Female Yellow-headed Blackbird
Four blackbird posts in a row. You may wonder if I’ve gone daft but there’s a method to my madness.
Tag: field marks
Do You Recognize Female Red-winged Blackbirds When You See Them?
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher In A Fragrant Sumac Bush
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are tiny and hyperactive. This one from yesterday morning was one of the most difficult photo subjects I’ve ever tried to draw a bead on.
Nashville Warbler Versus MacGillivray’s Warbler
Comparing Juvenile And Adult Green-tailed Towhees
Field Marks Of A Juvenile Golden In Flight (landing)
Comparing And Contrasting Juvenile And Adult Bald Eagles
The transformation of Bald Eagles from juveniles to adults typically takes five years. The process is gradual but when you compare the juveniles (1st winter) to the adults and skip all the intermediate subadult stages the differences between them are dramatic.
Juvenile Green-tailed Towhee
Yesterday morning in the Wasatch Mountains I photographed my first juvenile of this species.
Juvenile Golden Eagle In Flight
This is one of the better views I have of the field marks of a juvenile Golden Eagle in flight.
Two Views Of The Beautiful Backside Of A Male American Kestrel In Flight
It’s rare for me to post photos of birds where neither their eye or their face can be seen. But sometimes it’s the plumage that steals the show and for me male kestrels rule the raptor roost when it comes to spectacular colors and patterns.
Orange-crowned Warbler Parasitized By Cowbirds
A Different Look At The Alula (bastard wing)
Yesterday morning a Rough-legged Hawk gave me a perspective on the alula that I had never seen (or at least noticed) previously. I was on the verge of deleting these images when at the last second something about the left wing caught my eye.
Perched Barn Owls With A Snowy Background
Most of the images of Barn Owls I post show them in flight but I also enjoy the different perspective one can get while they’re perched. Each of these shots was taken ten months ago when the January snows were deep and persistent in the background of nearly all my images.
Western Kingbirds
Yesterday was a slow day on the island, though we did see our first Western Kingbird of the year (I should say that Mia saw it as I missed it – one of the disadvantages of being the driver…). The sighting got me to thinking about these aggressive tyrant flycatchers and reminded me of how much I’ve missed them these last few months so I decided to devote a post to them. They’re called “kingbirds” because of their belligerent behavior and fearless nature. Kingbirds are very aggressive toward other birds and it’s not unusual to see them attacking almost any species – including hawks and American Kestrels. They’re extremely agile in flight and can get away with such seemingly foolish behaviors. 1/800, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc In this shot you can see most if the important field marks – pale gray head and breast, darker mask through the eyes, underparts yellow, tail black with white edges and black bill. The sexes are similar. Most folks are unaware that the species has a small orange-red patch on the top of the head but it is nearly always hidden except while performing certain behaviors. 1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc These birds are almost unknown to walk anywhere – virtually all locomotion is by flight. Typically they hunt from elevated perches so they flit from perch to perch looking for insects mostly. When I’m lucky I find them on natural perches like this dried thistle… 1/1250, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4,…
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Do You Recognize Female Red-winged Blackbirds When You See Them?
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher In A Fragrant Sumac Bush
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are tiny and hyperactive. This one from yesterday morning was one of the most difficult photo subjects I’ve ever tried to draw a bead on.
Nashville Warbler Versus MacGillivray’s Warbler
Comparing Juvenile And Adult Green-tailed Towhees
Field Marks Of A Juvenile Golden In Flight (landing)
Comparing And Contrasting Juvenile And Adult Bald Eagles
The transformation of Bald Eagles from juveniles to adults typically takes five years. The process is gradual but when you compare the juveniles (1st winter) to the adults and skip all the intermediate subadult stages the differences between them are dramatic.
Juvenile Green-tailed Towhee
Yesterday morning in the Wasatch Mountains I photographed my first juvenile of this species.
Juvenile Golden Eagle In Flight
This is one of the better views I have of the field marks of a juvenile Golden Eagle in flight.
Two Views Of The Beautiful Backside Of A Male American Kestrel In Flight
It’s rare for me to post photos of birds where neither their eye or their face can be seen. But sometimes it’s the plumage that steals the show and for me male kestrels rule the raptor roost when it comes to spectacular colors and patterns.
Orange-crowned Warbler Parasitized By Cowbirds
A Different Look At The Alula (bastard wing)
Yesterday morning a Rough-legged Hawk gave me a perspective on the alula that I had never seen (or at least noticed) previously. I was on the verge of deleting these images when at the last second something about the left wing caught my eye.
Perched Barn Owls With A Snowy Background
Most of the images of Barn Owls I post show them in flight but I also enjoy the different perspective one can get while they’re perched. Each of these shots was taken ten months ago when the January snows were deep and persistent in the background of nearly all my images.
Western Kingbirds
Yesterday was a slow day on the island, though we did see our first Western Kingbird of the year (I should say that Mia saw it as I missed it – one of the disadvantages of being the driver…). The sighting got me to thinking about these aggressive tyrant flycatchers and reminded me of how much I’ve missed them these last few months so I decided to devote a post to them. They’re called “kingbirds” because of their belligerent behavior and fearless nature. Kingbirds are very aggressive toward other birds and it’s not unusual to see them attacking almost any species – including hawks and American Kestrels. They’re extremely agile in flight and can get away with such seemingly foolish behaviors. 1/800, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc In this shot you can see most if the important field marks – pale gray head and breast, darker mask through the eyes, underparts yellow, tail black with white edges and black bill. The sexes are similar. Most folks are unaware that the species has a small orange-red patch on the top of the head but it is nearly always hidden except while performing certain behaviors. 1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc These birds are almost unknown to walk anywhere – virtually all locomotion is by flight. Typically they hunt from elevated perches so they flit from perch to perch looking for insects mostly. When I’m lucky I find them on natural perches like this dried thistle… 1/1250, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4,…