Jeanette's Big Blog of Animals

Hey, at least it's not raining!

2012-03-01T20:34:00.001-08:00

Today was another AMNH winter walk and apparently we used up all of our good weather last week. Ah well, at least it's not raining like it was yesterday! The good news is, the walk was great and my rain boots are champions - 4 miles of city walking last night and who knows how far today, and they were totally fine. Yay for good rain boots! The bad news is, the light was terrible. It wasn't raining, but it was ~almost~ raining the whole time. Just a bit on the dismal side........

OK, yeah, anyway, on to what we actually saw. Right away at the upper lobe we saw a whole bunch of northern shovelers, showing off their technique in a whirling mass on the water. Also several were roosting on some branches, and this one intrepid couple came right over.

Northern Shovelers

Coots! Hahaahahaha, every day is better with coots. This is the best picture even though the coot is disappearing into the bridge. They are hilarious to watch, it was great to see them up close.

American Coot

Into the ramble, where we saw lots of red-bellied woodpeckers, a few tufted titmouses, a few white-breasted nuthatches, house sparrows, and white-throated sparrows. Here's one red-bellied woodpecker that we got to watch for a while - they are so pretty!

Red-bellied Woodpecker

This picture contains a white-breasted nuthatch. Yes it does, look again! :-)

White-breasted Nuthatch

Over to the feeders, which were pretty active. Here's my favorite picture of house finches on the feeder. It totally looks like there's a mirror and it's only one bird, or it's some sort of trick. They are so in sync!

House Finch

This downy was extremely happy about this pine cone feeder.

Downy Woodpecker

Up past maintenance meadow and over to the area where the varied thrush was last year, and I found this fox sparrow. My first time finding one myself! I'm pretty sure I've seen them before when someone else pointed, but once I find a bird myself I really learn it in a different way. They are so much more orange than I expected!

Fox Sparrow

We went by turtle pond which had some lovely buffleheads. We got to see them fly which was great, they look so little and frantic when they fly. We tried to make them hooded mergansers but they stubbornly stayed buffleheads. Then we headed back to the museum to try to see the hummingbird. By the time we got there most of the people had peeled off, but those who stayed got a treat with the hummingbird.

Rufous Hummingbird

We were looking at it perched nearby and it flew over even closer to us, visiting these flowers. A guy said, "Well, it can't get much closer than that!" Of course the hummingbird took this as a challenge and came closer. I said, "Say it again!" but repeating the phrase had no effect on the hummingbird.

Rufous Hummingbird

Then we turned around and the guy who charmed the hummingbird said, "Oh, that's why the blue jays are upset. They are mobbing that red-tail." And sure enough, there was a red-tailed hawk in the tree in the museum's courtyard. As the other person from the walk said, "The smallest bird and the biggest bird - great finale!"

Red-tailed Hawk

AMNH Winter Walk with Paul

2012-02-23T18:00:00.000-08:00

What a day! It was crazy gorgeous weather - 56 and sunny. Wait, what happened to winter? We started out going up towards the theater and found this Eastern towhee along the way:

Eastern Towhee

We also saw a Cooper's hawk flying over briefly, I guess it saw my camera and took evasive action. We swung by turtle pond, where there were buffleheads!

Buffleheads

Continuing on, we came to a little area with lots of birds. White-throated sparrows, this white-breasted nuthatch:

White-breasted Nuthatch

A red-bellied woodpecker was flying all around us, calling, zipping from tree to tree. Then we saw this red-tailed hawk watching over the area with interest. I wonder if the hawk made the woodpecker nervous?

Red-tailed Hawk

A bunch of tufted titmouses (titmice?) came through, they are so cute! Seeing a titmouse always cheers me up.

Tufted Titmouse

As we were trying to follow the red-bellied woodpecker, this brown creeper came over to distract us:

Brown Creeper

This yellow-bellied sapsucker along with a downy that was too fast for me convinced us that this was a popular location with woodpeckers! Finally we moved on to the reservoir.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Grebe! This pied-billed grebe might look like she's flirting with me, but she actually seemed to shift nervously away. So pretty.

Pied-billed Grebe

Ruddy ducks! A few beaks are turning blue. I hope they stick around until we get to see some ~really~ blue beaks, they are hilarious and awesome. I mean, who wouldn't want to see a cute little duck with a blue beak?!

Ruddy Duck

Shovelers!

Northern Shoveler

Hooded merganser!

Hooded Merganser

Coot!

American Coot

Yes, it was a good day at the reservoir, that's for sure. After that it was back to the museum, where we stopped off to see the hummingbird.

Rufous Hummingbird

The whole walk was delicious! :-)

Rufous Hummingbird

Are we sure it's winter?

2012-01-31T15:25:00.000-08:00

This afternoon was about 60 degrees and sunny. Amazing! How could anyone possibly resist walking through the park?

I started by Hallett where I had a nice view of the juvenile red-headed woodpecker. There was one dead stump of a tree that was apparently made of woodpecker bait. First a red-belly was on it, then a downy, then the red-head came over. The downy left but the red-belly stayed:

The red-belly is in gorgeous light but the red-head was in the shadow, I wish they had switched a few times. They were both there for a few minutes, and then the red-head flew off.

Around the pond I went, stopping briefly to admire one of the wood ducks:

Up towards the boathouse and the ramble, with a quick break to admire these yellow-bellied sap suckers:

Look at that yellow belly - it ~does~ exist! :-)

Into the ramble where there were lots of crews doing lots of work. And this Cooper's hawk was right by a large portion of that work, seeming completely undisturbed by it:

Another birder pointed it out to me, I would have walked right by it. I actually did hear a squirrel alarm call, but I figured the guys working had freaked out the squirrels. They actually had more sense than I gave them credit for!

It was a great day to walk through the ramble, not nearly as crowded as I had feared, except of course for the work crews. But I'm so happy to see them, hopefully the rest of the ramble will open up again soon! My next excitement was this gorgeous red-tailed hawk at the upper lobe:

Yep, enjoying a snack. I keep trying to make it a blue jay but I really don't know what it is.

On the way past the lake on the way home I saw one more hawk, making it a hawk trifecta! This one was pre-snack, and a titmouse voiced its disapproval with surprising bravery.

The hawk did not seem to notice.

And back home I went, tired and happy. :-)

Duck Day!

2012-01-19T10:14:00.000-08:00

Today I met a friend in the park and we walked around the reservoir looking for fancy ducks. I sort of started without her though, because I went by the pond on my way up there and saw that there were three male wood ducks there!

Male Wood Ducks among Mallards

They have one lady friend. Good luck Honey.......

Female Wood Duck

Stopped by the see the red-headed woodpecker, who is getting a tiny bit of red. And for some unknown reason a blue spot. Weird.

Red-headed Woodpecker

Going through the ramble I saw this Cooper's hawk, just, you know, hanging out

Cooper's Hawk

Then it was reservoir time, and fancy ducks abounded!

Bufflehead! There were a few buffleheads, and we even got to see a group of about 8 of them flying. They are so funny!

Bufflehead

Shovelers! A bunch of northern shovelers were there, mostly sleeping.

Northern Shovelers

Then we saw this Cooper's hawk fly in and went over to check it out. Maybe it wanted a duck. Pretty optimistic!

Cooper's Hawk

Coot! Last time I came up the coots stayed quite far away. This time this coot came right over, apparently they are adjusting to being fed by tourists. They have quite a head-bob when they swim, they do look a little crazy........

American Coot

Gadwalls! To me these are the most elegant ducks. I mean, if Frank Sinatra were a duck, I really think he would be a gadwall. Don't they just look like they are dressed for a nice evening out at the opera, with a string of pearls and cufflinks?

Gadwall

Merganser! This is the female hooded merganser, busily swimming along while being gorgeous.

Hooded merganser

This is the male, busily evading my camera's autofocus while being gorgeous.

