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Birding Trips and Birdwatching Tours in SC, Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Birding trips at Cape May New Jersey, Birding Trips in New Jersey, Birding Trips in SC, Birdwatching News, Biridng Trips and Tours in SC

Warbler Spring migration bird watching trips in North Carolina, South Carolina and New Jersey

By Sally Siko

The grass is greening up and the flowers are starting to bloom. Spring is on the way and with it, new species of warblers will soon be arriving in the eastern United States.
Soon the woods and fields will be filled with chirps, buzzes, trills and tweets as the birds sing in search of a mate and to establish nesting territories.

Warbler vocalizations fall into two categories – songs and calls. In general, we define bird song as a structured, usually complex vocalization serving either or both of two purposes – to defend territories and to attract mates.
Most of the songs are sung by the males, though females do also sing territorially or for pair bonding, especially in the tropics.
Generally their calls are usually shorter and structurally simpler, serving a wider range of functions, including courtship, signaling alarm, or communicating a change in location.



Interestingly, almost no songbirds know their songs by instinct. Rather, most need to learn to sing.
Warblers begin learning songs as nestlings by hearing the songs of adults nearby. In this way, song traditions (known to biologists as “memes”) are passed down in songbird neighborhoods from year to year.
In fact many warbler species have area-specific dialects.
Makes me wonder if our warblers have a southern accent lol!



I can’t wait for spring migration to kick off! It’s so much fun to lead my birding tours, showing off these beautiful feathered gems to my guests.
I’ve got 80 new tour dates available for booking in the Carolina’s as well as in eastern New Jersey and coastal Maine.
If you’d like to join me to go birding this spring, check out the calendar shown below for location and date information.


Feel free to send me an email if ya have any questions about upcoming trips too!
Happy birding-
Sally

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Birdwatching News

Spring bird watching tours in North Carolina

By Sally Siko

The first signs of spring are showing up here in NC. The grass is turning greener, the days are trending warmer and the daffodils will soon be in bloom.
This means that migration is right around the corner and with that, tons of new birds flying in to spend a few weeks or months on the Atlantic coast.



I want to see ALL the birds and can’t wait to share these birding experiences with my guests which is why I’m excited to offer a greatly expanded bird tour schedule in 2024.
80+ dates are now open for you to book a birding trip with me this year in North Carolina, South Carolina, Maine and New Jersey from now through late summer.



For details please check out the link below and if ya have any questions feel free to send me an email anytime!

Go Birding With Me: Best Life Birding Trips, Guided Group Birding Tours & Bird Photography Workshops


Happy birding,
Sally

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina

Tundra Swans in eastern NC

By Sally Siko

One of my favorite winter residents of NC is the Tundra Swan. Each November, thousands of them arrive in to spend the cooler months in our eastern counties.
They quickly fill up the impoundments and farm fields, hooting, honking and whistling, their calls can be heard from a mile away.



Tundra Swans nest in northern Alaska and in Canada’s Northwest Territories, Nunavut, northeastern Manitoba, northern Ontario, and northwestern Quebec.
Interestingly, Tundra Swans break off into 2 distinct groups of eastern and western migrating populations when traveling between breeding and wintering grounds.
 Swans that nest east of Point Hope in northern Alaska winter on the Atlantic coast, while birds breeding from Point Hope south & west winter along the Pacific.


It seems odd for the swans in the Coleville River region of Alaska to make such a long trip east which spans the United States when a flight due south/west to California is quite a bit closer.
 Whatever the reason, I’m glad they are here!

These impressive birds will stick around eastern North Carolina for a couple more weeks before heading north so you’ve still got time to enjoy them if ya get out there soon.

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birdwatching News, Field Notes

How to Use the eBird App- a Tutorial

By Sally Siko

Introduction:

eBird is a popular citizen science project developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society. It allows birdwatchers and nature enthusiasts to record their bird sightings, contribute to scientific research, and explore birding hotspots worldwide. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to use the eBird app to make the most of your birdwatching experience:

Step 1: Download and Install the eBird App

– Visit the App Store (for iOS devices) or Google Play Store (for Android devices).

– Search for “eBird” and download the app developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

– Install the app on your device.

Step 2: Create an Account

– Open the eBird app on your device.

– Tap on “Sign Up” or “Create Account” to register for a new account.

– Follow the on-screen prompts to enter your email address, create a password, and provide some basic information about yourself.

– Once you’ve completed the registration process, log in to your newly created eBird account.

Step 3: Explore Birding Hotspots

– Upon logging in, click on the magnifying glass icon at the bottom of the screen to bring up a map displaying birding hotspots in your area.

– Use the search bar to find specific locations or browse through the map to discover nearby birding sites.

– Tap on a hotspot to view more information, including recent sightings, species lists, and comments from other birders.

Step 4: Report Your Bird Sightings

– To report a bird sighting, tap on the “Submit” button located at the bottom of the screen.

– Select the date and location of your birding outing using the calendar and map interface.

– Enter the species you observed by typing the name or using the app’s built-in bird identification tool.

