Daily Bird Pics Vol. 352

The coolest thing just happened! It hasn't rained here in well over a month. The last good rain was in July. Birds that don't usually come to my tiny pond have been coming -- like the woodpeckers. Today, a Cooper's Hawk came to my tiny pond! I've never seen a hawk at my pond before. I think it's too small for him to bathe in. He was really cautious and when he finally hopped down to the water he went to a spot where I could not see him. Hope he got the drink or bath that he wanted. The blue jays were harrassing him somethin' fierce.

I love the teardrop shaped markings!

Even though a cloud was passing the sun during this pic, I still like the pose.

I'll make this my last one even though I have lots of favorites. On some of them, I had the zoom extended too far and cut off the tail. That's NEVER happened to me before either! Love this shot even though he's looking through a couple of reeds. He's looking right at me. I'm still silly excited!

So now that my excitement is done, I must say that I have loved your photos.

Mrs. Ed, DANG! Those are amazing. Love the seed in the chickadees bill and that upside down nuthatch is so cute.

Nanny, I'm glad you shared the cedar waxwing. Can't wait to see one.

Burn, all great. Love the hermit thrush.

Great shots Elphaba! Congrats on getting this handsome raptor in your pond!

Burd, you'll just have to take pictures during your lunch break at work. Great shot of the red-tailed. Good luck catching that falcon-you have to be fast!

GP, that Painted Bunting is just so colorful! You're not only lucky to see that one, but also the Indigo-I'm jealous!

Nanny, cute fall picture of your vulture. Great job with your waxwing too.

Mrs Ed, great, crisp and sharp photos of your pretty birds. Glad you're enjoying the colors on the creeper too-I'd love to get an additional one, maybe spring. Congrats on that first brown creeper.

Burn cute thrush. The ones here are really enjoying the berries on the virginia creeper vines. That "do" is cute. The nuthatch is a beauty.

Nanny, the mallards look so cute.

Elphaba what fantastic photos of your hawk-wow, I've never seen one at my birdbaths. Love those teardrops-thanks, I'd never noticed them before. Those photos are just amazing and I'm sharing your excitement!

This morning was a great day for pictures. First this Great Egret circled a couple times while I was out on the deck.

Then the crows chased this Bald Eagle into the far side of a pine tree below us and I had to wait a couple hours before it flew back past us.

I thought it was nice of this raptor to make another turn past me, but actually I think it was checking out my two barking dogs as they chased after it.

We continue to have both the Lesser and the American Goldfinches here in our garden.

Here's a California Towhee I got yesterday.

Thanks Duc! I actually had rented a lens (like yours) over the weekend, so took those pix with that. Now I'll be missing it all winter, lol.

here we go with those beautiful Toyon trees of yours!!!

OK Duc, those eagle shots are beyond belief. I think you must tie your camera to a pole and stick it way up in the air. Beautiful shots.

The Coopers Hawk came back! This time it plopped right in the bog filter. It drank some water and then just stood there in the water for at least 15 minutes looking around until my neighbor came out and called for his dog. Even then it waited in my tree until a squirrel chased it off. I think I saw it come back around and I think it's in one of my trees right now. I sure hope it didn't eat something that had eaten rat poison. That would make it thirsty. Last I checked it was 91 degrees out, so maybe it's just naturally thirsty. It's fun to have a hawk down so close, but I'm not going to have any other birds if he keeps hanging out here.

The funny thing was that butterflies flew over him three times and twice he ducked! Here he is sittin' in the bog filter.

Fabulous shots duc!! Love the flight ones along with the other two.

Another beauty of the raptor Elphaba!

Fabulous capture on that closer one Elphaba! I also worry about the rat poison and the raptors here. We have grape vineyards everywhere and I've heard they spread the poison in the fields.

Hopefully, it was just thirsty. I was just watering the plants and saw something else that I've never seen before. Instead of running from me, the anole lizards ran to me. They were licking the water off the leaves as fast as they could. I almost stepped on one.

This photo is not that good but it's a favorite bird, a Black-throated Green Warbler.

This message was edited Oct 26, 2010 5:17 PM

I think since we have had 4.6 inches of rain in the last 3 days, and the Dark-eyed Juncos are showing up, winter has arrived.

Hi adel, Nice one of the Junco! Wow that's a lot of rain.

They are great looking birds Elphaba!

I've nothing to post other than my compliments on some really lovely bird shots and have to say Wow! on the Cooper's Hawk, Elphaba.

Elphaba, congrats on the fabulous hawk photo op!! I have to admit that I have really hoped ours would come down to the bath because of our drought. No luck yet but got lots of others coming from time to time.

Female Blue Bird bathing.....

After she was done her partner came down. Again they waited until just before dark to come so not the best photos!

Elphaba, that was really something to have the lizards coming toward you! Cute warbler.

Adel, glad you are seeing the juncos too!

Nanny, your bluebirds are sweet in the bath. I think it's cute when the mate watches out for them nearby before taking a dip. I've noticed the House Finches do that too.

The Northern Flickers sure are fun to watch. Think this is a female.

This one is a red-shafted.

A female House Finch.

A Bewick's Wren at the bath.

Nice ones nanny and duc!

Great shots Duc! I really love the flicker photos.

Nanny, getting dark or not, good job with the bluebirds. I wish one of those would visit me!

Today was a pretty good day. Saw a sapsucker for the first time this winter. My pics of him aren't great though so hope I see him tomorrow. I'm going to start with the wet ones. I swear I took a ton of photos of this oriole dry and yet they are even more blurry than this one where she is wet and shaking.

Soaked-to-the-skin Orchard Oriole and House Sparrow

Tennessee Warbler with soaking wet face.

Same warbler. I like how it fits between the leaves in this pic.

The Cooper's Hawk came back. Chased a bird through my yellow flag iris and totally flattened it! I tried to limit myself to one shot since I shared so many yesterday, but there are three that I like and they are very different from yesterday too. Here's the arrival.

This one is just funny.

This was right after he climbed out of the irises that he destroyed, but that's OK.

Last one. This mockingbird was posed so strangely that I thought it was injured, but it was just trying to look tough to another mockingbird or maybe he was trying to look sexy.

Heh. That Hawk does NOT look happy with you in that "funny" pix!

Handsome male Cardinal.

Indigo Bunting.

Male Painted Bunting again today.

Male and female at the feeder.

Male in nearby shrub.