October 2021https://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021Front Cover: October 2021https://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021/front-cover-october-2021Front CoverFri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:16 GMT<p class="caption"><img alt="" src="/Portals/0/Assets/bo49-5/0780_LeachsStormPetrel_img.png?ver=YBeXyNx58X2e27XKz57maQ%3d%3d" style="width: 860px; height: 922px;" /><br /> Leach’s Storm-Petrel by John Sill © Massachusetts Audubon Society. Courtesy of the Museum of American Bird Art.</p> <p>John Sill is a freelance wildlife artist living in the mountains of North Carolina. He was the illustrator for the Bird Identification Calendar for Mass Audubon for many years. His work has appeared in Birds In Art at the Leigh-Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, Wisconsin, and in Art of the Animal Kingdom at the Bennington Center for the Arts in Vermont. He continues to illustrate the “About” and “About Habitats” series of natural history books for children written by his wife Cathryn.</p> To view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work. Hot Birds: October 2021https://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021/hot-birds-october-2021Hot BirdsFri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:15 GMTTo view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work. A Guide to Birding Great Swamp Management Area, South Kingstown, Rhode Islandhttps://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021/a-guide-to-birding-great-swamp-management-area-south-kingstown-rhode-islandWhere to Go BirdingFri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:14 GMT<p><img alt="" src="/Portals/0/Assets/bo49-5/south_kingstown.png?ver=03KEJG0decKCfBLvJrT-iw%3d%3d" style="margin: 12px; float: right; width: 245px; height: 245px;" />The Great Swamp Management Area in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, is a 3,349-acre preserve that is rich with diverse habitats, history, and birds. You can access the walking trails from the dirt parking lot at the end of Great Neck Road (41.4690987646978, -71.5795471982134). To get to Great Swamp from Interstate 95, take exit 3A and merge onto RI-138 eastbound. After driving eastbound on RI-138 for 8.8 miles, make a sharp right turn onto Liberty Lane. TLC Coffee Roasters is located at this intersection.</p> <p>To get to Liberty Lane from US-1, turn onto RI-138 westbound at the traffic light at (41.49477, -71.45652). After 5.2 miles, make a slight left turn onto Liberty Lane at TLC Coffee Roasters. To get to Great Swamp from RI-4, take exit 3B onto RI-102 northbound toward Exeter. Once on RI-102, turn left onto RI-2 southbound in 0.7 mile. Continue driving south on RI-2 for 6.8 miles, and turn left at the traffic light onto RI-138 eastbound. After 1.4 miles, take a sharp right turn onto Liberty Lane at TLC Coffee Roasters.</p> <p>After turning onto Liberty Lane, continue straight for 0.8 mile. Soon Liberty Lane curves to the left, runs parallel to the railroad, and becomes Great Neck Road, which is an unpaved road usually littered with potholes. In 0.5 mile, there will be a hunter check station and the Department of Environmental Management offices on the right; continue straight. Soon after entering the forest, continue past the gun range on the left. About 100 feet after the gun range turnoff, there will be a misleading sign posted to a tree that says “Authorized Vehicles Only.” This sign is not in reference to Great Neck Road but is in reference to a side “road” that is overgrown and unrecognizable. Keep driving on Great Neck Road for another 0.3 mile until you reach a large clearing, which is the parking lot for Great Swamp Management Area. The gate at the end of the parking lot is where the walk begins.</p> <p class="caption"><img alt="" src="/Portals/0/Assets/bo49-5/WTG_Great_Swamp.jpg?ver=-Wtt9G7bOATeBQu5apOwXQ%3d%3d" style="width: 969px; height: 675px;" /><br /> <strong>Map 1</strong>. Great Swamp Management Area.</p> To view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work. The Importance of Counting Shorebirds: Manomet’s International Shorebird Survey (ISS)https://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021/the-importance-of-counting-shorebirds-manomets-international-shorebird-survey-issFeature ArticlesFri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:13 GMT<p class="caption"><img alt="" src="/Portals/0/Assets/bo49-5/ISS.Photo_2.monomoy_AlanKneidel.jpg?ver=wsMhIv3dCyzJWZpuFCP4nw%3d%3d" style="width: 732px; height: 439px;" /><br /> A mixed flock of shorebirds at Monomoy NWR. Photograph by Alan Kneidel.</p> <p>In the early 1970s, Manomet biologist Brian Harrington was pondering important questions of shorebird migration and population biology. The shorebirds he was considering were those that nested in the high arctic tundra and then passed through North America, following the sun to winter in South and Central America. The puzzle was that the places where shorebirds spent the majority of their time, both north and south, were often remote and logistically complex for shorebird scientists to access. So how could scientists, with limited funding, best document population sizes and trends for these long-distant migrants? Brian hypothesized that a dedicated and enthusiastic group of shorebirders across the Western Hemisphere could, by counting shorebirds on their migration routes, supply necessary data to shorebird scientists and conservation partners. This network of volunteers evolved into Manomet’s International Shorebird Survey (ISS), one of the longest-running citizen science projects in the world.</p> <p>For more information, visit <a href="http://manomet.org" target="_blank">manomet.org</a>.</p> To view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work. Bird-Friendly Maple Syruphttps://www.birdobserver.org/Issues/2021/October-2021/bird-friendly-maple-syrupFeature ArticlesFri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:12 GMT<p class="caption"><img alt="" src="/Portals/0/Assets/bo49-5/IMG_7141.jpg?ver=wsMhIv3dCyzJWZpuFCP4nw%3d%3d" style="width: 732px; height: 488px;" /><br /> The owners and operators of Bridge Road Sugarworks pose with a bird-friendly maple syrup sign. Photo credit: Bridge Road Sugarworks.</p> <p>October. The cool, crisp air is a welcome respite from the summer’s heat. We excitedly don our finest flannels and embrace this wonderful time of year in New England. Friends and families gather for the festivities of fall or one of many upcoming holidays. Amid the hustle and bustle, perhaps a lazy Saturday morning is in order, in a warm kitchen with a generous stack of pancakes. And of course, no pancake experience is complete without the requisite drizzle or, for a greater indulgence, pool, of pure maple syrup. Sweet maple flavor with notes of vanilla, caramel, and molasses, sticky on your lips and birdsong in your ears.</p> To view the rest of the article you'll need to subscribe. Bird Observer publishes original articles on birding locations, on avian populations and natural history, on regional rarities, field notes, field records, photographs, and art work.