Day 35: Nuevos sombreros, etc.

Hey all! Day 35 has already arrived - 5 weeks on the island!! Lots of fun stuff going on around here, mostly bird-wise of course. More migrants all the time, soo many warblers to watch! Also, BOBOLINKS! SO MANY BOBOLINKS. AKA birdsong that sounds like futuristic sci-fi robot sound effects from movies from the 70s. In my opinion. Also seals!!! Adorable sausage-like mer-puppies!! No photos yet, but soon I hope!

In other news, we took down all the playback speakers today, so that means phase 1 of the project has been completed, and n=3!! This means I get to focus on other SAVS related tasks for the next few weeks, like nest searching! Saw my first SAVS copulation today, so the birds are having the good times too.

Lots to talk about in this week's video, so check it out:

Some recent photos for your viewing pleasure:

Oh hai Magnolia warbler

Tree swallow nest boxes: not just for sparrows anymore!

Can you name that mammal? Hint: it's one of two species on the island and it's not human.

Mmmmm dirt.

And yes, I'm perfectly aware that is nest material in that gull's beak, but it's funnier this way because the gulls are ridiculous.Today I saw a gull fly from the west beach of the island with a mouth full of nest material to the east side of the island. Was it really necessary to carry it from that far? It's the same damn twigs and grass all over the island!

Finally, as some of you know, I recently found a 'teach yourself Spanish' style book here on the island. It's turning out to include some of the most useless conversational phrases ever, unless you're a travelling businessman from the 50's. For example, in English: "The cuffs on this silk shirt are too long", "Where is there a good and inexpensive watch repair shop?/Are diamond watches expensive?", "Do you typewrite your letters? Yes; today every modern house types its letters, and ordinarily they make two copies", "Wouldn't you like to first send a radiogram to your agent?", and finally "Will he need a power of attorney from the firm in order to legalize his transactions?" I'll be having completely normal conversations in Spanish in no time! But my absolute favourite phrase, and now my excuse for everything is this:

"I'm sorry, I have to go buy myself a hat..." Feel free to use this one whenever you need it. You're welcome.

Day 27: birds, birds, BIRDS

Hello all! It's day 27 on the island, almost 4 weeks already! I thought island life was supposed to be slow, but maybe that's just the tropics? Some awesome birding this week, specifically for warblers... so warbling? That's probably not a thing. Anyway, I managed to snap a few nice pics over the past few days, including some lifers! Warbler species seen so far:

• Yellow-rumped (Myrtle)
• Palm
• Black-and-white
• Blackpoll
• Black-throated green
• Black-throated blue
• Magnolia (second fave!!)
• Northern parula
• Nashville
• Bay-breasted (lifer!!)
• Common yellowthroat
• Ovenbird
• Yellow
• Hooded
• Blackburnian (fave!!)
• Probably more I've forgotten!

I've also seen Black scoters and Purple finches, and I heard several Bobolinks but unfortunately I didn't get to see them. So that's my birdie excitement so far for the week, but there's time yet for more exciting migrants! For now, check out my video for day 27 on the island:

Here are some of my better shots from the past few days (I took a LOT of not so good ones too):

Black-throated blue warbler posing like a champ

Don't worry Common eiders, you're special to me!

I'm the prettiest Hermit thrush in allllll the land

As an unrelated side note, lately I have taken to talking aloud to the birds (e.g. "I came all the way up here to hear you sing, and you give me nothing... I bet the guys in the south field are singing.. what do you think about that??"). I'm not sure if this is a sign of any forthcoming madness, but I will keep you updated. Perhaps a little more telling is when I began speaking aloud to inanimate objects such as the playback speakers....

"Good hustle boys! You really gave 'em hell today. No, not you sparrow,
I'm talking to the speakers. THEY sing all day."

On that note, can't wait to find out what exciting sights and events pop up next! Stay tuned for more riveting tales from 'zee island'. 

Day 23: dedicated to the most important building

Hey guys! Now that I'm all up to date on past blogs, it's time for a new update. Lots of cool sightings and events over the past week! First exciting tidbit of news: n=2! Hurray! New bird singing the foreign stimuli! He is also aggressively squeezing his way in between three other adult male territories, and I must say, he is doing a fine job oppressing his elders.

Other exciting events: migration is finally in full swing around here! Seems like the poor weather and strong north winds were really backing up large groups of birds. But this week we had at least 3 full days of lovely sunshine and south winds, allowing for lots of new birdies to pass through! Highlights for me so far have been: scores of yellow-rumped warblers in beautiful summer plumage, lots of white-throated sparrows (songs that remind me of home!), black-throated blue warblers, and a couple lifer warblers for me including black-throated greens, Blackburnian's (now officially my new favourite warbler!!), and a hooded warbler! He was entirely out of his range, but I'm sure glad he made the mistake of coming to Kent Island.

Yellow-rumped warbler showing off his pretty colours

Hooded warbler!! So gorgeous!

