Fall 2017

THE WRONG-EARED OWL

featuring Johanna BeainmArt meets science

 On Illustration Johanna Beam
4 Aspiring illustrator Johanna Beam explores the
relationship between art and birding.
Departments
College Search 42

10
An Interview with Brian Sullivan with Rachel Raddatz
eBird project coordinator Brian Sullivan talks Dear Reader 44
about the future of citizen science. Back Page 46

14
The Art of Taxidermy Elisa Yang
A photo essay exploring the artistic side behind
skinning and stuffing birds.
Contributors
20
An Interview with Jonathan Alderfer
The artist of the National Geographic field guides Creator, Content Editor, Designer,
talks about bird illustration. Publisher
Elisa Yang

28
Photography Feature Liron Gertsman
Featuring the work of talented 17-year-old pho- Copy Editor
Cayenne Sweeney
tographer Liron Gertsman.
Others featured in this issue:
Johanna Beam, Rachel Raddatz, Liron
Gertsman, Jonathan Alderfer, Brian
Sullivan, Fyn Kynd

Were looking for young birders to

submit writing, photography, and
illustration, as well as help edit and
publish future issues. Email submis-
sions and requests to cayoungbird-
ers@gmail.com. Join the California

Contents FALL 2017 Young Birders Group on Flickr to help

contribute needed images.
 All illustrations are by Johanna Beam on

Illustration
the author. Below:
Broad-tailed
Hummingbird,
colored pencil

Before I got into birds, I was an art enthusiast. Id draw

anything that caught my eye, from horses to people to
lamp shades. I was enamored with pencils and color,
and would almost always be drawing or doodling. I first
became interested in birds when I was sixteen, while
watching my grandparents feeder on a dreary Decem-
ber morning. Four months later, I received my first field
guide: a Peterson 1965 Field Guide to Western Birds.

4 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 5

 Silvery-eared Tapaculo

I carried that book almost everywhere, poring through the various plates and admiring the orioles and
hawks. In an effort to learn all the birds of the United States, I started drawing each and every one on little y-fronted Tapaculo
S ilver
notecards filled with information on their range, common and scientific name, and descriptions of
their various plumages. For me, birding and illustration have been connected from the be-
ginning.
Yellow-eyed
Junco Having never taken a formal art class until I entered college, I wasnt
sure if I wanted to pursue art as anything more than a side hobby. Id
known for years that I wanted to pursue a STEM field, but I
never knew exactly what it was going to be, until final-
ly settling on birds and conservation around
my junior year of high school. Illustra-
tion was still on the back burn-
how to professionally integrate
er. I had no profes-
my art with my love of ornithol-
ogy and conservation until I got
a phone call about illustrating the
cover art for the next Colorado
Field Ornithologists Convention.
There it was: an opportunity to
complete a real commission for
sional illustration experience, no formal art class-
a real organization! At that mo- out drawing or painting birds.
es, and a strict love-only for bird drawings. Illustration
ment, I knew that I could actually When I draw birds, I feel
was my favorite category in the Young Birder of the Year contest,
combine my two favorite things as if Im creating a little slice of
and if I had free time, Id sit down and draw. However, I didnt know
into something special. I plan what birders see: an instant in
how to professionally integrate my art with my love of ornithology and
attend grad school for science time, a piece of personality. Its
conservation until I got a phone call about illustrating the cover art for the next
rather than art. However, I would for the viewer. Its for the birds.
Colorado Field Ornithologists Convention. There it was: an opportunity to complete
love to continue illustration work The world that was once clam-
a real commission for a real organization! At that moment, I knew that I could actually
on the side, whether that be for oring forwill
perfect paintings and
combine my two favorite things into something special. Im still not entirely sure what that
field guides, scientific journals, or
be, as I plan to attend grad school for science rather than art. However, I would love strict scientific illustration is di-
to continue
ornithological organizations. As minishing. or-
illustration work on the side, whether that be for field guides, scientific journals, or ornithological
for now, I cant see a future with-
ganizations. As for now, I cant see a future without drawing or painting birds.

