Monday, October 29, 2012

Retrospective

Blogger says this is my 500th Post! I decided this was a good time to look back to when I first got interested in shorebirds and before I started this blog.  
I moved to this area in 2003 and had a house built and began planting a garden.  I joined a group that took regular walks into the surrounding bush and started learning about the local plants and flowers.  However, what I really wanted was to learn about the shorebirds that came here.  There were notices about shorebirds around the foreshore but when I asked for a local person who could help me learn about the birds I was told there was no-one!  The one person who was especially  knowledgeable about birds had moved away the previous year. 
I walked all the tracks through the bush that I could find and usually ended up somewhere around the bay.  At low tide I walked out across the sand flats and explored the edges of the bays this way.  I saw and photographed beautiful scenery - but not much else!  (My camera was a 3 megapixel Kodak with 4x optical zoom. The following photos were taken with that camera.)




I bought a kayak so I could explore the bay from on the water not just beside it.  At high tide I paddled into all the little inlets and creeks I found and eventually started seeing shorebirds.


 (This last photo frustrated me the most!  These birds sat in a tree right beside the boat channel going out into the bay.  They were grey and white and usually had their heads tucked under their wings.  They flew off as soon as a boat got close!) 
By this time I had been introduced to a couple who came down from Gympie once a month to count shorebirds around the Tin Can Bay foreshore and at the one roost accessible by land at the Cooloola Cove end of the bay.  Then I was lucky enough to be introduced to someone doing surveys on the Noosa river and was able to join her group as well.  The problem was that I was still seeing birds I could not ID.  I had no background in bird watching and so did not even have the language to describe what I was seeing! 
Then I read about multi-zoom cameras!  I bought a Canon S2 which had a 12x zoom and I added an extender which increased the zoom to 18x.  Finally I had a record of what I was seeing.  I took multiple photos of everything!  When a bird moved I had photos of what it looked like from all angles and how it looked as it moved.  My friend from the Noosa river surveys ID'd individual birds for me from my photos. I gmailed photos to her and then we used gtalk and she talked me through the ID and used the right words for the descriptions of the parts!  Then I tried to ID similar birds from other photos.  I also re-examined photos of flocks of birds and tried to find some that didn't quite fit the pattern.  (These photos were taken with the Canon S2)
 A large flock from the Crab Creek Roost site. Eastern Curlew at the back, Bar-tailed Godwits - majority of the flock, Pacific Golden Plover in the front.
 Mullens Roost site - Gull-billed Terns, Bar-tailed Godwits, and it took me a long time to find the Great Knot - which had not previously been identified at this site.
The birds in the tree were Grey-tailed Tattlers and Terek Sandpipers.
This was the first time I got close enough to really see Greenshank - and to photograph them as well. 

I built up my own photo reference library of shorebirds from around my area. I kayaked to roosts with only water access.  I came to really appreciate why the Great Sandy Strait is listed under the Ramsar convention as a wetlands of international importance.  I share my enjoyment of the birds and the local environment by writing articles for our local paper and this blog.

For interesting places from around the world visit Our World Tuesday

and for more birds visit Wild Bird Wednesday.

36 comments:

  1. Congratulations on you 500th great post.

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  2. it is a great progression. that little 3 mp camera took great landscape/seascape shots, although the bird i.d. is troublesome. :)

    really glad you connected with great folks to help your passion.

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  3. Those shots are awesome. You are lucky being there.

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  4. Superb captures for the day!! Congratulations on your 500th post!! Do keep it up!!

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  5. The last 4 bird shots were my favourites. From Findlay

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  6. It's a great area to explore. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  7. Glad to see your persistence, patience and perseverance paid off (in identifying the different birds you see in your area). Thanks for sharing with us.

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  8. Your photography has come a long way from when you started birding. Isn't it amazing how fascinating birds are! Congratulations on your 500th post.

