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Recent Postings from
The Arkansas Birding List

Updated on Thursday, December 13 at 10:14 PM ET
The most recently received Mail is at the top.

This is a rare opportunity for anyone in Arkansas who either does or is
interested in pursuing wildlife rehabilitation. For those of you who have
already taken this class, we'll need a few lab assistants on Saturday
afternoon.  It would be a good way to attend for the content review...Feel
free to contact me if you have questions about the class.  Please contact me
if you are able to sponsor an individual to attend (scholarship), would like
to provide a corporate sponsorship (lunch or door prizes would be great!!),
or wish to volunteer to help coordinate this event.  

 

*        Who: International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC)

*        What: Basic Skills Class (1AB)

*        Where: Janet Huckabee Arkansas River Valley Nature Center, Fort
Smith, Arkansas

*        When: March 1 & 2 (8:30-5:00 both days)

 

This is an introductory course for beginning wildlife rehabilitators, or
novice and experienced rehabilitators seeking formal education. Lecture
topics include: introduction to wildlife rehabilitation, basic anatomy and
physiology, calculating drug dosages, handling and physical restraint,
thermoregulation, stress, basic shock cycle, initial care and physical
examination, nutrition and associated diseases, standards for housing,
zoonoses, euthanasia criteria and release criteria.  This basic wildlife
rehabilitation course is a prerequisite to any advanced skills courses, many
of which are available online.

Lab topics include gavage (tube-feeding), physical restraint, intramuscular
and subcutaneous injections, physical exams, limb immobilization and
weighing. Lab procedures are performed on cadavers. 

Delivery Method 
Basic Wildlife Rehabilitation is a two-day, traditional classroom course
with both lecture and lab. The class ends on the second day with a final
exam. Basic Wildlife Rehabilitation is not available online. 

Passing Requirements 
In order to receive credit for the course, participants must attend both
days, participate in the lab, complete a homework assignment and pass a
final exam. 

Completion of this course does not confer upon participants the right to
practice any part or aspect of veterinary medicine, nor does it permit or
license participants to do wildlife rehabilitation. Obtaining a state and or
federal wildlife rehabilitation permit/s and working in partnership with a
licensed veterinarian are required by many states/provinces and is
considered mandatory for the proper care of injured wildlife.  In some
states, this class may qualify to fulfill some educational requirements
necessary to obtain a wildlife rehabilitation license/permit. 

 

For more information and to register, visit
http://www.iwrc-online.org/training/calendar.cfm 

 

 

Space is limited.  Reserve your spot, then Pass it on!!!  

 

Lynne Slater

HAWK Center (Helping Arkansas Wild "Kritters")

www.hawkcenter.org      Russellville, Arkansas

ARBIRDERS-
    Here's a list of Louisiana CBCs in case anyone is interested.  Not sure
how the email formatting will come through....

Steve Cardiff
 
------ Forwarded Message
From: Marty Floyd 
Reply-To: Bulletin Board for Dissemination of Information on Louisiana
Birds 
Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2007 08:41:
To: 
Subject: [LABIRD-L] Louisiana CBCs

Attached is what I have on CBCs in Louisiana:

BC

Bossier-Caddo-Bienville

Jan. 5

Paul Dickson

paul AT morrisdickson.com



BR

Baton Rouge

Jan. 5

Kevin Morgan

cowboyinbrla AT cox.net



CA

Catahoula NWR

Dec. 15

Marty Floyd

Progne99 AT aol.com



CB

Claiborne

Dec. 18

Nancy Menasco

nmcpa AT aol.com



CL

Cheneyville-Lecompte

Dec. 29

Marty Floyd

Progne99 AT aol.com



CR

Creole?

??







CW

Crowley

Jan. 4

Marty Floyd

Progne99 AT aol.com



DA

D'Arbonne

Dec. 15

Joan Brown

bljnbr AT colla.com



FP

Fort Polk



Jim Johnson





GI

Grand Isle

Dec. 23

Chris Brantley

chrisbrantley AT charter.net



JB

Johnson's Bayou

Dec. 23

Ken Sztraky

berrysheepfarm AT att.net



LA

Lafayette

Dec. 27

Dave Patton

wdpatton AT cox.net



LT

Laccassine-Thornwell

??







NA

Natchitoches

Dec. 22

Charlie Lyon

lyon5516 AT bellsouth.net



NI

New Iberia

Dec. 22

James W Beck

dynastes AT worldnet.att.net



NO

New Orleans

Dec. 22

David Muth

dpmuth AT cox.net



NS

North Shore

Dec. 17

Linda Beall

lbeall AT minilogic.com



PP

Pine Praire

Dec. 27

Marty Floyd

Progne99 AT aol.com



RB

Reserve-Bonnet Carre

Dec. 29

Melvin Weber

mweber AT rtconline.com



SA

Sabine NWR

Dec. 15

Marty Guidry

guidrym AT cox.net



SH

Shreveport

Dec. 15

Charlie Lyon

lyon5516 AT bellsouth.net



ST

St Tammany

Dec. 30

Linda Beall

lbeall AT minilogic.com



TR

Tensas River NWR

??







TX

Thibodaux









VE

Venice

Dec. 30

Dan Purrington

Danny AT Tulane.edu




Hope this helps.

Marty Floyd
Progne99 AT aol.com

________________________________________________________________________
More new features than ever.  Check out the new AOL Mail ! -
http://webmail.aol.com

------ End of Forwarded Message

We are postponing our cbc till Dec. 29.  Right now the
weathermen are predicting nasty weather on Saturday. 
I really don't think they know though.

Sandy B.
FS, AR


 
____________________________________________________________________________________ 

Looking for last minute shopping deals?  
Find them fast with Yahoo! Search. 
http://tools.search.yahoo.com/newsearch/category.php?category=shopping 

I decided that I would try Maumelle yesterday for a Horned Grebe and scout the 
area for any possible rare loons. I fully intended to try both parks: the one 
not far west from the marina, as well as the one on the far west side of the 
lake. Time escaped me though, as I started at 3pm from the first park. I ended 
up trekking about 1 to 1.5 miles from the park, along the shoreline. The sun 
was going down fast when I finished. 

Here is what I saw:

Hooded Merganser -1
Buffleheads - 6
Lesser Scaup - 30+ (Am I the only one that is too lazy to check for Greater 
Scaup?) 

Common Loons - 7+ (Usually the lake is quite loony... there must have been a 
party I wasn't invited to.) 

