From a small town to a big city...
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A Birding Blog
By Jared Conaway
From a small town to a big city...
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Not really. But there should be one. Hello all Welcome to AK-AZ Birder and I would like to share 11/29/2017's happenings! On the very overcast, cool morning of the 29th, Juncos were flitting, foraging, and just being Juncos all over my yard. 4, that's right, 4 different subsp's were present! At least 3 OREGON JUNCOS, 2 PINK-SIDED JUNCOS, 1 GRAY-HEADED JUNCO, and, amongst them, a bird that has NEVER, EVER had its name worthy of being in all-caps until Nov. 29th, the SLATE-COLORED JUNCO! I was astonished to see one in my yard, at least this yard. As soon as I spotted the odd-ball Junco and deemed him a Slate-colored, I grabbed the camera that was perched on the adjacent desk and snapped a few shots of him! A cute, and very dully colored little fellow, although he was the largest Junco present. While I was at it, I even photographed a WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW, ABERT'S TOWHEE, and Gray-headed Junco. You see, I just was all too familiar with the Slate-colored Junco back up in Alaska, was the only Junco I had seen before our move, and a bird I had seen ALMOST EVERY DAY! In fact, I will even post a photo of an AK-Junco beneath my AZ one. Does anyone agree with me presenting the Juncos on my Life List as separate species, instead of having the subsp. names in parenthesis? Tell me what you think in the comments below. White-crowned Sparrow (Dark-lored) Gray-headed Junco Slate-colored Junco Slate-colored Junco (AK) Please leave a like and a comment. If your new or not to my site, thanks for visiting and keep on doing so!
I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! P.S., should Nov. 29th be the day that we celebrate the always-overlooked Dark-eyed Junco, and the always-praised Yellow-eyed Junco?
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Hello all! This post is without photos and brief, because it's an announcement. Last night I peered into my Sibley guide and added a bunch of birds to the checklist in the back of the book. Apparently all the lifers seen during our drive down and since we moved here were absent. When I got to the Western Kingbird, the name "Eastern Kingbird" directly below his western cousin caught my eye. The interest came from the fact that that bird made a brief appearance on my life list after I saw a few chasing each other around in flight, being very acrobatic. This cool event took place while we were driving through Alberta. It never took an official place because I thought that their backs were just slightly lighter gray to be the Eastern. They were plain gray above, and bright white below. Now I look back and I think the lighter gray effect was caused by the sun, their backs are slightly shiny, so appear light when the sun hits them. They also had a dark gray cap and clean white throat. So, the EASTERN KINGBIRD is now official, as I'm very sure of what I saw, and is the newest edition to my Life List(s)!
Happy birding, leave a like, and stay tuned for my next post! Hi everyone! Had a hit-and-miss scenario in birding today. I hope you aren't getting tired of my constant GRP (Glendale Recharge Ponds) posts, but it is the most familiar and closest birding hotspot. You and I are in for a TON of birding fun in the summer, when my sense of adventure can go rogue again, as all the breeders will return and I won't have homeschool to deal with! Anyway, as we were close to GRPs I watched 2 cars in front intentfully as to see if they had the same destination. I really wanted extra eyes and knowledge to spot a BRANT GOOSE previously reported yesterday and earlier today. On the 25th, it was a huge deal, many birders were present and took fantastic photos that I also wanted (very jealous of the stunning close-ups!) Unfortunately, since I saw The Man Who Invented Christmas at around 9:00 last night, I didn't find out about the rare goose till I checked Gmail at about 12:00 that night! When we arrived at the ponds, I frantically raced over to 3 birders who had just arrived. I yelled, "see the Brant!" twice, but Matt said no. Matt I had previously met there a few weeks ago. Steve Boyak was also there, he found a SABINE'S GULL there when I met him. That was an epic lifer for me, but despite being an uncommon Arctic breeder, it is annual in small but actually pretty decent numbers here in AZ. I missed one that was reported in Anchorage, AK earlier this fall. I