Category: birds

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 13, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today we have part 2 of Tony Eales’s recent safari to Botswana (part 1 is here). Tony’s narrative is indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

Botswana Safari Part II

After we left the Okavango Delta camp, we moved northeast into the Moremi Game Reserve, still mostly in the delta. Being winter, the nights were cold and mornings brisk but the days warmed up nicely. It was strange to Australian eyes to see a forest in a landscape much like Australia but with deciduous trees. There’s only one species of deciduous tree native to Australia so it looked very off to our eye. In addition, the forest looked like it had been trashed by heavy machinery and had regrown from broken trunks and suckers. Of course, the heavy machinery in question was elephants—major shapers of the habitat.

Here’s an African bush elephant breaking off a piece of a Mopane tree. it will chew the bark off and throw away the stick:

Here’s a baby begging for food from mum. There were so many baby elephants around when we were there all of them acting in the most cute and silly ways:

Moremi was perhaps my favourite place, it was varied with pools and swamps as part of the delta as well as large grasslands, forests and thickets. one shallow waterhole in particular was a haven for birdlife with two species of pelicans and African Skimmers (Rynchops flavirostris) both of which were on my bucket list for Africa. here’s a shot of a skimmer with Great White Pelicans (Pelecanus onocrotalus) in the background:

It was here that I realised that if you looked closely at most of these large waterholes, you’d see the eyes and nose of (Southern African) Nile Crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus ssp. cowiei) poking out. We also saw many out basking on the banks.

Also nearby, we got great close-up views of the famous Marabou Stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer):

Close to the Third Bridge Camp Site we saw zebra (Chapman’s Zebra Equus quagga ssp. chapmani), wildebeests (Connochaetes taurinus ssp. taurinus), ostriches (Struthio camelus ssp. australis) and a lone young spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) moving quickly through:

My son—this trip was a combined 18th and 21st present for him—was absolutely in love with the mongooses. We mainly saw Banded Mongoose (Mungos mungo ssp. ngamiensis) and Slender Mongoose (Herpestes sanguineus):

And of course, no one can leave a safari without the obligatory photo of the Lilac-breasted Roller (Coracias caudatus ssp. caudatus). A jaw-droppingly beautiful bird.

I’ll finish with a pic of a giant herd of Cape Buffalo (Syncerus caffer ssp. caffer) that we saw in amongst dead leadwood trees near sunset. It made for some stunning photos.

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 12, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today’s photos come from UC Davis ecologist Susan Harrison. Her narrative is indented, and you can enlarge the slides by clicking on them:

Great Gray Owl Expedition

In late June I had the good fortune to join a field trip in the southern Oregon Cascades led by Harry Fuller.  After retiring as an award-winning San Francisco TV journalist, Harry became a self-taught Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) expert and prolific natural-history author and field trip leader.   His book on the owls is full of amazing photos, scientific information and stories. One example is the account of a landowner who fed live-trapped voles to a nesting female Great Gray Owl after her mate was killed by a Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus).  She fledged her young successfully thanks to her hardworking human admirer!

Our first sighting was an owlet who kept trying to expel a pellet:

As nests, Great Grays often use the tops of large broken-off trees, or platform-type nests built by other birds – for example, the owl-containing former Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) nest that I recently saw in Finland.  Man-made nesting platforms like the one above have been a great boon for these owls.

Later we saw one of the owlet’s parents guarding the nest:

Female Great Grays mind the young and only leave the nest to hunt for themselves.  Four times a day or more, their mate flies in bringing food for the 1-4 owlets, who are typically of slightly varying ages. Unlike many other birds, these owls will feed their smallest young first.

Listening for prey, this Great Gray seemed unbothered by us:

Small mammals, mainly voles (Microtus), are the Great Gray’s staple diet.   It makes little sense for such large birds to fly long distances for such tiny food items.   Thus, according to Harry, when you see an adult Great Gray in the summer it’s probably within a few hundred yards of its nest.

Two weeks later, the owlet was out of the nest:

The adult owls were still guarding and feeding it, but not for much longer:

Many of the other birds we saw were likewise occupied with tending their young.

Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) removing a fecal sac from the nest:

White-Headed Woodpecker (Dryobates albolarvatus) going out on hunting duty:

Williamson’s Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus thyroideus), the first male of this high-elevation species I’ve seen:

Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides) male delivering food to a rocky crevice:

The same bird posing on red volcanic rock:

The mate of the same Mountain Bluebird, also feeding their kids:

Cassin’s Finch (Haemorhous cassinii), a high-elevation cousin of the House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus), gleaning food on a Red Fir (Abies magnifica). Females of this species were nest-building at the same location just a week earlier:

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) luring us away from its nest:

Our leader posing with his favorite species:

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 11, 2023 • 8:15 am

Tony Eales has returned from a safari trip to Botswana, and sends some gorgeous photos. (There will be more, too). Tony’s narrative is indented, and you can click on the photos to enlarge them.

