Birding

I can't be sure but I think it was Feb. 2009 that Bob Whitlatch introduced me to the joys of birding. A walk on the river, with a be quite and listen followed by a trip to Eagle to see Burrowing Owls and I was off. I spent that year traveling pretty much alone and then joining a couple of clubs. Last year 2010 RoseMary Paasch joined me and this year it is RoseMary, Paul and myself. The stared birds are "lifers" or first time ever to see...goal is 500
2009 birds ALL IDAHO
1. American Robin
2.Quail
3.Horn Lark
4.Meadow Lark
5.Red Tailed Hawk
6.Sharp Shined Hawk
7.Harrier Hawk
8.Magpie
9.Red Shafted Flicker *
10.Pheasant
11.Peacock
12.Quinea fowl
13.Kestral
14.Red winged blackbird
15.Raven
16.Mourning Dove
17.Song Sparrow
18.Great Horned Owl*
19.White crowned sparrow
20.Starling
21.Junco*
22.Ruby crowned Kinglet*
23.House Finch
24.Rock Dove (pigon)
25.Black-capped Chickadee*
26.American Crow
27.Burrowing Owl*
28.Belted King Fisher
29.Northern Flicker
30.Western Grebe
31.Spotted Sandpiper
32.Bald Eagle
33.White Pelican
34.Downey Woodpecker*
35.Mtn Blue Bird*
36.Snipe*
37.Great Blue Heron
38.Yellow Headed Blackbirds*
39.Osprey
40.Barn swallows
41.mud swallows*
42.Cedar wax wings*
43Vultures
44.Dusty Flycatcher*
45.humming bird
46.Lazuli Bunting*
47.Brewers Blackbirds
48.Cowbird*
49.pine finch*
50.goldfinch*
Birding 2010
Florida
1.Great White Egret*
2.Cattle Egret*
3.Black headed turkey vultures*
4.Brown Pelican
5.White Pelican
6.Florida Cormorant*
7.Great Blue Heron
8.Green Heron*
9.Greater Flamingo*
10.Roseate Spoonbill*
11.White Ibis*
12.Wood Stork*
13.Mottie Duck*
14.Greater Sand Crane*
15.Black Skimmer*
16 many gulls...not sure of type
17.Kingbird*
18.northern Mockingbird*
19.Peregrin Falcon*
20.Red sholdered Haws*
21.Snowy Egret*
22.Summer Tanager*
23. red winged Blackbirds
24.many sparrows
25.Osprey
Iowa birds
1.Cardinal*
2.Baltimore Orioles*
3.Cat Bird*
4.Blue Jay*
5.yellow finch*
6.Pileated Woodpecker*
7.Red headed turkey vultures
Idaho
1.Eastern Kingbird*
2.Brewer Blackbirds
3.Magpies
4.Horned Larks
5.Long Billed Carlew*
6.Western Kingbirds*
7.Meadow Larks
8.Sage Thrusher*
9.Lark Sparrow*
10.Robin
11.Killdeer
12.mourning Dove
13.Brewers Blackbird
14.Cowbird*
15.Pewee*
16.Red tailed Hawk
17.Lewis Woodpecker*
18.Yellow Warblers*
19.Bullock Orieole*
20.Luzili Bunting
21.Kestrel
22.Pine Siskin*
23.Cassins Finch*
24.Osprey
25.Turkey Vultures
26.Ferrugirous Hawk*
27.Goldfinch
28.Lesser Goldfinch*
29.Hummingbirds
30.Mtn Blue Birds
31.Fly Catcher*
32.Ravin
33.Wilsons Warbler*
34.Tree Swallows*
35.Mallard Duck
36.Canada Geese
37.barn swallow
38.spotted sandpiper
39.Great Blue Heron
40.quail
41.snipes
42.Common Night Hawk*
43.Sand Grouse*
44.Golden Eagles
45.Ruff winged Swallows*
46.House Wren*
47.Cliff Swallows*
48.Phoebe Says*
49.Vesper Sparrow*
50.Chirping Sparrow*
51.Double crested Cormorant*
52.Gray flycatcher*
53.SWage sparrow*
54.white collard dove*
55.American Coot*
56.Western Grebe
57.Ringed Neck Duck*
58.Crested Flycatcher*
59.Cedar Waxwing
60.Borthern Shoveler*
61.Harry woodpecker*
62.Lesser Scaup*
63.Ash Throated Flycatcher*
64.Calliope Hummingbird*
65.spotted Towhee*
66.Townsend warbler*
67.warbling vireo*
68.Ruby Crowned Kinglet*
69.Western wood pewee*
70.blackcapped chickadee
71.king fisher
72.Common Merganser*
73.Junco
74.yellow rump warbler*
75.falcon*
76.Northern Pintail*
77.Gadwell*
78.American Wigeon*
79.green winged teal*
80.canvas backed duck*
81.Red Headed duck*
82.Baffel head duck*
83.Ruddy duck*
84.Mutted swans
85.canada goose
86.Pied billed Grebe*
87.western grebe
88.eared grebe*
89.Horned grebe*
90.Sharpie hawk*
91.ringed billed gull
92.rock wren*
93.gray partridge*
94.quail
95.wood duck*
96.townsend solitare*
97.Northern Harrier
98.rough legged hawk
99.California Gull
100.Marsh wren*
101.Virginia Rail..heard not seen*
102.Pippet*
103.robin
104.Black crowned night heron*
105.loon*
106.pine siskins
107.Killdeer
108.rock wren* heard not seen
109.downey woodpecker
110.Great white egret
111.Snipe
112.Long billed Dowitcher*
113.Hooded Merganser*
114.Tundra Swans*
115.Hering gull
116.Merlin*
117.clarks grebe*
118.least sandpiper*
119.Lincoln sparrow*
120.savanas sparrow*
121.red headed woodpecker*
122.semi palmated plover*
123. yellow legs plover*
124.Eastern muted gull
TAHITT BIRDS
1.Myna*
2.Red-venter bulbul*
3.Zebra Dove*
4.Lesser Golden Plover
5.Common Fairy Terns*
6.Wedge tailed Sharewater*
7.Tahiti Petrel*
8.Great Pacific Heron*
9.Great Crested Terns*
10.White bellied storn Petrel*
11.Brown Noddys*
12.Rock Doves
13.Red Jungle fowl
14.Wandering Tattler*
15.Chestnut Brested Mannikin*
16.Lesser Frigate birds*
17.Swamp Harrier*
18.Polynesian Imperial Pigeon* (127) 127)

