• To Etosha and Beyond

    Text and photos by Eric Schroeder

    When I began working with the GGBA Travel Program a year ago, I didn’t envision that one of the benefits might be designing programs that I’d want to go on myself. But when I began to talk with Chris Lotz, who runs Birding Ecotours, one of our GGBA travel partners, I realized that several trips he was proposing appealed to me. Most surprising was one in Namibia and Botswana. I was just getting ready to go to Namibia and I didn’t think I’d want to go back a year later. But Namibia is a special place, and Etosha National Park is one of the great national parks, not just in Africa but worldwide.

    White Rhinos in Namibia

    One of the things that I love about Etosha is that you have two different ways to experience the mammals and birds of the park. During the day, you can plan a route in the park that allows you to visit a series of waterholes—if things are slow at one waterhole, then you can move onto another and check for action there. But it can also be rewarding to sit at a waterhole—even if the action seems to have finished (or perhaps hasn’t yet begun!)

    Zebras at Etosha Waterhole

    My favorite example of this occurred on my first visit to Etosha in 2013. It was late in the afternoon and my wife Susan, friend Ian, and I decided to visit one last waterhole before returning to camp. It proved to be a good decision. When we pulled into the parking area, there were about 20 cars arrayed in an arc around the viewing area. In the middle of a muddy pond two old bull elephants seemed to be fighting. But after closer look, we realized they were actually playing—spraying mud on one another, locking trunks, each determined to make the other even muddier than he already was. An amazing display of what appeared to be affection between two old friends.

    Elephants in Etosha National Park – Photo by Susan Palo

    After about fifteen minutes, the elephants seemed to tire of their sport, and each ambled off in a different direction. At that point, almost all the cars in the viewing area started up at once—it was late and the rest camps lock their gates at sundown, and no one wanted to be locked out of camp. But we weren’t very far from camp and, besides, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye as the cars began streaming out—two young male lions trotting towards the waterhole.…

  • Rapidly Changing Images

    Text and Photos by Joe Galkowski

    One of the things that still surprises me as a wildlife photographer is how an individual animal can look so very different in a series of images.  The look of the animal can often change dramatically due to pose, color and quality of the light, lighting angle, and angle of view.

    Since I often shoot at sunrise and sunset, light is rapidly changing and the result is that images taken just minutes apart sometimes look as if the animal’s coloration is different.

    The below series of Great Horned Owl images were taken in a thirty minute period. They are all the same bird.  No extra photoshop processing was used here, other than cropping and a touch of dodging and burning. The eyes were not touched at all. The ground shot was taken after sunset whereas the fluffy image was taken about fifteen minutes before sunset. With the other two shots occurring in between.

    Hardly looks like the same bird!

    Joe Galkowski has been a wildlife photographer and a student of nature for over thirty years. As a retired, recovering engineer he can now spend more time in the wilderness watching how our local wildlife live their lives.

    Editors Note: Are you, too, out in the field with your lens noticing the changing images of the birds you see? Do you want to share some of your favorites? Consider submitting your photos for consideration for our 2020 Birds of the San Francisco Bay Area Calendar. For more information go to goldengatebirdalliance.org/calendar-photos-2020/…

  • Oakland’s Official Bird

    By Jeanine Harmon

    Everyone loves a good story, especially a story with a happy ending. This story, like many good stories, includes a journey and a group of dedicated and determined children. At the heart of this story is a “cool and funky bird” and the people who worked together to help protect it. This is the story of how the Black-crowned Night-Heron became the Official Bird of Oakland.

    Black-crowned Night-Heron by Cindy Margulis

    Birds are amazing animals. Watching them fly, waddle or perch on the highest branches is nothing short of magical. Their plumage, songs and nesting habits make them fascinating subjects to observe and study. For this reason, and many more, birds are at heart of the third grade science curriculum at Park Day School, a K-8 independent school in Oakland, California.

    3rd grade bird art from Park Day student

    When a mysterious goo spilled in San Francisco Bay in 2015, hundreds of birds covered with sticky gunk washed up on the east bay shoreline, including at the Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline, the same wetland where Park Day third graders were helping with bird habitat restoration. “When you see a problem, do something about it” is a common phrase that you hear throughout our classrooms, so it came as no surprise to see our third graders responding to this news with a call to action.

