Lewis’s Woodpeckers (Melanerpes lewis) usually begin their molt in autumn and it can last through the winter.The bird above appears to be molting (click on photos for full sized images). I noticed that they had returned from their breeding grounds a few weeks ago and were showing up in fairly large numbers among the large […]
Runner-up
I don’t know what American grade school kids are being taught these days – I left Oakville Elementary a couple of decades ago (Okay, fine—several decades ago) and since I haven’t had kids of my own I don’t have access to 21st century homework assignments. But I’ll go out on a limb here and bet […]
Common Loon (Gavia immer)
The Common Loon or as known as the Great Northern Diver in Eurasia breeds in the northern portion of North America, Greenland, Iceland and Scotland. It winters on the seacoasts or large lakes of south Europe and the United States. Because of its migration habits, it is seen commonly in the waters off the Massachusetts […]
Gila Mountains, Day I
Went for a week long backpacking trip in New Mexico’s Gila Mountain Wilderness back in August. Yup, ‘m a bit behind here, I know. The Gila’s are in the Southwest part of the state, and I highly recommend visiting. I’m a big fan of New Mexico but this was the first time I’d been to […]
Bee on Fire
This bee is on fire, making one last attempt to change a breeze’s direction, castaway seeds struggling to keep up. • Honey bee | Apis mellifera
Black-crowned Night-Heron Juvenile and Adult
I stopped at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge a few weeks ago on the way back home from a Northern California Audubon Council meeting in Clear Lake and spotted a few Black-crowned Night-Herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) on the auto tour just before sunset. This juvenile was hunting from a irrigation outlet right next to the auto […]
Great Blue Heron Close-Up
A couple of weeks ago at Lema Ranch I came upon a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) fishing in Leah’s Pond. As is usual for this species, this heron was standing still and waiting for its prey most of the time and slowly walking through the shallow water otherwise, looking for anything that would fit […]
Ring-necked Pheasant
The ring-necked pheasant is one of the most beautiful birds IMO. This one was shot in northwest Missouri with Canon 5D Mark II and Canon EF400mm f/5.6L @ 1/320s f/5.6 iso400. Thanks for looking: