Greetings from Cajun Country!

I’m down here in Lafayette for the American Birding Association Annual Convention. In a flashback to my “previous life” before the Wild Bird Center of Yarmouth, I am representing St. Paul Island (Alaska) Tours, which I worked for three summers and one fall. Of course, that is my “job” here, but when the trade show is closed, we’re out in the field!

We’re in the heart of “Acadiana,” where the French influence is quite reminiscent of Maine – even in the names (Acadiana verses Acadia for example.) Interestingly, Lafayette fortuitously fell between the paths of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, so the area was spared significant damage. The lush growth, warm temperatures (temps have been in the 80’s with high humidity), and the southern birds are certainly a change of pace for me! (Although, I wouldn’t have minded if this trip occurred LAST week, as I wouldn’t mind being in Maine when spring is actually occurring – and it certainly is this week; heckuva hawk flight in the last few days past Bradbury Mountain, for example!)

On Monday morning, my first day in town – and first day ever in Louisiana – my friend Mike, who works for Nikon, and I headed to nearby Lake Martin for a good introduction to the region’s birdlife - and a good start to my recently founded Louisiana state list, of course. Highlights from our morning for me included Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, a male Painted Bunting, a great look at a Barred Owl, a couple of Prothonatory Warblers, a Mississippi Kite, and a few Roseate Spoonbills. There were handfuls of migrants around, including a good pulse of Tennessee Warblers early in the morning. If nothing else, I was excited to be seeing warblers and other migrants, and of course wishing them well on their way back to Maine!

On Tuesday, I joined the field trip to McGee’s Landing in the Atchafalaya Basin and Lake Martin. The Atchafalaya is an impressive cypress-dominated bottomland swamp. Huge, and bird-filled. We began with an extremely relaxing, interesting, and quite productive (bird-wise) outing. The local guide and boat captain was fantastic, as he provided informative commentary and local flavor.

The highlight of the trip for me was the Swallow-tailed Kite, one of my favorite birds, period. I was surprised by the amount of Painted Buntings (at least 5 singing males) that were on territory from these seemingly miniscule islets. This was certainly not the habitat I think of when I think of this gaudy species! More fun stuff like Neotropic Cormorants and lots of the abundant waders: Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, Cattle, Great, and Snowy Egrets, Little Blue, Great Blue, and Tricolored Herons, White Ibis, and Roseate Spoonbills.

The afternoon was spent at Lake Martin, where we had crippling views of Prothonatory Warblers, a Barred Owl, a couple of Mississippi Kites, and a Hooded Warbler that sounded like no Hooded Warbler that I’ve ever heard before! The final stop was at a Rookery in Jefferson Island, where in addition to the other wading birds that we saw nesting at Lake Martin, there were at least 10 pairs of Roseate Spoonbills! Gorgeous!

The evening program last night was on the affects of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on resident birds of southern Louisiana, which I found exceptionally interesting! A study of suburban birds provided rare baseline data to compare, scientifically and statistically, to post-storm populations. The results, for the resident birds of the area, were not positive.

Today, however, is a full-day in the trade show of the convention. I got out for a quick walk this morning (found a Red-headed Woodpecker cavity and added Inca Dove to my fledgling LA state list), but we’re inside until this evening. The frustration with this, for vendors to speakers to participants, is that there’s weather on the way. Trans-Gulf migrants often arrive in mid-afternoon on the Louisiana coast after flying non-stop for a day and half from the Yucatan, for example. But today, there are thunderstorms in the area. Rain, especially the long line of thunderstorms that is pushing through now, can result in the famous “fallouts” as thousands of migrants drop out of the sky to seek shelter, and/or struggle to fight through the changing winds to reach the shore. While fallouts are great for birding, they’re not actually a good thing for birds, but if it’s occurring, we might as well be out there to see it!

Despite much serious deliberation about ditching the trade show a few hours early, I decided to be all responsible-like, and do my job. I heard a few reports trickling in from the coast that things were quite good. Even here at the hotel in Lafayette (well inland), some of us hanging out in the parking lot after the trade show at 6:00pm, flocks of Tree Swallows, Chimney Swifts, and some Common Nighthawks were passing over – Oh, the agony of what MIGHT be happening!

But, the trip is certainly going well. I’ve seen 81 species so far, and of course the combined list of all of the trips is quite impressive. I’m really enjoying being in a new region, and studying its birdlife. A great biscuit place around the corner (mmmm, biscuits and gravy for breakfast) and some fantastic gumbo across the street (which I was actually eating when I began typing the first part of this earlier today!) have been gastronomic highlights. And, last, but definitely not least, has been the great time catching up with friends from around the country, and in fact, from around the world!