Hooded merganser

It was a cold day but a great day for ducks. Then we celebrated our ducky success with cocktails. Yay for outings with friends! :-)

Boxing Day Hawk

2011-12-26T14:46:00.000-08:00

After having a cold for Christmas Eve and Christmas, I was very ready to go out on a walk today! We went up to the AMNH to try to see the hummingbird again, but missed it. A few folks were there with quite impressive cameras, they said they had been seeing the bird, but we decided not to stand around waiting for it. To the park!

Almost right away once we got into the park I saw this gorgeous Cooper's hawk.

I guess I spotted a grackle too, but my focus was really more on the hawk.........

We went around as much as we could in the ramble (a big section is still closed from storm damage) and spotted a pretty big group of house finches.

What a beauty! Sadly, we did not find the barred owl. We headed over to the model boat pond to figure out some tree types from the Central Park Conservancy Tree Walk, and had great views of two red-tailed hawks in that area. Presumably Pale Male and his lady friend, but I still cannot identify individuals, so I can't say for sure. These are wise and canny hawks that know how to perch and fly such that the camera is incapable of focusing on them, even though we had great views. Damn you autofocus!

We went around looking at trees and trying to guess what they were from the CPC brochure but it's very hard to tell them apart in the winter. It was interesting though and if we stick with it I'm sure we'll be able to tell them apart at some point.

Twitching a Hummingbird

2011-12-20T13:10:00.000-08:00

Although I don't really think of myself as a twitcher, or a bird-chaser, or a rarity-seeker, I must admit that I was happy to go to the American Museum of Natural History to see this gorgeous hummingbird. What a treat during winter! Apparently it is probably a rufous hummingbird, although it is a bit of an open question.

After spending some time with the hummingbird I went into the park and by Tanner's Spring saw this red-tailed hawk hunting.

It looks like a juvenile from the tail.

This pair of northern shovelers were circling around each other in a very tight little circle. My guess is that they are pair-bonding. Duck flirting! :-)

I found the pet memorial Christmas tree in the ramble, but there were too many people around to get a decent picture. I love that tree!

Okay, I have seen squirrels beg from tourists many times, but this is ridiculous! I don't thing the squirrel even wants some of the hawk's pigeon.........

This was a different hawk, an adult.

It's a great day that starts with a hummingbird and includes two perched hawks. This brown creeper coming right over was a nice way to end the walk!

Mystery Bird in Central Park - the Oven

2011-10-25T16:37:00.000-07:00

[ Edit: Mystery Solved! Many birders have chimed in that this is a female red-winged blackbird. My field guide does not show the face to have any orange-ish tinge around their face so I foolishly passed that page right by. Although looking at the text, it does mention that some females show a red tinge. Many thanks to everyone who took a look and responded! ]

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I saw this bird in the ramble in Central Park at the oven today. I have no idea what it is. I have been through 2 field guides, and have not been able to narrow it down too much. These pictures have been cropped and some have been sharpened. No color or contrast has been changed.

It face reminds me of a varied thrush or a blackburnian warbler. It was about thrush-sized.

Its chest and belly are strongly streaked.

Its back reminds me of a sparrow, although it was larger than a sparrow.

Its beak reminded me of an oriole's beak.

I would love to hear ideas about what this bird might be. :-)

AMNH Walk

2011-10-18T12:36:00.000-07:00

Our final walk in this series (I will miss them!) was pretty spectacular. Before we even got going I enjoyed watching this kinglet

and this yellow-rumped warbler frolicking near the meeting spot.

It was easy to identify the yellow-rumped warbler. :-)

We saw lots of yellow-bellied sap suckers, this is the only picture I got that's recognizable. This was the brownest yellow-bellied sap-sucker I've ever seen! Some of the others are starting to look really quite vivid and crisp.

This black-throated blue warbler was taking a bath and

and putting his handsome feathers back into place while

this beautiful magnolia warbler flitted about in the white flowers. Only one problem.....

hey, where's your tail?!?!?!?! Oh, poor Maggie, hope you can make it to the southland.

This blackpoll warbler distracted us, we were quite impressed by its ability to store energy for its journey. It's a round one all right!

This northern parula was mostly in a tree across the street.....

... except for when it was in the street!

We saw a few song sparrows, looking quite fancy.

Cedar waxwings came through the maintenance meadow while we were there. When I took this picture, I thought there was only one waxwing. :-)

Then this red-tailed hawk flew over nice and low.

Later we saw two circling high above, I'm glad we got a couple of low passes first!

There were several eastern phoebes around, not all of them posed as prettily as this one.

We also saw (and heard) quite a few red-bellied woodpeckers. I remember starting out and thinking that the woodpeckers all looked really similar, and now they look so obviously different. It's sometimes startling to notice how I see things differently with more experience.

AMNH Walk with photobombs

2011-10-11T19:45:00.000-07:00

Today was a great walk, although the first section of the walk the birds did not want pictures at all. My camera was defeated by numerous kinglets, a northern parula, a mystery warbler, some yellow bellied sap suckers, and many brown creepers. I finally managed to get a shot of a hermit thrush.

Okay, the contrasting tail is not hugely different than the back, but I can definitely see a difference. Then this female towhee gave us a nice show, scampering about on the rock.

This gorgeous yellow-bellied sap sucker posed for quite some time. He's starting to get some red on his chin. Soon he'll be quite vivid and spiffy!

Then it was the find of the day. This white-crowned sparrow was hanging around near the castle, looking like the master of its domain.

Even when a giant happy squirrel flushed the other sparrows, it held its ground. Props, white crowned sparrow! Photobomb number one, giant happy squirrel.

This nashville warbler (or so Paul said, which I have to trust, because I can't tell at all) led me on a merry chase for this picture.

At last, a brown creeper my camera could focus on! We was loads of these little fellows, but they are so well camouflaged that they actually defeat the auto-focus on my camera. It's amazing!

This eastern phoebe sat pretty in a tree. This is the first time I've been able to see that subtle dark stripe behind its eye.

I left the group but got called back when they immediately found a black-throated green warbler and a yellow-rumped warbler nearby. Yay! I was busy taking pictures of the gorgeous black-throated green warbler.....

... when the yellow-rumped warbler couldn't take it any longer and horned in on the photo session. Photobomb number two, envious yellow-rumped warbler.

The black-throated green left in a huff and I continued taking pictures of the yellow-rumped warbler, whispering promises of fame and glory. A nearby mourning dove was intrigued and tried to sneak in.

It even looks slightly embarrassed but secretly hopeful! Photobomb number three, ambitious mourning dove. The walk was fun from beginning to end! :-)

The Barred Owl reappears!

2011-10-10T20:36:00.000-07:00

The barred owl was back in the ramble today! It (she?) was just as beautiful, and it was an absolute pleasure.

First of all, this owl looks completely and totally like a cartoon.

It gives us a glance.

I would like to think it's hunting, but it's probably just trying to figure out how many admirers it has.

It performs a brief Rockettes-inspired routine. Well done!

AMNH walk, with hawk and hummingbird

2011-10-04T15:44:00.000-07:00

Very early in today's walk we saw this Cooper's hawk eating a pigeon at Tanner Springs. It took us a while to figure out why it was so quiet -- nothing like a Cooper's hawk to keep the bird chatter down!

From there, we slowly made our way over to Turtle Pond. Along the way we saw several black and white warblers

A red-eyed vireo

A few red-bellied woodpeckers

This gorgeous pine warbler

And many others that were too shy for my camera. I'm particularly sad about the black-throated green. I don't see those very often and they are so gorgeous! Oh well, another day..........

At Turtle Pond we saw a male common yellow-throated warbler, but he eluded us except for brief glimpses. This female was not quite as shy, at least at first. She sure disappeared quickly though!

After admiring the gadwalls we went up to the castle and came down through Shakespeare garden, where this hummingbird made our day extra-special.

After leaving the group I headed down towards Columbus Circle. My Bonus Bird for the day was this black-crowned night heron. I haven't seen one of these in a while, so I was really happy to see it! :-)

Yellow-breasted chat at the oven

2011-10-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

I went over to the oven this afternoon and looked around for a while and decided to leave. At that moment, as I was turning away, something caught my eye. A yellow-breasted chat! So I stayed around, trying to get a clear shot of this gorgeous fellow.

