Follow that bird!

During the last few months I spent some quality time at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. Even though my visit was in the name of research, the refuge is a place I’ve enjoyed visiting in the past. Years ago, when I was having some turbulence in my own life, I remember going to the refuge for some much needed peace and quiet. As the wetlands are the backdrop for my next novel, I found it only fitting to revisit the place that inspired me so many years ago.

At the risk of sounding cheesy, the refuge is a magical place. Although it’s parallel to the busy I-5 freeway, once you step out of your car it feels like you’ve entered a different world far from people and the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Geese fly overhead in alarming numbers and the sounds of dozens of different species of birds and waterfowl mingle together to create beautiful music not found in the city or suburbs.

Whether you’re walking the trails or driving through the auto tour, you can’t help but feel like you’re the only person on earth. It’s the perfect place to get away to when you’re looking to reconnect with nature.

Life’s problems seem insignificant when there’s such an awesome ecosystem surrounding you. You’re reminded of how thousands of birds travel thousands of miles during migration, fending for themselves in life or death situations. The sky seems a little bit bigger, the air cleaner and your own breathing a little bit calmer. It’s definitely a stark reminder that there are things out there that are bigger than you.

Do you have a favorite place to go to when you need perspective?

In the coming weeks, I'll be announcing the title of the next book in the Razors Ice series so be sure to subscribe to my author Blog and follow me on Twitter so you don't miss out!

Talk to you soon,
 

For more about SNWR, visit http://www.fws.gov/refuge/sacramento/ and Like their page on Facebook, too.

What October Looks Like

Video taken at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge:

The Ever Elusive Wood Duck

We are sure never disappointed after a trip to the refuges. We saw about six new species today. We heard a Common Loon, but didn't see one yet. Those and the Wood Ducks we have yet to see. Someday.

We saw a flock of pelicans, coots, egrets, shovelers, Great Blue Herons, and thousands of Snow and Ross's Geese. There were so many geese that the sky and water were filled with them. They're very noisy, too! We saw mallards, Connamon Teals and Wigeons. We saw five turkey vultures eating a carcass. They were ugly and frightening, especially when they started circling the truck!

We saw two Common Moorhens for the first time. They look totally different walking than they do swimming, like chickens with roadrunner legs.

There were a few Buffleheads. They are very distinct, black and white and have huge white heads. We saw lots of Black-crowned Night Herons hiding in the bushes along the riverbank. They looked like juveniles because they were brown with stripes. There were at least twenty that we could see, poking out of the brush.

We saw lots of hawks flying overhead and perched in trees. They were probably Coopers, Swainsons, and definitely Red-tailed. I also saw a praying mantis. But it wasn't green, it was brown and looked like a stick.

Every time we go it's an adventure!!

Wait, where did you come from???

I was just going through some pictures we got back from when we went to the bird place last. I noticed a new species that I didn't even know we had seen. We saw of ton of Northern Pintails and didn't even know it. When you're there, you see so much at once that it's hard to identify everything.

I'm sure glad I was studying those pictures!

Back Again

We finally went to the bird place for the first time in months! It was awesome and we saw much more than I'd expected. All of the marsh hasn't yet filled up with water, but should be in a matter of weeks.

There were thousands of Greater White-fronted Geese in the water and flying overhead. They were very noisy but scared away easily. A snake slithered across my shoe without me even seeing it and we saw tons of frogs jumping into the water. We saw Great Egrets and Snowy Egrets paired together. The usuals were there, too: American Coots, Mallards, pheasants and hawks, pelicans, Shovelers, squirrels, rabbits, Wigeons...

We saw some new stuff, too, which was exciting. The Black-necked Stilt was really easy to identify. They have really long legs and straight black beaks.

At the Colusa NWR we saw three Great Blue Herons. A Double-crested Cormorant was perched in a tree and then dove into the water. On the bank of the river we saw a truly amazing sight. There were two Egrets, two American Bitterns, a Cormorant, AND a Black-crowned Night Heron, all in the same spot. It was amazing to see the Bitterns out away from the marsh grass.

I can't wait to go back!!!

Auklets, Guillemots and Puffins, oh my!

We just got back last night from a three day trip to the coast. We had a wonderful time and got to see some new birds yesterday. We went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium where there was an awesome aviary.

We saw a Cassin's Auklet, Common Murre, Pigeon Guillemot, and the incredible Tufted Puffin. We got to see all of them extremely close up and it was an amazing experience. They weren't skittish because they're so used to people going through all the time.  Some were almost penguin-like and they all dive for their food. The Puffins are so exotic looking it was a great pleasure to see them at such close range. I know we got some awesome close-up pictures.

We also saw a Double-crested Cormorant in the bay at Bandon Harbor, along with a Western Gull flying overhead.

Oh, I forgot to add one other thing. We saw flocks of Barn Swallows. We had also seen them at the Humboldt NWR. I got a decent picture of them and they have the rust undercolor that the Tree Swallow doesn't.

The "Bird Place" on the Coast

We went to the coast today! It was 110 degrees here yesterday and we couldn't stand it anymore. It was foggy when we first arrived in the morning and then it started to clear up in the afternoon. It was beautiful! We went to the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. At the beginning of the trail we saw a deer not too far from us, drinking from the stream. We saw quite a few new species of birds, but they're very difficult to identify. Besides all the different variations, the pictures in the book don't match up to what we saw.

There were a lot of little birds flying around that looked like swifts, but I think they were some type of Tree Swallow. I'm not sure though. They had bluish wings on top and rust and white on the stomach.

We saw a Marbled Godwit. It was pretty big, specklety brown with long legs and bill. There were little sandpiper-like birds that were either Semipalmated Plovers or Killdeer. They were brown on top and white on the bottom half.

In the office, before we went on the trail, they said a Green Heron had been spotted and later on we saw one fly off in front of us. We also saw a Long-billed Curlew. It was rust-colored, long black legs and a long bill that curved down. A mom duck had four or five babies swimming in the creek.

The last thing we saw at the refuge was a weird looking duck. It kept diving down into the water. It had a white stripe by its eye and had sort of spiky feathers on its head. The closest I can find to it is the Pied-billed Grebe.

Later, by the ocean, we saw several different flocks of seagulls. There were about four different species, but I only found one in the book. It was a Ring-billed Gull.

Hopefully when I get my pictures back they will help identify these birds better.