Just had a bird frenzy @ the feeder moments ago... think there was another Oriole, but might need help identifying. pics to follow
Got some good shots Spoiler Goldfinch (for real this time) Spoiler Eastern Bluebird & mealworm Spoiler Another female Baltimore Oriole Spoiler Unsure, but believe it to be another Pine Warbler
What kind of distance are you shooting from with your camera Jorts ? using the full 300 zoom normally?
Picks taken from sunroom/lounge area inside our house. The feeder is about 12-15 feet away & pretty much always at the full 300mm.
There's such a variety of birds in the area... having the 300mm & has really increased my ability to identify species. Downside with doing most of my viewing inside, is that I'm not really exposed to the songs/calls...I find myself listening to them on Merlin ID, to help identification further when I'm out in the neighborhood.
Few more from this morning... Tons of activity. Saw a male oriole scope out the feeder, but wasn't able to get it in-frame. They've actually been hesitant to visit the feeder, despite oranges/grape jelly... merely looking from above. Thinking I might need to set something up a little higher on the stand, to entice them to visit. Spoiler lighting is pretty poor on on the Goldfinch... just up from a Zoom call & tried to get the shot quickly
My friends’ son is really into birding. (His family and ours went to Cape May earlier in the year.) He drove up to Bayonne NJ this morning and got this pic:
nothing like that new species feeling when you weren't even bird watching (and didn't do anything to coax to your yard). American Robin, species #16 (I only count stuff I see at home). I was making lunch and grabbed my camera after I saw a couple of these out of the corner of my eye.
Pretty awesome. There was one in Central Park last week. There was also an article in WSJ about it. I can post it in full if anyone is interested. Here was my favorite part. The snowy owl’s popularity is soaring, in part due to its role as Hedwig in the Harry Potter series. They often migrate south from the Arctic and look for winter hunting grounds, including in beachy areas and big, open marshes in New England, New York and New Jersey. Several have perched lately in the neighboring borough of Queens. This week’s visitor was believed to be the first documented sighting of a snowy owl in Central Park since 1890, said Paul Sweet, an avid birder and collection manager in the American Museum of Natural History’s ornithology department. He said the dark bars on its wings suggest the owl was likely hatched last year and making a maiden voyage south.
They came around to the front yard. Cool to see 10 or so moving around the yard pecking and kicking away. I gotta get learn how to take better pictures. These are about as sharp as a pillow
Flock of 50-100 came through my neighborhood a few weeks ago. When i was a kid, in Indy, they were everywhere... & I don’t think I’d seen a robin in over a decade.
Used my Christmas GC to WBU and fiddled with my camera settings for motion. Happy with the siskin in flight but more to improve on.
Would appreciate a hint or two on this. I've eliminated or not been persuaded by everything from Merlin
Lol yeah that's not been getting much action. I've seen some feathers on a few occasions but not a successful catch. I don't expect to, that mother fucker is lightening fast. He dives into pine tree in our yard going warp speed.
Robin stopped in the sunlight, allowing me to catch his/her colors, way better than the image above, captured in the shade.
Saw a ton of stuff on my hike today. 4 Red-Tailed's, 7 Acorn Woodpeckers, Nuttal's Woodpecker, Scrub-Jays fighting with Stellar's Jays, a ton of Hummingbirds, and 30 Bushtits. Also 3 separate Wrentits that I never saw, but they have such a distinctive call, it's easy to ID. Male Anna's I'm pretty sure. Nuttal's
I'll post some pics later, but had a pitch of about 10-15 Orioles at the feeder yesterday. I'd buy Smuckers stock, once you all divest your Gamestop holdings... they are tearing through the jelly. Also...I have a bird watching problem. Grabbed a second pole system, for the backyard & I now have a view from my office. Going back to WBU, for another platform & tube feeder.
I’m very jealous of your orioles, Jorts. I’ve been enjoying this irruption of purple finches plus some nice mixed goldfinch/siskin feeding groups. I’d seen purple finches before, but never really taken the time to appreciate them until this winter. The males are absolutely stunning.
Owsley Still haven’t seen a purple finch... have a couple really vibrant house finches that get me all excited, only to be disappointed when I grab binoculars
So I watched that owl for a while, at least 30 minutes. It spent a ton of time on the ground running kinda chicken-like from place to place to eat earthworms. I know barred owls had a super varied diet, but I never really thought of them exhibiting this behavior. It probably ate a dozen worms in my yard before flying back into the trees. They’ve been crazy active during these cold nights, and they definitely use the feeder area as a hunting ground. Thankfully there are more than enough squirrels and a few rats to sustain the pair.
Those orioles are beautiful Jorts Your local WBU (and your neighbors) is lucky to have you. I dropped $100 there the other day. You might have me beat 7-10x
Just looked this up. 2000m equivalent My binocs (8x zoom) create a far better image than 8x zoom via Canon lenses. Not sure why, but the optics are just pristine and the shallow depth of field via binocs is so enjoyable.
Great detail on this siskin, however TMB's upload said the image was too large and I'm providing at less than full rez. I'm hoping to catch the much rarer goldfinch at this distance shortly.
Immature/non-breeding male Palm Warbler stealing all the live mealworms, set out for the Bluebirds... disappointing my wife Spoiler
Guys - mostly a lurker, but wanted to say this is my favorite thread on TMB. Big bird fan, and it’s awesome to see so many internet pals/peers are as fascinated as I am.
i had a northern flicker in my back yard a week ago. it was exciting. i've seen a lot of redtails the past month, can't seem to get pics without spooking them off.