September/October 2018 » Bird Watcher's Digest

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Bird Watcher's Digest

Current Issue: September/October 2018

A northern saw-whet owl adorns the cover of the September/October 2018 issue of Bird Watcher’s Digest, and inside, you’ll read a species profile by saw-whet owl banders Kelly Williams and Bob Scott Placier, who literally have hands-on experience with this tiny predator. Bird ID guru Alvaro Jaramillo helps those on a pelagic pilgrimage to distinguish Pacific shearwaters, and while you’re in coastal California, read about a trip that combines birding with visits to historic missions. The Viper Vortex HD Binocular is new and improved—and that’s a fact, says birding optics expert Ben Lizdas. Find all this and more in the September/October issue of BWD!

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Issue Features

Cover Species: Northern Saw-whet Owl by Kelly Williams and Bob Scott Placier

Guatemala: Land of the Quetzal and the Maya by Barrie Cooper

Birding the California Missions by Jeanne M. Le Ber and Ray Smith

Stonechat Saga by Christopher Cudworth

Not that long ago, birders and ornithologists believed northern saw-whet owls were rare. Turns out, they’re just small, secretive, nocturnal, and irruptive. Owl banders Kelly Williams and Bob Scott Placier recall their work with Project OwlNet, which revealed how common this species is. Photo by Shutterstock.

In the Backyard

Birds I Have Known by Bradford C. Gray

Elegy to My Willow Tree by Jerry Uhlman

My Way: House Sparrows Be Gone by Jeanne Hopkins

Reader Jeanne Hopkins, inspired by a question and answer in the Bird Behavior column, experimented with fishing line attached to her feeders to deter house sparrows. It worked! Photo by Wikimedia.

Columns & Departments

Letters from Readers

Quick Takes by Paul J. Baicich

Migrations: In the Fat Mountains by Scott Weidensaul

Identify Yourself: Pacific Shearwaters by Alvaro Jaramillo

Spotlight on Texas

Birders Question Mark by Mark S. Garland

Pete's Tips: Pelagic Birding by Pete Dunne

True Nature: The Grass Lounge by Julie Zickefoose

Far Afield: Autumn Birding in Philadelphia! by Jane Henderson

Birding Photography: Insanely Slow Shutter Speeds by Jim McCormac

Optics Review: Vortex Viper HD Binocular by Ben Lizdas

Shouldn't Your Bird Dog Be Bigger Than the Bird? by Al Batt

Watching Bird Behavior: Climate Change Impacts by David M. Bird

The Well-Equipped Birder: Do-It-Yourself First-aid Kit by John Yerger

Book Notes

Autumn is an ideal time to take a pelagic trip—a boat ride into deeper waters off shore. Many birders make such a Pacific pilgrimage, and bird ID guru Alvaro Jaramillo helps distinguish among the shearwaters: sooty, pink-footed, Buller’s, black-vented, flesh-footed and short-tailed. Photo by M. Harms / Wikimedia.