eBirdseed.com Wild Bird Feeding Blog

They're beautiful birds aren't they? We took that shot last year using the NovaBird camera. I just stumbled upon it while wandering through our private photo collection. And therein lies the rub.

The problem, simply put, is that digital cameras make possible huge numbers of files. And no matter the method of organization, a huge number is still a huge number. The eBirdseed.com photo library (see link below) holds around 2,000 pics, and the machine I'm working on right now is home to a mind-numbing 3,500 shots. And then there are our other two computers (and the Web) which probably hold yet another 2,000 images. Given those numbers along with deleted pictures, and we're talking a count well in excess of 10,000. Bottom line? Even given a reasonable taxonomy system, one still grapples with jpegs rambling across three computers, and five Web-based file archival systems.

I guess I could make up an Excel spreadsheet that would put order to this chaos, but that would take forever and the maintenance would be a pain. (Did I link that cell to PhotoBucket? Flickr? eBirdseed.com? Movable Type? WordPress?)

When all is said and done, it's really quite ironic (and even at times serendipitous) that the extraordinary order of our new digital world ultimately leads to such unexpected disorder.

Anyway, it was fun to wander upon a forgotten but decent shot of a bunch of grackles.

See you by the feeders if I can just remember where I put them,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 3:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yeah, the picture above pretty much says it all. It was windy and rainy here - we lost our power for a couple of hours... I'm doing battle with a half-broken computer... Our cat isn't having his "A" game... But probably worst of all, my little field Mouse, "Ms Mousy" finally died.

Don't get me wrong... The mouse was just a rodent. I never touched her, and I didn't establish that emotional bond that others do with their pets. I learned long ago and hard away that there are real things in this world over which to shed tears. And dumb animals just don't rank that high. Sorry if that sounds callous, but it is what it is. If it takes you five minutes to read this post, in those few minutes roughly 65 people will have died needlessly, and most will be children who either starved to death or met their fate for lack of the kind of medicines we take for granted. And that doesn't even include the barbarism of senseless warfare.

So anyway... Ms. Mousy is no more, and after 5 years, this office is just a little quieter. Strange...

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 12:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There! Do you see that? Do you see that creature above? That's the difference twixt yours truly and the rest of the world. The wife correctly identified the bird as a coot. I guess the proper name would be "American Coot". That's what people call it... In Fred J.Alsop III's "Birds of New England", he writes that this fellow is "a close relative of the gallinules and the moorhens."

Well La-Tee-Da...

I say that we stop all the pretentious stuff and call the bird what it should be called - "That Ducky Thing Over There". Other truly appropriate names might include: "Beaker" (in honor of the great lab assistant to Dr. Bunsen Honeydew), "Torpedo Bird", and the all-too-obvious "Dive! Dive! Dive! Bird". I mean, if the wife and I and a few common-folk friends (my friends, not hers) are out on the water and she "pointingly"* gesticulates, "Look, a coot!", we ain't going to be looking for any bird... In befuddlement, we'd be looking at her and not any feathered thing. However, if she "pointingly"* gesticulated "Look, a Quacky Flappy Thingy over there!", well, everybody would gaze in wonder at the "Dive! Dive! Dive! Bird".

Why is life so difficult? Fast food for dinner should consist of a couple of Slim Jims and pretzels... Nobody should tailgate on the highway... And we should start naming birds in a sensible manner... Did you know that according to Mr. Alsop the III, there are 35 types of warblers in New England alone? Why if I were King, I'd simplify that roll call down to one, and I'd...

Why do I get this eerie feeling that you readers out there are labeling me an "Old Coot"?

See you by the straight-forward feeders,

CapeCodAlan

* Yeah, I know "pointingly" isn't a word, but it should be. Grumble, grumble, grumble...

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 2:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Take a look at these pics I got earlier today using the NovaBird. Not bad aye?

Gotta love the look and body posture of the crow. With his wings retracted, he kind of looks like he's the crusty old prof with his hands behind his back, mockingly staring at you because you don't know "The Answer". The shot below is a close up of the face.

And not to be outdone, a blue jay was quite photogenic...

When all is said and done, bird photography is just a challenging enterprise. Today, the camera was out for about 8 hours (most of them dark), and we still manged to get 60 snapshots. Of those sixty, 20 were keepers, and maybe 5 were great. On the other hand, I've had the Nova out for 12 hours, taken 600 pics, and gotten zipoid. I don't know how the hardcore birders/pros do it... I really don't.

Going forward, I'd still like to set up the remote camera such that it can capture shore marine life like crabs, birds, and who knows what. (Wouldn't it be cool if I could get a nice shot of a seal!?!) Then again, I still have to work out the power supply issue. (Even the new battery ain't cutting it and instead I'm relying on AC.) I wonder if I could go solar?

Things to think about...

See you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

P.S. To see these photographs in all their glory, just click the "photo library" link below.

