I take an inordinate number of garbage photos of this species for every decent shot I get.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This photo was taken in the mountains ten days ago as the nuthatch was attempting to locate and extract seeds from these two Douglas Fir cones. I took hundreds of photos that morning but kept very few because so many things can and do go wrong. These birds are so fast and twitchy that the photographer really can’t wait for a decent pose to push the shutter button, you just have to fire away and see what you get. It’s a crap shoot (literally because I get so much crap…)
Only rarely do I get decent light on the bird, a catchlight in the eye, the bird sharp and unobstructed and an acceptable setting and background in the same shot. This was one of those times.
An alternative composition of the same photo.
It’s only been recently that I’ve been able to get many nice shots of this species. The fact that they’ve usually been foraging for Douglas Fir seeds and often clinging to the sides or hanging upside down from their cones has made me ponder their evolution. I’m struck by the color similarity between their bellies and breasts and the cones they spend so much time on. Could it be that their red ventral colors have been selected for as a means of camouflage against the similarly colored cones? After all, both sexes have that same ventral coloration.
Makes sense to me. As a photographer I know how hard these birds can be to spot as they’re foraging for conifer seeds. Cryptic coloration works!
This morning as I’m typing this text in the predawn darkness the wind is howling outside in front of another advancing snowstorm. I suspect snow in the mountains will mean roads closed for the winter and no more access to this area or these birds until next spring.
I’m definitely going to miss them.
Ron
I like the wide view which includes habitat, except for the subject being centered. Very interesting thoughts about how the undersides may be a survival adaptation. Even the male Painted Bunting, which stands out in the open, can appear invisible when it sits motionless among the red berries of Brazilian Pepper.
Thanks, Ken. Generally I avoid centering my subjects but in this situation I preferred to include all of the margins of the green fir branches in the foreground and background that seem to frame the bird. That meant centering the bird. For me it was a tradeoff either way but this is the choice I preferred. I lost part of that framing in the vertical version so I wanted to include it in the horizontal. With the bird looking toward the top of the frame I thought it mitigated some of the centering problem. If “he’d” been looking to our right I probably wouldn’t have centered the bird.
Like the second one bast…beautiful shot of one of my favorite birds…Happy Thanksgiving…
Thanks, Patty. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. You deserve it.
Charming little acrobat! (I want to give him some lotion for his feet, though. 😉 ) Looking forward to seeing more of what crosses your viewfinder.
Happy T-Day to everyone — Thanksgiving, Turkey, Tofu, or Thurs! 😉
You have a point about his feet, Marty.
I’ll take most of your “T”‘s but you can keep #3…
Love the shots. Lucky you. We have a good rain storm here today, possible snow for tomorrow. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. Stay safe if you are traveling!
Thank you, Jean.
I love the second composition! We have the white nuthatches around here all the time but the red ones only sometimes. I enjoy your photography very much!
I appreciate the kind words, Susan.
You will miss these charmers – and we will too.
Many thanks.
I hope the weather treats you kindly (but doubt it).
EC, we could get lucky (or unlucky, depending on how you look at it). It was supposed to start snowing hours ago but hasn’t yet.
Beautiful photo, Ron. The blue sky peeking through is very nice as is the sharp detail overall. I find both formats appealing.
Thank you, Lyle.
Ron I love your blog for three reasons: Your lovely photos; your insight about behaviors, and your honesty about the challenges and throw-aways makes me feel much better about my own photography.
Have a good and grateful (to the Universe for providing us with such an interesting world, along with any other partiulars) Thanksgiving.
“your honesty about the challenges and throw-aways makes me feel much better about my own photography”
Ha, I have enough throw-aways that I can make you feel better any ol’ time, Nancy! Thank you.
Beautiful bird having his Thanksgiving feast. Rest up Ron and get ready for warmer weather. Laughing at Laura’s thermostat at 60. Mine is at 69 this am and still chilly in the house. Snow will be hitting us shortly. Warm Thanksgiving greetings to all.
Thanks, Everett. I have to really crank my thermostat up when I first get up in the morning.
Nature works in marvelous ways, doesn’t it? All the colors, patterns and textures that work together to result in such outrageous beauty! But that also makes me wonder about humanity. Evidently, we made a huge wrong turn in the evolutionary pathway! I think about that a lot now that I share my life with raptors.
This winter storm is coming here, too. My furnace actually fired up this morning and I have the thermostat set at 60! We might even see some snow!
Laura, I think humanity made more than one wrong turn on the evolutionary pathway…
Thermostat set at 60?? Indoors that temp would freeze my heinie off!
We’re getting “old” Ron…….. 😉 Me too!
In my case there’s not question about it, Judy.
I love wearing my beloved hoodies and I don’t get much chance to do that. With the thermostat at 63, I can sleep in them AND wear them all day!! YIPPEE! Plus, I’m ready to go hawking, but I think we’re going to get rained out tomorrow! DRAT! Now understand that I agree completely with the Harris’ hawks that if it’s cold enough to snow, it’s way too cold to be outside 😉
And yes, I’m a geezer now, a ripe old hag!
Oh yeah, and humanity made MANY wrong turns! We’re so inadequate for survival, especially in the intelligence department!
Very nice photos. For some strange reason I have not ever spotted this variety in and about my area. I have a dozen or so of their white counterparts that frequent my peanut ring, suet, and sunnies though. Yet the ‘reds’ have been at my mother’s feeders about 100 miles north. Go figure! Pouring rain all night and high winds here and it continues; snow just a little further north. I don’t know which I prefer but the rain and sunrise this morning sported a beautiful double rainbow that spanned across the entire sky!
Kathy, I don’t believe I’ve ever even seen a White-breasted Nuthatch. If I have I don’t remember it. I understand that the White-breasted is over twice as big as the Red-breasted.
Makes sense to me that they’ve evolved to “blend into the woodwork” while feeding. 🙂 That and their quick movements would make them easy to miss or lock on to for a predator. Slick roads yesterday morning but they’ve backed off on the winter storm warning until this afternoon at least. We’re borderline as usual as to what we will/won’t get. Sure glad I don’t live in the Denver area! Some of the “high country” will be starting to shut down I’m sure as more snow and fewer warm ups in between happen…..
Judy, I can’t begin to tell you how vivid my memories are of winter storms blowing in from the north (and their aftermath) when I lived in Cut Bank or on the farm outside of town. I don’t think there’s any way to adequately explain it to someone who hasn’t had the experience.
That’s for sure! Nowhere to go today and as long as the power holds and there are no emergenices………..