Yellow-breasted chat, typical view

Somehow my camera knows when it's my first time seeing a bird, and it takes a lit of great shots out of focus. So the ones of the chat in the open, perched on a rock, worm in beak, poised to take off - yeah, those are terrible. At least I got a clear one of the chat under a bush! :-)

Yellow-breasted chat, lucky person view

Bonus grey-cheeked thrush, since I can now tell thrushes apart. Mostly.

AMNH Walk

2011-10-03T18:15:00.000-07:00

Just after starting the walk we saw this American redstart taking a bath.

And check out this American robin! Apparently this one is partly albino.

Then up to Tanner Spring, where there were a bunch of white-throated sparrows. They always look to me like someone put paint on the front of their face, or their beak maybe, and put them in a wind tunnel. Wheeeeeeee!

A house wren was there too, playing hide and seek. Mostly hide.

On the way to Turtle Pond, we went to a place that may or may not be called Sparrow Rock. At this place we saw this house finch, what a cutie!

We also did not see a yellow-breasted chat. We saw something briefly that convinced us to wait around a while, but no yellow-breasted chat emerged. Oh well, that is apparently their nature......

At Turtle Pond we saw this palm warbler, and we immediately felt better.

And this common yellow-throated warbler. Look at that gorgeous mask! Ooooooohh, he's gonna be popular with the ladies.

There were several female gadwalls there, and one male. He looked tired.

Along the path towards the castle was this juvenile blackpoll warbler.......

.....and this Eastern towhee. I learned that you say it "tow-ee" like "tow a car" and not "two-ee" like "the number two." It took me about a year to re-learn how to say vireo, so about this time next year, hopefully I'll have it. :-)

This downy woodpecker came by to visit, it was nice to see him from this angle.

Here's one of the zillions of blue jays we saw - and heard - looking spiffy!

Barred Owl in the Ramble!

2011-09-30T19:00:00.000-07:00

The park was very quiet bird-wise, until someone came over and told a photographer near me that there was a barred owl! I followed them over, and sure enough

Hello Owl!

It attended to its foot like a cat.

This was just wonderful to see. I've said it before and I'll say it again - owls are special. :-)

Yellow Billed Cuckoo! I think.......

2011-09-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

So as I was leaving the park yesterday I saw a bird fly into a tree near the ladies pavillion. It wasn't a starling, or a grackle, or a robin so I gave it a look. It was about starling-sized. I didn't get a close view, but I did get a few pictures. It looked grey (with brownish undertones, not blueish undertones) with a white bottom face and a greyish top face. I only saw the tail from the back and sides, I never saw the underside of the tail.

The bird looked like it was hunched over, like a fairly bulky man in a trench coat trying to not be noticed by the police.

I eventually left it in the tree, having no clear idea what it might be. After seeing the pictures, I think it was likely a yellow-billed cuckoo! The shape, coloring, and bill are right.

And that looks like an eye ring..... Yep, my best ID right now is yellow-billed cuckoo. I wish I had figured out a way to get a closer look and better pictures! Lesson for myself - your eyes are getting better at figuring out if they are seeing something unusual - trust them, and when they tell you to pay attention, do it! :-)

AMNH Walk

2011-09-26T15:22:00.000-07:00

Today was another AMNH lunchtime walk, with a different leader, because Paul was gallivanting about somewhere. The substitute did a great job, he was extremely knowledgeable, and his approach was very similar to Paul's - inclusive, respectful, helpful, not ego-driven, etc. He and Paul both help me to think about the kind of birder I want to be, which is enormously helpful.

This parula got our walk started nicely. It hid in the leaves for a while, and then stepped out into the light oh-so-briefly. We were again lucky with the weather. Okay, it was still cloudy and super-humid with a heavy supply of bugs, but at least it wasn't actually raining.

Then at the upper lobe we saw a grey-cheeked thrush! It was my first look at a grey-cheeked (that I know of anyway) and it was not long enough. I couldn't even get a blurry picture, it was that quick! Oh well. At least I know it's out there somewhere...... or was, briefly. I consoled myself with this flycatcher. Everyone went over to look at it and try to ID the flycatcher, I have no idea what they decided (if anything) because I wandered off hoping to find the grey-cheeked thrush again. Which did not work. Oh well, someday........

This wood thrush came by to brighten our day, thrush-wise. There were thrushes everywhere! A whole bunch of Swainson's, one grey-cheeked (too briefly for my taste), a few wood thrushes. No veery or hermit thrush today.

This yellow bellied sap sucker came over. In this picture you can see it's starting to get just a touch of red on its throat.

As we headed over to the ramble this female black-throated blue came by, demanding lunch. So imperious!

At the ramble this pine warbler was true to its name, hanging out in the pine tree.

And there were brown thrashers everywhere! What do you think about this one's beak - is it just that color, or has it been into something gooey or stain-y? Looks like blueberries to me!

Also I saw this mystery bird. Is it just a common yellow-throat with some yellow on its wings/tail?

And something trying to start a little mini-wingbar? Some sort of vireo? I still can't tell the difference between a vireo beak and a warbler beak.

I've been through my books and can't figure it out.

Rock and Roll Vireo

2011-09-19T15:00:00.000-07:00

Rage Against The Machine

Eat at Joe's

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

AMNH Walk Complete With Hummingbirds!

2011-09-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

Another wonderful AMNH walk! We were lucky with the weather, it was quite nice out, and apparently it's going to rain the rest of the week. It really feels like fall this week, cool and crisp and happy, great hot chocolate weather.

At the upper lobe we saw this pewee. Full name, Eastern Wood-Pewee. The pewee looks like it has a bump on the back of its head, not quite a crest, but not nothing.

And this flicker! Actually several flickers, but this is the only picture I got. And a grosbeak and a veery (actually the veery was on the other side of the street by that little bridge) but they did not want pictures.

By the jewelweed was this gorgeous little hummingbird! It stayed perched for us for quite some time, and flew around visiting flowers making sure everyone got a good look at it. I was so happy to see it, hummingvirds always make my day. :-) A redstart came by trying to distract us, and we did take a look of course, but I was still all about the hummingbird.

Over to the streamlet, where this scarlet tanager (although it is definitely not scarlet at this time of year) distracted me.

I think I've seen it here before and mis-identified it as some sort of oriole. Oh well, live and learn!

Then this female black-throated blue distracted me and a few others, she was just so coy.

And philosophical.

Then on our way back to join the group this male black-throated blue distracted us all! I'm so disappointed in these pictures. The light was not great, but we really had a good look at this bird.

It actually hung out with us for a ~while~, eventually we just left it. And it seemed to follow us.

Another redstart, they were everywhere. As one person put it, it's nice that they have friends and family!

This Swainson's thrush was not very cooperative at all. Another bird we saw several of. I'm just starting to be able to tell the thrushes apart, which is great!

At the oven, it was Grosbeak Central! There were so many female rose-breasted grosbeak, with several out in the open, it was quite a sight! I saw one male for sure, but he didn't want pictures. The ladies were shameless though, no longer hiding in the background, but coming front and center. Thanks ladies!

Also at the oven was another hummingbird. This one flew around a lot more than the one at the upper lobe, so that was a nice treat. They are so beautiful!

What else...... a bunch of Carolina wrens, I remember that for sure. And a brown thrasher that kept coming over at various points and then leaving before we could get a decent look at it, let alone a picture. It was just teasing us! Various woodpeckers - flickers, downies, red-bellies.

It was a great walk! :-)

Mystery Warbler at the Oven

2011-09-18T20:00:00.000-07:00

This mystery warbler came right over. It hopped up onto the rocks between us and some other birders, and walked along towards us, right in front of me and Jack. The foot in one of the pictures is Jack's. I don't know what kind it is. I've been through my guides and I have a couple of candidates but can't really tell with any degree of certainty.

Hummingbird and Heron

2011-09-13T12:52:00.000-07:00

At the oven, before the willow (?) tree completely fell into the water. For a couple of days, a juvenile green heron was strutting about proudly. Now there could be a dozen in there and I wouldn't be able to see them!

Okay, I don't think they know I'm here.