Horned Grebes - 2
Pied-billed Grebes - 3
Bald Eagle - 1 (Lower than usual numbers)
Ring-billed Gull - 1

I was surprised at the low number of birds yesterday, especially the Common 
Loons. I did hear some calling from the north part of the lake though. It might 
have been the weather too. It was quite balmy out there. 

Anyone else have a ruff birding day? Sorry for the corny bird pun...



-Ben Meadors,

North Little Rock, Ar.

It was overcast, windy, and mild (70's) today, with fog early, on the Red 
Slough Bird Survey. We still have a number of lingering species. Here is a 
complete list of all species found today: 


Greater White-fronted Goose - 1
Snow Goose - 4
Ross' Goose - 2
Wood Duck - 40
Gadwall - 255
American Wigeon - 2
Mallard - 152
Blue-winged Teal - 8
Northern Shoveler - 510
Green-winged Teal - 92
Ring-necked Duck - 180
Lesser Scaup - 1
Hooded Merganser - 1
Ruddy Duck - 1
Pied-billed Grebe - 20
Eared Grebe - 1
American White Pelican - 6
Double-crested Cormorant - 435
Anhinga - 3
Great Blue Heron - 15
Great Egret - 18
Cattle Egret - 1
White Ibis - 80
Black Vulture - 6
Turkey Vulture - 22
Northern Harrier - 12
Cooper's Hawk - 2
Red-tailed Hawk - 11
American Kestrel - 1
Virginia Rail - 20
Sora - 9
Common Moorhen - 1
American Coot - 92
Killdeer - 27
Greater Yellowlegs - 18
Least Sandpiper - 82
Long-billed Dowitcher - 22
Wilson's Snipe - 35
Mourning Dove - 35
Belted Kingfisher - 6
Red-bellied Woodpecker - 10
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 1
Hairy Woodpecker - 2
Northern Flicker - 5
Pileated Woodpecker - 2
Eastern Phoebe - 10
Loggerhead Shrike - 3
Blue Jay - 8
American Crow - 360
Fish Crow - 69
Carolina Chickadee - 3
Carolina Wren - 5
Winter Wren - 1
Sedge Wren - 9
Marsh Wren - 11
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 3
Eastern Bluebird - 5
Northern Mockingbird - 2
Brown Thrasher - 2
European Starling - 9
American Pipit - 28
Orange-crowned Warbler - 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 10
Eastern Towhee - 5
Field Sparrow - 7
Savannah Sparrow - 16
Fox Sparrow - 3
Song Sparrow - 32
Swamp Sparrow - 13
White-throated Sparrow - 4
White-crowned Sparrow - 3
Dark-eyed Junco - 1
Lapland Longspur - 1
Northern Cardinal - 9
Red-winged Blackbird - 650
Eastern Meadowlark - 8
Purple Finch - 1
American Goldfinch - 50

Odonates:

Common Green Darner
Variegated Meadowhawk

Herps:

Red-eared Slider
Blanchard's Cricket Frog
Upland Chorus Frog
Spring Peeper
Southern Leopard Frog

Good birding!

David Arbour
De Queen, AR

Visit the Red Slough Website: 
http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/ouachita/natural-resources/redslough/index.shtml 

If you would like to see a 38 second (~1MB) QuickTime video of the  
Calliope Hummingbird that was coming to our feeder, let me know and  
I'll email it to you. If you got the Pacific Loon video, I've already  
sent the new one to you. Please don't post this video anywhere. I  
added a sound track and I don't want the RIAA suing me. :-)

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, AR
"He was real ugly.  In fact, vultures used to fly past him with one  
wing over their eyes." - Jimmy Stewart

The press conference I mentioned yesterday has been POSTPONED due to timing 
issues. The petition I sent is still valid. Please pass that on. I'll let you 
know when the press conference at the Captiol is rescheduled. 


Dan Scheiman
Little Rock, AR

I have a Canon 40 D digital camera and a 70-300 lens with image stabilization. 
(70-300 IS DO 4.5 / 5.6). I've been pleased with it so far, still can't count 
the individual feathers on my photos yet. I agree that the image stabilization 
is worth the price. I've bought several things over the years from Adorama.com 
and they usually have pretty good reviews of lenses, cameras, etc. 


Gail Miller
Conway (Faulkner Co.) AR

This weekend in Desha County, I had a Black-necked Stilt, 4 White-faced Ibis, 8 
Mottled Ducks, and several Cackling Geese. Tons of geese around, including 
several thousand specklebellies. Overall, I saw 95 species. The Stilt is the 
1st winter record for Arkansas, although I have had them into late November 
before. Also, my dad saw 5 Sandhill Cranes in the area. 

 
For a photo of the stilt try: http://www.pbase.com/dickbaxter/image/
For a shot of the ibis try: http://www.pbase.com/dickbaxter/image/
 
Good birding!
Dick Baxter

I have just posted some bird photos to my website to share with everybody.

Hope you all like them and enjoy them.

http://www.pbase.com/rherron/bird_photos


Thanks
Robert

If you would like to see a short (9 second) QuickTime video of the  
adult, basic plumage Pacific Loon at DeGray Lake, let me know and I'll  
email it to you. The file is actually quite small, just 251 KB. I can  
make the video bigger or longer (2 minutes) or add a musical score,  
but I can't make it look any better. It was taken at a distance of  
several hundred yards on a slightly foggy day.

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, AR
"He was real ugly.  In fact, vultures used to fly past him with one  
wing over their eyes." - Jimmy Stewart

ARBIRDers,
Previously I've mentioned the proposed SWEPCO coal-fired power plant and its 
potential effects to the birsd of the Little River Bottoms Important Bird Area 
in Hempstead Co. I greatly appreciate everyone who supported our efforts to 
block SWEPCO by appealing to the Public Service Commission, ADEQ, and the 
Governor. Although the PSC voted 2-1 in favor of SWEPCO, the issue is far from 
over. There are still opportunities to help, to steer Arkansas off the path of 
dirty fossil fuels to cleaner renewable resources, and reduce the Natural 
State's contribution to greenhouse gases and other pollutants that affect bird 
and human health alike! 

Below are two action items. 1) An announcement of a press conference on Wed at 
the Captiol held by Audubon and Sierra Club. I will be speaking about the 
threats of coal plants to birds and why birds are important to us all. We'd 
love for others to show up and provide support through numbers. 2) An online 
petition to Governor Beebe asking him to halt SWEPCO's proposed power plant. 

