From: Karen Markey To: birders@umich.edu Subject: [birders] Kirtland's Warbler Census Diary 2009: An Explosive Start (Part 1 of 3) Date sent: Mon, 15 Jun 2009 05:52:30 -0400 Send reply to: Karen Markey I am reporting my participation in the Kirtland's Warbler (KW) Census. This is my 7th year as a volunteer on the Mio Team that is made up of U. S. Forest Service (USFS) staff and dedicated citizens. Every year from June 6 to 12, the Team surveys federal and state jack pine forests. Some people volunteer for a few days, others, like me, volunteer for a full week. Here is the first installment of a daily account of my experiences on the 2009 census: Day 0 (Friday, June 5), Drive to MIO I get an early start on my trip north to Mio, Michigan, a 3-hour drive from my home on Ann Arbor’s northeast side. I marvel at my first "road bird" -- a Pileated woodpecker flying eastbound over US-23 at the 6 Mile Road exit. I rush through my favorite outlet stores at Birch Run so I can arrive at the Holiday Motor-In before dinnertime. We census- takers stay here because the price is right at the federal rate of about $245 for a 1-week stay. I go to dinner alone at the Rustic Inn about 15 miles northwest of Mio (on route 489, the road to Lewiston). The specials at this time of year always include my favorite pan-fried walleye. The proprietor and I talk about the hard winter, foreclosures, and purchase of the nearby Garland Resort. Back at the motel, I learn from the Weather Channel that cool and stormy weather will prevail for the next week. Day 1 (Saturday, June 6), PINE RIVER I awaken artificially to a screaming alarm clock at 3:50 am. It is cool and clear outside. Starting the census with PINE RIVER is difficult because it is a 45-minute drive and I am not used to rising so early in the morning. At the PINE RIVER campgrounds, Paul, the USFS wildlife biologist who coordinates this area of the KW census, assigns us our transects and census teams. Today Joe and Stacey accompany me. Both have had UXB training. (Evidently this area was bombed during wartime training missions in the 1940s.) Joe tells me that on one day he found 2 unexploded bombs on his trek through the forest, called the Michigan State Bomb Squad who prepared the bombs for detonation, and pushed the trigger that exploded the bombs. On a less explosive note, I am certifying Joe so I let him navigate the GPS, listen, triangulate, and mark singing KWs on the map. Joe is very quietly competent, efficient, and matter-of-fact about the task. After a cool start, it is warm and comfortable, and our two 1-mile- long transects are easy to negotiate due to dry conditions and young jack pines. The jack pines emit clouds of yellow pollen as we brush past their long branches. 3 of the 5 KWs we count today are on our transect. They pop into view, and sing their distinctive "choo-choo- chee-chee-wee-wee" song. What a great day! Day 2 (Sunday, June 7), PINE RIVER I awaken 1 minute before the alarm clock screams at 3:50 am. How can the weather change so quickly from warm and clear to cold and wet? I dress in layers ending with rain suit on top. Again Joe and Stacey accompany me. Delegating everything to Joe so he can pass KW certification, I deal with the elements -- light rain, cold, wet pine and oak branches, and uneven terrain. On our first 1- mile transect, the KW habitat is perfect with bushy trees 5 to 7 feet high. A KW is on our transect, I pish softly to pique his interest, and he responds by perching hardly 10 feet away, wagging his tail, and singing repeatedly. He is so close that we don't need binoculars. It is hard to drag ourselves away from him. A second KW is on our transect. It is deja vu all over again. I pish, he responds by perching hardly 10 feet away, and singing repeatedly. No binoculars needed. Very cool! When we start our 2nd transect, the rain stops but the overcast continues. My rain gear keeps me dry but my new hiking boots are soaked and my hands are wet and cold. We hear only 2 KWs in this older jack pine. Just like last year, a Scarlet tanager serenades us at the wood margin. Joe shows us 2 white eggs with pink blotches lying on the ground. In this same area last year, we flushed a Common nighthawk from the nest. Our group fills the wee "Chat and Chew" in Glennie for breakfast at lunch-time. I can't wait for a shower and clean clothes. I report to Paul that Joe excels in every