A drizzly Wednesday morning had me at home working on my last blog entry when the phone rang.  Mike McGrenere was at Martindale Flats looking at a Say’s Phoebe.  Yes!  I hung up and jumped in the car.  The most valuable piece of advice that I have been given (by John Puschock and others) about bird chasing is that you want to get there right away.  I was perfectly positioned only about 10 minutes away (that never happens!), and Mike said he’d stay and keep an eye on it.

When I reached the pump house driveway on Martindale, Mike still had the bird in view, although it was about 80 m down the field. We got it in the scope and I was able to add my first new bird in a couple of weeks to my year list. Warren Drinnan arrived a few minutes later and caught the last glimpses of the bird before it disappeared from the fenceline.  Sadly, Elaine Preston and Liam Singh arrived just a few minutes too late.  We looked around the field for a while and even went around to McHugh and McIntyre in an attempt to head it off, but we were unable to relocate it.

We did get some great looks, though, at a male Northern Harrier coursing the fields.

There was a cat in the field that beat a beeline home after this raptor passed low over its head.

It’s quite clear that I took this picture while on the Michell property at Martindale Flats.  For many years now, birders have been welcome to walk these fields provided that they follow a few simple rules.  Almost two decades ago, the Victoria Natural History Society formed a committee to work with Martindale Valley farmers to come up with a sub-code of ethics to be used in conjunction with the American Birding Association code.  It was developed after a farmer in the Martindale Valley approached a couple of birders and asked why no one had ever sought permission to walk on his property.  Conversaions were started and ultimately a sub-code was published in the Sept/Oct 1998 issue of the Victoria Naturalist.  I can provide a copy to anyone who wants one.

The same access privileges used to be true of the Vantreight properties, but I understand that the new owners are not as welcoming–at least not yet.  The Saanich Peninsula is changing. There are a lot more residences and hobby farms and a lot fewer large tracts of land. And sadly,  roving gangs of birdwatchers are not always welcome. It’s not as bad a situation as it is for black birdwatchers, though.

Some prescription canada de viagra of ayurvedic remedies are available to control high blood pressure or antidepressants are known to also relate to impotency. But, the role of statins for impotence check out for more info buy levitra is obscure. This herb usually grows in tropical regions and is cialis prescription amerikabulteni.com available in abundance in India, Myanmar and Srilanaka . Women, in particular, are aware of this natural fun called sex. viagra online purchase Last weekend, when several birders descended on a quiet rural street to see the first of the year Mountain Bluebirds, they weren’t exactly greeted with open arms.  There is reason to believe that a few may have intentionally trespassed, or at least walked on private property without permission, but most were just there enjoying the birds and the camaraderie.  In the process, dogs and babies may have been wakened, boulevards muddied and residents’ privacy and quiet on a Sunday morning disturbed.  No laws may have actually been broken, but it’s not always about the law. Sometimes it’s just about being respectful when we’re out and about.  I know that I have crossed  more than a few lines in this regard myself, in both the distant and recent past.  I pledge to do better.  The stakeout for the Common Redpoll was probably the most uncomfortable for me.  There I was, looking at the feeder, but essentially staring in the direction of the homes for hours on end. Hours, and hours on end.

We have opportunities to work with communities and individuals, like VNHS did with the Martindale farmers back in 1997.  Let’s try to keep that kind of good neighbourliness going in our interactions with non-birders!   I think I need to take a bag of birdseed to the redpoll host…

One of the downsides of my big year (and there aren’t many) is that I also get to see some of the disrespect shown to natural areas.  Why do people feel the need to dump their garbage in remote locations?  The day that Ian Cruickshank, Mike McGrenere and I were looking for Pine Grosbeaks, a car pulled up not 20 ft from us and threw out a pile of trash (yes, I got the license number).  On the Malahat this week, I was greeted by several piles that looked something  like this:

 

I recently found a new public shaming site, “Stop Illegal Dumping on Vancouver Island”.   You can post photos here, especially of things bearing addresses or other information that can lead to shaming and/or prosecution of the dumpers.  Interestingly, some of the junk is being dumped by people who have been paid to remove it and take it to the landfill, not by the owners themselves.  So don’t jump to any conclusions if you find an addressed item.  Fortunately, either way, the culprits can be found.  Worth an extra minute or two to take a closer look at the garbage.