6 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 7

 Below: Swainson's When I draw birds, I feel as if Im
Hawk, watercolor creating a little slice of what bird-
ers see: an instant in time, a piece
of personality. Its for the viewer.
Its for the birds. The world that
was once clamoring for perfect
paintings and strict scientific il-
lustration is diminishing. John
James Audubon was criticized for
including personality and habitat
into his bird paintings, but now
we know why he did so. Audubon
wanted to depict the actuality of
birds instead of just displaying
their physical features. That, in a
sense, is what I strive for in my
art. I have a deep desire to show
people what is out in the world.
I want people to see beyond the
Blue Jays and redbirds, the Barn
Swallows and seagulls. There are
so many birds out there that most
people have never heard of. If you
ask someone what an American
Dipper is, theyll probably give
you a weird look. I dont want to
shy away from that. If we want to
be conservationists, then its high
time we start educating people
on the huge variety of life that is
virtually in their backyard. This
is the ultimate goal I have for my
art. Is it possible? Im not even
8 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
sure. But the point is to keep
looking ahead and advocating
for the things that are the most
important to us: the birds them-
selves.
I strongly believe that illus-
tration connects us deeply to the
natural world. If we dont stop,
look at the world around us, and
study it intimately, we fail to see
how interconnected everything is.
Drawing birds is, for me, a study
of Earth. You cant study birds
without looking at the trees, flow-
ers, and grasses, seeing what they
produce and add to the world.
Birds disperse seeds, pollinate
flowers, and keep insect popula-
tions from eating away at trees.
They keep things in check. When
we watch birds, were watching
interactions of the natural world.
When we draw birds, we attempt
to translate that purity and survi-
vorship of nature onto paper.
Johanna Beam is a sophomore at
St. Olaf College in Minnesota, double
majoring in Biology and Studio Art.
She is interested in population genetics
and scientific illustration, and has had
artwork commissioned by the Colo-
rado Field Ornithologists. Beam is the
ABA-Leica 2017 Young Birder of the
Year.
9
 An Interview With
Media
Watch an animation of Wood
Brian Sullivan
Thrush migration here. Brian Sullivan has conducted fieldwork on birds throughout North America for the past 25
years. Birding travels, photography, and field projects have taken him to Central and South
America, Australia, Antarctica, the Arctic, and across North America. He has written and con-
sulted on various books including popular and scientific literature on North American birds.
He is currently project leader for eBird (www.ebird.org) and photographic editor for the Birds
of North America Onlineat the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. In this interview, Brian dis-
cusses eBird and the role of citizen science in today's world.

Q: How did you get started
with your current position
as the eBird project leader at
Cornell?
Brian: I started with eBird in
2005. I was always interested in
the intersection of birding and
science, and eBird seemed like a
perfect combination of the two.
At that time, it was more chal-
lenging to pass information over
the internet, and our web-based
technologies were just develop-
ing. It's been fun to work with a
great team of people at the Cor-
nell Lab and around the world to
shape eBird into the resource it
is today.
Q: What does your job consist
of?
Brian: At this point in eBird's
evolution, my job largely con-
sists of building and maintain-
ing many of the international
partnerships required for eBird
to work at a global scale, as well
as thinking about the short and
long-term development of the
project. A major part of my re-
cent focus has been developing
the rich media aspects of eBird
through working closely with
colleagues at the Macaulay Li-
brary at the Lab.
Q: How do you think citizen
science projects such as eBird
has changed the way we con-
duct research or collect data?
Brian: Taking a citizen-science
approach to data collection has
allowed us to understand bird
populations at scales never be-
fore possible. The all-species,
year-round data collection pro-
cesses behind eBird allow us
to model birds across their full
annual cycle, powering research
and conservation during all crit-
ical phases of a bird's life. Each
birder contributes a tiny piece
of the puzzle each time they go
birding and submit a complete

