Birders flock to Shell Valley for AHTC tour

The local Arts and Humanities Trapper Creek workshop and lecture series group hosted a birding field trip Saturday morning in the Shell Valley area. A group of 10 that included first-time birders and avid birders – from Shell, Greybull, Cody and Sheridan – met before sunrise and toured various locations around the Shell Valley and the Bighorn Mountains. 

The group was led by field guides Corey Anco, curator of the Draper Natural History Museum at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, and CJ Grimes of the Bighorn Audubon Society.

“The highlight was having CJ and Corey as our birding guides,” said AHTC director Barb Fiedler. “Each brought their own experiences and expertise which was very informative and very interesting. And having the two of them working together was big fun. Together they brought such knowledge and enthusiasm that was infectious and delightful.”

The Bighorn Basin’s diverse habitats – sagebrush flats, cottonwood riparian zones and alpine forests – support more than 327 bird species making the area a prime spot for birding. 

First stop for the tour was the Red Gulch Dinosaur Tracksite where the shrub habitat of greasewood and sagebrush obligates provided a terrific environment for viewing birds. Spotted first was a Sagebrush sparrow – a white bodied bird with a black dot on its chest. Followed by the state bird, the Meadowlark – a chunky robin-sized songbird known for their vibrant yellow chests and black V-shaped necklaces and easily recognized by their flute-like melodies.

Anco directed the group to first listen for a bird call, direct your attention toward the sound and then scan for areas where a bird would perch. Fence posts, tops of bushes, etc. “When they are calling, they are perched up high, you can change your vantage point to narrow it down,” he added. 

Grimes chimed in, “sagebrush habitat is overlooked and underappreciated, but it supports species.” 

The group spotted five species of birds at the dino tracksite. Another suggestion from the group to locate birds is to use your peripheral vision to pick up movement, then lock in with binoculars. 

The next stop was along Beaver Creek Road near Red Canyon Creek. At this spot, the group was able to hear and see numerous bird species. Utilizing the microphone on a smartphone linked to the app, Merlin, over 20 species of birds were ‘picked up.’ 

Birder Kim DeAtley, of Cody, explained the app as a tool to track her birding adventures: “I’ve identified and seen 147 birds this year versus 38 last year.” 

At the Beaver Creek stop, the group spotted a blue grosbeak, a stocky migratory songbird with a large triangular bill. Deep blue in color, it has cinnamon (female) or chestnut (male) wing-bars with hints of black and orange. Guidebooks say to look for them in semi-open areas with dense low vegetation, brushy roadsides and streamside thickets. Their song was a rich warbling melody with almost a metallic ‘chink’ sound. Spotting a blue grosbeak is rare, as Wyoming is at the far north edge of its North American range. 

About a mile down the road the group stopped at the Ewen Pence Gulch Reservoir where they were treated to a colorful display from a group of yellow-headed blackbirds. A spectacular bird, “up close and personal, that yellow is gorgeous,” said Fiedler. 

Anco told the group the yellow-headed blackbird is “only here for a short window.” They spend their year in Mexico and come up to northern latitudes to breed. It’s a large stocky songbird known for its striking, brightly colored head and unmistakable call, found usually near water.

“I’ve never seen them in Shell, just out here (in the valley),” said local birder John McGough. 

The group continued to a location along Lane 36 where they viewed a great horned owl with her juvenile in a nest. A widespread and common bird to Wyoming, they are rarely seen because they are strictly nocturnal and well-camouflaged. Their mottled brown, gray and white feathers blend perfectly with tree bark. A member of the group said they spotted the birds earlier in the season only because they heard the birds’ call. A signature low, rhythmic hooting. If you hear that, scan the trees and look for ‘mobbing’ smaller birds that are tells of an owl in the area. 

The group also visited Shell Falls in the Bighorn Mountains where they were able to view common mountain birds including a yellow-rumped warbler and a red-breasted nuthatch. “The star of the show was an American dipper, a gray bird that nests behind the waterfall in the rocks,” said Grimes. “They eat what the trout eat, and swim underwater.”

While on the tour, the guides also educated the group about bird codes. WEME, for example, is short for Western Meadowlark. Also known as band codes, it’s a four-letter abbreviation of species names used by researchers and birdwatches for quick, standardized data recording. 

“The tour was a great success,” said Fiedler. “We had a terrific turnout with people from all over the Big Horn Basin. AHTC is gaining momentum and is now in its third year with a variety of workshops. I am very pleased with our successes.”

AHTC, who organized the tour, is a Wyoming forum for artists and scholars created to inspire and engage artistic and educational experiences in the area. A lineup of their workshops and lectures can be found on their website (www.ahtc-wy.org) and questions can be directed to Fiedler at: director@ahtc-wy.org. 

SPOTTING SCOPE photography 

During Saturday’s birding tour, the guides brought along two spotting scopes mounted on tripods. Most birds didn’t sit in one place long enough to watch them through the scope, but some did. “When you put a spotting scope on them, you’ll see the detail,” said Anco. 

These were used in addition to the traditional birdwatching tool, binoculars. But what made the spotting scope so handy was the stable lens that could be utilized by a more common tool, a smartphone. 

By placing a smartphone camera up to the scope, one can capture photographs. For the guides, this is helpful post-trip, giving the ability to review sightings and as a photographic report to log on sites like eBird. 

It takes patience and a steady hand, but by aligning the frame, slightly zooming in, and tapping the smartphone screen to focus on the bird you can capture distant subjects clearly. The technique is called ‘digiscoping.’ 

You can buy a dedicated adapter to secure the smartphone and align the camera exactly with the eyepiece or simply hand-holding the phone. 

Tips to mastering the technique include aligning the correct camera lens to the scope lens (some smartphones have multiple lenses) test it out before you go out in the field to eliminate frustration. The primary wide-angle lens usually provides the most clarity, don’t zoom past two times multiplier.

Get the bird (or object you want to photograph) to be sharp in the scope using the focus ring before photographing it with your smartphone. In addition to controlling focus on the smartphone by tapping the screen, you can also control the light using this method. Most smartphone cameras have the capability to lock the focus and adjust exposure. After pressing and holding for a moment, the focus will lock and you can adjust the exposure by sliding the sun icon up or down on your screen. This will brighten or darken the photograph. 

Sometimes vibrations will ruin a photo’s sharpness, this can be avoided by using a timer or remote trigger. Most smartphones have a self-timer. Wired headphones can act as a remote shutter using the volume buttons or use a Bluetooth remote. 

When properly setup, your phone’s basic camera can be transformed into a super telephoto lens.