This is a simple disclaimer and reminder that the views and opinions shared in this blog are not those of the Institute for Bird Populations. This is a personal blog dedicated to my family, friends, and fellow bird nerds.

Cheers!
E.

Where in the World is Erin?

I’m sorry for going AWOL on you all, but I’m back! I know I have some explaining to do, especially since I am back in the states now!!!! I can’t believe it! And I bet you can’t either!! I will update you as quickly as possible!

January

I injured my knee at the beginning of the month, kept having to walk on it for work, and even though I was bed-ridden and icing it the rest of each day, it took the entire month to heal! I still couldn’t run on it comfortably in early Feb! I could walk however, and started strengthening my knee every afternoon walking with my neighbor and her friends up and down the hill we live on. It was great to make some friends and have some female company : ) I got into a great rhythm by the end of the month and was being really productive and staying fit. I felt more balanced than I have in years!!! I hadn’t felt this balanced since I was in a stable living environment, back in Berkeley, before I became a nomad! My great accomplishment of January – creating such a lovely lifestyle for myself even abroad in a temporary environment, something I’ve had a hard time achieving moving every 3-5 months. I was feeling so great! But then…

The road to our site at Mt. Tapotchao

the only shot I got of a fast-moving swiftlet!

this is what the tourists do at our banding station

heh

Fun painted (ok, and yes, kind of creepy looking) tree stump who's hat changes with the Holiday Season :)

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

February

I got sick mid-Feb and then got a RELAPSE two days after feeling “over it.” I’m thinking that the accumulation of my sleep deprivation (I’ve been quite restless on-island since day 1 and my cat certainly doesn’t help meowing for love at night – she’s so cute though) caused my immune system to fail miserably in it’s battle against some tropical bacteria. My body was so confused, and kept asking me: “are you sure you want me to give you a fever…? I mean…it’s 90 degrees outside! Are you sure?!?!”

Since I was sick for so long, I picked up the guitar : ) My neighbor’s to be exact. Hermis was kind enough to lend it to me and write out some chords on a sheet of paper for me to practice. I learned how to play “Time of Your Life” by Greenday within a week! That might sound very impressive, but I still don’t know every chord by heart, nor can I change from chord to chord easily unless I only have to move two of my fingers…haha. AND you should have seen me the day I kept trying to strum and sing at the same time…hahahaha, oh it was hilarious!! It took awhile for my brain to completely grasp the idea. Learning guitar is something I’ve wanted to do for so long now, so I am very happy and proud to have finally picked it up : ) it is my great accomplishment of February 2012!

We had our first fieldtrip of kids come out to one of our banding stations this month! A group of 2^nd grade scientists. They were so great! They came on a particularly birdy day at a site where we normally don’t catch many birds, so we weren’t able to talk to them as much about why we band birds, but we got to show them many species and almost every student was able to release a bird! They were so grateful to be able to handle such small delicate creatures. It was wonderful to see how magical they thought it all was!! Heh, that’s how I feel every day!

We went to a Sea Turtle fundraiser the following night where I was able to reconnect with all the friends we made our first month out here. It was really great seeing everyone again, but a bit of a bummer to think I hadn’t been able to see any of them for almost two months!  Even though we had work the next day, I was determined to live it up and take advantage of our night out. We made it to GIG, the only big dance club on-island. I had a blast and danced my heart out for 2 hours non-stop (for all of you on my KBO 2010 crew I know you’re shaking your heads at me and saying “Two hours, Erin? TWO HOURS?! When you were with us, you could last 6!!!!!” Indeed, we would. But sadly, the club closed at 2am. Our Cabin on the other hand…was open all night long ;))))

My Valentine's Day Bouquet :)

YUM

Bridled White-eye nest we found in the trail at KIFI

Orange-cheecked Waxbill

SO CUUUUTE!