searched around for the Brant and any other interesting bird. The 3rd birder, who's name I never got, showed us a pic he took of the Brant. Yet another great photo! I asked Steve and Matt where a reported Clark's Grebe had been seen. Steve said there was a pair he saw in pond 2 earlier! Perfect! Long after Matt left to explore the other ponds I quick walked and ran his direction, it was getting dark and I needed to see the orange-yellow bill, pale flanks and white around eye or at least one of the 3 to identify it as a Clark's Grebe. When I caught up to Matt, I asked about the grebe. He said he had 2 in there. After a few minutes he focused his scope on a RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, so that I could get a good look at it. decent views were indeed obtained, despite being distant! Although I had seen a gorgeous male out on a river while in a car in 2016 and one on august 28th standing on a rock with a sun-bathing HOODED MERGANSER, this was a AZ lifer! Both genders are always great-looking with that nice whispy hair-doo that they have! Males are particularly beautiful being colorful and all. Then Matt generously allowed me to use his scope to find the Clark's Grebe. And I did! The distant Clark's was observed through a wobbly scope, as I forgot to fix it into place when I was done moving it. Because of that I didn't leap for joy, at least not yet. I relocated the bird a minute later with a group of ducks. I ID'd it as a Clark's almost immediately because of the whitish flanks. I then handed my binos over to Mom because she wanted a look at it. When it got even darker and I had looked at pond 5 for a decent amount of time I swiv'ed on over to look at pond 2. I was pleasantly surprised to see at first one, then a pair of CLARK'S GREBES!! (!) (Were you wondering when I would put its name in all caps?) Due to dim light I couldn't find them in my scope of view for the camera, plus even in full zoom it looks like you're standing farther away from an object than you actually are. Dang it camera! Also, got decent looks at that orange-yellow bill, which is still prominent in dim light. The pale flanks were impossible to see though, and the white around the eyes was subtle but still faintly visible. As we headed off towards the sunset to get back to our cars I saw 3 distinctive birds with a conspicuous flight pattern circling diving and flapping above the ponds. I knew almost immediately what they were, I raised my binos and quickly focused on them. Sure enough, these were LESSER NIGHTHAWKS! They are a common bird in the summer, but should have already arrived in South America by now! Their shape, size, and flight pattern make them instantly recognizable. I mentioned to Matt that it is a good year for them, as many birders, including myself, high-counted over 50 of them at the GRPs in Sept. Just like with the SUMMER TANAGER on the 21st, I believe that the reason almost every migratory bird is still present this late because of the following: Due to extreme weather this summer, birds wanted to postpone breeding until the weather cooled down a bit. And it's still very hot now that we're close to December! The very hot weather would surely result in low breeding activity of the bugs they prey on, which ultimately leads to hungry chicks which means that the birds should wait until cooler weather arrived so they get well feed chicks and they don't bake to death. So long story short, the chicks got a very late start resulting in the late migrants because these birds are still waiting to finish their far-overdue molt. Makes sense, right? Awesome that I found 3 Nighthawks! I won't bother to mention the typical birds because they're, typical. Trip Highlights (THs): 14 BUFFLEHEAD, 2 COMMON GOLDENEYES, GREEN-WINGED TEAL, 3 NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, GREEN HERON, NORTHERN HARRIER, NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS, 3 LESSER NIGHTHAWKS, RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, SNOWY EGRETS, RUDDY DUCKS, LEAST SANDPIPERS, GREAT BLUE HERONS, GREAT EGRETS, and the GF (Grand Finale), a Clark's Grebe (pair) in a pear tree, or a smelly pond in this case! And so it concludes my hunt for all of the Grebe species found in the west! Least Sandpiper Great Egret Great Blue Heron A fantastic sunset! All in all, not as many TTBs as before, but this time I came home with a lifer, so I shouldn't complain. The Buffleheads looked super cute today because Matt and I observed them wagging their tails while they swam! Buffleheads are and always will be the cutest duck ever!