So, since it's a rainy, foggy day and I have no intention of walking around the island, I'll take some time to tell you a little about the facilities here at the field station. As you may know (or may have guessed from my earlier mention of hauling water for dishes), the island does not have basic plumbing. It does have two cold-water sinks in the dorm, one in the mudroom for teeth brushing/hand washing, etc., and one in the kitchen for rinsing and drinking water, etc., but that is the extent of it. So that means all hot water either comes from a pot on the stove (it's a gas stove, so it heats up quick!), or from the hot water tank outside, which is solar powered (in fact, all power here is acquired through solar panels). It also means that there are no toilets or showers. Hence, my frequent shower updates (and infrequent showering). So yes, outhouses only. Here's a photo of the main 'two-holer':

Complete with wooden 'occupied' flags, and doors that don't actually close

Almost spa-like relaxation awaits. Note the actual bullet holes in the back wall

Also, note that this is the stall without the toilet seat. I couldn't show you too much luxury or you might get jealous. And no, there is no locking mechanism on these doors, which is why the flag system is key. At least you get a nice view of the outdoors while you sit! I believe there has historically been an outhouse bird list, for birds seen whilst using the facilities! So far my outhouse bird list consists of Herring gulls, American crows, SAVS, and Leech's Storm petrels if you count audio! Don't worry, I'll keep you updated on my outhouse bird list, because I know you're dying to know.

Since this already getting to be a long post, and obviously the outhouse deserved at LEAST this much time and blog space, I will save the rest of the virtual field station tour for another post!

And please, everyone take the time to appreciate your toilet today, for me.

I'm a Song sparrow, I feel under appreciated...

Day 17: major facility upgrade

Hello everyone, I've finally made it to my last catch-up video! This means we finally have internet on the island! This also means I can stop racking up my phone's data plan bill excessively! And finally, it means I can actually post my blogs as I make them. So without further adieu, here is my video from day 17, outlining some of the week's highlights, such as clean laundry, clean hair, and the installation of a toilet seat.

Mine, mine, mine

Day 10: n=1!

Exciting times on Kent Island! With the arrival of the first juvenile SAVS (Savannah sparrow), we have already seen the project's first success! I won't go into too much detail about what the project entails, since it isn't actually my project, but suffice it to say that we are essentially trying to teach juvenile birds new songs that are foreign to the island's native dialect (for those of you who are non-birders, SAVS have a wide geographic range and sing slightly different dialects in different populations across this range, sort of like the difference in dialects in the English language across the country/continent). Hopefully this will help us better understand how Savannah sparrows learn their song.

In other news, I'm please to announce that in the following video my personal hygiene has taken a turn for the better! Check out my video from day 10 on the island to find out more about what I've been up to:

YL.O (or 'yellow' as we fondly call him) is happy as a lark (or a SAVS) upon hearing about our sample size of 1.

La la laaaaaa

Day 8 on the island: snowy owl sighting

Day 8 on the island and my sanity remains intact. I think. Still catching up on old videos, but after watching this video again I am reliving the colder days on the island. Thank goodness for wood stoves. And a functioning water heater... even if we have to manually fill buckets with hot water and haul them to the kitchen to do dishes, or to take a shower. Between water hauling and D-cell battery hauling I should be in shape in no time! Here's my video from day 8 on the island:

Here are a few photos of the snowy owl we saw!!

Photo creds go to Jesse, who had a scope and an attachment for his iPhone. Beautiful photos of a beautiful bird!! We think it was a juvenile female, based on plumage and size. She stuck around for the day and permitted us to snap photos of her from various angles, but we haven't seen her since. I hope she had a safe journey up north! 

Also, as a minor correction to my comment in the video, max. temperatures actually do get into the 20's (Celsius) later in the summer. Phew! But in all honesty, 6 degrees with sun and no wind is really quite nice. Under my 5 layers, anyway.

It begins... Day 4 on the island

Hey guys, I've finally decided to put together a little blog about my time spent on 'the island'. I'm not sure how interesting it will be, but for those of you who want a few updates about my life every now and then, check this page out! I will try to add some videos and photos, somewhat regularly, about what's going on here on the island, and hopefully I will eventually include some actual in-the-field videos if I can!

I'm a little late in getting this started, so I'll try to post the first few videos soon to catch up to where I am now.

I arrived on Kent Island in the Bay of Fundy (map below) on April 18th, 2014, where I began my field work on Savannah sparrows as a research assistant for the University of Windsor. The island is about 3 km long, but is quite narrow across (I think a couple 100 m across at the narrowest), and the only way on and off the island is if a fisherman comes to pick us up! The island in uninhabited except by researchers during the field season (and of course by many birds and muskrats, year round), so the only buildings are the research station and the various cabins around the island (photos to follow). There are no reptiles or amphibians on the island, and the only mammals are muskrats! That means no mice or other small rodents either. It's very strange to live in a habitat that looks very much like the boreal forest I'm used to back home, but with pretty much just birds! So basically, when you hear something rustling in the leaves on the ground, it's a bird. Pretty cool!!



More details to follow about life (both animal life, and my life) on the island. But for now, here is my first video entry: Day 4 on the island