aspect of the KW census. For readers unfamiliar with the KW census, let me quickly review how we census the jack pine forests. The KW Census Coordinator assigns a KW Section Leader maps through which are drawn 2 to 4 parallel transects (transect=a path that cuts through the forest) separated by about a quarter mile. 2- or 3-person teams walk parallel transects at the same time. When we are done, we compare the locations of singing KWs with adjacent teams. We decide which birds are “duplicates” and one of the teams omits the “duplicate” bird from their map. The Section Leader then consolidates bird locations onto 1 map and returns it to the Census Coordinators. A transect is rarely a road or two-track; it is usually a line drawn on a map through a jack pine forest that teams navigate with map, compass, and GPS in hand. We stop at 10-chain (1/8 of a mile) intervals to listen for singing male KWs and use a compass to triangulate the location of a singing KW on the map. Singing KWs are audible a little beyond 1/8 of a mile. If we catches glimpses of a singing KW, we look at its legs for bands. I resist leaving the transect to search for a singing KW because KWs nest on the ground and I do not want to step on a nest. Tomorrow, I will continue this 2009 Kirtland's Warbler diary with days 3 through 5. * * * * * * * * * * * * * Karen Markey Professor School of Information, 304 West Hall, 1085 S. Univ. Ave. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107 USA Voice: 1-734-763-3581; Fax: 1-734-764-2475 Email: ylime@umich.edu Web site: http://www.si.umich.edu/~ylime/index.html ====================================================================== From: Karen Markey To: birders@umich.edu Subject: [birders] Kirtland's Warbler Census Diary 2009: Rain Please Go Away (Part 2 of 3) Date sent: Tue, 16 Jun 2009 06:31:07 -0400 Send reply to: Karen Markey Here is the second installment of a daily account of my experiences on the 2009 Kirtland's Warbler Census: Day 3 (Monday, June 8), BIG CREEK Hooray! I can sleep in to 4:10 am today because we are scheduled to census nearby Big Creek, southwest of Mio. Oh no! On weather radar is a huge dark green splotch with yellow highlights headed toward Mio. At the morning briefing, KW Census Coordinator Phil Huber estimates we may be able to finish 1 of our 2 transects today due to the rain. He introduces Detroit Free Press columnist Barb Arrigo who is featuring the Kirtland's Warbler Census in this week's Freep blog and column. I lament that Barb has chosen a census day with such inclement weather. I am paired with Stuart, a retired tax attorney from Northern Virginia who, like KWs, summers in Michigan. The rain begins as we start our first transect bearing young, easy-to-navigate jack pines. This is a splendid location -- we hear KWs all around us. I pish softly in the direction of a nearby KW. I don't bother to dig out my binoculars under my rain gear because the KW perches hardly 10 feet away and I can see him without optics. The rain falls harder and harder drowning out singing KWs, Brown thrashers, Hermit thrushes, and the other species that reside here. At 7:45 am, thunder threatens in the distance. Stuart and I leave our transect, hike to the truck, and join the others at the Branch Cafe where we enjoy our first-ever breakfast at breakfast time. While the rain falls hard and steady all afternoon, I draft my blog entry for the KW census and ask fellow census volunteers Larry and Don (both teach forestry at Michigan State) to comment on my draft. The rain finally tapers off as we head to dinner at a mediocre pizza-and- beer joint north of MI-72 on Mapes Road. Day 4 (Tuesday, June 9) MACK LAKE Mack Lake mornings usually mean spectacular sunrises but it is cloudy this morning, and more rain is in the forecast. Phil assigns us a section in the "No Pablo Burn." I am paired with Katherine, a summer intern and Wittenburg University sophomore, to whom I delegate navigation through the forest. Named for Pablo, a veteran fire crewman who was unable to fight the wildfire that burned this area in 2000, this forest features natural regeneration. The first quarter-mile is easy because the trees are short and thin. The next three-quarters are difficult due to our need to avoid fallen timber, watch for animal burrows, and navigate dense jack pines. I am glad we have GPS in hand and don't have to pace this forest because