TTBs: 34 species! Please leave a LIKE and a comment, and thanks for visiting my blog! I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next Post! Hello all! Haven't posted in a few, so thought I'd get some photos of everyday birds and maybe spot something regular but uncommon, however, my common-bird-birding took an interesting turn of direction and for the better. My casual birding started when I heard a RED-SHAFTED NORTHERN FLICKER making his epic jungle call (one of my favorite bird sounds now)! I quickly and franticly snatched the camera, as he would be a fun bird to put on my blog. I got some decent, satisfying snapshots of him. Before I could turn around to go back in side, a GILA WOODPECKER flew in right below the flicker. Got pics of him too! I don't know about you guys but seeing 2 woodpecker species side by side is always fascinating, probably because you typically just have only one dominant species ( in this case the Gila Woodpecker) and they are a more uncommon yard bird, but still an everyday one. I started pointing my camera in every direction I heard a bird calling, including a nice below-view of a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD. After that, the always exciting ROSY-FACED LOVEBIRDS flew in to snack on the fruits or nuts of our neighbor's tree! (99% of yard birding takes place in that tree!) The Lovebirds are always noisy, very social, acrobatic while feeding, and are challenging to photograph because they never stop moving. Tons of Mourning, Collared, Rock, and Inca Doves frequented the yard and made pests of themselves by eating grass-seeds (Trying to make the yard green again, has been lifeless for months because no one was managing the yard before we moved in!) The House Sparrows, being always hungry, helped the doves out. The EUROPEAN STARLINGS were mimicking so many different bird songs that they, for once, have earned the right to have their name in all-caps for this post. Bird calls incorporated into their songs were; Grackle, Lovebird, Flicker, Verdin, House Sparrow, and the most interesting being the noise that a Mourning Dove makes when its wings flap. While enjoying and photographing the Lovebirds, my Mom asks if a hummingbird on my feeder is "my hummingbird" as in, if it's the one I pet. That turns me around, and sure enough, it is! The little COSTA'S HUMMINGBIRD was sitting completely still on the feeder, not even feeding. This sounds crazy, but I think when he sits still on the feeder like that and leans in like the way he was, it means he actually wants me to pet him! I say that because of 2 reasons: 1. This is the second time now that he has landed on the feeder without taking a sip, and is not even the least bit worried anymore when I approach him. 2. I believe he lands on the feeder without feeding because he uses it as "home base perch" to get away from the Anna's that never stops bullying him. He lands on the feeder and not anywhere else because he is very sure that I will be there, waiting to pet him. Here's where the theory really comes into play. He wants me to pet him or be right in front of him because he knows that that Anna's is much more afraid of me than he is, the Anna's Hummer will not go anywhere near him if I'm right next to him or have my finger on his back. So long story short, he uses me as a line of protection, if that Anna's wants to be a bully to Costa's, he'll have to get passed me first. This really proves that Hummingbirds are super intelligent and can think of ways to defend themselves without having to grow a stinger or sharp teeth. Always SO cool to encounter the Costa's Hummer! Anyways I tried to get photos but the camera wouldn't focus. So I ditched the camera and reached out my hand to pet him, but he flew off as the Anna's flew in to chase him off. (Note: I was standing a couple feet back, which is why the Anna's wasn't afraid to chase away the Costa's). That was the last I saw of the Costa's Hummingbird today. I decided to wait for a while for him to return so I could feel his fluff, but I started getting really bored. I decided to amuse myself with the other birds. I got my first photos of AUDUBON'S WARBLERS, and heard a few WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS as I stood atop a bench, it is a bird I haven't had in my yard (or neighborhood) in a month or so. Many Great-tailed Grackles flew overhead, and the foreign pigeons and Collared-Doves. So, now that I have kept you on the edge thinking about the "And a Superb Surprise!" part of my title, this is where the second half of the title fits in. A un-ID'd bird flew into the tree next door. Based on size and shape, it appeared to be the Say's Phoebe that has not frequented in quite some time. Because this would be a cool bird to put on my blog (because he's uncommon in the hood) I raced to the camera and focused on him as quickly as I could. First snapshot: "That looks like him." I Review the snapshot: "Is that him?" Second snapshot: "Ok, that looks different, what is that?" I review the second snapshot: " umm, that looks like a Tanager!" I run in side " Guys! I just got a lifebird, a Tanager!! I thought it was the Phoebe so I grabbed the camera, but after a couple pictures I saw its bill was to fat for a flycatcher, and to big and long for a finch so I really think it's a tanager! I'm going to grab my field guide to see which kind!" I franticly ran to the bookshelf and looked for the Sibley Guide. Once found, I yanked it from the bookshelf and ran to my room. I crashed to the floor and flipped crazy fast through the guide until I found the Tanagers. I worked my way from the Scarlet to Hepatic to Western to Summer. No wing bars or markings, huge bill, and plain olive-yellow coloration are what confirmed it as a SUMMER TANAGER!!! (!!!) Then I started thinking, "Holy Crap this is SUPER late for them! The observation makes perfect sense, because the bird was a juvenile with an incompletely molted tail. Juv. birds are almost always the latest migrants or vagrants. His unusually shaped tail would keep him grounded till fully regrown as it would prevent proper steering. Hopefully he sticks around in the hood! What an EPIC sighting to finish off my casual birding! So glad I obtained a photo as well! Northern (Red-shafted) Flicker Gila Woodpecker Abert's Towhee Northern Mockingbird Rosy-faced Lovebird Anna's Hummingbird Audubon's Warbler The Grand Finale: Summer Tanager! The Summer Tanager observation is unique, not just because he's a lifer, but also the fact that he is an EXTREMELY LATE migrant. I thought for sure I would have to wait till next summer to find one atop Mt. Ord! A VERY UNEXPECTED lifer, right next door (or in this case, right next wall) as a bonus!
Please leave a Like and a comment, hope you enjoy my postings! I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! Hello all! Yesterday (11/15/17) my Dad and I went on a road trip to Sedona to bird and hike. We decided to hike up Bell Rock, named for its bell shape, but you should know that already. Birds were pretty quiet, other than some unidentified songsters and OREGON DARK-EYED JUNCOS the landscape was empty. Since few birds wanted to reveal their presence, I decided to get a few lifer trees, and photograph them in case I couldn't put an ID on them right away and save that for home. Flora is very diverse in Sedona, with an array of conifers, my favorites! In the photographs below, there are; ONESEED JUNIPER, UTAH JUNIPER, ARIZONA CYPRESS, and the TWO-NEEDLED PINYON (latter 2 lifers), along with various acacias (Mesquite and Palo Verde), PALMER OAKS, and Prickly Pear Cacti. The color of the rock was an intense red (hence the lot of tourists there!) and stunning! We continued up the very steep face of the cliff, until we could continue no further. As you ascend, the clarity of the path goes away. There's a variety of ways to get up the cliff face, but we weren't sure how much time it would take or energy. As my shirt that I was wearing yesterday says, you pretty much have to make your own path to get up there, choosing your footing wisely, so as not to do the splits going up or down (which I did do, ouch!) When we made our way down the walking path, I found some movement in a bush. I had to look long and hard into the back of the dense what-ever-it-was bush to identify the bird that was in there. It was a SPOTTED TOWHEE! A gorgeous male