Lillian Stokes

Lillian Stokes co-author The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States & Canada, Stokes Guide Birds of N. America + 34 other Stokes Guides.

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Beautiful Harlequin sea ducks are dramatic, beautiful and more easily seen in winter on the Northeast Atlantic and Pacific Northwest rocky coasts. Saw them last Sat. at Cape Ann, MA.
#Birding #birds #birdphotography #ducks

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

So nice to see The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada and Stokes Essential Pocket Guide to Birds being sold at a local GardenCenter/Wild Bird store! Perfect reading for everyone feeding finches at their feeders!
https://t.co/DmxZNX3Mix

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Common Eiders are beautiful birds, and perhaps under-appreciated. The dramatic graphic-bold pattern of the males and subtle camo of the females are just right for their wave environment. I had a wonderful experience at the end of a long birding day seeing a large group of eiders that had gathered inside a breakwater near the rock wall edge of Hampton Beach State Park, NH on Saturday. As I cautiously (lots of ice!) walked out to the edge they began to do what ducks do, swim away and all you see are their rumps! However, by standing quietly they wonderfully decided I was no threat, accepted me, all swam back, and went about their business of preening and hanging out. It was a magic moment, they trusting me and I feeling lucky to see them closely and admire their beauty. Nice way to end the day.
This was part of the Great Backyard Bird Count global event I participated in and I had already been to Parker River NWR MA and elsewhere to count birds and submit checklists.
#birds #birding #eiders

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Snowy Owl Yes!! After co-leading with Peter Alden an unsuccessful trip to find Snowy Owls two weeks ago at Parker River NWR, MA for https://t.co/8Cianj1vWV, yesterday we lucked out. We drove into the refuge to a maintenance area where Snowy Owls had been seen and I asked a woman if she had seen a Snowy Owl. She said no but heard one was being see now at Parking Lot 3 (birding tip, always ask other birders about your target bird). We reversed course and immediately went there. Another woman gave directions to hike out a long icy boardwalk, reach the beach, then hike 1/4 mile down until you see birders looking into the dunes. We did and were rewarded by the sight of a Snowy sitting on top of a distant dune. Snowy Owls live in the tundra and irrupt when there is a high population and not sufficient food. I took the top photo, (which is uncropped) with a 2000 mm lens (Nikon P950) from a distance because getting close and disturbing owls is a no-no, they must hunt to survive. A great birding day and so nice to share it with a group of beginning/intermediate birders. And my eBird list was added to the Great Backyard Bird Count global weekend list where birders worldwide are out counting birds.
#Birds #owls #birding

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Happy Valentine's Day! (preening Roseate Spoonbill)
#valentine #birds

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

No way! After hoping and looking all winter for a Pine Siskin, one photobombs an image of a Carolina Wren, and I was not aware of it until I downloaded the wren photos!! This was the only time I saw it. Like an apparition from the Finch Superflight of 2020-2021 during which I wrote The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada with co-author Matt Young, finches have a way of appearing just when I need them. My quote from the book "Lessons from finches: experiences like this are open to all who trust the improbable is possible. Yes, finches keep calling me, and I keep answering." https://t.co/1bNbhqsJAT
#birding #birdwatching

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Reddish Egrets have unusual ways of feeding including folding their wings over them like a tent, "canopy feeding" that may help them attract and see prey. This one was in Ding Darling NWR several years ago and had satellite tracker and was being studied by the Avian Research and Conservation Institute whose website says "The Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens), the rarest wading bird in the U.S., is a highly specialized feeder ecologically restricted to a very narrow coastal habitat that is vulnerable to human disturbance, storm effects, and climate change. The Florida population is estimated at 350-400 pairs, with 100-125 in Florida Bay and Keys. The latter sub-population appears to be steadily declining. In 2009, we began research based on satellite telemetry in the Florida Keys and are now expanding this study to include the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida." Hope more is being learned to help conserve these amazing birds.
https://t.co/UwLFm4yoP3

