Bird Watch SXM – Association Les Fruits de Mer

Bird Watch SXM: Eight Years of Counting

Mark Yokoyama — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 14:52:08 +0000

Science: it’s even better when everyone can join in. The Caribbean Waterbird Census is a regional effort to learn more about a wide variety of waterbirds, and you could take part in it in a few weeks:

Bird Watch SXM: The Soggy Season

Mark Yokoyama — Sun, 04 Dec 2016 12:48:34 +0000

After a couple notably dry years, a more typical rainy season has returned to St. Martin. How does this impact the local ecosystem and our feathered friends?

Bird Watch SXM: Mangrove Mystery

Mark Yokoyama — Sat, 19 Nov 2016 15:26:18 +0000

Mangroves are the cornerstone of our most important wetland environments, but all over the island what should be leafy and green has turned brown and bare. What’s happening to our mangroves?

Bird Watch SXM: Checking in with an Icon

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 20:15:17 +0000

In a special Bird Watch SXM for St. Martin’s Day, we honor a national symbol: the Brown Pelican. It’s not only a fantastic bird, but its history echoes that of the island itself in some ways.

Bird Watch SXM: Four Twenty-eight

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 31 Oct 2016 21:41:26 +0000

In the latest Bird Watch we take a look at some individual birds as they travel the globe. How does that work? Read it and find out:

Bird Watch SXM: More Than Birds

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 17 Oct 2016 17:51:04 +0000

This week we take a broader look at how birds unite us and inspire us to protect entire ecosystems. I think this is important to understanding why it is worthwhile to spend so much energy on birds, and although this is a more encompassing look at birds and their conservation, hopefully it won’t seem too…extreme:

Bird Watch SXM: Living History

Mark Yokoyama — Sat, 08 Oct 2016 18:20:12 +0000

Birds certainly know about the ruins of the Foga pumping station, even if most people on St. Martin do not. History literally comes alive when it is surrounded by nature. Check out the article from The Daily Herald‘s Weekender section and a slideshow of bonus images taken at Foga.

Bird Watch SXM: Between Land and Sea

Mark Yokoyama — Sun, 25 Sep 2016 00:39:02 +0000

This week, we take a look at the crucial habitats that host many of our migratory visitors. They both divide and protect the land and sea. Due to a layout error the photo caption in the printed paper is incorrect, the actual caption is: A Whimbrel forages on the Great Salt Pond.

Bird Watch SXM: Changing of the Guard

Mark Yokoyama — Sun, 11 Sep 2016 21:15:07 +0000

Our summer migrant is getting ready to depart and our winter visitors are arriving day by day. It’s the perfect time to see what’s new on our ponds and shores, and a special event to celebrate these amazing birds is just around the corner.

Bird Watch SXM: Strange Sights on the Pond

Mark Yokoyama — Sun, 28 Aug 2016 14:12:56 +0000

This diminutive duck has been an infrequent visitor.

On St. Martin, there’s no better place to do a little birdwatching than your local pond, whichever one that may be. Late summer and early fall is also the best time to see a surprise visitor or two.

On St. Martin, we’re blessed with an abundance of ponds. Over the years, we’ve chipped away at the edges, filling them in to make land for buildings and roads. They may be smaller today, and quite a few are gone entirely, but they still perform many valuable functions. They reduce the potential for floods during storms, they capture sediment before it runs out into the sea and they’re home to loads of animals, from snails and crabs to fish and birds.

In August, the migratory season is just beginning. Some birds from far in the north are already making their way down to the island. Spending time on your local pond between now and October will be richly rewarded as you watch the progression of species arriving in greater and greater numbers.

On a recent day at the airport pond in Grand Case, an infrequent migratory visitor was dabbling in the shallow water near the bridge. The Green-winged Teal is a small duck that spends its winters everywhere from the southern United States and Mexico to the Caribbean. It was first recorded here in 2012, when a handful of ducks spent the winter. The presence of this species is doubly surprising, because arrival in August is very early for ducks, which usually stay further north until the fall or even early winter.

Some surprising visitors to the pond.

In addition to the tiny Green-winged Teal, a bulky pair of birds stood out from the dozen species that are usually on the pond. This time, they weren’t migrants or Caribbean natives. The Helmeted Guinea Fowl is an African species that has been introduced to many places. Somewhat related to chickens and turkeys, they are often raised for their meat.

Although guineafowl can be seen in quite a few locations on St. Martin, it was odd to see this savannah dwelling bird foraging on the mudflats near the water’s edge. Although it probably wouldn’t be considered an exciting sighting for a bird enthusiast, there’s always something exciting about encountering the unexpected.