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  9. How nice that you are keeping a record of the shorebirds you see over the years. It is wonderful you were able to meet up with people to help you to id the shorebirds. Great 500th post and congrats. Thanks for sharing your world.

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  10. Excellent post, looks like a fascinating location

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  11. Wow! Rachel Carson would love you ~ Fantastic photos and great post ~ (A Creative Harbor) ^_^

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  12. What a dream of an environment. Thank you for this journey very much. Please have a good Tuesday.

    daily athens photo

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  13. This is a wonderful post Mick. The progression of bird knowledge and camera expertise and the way you learned (finding and then becoming your own expert)and then sharing your knowledge through your local paper and here -- this lovely blog -- just a great true story. Thanks for sharing it (and as always for your posts and pictures).

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  14. Well done on the 500th post - they do rack up when you post regularly.

    Nice history of the cameras. I started the "digital journey" with a 1mp canon! My phone is a much better camera than that these days!

    Crazy really.

    Stewart M - Australia

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  15. WOW! 500 posts is a MASSIVE achievement!! It's amazing what you can do with a non-fancy camera - the photos are beautiful - but it's interesting to compare with the later shots! So jealous of all your great birds ...

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  16. I love shore birds, and your pictures are great. Lucky to have them so close.

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  17. Congratulations on your 500th post, Mick! The scenery is beautiful as always! That camera did a nice job with the extender!

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  18. 500 posts is a nice milestone in blogging. I hope I make it there someday.
    Your last landscape shot with the sky reflected is a beautiful shot!
    I enjoyed your shots of the shorebirds and your story. I admire your perserverence in finding and documenting the birds.
    Very nice post!

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  19. Congratulations on your 500th post! (I had 400 recently!)
    Nice to read your story of the bird anc cameras. I like your photos and the second one (with no birds) I found really beautiful!
    Thanks for your comment!
    Greetings Pia

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  20. Love the tattlers all bunched up on the branches. Australia must be one beautiful country!!!

    Fantastic images of great birds!!!

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  21. I wonder what part of Australia you are photographing. Those marshy area seem like the home of salt water crocodiles.

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  22. Beautiful pictures and nice story ! 500 posts - congratulations :-) Greetings from Liva - thank you for stopping by my waxwing :-)

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  23. Wonderful post! So great to see so many birds! /Susanne

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  24. Yep, if you want something done right, do it yourself! Congrats on your 500 milestone and for getting your own IDs for the birds. All of these photos are wonderful, even the ones on your first camera.

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  25. What a great post Mick! A wonderful story of how you learned about your area birds and now teach others about them. Shorebirds can be tough to ID and you're not only are good at it but your photos are awesome!

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  26. Beautiful photos. Congratulations on your 500th post!

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  27. The joys of modern technology! It has opened up a whole new world for so many of us. Love photos to illustrate your story. Congrats on 500 posts too.

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  28. Nice story Mick and I can see you get so much from your birding after that initial perseverance. Didn't know Greenshanks roosted in trees like that - could be because I never see more than a handful together here in the UK - briliant shot.

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  29. Love those shore bird images, and the scenes are grand, and yet that entry image...took my breath a way~

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  30. Congratulations on 500 posts! Nice to see the progression of pictures. A kayak is a great way to coastal areas. I really like the picture of the birds in the tree. Have a great week.

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  31. Congratulations on your 500th post!
    Shorebirds are still my greatest challenge. Your beautiful area looks quite similar to ours here on the west coast of Florida (US).
    I look forward to your next 500 posts!

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  32. thanks for your very interesting post Mick. Thanks for sharing your past years. :)

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  33. a great series.
    Congratulations on 500 posts! You have a wonderful blog.

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  34. Like you, I knew nothing when I moved to a good birding area. Now I know little but take pictures and then spend hours on the web and with my guides trying to get an id.
    I take encouragement from your tale.

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  35. Great post - I like the scenery photos, too!
    Congratulations on the 500!

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