Your continued support is much appreciated.
Dan Scheiman
Little Rock, AR
---------------------------------------------------
WHO:              Audubon and Sierra Club
WHAT:             Press Conference on Coal-Fired Power Plants
WHEN:             Wednesday, December 12th, 11 a.m.
WHERE:           Arkansas State Capitol, Room 207
  At this event, we will be pushing three main points:  
(1) Urging the Governor�s Global Warming Commission (which meets in the same 
room the next day) to make the threat of coal-fired power plants its first 
order of business; 

(2) Urging Governor Beebe to declare a moratorium on the approval and 
construction of new coal-fired power plants in Arkansas until the Global 
Warming Commission has completed its work; and 

 (3) Explaining environmental impacts from CO2, mercury and other pollutants. 


---------------------------------------------------
Arkansas took a wrong turn last month when its Public Service Commission 
approved, in a 2-to-1 decision, Swepco's planned 600-MW coal-fired electric 
power plant near Texarkana. This plant will pump as much planet-killing CO2 
into the atmosphere every year as half the cars and light trucks in Arkansas. 
There are better options: energy efficiency, renewable energy, and, if 
necessary, natural gas (which emits half as much CO2 as coal). States such as 
Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, are doing better than Arkansas by cancelling 
planned coal plants in favor of healthier alternatives. 

 Governor Beebe can stop this plant by placing a moratorium on construction 
until the newly-appointed Governor's Commission on Global Warming has had a 
chance to evaluate it and report to the state legislature late next year. 

 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

WE CAN TURN THIS DECISION AROUND: 
PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION TO GOVERNOR BEEBE AT 
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/nocoalpp/petition.html 

 You needn't be an adult, or an Arkansan, or a U.S. citizen to sign. Global 
warming affects us all. 

 PLEASE FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO ALL YOUR EMAIL LISTS!
 If you signed a petition against this plant a few months ago, this is a NEW 
petition. The previous petition went to the Arkansas Public Service Commission. 
Please sign this petition also! 

 PLEASE ASK ALL YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS TO SIGN!
 PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION TO GOVERNOR BEEBE AT 
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/nocoalpp/petition.html 

Last Sunday, Dec 2nd, after I went birding with Mike Mlodinow and Joe Neal on 
Saturday, I was at the Centerton fish hatchery and saw a shrike on the fence. 
By the time I got there I only was able to get a fuzzy picture but it was a 
loggerhead shrike, not a northern. I also saw a northern harrier swooping low 
over the ponds. 

I drove the dirt roads behind the fish hatchery looking for sparrows and was 
surprised to see three Bald Eagles, two mature, one immature. 

A Kestral was holding on for dear life as the storm blew in, and a very large 
black squirrel ran in front of me. 

 
I did buy my new Canon D40 camera and will be bringing both on the Christmas 
bird count, the new one only has a 300 mm lens with a 1.6 converter to equal a 
450mm. my old SLR goes to 1200mm. 

 I got a lot of pictures of the scaup at lake Alatlanta on Saturday but I'm not 
certain I got a good one of the Greater Scaup. I did get a fuzzy one, the story 
of my life. Overcast skies, low light, moving birds. 

 
Sunday there had to be 100 or more scaup in that back cove away from the 
entrance but I don't think the Greater was still there. Not much chance to bird 
between now and then, Saturday, 15th, may be nice to practice shooting in nice 
weather. 

 
good birding, Jacque Brown. 

As I sit here in my Bentley club chair this morning, watching our  
backyard feeders and the woods beyond, I'm reading a news article on  
eBird titled "Bohemian Waxwings, Pine Grosbeaks & other boreal  
irruptives on the move!" at 
http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/Irruption2007Nov.html 

. It seems good things may be headed our way.

While waiting for the Bohemian Waxwings, Pine Grosbeaks, Evening  
Grosbeaks, Common Redpolls, and Northern Shrikes to arrive, we have  
had a couple of birds not often seen in our yard - Orange-crowned  
Warbler and Field Sparrow. The latter landed on top of a feeder,  
apparently wondering what all the hubbub was about, but not knowing  
quite what to do, it soon flew away. Some of the more frequent  
visitors we've seen this morning are Pine Siskin, Pine Warbler, Red- 
breasted Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Northern Flicker, Downy  
Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina  
Chickadee, Carolina Wren, American Goldfinch, House Finch, and  
Mourning Dove. Other recent visitors not seen so far today are Brown- 
headed Nuthatch, the Brown Creeper that keeps our white oaks insect  
free, and, of course, the Calliope Hummingbird. :-( The wave of Purple  
Finches seems to have passed as we have not seen any in quite some  
time. Cones fill the tops of our pines. We expect a flock of Red  
Crossbills any time now. :-)

Dennis and Patricia Braddy and Skip
Little Rock, AR
"Wine a bit, you'll feel better!"

KAREN & GEORGE:
   
 To get you started, although others will have more specifics, here's what I 
can offer. (You probably should check test results for this lens at 
popphoto.com as well as googling for the views of real users). 

   
 I'm thinking the multplier is closer to 1.5, so the lens is effectively about 
100-450 mm. My own lens goes to 600 (on a Nikon D200), but the majority of my 
pics are shot at 450 anyway. 

   
 The real problem with the slower f/4.0 lens is not being able to work as well 
in shade. Yeah, you can adjust the ISO, but you'll give up something in 
resolution (a significant factor if you're enlarging the results). 

   
 My last technical comment is that a lens with image stabilization has real 
advantages, allowing you to hand hold your camera at maybe two or three stops 
slower than otherwise. (At 450 mm extended, the rule of thumb requires about a 
1/500 shutter speed or better, but with image stabilization you could expect to 
reduce that to maybe less than 1/125 when needed in shady situations). Does 
your lens have that feature (Nikon calls it VR)? 

   
  The price tag may be the final arbiter. 
   
  RICK FARRAR
  Burn's Hill Natural Area
   
  
agfckrowe  wrote:
  I have the very same questions!
Karen Rowe

-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of George R. Hoelzeman
Sent: Sunday, December 09, 2007 10:24 PM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: More Lens Questions

I have a Nikon D70 camera currently using the AF Nikkor 28-105mm zoom
lens which (and anyone may guess) is wholly deficient for bird
photography.

I have a shot at a Telephoto AF Zoom Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6D ED
Autofocus Lens for roughly $200. What can anyone tell me about this
lens and is it a 
good birding lens? Digital SLRs like the D70 add about 25% or something
to the actual focal length of any lens, so the effective final zoom is
something in the 
range of 375mm (maybe more since I can't remember the exact increase).
That seems much closer to the focal length desirable. 

The f-stop level, of course, is a bit tight, but I can make up some of
that by adjusting the effective ISO in the camera. . .