too! I wish I could showcase photos of the beautiful big sparrow, but the camera would focus on the branches of the bush but not him because he was at the bottom of the bush. Then he flew into a pinyon but I couldn't find him till my dad pointed him out, but he flew off as soon as I went to his location. As we got closer to the end of the trail, a bird started calling from some nearby tree. He sounded like a higher pithed Magpie, but magpies aren't found in the region, so he must have been some kind of Jay. Alas, my Dad spotted him, but as I raised my binoculars he took off, already on his way down deeper into the forest. At home his voice confirmed he was a WOODHOUSE'S SCRUB-JAY, one of my target lifers. I should have been leaping for joy under normal circumstances, but I got no chance to enjoy the bird's full beauty. As soon as I saw him, he was gone. He is what I like to classify as a flash-lifer. I only get a mere glimpse or flash of some part of it or a mere silhouette, instead of that desired view where as soon as I step out of the car or as soon as I start walking I spot it. Unfortunately I believe we have all gotten that kind of lifer, we hear or see it enough to ID it, but it does not stay still long enough for us to experience or appreciate it. I do not just want to tally a lifer, I want to appreciate its beauty! On a lighter note, it is my 100th lifer this year! My best birding pace yet, I do have Arizona to thank for that! So we went back to the vehicle, and due to a leg problem with Dad, we agreed to drive to Flagstaff, yay! The drive to flagstaff was SPECTACULAR! With a diversity of conifers that were all towering a hundred feet above us! The sky-scraping forest included some beautiful trees such as; My first ROCKY MOUNTAIN subsp. DOUGLAS FIRS, my first ever WHITE FIRS, and predominantly, PONDEROSA PINES! Closer to Sedona, there were a huge variety of Willows, plus FREMONMT COTTONWOODS, my first ARIZONA SYCAMORES, my first ALLIGATOR JUNIPERS and other unidentified deciduous trees. After almost hitting a deer and spotting a "scenic view" sign, we decided to stop at the scenic view. Wow, is a pretty good word to describe the view! I also found my first RED-BACKED and GRAY-HEADED DARK-EYED JUNCOS, pretty much side by side! I also found and photographed an un-identified species of Juniper, but was later to be confirmed as my first ROCKY MOUNTAIN JUNIPER! A very pretty tree. The most epic part of the trip was when I was enjoying the vast wilderness when a bird flew into a lower branch of the canopy of a tree positioned on the cliff side underneath the observation platform. That in of itself wasn't epic, what was however was that this was a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE! (!!!!) I've seen it before at my best friend's house in Alaska, but its mere silhouette (making it a flash-lifer!) This was the un-obstructed view I had wanted of this bird since that day, and it was a total surprise! The view that went with the bird made it all the more special! I remember saying to my Dad yesterday: "I HAAAVE to get a picture of this bird!!" And that I did, see in photo section. 141.1 miles. Only one lifer. Nonetheless, a great road trip to get me out of the house! Other birds observed were; Great-tailed Grackles, Eurasian Collared, Mourning Rock, and White-winged Doves, House Sparrows, BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS, COMMON RAVEN, AMERICAN CROW, GOLDEN EAGLE (always an epic sight), TURKEY VULTURE, RED-TAILED HAWK, SWAINSON'S HAWK, possibly a NORTHERN GOSHAWK, a BLACK PHOEBE, ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD, and an AMERICAN KESTREL. Townsend's Solitaire! Red-backed Junco! (Note bicolored bill) The unique Arizona Cypress Canopy of a Douglas Fir The tallest Pine (Pinus genus) in North America, the Ponderosa Pine! A very magnificent species! The stunning view that the overlook revealed! Ponderosa Pines, White Firs, and Douglas Firs make up the vast forest. My first Rocky Mountain Juniper! Red Rocky Country... Sedona! Oneseed Juniper, Utah Juniper, Twoneedled Pinyon, Palmer Oak, Honey Mesquite and Arizona Cypress predominate the forest. Beautiful Yavapai Co. Happy Birding!
