Sunday, March 23, 2008

Clay-colored Sparrow, Winter 2007-2008

A Clay-colored Sparrow has been in or near the group picnic area, east of Lake Ming since December 1. After having been questioned about such sightings in the past, I kept it quiet and only suggested to John Wilson he look at the bird during the Bakersfield Christmas Bird Count. I was certain it was a Clay from the beginning because of the white, central-crown stripe and the buffy ear patch. There was no dark line extending in front of the eye. It wasn't a Chippy, but I was still gunshy. Johnny confirmed it was a Clay.
I saw it again today, March 23rd. It is now feeding in the group picnic area, near the first set of restrooms. Today, it was about five feet to the south of the restrooms, for the first time. It has been to the north for many weeks. Among the other birds in the flock are many Lark Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, a couple Chippies, a couple Lawrence's Goldfinches, White-crowns, House Finches, and today - several American Goldfinches. There was a single Savannah one day and there was a Lincoln's one day. Among the Dark-eyed Juncos, there was a Slate-colored, for awhile.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Thoughts on education

What has happened to education in California? In 1977, the California public gave up the right to local school governance via Proposition 13. At the time, it seemed most Californians thought it was a good idea. And politicians still point to Prop 13 as a good thing, for the most part. Since that time, the state has been increasingly fearful of "not being fair" to all segments of society, and has gradually lost touch with what makes education tick: a good, dedicated teacher in a room with kids. Period. Everyone else in the process has to remember their primary function is to facilitate THAT great truth. But the more distant the governing body has become from the process, the less leaders seem to care about that scene - the teacher and the kids.
Local school boards often spend the majority of their time promoting pet projects and advocating personal agendas. They have lost the power of financing, so have little to do with the important functions of education. Change can only come with financial support. So, advocating change when you have no financial leverage doesn't matter. ONLY the state has the power to make a difference, any more. And at the state level, ONLY political expediency and soundbite philosophies matter. Without financial stability, California schools are doomed to a certain mediocrity. And it is not the teachers who are at fault. People who choose to teach are mostly in it because they care and want to make a difference in the lives of children. Hearing politicians complain about teachers is infuriating. Politicians have money. They have TIME. Not one of them would make it through a school year of five hours a day with 200 kids. They haven't worked that hard in years, if ever.

I have heard from many sources over many years that you can't solve education's problems by "throwing money at them." But no one has EVER tried that. How would they know? California's schools are chronically underfunded because the state government refuses to "fully fund education."
In the grand scheme of things, 40 year of teaching may be insignificant. I certainly feel insignificant. But I care deeply about my kids. So, why is it that we repeatedly undervalue what teachers do? Perhaps I see a very limited scope of education. Perhaps I am not aware of teachers who fit the vision some public officials seem to have of us: lazy, uninspired, unethical, drug-using, abusive, unmotivated, under-achieving, unambitious. I don't know those teachers. That doesn't mean there aren't any who fit those descriptors. I just don't know them. My expertise is forthy years in the classroom at virtually every level of education. I have no idea how unmotivated people survive the classroom. I work hard to get the knowledge into the kids' heads and to get them to produce at a high level.
In the business world, I think there is a view that an ambitious educator must want to move from the classroom to administration. I understand that promotion in the business world signifies success. When you are good at what you do, you move up the line and get more money. That is not necessarily so in education. That's business. But in education, we don't produce a "product." We deal with human beings. Many of us got into the education world to work with kids. We have no desire to move away from the kids into administration. Wouldn't it be something if we really prized the experienced teacher enough to pay them commensurate with their commitment to the profession? Wow. What a concept!
Why is it so hard for non-educators to acknowledge they have no expertise in education? You cannot affix a business model to education and make it work. The product is never the same. No two years are the same and no two children are the same. A static business model may work on a car, but it doesn't work on a teenager. You can fix a car. You can't fix a child. And that's not our job, in education. The legislators who are funding education should learn to listen to educator. We are not mechanics, working on a human brain. We respond to the needs and uniqueness of each child and try to impart knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.
And there's the rub! Society is a mess, in some ways. Drugs. Violence. Broken homes. Crime. And entertainment that glorifies the above. So, some believe education must solve all these problems. And frankly, some of us really try. But we do it one child at a time, while legislators saddle us with 35 or 40 children per hour. One child needs help. And we see 200 of them every day. Needless to say, it is a challenge and it is very hard work. And we don't always succeed.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Owling Kern County