Sitting Pretty

Gotta Go!

Green Heron, Football Configuration

Same Green Heron, Bowling Pin Configuration

AMNH Walk followed by Hummingbirds and Green Heron

2011-09-12T21:29:00.000-07:00

What a gorgeous day! Not a lot of warblers around, but really a wonderful day to be in the park. During Paul's walk, there were a few interesting birds but none of them wanted pictures. I love those walks. The whole experience is so friendly and inclusive. Definitely the kind of birder I want to be.

After the walk I went through the upper lobe quickly, just long enough to see this waterthrush in a tree. There were some workers nearby chipping downed branches, and the birds seemed a little out of sorts about it, maybe that's why this guy was way up there. He was just bobbing his tail and looking around. :-)

Over to the oven, hoping for hummingbirds. While waiting for them, I noticed that this green heron had appeared!

It started out on "my" side of the fallen tree, and migrated to the other side, finally on the leafy fallen branch. What a treat!

Oh, and yes, there was a hummingbird.

I think there was only one, so it had to be extra gorgeous.

Hummingbird Attack

2011-09-09T21:11:00.000-07:00

Hey! I told you this was ~my~ flower patch........

Attack!!!!!

After that they were just a blur. Or I guess rather two blurs. :-) Once the dust had settled, it was onto more peaceful activities.

Hummingbird!!! And the budgie again!

2011-08-24T21:24:00.000-07:00

Hello gorgeous, good to see you again.

Black-throated Blue Warbler

The wood duck looked hilarious, partly molted and going about its business quickly.

Wood Duck

This redstart looks to me like a poker player fanning out a good hand - read 'em and weep!

American Redstart

I hope this is the same budgie I saw near the pond a while back. I wonder if it will stick around.

Budgerigar

I really need to figure out how to prevent overexposure like this in full sun.

Budgerigar

Hello little gem, I have been looking forward to your arrival!

Hummingbird

Yes, we will meet at the upper lobe and the oven for many days. You will not know that we are meeting, but I will become quite attached.

Hummingbird

Whale Sharks!

2011-08-15T17:06:00.000-07:00

Whale Shark Day!

What an amazing experience. We got up early, had breakfast at the resort, and got on the shuttle to the pier. Once there we got onto the boat, and rode for about an hour out to where the sharks were. There were lots of boats out there, and we were thrilled to see the sharks feeding from the boat. They swim just a few feet under the surface, their fins and/or tail frequently breaks the surface.

Once we got into the water, the first shark we saw was tilted upwards and was feeding in place, which looked odd to me, but I was happy to have a stationary shark for our first one. Later the guide said it was agitated, so I wished we had just left it alone. Oh well.

Next the guide took off to see how fast we could swim, getting over to a shark.

Then it was just shark after shark.

We swam as fast as we could to catch up to the sharks and stay with them, which was incredibly fun!

We were in the water with the sharks for about 2 hours, and it didn't feel like it was long enough.

Hanging out with my new BFF.

It's been a dream of ours for years to see a whale shark, and it was amazing to see so many of them and spend so much time with them. :-)

Nesting Sea Turtles!

2011-08-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

At the resort near Playa Del Carmen, walking back to our room from dinner (it was quite a ways) we saw a couple hanging out on the beach. We politely ignored them (hey, everyone needs privacy sometimes) but as we walked by they said, "Hey, you guys, I don't know if you want to see...... a giant sea turtle?"

Well, actually that sounds great! We love giant sea turtles! It turns out that some turtles come up onto the beach to nest and they had found one. It was a full moon and a clear night, so it was perfect nesting time. While we were watching one turtle dig her nest, another turtle came out of the ocean, went straight over to the digging turtle and sort of clambered right on in, right on top of the digging turtle! The digging turtle left, and the interloper started digging. She totally stole the digger's nest!

There was still plenty of digging to do, though. The sand was flying! I sat behind her and got sand flipped onto my feet and ankles. It was great!

We saw one or two more that night, including this one who apparently wanted to dig under the beach chairs.

The next night we took our friends out to look, and saw one actually laying her eggs. We were careful to be quiet and not use a flash, thus, we have no decent pictures. We left when she started to cover them up to give her peace of mind while hiding her eggs.

There is a crew that comes by and labels the nests, and then someone else comes to collect the eggs and take them to a hatchery.

Eventually they release the baby turtles, which my friend got to do, but I wasn't there. It was such a great treat! I knew it was nesting time, but I didn't think they turtles would come up onto our beach. :-) Bye, sea turtles, it was wonderful seeing you!

Mexico: Herons, Egrets, Ibis, Anhingas

2011-08-13T19:26:00.000-07:00

We stayed in a resort that backed up to mangroves, so of course I went exploring even though I wasn't really supposed to. It was pretty interesting back there!

The most exciting thing was the anhingas! Hahahaha, my spellcheck wants to change that to "astonishing."

I wanted to see them in Costa Rica but didn't find any, so I was very happy to see them here. I saw at least three individuals, it looked like one female .......

and two males. It might have been different ones on different days, but on one day I could see all three from the same spot.

Also cool to see were the white ibis flying around, I saw groups of 3-4 of them flying by a few times each day.

Even cooler through branches! :-)

This green heron teased me by flying by a few times. I tried to see where it landed, but it completely defeated me until it started flying again.

This great blue heron had to go. At first I thought I must have spooked it, but then.......

This tri-colored heron sat on the recently vacated branch. So maybe this guy scared the great blue heron away.

It's weird though because this one is smaller, and this particular individual looks like a juvenile.

This snowy egret flew by a couple of times one day. A great egret flew by also, but my camera lens was still foggy (what happens when you have A/C and it's hot and humid out) so the pictures are rubbish.

I loved the mangroves!

Hello Warblers! :-)

2011-08-05T16:35:00.000-07:00

At the point this red-bellied woodpecker flirted with me for a while.

This eastern kingbird was also at the point, looking for something tasty.

Saw something - gotta go!

Yay! The yellow warbler!

This black and white warbler was happy to be back in the land where several birders have cameras.

It was posing beautifully.

It looked like some sort of swift was flying around above the lake for a little while. I thought I saw a swallow also (smaller and much more flappy) but it completely evaded my camera.

At the oven the yellow warbler came by to visit! I'm so out of practice with these fast little birds.

This raccoon was definitely more my speed. Looks like a great idea to me!

There were two waterthrushes today by the little wooden bridge on the streamlet. They were maddening to try to get pictures of!

Two American redstarts came through, and this is the only picture I got that shows the bird and is not a hopeless blur! They were even faster than the yellow warbler......

A downy came by, distracting me from the redstarts and looking quite beautiful.

This tufted titmouse is hungry, and wants to be ~very~ ~clear~ with its parents that it definitely needs more food.

Central Park in the Hot, Hot Summer

2011-08-01T19:08:00.000-07:00

Today I went back to Central Park, with my camera this time! Hahahaa, much good may it do me. Those birds know when a camera is around, and they laugh, laugh, laugh. Hoping to find the waterthrush and yellow warbler I saw on Friday, I went right up to the ramble. I stopped briefly at the upper lobe, where at first I saw nothing but tourists and dragonflies. But then a red-tailed hawk flew overhead, which is always a welcome treat!

It flew over to a building and landed on a window decoration, and showed off how red its tail is. It stayed there for longer than I did, with its gorgeous red tail soaking up the sun.

To the streamlet! Alas, no waterthrush. I walked along that streamlet nice and slow, even the mourning doves would have to agree. But no waterthrush, and no yellow warbler. Around azalea pond, still nothing but robins and cardinals. Actually one male cardinal was especially friendly, flying to the fence ahead of me and looking at me pointedly, as if to say, "Well? Where are my peanuts?"

At the oven I saw this vivid Baltimore oriole cooling off in the water.

When he hopped out he was looking bedraggled but happy!

Also at the oven I saw this mystery bird hanging out with some house sparrows. UPDATE: Consensus from experienced birders is that this is a red eyed vireo. Which I thought it might be at first, but the white patches confused me. There's always more to learn! :-)

I don't know who was harassing who, but these two did not get along very well.