In previous discussion, mention was made of the fact that not all 300mm
lenses are created equal, and I have had camera dealers recommend
certain lenses 
over others, particularly for the digital SLRs (apparently, the higher
the price does not always equal higher quality). 

But, now I'm just babbling. . . thoughts from the collective (not about
whether I'm babbling ;-))?

George (n. Conway Co. looking thru tubes)


       
---------------------------------
Never miss a thing.   Make Yahoo your homepage.

Back in the late 90's I watched a trained Harris's Hawk hunting squirrels
in Live Oak trees in Florida.  The Harris's had learned to use its feet to
rip and tear at squirrel nests in order to flush out the squirrels.  If the
Harris's could learn that technique, I have no doubt that a Great Horned
Owl could do the same at night.  The owl would probably have even more
advantage flushing squirrels at night that way.   Clark

I have the very same questions!
Karen Rowe

-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of George R. Hoelzeman
Sent: Sunday, December 09, 2007 10:24 PM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: More Lens Questions

I have a Nikon D70 camera currently using the AF Nikkor 28-105mm zoom
lens which (and anyone may guess) is wholly deficient for bird
photography.

I have a shot at a Telephoto AF Zoom Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6D ED
Autofocus Lens for roughly $200.  What can anyone tell me about this
lens and is it a 
good birding lens?  Digital SLRs like the D70 add about 25% or something
to the actual focal length of any lens, so the effective final zoom is
something in the 
range of 375mm (maybe more since I can't remember the exact increase).
That seems much closer to the focal length desirable.  

The f-stop level, of course, is a bit tight, but I can make up some of
that by adjusting the effective ISO in the camera. . .

In previous discussion, mention was made of the fact that not all 300mm
lenses are created equal, and I have had camera dealers recommend
certain lenses 
over others, particularly for the digital SLRs (apparently, the higher
the price does not always equal higher quality).  

But, now I'm just babbling. . . thoughts from the collective (not about
whether I'm babbling ;-))?

George (n. Conway Co. looking thru tubes)

I have a Nikon D70 camera currently using the AF Nikkor 28-105mm zoom lens 
which (and anyone may guess) is wholly deficient for bird photography. 


I have a shot at a Telephoto AF Zoom Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6D ED Autofocus 
Lens for roughly $200. What can anyone tell me about this lens and is it a 

good birding lens? Digital SLRs like the D70 add about 25% or something to the 
actual focal length of any lens, so the effective final zoom is something in 
the 

range of 375mm (maybe more since I can't remember the exact increase). That 
seems much closer to the focal length desirable. 


The f-stop level, of course, is a bit tight, but I can make up some of that by 
adjusting the effective ISO in the camera. . . 


In previous discussion, mention was made of the fact that not all 300mm lenses 
are created equal, and I have had camera dealers recommend certain lenses 

over others, particularly for the digital SLRs (apparently, the higher the 
price does not always equal higher quality). 


But, now I'm just babbling. . . thoughts from the collective (not about whether 
I'm babbling ;-))? 


George (n. Conway Co. looking thru tubes)

While I know we focus on AR Birds, as an AR birder, I had a chance to
see my first scrub jays in a visit to Sarasota FL.  If you are interest
in the location ( a FL state park) or pics of scrub jays, please email
me at agfckrowe AT futura.net.  We had the scrub jays landing on our hands!

 

 

Karen Rowe

DeWitt, AR 72042

www.rollingrfarm.com

 

I went to the spillway in Natural Steps this morning. I thought about 
turning back due to the fog but decided any birding beat no birding.  I 
probably wouldn't have decided that if it had been raining.  Turns out I 
had a successful effort despite the fog.  If you like woodpeckers, this 
is a good place.  The area to the left of the entry point was 
particularly good for woodpeckers and I could have just walked that area 
and gotten every woodpecker, flicker, and sapsucker that I did get.  I 
was very pleased to see Cedar Waxwings and a Hermit Thrush too.

Species seen or heard:

    * Carolina Chickadee
    * Blue Jay
    * Cardinal
    * Song Sparrow
    * Pileated Woodpecker
    * Downy Woodpecker
    * Carolina Wren
    * Red-bellied Woodpecker
    * Canada Goose
    * Bonaparte's Gull
    * Yellow-rumped Warbler
    * American Crow
    * Snow Goose
    * White-throated Sparrow
    * Mockingbird
    * Tufted Titmouse
    * Northern Flicker
    * Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker
    * Cedar Waxwing
    * Hermit Thrush
    * Brown Thrasher

http://www.jamesdixon.us/Gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=1779

Jim Dixon

Thank you, Dennis and Karen.

I made a quick trip over and found the two swans coming in for a landing 
just as I got there.  The Sun was getting low but I got several pictures 
of which this is one.

http://www.jamesdixon.us/Gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=1775&g2_navId=x8bd5aa37

Jim Dixon



Dennis Braddy wrote:
> Karen Holliday called to ask me to post that she now has 2 Mute Swans 
> on Lake Willastein behind her house.
>
> Dennis Braddy
> Little Rock, Arkansas
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>

Karen Holliday called to ask me to post that she now has 2 Mute Swans  
on Lake Willastein behind her house.

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, Arkansas

Sent from my iPhone

I've just spotted a 2nd Pacific Loon at DeGray Lake. This bird is a  
juvenile. The 1st one appears to be the same loon I saw here  
previously. It has the same 2 white spots on the right side of its  
back, but is otherwise in basic plumage with a distinct necklace. Yes,  
Nick, I have video of this bird. The juvenile Pacific lacks a  
necklace, has a paler head and neck, and shows white stripes across  
its dark back.

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, Arkansas

Sent from my iPhone

I'm watching a Pacific Loon about 200 meters off the end of the  
Highway 7 Area peninsula at DeGray Lake.

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, Arkansas

Sent from my iPhone

Some of you did not grow up sitting under a nut tree in the mountains
of East Tennessee on a moonlit night poaching gray squirrels as their
shadows move on branches between the gun and the moon.  I didn't
either but such experiences are not unknown up here.  Richard Lewis,
who edits the Eastern Mountain Region of the Season Report for
The Migrant, journal of Tennessee ornithology, tells me he did.  I can tell
you that I did some field work of owl activity, supported by help from the
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency back in the 1980s.  We were
able to follow a radio transmitter we placed on a Great Horned Owl. It
was in the dead of winter when the owl could be seen at midnight chasing 
gray squirrels
about the limbs of a tall oak and in full moonlight.  Watched that activity 
for a good while.
Even local police officers stopped to watch with my spotting scope
at the owl and squirrel chase.  If nothing else,  a big owl might flush
a squirrel out of a cavity or nest in the middle of the night and maybe
enjoy success.  I am not challenging Gary Graves' comment that they
are diurnal.  That is well known.  But there are situations where a big
owl might make hay in the middle of the night.

