Richard Min

Marshall and me going birding again… in Korea! Oh daaam, I am excited.

Birdwatching, or birding, is a form of wildlife observation in which the observation of birds is a recreational activity or citizen science. It can be done with the naked eye, through a visual enhancement device like binoculars and telescopes, by listening for bird sounds,^[1][2] or by watching public webcams.

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birdwatching 

Bowdoin College birding buds… in fact, he got me into birding in the first place!

Birding and pool hustling (hustling for a long time before that, but that is a story for another time.)

I was always a nature lover and I’m still am. (← does that in sentence make sense? aphasia). Marine Biologist was my first choose at college. I used to love marine critters. And reptiles and mammals, and even bugs. Ha! But I didn’t see it… birds? What is so cool about birds?

And then I got it. He took me birding and eyes were opened. I was hooked. That was sometime ago, Bowdoin College, and I am hooked today.

We went all over. Once we went the Eastern and Central part of United States from Maine to Texas. Maine to Texas! 2 weeks(?) during college. It was a good time!

I tell you that story another time (maan, these stories keep piled up!), but now it’s time for… Korea!

South Korea

One day talked. It’s was hella-fun. We got to catch up and wife and stuff.  One day we were birding around Olympic Park (on the East-side). And it was equally fun.

I got the standard birds, but we didn’t the Japanese Waxwing (Bombycilla japonica) which came for. Oh well, it was good to catch up with my boyz.

Marshal is working at Cornell Labs of Ornithology!!

Niiiicceeeeeeeee!!!

(I got to get into this more… hang on! hang on!)

MMmmm… Plant-based goodness! Haha

Cornell Labs of Ornithology

That not my total list, but getting there.

Here’s Marshalls:

My boyz work there at Cornell and it is gooood…. for me!! Oh, that’s good for him too.
(I’m just joking.) Heehee!  (^^)

He’s the man when it comes to this stuff.

I wish I had for my trip through South East Asia!! Two months I hit Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore by myself. I could have documented my Asian birding experience. Argh! Well, I can do it the again. Hah! It was a blast – birds and fun! It is was around 1996(?) I guess. (I will have to go through my own stuff.)

One FULL days of birding!  (1.5 days)

We birded around Seoul and surround areas. My aphasia (Argh!) and talk about birds and we didn’t have time to talk about non-birds besides a little bit. Haha! (However, we talk on messenger a lot.)

It was awesome!!!

5:00 AM to dusk (6:30 pm (?))

A new “Lifer” for me! Haha!! (Bird that you have never had before).

A Chinese Penduline Tit (Remiz consobrinus)

Photo by Marshall Iliff

Challenge!

We go down and Chinese Grey Shrike or go up and possibly miss the Chinese Grey Shrike…

you know what we have to do – Go for it! Ha!!

Scat (bird doodoo) from Eurasian Eagle-Owl (Bubo bubo). He got see Eurasian Eagle-Owl and I got to see it flying. (-__-)

Photo by Marshall Iliff

And we got it!!

Chinese Grey Shrike (Lanius sphenocercus)

>>>> https://ebird.org/media/catalog?mediaType=p&region=South%20Korea%20(KR)&searchField=user&regionCode=KR&includeUnconfirmed=T&userId=USER34603&q=Marshall%20Iliff

Maan, it was super cold!! My hands and feet got numb. 

But it was worth it!

White-naped Crane (Antigone vipio)

Photos by Marshall Iliff

We went to Gwangneung Arboretum to out the Snipe … but alas we couldn’t find it. (-_-)

Check it out! He takes beautiful pictures on that camera of his. (And eBird.org does not let me take pictures off that’s his. Argh!)

>>> Marshall and me Birding Day in Korea (photos)

Here are the total photos of Marshall, wife (Arrrggh! Aphasia:1!!) and their kid (Min!!!Got to love his name) and me.:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/qhQ3jZJEbJwEpEJz6 (photos)

THAT is a story for another time (mmaaan, a big one!):

After missing Steller’s Sea-Eagle north of the bridge, we tried two viewpoints here: one just S of the bridge and then the classic Steller’s overlook a bit further south.  🙁 Alas, the latter site had a squadron of Korean photographers who gladly showed us images of the beautiful adult Steller’s seen here two hours earlier. We did well with mergansers (three species) and had a nice bit of birding overall.

– Marshall Iliff

and here is the list of Birds we saw from December 20 – December 24, 2019.:

A Day Birding By Myself

Marshall was doing something else and I got bird alone.

It took foreeevveeerrr! But I made it!! I got it!!!

It took me 6 hours to see that bird. Take that f#nking stroke (and aphasia)!!!!! (For a 1 hour normal walk, it took me slloowwly 4 hours to walk. Oh brother).

But I got it…

LIFER: Steller’s Sea-Eagle (Haliaeetus pelagicus)

It took me 20+ years to see this bird! YAAAAH HHHHHHH1!!!!!!!

Birding Hotspots (Paldang, Seoul)

Marshall and I went back and saw the Steller’s Sea Eagle, but I had a first. So. myaaaauaa!!! Hahaha!!!

Here is the Steller’s Sea Eagle from Paldang, Korea:

Photos by Marshall Iliff

I got an interview with Marshall and it’ll go up shortly.

And here are the links, so you can have them:

• eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) https://ebird.org
• Birds Korea (Nice!!) http://www.birdskorea.org
• Birdwatching (Korean) http://cafe.daum.net/Birdwatching

That’s a wrap!

Marshall was good see you.

I’ll keep on birding …whenever you send my binos back! (It was damaged. I had to go fix them a States!) < *ahem*cough#!$!* > Haha!

< end >

Rough Draft

• Stroke and Aphasia. I have both of them (I’m getting better!).
• left handed to type that (I’m working on it!)
• 50 hours to write that!!!!
• 50% aphasia / 50% rough draft