Just recently got back from safari in Botswana. Without a doubt one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The safari was 9 nights with relatively equal time first in the Okavango Delta, then Moremi Game Reserve, then Chobe National Park on the border with Namibia. Finally, we ended up at Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe which very nearly overshadowed the whole safari. The Falls are almost incomprehensible in the beauty and awesome power. I took thousands of photographs of beasts and bugs and it’s way more than I could cover in a single email. Today I thought I’d show some of the highlights of the Okavango Delta.

This is dawn of our first day in the delta showing the palms and termite mounds that dominate the dry parts of the landscape:

The delta is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa and a UNESCO World Heritage area. It is one of the few river deltas that does not have an outlet into a sea or large water body but instead spreads out and disappears into the Kalahari Basin. This is us heading to our campsite in the basin with the indigenous people of the delta:

We obviously didn’t have the safari car in the delta and instead we went on ‘walking safaris’ where everyone stayed in a single file line without breaks for safety and walked out into the plains and thickets. Our guide was a very knowledgeable and fun local called “Master”. Here he is showing us a zebra skull:

There was much to be said for the walking safaris but approaching the animals was harder than it proved to be in the cars. The animals were much more suspicious of people on foot. We heard lions roaring in the morning but on advice of another group we met, it seemed the lions had cubs and would be difficult and perhaps dangerous to approach. We nevertheless saw elephants, giraffes, zebra, buffalo, warthogs, and numerous antelope, in particular countless impala. Here’s an impala (Aepyceros melampus), a waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) and some warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) near our camp:

The star of our patch of the delta was a hippo (Hippopotamus amphibius) who hung out right where we docked the canoes in front of the camp and we could see peeping at us throughout the day:

. . . but the shot we all waited for was the occasional yawn:

Bush Elephants (Loxodonta africana) approached very close to the camp on several occasions. This one pausing for a dust bath:

The birds too were numerous, fascinating and beautiful. African Jacana (Actophilornis africanus):

Pale Little Bee-eater (Merops pusillus ssp argutus):

Lappet-faced Vulture (Torgos tracheliotos)

But of course, my real love is arthropods and it was here in the delta that I found the most amazing bug of the trip. Genus Pephricus, one of the cryptic and bizarre Spike Wilter Bugs:
Also, in great variety and abundance were ants. These ones, known as Hotrod Ants (Ocymyrmex sp.) were collecting dead shells of termites.

After our time in the Delta, we moved to the Moreme Game Reserve which is in the northeast part of the delta and to traditional safari car game drives. But that’s for next time.

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 10, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today marks the return of photos from reader Ivar Husa, who sends us lovely birds. He lives in Washington State but the photos are from the southwestern U.S.  Ivar’s narrative is indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

The birds in this collection have very limited ranges in North American, for the most part to the mountainous areas along our southern border. Finding them is a special treat for birders visiting southeast Arizona. These were all photographed in the Santa Rita Mountains, south of Tucson, Arizona.

Elf Owls (Micrathene whitneyi), seen here, are the world’s smallest raptor. Males and females maintain separate nests nearby to one another. The male brings food to the female’s nest each night during nesting season, arriving around sunset with their first offering.  The land owner has habituated these birds to the light of a small flashlight, enabling photography. The property owner has been showing off this nest and these birds, ‘guiding’ as it were, for no charge, for the last 11 years.

This male, and they believe no other, has served this nest for 11 years. This, based on behavior rather than appearance. Cornell’s All About Birds website reports (perhaps incorrectly?) that the oldest known wild Elf Owl lived to at least 5 years, 10 months old.

A female died in her nest 7 years ago (evidenced by the presence of many wasps eating the carrion). The following year a new female was brought to this nest, apparently unfazed by its history. These owls are unable to create their own nesting cavities, so one can’t be too picky!  This continuing female occupant seems also to be longer lived than expected. 

JAC: I took a paragraph from Wikipedia to show you how small these cavity-nesting birds are (they often occupy abandoned woodpecker nests):

The elf owl is the world’s lightest owl, although the long-whiskered owlet and the Tamaulipas pygmy owl are of a similarly diminutive length.  It is also the world’s smallest owl.  The mean body weight of this species is 40 g (1.4 oz). These tiny owls are 12.5 to 14.5 cm (4.9 to 5.7 in) long and have a wingspan of about 27 cm (10.5 in). Their primary projection (flight feather) extends nearly past their tail. They have fairly long legs and often appear bow-legged.