Then out to the point, where this very-non-cute cardinal chick was crying until its mother fed it.

I guess it's a late hatcher? Or maybe a second round chick? It was cool to see it. :-)

Audubon Eco-Cruise

2011-07-31T14:29:00.000-07:00

Jack and I finally made it to the Audubon Eco-Cruise! :-) It was wonderful, led by Gabriel Willow who did a great job. I would love to go again.

I wasn't really sure what to expect, I thought maybe it would be just basically a regular water taxi ride with some birders along in a separate little group. But that wasn't it at all! Gabriel had a microphone and narrated the whole tour, and the whole thing was looking at the islands in the East River that the cormorants and egrets and herons nest on. It was great! Jack and I sat up top, right at the front, on the right. It was a great spot for viewing, terrible for telling Gabriel when we saw something. I tend to see stuff, so it was not ideal. The views were so great though, I would probably head right for that spot again!

Anyway, first we saw the cormorant island, which was great - I love these guys!

This one was a late arrival.

Next was an egret island, with lots of great egrets, but no pictures turned out at all. Unless you like conceptual art pictures depicting flying egrets as angels. In which case you're in luck! We also a few black crowned night heron juveniles, and I thought I saw one yellow crowned night heron, but it flew off before I could point it out to Gabriel. At least Jack saw it!

Then we tooled along, and I saw a great blue heron hanging out, and it stayed long enough to point it out to Gabriel. First time ever for this tour! I felt so happy! :-) We even got to see it fly away, which just looks like it's never going to work, and there's always a sense of waiting for the bird to just drop like a stone.

More egrets and black crowned night herons, we did get a good look at an adult, which was nice. And on the way back a falcon circling over us, another nice treat!

No snowy egrets or ibis, but a wonderful time. :-)

Northern Waterthrush and Yellow Warbler!

2011-07-29T17:13:00.000-07:00

Today I went into the ramble in Central Park briefly, mostly because I was nearby, and, well, why not. I didn't really expect to see anything unusual, maybe a black crowned night heron (which I did, once at the upper lobe and again on the west shore of the lake a bit south of the upper lobe) and it was threatening to rain, so I brought my rain jacket and umbrella. Which all adds up to a full heavy bag, which leads to a trade-off decision. Yep, emergency binocs only, and no camera. No camera!

So when I saw the northern waterthrush I could only take pictures with my phone!

I'm sure as phones go it's quite a nice camera. However, taking bird pictures with it.........

Video was even more of a challenge. Sorry for the shaking!

After that I did get quite a good look at a yellow warbler, but the pictures are much worse - I ~think~ the warbler is in the frame, based on my memory of taking the pictures...... but I cannot find it. :-( I'm so tempted to go back tomorrow with real binocs and my regular camera!

Hello, old friend. I'm so glad to see you again!

Baltimore Oriole nest in central park south end

2011-06-15T19:23:00.000-07:00

So today I walked around the pond - definitely the place to be in the summer - and saw some favorites. More on that later. Then I went over to see if that budgerigar would come around again, and to check for the pair of orioles I saw there on Sunday. Well, no parakeets were evident, but the orioles were there, and so was their nest!

Baltimore oriole boasting about this amazing nest!

My most favoritest Baltimore oriole nest

I'm completely thrilled that I got to see this! :-)

The pond was great again today, with two black crowned night herons, a great egret having a snack, a bullfrog swimming and singing, an eastern kingbird, and the annoying music guy was not there! Ah, bliss.

Black crowned night heron, this one likes trees

Black crowned night heron, this one likes water

Parakeet (budgerigar?) on lawn near the Pond

2011-06-12T15:45:00.000-07:00

Jack and I went over to take a slow walk around the pond, but it was closed due to the Puerto Rican Pride parade. I'm not really sure why. We decided to sit on the rocks on the lawn across from the pond, and in flew in someone unusual! At first I thought maybe it was a molting goldfinch, but it became clear that I had no idea what it was.

Looking it up later, I think it's a budgerigar. I was thinking a parakeet of some sort. I did not see a band, and it was not friendly - I didn't actually get very close, but it did not stay around long. Probably for the best. Next we saw a pair of Baltimore orioles being chased off by a robin, then a loud ruckus which resulted in a hawk coming over, apparently the blue jays and grackles had been mobbing it.

It was a pretty eventful 10 minutes! :-)

Waxwings! Ducklings! And a performance-oriented egret.

2011-05-31T18:29:00.000-07:00

I didn't really expect to see much bird-wise at the park, but it was such a gorgeous day I wanted to go regardless. It started out with a great view of waxwings by the pond. They were eye level and right by me, flitting about in a bush right by the bridge and flirting with each other. There was a pair passing berries back and forth to each other, it was beyond cute. :-)

I picked this out just for you!

Waxwings just look like James Bond to me

Then up near the boathouse this egret was hanging out. I sat by the side of the water and just waited, and it pretty much came right over. So pretty!

It turns out their eyes are basically those glue-on googlie-eye thingies from elementary school crafts!

Over to the oven, where ducklings emerged! Mom was quite vigilant, keeping an eye out for danger.

She got worked up a bit when a huge koi came near them, it was duck v. fish. At least from the duck's point of view. I'm not sure the fish noticed them at all. It seemed oblivious, but then again, it's a fish, so it's hard for me to tell, really.......

By the upper lobe, the egret (I think it was the same one although I'm not at all certain) was showing off, giving quite a performance.

posing

what grace........

hahahaha, this picture makes me happy!

Once around the pond

2011-05-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

It's a nice day, Jack is not deathly ill, we're not super busy..... To the park! :-) We headed over to the pond and started out by the waterfall side - and it's on! Yay! There was a big frog, a pair of mallards, a piece of bread, and a bunch of minnows. The ducks and minnows were all about the bread, the frog was just floating along, doing frog yoga.

Just past that little super-mini-waterfall thingie, there was a black crowned night heron posing for us on the Hallett side. Hello Gorgeous!

And just past that guy we noticed a bunch of good-sized tadpoles and, looking way up into a tree, the second black-crowned night heron. I hope they breed here and have chicks!

We checked the woodpecker nest but nobody was home. At least that we could see. And just as we turned away, we noticed cedar waxwings flying in to the tree almost next to the nest! We watched them briefly and then they were off. We saw them go between trees a few times, but never saw them perched again. It looked like about a dozen or so, it was great!

A quiet but pretty day

2011-05-25T20:22:00.000-07:00

We've had so much rain, and so many dismal days, I think most of us have completely given up on spring - including the birds! With a beautiful day at last, I thoroughly enjoyed the park. The birds, however, did not. Maybe they have already been through, maybe they are just hiding..... but they were not cavorting joyously, that's for sure!

There was someone home at the woodpecker nest, calling, calling, calling.

Hahahahaha, I think this is the most bedraggled black crowned night heron I've seen so far. And he's just sitting there! Come on now, you've clearly got some preening to do!

I did see a red-tailed hawk flying over and being chased by a red-winged blackbird. That was exciting! The blackbird didn't chase for too long, the hawk flew over for a while. That was pretty.

Then I saw this guy soaring in circles a bit further west - a Cooper's hawk? I think it probably is, they are in the park and the shape looks right to me. Up to the ramble!

This common yellowthroat teased me for a while before posing. There was a wood duck going arund in the brush there, and several birders looking for a mourning warbler. I'm not in a stand-around-and-look sort of mood, so, off I go.

I did see a few Canada warblers, I love them!

And this vivid Baltimore oriole bathing at the oven. There was a female there too, but she was too quick for me. All in all, a happy sunny day filled with gorgeous scenery punctuated by a few lovely birds. I'll take that over the drizzle any time! :-)

AMNH Make-Up Day, complete with make-up rain :-)

2011-05-23T10:12:00.000-07:00

Today was the make-up day for the Monday that was supposed to be rainy, but was actually only dismal and overcast and perhaps a bit misty. The forecast was not 100 percent promising, but I geared up and went anyway. I mean, why not? On the way I saw a great egret fly over the lake to the south end and stand around for a while, that was a nice start. By the ladies pavilion I saw a black crowned night heron fly into a tree and stand there for a while, I love them! They are inherently hilarious. Then by the upper lobe an oriole was hanging out in the droopy willow branches, but the wind was moving him around so much the pictures came out too blurry. Not good conditions for pictures today!

