Ten Days of Snapshots

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Tammie Rogers

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I’m sharing some of my favorite images from the past ten days. Enjoy!

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The number of hummers we have observed at our nectar feeders this year is down significantly from years past. I’m happy that I was able to get a decent shot of this guy when he stopped by for a sweet treat.

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Unexpected Backyard Visit

This Great Crested Flycatcher stopped by just a few yards from the house. This is a species that nests and typically feeds in the upper canopy of mature trees (so I have read – I’m not the expert.) Seeing one in the backyard was special.

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Bluejay Contemplating an Acorn

When I was filming the Red-headed woodpeckers the other day, a squirrel caught my eye as it sat noshing on a nut in the middle of the cut lawn area under the mature trees. Then, I spotted this Bluejay nearby. I don’t see them much during the summer. I feel lucky to have caught him considering flying off with such a large bounty. I’m attaching the squirrel that drew my attention below the shot of the Jay because they are cute and I’m an equal opportunity photographer of nature.

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Tree Swallows

We’ve seen two Tree Swallow pairs fledge a first brood this year. And, there are currently three pairs feeding chicks. This box contains youngsters that appear to be ready to leave the nest very soon!

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Various Bluebird Images

In a recent post I highlighted the current status of five bluebird pairs that are working towards rearing their next brood. Here are a few photos of those birds.

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Eastern Phoebe

I have to remind myself that I didn’t start traveling about our property until June sixth, last year. So, when I began to worry I hadn’t seen a Phoebe yet this year, I realized that I may not have seen one until this time, a year ago! Here’s the first one I’ve filmed this year – Voguing and skipping; two quite distinct presentations of this lovely bird.

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Eastern Kingbird

This is one of my top favorite birds. They often come into our yard to hunt insects. They are easy to observe because they typically perch for a spell in order to focus in on their next target. Their hunting style is very entertaining, as they often hover a bit just above the ground before nabbing their prey. And, they are incredibly handsome with a “formal attire” appearance – tuxedo-esque including spats (the white trim on their tail.)

The other day I learned a new detail about this fav of mine. I shot a photo of a Kingbird in the wind, and in one photo I noticed what appeared to be a red spot on his head. I looked it up and learned that Kingbirds do, in fact, have a red (yellow or orange) feathers on the top of the head (under the dark gray top feathers.) I also caught that bird yawning. I’m including a couple shots of a different Kingbird for comparison.

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Great Blue Heron

I have relatives that live in southern Florida. When visiting, we often eat at restaurants with outdoor seating – sometimes waterside. There, you need to be careful that a Great Blue Heron doesn’t snatch a piece of your dinner right off your plate. The huge birds are quite accustomed to living (and making a living) around people – even people who are quite gregarious and loud.

That’s not the sort of Great Blue Heron that comes to fish at our pond. The herons that show up here have a HUGE personal space. If I can get within 150 feet of such a bird, I feel incredibly fortunate. The other day I was sitting in the golf cart on west side of the pond. Being in that vehicle does offer a bit of a “blind” once I’ve been stationary in one place for a while. Many of the birds that took flight as I moved into a location often feel secure returning within minutes. Others take a bit longer to show up, again. But, some species are just far more spooky than others.

I was enjoying the acrobatic display of the barn and tree swallows as they snatched insects off the surface of the pond and filming bees on milkweed when I spotted something in my peripheral vision. Off to the left, I saw the massive bird flapping with wing beats that were slower than appeared suitable to keep the animal airborne. It was a Great Blue Heron executing her descent to the east side of the pond. “Remain still!” I told myself. I knew that any movement I made would trigger an “Abort!” behavior and the bird would turn on her thrusters and fly away. I nearly held my breath. She (I’m only assuming gender based on the svelte body mass) landed on the turf a few feet from the water and stood like a statue. I reserved my movements to nothing more than snapping the shutter and captured nearly the same image frame after frame.

Then, I saw it – the red flashing “low battery” light in the lower right corner of my view finder. What the heck! I thought I might be able to get away with slowing reaching forward to open my small bag in which I keep the fresh batteries. I don’t know if it was my very slight shift in movement, or the bird saw something else which changed her mind about sticking around for a bite to eat. But, with incredible out stretched wings, she took flight again and was gone.

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Dickcissel

These birds are so common and so vocal around our property that I actually become irritated with their constant singing. That’s especially true when I hear an unfamiliar bird song and attempt to record it for later review. It’s often impossible to isolate a specific vocalization from the background noise of a confident, cheerful Dickcissel sharing his joy with the world. That’s not to say that I don’t find them very attractive birds which do tend to be quite photogenic as they remain in one place to belt out their raspy tune.

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Purple Martins

I know I just published a post about the Purple Martin chicks. But, while going through the files from the past couple of weeks, I saw this one and wanted to share it. Our Purple Martin colony sits less than 100 feet from my office patio, so I am frequently privy to their aerial feats, their happy chortling and their atypical social behavior (most of the other species are territorial – so it’s nice to observe the PMs welcoming home a neighbor.) This image is a common sight when I step out the back door.

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Orchard Oriole

This was one of the first birds that I spotted when I began my journey of traveling the property and discovering all of the bird species that visit. I have a great fondness to this dapper and melodic species.

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Catbird Art

I captured this image just before sunset in a small cutout near the pond, surrounded by mature trees and thick undergrowth. I am aware that a Gray Catbird couple has a nest in that thicket because, once you learn their vocalizations, it’s impossible not to be impressed anytime you hear them. It’s a good, final image of this series – soothing to the eyes and emotions.

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Singin’ His Heart Out →