birds

Double Trouble!

February 22, 2021 — 30 Comments

Mute Swan

F/ 5.6, 1/1250, ISO 400.

Mute Swan 

What did the nose say to the finger?

Stop picking on me. 

Interesting Fact: The Mute Swan is reported to mate for life. However, changing of mates does occur infrequently, and swans will remate if their partner dies. If a male loses his mate and pairs with a young female, she joins him on his territory. If he mates with an older female, they go to hers. If a female loses her mate, she remates quickly and usually chooses a younger male.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mute_Swan/lifehistory )

Are You Loon-ely Tonight?

February 19, 2021 — 14 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 250.

Common Loon ( Nonbreeding adult )

What do Snowmen call their offspring?

Chill-dren.

Interesting Fact: Loons are water birds, only going ashore to mate and incubate eggs. Their legs are placed far back on their bodies, allowing efficient swimming but only awkward movement on land. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Loon/lifehistory )

Haters Will See You Walking On Water And Say It Is Because You Can’t Swim

February 8, 2021 — 29 Comments

F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 250.

Great Egret

Worker calls in to his Boss:

Worker: I can’t come to work today. I’m sick

Boss: Oh yea! What’s wrong with you now?

Worker: I have anal glaucoma.

Boss: What the hell is that?

Worker: I just can’t see my ass working today.

Interesting Fact: Great Egrets fly slowly but powerfully: with just two wingbeats per second their cruising speed is around 25 miles an hour. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/great_egret/lifehistory )

Muddy Quack!

February 5, 2021 — 10 Comments

F/6.3, 1/250, ISO 450.

Northern Pintail Duck

What day do fish hate?

Fry-day!

Interesting Fact: The Northern Pintail is among the earliest nesting ducks in North America, beginning shortly after ice-out in many northern areas. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Pintail/lifehistory )

I Can Walk On Water!

February 4, 2021 — 12 Comments

F/13.0, 1/640, ISO 320.

Ring-billed Gull

Two Police officers are talking:

A naked women robbed a bank.

Nobody could remember her face.

Interesting Fact: Ring-billed Gulls near Tampa Bay, Florida, became accustomed to feasting on garbage at an open landfill site. Then, in 1983, operators replaced the dumping grounds with closed incinerators. The thwarted scavengers found themselves another open dump, but the pattern continues all across the gull’s range. When waste-management practices shift from open landfills to closed incinerators, gull numbers often drop. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ring-billed_Gull/lifehistory )

Believe You Can And You’re Halfway There.

January 28, 2021 — 5 Comments

F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 400.

Dark-eyed Junco

Why did the golfer wear two pairs of pants?

In case he got a hole in one.

Interesting Fact: The female chooses the nest site, typically in a depression or niche on sloping ground, rock face, or amid the tangled roots of an upturned tree. Around people, juncos may nest in or underneath buildings. Occasionally, juncos nest above the ground on horizontal branches (rarely as high as 45 feet), window ledges, and in hanging flower pots or light fixtures. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

Dive Dive Dive!!!

January 26, 2021 — 2 Comments

F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 340.

Common Loon ( Nonbreeding adult )

Have you read the book about anti-gravity?

It’s impossible to put down!

Interesting Fact: The Common Loon is flightless for a few weeks after molting all of its wing feathers at the same time in midwinter. ( Common Loon Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )

I Solemnly Swear I Am Up To No Good!

January 22, 2021 — 10 Comments

F/9.0, 1/125, ISO 320.

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Guest at a restaurant: “I refuse to eat this roast beef. Please call the manager! “

Waiter: “That’s no use. He won’t eat it either.”

Interesting Fact: Black-crowned Night Heron nest in groups that often include other species, including herons, egrets, and ibises. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-crowned_Night-Heron )

Go Green Or I’ll Scream!

January 18, 2021 — 18 Comments

F/6.3, 1/160, ISO 320.

American Wigeon

Why is it hard to play cards in the jungle?

There are too many cheetahs!

Interesting Fact: The American Wigeon was formerly known as “Baldpate” because the white stripe resembled a bald man’s head.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Wigeon/lifehistory )

He Went Thataway!

January 16, 2021 — 21 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 320.

White-breasted Nuthatch

A wife complains to her husband: “Just look at that couple down the road, how lovely they are. He keeps holding her hand, kissing her, holding the door for her, why can’t you do the same?”

The husband: “Are you mad? I barely know the woman!”

Interesting Fact: White-breasted Nuthatches live in pairs year round and chase other nuthatches from their territory. Agitated birds fan their tails, flick their wings, or raise the feathers of the back. A bird backing down from a confrontation typically raises its bill and tail, and droops its wings. In winter White-breasted Nuthatches join groups of chickadees, titmice, and woodpeckers to forage.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-breasted_Nuthatch/lifehistory#behavior )