navigating the furrows and fallen timber would make pacing very inaccurate. All 5 KWs we hear are in the first third of our transect. Our second transect traverses terraced valleys and shorter 4- to 5- foot trees. The birds are elusive, but we see one hovering close to the ground, maybe it is a female. Unfortunately, she does not come into view and we back off not wanting to disturb a nest. Approaching the end of our transect, I hear a bird singing an unusual song, lusty but hardly KW-like. Increasingly I make out that this is a KW. I pish lightly, he comes into view, bands too! White and orange bands on the right, metal and deep blue bands on left. Katherine is very pleased because she is seeing her first KW. In the afternoon, I post my blog to the Detroit Free Press. Barb wants several different perspectives on the census. Read the Freep blogs on these topics: General overview on KWs (Christie Deloria-Sheffield, US Fish & Wildlife Service): http://www.freep.com/article/20090608/BLOG2506/90608030/1068/OPINION Census volunteers (Karen Markey, volunteer): http://www.freep.com/article/20090609/BLOG2506/90609060/1068/OPINION Coordinating the census and census personnel (Phil Huber, US Forest Service): http://www.freep.com/article/20090610/BLOG2506/90610043/1068/opinion Cowbird control (Chris Mensing, US Fish & Wildlife Service): http://www.freep.com/article/20090611/BLOG2506/90611060/1068/OPINION/A+num ber+like+no+other Observations of a beginning census-taker (Barb Arrigo, Free Press Columnist): http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009906120343 KWs in the Bahamas (Barb Arrigo with Scott Johnson, KW intern from the Bahamas): http://www.freep.com/article/20090612/BLOG2501/90611097 Of the out-of-town volunteers, only Michigan-Stater Don and I remain. We head north to the Lewiston Lodge for dinner. Enjoying the lakeside view, we are surprised when Phil Huber and Bill Jarvis ask to join us. Bill preceded Phil at the U.S. Forest Service, and is responsible for instituting much of what we do on the census. What a treat! Day 5 (Wednesday, June 10) BIG CREEK Incredulous that fair weather is predicted, I check the Weather Channel before leaving the motel. Yet again, a huge green blotch sits atop the mitt. Driving to Big Creek, we encounter no rain so radar must be registering virga. I am paired with Allie, a summer intern and Wittenburg University senior. We finish the half mile that Stuart and I failed to complete 2 days ago. Broken clouds give way to unobstructed sunshine. I hear what sounds like a Red-headed woodpecker but dismiss it so I can focus on KWs. My eye catches sight of a big woodpecker perched on a bare tree snag. Wow! It is a Red-headed woodpecker, one of my favorite birds. Adjacent to this jack pine plantation must be a wetlands because I hear Common yellowthroats, Yellow warblers, Canada geese, and other birds that are rare in jack pines. Of the 5 KWs we hear, 3 are on our transect, and we see all 3. One perches on a dead tree snag and sings. A second sings atop a pine, then perches in a dead tree snag straight above our heads. I can't recall details about the third. On this morning, it is raining KWs! Stopping us on the drive to our second transect is a doe whose Bambi- like fawn nurses in the middle of the road. We wait patiently and continue to the blow-down, where the transect is a sandy road. Periodically, we walk into the field to listen for singing KWs. No KWs here, just Indigo buntings, Vesper and Field Sparrows. The sun warms us, and, for the first time in 4 days, I take off my rain gear. We motor into town and meet the others for breakfast at the Branch Cafe. In the afternoon, I drive to Wakeley Lake, a federal reserve on MI-72 about 8 miles east of Grayling. I walk the trail that borders the southwest side of the lake. In view are a pair of loons. Mom stays afloat with baby beside her while Dad dives for dinner. I walk about 5 miles of trails and expect to see Least flycatcher, Yellow-bellied sapsuckers, Red-breasted nuthatches, American redstarts, Pine warblers, and much more. Periodically the sound of calling loons merges with sound of prevailing winds. Tomorrow, I will finish my 2009 Kirtland's Warbler diary with day 6 and a list of birds seen and heard. * * * * * * * * * * * * * Karen Markey Professor School of Information, 304 West Hall, 1085 S. Univ. Ave. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107 USA Voice: 1-734-763-3581; Fax: 1-734-764-2475 Email: ylime@umich.edu Web site: http://www.si.umich.edu/~ylime/index.html ====================================================================== From: Karen Markey To: birders@umich.edu Subject: [birders] Kirtland's Warbler Census Diary 2009: 1 or More Kirtland's a Day! (Part 3 of 3) Date sent: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 06:40:12 -0400 Send reply to: Karen Markey Here is the final installment of a daily account of my experiences on the 2009 Kirtland's Warbler Census: Day 6 (Thursday, June 11), OGEMAW COUNTY Today we are helping Michigan-DNR census state land. Dry, cool conditions make for a perfect morning. I partner with Stuart again, and our transect covers 1 mile. The trees are low with many open areas, and the terrain is even with subtle peaks and valleys. Despite hearing a KW a few feet away, the bird refuses to be seen. Our final KW is almost as elusive. Struggling to see him, we catch glimpses. He sports maize and blue bands on 1 leg and won't give us a clear view of the other (perhaps a perverse bander put green and white bands on the other and he is reluctant to show them). Shuttling into trucks, we pass a field where teams report 6 Upland sandpipers frolicking atop bare snags, 1 Upland remains and puts on a show. I return to the motel, take a quick shower, dress in "city" clothes, finish packing suitcases and car, and join census-takers eating lunch at the Branch Cafe in Mio. I wolf down lunch and say goodbye. As I drive south on MI-33, I contemplate what it all means to me -- the joy of seeing a KW, the thrill of taking in the sounds of the jack pine forest, the benefits of renewing friendships with kindred spirits who are dedicated to saving the Kirtland's warbler, and the satisfaction of contributing to the global conservation effort. Total KWs Seen and/or Heard My personal subtotal A (male KWs heard only) = 33 My personal subtotal B (male KWs seen) = 11 My personal subtotal C (female KWs seen) = 1? My personal KW TOTAL = 45 Birds Seen and/or Heard Here is a list of the birds I saw or heard during my trip north. Birds marked with a "k" indicate ones that I hear in jack pine forests. By the way, birds such as Scarlet Tanagers, Red-eyed vireos, and Rose- breasted grosbeaks are not unusual on transects that include wooded ravines, wood margins, or neighboring wetlands. Other birds such as Common loons, Pileated woodpeckers, Alder flycatcher, Golden-winged and Mourning warblers, I see or hear on my afternoon walks in various parks, woods, and reserves. Birds marked with an "h" indicate birds I heard but did not see. This is the first year I have seen 1 or more KWs everyday! Common loons Canada geese Ring-billed gull k Great blue heron Great egret Common ravens k Wild turkeys Upland sandpiper k Killdeer American kestral k Turkey vulture k Common nighthawk k Belted kingfisher Pileated woodpecker h Red-headed woodpecker k Common flicker k Yellow-bellied sapsucker k Red-bellied woodpecker k Downy woodpecker k, h Hairy woodpecker k Northern flickers k Great crested flycatchers h Eastern wood-pewee k Alder flycatcher h Least flycatcher h Eastern kingbirds Red-eyed vireos k American crow k Northern raven k Blue jay k Red-breasted nuthatches k Black-capped chickadees Brown creeper Winter wren h Bluebirds k American robin Hermit thrushes (very common in Jack Pines) Brown thrashers (very common in Jack Pines) Cedar waxwings Red-eyed vireos Nashville warblers (very common in Jack Pines) Black-throated green warblers h Yellow-rumped warblers k Kirtland's warblers k American redstarts Chestnut-sided warbler Pine warblers k Yellow warblers Mourning warbler h Golden-winged warbler h Ovenbirds h (typical in older jack pine) Common yellowthroats k, h Scarlet tanagers k, h Rose-breasted grosbeaks k Indigo buntings Eastern towhees k Chipping sparrows k Clay-colored sparrows k Field sparrows k Vesper sparrows k Lincoln's sparrows k White-throated sparrows h Swamp sparrow Dark-eyed juncos k Baltimore orioles Brewer's blackbirds k Brown-headed cowbirds k American goldfinches k * * * * * * * * * * * Karen Markey Professor School of Information, 304 West Hall, 1085 S. Univ. Ave. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107 USA Voice: 1-734-763-3581; Fax: 1-734-764-2475 Email: ylime@umich.edu Web site: http://www.si.umich.edu/~ylime/index.html