Yesterday evening a decaying thundershower moved in, and an outflow gust front from it brought brisk and gusty wind. Turkey Vultures returning to their nearby roost rode the wind and put on quite an acrobatic show, wheeling, tilting and rocking, power diving, a few blowing through at less than treetop height.
I caught this one in a stoop, wings drawn in, losing altitude in a hurry.
Faye had the better angle to capture this Rose-breasted Grosbeak waiting to approach one of our feeders.
Tundra Swans are on the move. I drove by a field and hundreds were flying, standing, resting.
Spring is here. I’m blessed to witness its arrival.
It has been a cold and very dry January. Open water has been a scarce resource for the songbirds that we feed. The heated bird bath failed. I bought and put out a new one, and the American Goldfinches found it within fifteen minutes.
I have participated in Project FeederWatch since 2008. From November to April, I put out a bird feeder and once weekly record the birds that visit.
I started last weekend. On that very mild weekend I recorded four birds – three American Goldfinches and one House Finch. It’s a little colder this weekend and there has been much more traffic.
This photo of a Red-bellied Woodpecker is from last year. Tomorrow, I might be able to capture a photo of a feathered visitor.
This hummingbird (almost certainly a Ruby-Throated, do not know if it is a female or an immature one) visits this feeder outside our kitchen window many times daily. I was about 3 meters away and shooting through the window screen with my 75-300mm lens at maximum zoom.
This Canada Goose stood guard while the flock grazed.
These Downy Woodpeckers gleaned every last reachable bit from the feeder before I could refill it.
I understand that the correct word for young swans is cygnets. Nonetheless, since young ducks are called ducklings and young geese are called goslings, I often think of young swans as swanlings.
Here are four Mute Swan swanlings with their parents. It is interesting that three of them are grey morphs. It was also interesting that they did not move away when a companion and I appeared from behind a screen of phragmites.
A House Sparrow surveys its surroundings.
previouslytexan 