I went to meet the group, and we headed back towards the upper lobe and someone refound the oriole, who was just gorgeous. It seems like they might be nesting nearby, I hope so!

Heading in to the ramble we noticed a cardinal chick crying from a bush *right* by the path (like, someone might hit it accidentally) and the parents were nearby, loudly letting us know they were not entirely happy. We thought about putting it in a further back shrub but decided to leave it alone.

We saw a few birds, but overall it was pretty quiet. We saw a bunch of vireos, at first we thought one might be a Philadelphia, but we later concluded it was probably just red-eyed vireos and warbling vireos. They were pretty high up so we mostly just saw their bellies, but it was really cool seeing so many of them in one tree!

I wandered off and found a female common yellow-throat and took a bunch of pictures that should have been gorgeous but were instead blurs that were vaguely yellowish. :-) The group was moving on so I caught back up, just in time to see the waxwings! They are so cool, and there were a bunch of them up in the tree. They flew off, and we thought that was it, but more kept materializing and flying off. It was hilarious! Every time we thought the tree was really empty this time, 3 or 4 more would fly out.

We headed over to the point, but it started really raining, and we ducked into the boathouse for a few minutes. It was really funny to me that it rained so much more on the make-up day than on the actual rain day. :-) It quieted down in a few minutes and we headed back out.

We headed up to the castle and saw a few swallows swooping over turtle pond. There were 3 or 4 northern rough-winged swallows, and at least one barn swallow.

And then someone found this green heron!

That was about it for the group. Heading home I saw a great heron - probably the same one - on my side of the lake, and took what should have been great pictures of it getting a little fish, but sadly autofocus was not my friend today.

I made it home without further downpours, with wet feet and a happy heart. :-)

In the park again, at last!

2011-05-21T15:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, the weather was not ~great~ but it was not raining, so I headed to the park. I had no idea there was some sort of half-marathon going on that involved lots of people in hats that reminded me of London cops in old-ish movies. It was.... unexpected. :-) It was also pretty crowded, the first non-raining day in a week or so, a whole lotta folks wanted to be in the park!

I headed up the west side drive, and wandered out onto the rock at the ladies pavilion, where I noticed a great egret across the lake, just standing there and looking beautiful. A bit too far off for decent pictures, sadly.

Up towards the upper lobe, right by the water fountain an oriole flew back and forth across the road a couple of times, and then disappeared on the other side. I went over there to just check for him, and although it was beautiful, I didn't find him again. I did manage to find a bunch of house sparrows, but that was about it.

I went up to get a Diet Coke (pollen gets in my throat I guess) and came back down the mulch path. At the top, several blackpolls were teasing me, posing for gorgeous pictures too briefly for me to get my camera on them. I did manage to get this one at last!

Female blackpoll warbler

And another oriole came through, singing up a storm, and let me take a picture.

This black-crowned night heron was casual, just scratching what itches.

black-crowned night heron

Down to the warbler tree, where there was a sizeable group of birders, which I much later found out was someone's guided walk. There were a few maggies over there, and one was really being almost over-friendly. He was just coming right up to the group, the picutres didn't come out well, I think I should have had the camera on macro! But he did back off slightly to let me take these shots.

Check out my stripes! :-)

A canada blew through that most of the group saw but I totally missed (bad angle) but this female redstart made up for that by staying still long enough for a few pictures! I couldn't believe it. Thanks lovely lady!

There was also a common yellow throat skulking about, I caught glimpses now and then.

From there I walked along the water towards the oven. I just didn't want that much company, so I took off. Anyway I did see a vireo I was too slow to get a picture of, I think it was a warbling vireo, but I'm not really sure. I talked with another couple of birders about banding projects, that was interesting. And this oriole came through and sang, contributing to the conversation. :-)

The oven didn't feel right so I went out on the point and sat on the rocks near the start of the path, just being alone and looking around. There was a common yellowthroat down there, and a Canada teasing me without mercy, and a northern waterthrush. Turns out this is a pretty good spot to sit!

A bit further up a pair of blackpolls were flitting about on the ground (ish), chasing each other around.

Time to go...... This warbling vireo made me wait but did eventually pose.

The black-crowned night heron was there, and as I was leaving so did he, flying to the main part of the lake, buzzing people on the bridge. It was great!

Swallow Drama on Great Swamp Day

2011-05-14T08:06:00.000-07:00

These swallows were flitting about on some exposed branches, so I took some pictures. Looking at them, I'm wondering..... what's going on here? I mean, really, how many reasons are there for a bird to land on top of another bird....... My guess is - eggs! Everyone wants eggs! :-) But, it doesn't look like they are both the same kind of swallow. That bottom one doesn't look really very blue.

These pictures were taken all in a row, the camera takes about 5 frames per second.

Great Swamp Day! Part 2

2011-05-14T06:43:00.000-07:00

The second place was more active, sadly this was not limited to birds. There were little..... inchworms, I guess...... dropping from the sky on little silky threads. Constantly. We were all running into them, it was..... unsavory. There were also plenty of mosquitoes. I mean, many. Several. Lots. I was covered in bug spray, but they were unimpressed. Note to self: This is what Paul means by "possibly a little buggy." :-) Luckily the place is absolutely beautiful, and the sightings made the inchworms and bugs worth putting up with!

Starting off we saw this kingbird posing with two orchard orioles, helpfully gathered together on the same branch. Thanks guys!

Then this barn swallow posed for a close-up. You can see that this one is much paler than the earlier barn swallow, this one looks like a juvenile.

We worked hard to get a nice view of this blue-winged warbler. Gorgeous!

I know I must be getting much more used to birding because it now sort of makes sense why it's called "blue-winged warbler" when it's mostly yellow and the wings are not really blue. I mean, not to a non-birder. I'm starting to be able to see it.

This yellow warbler found us early and stayed with us almost the whole time we were out. I mean, I guess it's possible there were several, but I like to think of this guy following us around. It was hilarious, it seemed like every time we looked for something small and interesting a yellow warbler showed up. :-)

This crested flycatcher was much prettier in person - the belly looked quite yellow.

A turkey vulture circled in fairly low, letting us get a good look at the difference between black vultures and turkey vultures.

This common yellow-throat teased me without mercy. This was sadly the best picture I got.

It turns out that eastern bluebirds are gorgeous! Two of them were flying around, and I might have a new favorite. Now this bird definitely has blue, even a child would agree! :-)

A few red-headed woodpeckers came through and I saw them several times, but they were too fast for the camera.

Another orchard oriole came by to say hello.

Another snake! I think they said it was a garter snake.

Again, the place was beautiful, the path was pretty easy, although it wasn't just a loop, it was more of a network of paths/trails and it was possible to get lost. Which we took full advantage of, resulting in......

This gorgeous pileated woodpecker! Yes, that's what it is. Trust me. I'll say it again - Damn You Autofocus! This was to me the find of the day. Many thanks to the person who spotted it! :-)

Someone saw a warbler briefly, and as I looked for it, I noticed this rosy-breasted grosbeak overseeing the entire operation. My best look at this guy ever! Of course, we never did find that warbler. It was probably the yellow. :-)

As we were leaving, walking quickly to catch up to the group that did not take an extra detour, we saw a purple martin overhead. It did not look like an oversized swallow to me from that angle, the wings had a different shape. It was really cool to see.

Another fun and tiring day with AMNH - yay!

Great Swamp Day! Part 1

2011-05-14T06:42:00.000-07:00

Headed to the Great Swamp with AMNH. The bus was full, and the weather was like that song - Heavy Clouds, No Rain. It was a good time, I love these trips - no worries, mostly just look at where the experts point, take some pictures, enjoy nature. What's not to like? This time there were a few people who were helping me to get good angles for pictures, which was wonderful! If any of you end up reading this, Thank You! :-)

This yellow warbler started off our day, singing and being handsome for us.

