Daily Bird Pics (and conversation) #447

Well said GrannyG. All critters are welcome at my feeders too.

I can't imagine what that many cranes would sound like but I'd sure like to see them.

Adel, that eagle closeup is spectacular. I sure wish our eagles would come that close.

My birds started coming back after the last hawk attacks and now another one showed up yesterday. It managed to scare off all my small birds and then sat in a distant tree and enjoyed a shower in the falling rain.
Still several northern flickers here enjoying the persimmon tree.
This ruby-crowned kinglet is enjoying the peanut butter/nuts log on our deck.
Here's a female nuttall's woodpecker enjoying some of the peanut butter too.

Oh...love that kinglet shot duc!!

A Blue Jay has learned how to land on the feeder that GG mad me(designed for small birds really!)and pick out the peanuts!

Blue Bird

One morning we had 3 Hairy Woodpeckers out here at the same time! The 2 males in the tree and the female on the suet.

And we still have at least 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch around!

Wow Nanny, three woodies! Good for you. Loved seeing all your photos and wish I could get our bluebirds to come to the water like this.

Here's my yearly visitor and still considered a rare bird in our area, a slate-colored junco. I know most of you see these every day, but we don't.
I was out on the deck practicing with my new 300mm f/4 lens and the teleconverter when this Anna's hummer landed nearby.
Here's a different view of our female nuttall's woodpecker that loves the peanut butter/nuts log.

Wow duc......sweet!

Duc, those shots are fantastic!!

Thanks Nanny and Granny.

I'm having a good time with my new Canon 300mm f/4 lens. I can finally add my Kendo 1/4 extender to this lens and get pretty decent photos. Here's a few...
An anna's hummingbird, a sharp-shinned hawk, a dark-eyed junco and a ruby-crowned kinglet looking at me through the window.

Fabulous photos duc!!!!

Duc "pretty decent" is a really lame description for these fabulous shots! Love them. Just look at their eyes!! Wow!

WOW......

May I call upon "Santa Baby" for an early present i.e the Cannon 300mm f/4 lens, plus the said Kendo 1/4 extender to complete the package? Wishing upon a star. Lalalalala. I just can't get over those beauties, now credit has to go to the photographer behind the science, but at least I can wish for the equipments that help make the photos possible. Thanks duc.

You're all so sweet, thanks for your comments, but where are your pictures?

I was taking photos of birds farther out in the garden when this little lady landed not 4 ft. from me. I told her she was naughty when she stuck her tongue out.
I'm getting a little closer to the eagles in "their" tree.
Here's a California towhee.

Love that "naughty hummer" shot. All are fantastic.

Congrats on your new toy Duc. You have some really great shots. And It's so nice to see some hummers again!
Nanny, I'm seeing more HairyWP here too. They have this danse for dominancy for the territory, and they can be quite loud, fun to watch. Wish I could get a Bluebird in my yard.
Adel, lovely head shot of the Eagle.

I had an unsual visitor yesterday and today, it was the White-winged Crossbill feeding with some Redpolls. The Redpolls will be entertaining me this winter, I had two Red-winged Blackbird show up at the feeder yesterday, which is quite late for them, to still be around.
The Hairy and BlueJay agreed to have lunch together.

This message was edited Dec 5, 2012 10:36 PM

A hairy has been coming to our suet feeder. It has a woodpecker tailboard so perhaps it feels comfy there.

Dear Santa. Ditto to LilyLove's request. Oh and please send me a bunch of Redpolls like Burn has.

Gee, I sure wish the redpolls would come our home too. They are beautiful Burn and congratulations on the new white-winged crossbill. That female red-winged is a pretty one too.

Here's one of our intergraded Northern Flickers with the yellow tail with a red-tailed flicker which is normally found in our area.
The ruby-crowned kinglets are sure enjoying the peanut butter log on our deck.
Lots of dark-eyed juncos are here every day.

Vicki what is that tree the kinglet and junco are on? I feel like I've asked this before.

Burn, your Redpolls are so beautiful.

Duc, fantastic shots. I'm glad we all get to enjoy your new lens.

Thank you Margaret. Mrs. Ed, that's a manzanita tree branch that we recently found and my hubby carried home for me. That red will last for a long time and make my photos a little more colorful-I hope.

Yahoo, the first two robins finally arrived today. They're in the area year round but just come to our house when the berries are ready to eat in the trees. That bad part was we're socked in by a heavy fog so the photo not too clear.
Here's a downy woodpecker enjoying the remnants of a persimmon-upside down.

Hi, duc. Don't let a little fog deter you ..... Quite often the Conowingo Dam is engulfed in fog. What is frustrating is that the place has become so popular that one has to arrive early to get a decent parking space. So, I leave home in the morning dark, drive 50 miles as the sun is just coming up. A beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. As I start down a winding one mile road to the dam, the sunlight begins to diminish and when I arrive at water level you can't see a thing. So, I get a nice parking spot at 7:00 a.m. and sit and wait for the fog to burn off around 10:30 a.m to 11:00 a.m. That is, unless you want to get an occasional shot like these. Autofocus doesn't work too well in the fog ........... The eagles must have x-ray vision since there are power lines all over the place.

