my violin shop and rented a 15" viola. The guy that helped me was a violinist turned violist and he let me try out a 15" and a 16". Both could almost work with violin intervals, but the 16" instrument felt very heavy. Now the goal is to learn some Bach by June.

I had to change Gravy's litter box and I was so sore afterwards. I was just about to make myself a hot chocolate when someone claimed to have seen a Wood Stork not far down the road. Surely there it was, in a neighborhood pond. A few neighbors there were […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Went to the big lake today. First time to walk all the way around, all 5 miles of it, since January. I spent some time at the marina to point out the Common Loon (infrequent) to a bunch of people. When I finally made it to the dam I found the Red-necked Grebe […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I know how to read the viola clef, but not as fluently as I read the treble and bass clefs. I'm going to spend this weekend to see how good I can get...because for this last piece there has so far been only one violist at the rehearsal and the conductor jokingly begged for a violinist to try the […]

Here's a write-up of a local celebrity, a Red-flanked Bluetail, who is still there where we found her on New Year's Day: https://dwr.virginia.gov/blog/spotted-a-superstar-red-flanked-bluetail-far-from-home/ #birding

I decided to chase the Yellow-billed Loon but without going to the stranger's house. The fishing pier was colder than I had prepared for. There were many Common Loons. I thought I saw one with a different bill, but it was a distant look. Just when I was ready to give up, another birder showed up […]

I was going to chase the Yellow-billed Loon about 80 miles away after the garage door guy leaves, but then people on the alert were talking about going into the neighborhood across the bridge, the friendly homeowner keeping the dog in for the birders, etc etc...I dunno...I was just hoping for a […]

They said she's sitting a little taller now, so maybe there's an owlet? Her mate is obviously nearby, but no one has seen him yet. #birding

Fellow bird club officer had modernized the club website which now includes an AI-generated blurb from the eBird checklist of a field trip. He asked me to take a look at the one from yesterday. Alas, we never heard the two Red-headed Woodpecker tapping, the […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Pi day is an irrational holiday that was invented by Big US Date Format.

Me using my PhD in mathematics to get an extra slice of pizza at the community orchestra concert reception

Hmm...WHOO could have been in that hole in the tree? WHOO? #birding

I thought I had missed the migrating, rare American White Pelican while on the pelagic. At the first spot I hit today I turned my scope to the river and there they were, huge white birds with their backs to me. When the current turned one of them around I saw […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

It is practically springtime at Area Lake! What is springtime without a straggler duck? There was a Redhead in the now completely thawed lake! Probably got lost in migration and didn't ask for directions! At least he was not starving: saw him dive for a fish #birding

Yesterday morning I checked out of the hotel early, got gas, and waited for the gates of the refuge to open. As soon as I got out of the car, in first light, I saw the huge formation of Snow Geese high up in the sky, calling noisily and flying northwest. I managed to get the Merlin app opened up […]