Two beautiful mornings with Kenwood Elementary and The Meadow School in Sonoma county

Its getting spooky up in the northern part of the state. The mornings are colder, sometimes frosty, and the days are short.

Kevin explains how to look for a bird in a field guide and why field guides are useful.

photo from www.bird-friends.com

Yet, the Black Phoebes keep on catching the highest perch on the playground, and the students continue to find them in the field guide.

With Bird School, students are encouraged to go out into the field, observe nature, record their observations, ask questions, and repeat the process. This is the same method used by former professor of natural history at UC Santa Cruz, Kenneth M. Norris. He called it "spinning the wheel." This practice has proven to be extremely transformative in the lives of budding naturalists and has helped to create some of the top naturalists, interpreters, scientists, and land managers in California. 

Kenwood Elementary's 4th graders "spin the wheel." 

This week we worked with some very bright 3rd and 4th grade students from Kenwood Elementary and The Meadow School. They asked many questions and learned how to answer their questions through observation. Ms. Cagle and Ms. Forester's classes at Kenwood even watched the power of their observations be put to work as we taught them how to record their sightings on ebird.com, an international database for bird observation run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. More on ebird soon!

We're looking forward to more schedules like the one below. Bay Area here we come!

The schedule for Mr. Wright's class.

Songbirds and shorebirds in Sonoma county

We had a very full day working with the various classes of the brand new University Elementary in Rohnert Park. We were set up to teach 4 classes--two 1st/2nd grade classes and two kindergarten classes! We only had a short amount of time with each, but we were able to learn bird sounds, bird identification, and we went out for walks on their sports field. 

The kids quietly walking forward to get a closer look at a perched Black Phoebe

Learning about the Western Scrub-Jay

Watching the Chestnut-backed Chickadees that were visiting the feeders of a neighboring house

Today, we had the day off and decided to go birding--all day! We first went to Bodega Bay on the Sonoma coast and got some good looks at the shorebirds despite the stormy weather. 

Birding at Bodega Bay!

A solitary Eared Grebe

Can you find the Savannah Sparrow? Look out for those bright yellow lores above the bill!

The beautiful open wings of the Willets and the cinnamon color of the Marbled Godwit!

 We finished up by birding around our friend Adam's farm. We saw some beautiful Cedar Waxwings, Northern Flickers, and had a great look at a Sharp-Shinned Hawk. Adam went to UC Santa Cruz and was a part of the recreation department and Wilderness Orientation program, both of which we worked for when we were in school. He now lives up in Sebastopol and owns New Family Farm. They raise pigs and grow produce for the community and they do most of it the old-school way--by horse-drawn plow! Check out their facebook page at Facebook.com/thenewfamilyfarm.

Feeding Bertha and her new piglets at New Family Farm in Sebastopol!

Rainy Day at Spy Rock Elementary!

We started our day today by driving through the rain and fog up a gravel road into the hills above Laytonville, CA to visit the very small, but charming Spy Rock Elementary. The school--complete with garden, cobb dragon, and tetherball court--houses only 8 children in grades K-3rd. It is a small school of mountain children, but they are grand in their spirit and gratitude for visitors. We began our rainy day lesson with meeting Cedar the Cedar Waxwing and imitating the voices of the morning birds. 

We rolled into a game to learn about different bird bills and what each bill is specialized for. We "ate" seeds, butterflies, and nectar and learned that you can't really eat seeds with a nectar-eating bill. Nor can you really eat bugs with a seed-cracking bill. But, you CAN get quite a bit of food if you have a generalist bill like an American Robin.

Then, we had recess! The students told us which birds they have seen at their school. We got to see a pair of mallards fly quickly over the school and we were shown the barn swallow nests in the sports shed. We also took some time to jump in puddles and create a channel so that puddles from the playground could fill the swale in the garden. It was awesome!

Look at all the water!

Birds! Thanks to Cornell's BirdSleuth Program!

 We finished off the day by learning the different parts of a bird and drawing and labeling our very own bird sketches! We had some beautiful drawings of Great Horned Owls, Anna's Hummingbirds, and Red-tailed hawks (just to name a few). These students couldn't get enough birds. They drew, read interesting facts, and asked insightful questions. Thanks so much to Spy Rock Elementary for being the bright goldfinches on a gray rainy day!

Kevin drawing with the boys

The Great Horned Owl lives all over North America and can be 22 inches tall!

Connor learning the parts of the bird and labeling his Red-tailed Hawk drawing

What beautiful pictures!

Chloe showing off her new Sibley Guide to Birds!

