Twitcher’s Patch: the Birding Blog of Hilton Head Island and Beyond
Welcome to Twitcher’s Patch—a blog where passionate birders (“twitchers”) and nature lovers can discover the magic of their favorite birdwatching spots (“patches”) across Hilton Head Island, the Lowcountry and beyond.
Twitcher’s Patch is where I share stories and observations from time spent watching birds on Hilton Head Island, throughout the South Carolina Lowcountry, and in places farther afield. A patch is more than a birding location—it is a place returned to often enough to recognize its birds, habitats, seasons, and changing rhythms.
Here you will find articles about bird behavior, migration, and breeding; photography techniques, creative practice, and ethics; habitat, weather, and conservation; birding places and journeys; and practical guides for spending more rewarding time in the field. Each story grows from firsthand observation and a commitment to respectful birding and wildlife photography.
Whether you are hoping to better understand what birds are doing, strengthen your photography, prepare for a birding outing, or experience a landscape through its wildlife, Twitcher’s Patch invites you to look more closely—one place, one bird, and one story at a time.
Mountain Moods: My Foreground is Air
Spending the summer about 1,500 feet above sea level between Ellijay and Blue Ridge, Georgia, I began photographing the same mountain bowl as weather and light transformed it from hour to hour. Looking toward the Rich Mountain country and northwest to the Cohutta Mountains, I watched towering clouds build, rain sweep across distant ridges, mist settle into the valleys, and thin bands of pink and gold reveal a sun hidden behind clouds. Eastern Towhees sing loudly well before sunrise and return to the treetops at sunset, while a small flock of American Goldfinches takes flight at the edges of the day—always together, never alone. Made with a Meyer-Optik Görlitz Trioplan 100mm f/2.8 lens, these photographs place the mountains low in the frame so clouds, color, light, and atmosphere become the true subjects. This photo essay explores geography, weather, birdsong, and the creative choice to let air—not a conventional foreground—anchor the landscape.
Summer Birding Essentials: What to Wear and Bring for Birding in Hot Weather
Discover the best summer birding essentials, including clothing, gear, hydration tips, and accessories to stay comfortable while birding in hot weather.
My Mother and the Crows
A simple bird bath on Hilton Head Island led to unexpected encounters with American Crows, revealing their intelligence and the joys of birdwatching in place.
Read the Bird: Silhouettes
Learn how to photograph bird silhouettes by focusing on shape, light, and gesture. A field-based guide to creating powerful backlit bird images without relying on detail.
Following the Tide: Whimbrels, Monkey Island, and Spring Migration in the ACE Basin
Experience spring migration in South Carolina’s ACE Basin on a sunrise boat trip to Otter Island and Morgan Island. Photograph Whimbrels, migrating shorebirds, rhesus monkeys, and smoky Lowcountry skies from the water.
White Ibis at Ibis Pond: Breeding Season at Pinckney Island
During breeding season, White Ibis gather in large nesting colonies across the South Carolina Lowcountry. In this post, I visit Ibis Pond at Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, where hundreds of White Ibis filled the palm hammock and understory beneath the palmettos. Alongside Little Blue Herons, Tricolored Herons, and Boat-tailed Grackles, the rookery was alive with movement, vocalizations, territorial behavior, and nesting activity. This post explores the experience of photographing and observing a Lowcountry rookery during peak breeding season.
Earth Day in the Backyard: Letting the Wild Feed the Birds
Explore backyard birds in spring through Earth Day field notes from Hilton Head Island, and see why native trees, caterpillars, and water matter more than seed for nesting birds—a lesson that holds true in backyards everywhere.
Read the Bird: Using the Shoreline to Frame Shorebirds
A field-based approach to shorebird photography at high tide—using shoreline layers, light, and a 70–200 lens to capture behavior, composition, and seasonal plumage.
Mother’s Day Gift Guide for Birders and Nature Lovers
Help the birder or nature-loving mom in your life feel seen with meaningful Mother’s Day gifts—from beginner-friendly binoculars and comfy sun-safe clothing to backyard birding setups and mindful outdoor experiences. Perfect for new birdwatchers, quiet observers, and anyone who finds grounding in time outside.
Meet the Orange-Alert Shorebirds of Hilton Head Island Part 2: Red Knot (A Species at a Tipping Point)
Discover Red Knots on Hilton Head Island during spring migration. Learn why this Orange Alert “tipping point” shorebird depends on Lowcountry mudflats to rest and refuel along the Atlantic Flyway.
Read the Bird: Don't Fight the Flock. How to Compose Bird Photos That Tell a Story
Learn how to compose bird photos that tell a story — from the decisive moment to negative space, gesture, and working within a mixed flock.
Birding for Beginners: A Practical Guide to Getting Started (and Actually Seeing More Birds)
Start birding today with this beginner-friendly guide. Learn what you need, how to identify birds, and simple tips to see more every time.
Painted Bunting South Carolina: Season, Spots, and Field Notes from the Lowcountry
Where and when to find Painted Buntings in the Lowcountry - Coastal South Carolina — habitat, timing, Hilton Head field notes, and tips for seeing and photographing them.
Pastel Dawn Skies and Lowcountry Birds: The Rayleigh Effect
What turns a Hilton Head dawn pastel pink and gold? The physics of Rayleigh scattering - and the shorebirds and egrets that appear with the rising tide and light along the coast.
What to Wear Birding in the Lowcountry: A Hilton Head Guide to Heat, Bugs, Mud, and Marshes
Practical guide to what to wear birding in the Lowcountry. Clothing and gear tips for birding and bird photography around Hilton Head Island’s marshes and beaches. A Hilton Head birding guide’s checklist for what to wear in the humid Lowcountry—quick‑dry shirts, zipper‑pocket pants, footwear for mud, rain layers, and bug defense.
Japanese Aesthetics in Lowcountry Photography (Part 1): Wabi-Sabi and Impermanence
Wabi-sabi the Japanese art of impermanence transforms how you photograph shorebirds on Hilton Head Island. Marbled Godwits and Sanderlings in minimal coastal light.
Birding Northern Greece: Lake Kerkini and the Dalmatian Pelicans
Lake Kerkini, Greece draws thousands of Dalmatian Pelicans in winter. Field notes and eye-level portraits from a cold morning on the water's edge in the northern Balkans.
Birding Northern Greece: Thessaloniki to the Kalochori Wetlands
A winter birding arrival in Northern Greece - landing in Thessaloniki, then tracking flamingos and shorebirds south to the wetlands of the Thermaic Gulf.
Central Florida: Birds, Burrows, and Back Roads
Birding Florida's Van Fleet Trail by bike in January - warblers, wading birds, gopher tortoises and the quiet backroads of Central Florida's farm and wetlands.
Meet the Orange-Alert Shorebirds of Hilton Head Island Part 1: Black-bellied Plover
How to identify the Black-bellied Plover on Hilton Head Island through the seasons of migration. Plus its plumage, feeding habits and Orange Alert conservation status.