Close Encantos of the Bird Kind

I managed to squeeze in some early morning birding at Encanto Park on Sunday. Since I had been thinking I wouldn't be able to go birding at all this weekend, everything I saw and photographed was already a bonus. The first bird of the morning was a handsome White-Crowned Sparrow. This was a peculiar sighting in that there were maybe a dozen White-Crowned sparrows in this little area, but only two of them had their full adult plumage. I have never seen such a high ratio of juveniles to adults.

They all kept pretty low to the ground, so when this adult flew up into the light for 5 minute's peace, I quickly snapped the picture and carried on my way. 

It's been bugging me a little bit that I did not yet have good Grackle pictures. You can find the birds just about anywhere, but it can be hard to find good specimens for photography. You don't want any of the mangy birds that are usually missing feathers or hanging out in dirty/unphotogenic places. You also want to get the light at the right angle so you can showcase the Grackle's impressive iridescence. This bold contender was occupying a little rock in one of the golf course ponds. Although the yellow of the eye is a bit blown by the excessive light, I'm keeping the photo as it marks an important milestone. This is my first action shot of a defecating bird!

A nearby female provided another photo-op. She was more composed, or at least more polite in front of the camera. However, a few theatrics wouldn't have hurt. The female Grackle is perhaps one of the most dull birds you'll see. To be fair, she has a bit of the iridescent green on her shoulders and back, but it's hard for me to get past the monochromatic brown. I imagine part of my hang-up is that I usually see Grackles in dirty places, which makes the darker colors seem all the more corrupted, and it's hard to shake that stigma. Of course, there's more to a bird than its color, and I was glad to finally have a pair of Great-Tailed Grackles added to my photographic collection.   

Seeing this male Anna's Hummingbird in all of his scintillating glory was definitely the highlight of the day. I spotted the flash of red atop a bottle tree and snapped. This first picture was taken probably 15 feet from the base of the trunk, with the treetop being another 20 feet high (my mathematical wife tells me that means it was around 25 feet away). I'm including this initial picture just to give an idea of how incredibly eye-catching his ruby helmet was in the morning light, even from a distance. 

This precocious Anna's started to fly rounds between a couple of the nearby trees and bushes, stopping briefly to sound his trilling call, take a breath, and then quickly move on to his next checkpoint. I was very fortunate to have him stop close by and give me a great look at his broadside. It's amazing to me, given the previous coloration, the total lack of visible red when he was perpendicular to the sun. Looking at this picture alone, I'd never otherwise assume this Hummer had anything but dark grayish/greenish feathers on his face.

I was unlucky that he did not turn fully into the sun (just as well, it probably would have been blinding). Even this slight turn of his head, maybe 20 degrees, filled his face with color. I love that even the little side patch behind the eye lights up. The scaly green back and fluffy leggings alone would make this a beautiful bird, but with that scarlet headgear it's almost an overload!

I was leaving the park feeling pretty great. From no birding at all to a pooping Grackle and a super cool Hummingbird, it was already a great Sunday. So it was icing on the cake when this Harris's Hawk landed on the divider for the adjacent golf course driving range. He let out his recognizable, hoarse "scrawwww" and declared this telephone pole to be solely his property. I see Harris's hawks a lot on the east side of town, but this was my first ever in west Phoenix.

Pretty Things

I won't be birding this weekend, so instead I'm looking over miscellaneous recent photos and sharing them here. First, for your approval, I submit here the fattest ground squirrel I've ever seen.

I've done earlier posts concerning bird tongues and bird feet. Now I have a couple photos of fluffy and fuzzy fannies. I just don't really know what to do with them...Bonus points though if you can name the two species shown here.

Perhaps the prettiest desert specialists you'll find in Arizona, Rosy-Faced Lovebirds are always great to see, even if they're eating your lawn.

This hummingbird (female Anna's?) was not the most colorful, but the soft lighting and salmon-colored flowers made for a great bokeh. Apart from featuring a female, there's something overtly feminine about this picture, and it's one of my favorite hummingbird photos. 