That manzanita is really gorgeous. I just looked it up and now i MUST have some. hahaha.

Linth, despite the fog I love your photos. I had to laugh at what you said about the long drive and the fog. We're going about the same distance on Monday because the weatherman predicted sun just that day. I'm crossing my fingers he's correct because my husband hates the long drive over the mountains and it's very hard to get photos of snow geese in the fog.

Mrs. Ed, the hummers love the manzanita blooms!

Here's a couple Anna's hummers I got yesterday.
A scrub jay is waiting for a turn at the seed feeder.

okay Duc, i'm reinstating my claim to moving in with you. I"ll take a spot on the deck, thanks much.

Hahahaha, Mrs. Ed. Please make room for me in the corner of Duc's garden as well. Please, please, please. I must see some of those western hummingbird is my claim. lol

Great shots everyone. It has been a long while since I have seen any Eagles...always hopeful when I am outside.

Thanks Mrs Ed and Lily, you're always welcome!
We took a short trip over the mountains to the Colusa Wildlife Refuge in search of the rare Falcated Duck that I got photos of last year. I was glad to see it was reported to have again returned but unfortunately it must have gone farther back into the marsh where we couldn't find it. Oh well, I did find some-
NorthernPintails-2 photos just because I love the pose in the second shot.
Northern Shoveler
and a Snowy Egret

fantastic

Duc, love the Pintail duck, Shoveler and Egret, and all your other birds.
Thanks Margaret. Hope you get your wish Mrs-Ed. :)

I have a few from this week during some snow and ice
A Mourning Dove, Common Redpoll, Pigeon couple, Evening Grosbeak and female White-winged Crossbill.

burn, what's great variety! Ah for Mrs. Ed. to complete her wish list, you've got to send her some of your handsome Common Redpolls too. LOL. Duc, your waterfowls variety are so beautiful! I so loved ducks. lol I do, I do.

These are the few that I see down here most often.
1. Grebe
2. Residential Pekin Ducks couple
3. The newly arrivals; Canadian Geese

Nice Grebe, one to add to my lifer list eventually. And Peking duck too.

Burn, you do have several birds that I'd love to see. The redpolls, evening grosbeaks and that crossbill are just a few. Wonderful photos of them and the pigeon pair are adorable.

Lily, I do hope you get the hear the pied-billed grebes-always sounds like you're in a jungle when they're around. Glad the pekin ducks are back-do they stay all year? Cute one of the geese.

Here's a juvenile bald eagle that I took through the fog.
A few robins have started showing up.
A yellow-rumped warbler
A ruby-crowned kinglet
And, the cedar waxwings are arriving.

It looks like it getting a bit chilly at your place, Burn. I would also love to have some redpolls. They are a really pretty bird, as is the waxwing.

You must always be seeing something different on your lake, Kim. Nice geese.

Duc, the variety of birds you see is amazing and the quality of your photos is superb.

From a few months back, a Laughing Kookaburra sitting on the deck rail. Then, a baby Grey Butcherbird on the rail, also being fed by a parent. Last, a Little Corella.

The Rainbow Bee-eaters are back. I find them really difficult birds to photograph. They are quite shy. Then a couple of shots of a Singing Honeyeater. (I hope I haven't posted these before as they were taken a few weeks back.)

Margaret, all your birds have such beautiful colors and show so much personality. Well done on each of them. The Little Corella is just gorgeous. My hummers would sure love those purple blooms, is that a tree or bush?

The yellow-rumped warblers continue to keep me entertained.
This white-throated sparrow is considered an uncommon arrival in our county.
Here's a couple of the nuttall's woodpeckers that also keeps me entertained every day.

Yes Margaret it's been a bit chilly the last couple of days. But today was pretty mild at -2C. A snow storm of about 35 to 40cm is headed our way for tonight and tomorrow. I expect it to be very busy at the feeders tomorrow.
Awesome birds you have, like Duc said, just love the personality and colors of them all.

Kim I have enough Redpolls for everyone ;).

Duc , glad your being entertained by your birds as well. Your Nuttall WP is showing quite a bit of personality too. Love it.

My little lady Cardinal showed up during the day, just when the sun peak through the clouds. She usually only show up , early morning or late evening, when the light is to low for pictures.
This is the Grackle that wants to brave the winter here.
Mourning Dove, resting in the tree .

Only seen the cock cardinal here. Glad to see our downy woodpecker interested in the suet feeder rather than doing holes in the house.

Thanks, duc and Burn. Duc, I think it's a morning glory creeper.

Beautiful birds Margaret and everyone. I've a brief visitor yesterday to our neighbor's backyard. The Bald Eagle-- The Crows however, were quick to let the Eagle know he isn't welcomed here.... the Eagle then took off.

well, we prefer the eagle to the crows. They should know that.

What a treat, Kim. I really like that first shot.