Birdwatching

[bettaowner]

I just went to my old middle school yesterday which is near a forested community. Around 5:30 pm I heard a bird call I couldn't identify. I never heard anything like it. Could have been a native species. There's a few hiking trails really close to a marine preserve on my island. It's densely foliated and there are lots of small ponds in the area. If I can get up there this winter when it's wet and rainy, I bet I'll get to see some native birds or even native gobies. Some family friends of mine have a beach house and I've seen lots of sea birds.


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[NatureFish]

I just went to my old middle school yesterday which is near a forested community. Around 5:30 pm I heard a bird call I couldn't identify. I never heard anything like it. Could have been a native species. There's a few hiking trails really close to a marine preserve on my island. It's densely foliated and there are lots of small ponds in the area. If I can get up there this winter when it's wet and rainy, I bet I'll get to see some native birds or even native gobies. Some family friends of mine have a beach house and I've seen lots of sea birds.


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Take pictures! It would be really cool if you could use a water proof camera and get a video of some birds catching fish underwater!


NatureFish
????

 

[bettaowner]

When it rains hard near my house, small marshes are formed and groups of Hawaiian stilts hang around the area to feed on dragon fly larvae.

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[dragon14]

Watched a mature Bald Eagle soaring around in town over the river, it was beautiful and you can't mistake that head and tail! Such an exciting thing. Was picking up a quick few items from the lfs. And got to watch that for about 5 minutes before I had to leave for an appointment!

That's fantastic!!! We saw a Bald Eagle fishing close up last year, it was amazing. And I saw one fly over head on my way into work one day. Fantastic.

 

[dragon14]

I just went to my old middle school yesterday which is near a forested community. Around 5:30 pm I heard a bird call I couldn't identify. I never heard anything like it. Could have been a native species. There's a few hiking trails really close to a marine preserve on my island. It's densely foliated and there are lots of small ponds in the area. If I can get up there this winter when it's wet and rainy, I bet I'll get to see some native birds or even native gobies. Some family friends of mine have a beach house and I've seen lots of sea birds.


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That's awesome! I love hearing/seeing new bird species

 

[bettaowner]

Recently I heard another bird call that didn't sound like any common species found in hawaii. It had an almost bubbly tone and when I looked up I saw a group of maybe five or more birds. It was still a little dark but I could make out the shape and I think they were some kind of parrot.


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[Autumnsky]

Recently I heard another bird call that didn't sound like any common species found in hawaii. It had an almost bubbly tone and when I looked up I saw a group of maybe five or more birds. It was still a little dark but I could make out the shape and I think they were some kind of parrot.


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Would that be from an escape of "domesticated" birds? There are lots of areas now, in Long Beach California there were bunches of flocks of parrots and parrot type birds which had got loose from the import ships.

I used to have an big blue English Budgie which came to eat at my bird feeder every day when I lived in Cali. He didn't want to be caught!

 

[bettaowner]

They probably were released recently by someone in the area. I was at school and there are lots of homes in the area. There is a forest very close by in fact I saw a young pig on campus that probably came from that area. I'm sure the bird didn't come from there because I went hiking on that trail in the summer and I didn't see much bird life.


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[Alan79]

I don't really know the birds you guys are talking about. Different continent and all that but it's interesting to hear your stories.

I love watching birds. I can even mimic quite a lot of bird calls. Most only use a few notes so the trick is knowing how to move your tongue to make the notes in order. If you learn a birds calls you can summon some wild birds.

I work in a tomato glasshouse that has between 1-3 nesting pairs of Willie wagtails every year. We grow tomtoes year round in a climate where the winters are chilly so the birds love the heat of the glasshouse. A year or two back i had a nest in my section that i had to work near so i learned their call to try and put them at ease. They come to greet me when i whistle their tune most mornings now and sometimes have long range whistle offs ( i whistle they answer, i whistle again etc) that can last for half an hour or more and i usually have to stop. I wear a unique hat and they sometimes spot me and visit even if im not whistling. They did not want much to do with me until i had perfected their whistle. Usually when someone gets close to their nest they "chitter" at them until they go away but the wagtails at work never chitter at me anymore. Since i learned to make their whistle i can summon other Willie wagtails when i walk in the park (i have to be near a creek usually though). Summoning these cute little birds is probably my coolest trick IMO. It gives me the biggest smile when i've sat whistling in the park to get an answer and a visit from one of these little guys.

I have some 'pet' magpies that i feed mince to as well. I used to just have the mother show up on occasion but she bought along a pair of babies last year and they like my restaurant enough to return every day. One of them will take mince out of my hand and sit 1-2 meters away to eat it. Shadow as i call it follows me around when i go outside and gurgles at me if i haven't fed it. He's quiet once he/she has been fed. I have never seen a wild bird less scared of a man pegging out laundry. They're a really smart bird but demanding. If they hear me making noise in the house they will make their calls until i come outside. I can imitate their gurgle which is their intimate call. When i make this noise they come close or show a lot of curiosity if they don't know me. They have separate warning cries for ground and aerial predators and a third call for humans. Magpies have a bad reputation for swooping but i've found that making their intimate gurgle when they start their "human approaching" call turns their fear into curiosity. I have not been swooped since i learned this little trick.

I also feed bread in my back yard and get a decent assortment of birds show up for that. I should buy some seed trays to hang in the yard.

Edit- If i remember tomorrow i will try and get a picture of shadow eating from my hand.