Hawaii

Maui May 5-11 2011....My first trip.
Paul and I just returned from Maui where we spent 6 days getting to really know each other. We spent hours talking, walking, and exploring both the Island and ourselves. We left the mainland knowing we liked each other and we returned much more than friends.
Maui was beautiful and yet in some ways disappointing. we had rain and clouds everyday, the sunshine came and went, and until the day we were leaving it was never really hot. For old folks like us you could say the weather was just perfect. I expected it to be like
Tahiti and it wasn't yet it was, it is much larger so you have very little intervention with the people. We stayed at a very nice place and were right on the Ocean and the people at the Condo were very welcoming. We rented a car and day one lost a tire and ended up off the road and had to change cars, so that cost us a day. Even with this happening we spent the remainder of the day birding the local area and visiting the Iao National Park, seeing the Needle, it turned out to be all good. Day two we went on a whale/dolphin watching trip. We seen Bottle nose dolphins and were treated to flying fish but no whale. Paul ended up very very sea sick and after the trip we walked the beach and stayed low key. Poor guy he was so mersible and worried about spoiling the trip. The following day we drove to the summit of Haleakala and checked out the native birds and were lucky enough to see six Nene (Hawaiian goose) which are the Hawaiian State bird. We played hide and seek with the clouds and the dormit volcanic scenes. I LOVE what they call the Silversword plant. More birding and exploration of the Island with a trip to Turtle town where we explored the different beaches and drove thru the Volcanic landscape at Makena. We were amazed by the Bayna Tree at Lahaina, which is said to be the largest tree in the world. We had three separate sightings of Turtles just down the road from Lahaina for a total of 5 turtles(or maybe all the same two just different days.) We drove the road to Hana to the very end, checked out waterfalls, visited the Hana airport, and Charles Lindbergh's grave and Paul ended up with a National Park Lifetime Membership. He said "stick with me babe and we will visit all the parks for free.
Paul and I we are a couple...we plan on remaining a couple...we have a great time together...he loves me and I him. I feel very lucky to have found a relationship like this and plan on treasuring it to the fullest. It may not be very long but We will embrace it for however long we are given. God is good.