A Mixed Bag...

Several days ago I was able to spend some time in the yard and observe/photograph some of the birds. 

First up, a male House finch.  The males are transitioning into their breeding plumage leading many people to think they are seeing a Purple finch, but it's a mistake to try to identify the birds by color alone.  The male  House finches vary from a wine color (even deeper than this one pictured) to a light orange.  

This is a Fox sparrow which, if history repeats itself, will soon disappear from our yard for the summer and won't return until late in the fall.  

Finally, for the yard birds, this male American goldfinch is transitioning to its breeding plumage. This is the first winter that the goldfinches have over-wintered in our yard, but some can be found in the county during winter months.  Compare this goldfinch to the males in one of your field guides to note the changes it is undergoing.  (I think you can click on this photo to enlarge it.)

On Friday (today) I drove to Whidbey and Fir Islands.  On the way I encountered this hawk on Fidalgo Island.  When I photographed the hawk I thought it was a Rough-legged hawk due to its light color, especially on the head.  My assessment was strengthened when the bird didn't fly when I stopped to photograph it as I've generally found the Rough-legged hawks to be more tolerant of vehicles.  But the Rough-legged hawks have probably already left until next winter.  After processing the photographs I'm fairly certain that this was a light-morphed Red-tailed hawk.  It was a bonus to be able to photograph it in a natural setting instead of the usual power line or power pole! 
 

Finally, here is a Northern shrike that was out on Fir Island.  It's a fairly rare bird in the county... I only see two or three each season.  The shrike is generally found in open areas and can be a fairly vicious bird for its size, even preying on small birds on occasion.  Note the hook at the end of the upper mandible. 

March 27 Yard Bird Inventory & Observations

I was able to spend a couple of hours in the yard birding and photographing on the afternoon of March 27, 2012.  We had lots of birds, highlighted by a couple of brief glimpses of the White-throated sparrow that made it’s first appearance in several weeks.  Unfortunately I only had a couple of very brief glimpses and no chance for a photo even though I had my camera with me. 

Some of the birds I observed:

·        White-throated sparrow

·        Golden-crowned sparrows

·        Fox sparrow

·        Song sparrow

·        House sparrows

·        House finches  

·        Spotted towhee (2)

·        Dark-eyed junco (Oregon race)

·        Northern flicker

·        Varied thrush (2)

·        American robins

·        American goldfinches (two males transitioning into breeding plumage)

·        Pine siskins

·        Golden-crowned kinglet

·        Black-capped chickadees

·        Chestnut-backed chickadees

·        European starlings

·        crows

·        Anna’s hummingbird (male)

·        Rufous hummingbird (female)

Noticeably absent were the Downy and Hairy woodpeckers and Red-breasted nuthatches. 

The Golden-crowned sparrows, Varied thrushes and juncos will be leaving us soon as will probably the Anna’s hummingbird(s).  We have yet to see our first male Rufous hummingbird this spring.  The Golden-crowned kinglet was the first we have seen in several weeks.  We’re still waiting for the main influx of Rufous hummingbirds and American goldfinches.  The starlings are beginning their annual assault on the hanging, inverted suet feeder and won’t give up their attraction for it until several weeks after their young have fledged. 

I noticed a House sparrow gathering nesting material so it’s about time to convert my roosting boxes to nesting boxes and start monitoring things more closely for the next couple of months. 

The birds have begun showing an increased interest in the watercourse with the Pine siskins and American robins leading the way.   

I was able to obtain some photos yesterday but will probably spend more time in the yard today, so I'll wait to post the best from a couple of photo sessions.  

A Couple of Hours in the Yard

Saturday was supposed to be a good weather day but things started deteriorating in the afternoon.  I sat outside for a couple of hours and in the end got too cold, but I did have a lot of bird observations and obtained some nice photos. 

My first discovery was of our first confirmed Rufous hummingbird, and here's a photo for confirmation.  I had thought I had seen a male just earlier but if I did it didn't return and I didn't get a photo of it. 

We still have both a male and female Anna's hummingbirds in the area and today I obtained my best photo of a male.  I've tried unsuccessfully over many of the winter months to get a photo of the light reflecting off of the male's gorget and finally succeeded today... in a grand fashion! 

We've had a pair of Hairy woodpeckers with us all winter... here's the male apparently finishing an insect...

After having a rather sparse early winter for Pine siskins they seem to be back with us again.  They're now probably our most frequent visitors to our water feature. 

