birds
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In Sweden
I particularly wanted to see some sloes, the marble-sized drupes of the blackthorn (Prunus spinosa). My walking stick, which saw me around Dartmoor, is made from the storied wood of this shrubby, hedgy, sometimes-tree. There’s much legend associated with this species; and (black) magic, like, for instance, how they find a long straight piece for…
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Winter Memories, With Spring and Fall Not Far Behind
Ok, this last one was in May… Alas, I have no pictures of Swedish owls. In coming days I will be posting about our adventures in southwestern Sweden on a Wings Birding tour with a wonderful guide named Evan Obercian. We looked for a Tawny Owl that had been heard around a church in Malmö.…
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Tern Tern Tern
Time for a Tern challenge? Post-breeding terns lose their summer plumage quickly. So what do we have here? (These pictures were all taken two weeks ago in tidewater Virginia.) A. B. C. Yes, that bill is broken. Th bird was grooming, but I wonder how long it can survive this way? (Note that I won’t…
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Raptors
In Raptor: A Journey Through Birds, James MacDonald Lockhart loosely follows William MacGillivray, the nineteenth century ornithologist, from Scotland south, searching for the fifteen species of British raptors. You may recall MacGillivray from the Audubon connection: he was John James’s ornithological ghost writer. I was struck by this: MacGillivray called his knapsack a “machine.” A quick…
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Raptor Wednesday
A Bald Eagle coasts across Beaverdam Park in Gloucester County, VA. We only spotted one of these enormous birds this trip; in April we had 22. But the Osprey didn’t disappoint. Counted 17 on the way back, mostly at the Frances Scott Key and Potomac Bridges. Post-breeding season, many still perch on nest sites. As…
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On the Button
The deciduous shrub known as Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) for its round flower heads is a fantastic pollinator-magnet. The plant loves its feet (roots) wet, and, as we discovered recently at the edge of Beaverdam Reservoir in Virginia, it also attracts hummingbirds. Who knew? Well, everybody in the pollination biz, but it was a lovely discovery…
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More Purple Martins
Posh is the only word to describe the two Purple Martin housing units at the Great Swamp NWR Visitor Center. There are a dozen nest sites on each post. Not a single House Sparrow or Starling in the mix. And, whoa, were the martins busy. The martins glide more than our other swallows, and they…
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Humming
Only one hummingbird species is regularly seen here on the East Coast, out of some nineteen species found in North America north of Mexico. This is the Ruby-throated (Archilochus colubris). Only the male has the nominal incandescent throat, but the lighting often makes it look dark.Hummingbirds also eat mosquitos, spiders, bees, aphids, gnats, fruit flies,…
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Tyrannus tyrannus juniors
Yesterday I noticed a large corvid being chased by something small. I couldn’t get on either of them quick enough tell who was who, but afterwards I noticed an Eastern Kingbird perched on one of the London planes lining the northern edge of Sunset Park. Could this have been the pursuer? They don’t call them…
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Raptor Wednesday
Young Red-tailed Hawks were being very noisy among the mature trees. When this one perched on the edge of the woods, the Robins, Catbirds, Blue Jays, Squirrels, Chipmunks, and all let up a hollering of their own.Soon after, three hawks were seen circling way up in the sky.
Backyard and Beyond 