Back to Ivar:

Eggs were expected to hatch a week or so after my visit, which was June 2, 2023:

This male Elegant Trogon (Trogon elegans) is also bringing food to its nest:

Bronzed cowbird (Molothrus aeneus):

Brown-crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus tyrannulus):

Dusky-capped flycatcher (Myiarchus tuberculifer):

Rufous-capped Warbler (Basileuterus rufifrons):

Berylline Hummingbird, Saucerottia beryllina (Background colors desaturated):

Broad-billed Hummingbird, Cynanthus latirostris:

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 9, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today is Sunday, ergo John Avise is here with a particularly winsome batch of baby birds, including two species of DUCKS.  John’s captions are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

Baby Birds 

Depending on the species, avian babies come in several types ranging between two extremes: precocial and altricial.  Precocial chicks typically hatch with a full set of downy feathers and quickly leave the nest to feed and fend for themselves (often with parental guidance).  By contrast, altricial young hatch nearly naked and helpless, and require intensive care and feeding by their parents until they grow more feathers and eventually fledge.  Precocial babies can be very cute, whereas altricial babies often tend to be– well, rather ugly.  This week’s post shows several examples of cute and not-so-cute avian babies and other youngsters.

Barn Swallow chick (Hirundo rustica):

Tree Swallow chicks begging for food (Tachycineta bicolor):

Least Tern chick (Sternula antillarum):

Least Tern slightly older chick:

Least Tern teenager:

Snowy Plover chick (Charadrius nivosus):

California Quail chicks (Callipepla californica):

Mallard young chick (Anas platyrhynchos):

Mallard older ducklings swimming:

Ruddy Duck chick (Oxyura jamaicensis):

Canada Goose young gosling (Branta canadensis):

Canada Goose slightly older goslings:

Canada Goose teenager:

Eqyptian Goose chick (Alopochen aegyptiaca):

Egyptian Goose goslings swimming:

Eqyptian Goose teenager:

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 7, 2023 • 8:15 am

Keep sending in those photos, brothers and sisters, friends and comrades; I’m set for about a week, but that won’t last long! Today we have pictures from Susan Hoffman of a place I’ve been briefly, Chiloe Island off the coast of Chile. Susan’s captions are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

These pictures are from a trip we took to Chile last December. The first set is from Chiloé Island, at the northern edge of Patagonia.

JAC: I’ve put in a map from Google; the arrow is mine::

The western (Pacific) side of the island features strong onshore winds and very long beaches, with huge expanses of sand exposed at low tide:

Aquaculture (mostly of salmon) is a major industry in the region, and it is likely contributing to the significant algal blooms we saw along the inland waterways. This shot is from the east coast of Chiloé Island looking towards Volcan Chaiten:

A brown-hooded gull (Chroicocephalus maculipennis) walking along a beach on the eastern coast of Chiloe, near the town of Chonchi:

The black-necked swan (Cygnus melancoryphus) is common along the shoreline at many locations:

Three-meter-tall version of a black-necked swan outside a derelict café in Cucao, a small town on the west coast of Chiloé:

We went to Islotes de Puñihuil Natural Monument on the northwest coast of Chiloé, famous as the only place where both Humboldt (Spheniscus humboldti) and Magellanic (Spheniscus magellanicus) penguins breed. Due to the gusty winds and rough sea, we couldn’t get very close, but I had to include one penguin picture for Jerry’s sake. This picture shows how the nesting sites, which are on rocky islets just offshore, are on very steep and precarious-looking slopes. Most of the penguins shown are Magellanics—the one near the lower right might be a Humboldt, but it is too out of focus to tell for sure:

The beach at Puñihuil has some dramatic stone arches:

On the beach at Puñihuil were a pair of kelp geese (Chloephaga hybrida) watching over their two goslings, who were justifying their name by busily eating seaweed. The male is pure white, while the female is brown and white:

Closeup of the male kelp goose:

Closeup of the lovely female kelp goose:

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 6, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today’s photos come from evolutionary biologist Jody Hey. Jody’s notes and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge his photos by clicking on them.

Carpenter’s Woods is a patch of forest in Philadelphia, less than 40 acres in area, that has played an outsized role in the history of birdwatching in the USA.    These are urban woods,  with lots of walkers with their dogs,  but they also attract a lot of birdlife because of their proximity to larger woodlands.

