by Tom & Jo Heindel | Jan 1, 2004 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
Believe it or not, fall migration lasts for almost half a year! The first southbound migrants are usually female Wilsons Phalaropes who return by mid June after laying the eggs in a nest and placing responsibilities on the males. This year the ladies were spinning...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Nov 7, 2003 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
Those of us who live in the Eastern Sierra are fortunate that we are relatively close to the largest National Park in the contiguous United States. Death Valley National Park offers great opportunities to explore a myriad of habitats that begin with desert scrub below...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Sep 16, 2003 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
On Saturday, 10 May 2003, a group of birders celebrated International Migratory Bird Day by vacuuming the County to find as many bird species as they could. However, what lead up to this particular IMBD has a little history that should be shared. In 2000 an amazing...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | May 3, 2003 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
The California Bird Records Committee (CBRC) is the official body that oversees the rare bird records in the state. Most states have such bodies, which are made up of experienced, dedicated birders from widely scattered parts of the state who are familiar with the...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Mar 23, 2003 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
Just after the beginning of the last century, water was taken from the Owens River south of Tinemaha Reservoir and channeled into the aqueduct for transport to Los Angeles. For all practical purposes this destroyed the thriving riparian habitat that had existed for...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Jan 10, 2003 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
As happens every season, some birds arrive exactly as expected and, happily, some very unexpected birds arrive to add warmth and excitement to our cool months. The only Pacific Loon of the fall was at Owens Lake 22 Oct while Common Loon was scarce although one at...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Nov 7, 2002 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
It is November now, and as we look at the east slope of the Sierra we cannot help but notice that the green riparian in the canyon bottoms is now gold and crimson with touches of maroon. Winter is just around the corner, but what kind will we have this year and what...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Sep 7, 2002 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
Again this years IMBD was outstanding and the best ever in a couple of categories. Twenty six birders began before dawn and continued through dusk covering the Owens Valley, White & Inyo Mountains, eastern Sierra canyons, Deep Springs, and Death Valley. The goal,...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | May 5, 2002 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
Do you have a favorite bird? Countless times that question has been posed to birders, usually by non-birders or relative newcomers to birdwatching. This innocuous inquiry is an almost impossible question to answer. The more one learns about any species the more...
by Tom & Jo Heindel | Mar 19, 2002 | Blog, Heindel, Sierra Wave
The Bells Vireo, the smallest vireo found in Inyo County, usually returns in late March with an outlier arriving 17 Mar. Each year we wonder if any will return to spend spring and summer with us before retreating to a warmer and more hospitable climate in Mexico in...