Beautiful Birds at the Botanical Gardens

I had been having some difficulty getting quality photos at the DBG lately. The colorful birds seemed to be taking a break these last couple weeks, but they came out for the Saturday morning bird-walk with gusto! There were some surprising sightings to begin the day, including a Loggerhead Shrike and a Peregrine Falcon. Only a few minutes into the walk and I was already satisfied. At long last, I got some clear pictures of the Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher!

It had quite the fuzzy fanny, and gave me a good look at the diagnostic white feathers on the tail. If there's white below, it's the Blue-Gray, and not the similar looking Black-Tailed.

Another highlight of the day was this male Cardinal. He stopped by to provide a nice contrast with the blue of the Gnatcatchers and the dim lighting of the overcast sky. It's unusual to see Cardinals this time of year in Arizona, and this came right after I had seen a female at the Water Ranch. Birding synchronicity strikes again!

He enjoyed the security of this Arizona rosewood tree and basked in the confidence that HE was the most colorful things at the Gardens today.

As we made a circuit around the Gardens, the Orange-Crowned Warblers and Kinglets began to emerge from the chaparral. There were plenty of Starlings and Mockingbirds , and one particularly audacious Curve-Billed Thrasher. He must be the sheriff in these parts. I watched him chase away two Mockers, a Cactus Wren, and even stand his ground against that the most heinous of nature's enemies...MAN!!! dun Dun DUN!

The other desert critters cowered before the awesome presence and authority of this mighty Thrasher!

It was a brief but brilliant morning of birding that both restored my confidence in the DBG and the payoffs of persistence (this was maybe the 12th time I've chased after Gnatcatchers for a picture). As a part of the DBG routine, I stopped by the Papago Ponds on the way home. The Wigeons and the Pintails weren't around today, but there was a peculiar Green Heron hanging out on one of the drainage valves.

His feet were holding on in such a way that it looked like he was trying to open the valve. With his efforts in vain, he turned a beady-eyed face towards the heavens, and contemplated his small, small existence in the universe. I like what this head position does with the rusty coloration on the sides. It looks like the world's most righteous ruddy mustache, gently cascading down his pointy face.

Something else I've been wondering about the Green Herons--where do their necks go? Other Egrets and Herons tend to keep their necks in the s-shaped wimple, but the Green Heron, like the Yellow and Black-Crowned Night Herons, can just kind of withdraw it. Cool birds, and curious too.

A Weekend at the Ranch

This morning stayed overcast. The temperature held at a nice 60 degrees and the cloud cover stayed in place all day. This made for some GREAT birding, and some lousy photography. I saw three new birds today: a Northern Harrier, a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, and a Ruddy Duck, and I've got the blurry photos to prove it!

After dropping Maria off at the airport for the weekend (that's not where she's spending her weekend, mind you), I needed to rebound. I got to the Gilbert Water Ranch nice and early, waiting for a beautiful sunrise and some avian action. The birds started to stir, but the sun just never really came up. A thick layer of clouds had rolled in during the night, and even as I write this now, they hold the valley in a dusky lighting. The birds and the birders loved the shade, and they were all over the place. The camera didn't like it so much, and anything more than ten feet away was going to be a blurry capture.

Nonetheless, the first bird of the day was a new one. This female Ruddy Duck was sitting, unescorted, at the dead center of the main pond. She seemed a bit surly, perhaps worried that the other ducks were prettier. While I assured her this was not the case, she still stayed well away and free from further scrutiny.

                                      

There were reports of a Eurasian Wigeon hidden somewhere among the dabbling ducks. Even though the Marsh Wrens kept me company in my stake-out, I didn't see any Eurasians. Soon, my attention moved on from the ducks to the local Coots, as it often does...

I've been taking lots of Coot photos lately, and this one may be my favorite so far, even though there are no Coot feet to be seen! This is the sort of pose you see Swans making in an ice sculpture, not so much Coots in a muddy pond. They're just full of surprises.

The desert shrubs that border the pond played host to the usual populations of Verdin, Abert's Towhee, and Sparrows. These chilly days have now brought the charming addition of Kinglets to the Phoenix area. With their soft yellows, bold eye-rings, and flashes of ruby and gold, they add a fluid vibrancy to the vegetation as it turns sallow in the dry autumn chill.

