A small group of ducks takes flight. The ducks were quite wary of cars, and quite understandably, as it is waterfowl hunting season.
Monday, January 21, 2013
San Luis NWR - Common Snipe - 1/20/13
The highlight of my day was finding this Common Snipe up close enough to get a good photograph of. This is my fist pic of one of these birds. Made my day :) Although their name is COMMON Snipe, they are not all that common to find. They blend in with their surroundings quite well.
San Luis NWR - Greater Yellowlegs - 1/20/13
The Greater Yellowlegs is a large, sandpiper like bird, commonly found at the refuge in the fall, winter and spring.
San Luis NWR - Western Meadowlark - 1/20/13
The Western Meadowlark has a rich, flute-like song, and has a bright yellow chest. Pretty bird!
San Luis NWR - Northern Harrier - 1/20/13
This is the male Northern Harrier, as he is grey in color, while the female is brown.
San Luis NWR - Tule Elk - 1/20/13
Not the greatest shot, as he was quite far away, and I was in my car, and the elk was behind a chain-link fence, but it was still cool to see :)
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Lake Ming and Hart Park - 1/19/13
It was a chilly morning at Lake Ming on Saturday. A group of American Coots were walking around the parking lot, when all of a sudden, they took off running. A Cooper's Hawk was flying overhead. Without a moment's hesitation, he swooped down, and just like that, caught himself a Coot breakfast. Unfortunate for the Coot, but, hey, a hawk's gotta eat! He quickly dragged his catch over to some brush, where he could eat in peace. But not for long. For a few minutes later, a Red Tailed Hawk flew overhead and landed on the fence, not 10 feet from where the Cooper's Hawk (a smaller hawk than the Red Tail) was nervously eating. Lucky for him, a couple of American Crows soon came by and chased the Red Tailed Hawk into a eucalyptus tree, where they kept harassing him until he flew off for good.
And that was all in the first 15 minutes of me arriving at Lake Ming. Pretty cool.
During the day, I came across quite a few birds: Spotted Towhee, Hermit Thrush, Varied Thrush, House Sparrow, White Crowned Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, Western Scrub Jay, American Crow, American Kestrel, Red Tailed Hawk, Red Shouldered Hawk, Rose Ringed Parakeet, Nuttal's Woodpecker, Acorn Woodpecker, Brown Creeper, Great Horned Owl, Snowy Egret, Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Flicker, American White Pelican, Black Crowned Night Heron, Mallard, American Coot, Wood Duck, Osprey, Dark Eyed Junco, Ruby Crowned Kinglet, Yellow Rumped Warbler...and I am sure I am forgetting a few
Later on in the day, I got to see an Osprey go fishing and come up with quite the catch, only to be chased by a persistent Gull. Luckily, he held onto his catch and the Gull gave up.
It was a good day at the park.
I posted pics below, and the whole album can be viewed at My Flickr Album.I will post pics from today's adventure tomorrow, as I am a wee bit behind - lol. I am off ....somewhere tomorrow. Probably going to the Kern and Pixley National Wildlife Refuges. I went to the Merced and San Luis National Wildlife Refuges today.
Until then, Happy Trails!
And that was all in the first 15 minutes of me arriving at Lake Ming. Pretty cool.
During the day, I came across quite a few birds: Spotted Towhee, Hermit Thrush, Varied Thrush, House Sparrow, White Crowned Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, Western Scrub Jay, American Crow, American Kestrel, Red Tailed Hawk, Red Shouldered Hawk, Rose Ringed Parakeet, Nuttal's Woodpecker, Acorn Woodpecker, Brown Creeper, Great Horned Owl, Snowy Egret, Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Flicker, American White Pelican, Black Crowned Night Heron, Mallard, American Coot, Wood Duck, Osprey, Dark Eyed Junco, Ruby Crowned Kinglet, Yellow Rumped Warbler...and I am sure I am forgetting a few
Later on in the day, I got to see an Osprey go fishing and come up with quite the catch, only to be chased by a persistent Gull. Luckily, he held onto his catch and the Gull gave up.
It was a good day at the park.
I posted pics below, and the whole album can be viewed at My Flickr Album.I will post pics from today's adventure tomorrow, as I am a wee bit behind - lol. I am off ....somewhere tomorrow. Probably going to the Kern and Pixley National Wildlife Refuges. I went to the Merced and San Luis National Wildlife Refuges today.
Until then, Happy Trails!
Hart Park - Belted Kingfisher - 1/19/13
You can always tell when a Belted Kingfisher is around, by its distinctive call.
Hart Park - American White Pelican - 1/19/13
This American White Pelican has been hanging out at Hart Park Lake recently.
Hart Park - Osprey - 1/19/13
This was the first time I saw an Osprey at Hart Park. It was quite a treat.
Hart Park - Brown Creeper - 1/19/13
These birds are very difficult to photograph, as, first, you have to spot one (which is, in and of itself, difficult to do) and, second, they are always on the move, most often, way up high in the tree.
Hart Park - Brown Creeper - 1/19/13
Can you spot the bird here? The Brown Creeper is a master of camouflage. You have to really look to spot these guys.
Hart Park - Red Tailed Hawk - 1/19/13
The Red Tailed Hawk soars overhead. searching for a tasty morsel to snack on.
Hart Park - Northern Mockingbird - 1/19/13
This House Sparrow decided to photobomb the Northern Mockingbird - lol
Hart Park - House Sparrow - 1/19/13
One of the most common birds you can find, they are still quite cute. This is a male House Sparrow.
Hart Park - Spotted Towhee - 1/19/13
After the longest time, I finally came up with a better pic of this guy :)
Hart Park - Varied Thrush - 1/19/13
Even in a less-than-stellar-shot like this, the Varied Thrush is still quite a stunning bird.
Hart Park - Red Shouldered Hawk - 1/19/13
The Red Shouldered Hawk sits on his perch, searching for some breakfast, perhaps.
Lake Ming - Red Tailed Hawk - 1/19/13
The Red Tailed Hawk looks down at the Cooper's Hawk, eating his breakfast. A few moments later, a couple of Crows came by and chased the Red Tail off. Guess the Cooper's Hawk got a lucky break there.
Lake Ming - Cooper's Hawk - 1/19/13
I saw a group of Coots hanging around the parking lot at Lake Ming, and all of a sudden they took off running. Then I saw why....A Cooper's Hawk was on the prowl. Then, he swooped down and caught himself a Coot breakfast.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Kern River Preserve - Oak Titmouse - 1/13/13
It was a cold-to-the-bone kind of morning in the Kern River Valley this morning. I think it was about 18 degrees this morning when I got to the preserve in Weldon, CA, bur even so, the wildlife was still up and about, including this little Oak Titmouse, who was all in a tizzy about something or another, chirp chirp chirping away, fluttering from one branch to another. I don't think the temps got above 44 (and that was in Lake Isabella in the afternoon) all day. But the sun was shining, the birds were singing....it was a great day :)
Saturday, January 12, 2013
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