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 1:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yeah, the title of this post is just a stupid take off on the old Linda Ronstadt tune. (Did you know that Roy Orbison wrote "Blue Bayou"?) Anyway...Here's a nice shot of what the wife claims to be from the butterfly bush. (Ok already, so it ain't exactly blue! Blue? Purple? It's the same color when your car breaks down in the Burger King drive thru and it's too windy to stack BBs.)

On the other hand, the rapscallion below is definitely blue, so there.

Kidding aside, it's been a slightly weird day. A day of stillness in the air. Those of you unfortunate enough to have survived a direct hit by a hurricane will understand - it's been something like being inside the eye wall. The air was soft as if we're caught between "the heaves of storm" as ED wrote.

Given the politics, the economy, the wars, energy, the attitude about the environment, etc., a silent flower and a blue jay might just speak volumes about our times.

See you by the weary feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 1:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Hi all,

Last Summer we built a trellis and planted Morning Glory and a Trumpet Vine. The trumpet vine was specifically chosen to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. While the vine itself grew great guns throughout the Summer, we didn't see a single blossom... We have high hopes for next year. The morning glory vines we planted in late August did better however, and the blooms surprised us with their profusion and beauty.

The shot on the left shows both climbers and blue MG flowers in all their splendor, along with the hanging pot of geraniums and bee balm in the background. Obviously, the bee balm and trumpet vine are shy this season. Regardless of the petal count, the birds seem to like the additions to the garden.

As for the photo below, given the great results this year, we're really looking forward to seeding in early May and seeing an even better showing next time.

I particularly like the "screw shell" buds above and below the azure.

Finally, check out the morning glory video below... Now is that creepy or what? Supposedly, this is a time lapse movie compilation of pics taken every 10 seconds.

Time Lapse: Morning Glory Vine - Watch today's top amazing videos here

See you by those colorful, strange feeders...

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 1:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hi all,

Pretty marginal photo above aye? Yeah... If you really want to see decent bird pics, check out our free photo library. If that doesn't fill the bill, I'll see what I and/or one of our readers can do.

But the shot does set the tone for this post and this blog in general. Most of us aren't birding nuts. Odds are that we're pretty much like you... We fill the feeders in the morning, go on with life, and catch a few glimpses of the birds as best we can whilst the clock ticks. With luck, ocassionally we get to sit down together and just gab about stuff. And in the case of this post, the kitchen table whispers benign, "Come sit down with me and ramble..."

OK...

"Yeah, I could take a load off..." Here we go...

True, the snapshot above ain't so hot. That's life.

Politics? I've given up on that one my friend. Both Obama and McCain are whirring up such wonders of promised fiscal prestidigitation... Well... Suffice it to say that both CNN and FoxNews have had to bring in teams of researchers to check the "facts" quoted in the debates. And it turns out that both candidates put Pinocchio to shame. If nothing else, Social Security is going to bury this country. What's next?

Oh the birdhouse!?! Yeah, I know I've got to work on the birdhouse. The copper pipe I used to mount the thing is too flexible. I need to replace that with cast iron pipe. Now if the birds will only leave the house alone.

Thanks for asking about the boat... We've got to find a way to store or winterize it... I think I've got some pretty good ideas...

Dang! Look at the time... (Heartfelt sigh...) Thanks for the cup of joe, but gotta' run.

See you by the feeders (or the kitchen table),

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 1:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Back on October 5th, I wrote a post basically stating that wildlife is indeed wild. In that piece I mentioned coyote/red wolf hybrids here on Cape Cod. That got reader Kathryn wondering if I had any photos of said beast. So, I went back through the pics I had, and found the shot above. I took that back in January of this year. (The "coyote" had just finished devouring a gray squirrel whole. Think about the girth of a full-grown squirrel fitting in the mouth of the animal and that will give you some perspective of the size of the thing.)

We're not sure if the creature is pure coyote... The markings look about right, as does the face. The ears aren't as pointy as I would expect, but that doesn't mean much. For me however, the one thing that makes this guy different from the local coyotes (by my eyes anyway) is its stockiness. All the coyotes I've seen around here are quite scrawny... But if I had to guess, I'd say this brute weighed around 50 to 75 pounds - the latter being the upper limit for a plain North-eastern Coyote.

So Kathryn, I don't know if I took a shot of a hybrid. But I do know that I wouldn't want to open a door or walk around a corner and startle him.

See you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 8:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Amazing isn't it? As mentioned some time ago, so many folks have backyard birds like the one above. As for us, we were lucky to spot this guy by a local restaurant. We'd just come back from taking our little boat on the water, stopped by the eatery, and there he was.

Why is it that birds are so hauntingly beautiful? Granted, millions per day gracefully master the craft of flapping flight (the ornithological if you will), and we quite frankly stink at it. But even if we could tack down the mechanics of thrashing wings or some other, it still wouldn't be right. Yes we created helicopters, the DC 3 and even the Apollo program - but that's magnificent beauty per brute instrument and not silent, plashless, undulation...