Copyright 2017 eBird - Cornell Lab of Ornithology

10 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 11

 checklist of birds to eBird. When
those pieces are pulled together
across political borders, conti-
nents, and hemispheres, we can
for the first time get a complete
picture of what's happening to
birds at the population level,
but also at very fine spatial and
temporal scales. Novel modeling
techniques continue to improve,
and eBird data are increasingly
serving as the backbone in many
research and conservation appli-
cations around the world.
Q: Have any surprising major
trends or information been
found in eBird data?
Brian: eBird is a relatively young
dataset, but we're in this for the
long haul, and we're making
good progress. While we have
been modeling occurrence and
abundance for several years, we
are just now beginning to model
population trends using eBird
data. Even in these early analy-
sis stages the results are pretty
shocking. For example, prelim-
inary analyses show alarming
trends for eastern forest land-
birds that over-winter in Central
America, with the most drastic
12 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
declines happening on the win-
tering grounds. Likewise, other
research has shown that a huge
proportion of these birds global
populations spend much of their
lives crammed into small rem-
nant forests, making conserva-
tion action in these places a key
priority for ensuring long-term
species survival.
Q: Where do you see the eBird
project and other citizen sci-
ence projects going in the
next five years?
Brian: eBird's goal is to gath-
er enough data to allow us to
gain a solid understanding of
the year-round needs of every
bird species around the world.
That's a tall order, and we have a
long way to go. We'll continue to
develop global collaborations to
try to grow the volume of data
coming into eBird while ensuring
eBird helps our partner organi-
zations achieve their goals. We'll
keep steering our development
processes to ensure that birders
willing to invest their time and
energy into eBird get something
in return, and strive to build the
best tools for the birding
community. Perhaps most impor-
tantly, we'll stay focused on gather-
ing the best data we can for sci-
ence, all while keeping a constant
eye on data quality to ensure that
process can scale with eBird's fast-
paced global growth.
Q: Do you have any words of a
dvice for young birders?
Brian: First off, have fun--birding
fundamentally needs to be some-
thing you enjoy. But realize that in
the process of having all that fun,
you can make a difference. By sim-
ply recording all the birds you see
each time you go birding in eBird,
you're turning all your bird obser-
vations into something more use-
ful for research, conservation, and
you're ultimately helping protect
the birds we all love.
Further Reading
Explore the various books Brian has
written here. Visit eBird at www.
eBird.org and the Cornell Lab of
Ornithology website at www.birds.
cornell.edu.
Contact
Send questions or comments to
Brian at bls42cornell.edu.
Wood Thrush by Fyn Kynd
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Copyright 2017 eBird 13
The Art
Of Taxidermy
photos and text by elisa yang

Elisa Yang is an aspiring ornithologist who studies taxidermy with

Phillip Unitt at San Diego Natural History Museum. She is still a
rookie, but admires the artistry and attention to detail that skin-
ning requires.

The scalpel is a tool of precision. My fingers are rougher,

pulling at the skin like the peel of a tangerine. This body was
warm before the life was squeezed out of it. Then it grew colder
and colder, and soft feathers stuck to damp skin. My fingers pull
them off. The blade makes an incision into dark red meat.
The process is surprisingly clean. There is little gore. Corn-
meal absorbs the fat and blood; it seeps neatly, up past the skin.
Repeat the mantras of the rebirth. Use cornmeal generously, the
feathers must be clean. Make sure you completely separate the
thigh and drumstick meat. Tie the wings shoulder length.
14 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 15
 A blade does not move with
just any hand, but a skilled one. The
scalpel does not cut, but glide. The
hands do not peel, they unwarp. The
finished product is a masterpiece.
Removing the brains is the
only part that occasionally makes
me queasy. I can feel feathers in the
brain -- wings, flying, rivers, mead-
ows. My tweezers extract the pink
gooey blob and drop it aside. I have
killed the bird. Its too late now, its
time for the skull to be pushed right-
side out again and the cotton body
to be rolled. I can feel the ghost of
16 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
the deceased beside me. The lab is
cold, with flourescent lighting. Out-
side, it is warm.
Cotton eyes. Tweezers run up
the throat of the bird and surprise
deflated eye sockets with round
balls of cotton. I feel like a toymak-
er on Christmas Eve. Gentle music
plays and the needle moves in and
out, the thread snaking after it. Soft
cotton is stuffed inside. The last
stitch is sewn; the body becomes a
doll, valuable for scientific research.
Each label will contain an assign-
ment of numbers and words.
17
 Colorful pins stick at unnatural angles, like donut
sprinkles. They hold down my finished bird on a wooden
board, so it will not fly away. Taxidermy is an art, and the
scalpel, tweezer and scissors are my paintbrush. The ta-
ble is strewn with blood and cornmeal. My masterpiece is
done, and I shall make a thousand more masterpieces in
my lifetime, each worked with a delicate hand.

