Here are some photos of house finches and purple finches, for comparison.
Males
Purple finch vs. house finch
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Another shot of the downy woodpecker on wasp nest
Here’s another shot of the female downy woodpecker looking for food by tearing apart a dormant wasp’s nest.
For the Birds: Look carefully in the fall
Last fall, I watched and attempted in vain to photograph several little birds fitting among low-lying bushes at a particular spot in the woods.
Eventually, I was able to get a good look at one and identify them as golden-crowned kinglets. Fitful for kinglets, they moved constantly. They sat still for only a second or two as they moved from one branch to the next. Most of the time, they remained concealed by leaves.
The other day, I walked by that same exact patch in the woods and noticed two small birds flitting among the bushes. My instinct was to move on without getting a better look, as I assumed they were golden-crowned kinglets that wouldn’t let me photograph them anyway.
Continue readingFor the Birds: What’s in a (bird) name?
Some bird names are spot on. Yellow-rumped warblers have yellow rumps as an obvious field mark. Mourning doves have a mournful-sounding call. Bluebirds are, well, blue birds.
Some bird names do not seem to make sense. A red belly is hardly a red-bellied woodpecker’s most distinctive field mark. Yes, their bellies are red and yes, the name red-headed woodpecker is already taken by a more deserving species, but still. American robins are actually thrushes, and most warblers do not warble.
Then there are bird names that make sense only after looking up the meaning of a few words. Semipalmated plovers and semipalmated sandpipers are so named because there is partial webbing between their toes. The zoological definition of palmated, according to dictionary.com, is “web-footed.” I was several years into my birding hobby before I learned this. I don’t think I gave it a second thought before I heard it for the first time. I just accepted that as the name and moved on.
Continue readingCatbird photo just because
Here’s a handsome, cooperative gray catbird I came across on my walk this morning.
For the Birds: Fishing, birding: It’s all good outdoors
My oldest son Andrew, who somehow is now a full-blown adult at age 21, recently took up shore fishing as a hobby. I was happy when he told me because any hobby that requires spending a lot of time in the great outdoors away from screens and technology is a good thing.
I was equally happy when he asked me to come along on a recent outing. I have fished on and off throughout my life, but the hobby never really grabbed me in the same way as some other outdoor pursuits. I have great memories of trout fishing with my brother when we were teens and teaching my boys to fish when they were youngsters, but other than that, my fishing experiences are rather few and far between.
I purchased a few marine fishing licenses online, and Andrew and I headed to the Connecticut coast of Long Island Sound. I brought my camera just in case there happened to be birds there too.
Continue readingA few more gray tree frog photos
Here are a few more photos of the gray tree frog spotted the other on a trail at work.
For the Birds: A flurry like no other
Birdwatching can be a roller coaster at times with next to nothing happening for long stretches and then, seemingly out of nowhere, short bursts of activity will lift your spirits and make it all worthwhile.
When the birdwatching is slow, particularly in the winter, birdwatchers always hold out hope for that flurry. While spring offers a more consistent level of sightings, summer can be similar to winter on that roller coaster ride.
In the winter, the flurry usually consists of a mixed flock of titmice and chickadees with perhaps other species such as nuthatches and goldfinches joining in. In the summer, the flurries may consist of robins, catbirds, blue jays, cardinals and other New England nesting birds.
Continue readingFor the Birds: Choose the binoculars that best your individual needs
It’s hard to know who or what to believe anymore. One news channel will tell you one thing and the rival channel will tell you the opposite.
Sometimes, things you see with your own eyes are denied or distorted by the media or politicians. I believe that is called gaslighting, but I’m not entirely sure what that recently overused phrase actually means. Again, people seem to have different opinions on how to use the term.
It comes down to trusting your own instincts. The internet, the major source of “news” for so many people these days, is littered with opinions masquerading as facts.
I kept seeing a click-bait ad showing a banana with the text saying something along the lines of “these are the top 10 foods to avoid.” Are bananas bad for you? I asked myself. I did an internet search to find the “facts” and was amused with the results. Of the 10 stories that came up on the first page of the search, five said bananas were good for you and five said they were bad for you. (I think the argument against bananas is that they are high in sugars. The banana positive articles highlighted the vitamins and minerals in the fruit.)
Continue readingFor the Birds: An owl experience to remember
Owls have always been somewhat of a blind spot for me in terms of finding birds. I love owls (who doesn’t?) and spend inordinate amounts of time in their habitat, but rarely do I see these mystical birds.
It’s not that I never see them. I’ve seen the occasional barred owl and a few great-horned owls in my day, and even snowy owls a handful of times, but the sightings are few and far between.
There was a winter a few years back when everyone was seeing barred owls. I was able to see a few during that spurt. Remember the “winter of the snowy owl?” The Arctic birds were showing up everywhere along the coast and even inland. I saw three snowy owls that winter. Then there was the great gray owl that delighted birders in Newport in 2017. I saw that one too. Under “normal” circumstances, however, my owl sightings are rare.
With my actual owl sightings at a minimum, I was happy to vicariously experience a neat owl experience relayed to me by Mary Ellen of Keene. Mind you, she and her family live not far from downtown Keene.
Continue reading
Birds of New England.com 