On Friday, Nov 2, 2012 the weather was again trying to be nice.  I set off in the early afternoon with some good intermittent sun, but it didn't last long.  The weather continued to deteriorat all afternoon until it began sprinkling by about 6pm and the precipitation got increasingly heavier after that.  But by that time I already had some photos in the bag!

First up, a Red-tailed hawk... probably the same one I photographed (and I think posted) last week.  I drove past the hawk, turned around to make another pass but it was now on the wrong side of the car.  So I turned around again and when I got back to the area where it had been it was gone.  I looked around but didn't see it so again turned around.  On my way back to my main route I glanced to the side of the road and there, just into the field, was the hawk on the ground and it was obvious it had some prey.  I took several shots but another car came along, swung wide around me and slowed to see what I was photographing.  This was too much for the hawk and it flew, and as it did I took photos of it in flight.  In processing my photos I could see that it was carrying a rather fat field mouse.

This may be my best photo of a flying hawk!  

 I encountered another American kestrel (this was in addition to the one I mentioned in a prior post), and this one flew to a power line and was in the process of landing when I took this photo... 

I went back to a bush thicket near the Swinomish Channel where I've gone for my last several outings and took photos of this Fox sparrow... 

this Golden-crowned sparrow...

... and this Song sparrow eating berries.  

 

 I next made my way over to Fir Island where I found our winter crop of Snow geese... thousands of them.  I took a lot of photos of them flying.  Unfortunately the weather had deteriorated to the point that the sun was no longer shining, but the white of the geese's feathers provided enough light for photos of them flying. 

Administrative Comments (No birds!)

As owner of this blog I have access to statistics concerning the number of visits and/or page views for my blog.  It's fairly confusing but one of the things that interests me is where my viewers are supposedly located.

I'm provided with a microscopic map with darker areas that signify greater readership.  Most are in the continental US as you would expect, but Alaska is also painted as containing heavier usage.  Sarah, if it's you I want you to understand that no wildlife has been harmed as a result of my trophy hunting! 

I have at least one viewer from India, and it is probably a very nice young lady I met on a plane flight a year or two ago.  She was in this country patiently waiting for a green card and I gave her my blog information.  I sincerely hope that she's obtained both the green card and a job by now and I wish her the best of luck! 

It also appears that I have one or more viewers in Canada, Mexico, Britain and France.  A large area that used to constitute the USSR also seems to be included... whether this is just Russia or includes several of the '... stans' I can't be sure because of my lack of current geographic knowledge and the microscopic size of the map that's provided.  It also seems that I have one or more viewers in Peru!

So I want you remotely-located viewers to know that I appreciate your support and it's of more than a little interest to me that you would follow a birding blog that relates to an area so far away.  And if I've left anyone out, my apologies... it's a very small map with which I'm dealing! 

Another Out-of-Yard Excursion

There was no rain again on Thursday (11/1/2012) so I was able to get out with the camera in the afternoon.  I retraced the same route as my last posting, but there was little or no wind blowing so I saw a lot more birds.


The first bird I came across was another grebe, this one I think a Horned grebe as evidenced by the light-colored bill tip and the relatively flat top of the head.  This bird (actually one of a pair) was only a few hundred yards from the location where I shot the Western grebe shown in my last post. 

 

 My next bird of consequence was a prize indeed... a Northern Shrike.   This bird was near the northern end of Channel Drive.  While I've seen at least one other in that greater area, I encounter most of these on Fir Island. 

Here is what is probably a male Spotted towhee, a very fine specimen...

In the same set of bushes were many American robins, a flock of Pine siskins, a Song sparrow, at least one Ruby-crowned kinglet that narrowly avoided having its picture taken, and a couple of Black-capped chickadees, one of which is pictured below...

Finally, I encountered this Golden-crowned sparrow in a bush at the side of the road at about minimum focal distance...

After my 'official' birding trip had ended I headed over to La Conner and encountered an American kestrel on a relatively low power line and the bird let me stop almost under it for photos.  For a kestrel this is very unusual... they are usually very sensitive to any slowing of a vehicle anywhere in their vicinity.  (No photo included.)