I know not another 1 but its a blackcap.Taken years but finally a male out of the shrubs.

The blackcap is a distinctive greyish warbler, the male has a black cap, and the female a chestnut one. Its delightful fluting song has earned it the name 'northern nightingale'. Although primarily a summer visitor birds from Germany and north-east Europe are increasingly spending the winter in the UK.

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Regards Clive

Very small, with a distinctive short, rounded tail with conspicuous spots at the tip. Body sandy-colored below, streaky above. Breeding males have a dark bill and crown. Found in open grasslands, meadows, marshes, and agricultural areas. Most readily detected by its repetitive and monotonous song, given from either a perch or in an undulating song flight. Song varies across wide distribution, ranging from evenly-paced squeaky “tsik, tsik” of African and European birds to the fast dry ticking of Southeast Asian birds. (eBird)

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We've seen these cute little birds in a few places, but I had only achieved one poor record shot. This time, though, I had a small window through some tall grass to this wonderfully named bird. I could not get my two companions on it, so I had to make do with photographing it instead. A big crop but a wonderful reminder of this find.

Marina Bay East, Singapore. March 2024.

Birding Singapore.

A distinctive looking bunting around 15-16 cms long and found in rocky habitats in parts of Northern, Western and Central India. The bird is rare pretty in much of South India though. They are also found in a large range across China and South Asia as per ebird.

The bird is impossible to miss since the colors are quite unique and distinctive. It prefers rocky terrain and is usually found on the slopes foraging on the ground looking for grain. The female too has a crest though it is much smaller, and the overall body color is a dull olive color.

There was a sunflower farm with millets in between and we found a pair - male and female foraging in them. Sometimes, they preferred the millet, but other times, the birds landed on the ground between the rows of sunflower plants and foraged on the ground. I wanted a shot of the bird with sunflower behind, but that wasn't meant to be.

Many thanks in advance for your likes and feedback. Much appreciated.

The most distinctive of the Royal Tombs is the Urn Tomb, recognisable by the enormous urn on top of the pediment. It was built in about AD 70 for King Malichos II (AD 40–70) or Aretas IV (8 BC–AD 40). The naturally patterned interior of the Urn Tomb measures a vast 18m by 20m.

Part of what makes the Urn Tomb such a grand structure is the flanking Doric portico cut into the rock face on the left of the tomb, and the huge open terrace in front of it – a feature that encouraged its use, according to a Greek inscription inside the tomb, as a cathedral in AD 447. The double layer of vaults was added at a later date by the Byzantines. Look towards the top of the building and you’ll see three inaccessible openings carved between the pillars. These are also tombs, the central one of which still has the closing stone intact, depicting the king dressed in a toga.

Earning its name from the urn-shaped finial crowning the pediment, this grand edifice with supporting arched vaults was perhaps built for the man represented by the toga-wearing bust in the central aperture.

The other day a friend was commenting on the clouds that appear along the Sunshine Coast vs those in Alberta. Ostensibly, those that take shape over the ocean vs those that develop in the prairies. We both came to the conclusion that although the topic of clouds was the same, the resulting forms were often different yet unique to the landscape. (so to speak)

In this image there are two distinct clouds forming in the distance, both over the ocean and developing over a distant island. Pender Island to be exact. One, filling the sky at a higher level, while the other stretching for miles at a specific height catapillaring along the ocean.

After photographing Prairie clouds for the last 26 years, I have noted in my photos they are often quite wispy, or perhaps appearing like giant whipped potatoes in a thunder cloud, or just plain leaden, covering the sky. They too come in many forms, but for the most part, look distinctively different. And, isn't it fun to just watch them as they move inexorably across the sky creating their beauty for us to photograph.

