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Know Your Neighbours Long Lanky Legwatching Despite my initial reluctance, I’ll have to admit that birds are growing on me in my old age. But don’t worry—though I might be in Florida right now, I’m not sporting a giant pair of binoculars and polyester pants up to my armpits just yet. I still only like ‘cool’ birds, not those pansy flycatchers and warblers. In this issue, we’ll take a look at avian diversity. Last outing we covered waterfowl—floating, ducky birds. This time we’ll look at a variety of species that like to hang out near shore, species that Northwest paddlers see all the time. We’ll include birds of all sorts of different feathers, whether they flock together or not. This checklist includes six different orders and eight families. That’s pretty good diversity when you consider about half of all bird species belong to just one order, the passerines. The size range is a good example of diversity. Paddlers often see two very different birds while cruising coastlines. The first is a one and a half-metre tall, ambush predator, its long sharp bill darting down into the shallows—death from above for unlucky fish and invertebrates. The second is a tiny nectar feeder, not much bigger than a bug. Even if you’re not a birder, I’ll bet you can you guess who’s who without looking across at the checklist. Birding is one of the world’s most popular outdoor activities, so a lot of people are trying to get a grip (taxonomically speaking) on all those colourful feathers out there. One of the reasons birding is so popular is the startup cost. You need binoculars and a bird guide. That’s it. With those two simple items, you could bird naked from your kitchen table. You could watch birds soar from your camp high in the mountains. You could watch birds cough from your smoggy SUV. But most importantly, you can watch birds swoop over the water from your sea kayak. Binoculars I’m going to leave up to your discretion and budget, but because bird guides are so important, I’ve included the flagship Sibley as this month’s review—plus a couple of notes on the other top contenders: Peterson Field Guides: Birds of Eastern & Central or Western North America: I grew up with Peterson field guides, packing them on trips throughout the continent. Roger Tory Peterson’s painted plates set standards for identification, as they highlighted important features called ‘field marks’ so you knew what to look for without a bird in hand. The eastern guide was first published in 1934, starting a series (now at 50+ guides) that helped spark the entire environmental movement. The last version came out in 2002, finished by a team of experts, and even includes the unfinished plate Peterson was working on when he died in 1996. I’m a big fan of the ‘similar species’ text, which anticipates mistakes you’re most likely to make. Kaufman Focus Guides: Birds of North America: Flip through the pages of Kenn Kaufman’s compact new field guide and the colour and detail of the paintings will take your breath away. Closer inspection will reveal that the ingenious plates are not paintings at all, but full colour digital photographs with the backgrounds removed. It makes for a great little field guide, deliberately kept simple, with maps, images and text all on the same page. There are numerous others designed for casual birders and children, though if you get into it you’ll probably want a guide that includes all of the species you might see. There are also excellent ‘companion’ guides like Kaufman’s Lives of North American Birds that are less portable but provide details on how the birds live, not just what they look like. Moving from science to art, another good theme here would be symbolism, especially considering the cultural theme of this issue. A couple of the birds with deep meaning are on this month’s list, including the official emblem of our southern neighbour. Bald eagles certainly look impressive, even if they tend to be bullies and scavengers. Ben Franklin wanted the turkey as America’s symbol as he was less than impressed watching bald eagles steal food from hard working ospreys. Nonetheless, his industrious turkey lost out to looks—and that was before television! Who can resist the layers of ironic symbolism there? Of course, the eagle pales in symbolic might next to the Northwest’s most important feathery character—Raven. The raven’s cycle is worthwhile reading—a series of tales told by people from California right across to Siberia (from whence they came). The raven is so important to Northwestern cultures it gets an article of its own. (See page 30.) How many of these birds have you seen with your butt on a kayak seat? Bring along the checklist this season and find out. ❏ Biologist Bryan Nichols has flown south for the winter. A coup by the right side of his brain has left him enrolled in journalism at the University