The woods are just around the corner from the local public school,  the Charles W. Henry School,  and for many years beginning in 1921 were the site of a play about conserving bird life.   The school principal, Caroline T. Moffet, would arrange for a production of “Sanctuary: A Bird Masque” by Percy MacKaye, first performed at the Meriden Bird Club sanctuary dedication in New Hampshire in 1913.   These Henry School productions involved hundreds of children from the school, and took place in Carpenter’s Woods.    Under Principal Moffet’s leadership, children at the Henry school also learned about birds in their civic classes,  heard question lectures about birds, and built bird houses.  In 1921, Moffet, along with her student’s and faculty,  successfully lobbied the city of Philadelphia to designate Carpeter’s Woods as the city’s first  bird sanctuary.     Over the years, more than 120 species of birds have been observed in the woods.

This is a trail map prepared by the Friends of Carpenter Woods:

These are photographs from the 1923 Henry school production that I found in Walter, J. B. and J. J. Alexander (1923). “A Bird Masque, A Pantomime.” Mind and Body, a monthly journal, devoted to physical education XXIX: 73-88.

And this is a photo from the 1930 production showing the large number of students that participated.  I found this in Levine, A. E. and S. A. Marino (2012). “Carpenter’s run and Carpenter’s woods: a brief history.” Germantown Crier 62: 62-75.

These are shots of a male Pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) that for some reason was happy to dig in a fallen branch for grubs just a few feet away from me.

This Barred Owl (Strix varia) is one of a pair that nested  (successfully I was told) in Carpenter’s Woods three years ago.

Carpenter’s Woods is also home to a much smaller owl,  the  Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio).  This one was sitting in a beech tree and watching me as I photographed it.

This Veery (Catharus fuscescens) is one of many that come through in the spring,  though I don’t know what their breeding numbers in these woods are like.    The song of the Veery sounds to me like a 1990’s video game.

And finally a wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) that in this picture is almost unrecognizable as such.  The bird was clearly agitated,  perhaps by me taking its picture,  as it has raised its head feathers and puffed its chest up.

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 5, 2023 • 8:15 am

Thank Ceiling Cat I didn’t run out of photos. But there’s always a need so, dear readers, comrades, and friends, do send in your good wildlife photos.

Today’s photos are a varied set from reader Mark Richardson, who lives in Washington State. Mark’s narration and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

JAC: first, a bit about the races of flickers from the Cornell bird site:

The red-shafted and yellow-shafted forms of the Northern Flicker formerly were considered different species. The two forms hybridize extensively in a wide zone from Alaska to the panhandle of Texas. A hybrid often has some traits from each of the two forms and some traits that are intermediate between them. The Red-shafted Flicker also hybridizes with the Gilded Flicker, but less frequently.

On to Mark’s descriptions

We were lucky to meet a mated pair of intergrade Northern flickers (Cuculus auratusthis) earlier this year. Out here in the NW, west of the Cascades, we see a lot of Western Northern flickers. They have red shafted tails and wing feathers and distinct facial and nape markings; they’re ubiquitous and easy to identify. Then comes this yellow shafted flicker. My wife spotted it first and brought it to my attention. After doing some research, we resolved they’re “Eastern flickers”, and it seems there’s a pair, as subsequent days revealed two yellow shafted individuals. We just noticed the yellow shafts, and identified them as Eastern. We kept photographing them and analyzing their markings and finally realized that they weren’t Western or Eastern, they were intergrades! I also wondered why these were called “intergrade” instead of hybrid, and found this. “An intergrade is the product of two subspecies or subspecies groups, and a hybrid is the product of two species.” That might not clarify anything.

But here’s a summation I found:

Intergrade flickers are a cross between a Red-shafted Northern Flicker and a Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker. They are both “Northern”, but the Eastern variety has yellow shafts, the western has red shafts. The male integrated has red malar stripes which are a characteristic of male Red-shafted flickers. He also has the red nape crescent which is a characteristic of male Yellow-shafted flickers. The female lacks the red nape crescent that the Yellow-shafted flicker has. Both male and female have yellow shafts.

As the photos reveal, this is a pair of intergraded Northern flickers! I think they’re rare in this neck of the woods. I also wonder if they can have viable offspring? They visited the suet feeder for about a week in March and haven’t been seen since…

Credit for all the flicker photos go to my wife, Patti Berger.

Intergraded male flicker flying off:

Intergraded female flicker:

Intergraded female flicker flying off:

Here’s a couple of European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) that I really like. Also taken by P. Berger. Something about their intrepid stance…reminds me of Hitchcock.