Crazy Tuesday- Complementary Colours

I chose Purple and Yellow for my two colours. This is a Purple Potato Blossom and a member of the Nightshade's Family . Stu planted these last year in the Spring and some of the potatoes were left in the soil over the winter so they came up this year instead of last fall. We call these Volunteers. Nightshade blossoms are pretty distinctive looking. The petals on these flowers also come in white indicating that the potato is a white variety. (Thanks Wes for mentioning Crazy Tuesday)

Fairly small and very distinctively patterned petrel of cool southern waters; regular migrant north to Humboldt Current. A “professional” ship follower in the Southern Ocean, often in groups that circle a vessel for hours. Extent of white spotting on upperparts rather variable, but no other petrel has this white-spattered or “painted” pattern, which gives rise to its other common name—Pintado Petrel; pintado means painted in Spanish and is also an anagram of the genus name, Daption. (eBird)

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The one and only time we saw this petrel and we got to see it up close and personal. A quarter the size of the albatross around it, it darted in between its huge cousins, looking for scraps.

I have to admit to using Photoshop's new Generative Fill tool in this photo. Due to the bobbing of the boat, the bird's head was right at the very top of the image so I used the Generative Fill to provide a little bit of headspace for the bird. I was very impressed with how seamless the addition is. Basically everything above the two little white dots in the water above the head is new.

Kaikoura, New Zealand. March 2024.

Roadrunner Birding Tours.

Albatross Experience.

Imagine a female Red-winged Blackbird plumped up in all directions—long, pointy bill on a slender head (very distinctive profile), plump body, short tail, long legs—and add in a striking yellow chest and a black necklace in the shape of a V. Then take the trilling chickareeeee-a of the Red-winged Blackbird’s call and turn it into a lovely, lazy descending three-part whistle, and you’ve got yourself an Eastern Meadowlark, Sturnella magna—the name means “big little starling.” (Starlings and meadowlarks are both icterids: blackbirds.) If you’re in the right habitat (grasslands and prairies, particularly with fence posts), in the right season, you’ll see or hear the males frequently. They sing from elevated posts, inviting two and sometimes even three females to share their territory (usually at least 6 acres are needed). The meadowlark nests on the ground, often among tall grasses, where its cryptic coloration conceals it quite efficiently. Unfortunately for this bird, its ideal habitat, according to the Cornell Lab’s All About Birds article, “small, family farms with pastureland and grassy fields,” is being replaced by “larger, row-cropping agricultural operations or by development” and is in precipitous decline, resulting in an estimated 89% reduction in numbers from 1966 to 2015.

I found this Eastern Meadowlark along Joe Overstreet Road in Osceola County, Florida.

The distinctive-shaped “whale tail” smoke stack of Carnival Cruise Lines’ ships as seen aboard the Carnival Triumph.

The Hamerkop is definitely an unusual looking bird and one that I had never heard of. It's name being derived from the hammer head shape of its head and the crest at the back of its head. Perhaps its closest relatives are Pelicans and the Shoebill. As can be seen here it spends a good deal of time feeding in the shallows with its diet comprises of mostly fish and amphibians, but shrimps, insects and rodents are also taken.

This example was photographed on the shores of Lake Naivasha in Kenya.

Breeding male is distinctive with black body, white rump, and creamy nape. Females and nonbreeders are drastically different, yellow-brown with fine streaking on breast sides, and stripes on head. Smaller than Red-winged Blackbird with shorter bill. Spiky tail feathers. In the blackbird family, although often mistaken as a sparrow. Breeds in open fields. Listen for male's bubbly song. Often in flocks during fall migration; departs early for wintering grounds in South America. (eBird)

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Another photographic first for me. Female bobolinks usually vanish into the grass, but this one had food for her babes. She was probably watching our progress along the trail in case we got too close to her nest on the ground.

Atocas Bay Conservation Project, Alfred, Ontario, Canada. June 2024.

Eastern Ontario Birding.

From Rye Windmill website:-

"The distinctive and famous Rye Mill is a grade-two listed building and has been the inspiration for artists and photographers throughout the centuries. It occupies an historic site in Gibbet’s Marsh where a windmill has stood, in one form or another, since at least the sixteenth century. The Symondons map of Rye created in 1596 shows an illustration of a windmill in the exact spot where today’s mill now stands. Copies can be seen in Rye Town Hall"

It is now a guesthouse offering bed & breakfast.