Let's go birding.......

Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Graves, Gary" 
To: 
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 11:52 AM
Subject: Re: snowy owl sighting


Barn owls are so naturally pale that they often are described as "white
owls" or "snowy owls" by the uninitiated.  I suppose rat skulls eroding
from regurgitated pellets could be mistaken for "squirrel heads," but
the size (length X width X height) of a rat skull (Rattus, Oryzomys,
Sigmodon) is just a small fraction of that of a squirrel (Sciurus)
skull. Barn owls are not known to scavenge road-killed squirrels.

GRG


-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of Steven W. Cardiff
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 11:07 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: Re: snowy owl sighting

Or, another longshot possibility, but still much more likely than a
Snowy
Owl, is an albino Barred Owl or Great Horned Owl.  Also, if they WERE
actually squirrels, they could have been scavenged- I routinely feed
roadkill squirrels to my "pet" Barred Owls.

Steve Cardiff


On 12/7/07 9:57 AM, "Graves, Gary"  wrote:

> The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large
and
> tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders)
and
> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
> likely to be a barn owl than anything else.
>
> Gary Graves
> Smithsonian Institution
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: snowy owl sighting
>
> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called
> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree
> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was
> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have
> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,
> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he
> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that
> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
>
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may
> be someone who might want to check it out.

 
In a message dated 12/7/2007 11:57:57 A.M. Central Standard Time,  
dmbraddy AT COMCAST.NET writes:

Similarly in Clark and Wheeler's  
"Hawks of North America" and  "A Photographic Guide to North American  
Raptors" the dark line under  the eye appears in some photos of adult  
Sharpies and not in others  and the authors make no mention of it in  
the text. 


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>
 
First, I'd suggest that everyone up date your hawk books as both of  the 
above are slightly dated. It is shown on all the adults in both the photos and 

the paintings in Hawks of North America but not mentioned in text. In A  
Photographic Guide to North American Raptors, this can mark be seen well in 
photos 

SSO1, but just barely in SSO4 and again real well in SSO5 which are the  only 
adult Sharpies photos in this guide.
 
Try Wheelers two new books (Raptors of Eastern/Western North  America)  which 
do mention this mark and everyone of the adult  Cooper's, male and female, 
show this trait and even some young males taken late in year. It is a must set 

for Raptors Reference.........
 
Second, this is what I wrote:  
 
WITH such a great photo of an adult bird, you can check just under the eye.  
On adult Sharp-shinned there is a narrow black or dark line that runs under 
the  eye from the cap that does not appear on this fine Cooper's. It gives the 
large  eye on Sharpies a different appearance, it can be seen with a fairly  
close look even in the field. "IF PRESENT" IT GIVES YOU A DIAGNOSTIC POINT YOU 

CAN HANG YOUR HAT ON<<<<<<<
 
I did not say it was on all adult Sharp-shinned (but it has been on all  that 
I have seen well in the field since becoming aware of this field mark) as I  
was speaking of that photo and that bird and thought it was a mark  that some 
birders could use if they got a good look at an iffy bird.
 
Sorry for the confusion.........
 
 
Good Birding  !!!

Jeff R. Wilson / TLBA
6300 Memphis-Arlington Road
Bartlett, TN  38135
http://www.pbase.com/ol_coot/
What is this feathered thing that  lifts my heart to the heavens.



**************************************Check out AOL's list of 2007's hottest 
products.
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Gary et al.-
    Right.  RE scavenged squirrels, I was not suggesting that Barn Owls
would do that, but an albino/leucistic Barred or Great Horned probably
would.  And, as others have implied, without verification there would seem
to be reasonable doubt that the bird was even an owl, or that the bird that
was seen was really associated with the cavity containing the squirrel
remains, or that the remains were really even squirrels.....  So, in other
words, further discussion seems pointless without corroboration.

Steve Cardiff


On 12/7/07 10:52 AM, "Graves, Gary"  wrote:

> Barn owls are so naturally pale that they often are described as "white
> owls" or "snowy owls" by the uninitiated.  I suppose rat skulls eroding
> from regurgitated pellets could be mistaken for "squirrel heads," but
> the size (length X width X height) of a rat skull (Rattus, Oryzomys,
> Sigmodon) is just a small fraction of that of a squirrel (Sciurus)
> skull. Barn owls are not known to scavenge road-killed squirrels.
> 
> GRG 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of Steven W. Cardiff
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 11:07 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: Re: snowy owl sighting
> 
> Or, another longshot possibility, but still much more likely than a
> Snowy
> Owl, is an albino Barred Owl or Great Horned Owl.  Also, if they WERE
> actually squirrels, they could have been scavenged- I routinely feed
> roadkill squirrels to my "pet" Barred Owls.
> 
> Steve Cardiff
> 
> 
> On 12/7/07 9:57 AM, "Graves, Gary"  wrote:
> 
>> The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
>> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large
> and
>> tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders)
> and
>> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
>> likely to be a barn owl than anything else.
>> 
>> Gary Graves
>> Smithsonian Institution
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
>> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
>> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
>> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
>> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
>> Subject: snowy owl sighting
>> 
>> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called
>> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree
>> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was
>> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have
>> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,
>> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he
>> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that
>> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
>> 
>> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may
>> be someone who might want to check it out. 

Audubon Society of Central Arkansas's bird walk to Stuttgart Airport is 
actually on Saturday Feb 9, 2008. I posted the wrong date. More to come when 
the day approaches. 


In the meantime, note that next Thursday Dec 13 is ASCA's annual holiday party 
and potluck at the Magnolia Lodge at Markham and Harrison in Little Rock. It 
starts at 6 pm. We'll have a silent auction. Donated items are welcome. Our 
speaker will be Craig Frasier. He is an amateur photographer who will talk 
about his quest to photograph AR's rare and endemic wildflowers (with help from 
Theo Whitsell, Eric Sundell and others). In addition, a slideshow of his 
beautiful photos will be shown while we eat. 


See http://www.ascabird.org/Meetings.htm for more details and directions. You 
don't have to be a member to attend. 


This month's field trip is replaced by the Christmas Bird Count. ASCA sponsors 
Lonoke (16th) and Little Rock (29th) so no need to bother with that $5 fee. Now 
you have no excuse but to join us. Contact me for details. 