– Indicate the number of individuals observed and any additional comments or observations.

– Rare & previously unreported birds (indicated by red dot shown next to the bird’s name) will require checklist comments with species observations. Use descriptions like plumage color, behavior, size and song type.

– Review your checklist and tap “Submit” to upload your sighting to eBird’s database.

Step 5: Explore Your Personal Data

– Navigate to the “My eBird” section of the app to access your personal birding data.

– View your lifetime, year, month, or day lists to track your birding progress over time.

– Explore your personal statistics, including the number of species observed and your birding activity by location.

Step 6: Contribute to Science

– By reporting your bird sightings to eBird, you’re contributing valuable data to scientific research and conservation efforts.

– Your observations help researchers better understand bird populations, distributions, and migration patterns.

– Participate in eBird challenges and special projects to further contribute to ornithological science.

Step 7: Customize Your Settings

– Click on the three little dots in the bottom righthand corner of the screen to explore the app’s settings to customize your eBird experience.

– Adjust notification preferences, download regional species packs, map layers, and display options to suit your preferences.

– Keep the app updated to access the latest features and improvements.

Conclusion:

The eBird app is a powerful tool for birdwatchers of all skill levels, providing a platform to record, share, and explore bird sightings around the world. By following this tutorial, you can make the most of your birding adventures and contribute to the global community of citizen scientists working to conserve avian biodiversity. 

Happy birding!

Birdwatching News, Gifts for Birders and Bird watchers

Original painted North Carolina bird art by Best Life Birding guide Sally Siko is now availible

To purchase prints of my artwork check this link to visit my online gallery https://SallySiko.zenfolio.com/bestlifebirdingartbysallysiko

Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Enjoying the Boat-tailed Grackle in eastern NC

By Sally Siko

Though they are a common sight along North Carolina’s beaches, I love taking photos of the Boat-tailed Grackles.
I spotted this handsome fella snacking on some sort of crustacean while birding in the OBX this past weekend.
It was neat to watch him pick his way through the seaweed that had washed up on the cove. The waves crashing just inches away, the grackle remained unbothered as it finally found a meal and gulped it down.



Boat-tailed Grackles are a permanent resident of North Carolina boasting a wide range that stretches from the coastline of New York, down into Florida and into east Texas.
They are found almost always near sources of water such as wetlands and coastal marshes, waterfowl impoundments, lakes, rivers, both the Atlantic and Gulf beaches, ponds and mudflats.



These sharp looking members of the blackbird family are omnivorous with a diet of coastal fare that consists of mussels, shrimp, frogs, aquatic insects, snails, crayfish, and even crabs.
 When grabbing a meal away from the water, they will feed on grasshoppers, caterpillars, and the eggs of other birds.
 During the winter months, they will supplement their diet with different kinds of seeds and grain to make up for the protein loss that may occur when their favorite prey becomes scarce in cold weather. This is why you’re likely to see more of them at your feeders in the wintertime if you live on the east coast.
When this happens large flocks can quickly inundate a backyard and go through all the available bird seed in a flash.
For that reason some people consider them pests but I think they are beautiful!

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, North Carolina rare bird alert, Out There with the Expert

A Sedge Wren encounter in Durham NC

By Sally Siko

It’s been a good winter of birding so far.
Bird number 180 for the year appeared this morning in the form of a sweet looking Sedge Wren in Durham county NC.
My friend Corie and I spotted it next to a field flitting around in the tangled undergrowth of a sharp thorned bit of scrubby bush.
This little guy was (as is the case with many species of wrens) very, very vocal which made him easy to locate in the dense tangle.
Yet, actually getting a clean look at it (much less a photo lol) was difficult at best.

The problem was that the bird hardly sat still for more than three seconds. Making matters worse, in addition to all of the twigs and leaves between my lens and the bird, the light was very harsh with dark shadows, and blown highlights.
I really tested the limits of my @canonusa R5’s animal eye focus detection lol!
It took us around 45 minutes of waiting for the bird to pop out of the center of the bush, and even then there was always a twig or a leaf partially concealing the view.
In the end I was satisfied with the photos I was lucky to snap and grateful for the opportunity to even see this bird at all.
Success lol!



Sedge Wrens are a winter resident of North Carolina in our eastern counties.
Here in central NC, they are considered a rare sight so spotting one in the Durham area was a real treat.
They are best found in transitional areas where marshes blend into open fields and especially where there are patches of brush for them to hide and stalk prey.

Once called the Short-billed Marsh Wren, these birds are similar looking to the Carolina and Marsh Wrens we’ve got in NC.
Measuring about 4.5in long, Sedge wrens are streaked with black and brown plumage.
They’ve got white bellies and throats, with soft brown buff coloring on the sides and breasts.
Their tails have a black barring pattern on the topside.
What really stands out though is that bill which is noticeably shorter than that of its relatives.
What a cutie!
If you’d like to see this bird for yourself, I’ve attached a screenshot of the birds location.
I hope that you get to see it too 🙂

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Eastern Bluebirds in central NC

By Sally Siko

While searching for Short eared Owls last week in Guilford County, I spotted a flock of a couple hundred Eastern Bluebirds that had taken control of the fields across from the GCF.
Walking through the grass, the Bluebirds were everywhere. Fluttering up ahead of me with each step, soaring low overhead as they searched the area for breakfast.
That vibrant blue color of their plumage really popped out against the warm toned sunlit grass!



