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sharp-shinned hunting in the rain
great old romantic song that in this moment, I will apply to birding!!!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCj96k1A95g
many thanks for stopping by to visit and share....risa...and have a nice weekend!
It was pouring down relentless sheets of rain and a small group of band-tails landed in the buckeye. As the rain got even harder several of these native birds began to raise and open their wings fully to take in the opportunity for a complete bath....it was a truly remarkable sight to see this behavior in a complete downpour up in the trees on the greyest of winter days
many thanks for stopping by to visit and share....risa
Many thanks to those that take the time to visit and/or comment and fav...it is sincerely appreciated!
Many thanks to those that take the time to visit and/or comment and fav...it is sincerely appreciated!
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos - making his presence known
Many thanks to those that take the time to visit and/or comment and fav...it is sincerely appreciated!
Many thanks to those that take the time to visit and/or comment and fav...it is sincerely appreciated!
California morning as the fog burns off the hillsides
many thanks for stopping by to visit and share....risa
male Red-winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoenixes - displaying his epaulets in hopes to attract a female
Many thanks to those that take the time to visit and/or comment and fav...it is sincerely appreciated!
Two Common Grackles
The State of Birds Report lists them as a Common Bird in Steep Decline
Thank you for stopping by for visits and conversation!
Apparently, a Blue Jay's feathers do not actually have a blue pigment. What we are seeing is the refracted sunlight which casts a blue light.
"Blue and green are oddball colors in the animal kingdom. They are structural colors. In birds, they are caused by microscopic structures in the feather that refract light like a prism. When this light passes through a dark layer of melanin, some wavelengths are filtered out, and the bird looks blue..." Blue jays, indigo buntings and bluebirds all get their color from structure, not pigment.
If you are interested here is a link that further describes pigment versus structural coloring in birds
bangordailynews.com/2014/01/10/outdoors/blue-jays-bluenes...
Thank you for your visits and conversation!!
It's hard to deny the all around beauty of the Northern Cardinal. His songs are complex and beautiful, he's a good parent and treats the mother of his children with a lot of care. He apparently is the state bird for no fewer than seven states. I decided he ranked all-star status in the bird world!
He obligingly landed on one of many stumps on the hillside
Thank you for your visits and inspiration!
...or as I affectionately call him, the flame of the forest
Thank you for the visits, conversations and inspiration!
All the reference books start out with "a large songbird..." as part of their description of a blue jay. I don't really ever think of them that way even though they do fall in the songbird order of Passeriformes.
Their variety of calls, mimicry and expressive vocalization reminds me more of spoken language rather than song and as with all birds in the family Corvidae, their intelligence is always front and center when birdwatching as you see what unfolds from their complex language skills! They were the first bird that caught my interest and pulled me to this lifelong passion of becoming a "birder."
Thank you for your visits!
these two males were involved in a behavior that included this beak lifting and assuming a strong pose. It went on for about an hour.
out birding on a very overcast day filled with the deeply saturated colors of Connecticut's slowly emerging spring, I was quite happy to find the vibrancy of this active male red belly going down the hillside to the meadow beyond. I am trying out my new zoom and I must say it is the first time in many years I have not shot with a fixed lens but I'm finding the lightweight aspects to be quite freeing and feel practically giddy with the ability to move around...or maybe it's a symbolic gesture for having stayed so restricted during Covid....who knows...
I would have loved to have seen the Crest in full view, but that soft lemon yellow tummy made me quite happy!
An exciting first for me in the world of this particular flycatcher!
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an older shot but I am definitely seeing robins looking for food on the hardened landscape as they search for anything emerging from a long winter's sleep
I always feel lucky when these beautiful Blue Jays slow down and take a moment's pause...
Thank you so much for your visits and inspiration!
a young Cedar Waxwing takes a moment between eating the pokeberries that are below all that's left of this Ash tree
lots of times the molting process can leave a bird looking like a hot mess!!... however, in this moment, with shadows and lighting, this transitioning cardinal's emerging colors created a certain elegance brought out by a moment in the sunlight
Thank you for your visits!
The hillside going down to the meadow is pretty scruffy at this point and the very cold temps have kept the birds at bay as they seem to be found more in the cover of the trees that surround the field. This male Red-bellied woodpecker was venturing out from the wooded area on this frigid but sunny day and I was able to get a couple of shots before the freezing temperatures ended my time outside.
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This morning above the meadow a red-tailed hawk staked out a tree limb and tried to blend in. I was above him uphill and was able to get some shots as the light snow fell.
The Red-shouldered hawks are particularly beautiful and I was so happy to finally have a little early morning sunlight to show off his watchful eye as he hunted on the hillside.
Thank you for your visits and conversation!
a male red-bellied pausing in the reflective snow light
Hoping all are well and finding some rest from these unsettled times
thank you for the visit!
Two red-tailed juveniles are out and about learning how to be hawks who feed themselves. It creates quite a racket and lots of drama for the birds and ground prey on the hillside and meadows. This was taken a few weeks ago in the early sunlight that streams through the trees. The young red-tails have quieted down but in the beginning their plaintiff cries were the soundtrack of the day.
Thank you for your visits!