Yes, we are behind in blogging. But it's because we've been out doing stuff. Hopefully in the next few days we'll get caught up. This will (hopefully) include Dave's Peru Mountaineering trip, our anniversary, and my ride on the Bicycle Tour of Colorado.
Until then, enjoy these gorgeous photos that Dave took before any of these other events too place. Mostly, they are photos of birds. In addition though, there are some cool photos of our newest neighborhood visitor: mama bear and three cubs. Happily they were NOT on the back porch this year - instead, they were across the street. Pretty cool when they are not on the back porch!
For those who ask, I wanted to identify the birds shown here. Most of the bird photos you see came from Walden Ponds in Eastern Boulder. The first three photos show are of an Osprey fishing. Watching this is always a treat - the birds never miss! It was especially cool as Dave had never seen them fish before. It's amazing.
The second bird shown is the elegant Eastern Kingbird. These are really pretty flycatchers and when we were out walking, there were many of them providing lots of fun watching.
Up next is a Tree Swallow. The babies of these birds appeared to have just fledged as many parents were working with young. Great fun to watch.
The next photo shown is actually from the backyard. I was watching all the Lesser Goldfinch, American Goldfinch and Pine Siskins that day. For whatever reason, they decided it was bath time and territoriality took hold. This is a fun photo in a series in which this Lesser Goldfinch was not about to give up his prime spot on the bubbling bird bath. The American Goldfinch didn't test the little guy to see if he meant business. It seemed clear he did. :)
Dave has been chasing Yellow Warblers for some time. They are pretty common here, but getting a photo is extra challenging. The day we were at Walden Ponds, he got several fun shots. This one is cute - the bird is taking advantage of the bark to get a good head scratch.
We've found a pair of Great Horned Owls out at Walden Ponds. Like clock work, they were in the tree where we thought we'd find them. Beautiful birds!
They may be plain, but their song is gorgeous. Here is a photo of House Wren we watched feeding some young in a snag.
We were also treated to the hunting of a Great Blue Heron. While they may not have a 100% hit rate, they are really worth watching. We watched this guy catch and gobble up multiple unfortunate fish.
Here are the stars of last week in the neighborhood - mama bear and three cubs in the tree across the street. We had news trucks on the street out front and many folks came to check them out. Not sure what became of them. Hopefully they don't come back - if so, the officials have to euthanize them.
Walden Ponds has a lot of White Pelicans. For some big and awkward looking birds, they fly with such grace. We watched the fly, land, fish, play, etc. A real treat.
It's that time of year - Gosling time! Baby Canada Geese were out and about. Seriously, they are so adorable!
And finally, a nice shot of a Yellow Warbler. It's no surprise this bird is on the cover of Kaufman's guide. What a difficult task it is to get a nice photo of one of these...yet here one is! :) Enjoy.
3 comments:
Nice photos as always! I like the birds being birds photos. :o) And beautiful primary color composition on the yellow warbler. I don't remember seeing those guys around--they're quite striking!
South Mesa Trail is LOADED with Yellow Warblers! When you come home, we'll go find them. You see them before you even get out of the car in the parking lot. Saw them all over the bike tour as well. The Gold Finch scene is cute too, no?
Hi all,
Really, the yellow warblers are looking so beautiful. The predators of yellow and Mangrove Warblers are those typical of such smallish tree-nesting passerines. These birds feed mainly on arthropods, in particular insects. They acquire prey by gleaning in shrubs and on tree branches, and by hawking prey that tries to fly away. Thanks for sharing it.....
Wildlife Photography
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