F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 250.
Black-bellied Plover ( Juvenile )
I went to a seafood disco last week… and pulled a mussel.
Interesting Fact: Wary and quick to give alarm calls, the Black-bellied Plover functions worldwide as a sentinel for mixed groups of shorebirds. These qualities allowed it to resist market hunters, and it remained common when populations of other species of similar size were devastated. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-bellied_Plover/overview )
F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 320.
American Coot
Why was the broom late?
It over swept!
Interesting Fact: The ecological impact of common animals, like this ubiquitous waterbird, can be impressive when you add it all up. One estimate from Back Bay, Virginia, suggested that the local coot population ate 216 tons (in dry weight) of vegetation per winter. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Coot )
F/8.0, 1/125, ISO 125.
White-breasted Nuthatch
What do bulls do when they go shopping?
They CHARGE!
Interesting Fact: White-breasted Nuthatches typically build their nests in natural tree cavities or abandoned woodpecker holes. They sometimes enlarge these holes but rarely excavate them entirely on their own (as Red-breasted Nuthatches often do). Nuthatches are smaller than woodpeckers, and White-breasted Nuthatches don’t seem bothered by nest holes considerably larger than they are. Despite their association with deciduous woods, they nest in both coniferous and deciduous trees. White-breasted Nuthatches sometimes use nest boxes. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-breasted_Nuthatch/lifehistory )
F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 320.
Pileated Woodpecker
What did one eyeball say to the other eyeball?
Between you and me something smells.
Interesting Fact: A Pileated Woodpecker pair stays together on its territory all year round. It will defend the territory in all seasons, but will tolerate new arrivals during the winter. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pileated_Woodpecker/lifehistory )
F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 250.
Bufflehead Duck ( Female )
Why are trees very forgiving?
Because in the Fall they “Let It Go” and in the Spring they “turn over a new leaf”.
Interesting Fact: Unlike most ducks, the Bufflehead is mostly monogamous, often remaining with the same mate for several years. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bufflehead/lifehistory )
F/5.6, 1/800, ISO 320.
Anna’s Hummingbird ( Female )
Two pickles fell out of a jar onto the floor.
What did one say to the other?
Dill with it.
Interesting Fact: Hummingbirds have tiny legs and can neither hop nor walk, though they can sort of scoot sideways while perched. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Annas_Hummingbird )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 250.
Brant Goose
What’s red and bad for your teeth?
A brick.
Interesting Fact: It used to be a strictly coastal bird in winter, seldom leaving tidal estuaries, where it feeds on eel-grass (Zostera marina) and the seaweed, sea lettuce (Ulva). On the east coast of North America, the inclusion of sea lettuce is a recent change to their diet, brought about by a blight on eelgrass in 1931. This resulted in the near-extirpation of the brant. The few that survived changed their diet to include sea lettuce until the eelgrass eventually began to return. Brants have maintained this diet ever since as a survival strategy.[6] In recent decades, it has started using agricultural land a short distance inland, feeding extensively on grass and winter-sown cereals. This may be behavior learned by following other species of geese. Food resource pressure may also be important in forcing this change, as the world population has risen over 10-fold to 400,000-500,000 by the mid-1980s, possibly reaching the carrying capacity of the estuaries. In the breeding season, it uses low-lying wet coastal tundra for both breeding and feeding. The nest is bowl-shaped, lined with grass and down, in an elevated location, often in a small pond. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brant_(goose) )
F/6.3, 1/250, ISO 200, CS6.
Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules
Why wasn’t the moon hungry?
Because it was full!
Interesting Fact: The moon rotates at 10 miles per hour compared to the earth’s rotation of 1000 miles per hour. ( http://www.moonconnection.com/moon_facts.phtml )
F/6.3, 1/125, ISO 100.
Rufous Hummingbird
What do you do with a sick boat?
Take it to the doc.
Interesting Fact: The Rufous Hummingbird has an excellent memory for location, no doubt helping it find flowers from day to day, or even year to year. Some birds have been seen returning from migration and investigating where a feeder had been the previous year, even though it had since been moved. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rufous_Hummingbird/lifehistory )
Through Open Lens 