Dan Scheiman
Little Rock, AR

Apparently not all adult Sharp-shinned Hawks have the "narrow black or  
dark line that runs under the eye from the cap" that Jeff Wilson  
mentioned, either that or they have the ability to hide this mark. I  
have checked many photos on Google Images and find that this field  
mark may or may not be present. Similarly in Clark and Wheeler's  
"Hawks of North America" and "A Photographic Guide to North American  
Raptors" the dark line under the eye appears in some photos of adult  
Sharpies and not in others and the authors make no mention of it in  
the text. I was prompted to write this post by the adult male Sharp- 
shinned Hawk presently sitting 50' away in our backyard after an  
unsuccessful attempt at the feeder birds. It does not have this field  
mark.

Dennis Braddy
Little Rock, AR
"He was real ugly.  In fact, vultures used to fly past him with one  
wing over their eyes." - Jimmy Stewart

I like the Krider's suggestion. There is a Krider's hanging around Wooten 
Road in Jacksonville, & it certainly favors a snowy owl to the untrained 
eye. Any location yet? I'd like to see the barn owl if that's what it is.

David Ray

A bad day birding is better than a good day at work.

The guy who saw the bird called my office this morning. He noted how white the 
bird was. The only color was gray around the throat. He didn't remember if it 
had ear tufts but I suggested it was either a Barn Owl or possibly an albino 
Great Horned or Barred. 


Dan Scheiman
Little Rock, AR

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "Graves, Gary"  

> The natural history doesn't add up. Snowy Owls don't roost in tree 
> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large and 
> tough). Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders) and 
> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more 
> likely to be a barn owl than anything else. 
> 
> Gary Graves 
> Smithsonian Institution 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List 
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of 
> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net 
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM 
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU 
> Subject: snowy owl sighting 
> 
> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called 
> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree 
> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was 
> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have 
> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity, 
> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he 
> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that 
> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings. 
> 
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may 
> be someone who might want to check it out. 

In the late 1970s, Dr. Earl Hanebrink and I examined the stomach contents and 
pellets of hundreds of owls, including many barn owls. Barn owls frequently fed 
upon wood rats, which are relatively common in eastern Arkansas, and whose 
skulls, to the uninitiated, might very closely resemble those of squirrels and 
size and shape. 

 
Keith "Catfish" Sutton
15601 Mountain Dr.
Alexander, AR 72002
www.catfishsutton.com
www.catfishgumbo.blogspot.com
catfishdude AT sbcglobal.net

Barn owls are so naturally pale that they often are described as "white
owls" or "snowy owls" by the uninitiated.  I suppose rat skulls eroding
from regurgitated pellets could be mistaken for "squirrel heads," but
the size (length X width X height) of a rat skull (Rattus, Oryzomys,
Sigmodon) is just a small fraction of that of a squirrel (Sciurus)
skull. Barn owls are not known to scavenge road-killed squirrels. 

GRG 


-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of Steven W. Cardiff
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 11:07 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: Re: snowy owl sighting

Or, another longshot possibility, but still much more likely than a
Snowy
Owl, is an albino Barred Owl or Great Horned Owl.  Also, if they WERE
actually squirrels, they could have been scavenged- I routinely feed
roadkill squirrels to my "pet" Barred Owls.

Steve Cardiff


On 12/7/07 9:57 AM, "Graves, Gary"  wrote:

> The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large
and
> tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders)
and
> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
> likely to be a barn owl than anything else.
> 
> Gary Graves
> Smithsonian Institution
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: snowy owl sighting
> 
> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called
> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree
> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was
> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have
> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,
> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he
> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that
> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
> 
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may
> be someone who might want to check it out. 

I remember about 10 years ago a very pale Red Tailed Hawk (Krider's?)  
frequently perched between the Barrow exit on 630 and the Rodney Parham exit on 

430. I had lots of friends and patients who told me about the "snowy owl" they 

had seen.  Even knowing what it really was, I often did a double take  when I 
saw her, since she had such a large white head and frequently sat fluffed  up 
in the cold.  She was there each winter for about 3 years.  Nice  bird.   
Karen Hart _hartwnkkk AT aol.com_ (mailto:hartwnkkk AT aol.com) Little Rock 




**************************************Check out AOL's list of 2007's hottest 
products.
(http://money.aol.com/special/hot-products-2007?NCID=aoltop00030000000001)

Or, another longshot possibility, but still much more likely than a Snowy
Owl, is an albino Barred Owl or Great Horned Owl.  Also, if they WERE
actually squirrels, they could have been scavenged- I routinely feed
roadkill squirrels to my "pet" Barred Owls.

Steve Cardiff


On 12/7/07 9:57 AM, "Graves, Gary"  wrote:

> The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large and
> tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders) and
> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
> likely to be a barn owl than anything else.
> 
> Gary Graves
> Smithsonian Institution
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: snowy owl sighting
> 
> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called
> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree
> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was
> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have
> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,
> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he
> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that
> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
> 
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may
> be someone who might want to check it out. 

Flying Squirrels?

Kelly Chitwood

--- Don Simons  wrote:

> Rat heads look a lot like squirrel heads when they are in owl pellets.
> However, they don't taste as good.
> 
> Don R. Simons, CHI
> Park Interpreter
> Mount Magazine State Park
> 16878 HWY 309 South
> Paris, AR 72855
>  
>
> (FAX)
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of Graves, Gary
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:57 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: Re: [ARBIRD-L] snowy owl sighting
> 
> The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
> cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large and
> tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders) and
> we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
> likely to be a barn owl than anything else.  
> 
> Gary Graves
> Smithsonian Institution
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
> [mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
> keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
> Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
> To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: snowy owl sighting
> 
> I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
> to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
> service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
> taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
> had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
> he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
> got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
> they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
> 
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
> be someone who might want to check it out. 
> 



 
____________________________________________________________________________________ 

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Rat heads look a lot like squirrel heads when they are in owl pellets.
However, they don't taste as good.

Don R. Simons, CHI
Park Interpreter
Mount Magazine State Park
16878 HWY 309 South
Paris, AR 72855
 
 (FAX)

-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of Graves, Gary
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:57 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: Re: [ARBIRD-L] snowy owl sighting

The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large and
tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders) and
we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
likely to be a barn owl than anything else.  

Gary Graves
Smithsonian Institution



-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: snowy owl sighting

I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
be someone who might want to check it out. 

The natural history doesn't add up.  Snowy Owls don't roost in tree
cavities and barn owls don't eat squirrels (squirrels are too large and
tough).  Barn owls are nocturnal (occasionally crepuscular feeders) and
we all know that squirrels are diurnal. In any case, it's much more
likely to be a barn owl than anything else.  