Humans at their most elegant reign supreme here on terra firma. (Doubt that? Watch old Clay/Ali boxing videos.) But birds, like the heron above have probably got us beat regardless.

Sigh...

See you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 10:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yeah, I didn't believe it either. The other day I bumped into old friend Bruce G., who matter-of-factly told me that he and his better half had seen a flying squirrel right here in Harwich. Riiight I balked. The response was a sincere, "No really, we saw a flying squirrel. Ok... I hadn't heard of such, but it's possible, right?

After coming home, doing some research (and eating a bit of crow if you will), it turns out that flying squirrels have been spotted on Cape Cod.

So what have we got here? According to the experts at (MassWildlife), what Bruce saw was either the Southern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys volans) or the Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus).

Not sure about the species of the one above (think it's a Southern), but the characteristic patagium skin between the front and back legs is pretty tough to miss.

So... We do have flying squirrels on Cape Cod. And we also have hybrid coyotes/wolves. What's next? Manatees in Dennis?

Arghhh! That's it, I'm going for a wildlife photo hunt for pics of Bigfoot playing canasta with a chupacabra in Harwich Port.

See you by those skeptical feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Back on September 2nd, I offered advice on "How to be a Birding Expert Without Really Trying" Looks like the shot above is one for the experts. So, is it a Hairy or is it a Downy?

By my of seeing things, it's a Downy, and here's why:

• The bill of a Hairy is roughly as long as the distance from the red occipital patch to the face. This bird's beak is too short.
• A Downy has a sizable white back patch
• The Downy's face is quite white compared to a Hairy. All the references below indicate that the facial color scheme suggest Downy.

Alright... Speaking as an "expert", I've changed my mind. Speaking as an "expert", the bird isn't a Downy (or a Hairy for that matter). It's a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and the suet ain't suet, but rather it's sap.

Ed and I will see you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 4:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's an interesting photo isn't it? What's not to love about a little fox in the backyard? But it also underscores a rather dangerous problem... Here's a quick story, a bit of insight, and hopefully a word to the wise.

A couple of days ago a woman was walking her dog here in Harwich on Cape Cod, and was warned by a neighbor that she was being followed by a coyote. Sure enough, both she and her black lab were being actively pursued. With that, she ran to a nearby friend's house and took shelter there. The coyote literally came to the door looking for her and her dog. Eventually, the coyote moved on and the neighbor drove the pair home.

The insight gained? Times have changed, and not just on Cape Cod (though Cape Cod and the above story serve as fine examples). Because of the conservation efforts over the last 30 years, in many places wildlife is on the rebound, and it is indeed very wild. To make matters worse, here on Cape Cod, the coyotes are part wolf.

So a word to the wise... In the tale above, maybe the "coyote" was just curious about the woman and her dog. Maybe the coyote thought there was some chance to mate. But as the piece cited above states,

Coyotes eat cats and have been known to kill small dogs and maim medium-size canines. Although attacks on humans are extremely rare, two of three reported cases in Massachusetts occurred on Cape Cod. This summer, a woman visiting South Yarmouth got nervous when a coyote followed her and her 2-year-old son as they walked their small dog.

The absolute bottom line is that you need to be on your guard around wild animals like coyotes. You have to give them wide berth. If that means walking the dog with a neighbor, so be it. And if one or more coyotes (or whatever for that matter) should attack a pet or backyard favorite (I worry about our wild turkeys), do not try to intervene. Seek shelter and be safe. Pets and birds aren't worth stitches and rabies shots. Sorry, but that's just common sense.

See you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 3:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, we've got a bunch to talk about today. As the title suggests, we have a contest winner and some new readers who are using the new Kindle - the Amazon.com reading device. But first, here's the contest winner!

That shot from Kathy K. of the Rufous just blew us away. You can see the full-size version here.

Congrats to Kathy, and thanks again to all who entered. You can see both the entire collection of entries and the finalists in our eBirdseed.com photo library.

Things to note about the contest:

• All 53 pictures had true merit. "You guys done good."
• At least 9 photos were exceptional.
• The wife and I, the boss, and a professional photographer all had input on the final decision. Kathy's was the one that won general consensus.
• We were very careful to hide the identities of the entrants. However, if you would like to have your name, photo credit, town, camera used etc. included in the "Description" field with your picture in the library, just use the "Comment" button below and let us know, and we'll take care of that.

Now, as for you new Kindle folks... Welcome! Where to begin? Obviously, this is primarily a backyard birding blog. (The free library below contains over 1,900 public-domain bird photographs. I apologize beforehand for being a menace to society when holding a camera.) Anyway... Some time ago, I wrote a "Welcome" to the newcomers, and I hope you check it out. Just understand, that while birds are our driving force, this is not your average bird blog.

We look forward to your input, and as always...

See you by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 12:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

• The boss will take a long look
• Consideration for the typical stuff like context, drama, mechanics, framing, perspective, lighting, etc. will count.
• And then there's always "that something"

CapeCodAlan et al

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 10:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)