The Kinglets surfaced off and on throughout the morning, and at long last I had one perch just in front of me. Time seemed to slow down as the autofocus honed in. Kinglets can't hold still for more than 0.014 seconds though, and with the lighting so poor there was little chance of increasing shutter speed. As I pressed the button, the inevitable happened. The Kinglet had a spasm and then promptly flew off. See the crown? New bird number 2!

The always-handsome Lincoln's Sparrows could be seen flying in and out of the drying foliage at the water's edge. They never quite came out in the open, but I love that they have all of those autumn colors represented so well in their feathers and their choice of perches.

                               

 The birds were moving around pretty quick this morning, but this Black Phoebe seemed a bit slow in the head. It wasn't doing very well at catching flies, and it seemed to be following and trying to imitate a group of Lesser Goldfinches. I was able to take advantage of his stupor to get close enough for some better photos of this usually skittish bird.

               

Space cadet

      

This female Northern Harrier was the third new bird of the day. Seeing this streamlined raptor flying low over the drying grass was totally unexpected. Even at a considerable distance, it was clear this was no Harris's or Red-Tailed Hawk. She didn't seem to be hunting so much as just terrorizing the Sparrows. She always kept her distance from me, but she continued to make her strafing runs throughout the morning.

The Osprey is a more common raptor at the Water Ranch and it is equally impressive. She spent a while on one of the constructed perches out in the middle of the ponds, but when she seemed to have a mind for breakfast, I began to really begrudge the gloomy weather.  She's pictured here retreating from some grackles. I always wondered why raptors let themselves get bullied by such birds. Maybe it's just not worth their energy to retaliate, but do they ever think of their reputation?

After chasing these predators around the ponds, I decided to pick a spot and sit for a while. I hid myself behind a couple granite boulders and waited to see birds came along to feed on the mesquite.

The Yellow-Rumped Warblers have to be some of the most commonly seen birds now in these late weeks of autumn. They outnumber the Mourning Doves at the Water Ranch, and would probably give the Eurasian Sparrows a run for their money. They typically like to stay hidden away in the trees and feast on insects, but every now and then they'll come down to ground level and forage.

                           

This unfortunate Curve-Billed Thrasher was hanging out by the picnic area, and his unusual gait caught my eye. His right leg was missing just below the joint, and a large ball of scar tissue or infected tissue or maybe even a tumor had sealed it off. Despite this handicap, he was pretty mobile. He probably has one heck of a story to tell.

It's always a pleasure to see Say's Phoebes. They've got a bit of bulk to them, they're colorful, and they're pretty confident to boot. They're comfortable on the ground, in the trees, and hovering anywhere in between.

                         

When this female cardinal flew into a nearby tree, I briefly exalted in the thought that my search for a Pyrrhuloxia had finally ended. No such luck, but the female Cardinal is still a beautiful bird, and they're increasingly uncommon this time of year.

                                  

 The Red-Wing Blackbirds seem to really congregate as the weather cools down, and I've been pursuing a good Blackbird photo in earnest now that they're plentiful in Phoenix. It's a tricky task to catch the black feathers and eye, while also showcasing the brilliant red and yellow shoulders. This picture came out a bit blurry, but I really liked the pointedness and sort of flame-like quality that the blur adds to the bird here. It was a bit of inadvertent artsiness.

There's been a funny trend to my recent birding outings in that the last bird I always see is a Snowy Egret. Solitary and composed birds, they usually make for good photographic subjects, and their methodical wading has a very calming effect on the observer. It was a lovely day of birding and a great day for the List. The Water Ranch never disappoints.

Power Birding

I fit a 15 minute birding bout in this evening at Encanto Park. The Lovebirds, Grackles, Pigeons, and Mallards were all over, and the visiting Ring-Necked Ducks were also well represented. The surprise of the evening was seeing a Brown Creeper. I did not have my ISO adjusted for the dimming light, and he had moved on before I got a picture, but it was nice to glimpse. Brown Creepers are cool birds and ones I forget about until they pop up here and there, just to remind you of their humble existence before they move on, resurfacing from time to time and seldom when I expect it.
There was also an interesting Gild Woodpecker hanging around, who was catching the light on his undersides in a way that gave him a yellow belly. To make a birding joke, he was trying to become a Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker.