And finally, we still have a pair of Varied thrushes with us.  They usually come down from the mountains with the first snow and stay for several weeks.  Once here they seem to enjoy eating the hulled sunflower seed that falls from our feeder.  These are beautiful birds and we enjoy them for as long as we have them each winter.

Birding Day Around Skagit County

I managed what was close to a full day of birding on Friday, Mar 23.  I first went to WA Park where I enticed a Spotted towhee to come to a post outside the vehicle with a little 'habitat enhancer'. 

While I was observing the towhee I noticed a Brown Creeper going up a tree right in front of my vehicle.  I tried to take a photo through the windshield but was too close, so I got out of the car while the bird was mysteriously occupied in a slight depression.  This was probably the longest period of time I have ever seen one motionless, but it was soon on the move up the tree again.  I took several photos but this was probably the best.  I think the camera has a difficult time focusing on the bird due to its extremely effective camouflage plumage.  

Next up was a Lincoln's sparrow, a rare find for me, but I found it over on the east side of the Swinomish Channel with a little coaxing. 

Finally, in the La Conner area, I encountered this American Kestrel which defied its usual habit and stayed atop a power pole and allowed me to photograph it.

All in all I came out with somewhat less than I expected but nevertheless obtained some good photographs.  

Whoops... More Dunlin

Apparently I'm not quite through with the Dunlin that have been frequenting the Cap Sante Marina for the past several weeks.  We had a beautiful afternoon on 3/21 so I went down and inserted myself among the rocks... right above a flock of about 25-30 Dunlin who were retreating from a rising tide.  As the tidelands were disappearing the Dunlins' activity changed from feeding to preening and once the mudflats had completely disappeared they began sleeping... except in most cases there was always one eye open. 

Strangely enough, in this group of Dunlin, some of which I couldn't see well, there were at least two that apparently had only one leg. The Dunlin were nice enough to stay in place while I crawled among the rocks right above them, so I was probably only about 20' from them. 

After a long wait a Common loon swam by a couple of times and I was assisted in photographing this bird by a couple of boats that were being repositioned and not only received the bulk of the loon's attention but nudged it over to me.  It seemed to be doing at least as much preening as hunting for food. 

Hooded Merganser

On Monday a birding friend called and wanted to meet for lunch.  I hadn't planned on eating so I made plans to meet at the Cap Sante Marina and grabbed my camera before heading down.  It was a fortuitous decision.  When I arrived there were a pair of Hooded mergansers in the northwest corner of the marina and I quickly got out my camera and started taking photos.  They were farther away than I would have wished, but with this hobby you take what you can get. 

After a few minutes the birds (there were a pair) flushed and I snapped three quick photos of the bird in flight. 

As a bonus I'm throwing in this gull which flew past...

More Birds of Cap Sante

Saturday (St. Patrick's Day) turned out to be not too bad a day for photography so I went back down to the Cap Sante Marina.  I couldn't find any Dunlin in their usual haunts so I drove over to the other side of the marina where I found some waterfowl.  I noticed a Red-breasted merganser coming my way so I stretched out on the sidewalk and waited.  In retrospect I need not have been so careful.  Two of them swam by and then one returned later with me standing.  This was probably my best photo...

 

While chatting with one of the marina employees I noticed a Common loon in the background and took a few photos, but it was farther away than I would have liked.  I've seen as many as three in the marina at one time but haven't seen them as often lately.  I got lost in the conversation and all of a sudden realized that the loon had surfaced only about fifty feet away!  I already had my camera at the ready and was able to snap a couple of quick photos which were close to full frame.  I had hoped that the loon would be in breeding plumage but it appears to be transitioning... note the pattern beginning to appear on its back.  I'll be down at the marina in the coming weeks to try to get a photo of it in breeding plumage.  

Finally, after leaving the marina I decided to drive around March Point.  Birds were relatively scarce there but I did encounter this Turkey vulture, apparently one of the early migratory arrivals.  It was sitting on a stick on the beach.  In Texas this would have been one of the last places you would have expected to see a vulture!  But up here, I take what I can get and am quite happy that it wasn't sitting on a power pole!

More Dunlin

By Friday morning, March 16, we had lost our warm sunny weather and it was back to the drizzle and cold.  Unfortunately the wind stayed with us, although perhaps it was somewhat less aggressive.  Returning from my morning activities I again drove by the Cap Sante Marina and found that the tide was in and in looking carefully along the water's edge I saw a group of Dunlin huddled in some short grass.  This would be a good opportunity to get a group shot if not for the rain.  But when I arrived back at the house the drizzle had abated so I grabbed my camera and headed back down to the marina.  Upon arriving I found that the Dunlin had departed. 

I ran a couple of errands but went back by the marina on the way home... and the Dunlin were back!  They started moving up and down what was now, at high tide, a very narrow beach and I took some photos.  With the wind chill it was cold and I had neglected to put on either a jacket or gloves so I was getting quite cold.  The Dunlin finally flew a couple of hundred feet away and landed on a large rock... where there was no beach.  This seemed like a great opportunity for photographs so, despite my discomfort with the cold, I followed them and obtained some photos with them resting on the rocks... and that's the way I left them. 

Enough of the Dunlin for awhile... I'll try to find something else to photograph!  

And just another note about our PacNW weather... by mid-afternoon on Friday the wind had quit, the rain had been vanquished and we enjoyed a warm, sunny afternoon!  And now, early Saturday morning, we've already had one fairly hard shower and the temperature is back down to 37-degrees! 

(If you haven't already read the post pertaining to the previous day be sure to do so!) 

Back Closer to Home

Those of you who read my blog from time to time know that I’ve occasionally had some rather remarkable days as far as birding photography is concerned.  Thursday, Mar 15 (the Ides of March) was one of them! 

We somehow managed a very abrupt change in the weather on Thursday about midday.  The sun came out and the temperature warmed to almost 50-degrees.  The downside of this was that the wind was blowing all day, so hard in fact that I didn’t take my morning walk for fear of entering the forest under such circumstances. 

I ran some errands over in Burlington and, as is usually my habit, I drove by the Cap Sante Marina on the way home to see what might be there.  I almost missed about 30-40 Dunlin that were scattered over the mud flats instead of at water’s edge.  They can be difficult to pick out against the reflection of the light on the wet mud and among the rocks that litter the beach.  I decided that the conditions were good for photography so I rushed home, grabbed my camera and returned to the marina. 

I’m getting too old for this, but I eased myself over the sidewalk railing and inserted myself among the rocks lining the northwest corner of the marina while the Dulin were a couple of hundred feet away across a small drainage ditch.  I was mentally prepared for a long wait, but the strong wind blowing and my position among the rocks taxed my physical resolve. 

I had barely gotten settled when something spooked the Dunlin and they made several quick circles around the area and landed about 30-40 feet directly in front of me!  The lighting conditions were almost perfect and I began taking photos… scores of them!  The Dunlin wandered the entire beach, at times coming so close to me that my camera wouldn’t focus on them!  

 While the drama with the Dunlin played out a group of three Red-breasted mergansers landed in the water out in front of me but the wind was really blowing hard and I was disappointed when they went with the wind and disappeared around the north side of the docks.  Later a single merganser came floating by with the wind but it too was too far away for effective photos.  But later I saw it or another one round the north side of the docks and paddle right along the shoreline where I was ensconced.  I began taking a few photos when it was in range and then, in another fortuitous moment, it waddled up on the beach right in front of me and began preening!  What had I done to deserve this?  

But the show wasn’t quite over… a few of the crows that were in the area wandered through and I obtained full-frame photos of them, in the sun, sitting on the rocks.  I even obtained photos of one of the crows calling and you can see the red of the inside of its mouth!  

Once I returned home I had a 195 photos to process from the day’s shoot… I kept 68 of them, but that is probably too many.  So Thursday was a very good day for birding photography… and we’re now back a lot closer to home with the postings.  

Last of the Pamama/Costa Rica Photos

The tale of this trip wouldn't be complete without this neat ending.  We were ferried to a beach at Punta Caletas on the Osa Peninsula in zodiaks and Don, a photographer and fellow traveler and I decided that we wanted to explore something away from the crowd.  So we walked several hundred yards down the beach until we encountered a small stream flowing out of the jungle.  There were already birds around but I realized that this was habitat par excellence.  We had just set up for photography when it began to rain.  Don and I took shelter under the eave of a school house that wasn't occupied due to the holiday season. 

After 10-15 minutes the rain stopped and we headed back down to the creek.  As we did so I saw two large birds fly onto the beach just below a drop-off.  We sneaked up to the edge and encountered two Yellow-headed Cara Caras.  After obtaining many photos of them we sat an waited at the mouth of the little stream.

It wasn't long before we encountered this male Green kingfisher, but it landed in the shadows and never emerged so I couldn't get the photo I would have liked.  

 
As we sat quietly watching this Bare-throated Tiger heron crept over a log and out into our view.  We were able to watch it for perhaps fifteen minutes as it carefully worked its way down the stream toward us, finally disappearing behind an embankment where we sat.  As you can see, this was an absolutely wonderful bird with perfect markings.