To refresh your memory, here is the photo from April’s Bird Quiz. The bird was seen in Arizona during the month of April. Don’t read any further if you want one last chance to identify this bird.
Category: Birds
April’s Bird Quiz
Can you identify this bird? The photo was taken in Arizona during the month of April. The answer will appear next week.
Auto-corrected Bird List
Today I have a special guest post from Heidi Eaton, naturalist, zookeeper, and all around very nice person. She’s married to “Bug Eric” of entomology fame. You may remember I recommended his insect blog a while back. Here’s her post. I’m sure you’ll laugh at least as much as I did!
I’ve often used my Samsung tablet to keep a bird list when Eric and I are traveling. We are often amused at the way the auto-correct tries to change the bird names. Some aren’t that funny, like it always wants heron, blackbird, and starling to be plural (I can kind of understand why, with blackbirds and starlings).
Bird Photography: Use your birding skills!
As birders, we have an advantage over other photographers wishing to photograph birds. We know our subjects. All those skills we’ve garnered in our years of stalking lifers and observing birdy behavior are about to pay off—big time!.
Finding birds is easier for us birders. We know where the hotspots are. (If in doubt, check out the field trip destinations from any birding club website.) For example, Colorado birders know that Mt. Evans and Guanella Pass are often productive places to search for ptarmigan, while Clark’s Nutcrackers and Gray Jays can almost always be found at the Rainbow Curve pull-out in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Spring Cleaning is for the Birds
We’re approaching one of my favorite times of year. It’s bluebird season! We currently have five bluebird boxes on our property. Last year, one was filled with bluebirds and the others were claimed by wrens, swallows, and other cavity nesters.
Now, as a responsible home owner, it’s time to clean them all out. House Wrens typically clean out their own boxes, but bluebirds depend on the landlord to take care of it. That means us. And it’s critical that the box get cleaned before the birds arrive and start to move in. That means now!
March Quiz: Answer
To refresh your memory, here are the photos from March’s Bird Quiz. The top photo was taken in Colorado during the month of February. The bottom photo was taken in Florida during the month of January. Don’t read any further if you want one last chance to identify these birds.
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March’s Bird Quiz
Can you identify these birds? The top photo was taken in Colorado during the month of February. The bottom photo was taken in Florida during the month of January. The answers will appear next week.
Bird Photography: Practice makes perfect!
There are lots of reasons to photograph birds. For one, it’s lots of fun (although all-too-often frustrating as well). Photos can provide a record of birds you’ve seen, especially if, like me, you start second-guessing your best sightings the minute the bird flies away. They provide proof to ebird and records committees that your rarity was indeed what you thought it was.
Perhaps you’re birding in an unfamiliar location. You may not immediately recognize all the birds you see, and photos might allow you to ID some species later, when you’re not in a hurry.
Photos can also be artistic. Everyone can be creative—it’s part of our DNA—and photography makes a wonderful creative outlet.
In Pursuit of American Dippers
My husband really loves me. One reason I know this is because we spent Valentine’s Day looking for birds. Since he’s not a birder, this was a special gift indeed… although he did bring a book to read.
One of the advantages of living next to the Rocky Mountains is the presence of a fascinating bird—the American Dipper. This is the only aquatic songbird species in North America, found solely along rushing mountain streams. The birds actually “fly” underwater (think of penguins) in pursuit of the insects and other small animals that make up their diet.
February Quiz: Answer
To refresh your memory, here is the photo from February’s Bird Quiz. It was taken in Florida during the month of January. Don’t read any further if you want one last chance to identify this bird.
Mountain Plover 