18 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 19

 Q: Whats the process you go
through when illustrating a spe-
An INTERVIEW cies?
WITH JONATHAN Jonathan: Although I paint birds
and landscapes that are not field
guide illustrations, this is about
ALDERFER the process of painting field guide
illustration. First, there needs to
be a decision about what plum-
Artist, author, and editor Jonathan Alderfer has specialized ages, ages, sexes, subspecies, etc.
in painting birds and natural history subjects for more than thirty will be illustrated. Then, reference
years. For ten years, he was National Geographics resident birding material needs to be gathered.
expert at their headquarters in Washington, D.C. While there, he This might include photographs,
authored, edited, or illustrated more than twenty books. Jonathans videos, field sketches, identifi-
illustrations have appeared in dozens of birding books and maga- cation papers, and an in-person
zines, including Audubon, National Geographic, Birding, and Bird look at museum specimens. Per-
Watchers Digest. In this interview, Jonathan discusses the process sonal field experience with the
behind illustrating birds and gives tips to aspiring artists and illus- species is very important because,
for me, a field guide illustration
trators.
should have the appearance of
how you might observe an actu-
al bird while birding. There are
subtle refinements that field ex-
perience always adds to a good
illustration. I have had to paint
species Ive never seen, but the re-
search process is more prolonged
and looking at hundreds of pho-
tographs and any available videos
can really help. At this point, a
pencil sketch is produced and a
scan shared with Jon Dunn (the
20 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
senior author of the guide) for
a critique. After Jon and I are
happy with the sketch, it is trans-
ferred to the final painting sur-
face (I use transparent watercol-
ors, often with small amounts
of gouache, and paint on Strath-
more 3-ply vellum, Series 500
Bristol paper). Then, painting
begins and at that point no major
changes are made to the figures
silhouette. Because of the deli-
cate medium of watercolor, major
changes require starting a new
painting. I make a scan of the
finished art and Jon gets to make
any additional comments; the
painting is adjusted as needed,
and a final scan approved.
Q: Has illustration helped you
notice details or field marks on
birds you otherwise wouldnt
have?
Jonathan: Absolutely! And mak-
ing a discovery is one of the most
satisfying experiences. Howev-
er it doesnt happen that often.
When you draw or paint a bird,
you are forced to observe details
21
of every part of the bird. Ive often
said that authors have the luxu-
ry of simply not describing what
they dont know, but you cant just
leave part of the bird blank when
youre painting it. Consequently,
you have to look carefully at ev-
erything. (A working knowledge
of feather topography is very im-
portant to understanding what
youre seeing.) Heres an example:
back in 1990, I was working with
Jon Dunn and Kimball Garrett
illustrating an article on ground-
doves for Birding magazine (June
1990, vol. 22, #3). While looking
at specimens at the Los Angeles
County of Natural History, I no-
ticed that Ruddy Ground-Doves
consistently had black linear
marks on their scapulars that
were not present on Common
Ground-Doves. A new field mark.
My illustration for that article
now appears in the new 7th edi-
tion of the National Geographic
field guide, adjusted as needed,
and with a final scan approved.
22 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
Q: Do any particular illustration
projects or experiences stand out
to you?
Jonathan: Well, working with Jon
Dunn on the National Geographic
field guide has been an incredible
opportunity. Jon was the principal
author of the first edition back in
the early 1980s and has contin-
ued that role in every subsequent
edition. I joined the team in 1996
and have worked on the past five
editions, as well as on other books
for Nat Geo. In 1984, I was able
to spend a week in a workshop
taught by the Swedish artist Lars
Jonsson, who is, in my opinion,
the greatest living bird painter and
field guide illustrator. Needless
to say, I learned a lot.
Right: The process that leads to
the final field guide illustration is
shown in this series of sketches
and drafts.
23
 Q: How did you get started il-
lustrating for National Geo-
graphic?
Jonathan: In 1996, I moved to
Washington, D.C. from Los An-
geles. Later that year, work began
on the 3rd edition of the guide
and Jon asked me to contribute
illustrations. Along with Kimball
Garrett, we had worked togeth-
er on bird identification articles
for Birding magazine and the Los
Angeles Audubon newsletter, The
Western Tanager. Now that I was
located in DC where the Nation-
al Geographic is headquartered,
I eventually assumed duties on
the 3rd edition that included de-
signing layouts for new pages and
coordinating with the other con-
tributing artists. Ive continued in
that role ever since.
24 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
Q: Have you always wanted to
be an artist/illustrator?
Jonathan: In a word, yes, at least
to the artist part of your ques-
tion. After high school I went
to Cooper Union, an art school
in New York City, but had no
thought of a future illustrating
bird books. I was more interest-
ed in modern art and making
large paintings on canvas. That
continued after I moved to Los
Angeles in 1976, but the birding
obsession had taken root in me.
I made friends with lots of oth-
er, even more obsessed South-
ern California birders, including
Kimball and Jon. They were writ-
ing bird identification articles
for LA Audubon. Kimball knew
I was a painter and eventually
asked me to try my hand at illus-
trating their articles. I was thirty
years old. My first attempts were,
frankly, not very good, but I was
determined to get better. Lots of
trial and error, trying new tech-
niques, and that workshop with
Lars Jonsson eventually made a
big difference and set me off on a
new career track.
25
Q: Do you have any tips for as- Further Reading
piring ornithologists or illustra- View the 7th edition of the Na-
tors? tional Geographic field guide
here, and watch a timelapse video
of Jonathan at work at video.na-
Jonathan: I made my greatest
tionalgeographic.com/video/bird-
strides as a bird illustrator after drawing-timelapse.
I had a good understanding of
feather topography and pterylo- Contact
sis. Somehow, that allowed me to Visit Jonathan's website at https://
think about and draw birds more www.jonathanalderfer.com/.
three-dimensionally and to dis-
cover hidden patterns. Volunteer Right: The final finished plate that
at a natural history museum and appears in the 7th edition of the
National Geographic field guide
learn how to prepare bird study
(Copyright 2017 National Geo-
skins, this will allow you to ob- graphic Partners).
serve feather tracts from under
the skin, as well as many oth-
er details. Take drawing classes
and draw something every day.
Start out loose and with a light
touch. If you cant sketch outside,
open up a photograph on your
computer and work from that.
Maybe concentrate on a single
detail such as the head-eye- bill
proportions or how the scapulars
overlay the folded wing. Study
the classic illustrators such as
Audubon, Fuertes, and Peterson,
but dont dismiss modern art; it
can open your eyes to new ways
of seeing and painting.
26 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 27
 Feathered
Visions
17-year old British Columbia photographer
Liron Gertsman shares his favorite photos
and the stories behind them.

28 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 29

 Scarlet Afternoon (spread): This
past summer, I spent two weeks in
the rainforest of Ecuador! One of
the locations we visited was deep
in the jungle of the Ecuadorian
Amazon. Getting there required a
regional flight, a three hour boat
ride, a short hike and then a 1.5
hour canoe paddle. The wildlife in
the area was incredible! While in
the Amazon, we spent three days
visiting a clay lick for parakeets.
A clay lick is a place where para-
keets, parrots and macaws may
come to eat clay or drink nutri-
ent-rich water to compensate for
the toxins and acidity of the fruits
that they eat. Cobalt-winged Par-
akeets were supposed to visit this
location on a daily basis to eat the
clay. On the first day at the clay
lick, we didn't have much luck with
anything. On the second day, we
were treated with a rare visit by
three beautiful Scarlet Macaws.
The birds were extremely shy and
it took them hours to decide to
come down to the ground. When
they did, it was an incredible ex-
perience, and this is one of the
Incoming Nutcracker: In British Columbia, journeying into the mountains brings you into the domain of corvid spe-
shots that I got! On the third day,
cies such as the Clarks Nutcracker. These birds stash massive amounts of nuts and seeds every year, and will remember
we finally had hundreds of Co-
practically every single spot they hid food in. In areas closer to human civilization, birds like jays and nutcrackers have
balt-winged Parakeets come down
learned to come to people to get food. In some places in British Columbia, nutcrackers will routinely land on your head
to the ground to eat and drink the
or hand, looking for a handout. I used this to my photographic advantage. Using a wide angle lens, I photographed the
clay and water (see later photo).
nutcrackers as they flew in, capturing a wider picture of them in their mountainous environment.