of South Florida. Wearing just a T-shirt, he’s been gleefully paddling with ibises, spoonbills and pelicans. Bryan Nichols The Sibley Guide to Birds David Allen Sibley Knopf, 2000 545 pages, price $53 Cdn (but look for deals) ISBN 0-679-45122-6 Birders view The Sibley Guide to Birds with something close to reverence. Containing a mind boggling 6600 illustrations, it’s literary heaven for visual learners. Look up a bird and you’ll find illustrations of males, females, juveniles and perhaps regional variations. It will be perched and flying, and possibly in different seasonal plumage. Wow—how can you possibly go wrong? Well, weight and price—but we’ll get to that. David Sibley is a class A bird nerd. His father studied birds. He drew birds in grade school. He worked at a bird observatory. On a cooler note, he dropped out of Cornell and road-tripped across the continent on the cheap, all the while studying birds. He even married an ornithologist. In the process of this interesting life, he had the self-discipline to put together a truly excellent bird guide. The main strength of the book is the ‘species account’—on a single page you’ll find numerous drawings, a map, a brief description and notes on the sounds the bird makes. This is ideal for identification. Another feature that impresses is the ‘group account’, a page where a bunch of related species are illustrated together— very helpful for comparing possibilities. The biggest problems are practical. One is price—as it lists at $35 US, this is a significant purchase. Keep your eyes peeled though—I’ve seen it in discount stores, and there are regional versions coming out in 2003 that might result in more used copies. The other potential problem is bulk—it’s bigger and heavier than the competition. Would I make it smaller? No—because you’d have to either shrink or cut the illustrations. I wouldn’t backpack with it, but for kayaking it’s perfect. Everybody seems to love birds and no matter where you are in the US or Canada, you’ll find your local birds here. When it’s too dark to see birds outside you’ll find yourself browsing the book, your eyes feasting on thousands of paintings carefully put together by a man who obviously knows and loves what he’s looking at. ❏ BN 34 www.WaveLengthMagazine.com February/March 2003
GREAT BLUE HERON Ardea herodias Many a peaceful night’s rest has been disturbed by the truly unpleasant shriek of these large carnivores. There are those who compare them to pterodactyls, flying reptiles long extinct, and it’s not a difficult jump of the imagination as they flap creakily by, squawking away. Pull out your binoculars though, because a close look will reveal the shimmering blue and black beauty of their feathers. Found throughout North America in shallow fresh water and marine habitats, I’ve seen them eating everything from Northwest sculpins to baby sharks in the Caribbean. OSPREY Pandion haliaetus Osprey can be found on coasts throughout the world. Though there is only one species in the entire family, it is one of the most global of all animals. They are fascinating to watch, partly because they build huge nests in easy to spot places. From those nests, the adults hunt fish by diving down on them from above. Unlike most raptors, they actually splash right into the water before labouriously flying again, hopefully with a fish in their talons. Common in most coastal areas, osprey are relatively scarce in the Northwest, probably due to the abundance of the next bird. BALD EAGLE Haliaeetus leucocephalus Us Northwesterners might see eagles all the time, might even call them white headed buzzards, but you still have to give a nod of respect when you see one up close. Remarkably powerful, they have been known to grab salmon so big they can’t lift them out unmistakable of the water—and then swim them to shore. Despite their status as the US emblem, we’ve shot and poisoned them to alarmingly low numbers. Like other raptors, they’ve been recovering since DDT was banned in the 70s. BLACK OYSTERCATCHER Haematopus bachmani Look for a solid, jet black shorebird with an absurdly orange beak. Kayakers see oystercatchers all the time because we both frequent the intertidal zone of rocky shores. You’ll usually see them in pairs, and they often whistle loudly as they fly low over the water. They like to nest on the ground from April to August, near the high tide line, so we have to take particular care not to disturb them. BLACK TURNSTONE Arenaria melanocephala Rarely far from a rocky shore, you’ll likely spot groups of turnstones scampering about among the barnacles, as they are adept at prying them open with their strong, pointy beaks. Though they seem dull and camouflaged at first, when they fly their backs transform into impressive patterns of black and white. WHIMBREL Numenius phaeopus Like other, rarer curlews, whimbrels have a long beak that curves downward. They nest way