The further adventures of "Birding with Bob!"...Shreve part...uh...somenthing...

The whole town gets into this migration thing!

I feel sorry for the Doodles. Not only does she have to deal with me...we have this...a..."Chipmunk" named Bob...really. He has a large family that loves to wreak havoc in our gardens and in our home. Utility lines, computer drives, flowers, pond pumps...you name it, they've 'wreaked' it! But, Bob is special, I mean that in a nice way, I think.

He knows most of our friends...well they were our friends until they met Bob. Now there's a question in the air...oh well...Chipmunks...gotta love 'em.

So here's a little bit more of our visit to the Shreve Migration Sensation, with Bob. argh.

Cheryl Harner is the big cheese with the Greater Mohican Audubon Society.
She didn't know Bob had her back...

Bob wants to know why his picture isn't on the ODNR sign...he is a WILD guy you know!

This is where I'm not supposed to mention staples...

"I'm a lumberjack, yes I am!"
Our buddy Hugh from Black Swamp.
Lived in Canada for a long time...still wants to be a lumberjack...

Kenn used to be a friend of ours too. He tried explaining what a Chipmunk was to Bob.
Let's just say Bob misbehaved after this photo was taken...

That unnatural smile on my face?
Chipmunk claws are very sharp...I now have piercings...

Joe Edinger on the left, is the organizer of this fine fest.
Jim McCormac is going to be strangled by him. I think it was something Bob said to Joe.
There's always something exciting at Shreve!

Please note the smiles on everyone's faces.
Bob is about to get slapped by Jim.

After Jim gave Bob a nice 'pet' on the head...he slept the rest of the afternoon.

#1. Never give a Chipmunk a camera.
#2. Never follow a Chipmunks directions.
Bob thought the name of this road was funny.
It was rather slippery...but I won't pick on it...

The fine folks of the Medina Raptor Center were there with a number of feathery guests.
She's trying to teach Snowy how to say "CHIPMUNK."

Bob didn't like hearing the Snowy Owl say "Chipmunk"
...especially when I told him they like to eat small rodents...

Bob wanted to know why there wasn't a "Chipmunks Unlimited" organization.
YOU explain it to him...sheesh...

Bob swiped the Doodles camera again. He thought he saw a hot chipmunk crossing the road.

Did I mention it was cold?

...or that they have great pie?

WARBLERZ!!!

I went to the BirdMobile Saturday to get things ready for May Madness and the Biggest Week in American Birding. Well, you know when you get to close to Magee Marsh...it's hard to get any real work done. It was getting very dark and stormy...winds gusting to twenty mph! Our neighbor Judy was helping me move a bunk bed from her BM to our BM...in the rain...and wind. I really wouldn't recommend carrying mattresses and plywood on the back of a golf cart. Though it must have been fun to watch.

Anyway...I decided to go visit our buddies at Black Swamp. They told me about the warblers that were spotted on the boardwalk. Thanks, I'm trying to get chores done and you guys are taunting me with stories of warblers. Since it was stormy and my camera doesn't like to get wet, I went to town and buy bird seed for myself and my brother. On the way back there was this great opening in the sky...a BLUE opening! Right over Magee. I took it as a sign that I should give up on my tasks and head to the boardwalk. Oh yeah! Warblerz Babee!!

My first warbler of 2010!
This poor Yellow-rumped Warbler was hanging on for dear life in those gusty gusts!

The temperature was 75 in the morning, then it dropped to 55 when I reached the boardwalk.
You can tell the temps by the puffiness of the birds.

I'm still struggling to get a photo of a Brown Creeper...a good photo...
from ANY angle...one of these days.

The underside of a Brown Creeper isn't brown.
There, you learned something today.

This was a surprise. When I took this shot, I was watching a group of Hermit Thrushes working through the bramble.
Well looky there, a Fox Sparrow was mixed in!

"Are you lookin' at me?"
The Golden-crowned Kinglets were back in force and as jumpy as ever!

A lone Great Egret looking very dapper in his Easter finery.

The Hermit Thrushes tried very hard to stay hidden from me.
I'm sure they were laughing as I low crawled on the boardwalk to shoot through the brambles.

Ha! Got another one!

There were a few ducks to be seen also.
Ring-necks, Mallards and this pair of Northern Shovelers.

Remember the fish skull? It's still there! Or at least part of it...