Gary Graves
Smithsonian Institution



-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of
keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 9:30 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: snowy owl sighting

I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
be someone who might want to check it out. 

It's really cool that a barn owl found a tree cavity to roost &/or nest in &
keep his squirrel head collection in. However, although this tree may (or
may not) have been a hazard to humans or to our endless stream of spawn, I
find it regrettable that MOST trees that are "removed" today are not at all
endangering human existence. Depending on the level of school, could this
barn owl's home have been used as an educational experience for the
children? Or even a protected "owl dwelling" on the campus? The destruction
of habitat & wildlife homes that I see almost daily is extremely depressing.
Yet as a "culture" we continue to denude & blanket this once incredibly
beautiful land from sea to shining sea with enormous unoccupied dwellings,
high power lines, highway improvements, cell towers, building debris & junk.
My heart goes out to the barn owl.

Sorry, I just had to say something.

Judith
Ninestone Land Trust
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net" 
To: 
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 8:30 AM
Subject: snowy owl sighting


>I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  to
>tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  service,
>and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  taking a large
>tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  had a large snowy fly
>out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  he said there was a large
>collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  got on down, the school
>principal ask if he had seen it, and that  they were aware it lived there
>from earlier sightings.
>
> Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  be
> someone who might want to check it out.

 
Save yourself a trip. If it uses a cavity and is pale then it is a Barn  
Owl.........  

Good Birding  !!!

Jeff R. Wilson / TLBA
6300 Memphis-Arlington Road
Bartlett, TN  38135
http://www.pbase.com/ol_coot/
What is this feathered thing that  lifts my heart to the  heavens.







**************************************Check out AOL's list of 2007's hottest 
products.
(http://money.aol.com/special/hot-products-2007?NCID=aoltop00030000000001)

Thanks! I was trying to remember which local owl could be mistaken for a Snowy. 


George (n. Conway Co. who actually has only heard a Barn Owl)

On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 09:03:, Don Simons wrote:

>Snowy owls do not nest in trees.  It was probably a barn owl.

>Don R. Simons, CHI
>Park Interpreter
>Mount Magazine State Park
>16878 HWY 309 South
>Paris, AR 72855
> 
>
> (FAX)

>-----Original Message-----
>From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
>[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of George R. Hoelzeman
>Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 8:43 AM
>To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
>Subject: Re: [ARBIRD-L] snowy owl sighting

>So. . . is the tree still there?

>I'm possibly going to be in Beebe this afternoon - what would I need to
>do?  

>Which school grounds?  where?

>George (n. Conway Co. wondering)

>On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 08:30:, keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net wrote:

>>I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
>>to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
>>service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
>>taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
>>had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
>>he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
>>got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
>>they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

>>Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
>>be someone who might want to check it out. 

Snowy owls do not nest in trees.  It was probably a barn owl.

Don R. Simons, CHI
Park Interpreter
Mount Magazine State Park
16878 HWY 309 South
Paris, AR 72855
 
 (FAX)

-----Original Message-----
From: The Birds of Arkansas Discussion List
[mailto:ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU] On Behalf Of George R. Hoelzeman
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 8:43 AM
To: ARBIRD-L AT LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
Subject: Re: [ARBIRD-L] snowy owl sighting

So. . . is the tree still there?

I'm possibly going to be in Beebe this afternoon - what would I need to
do?  

Which school grounds?  where?

George (n. Conway Co. wondering)

On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 08:30:, keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net wrote:

>I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
>to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
>service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
>taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
>had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
>he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
>got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
>they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

>Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
>be someone who might want to check it out. 

I too would like to know more info...as George has asked...
Thanks

Cheryle Sytsma
Vilonia


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "George R. Hoelzeman" 
To: 
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 8:42 AM
Subject: Re: snowy owl sighting


> So. . . is the tree still there?
>
> I'm possibly going to be in Beebe this afternoon - what would I need to 
> do?
>
> Which school grounds?  where?
>
> George (n. Conway Co. wondering)
>
> On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 08:30:, keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net wrote:
>
>>I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called
>>to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree
>>service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was
>>taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have
>>had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,
>>he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he
>>got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that
>>they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.
>
>>Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may
>>be someone who might want to check it out.
> 

So. . . is the tree still there?

I'm possibly going to be in Beebe this afternoon - what would I need to do?  

Which school grounds?  where?

George (n. Conway Co. wondering)

On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 08:30:, keithnewton AT sbcglobal.net wrote:

>I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
>to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
>service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
>taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
>had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
>he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
>got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
>they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

>Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
>be someone who might want to check it out. 

I have a helper who lives in Beebe Ar, who is driving in and called  
to tell me that Wayne McKown saw a snowy yesterday. Wayne has a tree  
service, and was working on a tree on the school grounds. As he was  
taking a large tree down from the school grounds, he claims to have  
had a large snowy fly out over his head. When he got into the cavity,  
he said there was a large collection of squirrel heads. Later as he  
got on down, the school principal ask if he had seen it, and that  
they were aware it lived there from earlier sightings.

Since I have not seen anything on this listserv, I thought there may  
be someone who might want to check it out. 

Hello, Birders,

You are all invited to attend NW Arkansas Audubon Society's annual meeting
this Saturday, December 8, at 11:00 AM at the Fayetteville Library.  We will
announce the winners of the 2008 NWAAS photo contest.  Joe Neal will give a
terrific presentation about restoring Tallgrass Prairie habitat and birds at
Chesney Prairie Natural Area near Siloam Springs. There will be lots of
food, fun and some great photos!  The program is free and open to the
public.

Joan
Rogers, Arkansas

Bill Shepherd and I conducted the first of this season's grassland 
bird surveys at Stuttgart Airport.  It was fairly quiet 
bird-wise.  We detected only 7 sparrow species including a mere two 
Le Conte's Sparrows.  We also flushed 3 Sedge Wrens.  Red-tailed 
Hawks were abundant and we saw one Harlan's and one possible 
Western.  Several small flocks of longspurs flew over, most likely 
Laplands, but we did not have time to walk the runways in search of 
Smith's Longspurs.  To address Martin's question, it is a solid month 
into the season for Smith's in Arkansas, the species has occurred at 
the airport for decades, I don't see any reason why they won't be 
there now.  Though if you really require proof positive before 
venturing out there then maybe someone who lives close by (Gail 
Northcutt, hint hint) would be willing to do some scouting for 
us.  When you go, remember to sign the Birder's Register after 
birding to let subsequent birders know what you've seen and to let 
the community of Stuttgart know that the site is important for birds, 
birders, and their economy (no one has signed in since Bill and I 
conducted our last survey in August).