Please leave a comment if you may and click that like button! I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! Hello all! Before I go ahead and discuss today's adventure I would like to mention 2 highlighter birds on Saturday! 1st highlighter: I looked out the window and there just so happened to be a large-headed, small-bodied hummingbird sitting completely still on the feeder. I slid the sliding glass door open to approach the little bird. I quietly walked up to him, and even when I was within a few inches of him, he didn't budge! This was my Costa's Hummer, as his small size, proportionally large head, and tame behavior are what determined that. So I decided I could pet him. I ran my hand along his fluffy back, and it was amazing, as this wasn't just a brief touch, he actually let me gently stroke him! (!) So after I petted his back, he took off to continue on with his daily routine. That was officially the first time I was able to pet him! WOW! 2nd highlighter bird: I was out in the yard of my Mom's Friend's house playing with their puppy when I spotted a hawk circling exceptionally low, flapping wings occasionally. At first I thought it was a Peregrine, which got me worried about the puppy. When It flew directly above, I saw a pair of stout, broad wings and a long, floppy tail. This was Definitely a Accipiter sp., either Cooper's or Sharp-shinned! After some study of the hawk I finalized that he was a SHARP-SHINNED HAWK! This was determined by flapping wings at a faster rate than a Cooper's, tail appeared squared at the end, not round, was exceptionally smaller, and the bird had a stocky and bulky physique, rather than the slender shape of the Cooper's. The concluded ID of a Sharp-shinned got rid of my worries for the dog, as a Sharp-shinned Hawk is much too small and has too thin of legs and talons to kill a puppy. Besides, he was too busy hunting for his primary diet of small birds and rodents. EXCITING FIND! And now to get on with the present birding adventure! Immediately after exiting the car I spotted a birder. I asked if she had seen the Red-breasted Merganser, a bird I already had for Alaska, but would be interested to observe here in the sunshine state. She said she hadn't but also was looking for it and another uncommon AZ visitor, the Common Goldeneye. I raised my binos to scan pond 4, and found a higher number of GADWALLS, and much lower numbers of AMERICAN COOTS. There was still the high amount of AMERICAN WIGEON, SHOVELERS, RUDDY DUCKS and MALLARDS, although there was only about 50 of the latter. There were about 15 GREEN-WINGED TEAL present as well, a higher number than last excursions there. We moved on to pond 5 where I spotted about 10 LESSER SCAUP! This was a new Arizona life bird, which also makes it a county lifer, which also makes it a cool bird! When I moved my binos forward away from the Scaup and towards some Ruddy Ducks to spot something cool, I did indeed! A COMMON GOLDENEYE was lagging behind a raft of drifting Ruddy Ducks! I had seem about 40 or 50 on my August 14th Pied-billed Grebe chase in 2016, which was a successful chase, by the way. Nonetheless, first time for AZ, and again, making new Maricoper, and again, making it a cool bird! Just so you know, this was the 2nd bird in genus Bucephala of the day, the other being the gorgeous male BUFFLEHEADS! (6!) Today's trip was fun, especially because I met another birder, which is always awesome because I get to conversate with someone who shares my passion. Not huge amount like last trip, but still a great change in my typically boring homeschool schedule! Other Great birds include; RING-NECKED DUCK, CANADA GOOSE, CINNAMON TEAL, NORTHERN PINTAIL, AMERICAN AVOCETS, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, RED-TAILED HAWK, NORTHERN HARRIER, BALD EAGLES, BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS, SONG SPARROWS, LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW, ABERT'S TOWHEE, GREAT-BLUE HERONS, GREAT EGRETS, EARED GREBE, NEOTROPIC CORMORANT, AMERICAN PIPIT, and AUDUBON'S WARBLER. Typical trip birds; Least Sandpiper, Killdeer (interesting seeing a flock of 100 of them though), Great-tailed Grackles, European Starlings, Curve-billed Thrashers, Say's and Black Phoebes, Eurasian-Collared, Mourning, and Rock Doves. Overall a great trip! TTBs: 41 species!