Rainbow on a cloudy morning :)

Golden White-eye nest

Rufous Fantail Nest (wow, right? I guess V-day even got the birds twitterpated)

2 eggs INSIDE the Rufous Fantail nest!!! :D

Pieces of WWII bunkers at our site

Papaya...mmMMMMm

Papaya

A. lebbeck

Paper Wasp nest

March

This is when I learned that sleep is the best medicine when laughter doesn’t pull through! hah, I was so sleep deprived I started taking 3 hour naps every day.

We banded over 800 birds since arriving on Saipan! : )  Most of them….Rufous Fantails! But I’ve learned to really love these guys and actually want to look at their molt a little more closely…possible paper idea in the works!

I did a lot more snorkeling – Obyan Beach, Ladder Beach, Tank Beach, Micro Beach, Managaha and a small pool I managed to find at Jeffries Beach : ) We also went to the Grotto and Kalabera Caves. We were totally unprepared for Kalabera though, had no headlamps and had no idea how far you could actually go into the cave!! So…we clearly didn’t get very far, but what we managed to see was really cool. There are still quite a few places I didn't get to see, but I’m not going to cry over not getting there before my departure. We still did and saw a lot and given the circumstances, that's the best I could do!

I was invited to be a speaker at a big conservation fieldtrip on Managaha island a weeks before leaving. I was dubbed “the bird lady” and spoke to 5 classes ranging from K-8. Clearly, I had to adjust my talk with each age group and ended up just changing the direction of each talk with every class based on where their interests were. It was a lot of fun and a great experience! I really had to think on my feet and I learned a couple of tricks from the other speakers when it came to handling the youngin’s…. "Do you have a question? Or a story? I’m only taking questions right now.” Haha, the kidlets were so cute!!! “One day…one day Miss Erin…I saw a biiiiird!!!!!!” ....the end. Hahahaha, but you have to love their enthusiasm!

So what is my March accomplishment you might ask? Is it getting out of the Grotto alive after the water had gotten rough (see pics)? Was it getting the attention of 50-some students when talking about birds? Or was it that I finally got my cat spayed?? (yes, yes I did!) It is something altogether different, unexpected and glorious! I GOT A FULL-TIME PERMANENT JOB AS AN IBP STAFF BIOLOGIST!!!!!!!!!!  Say whaaaaaaaaat??!!!!! I know, it came out of nowhere! The MAPS coordinator and my main supervisor back in the office the past 3 seasons I’ve worked with IBP has decided to leave IBP in August and recommended me to fill his position : ) I had a meeting with the Director and was offered the job! I’m so thrilled!! I get to settle down for at least two years in Petaluma, CA and work in an office surrounded by the stunning scenery of Point Reyes. I’m officially AN INDEPENDENT ADULT. Woo hoo!

White-throated Ground Dove

Kitty in a box

Ninja kitty!!

The Grotto from above

Some Russian Divers who emerged from the depths

Before, happy, not injured.

The walk down

The beautiful Grotto

Where we had to cross over to the large central rock you then jump off of to get into the water.

Waves come through here, so you have to be quick and time it well.

Along the stairs that later I was dragged behind.

This is what the entrance to the big rock looks like when the water gets rough

More rough water

Boo

Too happy to be sad

Kalabera Cave entrance

This is why we needed our headlamps - we had no idea how far down this went!!

So we didn't go beyond this point! hah, note the bloody leg.

A painting I made for my Momma

Boonie Dog I named YODA

Obyan Beach :)

My phone doesn't focus...but the sunset I would see every time I went on my afternoon walk :)

Baby Fruit Dove

Rings made from Ironwood adapted micro-leaves

This is what happens when you catch 0 birds in 6 hours....

Pacific Reef Herons on Managaha

Banyan Tree ("walking tree")

White-tailed Tropicbirds

Tank Beach

We swam out to that one

hehe

hehehehe

 

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Achoo!

So, what's next? A couple weeks in LA and then Yosemite National Park for one more season of banding!!!!! 3 months living in a tent, 3 months living in one of the most beautiful places on earth, 3 months of working and living outdoors, in the wild, handling the wild and cherishing the wild. Looking forward to it :)

I'll be better from now on....I promise!!