A Very Birdy Day at Leggett Valley School

When we woke up to a cloudy, 48 degree morning up in Leggett, CA, we weren't sure if we were going to see many birds with our school group today. But, fortunately, we were wrong!

We arrived at the Leggett Valley School and met with the ENTIRE school in their gymnasium. Granted, the whole school (preschool-12th grade) was only about 50 students, but they were one very excited flock when we arrived.  Kevin began by teaching everyone about the dawn chorus--that time in the early morning when the birds are most active and chatty--and about the various voices of different birds in the area. It got everyone's ears keyed into listening to birds.

A quick video of the Leggett Valley School dawn chorus...

We then split the school into two groups. The young ones went with Kevin and the middle and high schoolers went off with Darrow. We talked about bird observation, binoculars, and recording observations in the field, and then we headed out onto their beautiful campus for an extended bird walk.

Watching a flock of feeding Dark-eyed Juncos

The older students worked on identification, bird behavior, and field recording. The younger students worked on sound recognition, identification, and bird drawing. Great times were had by all and we were quickly asked to come back next year!

Identifying a Belted Kingfisher in the field!

Showing off their drawings of birds they saw on their walk
(American Robin, Stellar's Jays, and a Great Blue Heron!)

Our Quote of the Day:

"Hey Kevin. Before this, I used to think birds were lame, but now I think they're AWESOME!"
    -Seth (4th Grade)









Species list from our walk: Dark-eyed Junco, White-Crowned Sparrow, Golden-Crowned Sparrow,  Black Phoebe, Anna's Hummingbird, Wrentit, Great Blue Heron, Acorn Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Mallard, Belted Kingfisher, Turkey, Brewer's Blackbird, Red-shouldered Hawk, Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Stellar's Jay, American Robin.

A Day Off For Birding

We are taking the day off today before we head over to the town of Leggett for our next school tomorrow. Last night we attended the Mendocino Coast Audubon Society monthly meeting where we got to meet a whole room full of local birders that wanted to hear about our project! We received a ton of support and were wished well on our travels. It always feels good to find support in new and foreign places.

After the meeting we got to stay with the club's education and outreach director--Sarah Grimes, who is doing some amazing work with the local kids including organizing a "Big October" where young birders in the area are trying to find as many species as possible this month. She also does a similar program to our where she visits local schools and teaches about birds. It was a great time sharing ideas and excitement around bird education with her. Thanks Sarah!

Check out what they are up to at their education website!

This morning, we headed over to the local birding hotspot--Virgin Creek and took in the huge surf and the various shorebirds. It was a beautiful morning of birding. Check out our species list and the photos below!

A flock of Sanderlings

Check out videos of Sanderlings online here. They play the same game at the beach we used to play when we were young. They stand on the wet sand and run inland when each wave comes. They then return to the wet sand to feed on the small invertebrates that were disturbed and washed up in the sand.

Long-Billed Dowitchers

Marbled Godwit

You can't beat the CA coast!

View from the bluffs

Species List: Black Phoebe, White-Crowned Sparrow, Western Gull, Savannah Sparrow, Black Turnstone, Sanderling, Long-Billed Dowitcher, Dunlin, Willet, Marbled Godwit, Long-Billed Curlew, Common Raven, Surf Scoter, Brandt's Cormorant, Eared Grebe, Great Egret, Mallard, Red-Shouldered Hawk

Three Rivers Charter School!

White-Crowned Sparrow in the morning

After bouncing back from our broken wing adventures, we have returned to our original mission of visiting schools and teaching kids about birds and nature observation. Last night, we drove up to Fort Bragg and weathered quite the coastal rainstorm. But when we arrived at Three Rivers Charter School this morning, the welcomed sun brought an impressive dawn chorus filled with TONS of birds actively eating after the wet and windy night. We walked around the school before classes started and got to watch the large flocks of White-Crowned Sparrows, Golden-Crowned Sparrows, and Yellow-Rumped Warblers, feeding in the Wax-Myrtle shrubs. 

Darrow teaches Ms. Morgan's eager kids about making good observations.

 We spent the morning with Ms. Turbitt's 3rd & 4th graders, then the afternoon with Ms. Morgan's 1st & 2nd graders, and Mr. Coy's 5th & 6th graders. Each class got to see birds they had never seen before and make new observations about the many common birds on campus.

                 

                  A group of students roves the premises of Three Rivers Charter
                     in search of the feathered.