30 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 31

 Brilliant Sihoulette: In addition to just watching birds, I really
enjoy looking for patterns in their behavior. While observing a
Fawn-breasted Brilliant in the cloud forest of Ecuador, I noticed
it kept returning to the same perch, as many hummingbirds do.
It would use this perch as a base for catching flying insects. The
sky was bright, so the bird was beautifully silhouetted. Sometimes
when I photograph birds, I dont have a particular shot in mind,
but in this case, I knew exactly what I wanted. Over the next little
while, I did my best to time my shutter finger with the bird taking
off and landing. This was the result. When I looked at the camera
screen, I was amazed by the transparency of the feathers and the
details brought out by the backlight.

Buff-tailed Coronet Detail: In the cloud forests of Ecuador, one

of the many hummingbird species common around feeders is
the Buff-tailed Coronet. They are often considered the bullies of
the hummingbird world in Ecuador, as they will chase away all
the hummingbirds from the flower or feeder they want for them-
selves. These tiny birds are brave enough to feed from sugar wa-
ter out of your hand. If youve ever seen a hummingbird up close,
Im sure youve been in awe of the iridescence in their feathers. I
wanted to capture this detail, so I set up a dish with sugar water
and use a macro lens to photograph details as the birds came in.
Having such a stunning bird so close to you is truly magical. In ad-
dition to photographing the coronets, I also just spent time in awe
watching them.

32 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 33

34 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 35
 Clay Lick (spread): Scattered
throughout the Amazon basin are
hundreds of clay licks, where par-
rots, parakeets, and macaws come
to neutralize the acidic fruits that
they eat. To get this photo, I wait-
ed for hours three days in a row
in a blind in the hot and humid
rainforest. Each day at the site,
hundreds of Cobalt-winged Par-
akeets would fly into the canopy,
and spend hours slowly descend-
ing the tree branches towards the
mineral-rich water below. They
would nervously descend one
branch at a time, coming closer
and closer towards the ground.
However, for two days, something
kept scaring the birds away before
they made it all the way to the
earth. There was likely a snake or a
hawk in the area that we couldnt
see. Finally, on the third day, hours
of waiting paid off! Over four-hun-
dred Cobalt-winged Parakeets
rained on the forest floor. I used
a slower shutter speed to create a
more artistic effect. Seeing them Sandpiper Sunrise: Shorebirds are without a doubt my favorite group of birds to observe and photograph. Im
and hearing the deafening roar of fortunate to live in coastal British Columbia, which is on the Pacific Flyway, a migration route for millions of shore-
parakeet chatter was an experi- birds each year. The birds that pass through my area in fall continue south. In December 2016, I spent time photo-
ence I dont think Ill ever forget. graphing shorebirds on beaches further south, on the Pacific coast of Mexico. Here, I witnessed many large shore-
bird flocks foraging on the mudflats, just like I do at home. The thought, though unlikely, always occurs to me that
there is a chance Im looking at the same birds that migrate through British Columbia. One morning, I set up near
a flock of sandpipers before sunrise. As the sun broke the horizon, the water turned bright orange. This was one
of my favorite photos from the morning, of a Western Sandpiper foraging at sunrise.
36 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 37
38 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 39
 Swan Sunrise (spread): On a cold
weekend in November, I went the
small town of Harrison Mills, locat-
ed a couple hours from my home
in southwestern British Columbia,
Canada. I was there photograph-
ing the eagles attracted to the
spawning salmon. In additional
to eagles, the river had hundreds
of Trumpeter Swans on it. They
would call all day, and even at
night you could hear them calling
back and forth on the river. I set
up one morning on the bank of
the river before sunrise. I was in
for a treat when the sun broke the
horizon. The air was full of mist,
which meant that everything was
glowing a beautiful orange colour.
Swans were flying up and down
the river, and I photographed
them as much as I could before
the sunrise light went away. One
shot I was happy with was this one
of three swans flying through the
rays of the morning sun.