Though they are indeed a common sight here in NC, I was happy to pause looking for the owls to snap off a couple photos of the Bluebirds instead.
It was fun to try and set my exposures juuuust right in order to capture those colors. Though many were hunkered down low, happily a couple of the Bluebirds obliged by posing oh so sweetly in the tall grass.
A nice reminder that while birding with a camera in hand, sometimes it’s about capturing the beauty of the moment rather than the rarity of the bird so time well spent IMO 😉


Now that winter is here, families of Bluebirds will form loose flocks to hunt for a meal over open fields, in agricultural areas as well as in stands of long leaf pines with other songbirds such as sparrows, Nuthatches and Pine Warblers.
They are true omnivores with a diet consisting of a mix of seeds, insects and fruits. Being able to digest nutrients from a wide variety of food sources means that the Eastern Bluebird can thrive here in North Carolina even during the coldest months when insects are scarce.
Plus the extra help that bird lovers provide by putting out suet (another favorite Bluebird snack) in their feeders during the wintertime helps a whole lot too 🙂

Photos by Sally Siko of @bestlife_birding captured on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birding Trips and Birdwatching Tours in SC, Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Birding Trips in SC, Biridng Trips and Tours in SC

Why are Painted Buntings so colorful?

By Sally Siko

With every color of the rainbow showing in his plumage, the Painted Bunting is truly a stunning bird to photograph and see in real life.


But what makes the male Painted Buntings plumage so vibrant?
 As it turns out, it’s a combination of feather structure and three pigments which contribute to the colorful feathers found on these handsome birds: melanin, carotenoids and porphyrins.



*Melanin-Naturally produced by the birds displays as black, brown, red and pale yellow in feathers.



* Carotenoids- Birds which display the reds, oranges and yellows in their plumage is attributed to carotenoids when they eat specific plants or insects, like spiders or grasshoppers, which eat the carotenoids the birds need for their feather colors.



* Porphyrins- A modified amino acid producing pink, brown, red and green pigmentation.



*Feather structure-That bright blue to violet head color is actually a trick of the light.
When sunlight passes through certain proteins and pockets of air trapped between feather barbules — tiny filaments extending from the barbs of a feather — it refracts, just like light passing through a prism.



Unfortunately since winter is here, most of the Painted Buntings have migrated south.
They will return to North & South Carolina in May and stick around through September-ish.
Look for these guys in our coastal areas in scrubby wet habitats, in the scrub brush just behind the sand dune line, at the edges of woods and flying over open tall-grass fields.

Btw, I’m planning on heading back out later this year to share these beauties with my tour guests so I’ve added new trips in 2024 to find the Painted Bunting in NC & SC.
If you’d like to join me, check out the link in my bio for more info and available group tour dates or feel free to shoot me a DM anytime if ya have any questions 🙂

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birdwatching News, North Carolina rare bird alert

Rare bird alert NC- A Sedge Wren in Durham

By Sally Siko

It’s been a good winter of birding so far.
Bird number 180 for the year appeared this morning in the form of a sweet looking Sedge Wren in Durham county NC.
My friend Corie and I spotted it next to a field flitting around in the tangled undergrowth of a sharp thorned bit of scrubby bush. 
This little guy was (as is the case with many species of wrens) very, very vocal which made him easy to locate in the dense tangle. 
Yet, actually getting a clean look at it (much less a decent photo lol) was difficult at best.



The problem was that the bird hardly sat still for more than three seconds. Making matters worse, in addition to all of the twigs and leaves between my lens and the bird, the light was very harsh with dark shadows, and blown highlights.
It took us around 45 minutes of waiting for the bird to pop out of the center of the bush, and even then there was always a twig or a leaf partially concealing the view.
In the end I was satisfied with the photos I was lucky to snap and grateful for the opportunity to even see this bird at all.
Success lol!


Sedge Wrens are a winter resident of North Carolina in our eastern counties.
Here in central NC, they are considered a rare sight so spotting one in the Durham area was a real treat.
They are best found in transitional areas where marshes blend into open fields and especially where there are patches of brush for them to hide and stalk prey.

Once called the Short-billed Marsh Wren, these birds are similar looking to the Carolina and Marsh Wrens we’ve got in NC.
Measuring about 4.5in long, Sedge wrens are streaked with black and brown plumage. 
They’ve got white bellies and throats, with soft brown buff coloring on the sides and breasts.
Their tails have a black barring pattern on the topside.
What really stands out though is that bill which is noticeably shorter than that of its relatives.
What a cutie!
If you’d like to see this bird for yourself, I’ve attached a Google Maps pin to the birds location.
I hope that you get to see it too 🙂 

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa  #R5