There's a little gang of Embden Geese at the park. They don't make for exciting viewing, but I like the way their neck feathers congeal, and their big blue eyes.

It should hold me over until the weekend.

I believe the term used these days is 'Epic Fail'

I went out to the Tres Rios preserve again this Sunday, hoping to get some nice footage to post during the week. For the first time in my short bird-photographing career, I was totally thwarted! I don't know if it was just impatience, but the birds all seemed extraordinarily skittish, and I did not come away with a single good photo. I'm sure this is all part of the job, but it's still pretty surprising.
Anyhow, I hope to get something nice this weekend. In the mean time, I took a few blurry pictures of some Stilts next to a rancid-smelling dairy farm on the drive home.
: ::sigh:: : Ya can't win em' all...

A Brisk Morning's Birding

It was chilly today, for maybe the first time this fall. Rainclouds had come in over night, and they kept the temperature around 42 degrees this morning. Dressed in my normal shorts and a thin, long-sleeved shirt, I assumed it would warm up pretty soon (as the weather usually does in Arizona). I was wrong. My unpreparedness cut this Saturday's birding excursion a bit short, but it was still a nice jaunt around the Papago Ponds.

A Northern Mockingbird was my first avian specimen for the day. Despite being pretty close to me, he seemed to have other things on his mind. I asked him if he wanted to talk about it, but he just flew away in a huff.

It was a little bit surprising to see frogs around the pond edges, and not just because they have a pretty good camouflage. It's possible that today's cold caught them by surprise (and that it wasn't actually that bad). They're usually much more elusive when the weather gets chilly.

There were still plenty of Ring-Necked Ducks around the ponds, including a few juveniles. I had never seen this stage of development before, with the red eye and the singular ring on the bill, so it was a nice shake-up, even if they weren't new birds.

Some nearby mesquite afforded me another try at photographing Gnatcatchers this morning. As I've mentioned before, I have a lot of difficulty getting satisfactory Gnatcatcher photos. Given the amount of opportunities I've had, they may in fact thwart me more often than any Warbler, but it's always nice to observe them nonetheless.

On the other hand, this Snowy Egret was very cooperative. He seemed very proud of his little rock and was determined to hold, regardless of the weather or camera-wielding gawkers. It's kind of interesting how the yellow is showing through on his legs, and some black is showing through on his feet. It looks like the tougher skin has rubbed away. This is probably pretty common with these kinds of long-legged birds, but I'd never noticed it before.

My favorite part of the chilly day had to be catching this Coot out of water. I love Coot feet. Their reptilian texture and color, along with the oversized lobed toes are totally unique.

Coot faces are also very pleasant, even with a potentially menacing red eye, and I had never noticed their white rumps until today. I had always assumed the slate gray/black color went all over, but their little white tuft sticks out at about the same length and width to match the beak--pretty symmetrical.

Neotropic Cormorant

I have a really hard time telling the Neotropic and Double-Crested Cormorants apart. In Texas it was easier, but here in Arizona, it's possible to find both inhabiting the waterways, and I see Cormorants all over the city.

The difficulty of classifying them aside, I love to get a good look at Cormorants. It's fun to watch them swim with their somewhat serpentine bodies, and it's downright comical to see them hanging their wings out to dry, like a kid that just got his t-shirt all soaked. I also think that Cormorants have some of the most stunning eyes in the avian world (granted, I haven't seen a White-Eyed Vireo yet). Raptor eyes are large and piercing, but there's something about the aqua blue in the Cormorant eye that's totally transfixing (click for a larger view).

I believe that the strong white border behind the beak, along with the near lack of orange towards the front of the beak make this a Neotropic Cormorant (let me know if I'm wrong). Concealed behind a palm tree, I got to take a few nice shots and stare into the blue Cormorant eyes that take you away to a distant sea.

Hey there family and friends.

Be sure to check out the Butlers Birds and Things post on the Birding Is Fun! website, and stay tuned here for more fun to come over the next few days.

Happy weekend, happy birding!

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