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Cold feet? While we may turn to thermal socks, the bird's solution is to sit on their feet to keep them warm with their insulating feathers. Birds do have specialized scales on their legs to help keep them warm but there is limited blood circulation in those areas. Tucking their feet and legs helps minimize heat loss when it is cold. You can practically tell the temperature by how much they are sitting on their feet! Just one of the many interesting things to notice at your feeders. When you look more closely it draws you deeper into the world of birds and away from the anxiety in yours.
#birding #bluebirds #birdsoftwitter

[Manhattan Bird Alert @BirdCentralPark]

Sunday brought the all-time first confirmed record of Short-billed Gull in Central Park. This extremely rare vagrant showed on the Reservoir. #birdcpp

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Beautiful Red-tailed Hawk flew overhead during Hawk Migration Association's Winter Raptor Survey.

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

With a 92% decline since 1970 the beloved Evening Grosbeak is in trouble. Part of 4 pilot project species of the R2R (Road to Recovery) scientist-led conservation initiative to save birds, Evening Grosbeaks are being studied in terms of their "migratory-connectivity" - their migration routes, wintering and breeding areas. Some initial results of satellite tagging show they may return to areas of spruce budworm (a favored food during breeding) outbreaks in the Canadian boreal forest. Efforts to control those outbreaks by spraying may be detrimental to the grosbeaks. Another possible cause of mortality is window strikes to which grosbeaks seem particularly susceptible. Make sure and protect birds at your feeders from striking glass such as placing feeders away from windows, putting up decals, or grids (look online for the many types of tape etc. sold for this purpose) on the glass.
Read more about them in this interesting article
https://t.co/DN1IswvA0y
#birds #birding #birdwatching

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Common Loon is the American Birding Association's Bird of the Year, 2025! There is nothing more evocative or haunting as the call of a loon. I am lucky to have lived on a pond in it's northern breeding range and heard loons calling many times.
Celebrate this wonderful bird and embrace all that is new and beautiful in this new year!
https://t.co/FeCweP8e3K
#birding #birds #birdwatching

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

HAPPY NEW YEAR! What was your first bird/s of 2025? Mine was Blue Jay, Mourning Dove and American Goldfinch.

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

This is what a Horned Lark sees when it looks at another Horned Lark. What wonderful markings! I realize the facial markings on birds have everything to do with communication within their species and nothing to do with us.
I scouted yesterday for my CBC (Christmas Bird Count) which occurs on Sunday. I had about 70 Horned Larks in a weedy field, scurrying like little vertically compressed mice through the low weeds trying to stay under cover. At one point I was able to photograph one (from a distance) that looked at me.
#birding #birds #birdwatching

[Mark Smith Photography @marktakesphoto]

Once again, the Black Skimmer is demonstrating the wonders of aerodynamics. Each twist of the body, each individual feather helping steer while a wall of crashing white water rumbles just behind the bird’s outstretched tail. Like a surgeon’s scalpel, the bird’s lower beak surgically slices through the water with utmost care and precision in hopes of coming into contact with a poor, unsuspecting fish. This attempt might have been unsuccessful, but it doesn’t seem like the bird has a care in the world. It just keeps skimming through the shallows, waiting for that tasty morsel to graze its outstretched beak. So remember, when failure raises its head and stares you in the eye. Just keep skimming because eventually you’ll succeed just like the magical Black Skimmer.

[Lillian Stokes @stokesbirding]

Still shopping? Arrives before Christmas. Now $18.97 (amazon). 43 species, 332 pages, 355 photos, 50 range maps. Available from other booksellers also.
https://t.co/qiR28lRTx5...
#birding #birdwatching #birdsoftwitter #birdphotography

[The Urban Birder - OFFICIAL @urbanbirder]

Why suffer in silence when trying to hear wildlife?

https://t.co/BazqL9VtvG

@HiddenHearingUK