Junco

I Am Addicted To Snow!

January 23, 2022 — 16 Comments

F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 320.

Dark-eyed Junco

How does a Snowman get to work?

By icicle.

Interesting Fact: Dark-eyed Juncos breed in forests across much of North America and at elevations ranging from sea level to more than 11,000 feet. They are often found in coniferous forests incuding pine, Douglas-fir, spruce, and fir, but also in deciduous forests such as aspen, cottonwood, oak, maple, and hickory. During winter and on migration they use a wider variety of habitats including open woodlands, fields, roadsides, parks, and gardens. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

Freeze!

February 25, 2021 — 28 Comments

dark-eyed-junco

F/10.0, 1/160, ISO 400.

Dark-eyed Junco

How do you know if there’s a snowman in your bed?

You wake up wet!

Interesting Fact: Male juncos are very territorial in summer, chasing off intruders in rapid flights accompanied by excited call notes. When males court females, they fan or flick open their wings and tail, hop up and down, and pick up pieces of nest material or moss; females seem to prefer males that show more white in the tail. During winter, Dark-eyed Juncos form fairly large flocks, and where wintering ranges overlap you may find several subspecies in a single flock. Juncos also forage with other sparrows and bluebirds. Junco flocks typically have a hierarchy or pecking order, and earlier arrivals tend to rank higher in the group than later arrivals. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/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 )

How You Like My Tuxedo!

November 20, 2020 — 23 Comments

dark-eyed-junco-2

F/8.0, 1/200, ISO 320.

Dark-eyed Junco

Caller: Dials in 911 Hello officer, I broke my arm in 3 places!

Officer: Then stop going to those places.

Interesting Fact: When foraging, Dark-eyed Juncos typically hop (rather than walk) on the ground, pecking or scratching at the leaf litter, or flit very low in underbrush gleaning food from twigs and leaves. They sometimes fly up from the ground to catch insects from tree trunks. In flight, they flap continuously and pump their tails so the white outer tail feathers flash; flight is very agile as the bird maneuvers through its tangled environs. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

Cold Doesn’t Bother Me Anyway.

January 3, 2020 — 2 Comments

F/6.3, 1/160, ISO 320.

Dark-eyed Junco 

What do ghosts serve for dessert?

I Scream.

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 )

 

 

 

Let It Snow!

December 31, 2019 — 9 Comments

F/10.0, 1/800, ISO 250.

Dark-eyed Junco

What do you call an old snowman?

Water!

Interesting Fact: The oldest recorded Dark-eyed Junco was at least 11 years, 4 months old when it was recaptured and rereleased during banding operations in West Virginia in 2001. It had been banded in the same state in 1991. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

You Can’t Make Everybody Happy. You’re Not Pizza!

October 20, 2019 — 2 Comments

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 250.

Dark-Eyed Junco  

Why aren’t there any famous skeletons?

They’re a bunch of no bodies.

Interesting Fact: When foraging, Dark-eyed Juncos typically hop (rather than walk) on the ground, pecking or scratching at the leaf litter, or flit very low in underbrush gleaning food from twigs and leaves. They sometimes fly up from the ground to catch insects from tree trunks. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

 

 

I’d Climb The Highest Mountain

January 31, 2016 — 24 Comments

Dark-eyed Junco 1

F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 320.

Dark-eyed Junco 

How long do chickens work?

Around the cluck!

Interesting Fact: The Dark-eyed Junco is one of the most common birds in North America and can be found across the continent, from Alaska to Mexico, from California to New York. A recent estimate set the junco’s total population at approximately 630 million individuals.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )

I’m Glad I’m Not a Turkey!

November 26, 2015 — 15 Comments

Dark-eyed Junco

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERONE!!!

F/ 6.3, 1/640, ISO 900.

Dark-eyed Junco 

Day 330 / 365

Chicken talking to the turkey: “Only Thanksgiving and Christmas??? You’re lucky, with us its any Sunday.”

Interesting Fact: Juncos are the “snowbirds” of the middle latitudes. Over most of the eastern United States, they appear as winter sets in and then retreat northward each spring. Some juncos in the Appalachian Mountains remain there all year round, breeding at the higher elevations. These residents have shorter wings than the migrants that join them each winter. Longer wings are better suited to flying long distances, a pattern commonly noted among other studies of migratory vs. resident species.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dark-eyed_Junco/lifehistory )