    Whenever we are faced with the news of a problem in the community, we teach our students to first identify who the “helpers” are. In the case of the “Mystery Goo”, it was the team from International Bird Rescue, a non-profit organization devoted to the care and rehabilitation of waterbirds. After doing some research, our students were shocked when they learned how much it cost to clean, house and rehabilitate the goo-covered birds. The students decided the best way to support the helpers was to do some quick fundraising. Students sold handmade jewelry and crafts along with gently used books at an after-school sale and raised $607.00 for the organization. A few weeks later, we were on the beach with a team from International Bird Rescue for a celebratory bird release event. It was an extraordinary opportunity for the students to see such a happy ending for the rehabilitated birds. One of the most enthusiastic guests we met that day was Cindy Margulis, the executive director of Golden Gate Bird Alliance.…

  • The Sights, Sounds, Tastes, and Birds of Oaxaca

    Editor’s Note: Want to experience the birds of Oaxaca in person? You can! We have spaces available on our December 2019 trip. For more go to goldengatebirdalliance.org/travel

    By Julie Stokstad
    Photos by Julie and Bob Stokstad

    Home again, and the wonderful trip to Oaxaca is like a dream. On the trip we saw 230 different species of birds and learned about the rich culture of Oaxaca, ate great food and enjoyed the gracious hospitality of our Mexican hosts.  It’s been one of our best trips ever. As I think about why I loved it so much, Mark Pretti is a big part of it. His enthusiasm and skill in finding the birds and stories made the trip for me. Mark shared with us such interesting information about the birds, plants, insects and reptiles we saw. He was curious and he cared about nature and that made me care about everything we saw.

    Day 1 – Birding, Weaving and Food
    The day began at breakfast at 6:15 am.  The stars were still out and it was chilly on the roof terrace, but hot coffee and a lovely breakfast nourished us. It was a 45 minute drive to our first stop – a grassy hillside in the foothills above the Oaxacan valley.  Along the way Mark talked to us about the biogeography of the region and the various habitats we’d visit. We saw many birds (Vermillion Flycatcher, endemic Gray-breasted Woodpecker, Lark Sparrow, Inca Dove, Curve-billed Thrasher, Rufous-capped Warbler, White-throated Towhee and more) and learned about the cactus and trees growing in the area.  We learned about which birds eat what and where and when to expect them (when their food source is ripe).  After a couple of hours, we drove to a small creek spotting a variety of birds there – lots of flycatchers and warblers.  The morning held yet another habitat – a small lake behind a dam.  There I spotted a Berylline Hummingbird, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Dusky Hummingbird and many of the usual suspects for lakes (Egrets, Coots, Sandpipers, Killdeer and Least Grebes).  For lunch we drove into town – Teotitlán Del Valle – a small thriving Zapotec community where many weavers live and work. We chose from a menu of local foods – Mole negro, Mole coloralitos and hulaypo (Oaxacan pizza).

    After a relaxed lunch (birders never hurry at lunch), we went to a local weaver and had a fabulous demonstration of natural dyeing and spinning and weaving.…

  • Making a Difference with Monofilament Recycling

    By Karen James

    I spend a lot of time at Heather Farm Park watching the wildlife that lives and visits the lake, gardens and wild areas. Over the past many years, I have felt privileged to see otters, foxes, several species of ducks, cormorants, grebes, coots, hawks and other birds of prey, as well as small mammals and fish.

    Double-crested Cormorant at Heather Farms Park

    The Park has a fishing pond and recently I have noticed that several animals including a cormorant and a duck that have had the misfortune of encountering discarded fishing line. Unfortunately, the cormorant was hanging from a tree from the fishing line and did not survive. More recently I was able to capture a female Mallard that had line attached to one of her legs making it difficult for her to move. Fortunately she was not injured and I was able to untangle her and release her.

    It was sad and disconcerting to see a cormorant hanging by its neck from discarded fishing line one afternoon while I was watching otters in the natural lake. I then became angry and decided I needed to do something to help protect our wildlife from this dangerous unseen menace. I wanted to find a way to deal with the issue of loose fishing line around the fishing pond at this park.

    So I set about finding a solution to this problem. I contacted the Mt. Diablo Audubon Society who put me in touch with the Golden Gate Bird Alliance. GGBA was very helpful. They went above and beyond what I expected. They provided me with several monofilament recycling containers and the materials that went along with them. I was also put in touch with the California Coastal Commission which partners with a program called “Reel In and Recycle”. The program marks where all monofilament containers are located in California. A part of this program is collecting the line, weighing it and sending it off to a recycling facility in Iowa.

    Monofilament recycling receptacle built by GGBA volunteers.

    Many fishermen are passionate about the environment and know the value of preserving the places where fish and other wildlife live. Fishing organizations give tips on how to recycle fishing line, minimize fishing waste and protect the natural environment. Most marinas have fishing line recycling containers and management plans but more education and information is needed in urban parks where ponds are stocked on a regular basis.…