Small, odd, distinctive vulture. Adults are boldly patterned black-and-white, with red bare facial skin. Juveniles are brown. Immature birds show a mixture of juvenile and adult traits. Distinctive shape in flight: broad, paddle-shaped wings and a short, wide tail. Found in a variety of habitats, including forest, woodland, and savanna--usually in the vicinity of palms. Somewhat similar to African Fish-Eagle, but easily separated by red facial skin and different pattern of black and white. Juveniles are similar to Hooded Vulture, but are smaller, with a thicker bill.

Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda. January 2017.

The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

Thanks for viewing my photos and for any favourites and comments, it’s much appreciated.

The distinctive warning call of the Curlew,our largest wading bird, resounds around the Northern Uplands of the uk in spring & early summer where they return each year to breed

Normally a very wary bird but when they have young chicks nearby they can be quite bold. This one approached just to within a few yards of me,obviously letting me know its young family was nearby.

Needless to say I heeded the warning and left it in peace.

Taken in the Peak District.

Tallest building in town apparently. Certainly a distinctive landmark.

Small plover with streaked upperparts, strong white eyebrow, and a heavy black line through the eye. Note red eyering. Adult has distinctive black V on chest. Very common around freshwater wetlands. (eBird)

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There were two chicks running around the beach, probing the sand for food and occasionally interacting together. We watched and followed them for over an hour but could not find the adults anywhere. Finally had to leave, although we agreed to return the next day to have another look for the parents.

Te Horo Beach, New Zealand. February 2024.

Roadrunner Birding Tours.

The secretive Gray Catbird, with its distinctive cat-like

mewing note, is a common winter resident in Florida.

Many pass through the state during migration.

Gray Catbirds are one of the most common species that non-birders in their range are likely to have never seen nor identified. The catbird’s rather bland coloration – slate gray with a black cap and chestnut under the tail – doesn’t attract attention, and unlike their cousins, the mockingbirds, that often sing from exposed perches, catbirds prefer to sing their jumbled songs from cover. And it is the sounds that catbirds make that give them their name and makes it at all likely that their presence will be noted.

Gray Catbirds, to put it simply, have a call note that sounds like a cat with a scratchy and short meow. This sound emanating from a tangle of brush can easily fool those not in the know. The song of the Gray Catbird, however, is nothing like a cat meowing: like the mockingbird and thrasher the catbird often mimics other birds and sounds but it tends not to repeat itself. The rule of thumb is that if a phrase is repeated three times in a row it is a mockingbird, it it is repeated twice a thrasher is singing, and if each phrase of the song is sang just once one is dealing with a catbird.

I found this one in my backyard in Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida.

Distinctive pair and . . they both are designed to use their razor-sharp wheels to cut slices through pizzas! But these two specific bikes will not be used for that and instead will be enjoyed TOGETHER as a pair of lovely and unique objects.

Theme: "TWO-GETHER""

Thank you for taking the time to view this photo, faves and comments from you are greatly appreciated.

The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

Thanks for viewing my photos and for any favourites and comments, it’s much appreciated.

Adult male distinctive: glossy black overall with bright yellow bill and eyering. Female dark brown overall; slightly paler throat and breast often have faint darker spots and streaks. Juvenile in summer brown overall with pale spots on back, spotted breast; first-year male duller black than adult, with duller yellowish bill. Can be found in wooded habitats, parks, gardens, and farmland with hedges; often feeds in fields and on lawns. Rich caroling song often heard in urban and suburban neighborhoods with trees and hedges. A native of Eurasia and North Africa, introduced to southeastern Australia, New Zealand, and a few surrounding islands. (eBird)

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One of the first birds we saw in New Zealand was this young blackbird. Introduced to New Zealand, they have now spread to nearly every corner of the country. We saw them nearly every day.

Auckland Domain, New Zealand. February 2024.

Distinctive cliffs rise from the black sandy beaches near Vik, Iceland

Handsome plover with a gentle, dove-like face. Breeding plumage distinctive, with bold white eyebrow, white breast band above rusty-orange belly with black center. Nonbreeding plumage buffy overall, with whitish eyebrow and breast band. A bird of dry upland habitats: breeds on moorland and tundra; migrants occur in fields, on golf courses, and mountaintops, at times in small groups, especially in spring. Often rather tame, but inconspicuous. (eBird)

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This brightly coloured bird is a female Eurasian Dotterel at her nesting site on the tundra of Lapland, Finland. She is much brighter than her mate, because once she lays her eggs, the male takes over incubation and she is free to roam and perhaps to mate again.