 We started each class with talking about the general observation of birds and students got to meet our traveling companions Coop, José, Robbie, and Cedar (To be formally introduced in another blog post). We learned how to use binoculars and set out on the school grounds to find birds. We found a great deal of birds including our highlight bird of the day--a Townsend's Warbler!!! Be sure to look that one up and see it for yourself!

What's that in the hedge?!

It was an incredible first school visit and we can't wait for what lay ahead this week.

As for tonight, we will be speaking to the Mendocino Audubon Club about our work!

Students from Mr. Coy's class attempting to identify a Townsend's Warbler.

Question of the Day from Mr. Coy's class:

"How fast do birds fly when they are migrating?"

We learned that the White-Crowned Sparrow has been known to fly 300 miles in a night when migrating South!

Find out for your favorite migratory bird and post below with your answer!

When a bird breaks its wing

  There are many ways a bird may injure its wing. A swift blow from a cat's claw, a smack into a car windshield, a poorly planned cast of a fisherman's net.

photo courtesy of Google images

When a bird breaks its wing it is often left behind by the flock. With flight as the flocks best means of finding food and major advantage over predation, they simply can't afford to rescue a fellow downed pilot. Besides, they don't have the best medical training.

Brown Pelican with a broken wing.
photo courtesy of Google images

Thankfully, when a human breaks its wing, support and help is never more than a friend away.

At the Beginning of this week, only 5 days into our birding and bicycling tour, Kevin fell over his handle bars and broke his right arm. Luckily, Darrow was right behind him and motor-vehicle help pulled up quickly. After a visit to the emergency room in Garberville and a few visits with orthopedic surgeons in the Bay Area, Kevin's arm is fixed and slowly healing.

Special thanks to all of those who have supported us through this difficult last week of the Bird School Project. We are eternally grateful to our families for their support, and our friends for being there when we need them most.

We are still very dedicated to visiting schools and taking classes outside to learn about birds. Thanks to Dr. Joshua Richards, from Webster Medical, Kevin's wing is repaired and ready to hold binoculars.

Kevin's new wing hardware

After a quick turn around we are back in action this week in Northern California. Though we can no longer travel via bicycle, we are stoked to continue visiting schools in the Bird Mobile (Darrow's van).

Be sure to check back in this week as we visit Northern California schools all week long. Updates on our workshops soon!

Arcata Marsh

Yesterday, we spent the morning checking out birds at the Arcata marsh. This is an amazing community resource, used by students and Audubon club members for education and recreation.

Birding at the marsh!

Snowy egrets

The creation of the marshes is an interesting story. In the 1970s, under new environmental regulation, the city of Arcata was faced with the issue of treating their wastewater before sending it into the ocean. Rather than spending millions of dollars on a wastewater treatment facility, two professors from the university designed, tested, and proved a marsh system as an acceptable treatment for the city's wastewater. Now the four marshes serve as the perfect habitat for migrating and resident bird species.

Species list for Arcata Marsh, Humboldt county, Oct. 11:

Yellow-rumped Warbler, Black Phoebe, Ruby-crowned kinglet, White-crowned Sparrow, Lesser Goldfish, House Finch, Great Egret, Northern Pintail, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Black-crowned Night Heron, Mallards, Golden-Crowned Sparrow, White-Crowned Sparrow, Common Merganser, Eurasian Wigeon, ,

Days 1 & 2: the journey begins

Our tour began in true foggy country fashion. Launching from Crescent City on October 8, we pedaled 80 miles through redwood groves and by coastal terraces to reach Arcata, CA.

We pedaled uphill

We pedaled downhill

We pedaled past many large lagoons that support lots of birds on their path south.

Can you find the great blue heron?

In two days we will be at our first elementary school in Whitethorn, CA, near Garberville and the Lost Coast.

In the meantime, here is a species list of the birds we've noticed along our ride.

Oct. 9, Del Norte County, Hwy 101:

 Pacific Wren, Northern Flicker, Western Gull, American Robin, Belted Kingfisher, Steller's Jay, Common Raven, Western Meadowlark, Turkey Vulture, Brewer's Blackbird, European Starling, Brandt's Cormorant, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Brown creeper, American Crow

Oct. 10, Humboldt County, Hwy 101, Big Lagoon, Clam Beach, Mad River:

White-tailed Kite, American Kestrel, Red-shouldered Hawk, Brandt's Cormorant, Northern Flicker, Mallards, Ruddy Duck, Common Merganser, Belted Kingfisher, Trumpeter Swan, Brewer's Blackbirds, Great Blue Heron, Osprey, Great Egret, Red-winged Blackbird, Turkey Vulture, White-crowned Sparrows, Song Sparrows