Field Notes Update

Brown Thrashers & Berries /  by Todd Henson

A pair of brown thrashers eating berries.

I’m very rarely able to photograph the elusive brown thrasher. Most often I only hear them and perhaps, if lucky, catch a brief glimpse of that distinctive body shape and brown coloration, with their beautiful and expressive yellow eyes. But before I raise the camera to my eye they’re gone, back into the dense thickets where they most often hide. But they don’t go far. They can still see me, making noises, and only occasionally peeking from between branches to get a better look before hopping back in again, hidden to my view.

A curious brown thrasher, peeking around a branch, beak stained with berry juice.

So I was extraordinarily pleased to find this pair of brown thrashers feasting on ripening berries in trees one year in early June. They were so determined to feed they allowed themselves to be not only observed, but photographed. I now have incontrovertible proof this elusive bird really exists! The brown thrasher is real!

I’m watching you! A brown thrasher peering this way with those distinctive eyes.

Ok, all joking aside, these really are elusive birds, and they really do typically hide just out of my view. These are some of the few photographs I have of these beautiful birds. And though I’m very pleased to have them I’m still always on the lookout for brown thrashers, hoping I’ll get better views, that they’ll allow me to capture and share images of them with all of you, as this couple did, if only for a brief time while they gorged themselves on berries, always keeping their eyes on me to assure I didn’t approach too close.

A brown thrasher in a tree where it’s been eating berries.

Have you had any encounters with brown thrashers? They are found mostly in the eastern and mid US and a short ways into Canada. If you’re in this area keep your eyes peeled and maybe you’ll see one. Let me know if you do.

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Spotted Sandpiper Along Rocky Shoreline /  by Todd Henson

A spotted sandpiper posing for the camera.

Shorebirds can be a lot of fun to observe and have such a distinctive look they can usually be easily identified as shorebirds. Of course, identifying which shorebird species they are can sometimes be more of a challenge, though not with today’s subject, the spotted sandpiper. It might have been a little more challenging if this were a non-breeding bird as then it wouldn’t have had the distinctive black spots all along its chest. Helping with the ID is its dark tipped orange bill and short yellow legs.

The spotted sandpiper looking for food along the shore.

This particular spotted sandpiper was observed a number of years ago in the first days of May walking along the rocky shoreline of a local wildlife refuge. I was hiking the trail parallel to the shore and happened to be going the same direction as the sandpiper. It was funny how it had a very specific personal space, rather large, and each time I entered that space it would run a bit further ahead. I kept trying to move a little closer, hoping to fill the frame without needing to crop the photos later, but it wasn’t quite comfortable enough with me to allow that. So I quickly learned the distance it was comfortable with and attempted to stay just outside that range, allowing it to move forward at its own pace, me following behind as it moved down the shoreline and I followed the path, two strangers for a brief time traveling together.

Sometimes the spotted sandpiper appeared curious about me.

Sometimes the sandpiper didn’t seem to care about me at all.

I could see what I interpreted as a bit of curiosity in the bird as it would sometimes tilt its head towards me and watch. It didn’t appear to feel threatened as it never flew away. I think it was just keeping watch to be sure I didn’t get too close. If I kept my distance it was ok sharing this stretch of trail and shoreline with me. But this did bring to mind how often we feel the urge to give different species human characteristics they may or may not actually have. Curiosity, for example. Perhaps it did, in fact, have a simple sense of curiosity. Or perhaps what appeared to be curiosity was just its survival instinct, knowing it had to keep a distance from potential threats, enough distance to give it time to launch itself into the air and fly away, if needed. Either way, it awakened my own sense of curiosity as I followed and observed this wonderful little bird. And for that, I’m thankful.

Spotted sandpiper on the rocks.

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The Building of a Doomed Nest /  by Todd Henson

An osprey returns to find the previous years nesting site destroyed by strong storms.

It’s early March as I write this, and having been out hiking and driving near the bay this weekend I’m realizing it’s almost time for the osprey to return and begin nesting. Each year they arrive in Northern Virginia in early spring to freshen up existing nests or build new ones. They stay through the summer raising the next generation, before once again heading south to warmer waters.

Branch in talons, the osprey surveys the surrounding area.

Returning osprey most often reuse the same nest from the previous season. It saves them a lot of work. They just need to repair any damage that’s occurred since they left, adding a new layer of nesting material. But sometimes they return to find their nest gone. This weeks post looks at such a situation.

Wings extended, the osprey flies back to its nest site with a new branch.

This pair of osprey had, many years back, found a perfect nest location, the top of a duck hunters blind sitting in the waters of the bay just offshore of a wildlife refuge. Year after year they returned and reused this location. In some years there might be a horrendous storm that blew the nest apart, but most years the osprey were successful in raising their young.

The osprey lifts off after dropping another branch on the doomed nest.

This particular year, though, they returned to find not only the nest, but the entire hunters blind destroyed. Strong storms had collapsed the structure, leaving just a small pile of boards sticking out of the water. But being very persistent and tenacious, the osprey attempted to rebuild the nest upon their return that spring.

This photo shows how close civilization is, with large expensive homes along the distant shoreline, as the osprey flies in with another branch.

These photos show one of the osprey pair attempting to build the nest before its mate returned to the area. Unfortunately, the entire process was doomed to failure. There just wasn’t enough of the structure left to provide a suitable base for the nest. And the collapsed blind was too close to the water. We can get some strong storm surges in this area that would easily engulf the new nest.

Wings extended, the osprey lands atop the collapsed duck blind with a branch.

I don’t know where this specific pair of osprey ended up nesting after this failed attempt, so I also don’t know if they were successful that year. But given nature’s strong push to survive and reproduce I’m hopeful they made a successful go of it. The surrounding area is always home to many nests of these miraculous birds, and I hope it stays that way. I return each year to observe the osprey, and look forward to doing the same this year.

In this photo we see the osprey flying in with another branch, with the houses on the distant shore and a couple people fishing from a boat in the waters of the bay.

Looking back, though, I do miss that location. It was very close to the path along the shore, so us photographers and nature enthusiasts had great opportunities to observe nesting osprey behavior up close. I recall watching young osprey being fed and attempting to fledge from that nest. I’ve not yet found a site as perfect as that one, but I keep looking, and hoping.

Zoomed out a little, we can see how little remains of the duck blind as the osprey attempts to rebuild a nest that will never produce any young.

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