Inari, Finland. May 2019.

Bird Quest.

My first sighting ever of a Spotted Towhee was yesterday on the MacKay Creek Trail, North Vancouver, BC, Canada. Very exciting.

The Spotted Towhee (Order: Passeriformes. Family: Emberizidae ) is a distinctive bird that is often heard before it is seen, scraping about in the brush. The deep chestnut flanks and sides combined with the male's solid black head, red eye, and black upperparts are distinctive. The belly is white, and the white spots on the wings give this bird its name. The white at the corners of the long tail is visible in flight. [...]. BirdWeb

Male European red deer have a distinctive roar during the rut, which is an adaptation to forested environments, in contrast to male American elk stags which "bugle" during the rut in adaptation to open environments. The male deer roars to keep his harem of females together. The females are initially attracted to those males that both roar most often and have the loudest roar call. Males also use the roar call when competing with other males for females during the rut, and along with other forms of posturing and antler fights, is a method used by the males to establish dominance.[11] Roaring is most common during the early dawn and late evening, which is also when the crepuscular deer are most active in general.

Distinctive large shorebird with long legs, enormous yellow eye, heavily streaked underparts. During the day stands or sits under small trees/shrubs, often in small groups. When disturbed will lie down and flatten neck to the ground. At night becomes active and wanders around calling its wonderful eerie wailing cry. In cities like Darwin, Cairns, Brisbane it is relatively common in parks, open grounds, camping grounds. More common across northern Australia. (eBird)

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We came across this mom and her two chicks in her "nest" on the ground on the grounds of our hotel. You have to look closely for the second chick - I didn't see it until I was editing the photo.

Jabiru, Northern Territory, Australia. October 2022.

Eagle-Eye Tours - Tropical Australia.

With their distinctive black and white pattern, sweeping up-turned bills, and long blue legs, these unusual-looking, but beautiful birds, are fascinating to watch. They provide a spectacular show ...

The butterfly has a wingspan of 50 to 55 mm. The base colour of the wings is a rusty red, and at each wingtip it bears a distinctive, black, blue and yellow eyespot. The underside is a cryptically coloured dark brown or black.

The peacock can be found in woods, fields, meadows, pastures, parks, and gardens, from lowlands up to 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) elevation. It is a relatively common butterfly, seen in many European parks and gardens. The peacock male exhibits territorial behaviour, in many cases territories being selected en route of the females to oviposition sites.[7]

The butterfly hibernates over winter before laying its eggs in early spring, in batches of up to 400 at a time.[2] The eggs are ribbed, olive green, and laid on the upper parts and the undersides of leaves of nettle plants[8] and hops. The caterpillars, which are shiny black with six rows of barbed spikes and a series of white dots on each segment, and which have a shiny black head, hatch after about a week. The chrysalis may be either grey, brown, or green in colour and may have a blackish tinge.[8] The caterpillars grow up to 42 mm in length.

The recorded food plants of the European peacock are stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), hop (Humulus lupulus), and the small nettle (Urtica urens).

The adult butterflies drink nectar from a wide variety of flowering plants, including buddleia, willows, dandelions, wild marjoram, danewort, hemp agrimony, and clover; they also utilize tree sap and rotten fruit.

Attractive duck with distinctive triangular head; forehead slopes seamlessly into the long bill. Males are white-bodied with black chest, reddish-brown head, and red eye. Females are dull grayish-brown with unique head profile and dark brown eye. Breeds in lakes and marshes. Winters in any large body of water with submerged aquatic vegetation on which to feed. Dives frequently, searching for vegetation and invertebrates. Often gathers in large flocks in nonbreeding season. (eBird)

Presqu'ile Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. March 2022.