up north but winter along both coasts. Despite the specialized-looking beak, they eat everything from bugs to berries. Though they can be spotted on almost any shoreline, look especially in muddy areas where they poke around for crabs, worms and molluscs. Checklist # 30—Shorebirds Plus tall, blue gray, neck curled in flight long, angled wings, hits water feet first pale legs, orange eyes & beak dark legs & beak, vivid flight patterns usually feeds alone, long pointed wings in flight SURFBIRD Aphriza virgata Adrenaline-loving surf kayakers and rock garden enthusiasts can look for these stocky little shorebirds, which use their thick bills to pry seafood off rocky shores where the surf is crashing. The combination of spry legs and quick wings makes them type A feeders, dodging ferocious waves at the last second. PEEPS Calidris spp. ‘Peeps’ is birder lingo for various sandpipers and sanderlings, birds that can be remarkably difficult to identify by species but are great fun to watch. We’ve all seen them flying in remarkably dark legs & beak tight squadrons, moving like a school of fish above the water. And who can resist little flocks rushing up and down the beach, poking in the sand for food as a wave recedes, and then scurrying back up just ahead of the next one? SWIFTS (Family Apodidae) Black, Vaux’s and chimney swifts are what dreams of flight are made of. Sleek, maneuverable and fast (over 100 mph), they live most of their lives in the air, picking off flying insects at varying altitudes. Built to fly, their tiny feet are incapable of perching—they can only cling to ledges. Black swifts prefer damp alcoves on sheer cliffs for their nests, so watch for their predatory acrobatics as you paddle along steep shorelines, especially near dusk. RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD Selasphorus rufus On some paddles you’ll see oodles of these scrappy little birds, buzzing like large bugs as they race from flower to flower. Along brushy shorelines you’ll hear and see the males diving and climbing in a steep ‘U’ over the water, strutting their stuff for hidden females. Curious and bold, their lightning-fast approaches can be downright alarming if you’re wearing a bright hat. BELTED KINGFISHER Ceryle alcyon The obnoxious, staccato call of a kingfisher is offset by its snazzy looks and interesting fishing technique. Seen on fresh and saltwater shorelines throughout North America, they are familiar to paddlers everywhere. Watch for their flight to slow to a hover. Once positioned, they drop head first into the water and strike small fish with their pointed beaks. NORTHWESTERN CROW Corvus caurinus Yes, we have our own crow. Of course, one crow looks much like another to most of us, and the differences are subtle. Northwestern crows are smaller and apparently a bit “hoarser” sounding, but most importantly, they are the ones that hang out on rocky Pacific shorelines. Like their relatives, they are relatively smart—I love watching them fly up and drop hapless clams until they break open. They’re noisy though, and quickly figure out that careless campers mean easy food, so unless you like peck holes in your drybags, never feed them and keep close tabs on your vittles. © 2003. Text and graphics by Bryan Nichols. No reproduction without permission. yellowish bill & legs, solid black bar on tail in flight fast, whirling flight, dark, stiff-winged orangey head to tail, j-shaped courtship flights big head, big dark bill, hovers, dives headfirst raucous, crafty, often in groups February/March 2003 www.WaveLengthMagazine.com 35
Page 4 and 5: Editor Alan Wilson Assistant Editor
Page 6 and 7: Carl Martin and his nephew Francis
Page 8 and 9: Cultural Renaissance A cultural ren
Page 10 and 11: This archival photograph shows Hupa
Page 12 and 13: The Path of the Great Canoes Grizel
Page 14 and 15: Culturally Modified Trees Acultural
Page 16 and 17: First Nations Guiding First Nations
Page 18 and 19: of the beautiful Great Bear Rainfor
Page 20 and 21: The North American Indigenous Games
Page 22 and 23: Great paddling around Klemtu. you,
Page 24 and 25: Low tide. first paddle from the mou
Page 26 and 27: Mothership Meanderings Petroglyph I
Page 28 and 29: Alan Wilson photo. FujiFilm Finepix
Page 30 and 31: Quoth The Raven It’s too bad that
Page 32 and 33: Raven isn’t noble, murderous or e
Page 36 and 37: Paddle Meals Feasting Fields NEVER
Page 38 and 39: UNCLASSIFIEDS RENTALS, TOURS, LESSO
Page 40 and 41: From the Archipelago Winter Watch S
Page 42 and 43: www.WaveLengthMagazine.com Over 1,0
Page 44 and 45: News cont. from page 43 ANCESTORS
Page 46 and 47: News cont. from page 45 Heiltsuk an
Page 48 and 49: Books The Encyclopedia of the First
Page 50 and 51: GREAT GEAR Scott Plastics offers an
Page 52 and 53: Eco-Cultural Tourism Jackson Warren
Page 54 and 55: CALENDAR FEBRUARY Feb 7-9, Outdoor

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