If you have never birded the airport (or even if you have) but don't 
want to go alone then note that Audubon Society of Central Arkansas 
will lead a trip there on Saturday Feb 19, 2008.  See 
http://www.ascabird.org/field_trips.htm for more details.

Dan Scheiman
Little Rock, AR

Greetings all,

 

I have a friend coming in this weekend and we wonder about the current
status of smith's longspurs in the state and is anyone has seen the
Millwood snow bunting recently.  Feel free to respond off - list if you
want.

 

Thanks,

Marty

 

Martin J. Campbell

Assoc. Prof. Organic Chemistry

Undergraduate Research Director

Department of Chemistry

Henderson State University

1100 Henderson Street

Arkadelphia, AR  

 

campbem AT hsu.edu  

Office: 

Fax:     

I live on Lake Willastein in Maumelle.  It's a small, 50 acre lake. This
morning we had a first for our little lake, a Mute Swan! It was trying to
hang out with a flock of Canada Geese but they didn't want anything to do
with the swan. Something startled the birds and they all flew to the other
side of the lake so I'm not sure if the swan is still there. We also had a
adult Bald Eagle fly low across the lake being chased by what looked like a
crow. What a fun morning for unusual birds!
Karen Holliday
Maumelle, Pulaski Co.

If this email makes it to AR-BIRD, then I have successfully subscribed 
to the list with my new email address - jamesdixonlr at att dot net.

My old comcast address will soon be terminated.  If you have me in your 
address book, please change the address.

thanks

Jim Dixon

Having not seen the Calliope Hummingbird at our feeder since early  
yesterday, Skip and I set out this forenoon to see what we could  
learn. The hummer's average departure vector over the past two weeks  
goes through about a mile of mixed wood, skirting the backyards of  
four of our neighbors and crossing La Marche Drive in the process. We  
have previously checked our neighbor's yards for feeders and nectar  
producing plants, so Skip and I concentrated our search along the  
appropriate stretch of La Marche.

We failed to sniff-out our diminutive vagrant. We also failed to find  
any nectar producing plants with flowers of sufficient size and  
requisite geometry to deposit pollen at the base of the Calliope's 17  
mm upper mandible, even though the hummer showed up two different days  
with a yellow spot on its bill. As for other food sources, we have  
considered insects and sapsucker holes. A few gnats have drown in the  
feeder, so there are some insects of suitable size, but not many. We  
have seen very few Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers in this area and no  
evidence that they have produced holes the hummer could be visiting.

Based upon the evidence we have concluded that there must be a few  
still-flowering plants outside our search area and that it is probable  
there is at least one other feeder not too far away. Consequently, we  
plan to expand our physical search area (Skip's idea - he's always  
ready for a walk) and also to take the search online. Our neighborhood  
has its own listserv. We hope to find out who still has feeders up and  
who has potentially hummer-attracting flowering plants. Maybe someone  
has even seen the little guy.

Dennis and Patricia Braddy and Skip
Little Rock, AR
"Wine a bit, you'll feel better!"

Greetings all,
It finally feels like fall and the birds are moving in for the winter.
It's time to start thinking about the Christmas Bird Counts.
The CBC has been around for 108 years and is the longest running bird
database in North America.  Dates start 12/14 and run through 1/5.

Any experience level is welcome and any length of time is appreciated.  If
you can only watch at your feeder - great, your likely to get birds that
might not be seen in the woods.  The important thing is joining other
birders and having FUN.

Below you'll see the dates and contact information.  I'll update this list
as other dates are set.

Many of these counts really could use your help!!!!  Please consider doing
more than one count.

108  Christmas Bird Count

Count name – Date – Compiler - nearest town - Contact information.

Jonesboro - F 12/14 - Jim Bednarz – Jonesboro - jbednarz AT astate.edu
Arkadelphia - Sa 12/15 - Max Parker, Dolores Harrington - Arkadelphia -
max.parker AT earthlink.net 
or Dolores Harrigton 
Buffalo Nat River E - Sa 12/15 - Mark Robinson - Evening Star -
mark_robinson AT nps.gov 
Conway - Sa 12/15 - Martha Johnson - Conway - amjohnson AT conwaycorp.net

Fort Smith/ Moffett - Sa 12/15 - Bill Beall - Fort Smith -
billtoka AT mynewroads.com
Magnolia, Lake Columbia - Sa 12/15 - Sterling Lacey - Magnolia -
lklacy AT magnolia-net.com
Texarkana - Sa 12/15 - Don Kyle – Texarkana - adkyle AT earthlink.net
Fayetteville - Su 12/16 - Joe Neal, Mike Mlodinow - Fayetteville -
joecneal AT juno.com  or Mike Mlodinow mamlod AT hotmail.com -
Lonoke - Su 12/16 - Dan Scheiman - Lonoke - birddan AT comcast.net 
N Fork Il Bayou - Su 12/16 - John Andre - Hector - jandre AT fs.fed.us 
Hot Springs Village - M 12/17 - Lynn Sackett - Hot Springs Village -
tlsackett AT sbcglobal.net 
Mtn Home - M 12/17 - Sharon Boatright - Mtn Home - sharonb AT mtnhome.com

Big Lake NWR - Tu 12/18 -Allen Reams – Manila - alreams469 AT msn.com 
Bayou DeView - W 12/19 - Steve Osborne – Brinkley - steve_osborne AT fws.gov

Crooked Creek - W 12/19 - Sally Jo Gibson - Harrison - sjogibson AT alltel.net

Village Creek S.P. - W 12/19 - Vicki Trimble - Newcastle -
vicki.trimble AT arkansas.gov
Holla Bend NWR - Th 12/20 - Leif Anderson - Dardanelle -
Leanderson AT fs.fed.us 
Pine Bluff - F 12/28 - Rob Doster - Pine Bluff - rdoster AT uc.usbr.gov 
Little Rock - Sa 12/29 - Dan Scheiman - Little Rock - birddan AT comcast.net

Wapanocca NWR - Sa 12/29 - Dick Preston, Van Harris - Turrell -
dickpreston AT bigriver.net 
or Van Harris - shelbyforester1223 AT earthlink.net 
White River NWR - Sa 1/5 - Keith Sutton - St Charles -
catfishdude AT sbcglobal.net 

Hope to see you out, enjoying the birds, continuing the tradition.
Cheers, Leif A  AT Hector   Leanderson AT fs.fed.us