This is some sort of frog. The expert told us what kind, but I don't remember that at all.

A blue-gray gnat catcher teased us for quite some time before coming out into the open.

This white-breasted nuthatch was a ways off, I'm amazed you can tell what it is in the picture.

The red-eyed vireo stayed around for a while but I nearly missed it altogether, I was distracted by who knows what. Anyway, I did see it, but this was sadly the best picture.

This was not the first veery we saw, but it was the first one that my autofocus accepted as a subject. Someday I'll probably get a real camera.

Look out! A snake in the grass!

At lunch I watched this adorable and quite bright goldfinch.

There were tree swallows and barn swallows swooping all around us during our picnic, I did get some pictures of blue blurs but had to wait for one to land before getting a nice shot. This tree swallow briefly agreed to a photo session.

A black vulture soared overhead at the end of the picnic.

This barn swallow enjoyed showing off its rich colorful plumage as we entered the second place. Gorgeous!

Warbler City!

2011-05-13T15:48:00.000-07:00

Hallett / Pond:

I started out at the pond, where I saw quite a few things. There was a common yellowthroat flirting with me, and a black-crowned night heron refusing my camera's autofocus.

Gadwall

This gadwall has been here once in a while, hanging out with the mallards. I don't know if there is a female here also, I can't really tell them apart from female mallards yet.

Canada Goslings

The goslings are still cute! And I saw a Northern Waterthrush in tree, I guess it went up there to try to fool me.

Female Baltimore Oriole

This female Baltimore oriole flew in a spent some time by the mudflat, she was absolutely gorgeous! On that note, I headed up to the ramble and out onto the point. In the trees near the boathouse I saw a Maggie, a Black and White, and a Common Yellowthroat, all just working their way through the area, pretty quickly. Next was an American Redstart, of course he was quick, they always are!

Magnolia Warbler

Green Heron. You know, for variety.

This green heron just flew over and settled onto this treetop branch, apparently surveying his domain. Someone told me about a green heron nest, and even showed me the nest when I couldn't find it, but the bird in it sure looked like a grackle to me. So...... maybe it was a grackle nest found by an optimist? Or, actually, the nest was pretty big - maybe a green heron nest raided by a grackle? I don't know. But the bird in there was hanging out, looked like it might be incubating something, and looked quite grackle-ish to me.

Female Common Yellowthroat

This female common yellowthroat was so cute! They are so round and sweet looking, and this one was just as coy as can be. There's something so charming about her in this picture, she was a joy. A great egret flew nearby and landed across from the point, that was cool. They are huge, I love to see them in flight!

Wilson's Warbler

Hello Wilson! :-) And with that, I headed over to the oven, where there was a gorgeous male Baltimore oriole bathing. And making a bit of a splash, I don't mind saying. But that was it, he was outta there quickly, and it was quiet, quiet, quiet. So I headed over to the stream where it was a bit more active.

Yellow-throated Vireo

There was a group looking at this yellow-throated vireo, and who can blame them - beautiful! There was also a black-throated blue teasing me. Last year they seemed fine to pose, but this year, they have avoided my camera with disturbing skill.

Ovenbird

This ovenbird needed to go. And so did the flicker and the downy. :-) I did get a fairly good look at a female eastern towhee, it took me a bit to figure out what she was. That was cool.

Northern Parula

This norther parula was just gorgeous in person. So vivid and lovely.

Female Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

Hahahaha, whatever this grosbeak is looking at, she is ~not~ impressed! And with that I headed over to the upper lobe, where there was yet another black-crowned night heron, this one roosting fairly high up in a tree.

I headed towards home on the west side park road, where I saw (thanks to an urban non-birding guy in a do-rag) - guess what? Yes! Another black-crowned night heron! This one was not just hanging out, however. It had a massive task. Check out the size of the fish it's trying to swallow!

Black-Crowned Night Heron, swallowing

Black-Crowned Night Heron, taking a break from swallowing

It took a couple of breaks. Swallowing something this size is hard work!

Black-Crowned Night Heron, swallowing

I really didn't think it was going to work. Job well done! That bird really earned that lunch. :-)

What a beautiful day!

2011-05-12T19:23:00.000-07:00

Another beautiful day - to the park! I went up to the pond and walked around, visiting the waterfall (still turned off) and then heading up to the bridge. Along the way I saw a common yellow throat and a black crowned night heron. And a red-bellied woodpecker by the nest - yay! I hope they have chicks. I would love to see fledgling woodpeckers!

red-bellied woodpecker by nest

I also saw a tanager that struck me as a summer, but probably was a scarlet. I did not get a long look at it, and didn't get any pictures at all. Crazy fast tanagers! This gadwall was hanging out with a few mallards, that was weird.

gadwall

The goslings are here! They are in their cute phase.

goslings

Sitting on the rocks on the other side of the bridge, talking on the phone to my mother, I saw this grackle. It definitely has issues.

weird headed grackle

I wonder if it's always like that, I haven't seen this before. I wonder if it will spread to its body.

weird headed grackle again

Up to the ramble - there were warblers everywhere! I was too slow to get pictures of the first Canada, the first black and white, and the first Wilson's - all on the path to the boat house. Those trees were busy!

This day really highlighted for me how much I have learned in the past year. I'm seeing so much more than I did last year, it's surprising to me the amount of difference! I have a huge amount left to learn obviously but I'm quite happy with the progress so far.

I did manage to get pictures of the ~next~ Canada. And friends. :-)

Canada Warbler

Magnolia Warbler

American Redstart

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Black-and-white Warbler

Wilson's Warbler

Canada Warbler

(Another) Magnolia Warbler

(Another) American Redstart

Baltimore Oriole

At the oven, there was a black crowned night heron hanging out. Pictures didn't come out, but it was nice to see it. And then there was a crazy pigeon fight! I mean, it was ~not~ just a display. It was serious pigeon-on-pigeon violence! It went on for about 5 minutes. Seriously!

crazy pigeon fight

Along the stream between the wooden bridge and the stone benchlet I saw this little lovely and a gorgeous, brilliant, incredibly vivid chestnut-sided that I just couldn't get a good picture of.

Female Black-throated Blue Warbler?

Chestnut-sided Warbler

AMNH Walk

2011-05-09T14:10:00.000-07:00

Back from Costa Rica, and back to the park! Today was Paul's lunch-time spring walk, a great way to get used to NYC birds again. No toucans today!

While waiting for the group to assemble, I saw a robin's nest near the park entry road, and when the mommy left, a chick was there. A group of kids on some sort of field trip asked what I was looking at, so I showed them, and they were all really excited to see it, so that was great! It was not the best-looking chick I've ever seen. But, still, a chick! :-)

Once we got started Paul found a northern parula, and while I was looking for that I saw this black-throated green. I'm so happy to see it, I only saw one last year, and I had no idea what it was. This time, experts to confirm the ID, a good view and an okay picture - perfect! Oh, and we briefly saw a thrush that Paul said was a Swainson's, I still can't really tell them apart but he told me what to look for. So maybe I'll start seeing the differences.

Over to the upper lobe overlook, where we saw a pair of common yellow throated warblers. Hello Masked One.

Around to the bridge, where we saw two black crowned night herons hanging. This one moved from a branch down to the water. I hope they stay around this summer.

While on the mulch path we saw a black and white and this American redstart. They are so fast! Then we saw a ruby crowned kinglet and another northern parula by the popular tree.

Then we saw this catbird, and Lars (who is apparently quite famous in the birding world and is visiting NYC for a couple of weeks) charmed this catbird. It didn't ~quite~ hop onto his shoe, but nearly. :-)

A black-throated blue, looking just plain black. And time to move on from the upper lobe!

Heading sort of towards the feeders, we saw this lovely magnolia warbler. I had such trouble seeing him (Hahahaha, I always think of maggies as "her" and have to watch myself) but did finally manage to get him in a shot.

This ovenbird had some sort of necklace. Weird.

And we finally located this rose breasted grosbeak, who had been teasing us for quite some time.