The owls of Kern County include Barn, Short-eared, Long-eared, Great Horned, Spotted, Western Screech-, Flammulated, Northern Pygmy-, Northern Saw-whet, and Burrowing.
Up Breckenridge Mountain, Western Screech-Owls occur as low as the Cottonwood Creek crossing on Breckenridge Rd. They become common at about the 17-mile mark and occur where oaks predominate up to about the 20-mile mark. (Mile markers are on the reflective paddles alongside the road.) Once you pass the 22-mile mark and pines become common, Northern Saw-Whet Owls may be seen/heard at just about any stop. I have had Spotted Owls from this same point all the way to the campground at the top, but a pair has been at the 25-mile mark for several years, including 2007-2008. At the very top, along the crestline from about 28 miles to the entrance to the campground, I have heard as many as 6 Flammulated Owls. Northern Pygmy-Owls are quite common from 22 miles to the top at dawn and for the first few hours after. Great Horned Owls are not common, interestingly enough, although I have had them in the area of the campground at the top of Breckenridge Mountain. This may be more a function of their not being sought as much as the others. I have called the other owls in, but have never attempted calling Great Horned.
March 21 trip, 2008
I didn't manage to get out early enough to hear the "good stuff." I arrived at the 26-mile mark of Breckenridge Mountain about 5:30. It was still dark, but showing some light on the eastern horizon. I played the Spotted Owl, but had no response. Shortly thereafter, a Northern Pygmy Owl began to sing, spontaneously. There was a distant answer. Off and on for the next hour, the Pygmy continued to sing from various perches, near where I was parked. I couldn't proceed higher because the snow fields were becoming larger and deeper on the road. I turned around and headed down. I played both Western Screech- and Pygmy to attract songbirds. Both birds called back at multiple locations. The lowest elevation response fromt he Pygmy was at 20 miles.
After extensive reading, I assume Flams arrive the last week of April. I'll try then. Saw Whet and Spotted are around, but I haven't tried for them. Maybe in the next couple weeks, I'll try to get back up there. It was only 38 degrees at the highest elevation, so snow will continue to melt.

May 2-3 trip
In conjunction with the 2008 BioFest, Gary File and I led an owling field trip up Breckenridge Mountain. We found 5 Flammulated Owls from mile 29 to mile 33 at the crest of Breckenridge Rd., leading to Breckenridge Campground. We also had 3 Northern Saw-whet Owls in that same area. These were the first occurrence of Flams so far this year, including those seen at the top of the Greenhorns on a May 2 field trip led by Dan Lockshaw. Our Flams were calling spontaneously, for the most part. The territory at about mile 29 (the top of the hill coming from the west) had two owls. The other three were singletons.

June 14, 2008
This trip was with Nick and Mary Freeman, from Pasadena. We started in Breckenridge Campground where, much to my surprise, there was a Flammulated Owl located by Mary, using her ipod recording of a Flam as encouragement. The owl responded at dusk, before complete darkness set in, and we could watch the bird flit from tree to tree, finally getting a spotlight on it for a few seconds. We worked from about the 29-mile mark. A Saw-whet responded at that spot, but did not come in. About .5 miles toward the campground, another Flam responded and we found that one in the light, as well. (A Flying Squirrel was a weird addition to the night animals at the next stop.) At the third stop, a Saw-whet AND a Flam responded. And at the fourth stop, a Saw-whet gave a virtual recital of calls, some of which I had never heard, before. We didn't try for any other species. I departed as the sun rose, and much to my chagrine, the Freeman's didn't find a Northern Pygmy in the morning. Ugh! I should have stayed and gotten them that bird.
The Freeman's are expert birders and owlers. I think I learned much more than they. Watching them was a real lesson in owling and a treat for me. All I did was get them in the territory and they did the rest.
July 5, 2008
Bob and Chita McKinney traveled all the way from Rochester, New York, to try for Flam, Pygmy, and Spotted Owls on Breckenridge. We departed at about 1 a.m. and were playing Spotted recordings by about 2:30. No luck. I don't think the Spotted Owls are present on that part of Breckenridge, this year. At the same starting point as usual, at the top of the hill above the vacation cabins, there were three Flammulated Owls. We stopped every half mile and had two Flams at each of the next two stops. After trying again for Spotted Owls working down from mile 27+ to about 25.5, there were no responses, so we awaited dawn. But we did have another Flam responding the Spotted Owl recording at about 27.5 miles. That was the first time I've had Flams below the 29-mile mark. Once the sun was up, we had 3 Northern Pygmy Owls and visuals on two around the 26 and 27-mile marks.