Liron Gertsman is a 17 year old nature

photographer based in British Colum-
bia, Canada. In 2012, he bought his first
DSLR photography equipment. Since
Rainforest Rapture: When I arrived in Costa Rica, I was immediately stunned by the hummingbirds. It was not un- then he has amassed a body of work
usual to have over 20 hummingbirds around one feeder at once, and they were all different combinations of flashy that is a testament to his special talents
purples, greens, blues, reds, and other beautiful colors. One species in particular caught my eye: the Green-breasted and passion. By photographing the
Mango. The males were a stunning combination of green, blue and black, with a pink tail. I spent hours photograph- natural world, Liron hopes to spread
ing them, and the result was this photo. I took this picture five years ago when I was 12, but to this day it is still one awareness and educate the public on
of my favorite images that Ive taken. the need for conservation.

40 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017 41

 l d t S t a t e
Humbo
y
Un i v e r s i t
College Search
If you are interested in bird
conservation and management, a
degree in Wildlife Conservation and
Management from HSU will equip
you to conduct research, write scien-
tific articles, identify species threats,
and solve complex problems relating
to factors like disease, human-wild-
life conflict, and habitat degradation.
Local species of concern like the
federally threatened Western Snowy
Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) and
Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occiden-
talis caurina) are hot research topics
at HSU, and one can usually attend a
few public discussions a semester on
the possibility of reintroducing the
California Condor (Gymnogyps
californianus) to the area.
For a young birder looking to
further his or her career and enhance
a passion, pursuing a Bachelors or
Masters degree at Humboldt State
University (HSU) is a noteworthy
option. There is never a quiet birding
day in the coastal Northern Califor-
nian county of Humboldt. Rarities
are often attracted to its marshes, bay,
shorelines, lagoons, and forests, and
occasionally stop by the HSU campus.
42 THE WRONG-EARED OWL FALL 2017
It is no problem if you happen to be
in class when a rare bird is reported; if
you take Ornithology with Dr. Mark
Colwell, class will likely be spent chas-
ing it.
Wildlife courses at HSU will
also teach students about the world
surrounding birds. Taxonomy courses
include Mammalogy; Plant Taxono-
my; and your choice of Ichthyology,
Entomology, or Herpetology. A few
management-based courses include
Wildlife Techniques, Conservation Bi-
ology, Wetlands Management, Shore-
birds Management, Upland Game
Management, and Population Ecolo-
gy.
The general bird enthusiasm
from HSU professors, students, and
the Humboldt County community
is contagious and inspiring. Com-
munity events like Godwit Days, a
celebration of the return of migrating
Marbled Godwits (Limosa fedoa), help
to strengthen that familial bond that
birders often share. When students
are not occupied with their studies,
they are outside, usually rain or shine,
hiking amongst the tallest trees in
the world, kayaking in the beautiful
Humboldt Bay, or birding along its
Rachel Raddatz is an undergraduate
beaches. Making the choice to take Clockwise, top left: Beautiful redwood student in the Wildlife Department at
your passion to the next level will forest, Golden-crowned Kinglet, the Humboldt State University. She will be
be life-changing. You will never see author, a guard cell in the Zebrina leaf graduating in the fall of 2017 and hopes
plants, mammals, fish, insects, rep- (photographed during botany class), to return to Orange County, CA to start
Great Gray Owl. All photos taken by the her career in wildlife conservation and
tiles, or birds the same way again.
author. management.
43
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading the second issue of The
Wrong-eared Owl! This issues theme of Art Meets
Science continued to showcase some of the best
photography, writing, and illustration that young
birders have to offer. Our newsletter also remains
completely run by young birders, from the editing
and design down the writing and photos. Support
the newsletter - share us with a young birder you
know!

Remember, if you enjoy this issue and are not yet

subscribed, you can subscribe for free on our web-
site, californiayoungbirders.weebly.com. If you're a
young birder, you can also contribute photographs,
illustrations, and text to the next issue of The
Wrong-eared Owl. Simply email cayoungbirders@
gmail.com with a request or idea.

Thank you for reading,

Elisa Yang
Content Editor and Deisgner

Photo: "Air Canada" by Liron Gertsman (See page 28).

Gray-headed Kite
Black-collared Hawk
Crane Hawk
White Hawk
Double-toothed Kite

White-tailed Hawk
Barred Hawk
Black Hawk-eagle
Gray Hawk
Roadside Hawk