A veery! I still can't really tell them apart. But at least I can now see a little difference when someone points out the differences to me.

Next was a gorgeous pair of Baltimore orioles, the female did not want pictures, but the male was more willing.

Over to the oven, where we saw...... not much. Until I noticed the group had pretty much gone, and I decided I had better follow them. And I glanced over and saw this yellow-rumped warbler there. Oh well, I'm sure whatever they were looking at when I caught up (I have no idea what they found) was great!

Another ovenbird, this time with no necklace. One of the black crowned night herons was up in a tree quite near the bridge, looking for all the world like some sort of exit sentry. Bye Buddy!

I left the group then, they went back towards the museum and I headed up towards turtle pond to hang out until meeting Melissa later. While going up the west side of the upper lobe I saw this American redstart, again, so so fast! It might be the same one we saw on the east side earlier. I also briefly saw a common yellow throat and of course saw the black crowned night herons again. I love those guys!

Up to turtle pond, where swallows were swooping.

Yes, the pictures are crappy, but the point is, they exist! :-)

There was another yellow-rumped warbler up there, someone said they were mostly gone, but it sure seems like there are several still here.

Then I saw this bedraggled oriole, trying to get himself presentable after a bath. There was also a yellow warbler there, but he was too shy for pictures even though I assured him that he was gorgeous.

Hanging around with him were these two, I think they are female rose-breasted grosbeaks. I'm not 100 percent sure, but that was my impression at the time, and the picture pretty much matches.

I met Melissa and walked her through the ramble, seeing a couple of repeat birds, and then we went to Stone Rose, where I watched a pair of hawks out the window, flying near the Plaza. That was great!

I miss Costa Rica with the big crazy birds and the honeycreepers, but it was great to be back in the park. :-)

Costa Rica: Suburb Hotel Birding

2011-05-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

Red-billed pigeon and bonus mystery black bird

rufous-collared (and vain) sparrow

rufous-naped wren

white-ringed flycatcher

Hoffman's woodpecker

white-tailed kite

flock of parrots

brown jay

Costa Rica: Adios Lost Iguana!

2011-05-07T18:04:00.000-07:00

blue-grey tanager

black-headed saltator

seed-eater nest, close up

seed-eater nest

Swainson's (I think) thrush

green honeycreeper

sulfur-bellied flycatcher

blue-grey tanager

red-legged honeycreeper photobombing mystery bird

mystery bird, dignity recovered

the unhappiest bananaquit I have ever seen

house wren

mystery bird

crimson-collared tanager in medieval priest mode

crimson-collared tanager in dancing nun mode

long-billed starthroat I think

black-cheeked woodpecker

chestnut-mandibled toucan

chestnut-mandibled toucan checking out potential nest hole

chestnut-mandibled toucan pair

rufous-tailed hummingbird

white-collared seedeater

leaf cutter ants

rufous-tailed hummingbird

red-legged honeycreeper in his very own picture

a new nest - including a mystery bird!

new nest from a bit wider angle

rufous-tailed hummingbird

green honeycreeper pair

clay-colored robin chick at feeding time

green basilisk

yellow-headed gecko

black vulture

mystery hawk/kite

sloth!

sloth making a quick getaway

sloth

Costa Rica: Mini Trail Day

2011-05-06T08:40:00.000-07:00

Smoky-brown Woodpecker

Mystery tanager. Bay-headed? Rufous-winged?

Black-cowled Oriole

Female Passerini's Tanager

Bay Wren

Crested guan

Clay-colored robin in nest

Female Passerini's Tanager in nest

Black-cheeked woodpecker

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Black-cheeked woodpecker

Red-lored Parrots

White Hawk flying

Mystery flycatcher

Mystery Hummingbird

White Hawk

Buff-throated Saltator

White Hawk

Squirrel!

Mystery bug

Beth likes it! Jack will smile for any camera.

Lineated Woodpecker

Mystery meadow bird. White-collared seedeater?

Montezuma Oropendola

Swallows

Mystery green hummingbird

Costa Rica: A slow relaxing day in the rain.

2011-05-05T14:51:00.000-07:00

Red-legged Honeycreeper

Buff-throated Saltator

Umbrella frog

Nest with mystery mom

Mystery mom

Mystery mom arriving

Many flycatchers hawking

Mystery flycatcher

Eastern kingbirds? with mystery flycatcher

Hammerhead! Royal flycatcher???

Mystery flycatcher

From another angle

streak-headed??? woodcreeper

Mystery woodcreeper ...... or something

Another look at the hammerhead

Mystery woodcreeper

Mystery woodcreeper again

Yet another mystery flycatcher

Costa Rica: It's a Rain Forest, after all

2011-05-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

White Hawk

White Nosed Coati

Crimson Collared Tanager

Red legged honeycreeper

Green honeycreeper

White necked Jacobin

Streak Headed wood creeper???

Mystery Bird

Piratic Flycatcher???

Long-billed starthroat

Stripe-throated hermit

Long-billed starthroat

Swallow-tailed kite

Golden-headed tanager

Grey headed chachalaca

Costa Rica: A toucan-heavy morning

2011-05-03T16:21:00.000-07:00

Eastern Kingbirds (I think)

Passerini's tanagers mating on our tree (no pics)

Scarlet-thighed Dacnis

Red-lored Parrot

Buff-rumped Warbler

Chestnut-mandibled Toucan

Gray-headed Chachalaca (I think)

Keel-billed Toucan

Keel-billed Toucan pair

Chestnut-mandibled Toucan

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Montezuma Oropendola

At breakfast - white hawk flyover (no pics)

Swallow-tailed Kite, eating on the wing

Chestnut-mandibled Toucan

Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, calling

Crested Guan, crest raised

Mystery seedeater

Blue-grey Tanager

Stripe-throated Hermit

Black-cheeked Woodpecker

Bats!

Common Tody-flycatcher

Violaceous Trogon

Violaceous Trogon, asleep and creepy

Costa Rica: Hanging Bridges!

2011-05-02T16:27:00.000-07:00

mystery lizard - four-lined ameiva? but why the blue on the face?

great curassow!!!! a mated pair

broad-billed motmot number one

mystery bird - rufous mourner?

baby hummingbird showing off its tongue

why? because it can. striped-throated hermit I think

baby wants mama to feed it again!

white-nosed coati

broad-billed motmot number two

broad-billed motmot number two - what a view we had!

tawny-capped euphonia

mystery flycatcher - bright yellow underparts

white-collared seedeater

mystery bird - dusky-faced tanager? the cap/crown doesn't look quite right

yellow-faced grassquit pair

swallows

female green honeycreeper

red-legged honeycreeper pair. yes, really

Costa Rica: Pre-Hanging Bridges

2011-05-02T14:39:00.000-07:00

red-legged honeycreeper

grayish saltator

sulphur-bellied flycatcher

rufous-tailed hummingbird

black-striped sparrow

buff-rumped warbler

violaceous trogon

dusky-capped ? flycatcher

common tody-flycatcher

gray-headed chachalaca

house wren
broad-billed motmot

green-breasted mango

Costa Rica: Mornings in our garden are awesome!

2011-05-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

Hammerhead

Black-cowled Oriole

Red-legged Honeycreeper

Black-striped Sparrow

Mystery Woodcreeper

Bananaquit

Black-cowled Oriole

Mystery Flycatcher. Eastern Kingbird?

White-necked Jacobin

Social Flycatcher

Crested guan

Long-tailed Tyrant with Social Flycatcher flying in

Long-tailed Tyrant with Social Flycatcher

Long-tailed Tyrant with Sulfur-bellied Flycatcher flying in

Long-tailed Tyrant intimidating Sulfur-bellied Flycatcher

Long-tailed Tyrant, victorious

Black-cheeked woodpeckers at nest

Sulfur-bellied Flycatcher arriving at nest

Cinnamon becards with nest

Social Flycatchers with nest. Bottom one with crest raised.

Hammerhead! Royal Flycatcher?

Variable Seedeater female and nest

Mystery Flycatcher, with fly

Black-cheeked woodpecker

Crested Guan, with crest raised

Crested Guan

White-necked Jacobin