These distinctive neotropical birds have pink plumage with a uniquely shaped bill that gives them their name. The long, flat bill is rounded at the end like a spoon, and it's used it to scoop up small crustaceans as they walk through shallow water. These small crustaceans are also the source of the spoonbill’s coloring. Spoonbills are social birds and gather in groups when feeding, roosting and nesting. This one can be found at the National Aviary, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Many thanks for the visits, faves and comments. Cheers

Grey-crowned Babbler

Scientific Name: Pomatostomus temporalis

Description: The Grey-crowned Babbler is the largest of Australia's four babbler species. It is dark brown-grey above, with a distinctive grey crown stripe and a dark face mask that contrasts with a white eyebrow. The chin and throat are white, running into a pale grey lower breast. It has a long, curved bill, short rounded wings with cinnamon brown wing patches and a long tail tipped white. The eye is pale yellow in adults. There is a darker-coloured subspecies, rubeculus, in north-western Australia (often called the Red-breasted Babbler), that has a rufous lower breast and darker crown stripe. The Grey-crowned Babbler is a noisy and gregarious bird, usually found in small groups of four to twelve, and is often seen on the ground or in low trees. It is sometimes called the Yahoo, after one of its calls.

Similar species: The Grey-crowned Babbler lacks the dark crown of other babblers and has a yellow rather than a dark eye.

Distribution: The Grey-crowned Babbler is widespread throughout north-western, northern, central and eastern Australia. It is also found in Papua New Guinea.

Habitat: The Grey-crowned Babbler is found in open forests and woodlands, favouring inland plains with an open shrub layer, little ground cover and plenty of fallen timber and leaf litter. May be seen along roadsides and around farms. In south-east Melbourne, small populations survive on golf courses.

Seasonal movements: Sedentary.

Feeding: Grey-crowned Babblers feed on insects and other invertebrates and sometimes eat seeds. They forage in groups of two to fifteen birds on the ground among leaf litter, around fallen trees and from the bark of shrubs and trees (they tend to use trees more than other babblers).

Breeding: Grey-crowned Babblers live and breed in co-operative territorial groups of two to fifteen birds (usually four to twelve). Groups normally consist of a primary breeding pair along with several non-breeding birds (sometimes groups may contain two breeding pairs or two females that both breed). Most members of the group help to build nests, with the primary female contributing the most effort. Two types of nest are built: roost-nests (usually larger and used by the whole group) and brood-nests (for the breeding females), and often old nest sites are renovated and re-used from year to year. The large domed nests are placed in a tree fork 4 m - 7 m high and are made of thick sticks with projections that make a hood and landing platform for the entrance tunnel. The nest chamber is lined with soft grass, bark, wool and feathers. The brooding female (sometimes more than one) is fed by the other group members and all help to feed the nestlings. Larger groups tend to raise more young, and two broods are usually raised per season.

Calls: Loud scolding and chattering calls: 'wee-oo'. Also distinctive 'ya-hoo' duet by breeding female ('yah') and male ('ahoo') repeated six to eight times.

Minimum Size: 25cm

Maximum Size: 29cm

Average size: 27cm

Average weight: 81g

Breeding season: July to February

Clutch Size: Usually two to three, up to five if more than one female.

Incubation: 23 days

Nestling Period: 23 days

(Source: www.birdsinbackyards.net)

© Chris Burns 2023

__________________________________________

All rights reserved.

This image may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying and recording without my written consent.

The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

Thanks for viewing my photos and for any favourites and comments, it’s much appreciated.

The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

Thanks for viewing my photos and for any favourites and comments, it’s much appreciated.

A distinctive dragonfly with dark spots on the wings. Can be found over much Britain and Ireland and be seen on the wing from late spring and summer. This species of dragonfly can wander widely and will often turn up as a migrant on the south coast. Preferred habitat is standing or slow moving waters especially acidic heathland pools.

Heritage Home, Outside Dali, China

Distinctive large, dark wheatear with a strong bill. Males are largely all black except for a white tail, rump, and vent. The tail has a black center and terminal band. Females are similar, but browner. Normally encountered foraging on the ground in rocky areas with steep slopes. Shy and typically flies uphill when flushed.

Merzouga, Morocco. March 2019.

A distinctive fantail, all dark except for a white throat and a short white eyebrow. The tail, often fanned, is a shade darker with white tips to all tail feathers except the central pair. Juvenile is like adult, but with reduced white on face and brownish edges to the dark body feathers. Gives very harsh contact calls. Song is a musical phrase of 6-7 notes that ascends first and then descends. Found in a wide range of wooded habitats, from dense forest to forest edge and gardens, from lowlands up into the mountains.

Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal, India. March 2016.

A large cuckoo, distinctive in all plumages, but usually secretive, keeping to the interior of dense trees in many habitats, even inner cities and fields. Adult males glossy black with dull lime-green bill; females and immatures blackish brown with white dots on the wings and strong streaking on head and throat. Adults have ruby-red eyes. Females lay eggs in the nests of other large birds, including crows, shrikes, and starlings. Song is a loud, persistent “ko-EL!” similar to a peacock’s call. (eBird)

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A bird that is far more frequently heard than seen. Given its size, it is remarkably capable of disappearing into a tree. This one, though, came out into the sun just as we were heading off for the day's birding adventures.

Changi Villiage, Singapore. March 2024.

Birding Singapore.

Distinctive, large white wading bird with a spatula for a bill. Adult has short crest, yellowish breast patch.

First year has paler bill, with fine black wingtips visible in flight. Sleeping birds have horizontal posture and bulging neck, vs. more vertical stance of egrets.

Found in wetlands with shallow water (including tidal flats), where feeds by sweeping its bill side-to-side for crustaceans and small fish.

May be confused with egrets when sleeping, but note stockier, more thickset overall appearance.

Lacrimose Mountain Tanager

A distinctive mountain-tanager with tawny-orange underparts and isolated yellowish patches on cheek and below eye. Otherwise mostly blackish above with blue highlights on wings and tail. Occurs in the Andes from Venezuela to Peru, where it is fairly common in the upper subtropical and temperate zones. Pairs or small groups often follow mixed-species flocks in forested areas and edges.

This individual was photographed at about 11,500 ft in elevation while on a photo tour led by Neotropic Photo Tours. March 15, 2022

Perhaps the most distinctive and enigmatic of the prehistoric monuments on Dartmoor are the stone rows. There are over seventy stone rows on Dartmoor today although there were probably once considerably more. There are two double stone rows near Merivale on the west side of Dartmoor, and one is pictured here together with a cairn circle, which is about halfway along one of the double rows. This was presumably once a burial site covered by an earth mound, which has long since disappeared. The monuments were probably built over a long period, between about 2500 BC and 1000 BC and it is now thought they are even older than Stonehenge.

Source: www.dartmoorwalks.org.uk/resource/rows.php

The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

Thanks for viewing my photos and for any favourites and comments, it’s much appreciated.

The beautiful and highly distinctive Pin-tailed Manakin is endemic to the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil, where it is not rare but the species is nonetheless highly prized by birdwatchers, especially as its unusually quiet vocalisations can render it unobtrusive, making encounters much less frequent than with other manakins that occur in the same region. The male Pin-tailed Manakin is one of the most unmistakable and prettiest of manakins, and even the female is difficult to confuse given that it shares the male’s ‘unusual’ head shape and ‘pin-tail’ central rectrices. The species prefers humid forest, woodlots and mature second growth, perhaps most frequently in valleys. Its systematic relationships have only recently been elucidated, although its uniqueness has long been recognised by taxonomists. However, some facets of the Pin-tailed Manakin’s life history, especially its breeding biology and diet, are still relatively poorly known. birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/pitman1/cur/introduction

This beautiful male was photographed at Tapiraí - São Paulo. Wishing everyone a Peaceful Thursday and for those who celebrate a Peaceful Thanksgiving!

Thanks a lot for your visits, comments, faves, invites, etc. Very much appreciated!

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The distinctive red-brown fur and long bushy tail of the fox are a familiar sight almost everywhere in the British Isles. Foxes are intelligent, adaptable mammals, opportunistic, with unfussy palates, and they make use of a wide range of habitats, including those of towns and cities. They are social animals, living in family groups of a breeding pair, together with cubs in the spring, and sometimes other subordinate juveniles and adults. The latter are usually young born the previous year and help with the rearing of cubs, feeding, grooming and playing with them. Each group occupies a territory, which is marked with urine and scats. Dens (called ‘earths’) may be dug in banks or make use of (disused or occupied) badger setts or old rabbit burrows. In urban areas, favoured sites for dens are under buildings or sheds, and in overgrown gardens and cemeteries.