Sorry for poor photo quality of the Goldeneye, very distant bird, photo cropped. Please leave a like and a comment, I would love to read what you have to say. Thanks for visiting my blog! I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! Hi everyone! On this fine overcast day I made a visit with my Dad to the Glendale Recharge Ponds (which shall be abbreviated to GRP for the future) this morning. More birds were observed there today than usual, the Clark's Grebe that was reported by Kerry M. however, was not seen. None theless today was quite exciting. A NORTHERN HARRIER was the first bird spotted, just as we stepped out of the car! Next I saw a BALD EAGLE fly low to the water, and then landing on a bank. A few minutes later we watched as a PEREGRINE FALCON swooped and flew low over the water, attempting to pick a target from the crowd of BLACK-NECKED STILTS, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, KILLDEER, LEAST SANDPIPER, NORTHERN SHOVELERS, AMERICAN COOTS, AMERICAN AVOCETS, GREAT and SNOWY EGRETS, WHITE-FACED IBIS, GREEN-WINGED TEAL, CINNAMON TEAL, AMERICAN WIGEON and mallards! It made short work of the ponds, flying from one end to the other in about 30 seconds. A trip around 1 pond for us could take as much as 10 minutes, without stopping! In pond 5, a variety of species went about their daily lives whilst drifting on the surface of the pond. All species that were in pond 4 were present, plus a few more highlighter species. 6 male BUFFLEHEAD were floating across the calm waters, diving often. Today was the first time I ever saw males of the species! A few months before it would have been a lifer. High numbers of EARED GREBE were present, about 20-30! The number of RUDDY DUCKS has increased since my last few visits to my BP, (Birding Patch) from 100 to about 350! AMERICAN WIGEON were in the same numbers since last visit, 300 or 370! A single RING-NECKED DUCK resided in pond 5, in midst of hundreds of waterfowl and shorebirds. Flying off in the direction of houses, a SNOW GOOSE went overhead! Yet another state-lifer for the day! We also found and photographed a very cooperative DUNLIN, like the Snow Goose, a state lifer! Other birds found on the excursion were: An AMERICAN PIPIT, CANADA GOOSE, NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, RED-TAILED HAWK, GREAT BLUE HERON, PIED-BILLED GREBE, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES (4), WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS, LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, AUDUBON'S WARBLERS, COMMON YELLOWTHROATS (heard only), MARSH WRENS (heard only), ABERT'S TOWHEES, House Finches, Verdins, European Starlings, Mourning Doves, Rock Pigeons, Eurasian Collared-Doves and Black and Say's Phoebes. What an awesome and exciting trip to my BP! Note; Although I didn't witness the PEREGRINE catch a bird, I relocated him later feeding on a Great-tailed Grackle! Also, there are a pair of Coyotes (if there's a pair then there's a pack) so be mindful when exploring the GRP. Dunlin (bottom photo mine) American Pipit TTBs (total trip birds): 52 species!
I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! Hello all! This is my first post on a blog! Today I want to share an amazing experience I've been having with a wild Costa's Hummingbird. As you may know, and if you don't, that's ok, the Costa's Hummingbird is a common species of the southwest US. They can typically be seen visiting suburban and urban environments alike, in search of very sweet nectar to fuel their extremely energetic metabolism. It seems that it's any hummingbird's lucky day, once they have located my sugar water feeder. I currently have a very tame Costa's Hummingbird that has been continuing for months. So how tame is he? Well, let's just say he allows me to pet him! More often, he allows for very, very close approach! He typically is willing to land on the feeder, but when anyone but me is out on the patio, or in the vicinity of the feeder he will refuse to land on it, because they are unfamiliar to him. He can also be camera shy, as evidenced by his flying away whenever I try to get a shot of him. On Nov. 2nd, I had very good luck with the Costa's, in fact he was the first, and only hummer to visit my tripod set-up when I was at it. You can see my stunning close-up shots below. This imm. Costa's also has to be the CUTEST bird ever!
I'm Jared Conaway, and stay tuned for my next post! |
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December 2019
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