The next set is of a Red-breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapics ruber). I’ve lived in this area for over 15 years, and I’ve never seen this bird. I was able to catch a nice sequence…soft, I’ll admit, but my heart was a-pounding.

The last two pictures are of American black bears (Ursus americanus). I showed some of these interlopers on WEIT last year, but this year we have cubs! Excited, but not really since the bears destroy our bird hobby and cubs make for a dangerous sow. We still haven’t figured out how to feed the birds and not the bears. Bears eat everything, and they’re frickin’ smart! The cub photo is a bit blurry, but you can see one on the left clearly, and the one on the right is just a shadow (we’ve named them Lucy and Desi). I wish I could have got a better photo, but that’s all I got. When mom was eating the bird food (2nd photo) the little ones were yipping and trying to climb the fence. Oy! This is a scenario where I’m against education!

Cubs:

Sheila with her tongue out, eating bird food:

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 4, 2023 • 8:15 am

Today we have a new contributor, William Terre Blanche from Pretoria, South Africa. William’s narrative of a hiking trip is indented, and you can enlarge his photos by clicking on them.

The Fish River Canyon in southern Namibia is, according to most sources, the second largest canyon in the world, after the Grand Canyon, and I recently undertook the 75km hike through a part of the canyon. Because of the extreme temperatures in this part of Namibia the hike is only possible during our winter months, from May to September. [JAC: it’s also at 160 km long, the longest canyon in Africa.]

The hike is unique in that there are no demarcated overnight spots, and no facilities whatsoever, so you simply hike as far as you can every day, and then set up camp under the stars. It can be done in 4, 5 or 6 days, depending on your level of fitness.

The view over the canyon from the starting point of the hike. This was quite a challenging day since we had to first descend the approximately 500m to the bottom of the canyon before starting the actual hike:

Another view from the top. The bird is a female Mountain Wheatear (Myrmecocichla monticola):

]Hiking through the canyon. The river rarely flows in winter, and the few remaining pools are quite green, so the water has to be purified before it can be used.

Part of our group. The scenery is absolutely fantastic but can also be quite intimidating when making your way on foot.

We were lucky to see a number of the famous wild horses of the canyon. There are several theories as to the origins of these horse, but they are most likely the descendants of horses deserted by German Schutztruppe during World War 1. Irrespective of how they got there, it is amazing to see how these once domesticated animals have adapted to the harsh conditions, and survive without any human intervention:

After the first 50km or so the canyon starts to open up, and a lot of walking is through very soft sand, which proved to be even more tiring than clambering over rocks!

As mentioned there are no facilities, so camping is wherever you find a suitable spot, and you literally sleep under the stars:

Towards the end of the hike we walked past the appropriately named “Four Finger Rock”:

A Familiar Chat (Oenanthe familiaris). At almost every stop along the hike one or more of these friendly little birds would appear to keep us company (and beg for scraps).

JAC: I’ve added a map showing where the canyon is (my arrow) and a satellite image (turquoise line shows the canyon):

Readers’ wildlife photos

July 2, 2023 • 8:15 am

As it’s Sunday, we have a themed batch of bird photos from John Avise. Today’s theme, like last week’s, is about bird eyes. John’s notes and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.

Don’t miss the leg-banded female woody at the end!

Eye-Rings 

Eye adornments must be important in avian behavioral signaling and non-verbal communication.  I say this because the eyes of many bird species have evolved colorful irises (see last Sunday’s WEIT post) or are otherwise exaggerated in appearance, much as people’s eyes vary with iris color or eyelid mascara.

Another way that avian eyes may draw attention is via the presence of eye-surrounding circles known as “eye-rings” that give the birds a spectacled look (much like large-rimmed eye-glasses on people).  This week’s post shows several examples of North American avian species with notable eye-rings, which are a useful aide in species’ identification by birdwatchers.  Because eye-rings have evolved independently many times in different avian taxa, we can speculate that they probably serve some adaptive role, perhaps in inter-bird communication or species recognition.  But precisely what that adaptive role is remains uncertain.  Readers are welcome to suggest potential roles for eye-rings, or how any such hypotheses potentially might be tested.

American Robin (Turdus migratorius):

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea):

Blue-headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius):

Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus):

Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla):

Pacific-Slope Flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis):

Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula):

Rufous-crowned Sparrow (Aimophila ruficeps):

Yellow-throated Vireo (Vireo flavifrons):

Townsend’s Solitaire (Myadestes townsendi):

Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria):

Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla):

Ring-necked Duck hen (Aythya collaris):

Wood Duck hen (Aix sponsa):