Foxes hunt and scavenge with keen senses of smell and hearing, and probably use the latter to locate earthworms, which can make up a large part of their diet.

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The incredible concentration of cast-iron buildings in SOHO New York are one of the distinctive features of this Manhattan neighborhood. The fact is district is referred to as the SOHO Cast-iron Historic district and is the home to the largest collection of full and partial cast-iron building on the entire planet. Cast-iron had been a key component of bridges but here in the part of the country in this city, cast-iron was not only used structurally for the buildings but as part of the facade as well. This New York developed innovation was used extensively as cast-iron edifices was less expensive to build than stone or brick and were much faster to build and fabricate as the components were made in molds rather than hand carved. They have held up amazingly well as most of the approximate 250 cast-iron buildings in New York were built between 1850’s to late 1800 so are well beyond the 100 year mark. This image show a rather typical cast-iron design, repetitive elegant columns up and down the entire façade. - [ ] #developportdev @gothamtomato @developphotonewsletter @omsystem.cameras #excellent_america @apple #iphone13pro @bheventspace @bhphoto @adorama @tamracphoto @tiffencompany #usaprimeshot #tamractales @kehcamera @nycurbanism @nycprimeshot @nybucketlist

Breeding males are distinctive with dark reddish-brown cap and sides, along with buffy nape. Two bold white wingbars. Females and fall birds are duller; most show at least some chestnut coloring on sides. Dullest birds are similar to Blackpoll and Pine Warblers; look for streaks on back, well-defined wingbars, and cleaner greenish-yellow head and neck. Prefers conifers during migration, but can be found in any woodland. Breeds in the boreal forest. In most of U.S. , only seen during migration. Winters in Central and South America. Listen carefully for extremely high-pitched, squeaky-wheel song, similar to a fast Black-and-white Warbler. (eBird)

Prince Edward Point Bird Observatory, Ontario, Canada. May 2014.

The Eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops) is the most widespread species of the genus Upupa. It is a distinctive cinnamon coloured bird with black and white wings, a tall erectile crest, a broad white band across a black tail, and a long narrow downcurved bill. Its call is a soft "oop-oop-oop". It is native to Europe, Asia and the northern half of Africa. It is migratory in the northern part of its range. It spends most of the time on the ground probing for grubs and insects. The clutch of seven to eight eggs is laid in an existing cavity. The eggs are incubated by the female and hatch asynchronously. Some ornithologists treat the African and Madagascar hoopoes as subspecies of the Eurasian hoopoe.

The Eurasian hoopoe was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He cited the earlier descriptions by the French naturalist Pierre Belon and by the Swiss naturalist Conrad Gessner, both of which had been published in 1555. Linnaeus placed the Eurasian hoopoe with the northern bald ibis and the red-billed chough in the genus Upupa and coined the binomial name Upupa epops. The specific epithet epops in the Ancient Greek word for a hoopoe.

A distinctive looking bunting around 15-16 cms long and found in rocky habitats in parts of Northern, Western and Central India. The bird is rare pretty in much of South India though. They are also found in a large range across China and South Asia as per ebird.

The bird is impossible to miss since the colors are quite unique and distinctive. It prefers rocky terrain and is usually found on the slopes foraging on the ground looking for grain. The female too has a crest though it is much smaller, and the overall body color is a dull olive color.

There was a sunflower farm with millets in between and we found a pair - male and female foraging in them. Sometimes, they preferred the millet, but other times, the birds landed on the ground between the rows of sunflower plants and foraged on the ground. I wanted a shot of the bird with sunflower behind, but that wasn't meant to be.

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C-FLRJ, a British Aerospace Avro 146-RJ85, on approach to runway 05 at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario. It was arriving as SMM8541 (Summit Air Ltd.) from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Cubes, lots of cubes!

The M. C. Blanchard Judicial Building is the primary seat of the First Judicial Circuit Court of Florida in Escambia County and home to much of the county's governmental offices, including Clerk of Court. The building was built in 1978 and is known for its distinctive architectural style, designed by William Graves.