F/10.0, 1/640, ISO 250.
Belted Kingfisher
What did the salad say to the fridge?
Shut the door, I’m dressing!
Interesting Fact: Pleistocene fossils of Belted Kingfishers (to 600,000 years old) have been unearthed in Florida, Virginia, Tennessee, and Texas. The oldest known fossil in the kingfisher genus is 2 million years old, found in Alachua County, Florida. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Belted_Kingfisher )
F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 250.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Why did the boy take a ladder to school?
It was a high school.
Interesting Fact: Ruby-Crowned Kinglets make their nests in trees, occasionally as high up as 100 feet. Females choose a nest site near the tree trunk or suspended from small twigs and branchlets. Because of the nest site’s height and often remote location, not much is known about kinglet nesting habits. Their nest sites, chosen by the females, are protected and often hidden by overhanging foliage. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruby-crowned_Kinglet/lifehistory )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 320.
Ruddy Duck
Why didn’t my girlfriend believe I was a ghost?
She could see right through me.
Interesting Fact: The nest is usually made of dead, dry plant materials, though some are built entirely with green vegetation. It starts as a platform and becomes more bowl-like throughout the construction process, with an inner cup measuring 4–12 inches across and 0.5–5 inches deep. Ruddy Ducks usually weave a canopy of vegetation over their nests. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruddy_Duck/lifehistory )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 200.
Red-breasted Mergansers
Can February March?
No, but April May.
Interesting Fact:Red-breasted Mergansers nest along forested riverbanks, marsh edges, lakeshores, coastal islands, and sandy shores with vegetation. They are never far from water. Female Red-breasted Mergansers select a spot on the ground under dense cover from low tree branches, fallen logs, or boulders. They nest alone or in colonies often with gulls and terns. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-breasted_Merganser/lifehistory )
F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 220.
Least Sandpiper
Browsing in a pet shop, a man sees a beautiful parrot with a red
string tied to its left leg and a green string tied to its right
leg, and asks the store owner about the different colored strings.
“This is a highly-trained parrot,” the owner explains. “If you
pull the red string, he’ll speak French. If you pull the green
string, he’ll speak Spanish.”
The customer asks, “What happens if I pull both strings?”
“I’ll fall off my perch, dummy!” screeches the parrot.
Interesting Fact: Eastern populations probably fly nonstop over the ocean from the Gulf of St. Lawrence and New England to wintering grounds in northeastern South America, a distance of about 1,800 to 2,500 miles. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Least_Sandpiper/lifehistory )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 320.
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Why can’t you write with a broken pencil?
Because it’s pointless.
Interesting Fact: The Eastern Wood-Pewee’s lichen-covered nest is so inconspicuous that it often looks like a knot on a branch. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Wood-Pewee )
F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 320.
Eastern Bluebird
Imagine you are in a water tank with a roof. There are no objects in the tank to help you escape. How do you get out?
Stop imagining.
Interesting Fact: Males vying over territories chase each other at high speed, sometimes grappling with their feet, pulling at feathers with their beaks, and hitting with their wings. The boxes and tree cavities where bluebirds nest are a hot commodity among birds that require holes for nesting, and male bluebirds will attack other species they deem a threat, including House Sparrows, European Starlings, Tree Swallows, Great Crested Flycatchers, Carolina Chickadees, and Brown-headed Nuthatches, as well as non-cavity nesters such as robins, Blue Jays, mockingbirds, and cowbirds. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Bluebird/lifehistory )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 400.
Pileated Woodpecker
Why do mummies make great spies?
They’re good at keeping things under wraps.
Interesting Fact: Pileated Woodpeckers forage in large, dead wood—standing dead trees, stumps, or logs lying on the forest floor. They make impressive rectangular excavations that can be a foot or more long and go deep inside the wood. These holes pursue the tunnels of carpenter ants, the woodpecker’s primary food. The birds also use their long, barbed tongues to extract woodboring beetle larvae (which can be more than an inch long) or termites lying deep in the wood. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pileated_Woodpecker/lifehistory )
F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 400.
Ruddy Duck ( Juvenile )
Why are elephants such poor dancers?
Because they have two left feet.
Interesting Fact: Ruddy Ducks get harassed by Horned Grebes, Pied-billed Grebes, and American Coots during the breeding season. The grebes sometimes attack Ruddy Ducks from below the water, a behavior known as “submarining.” ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruddy_Duck )
F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 250.
Ruddy Duck
Why are mountains so funny?
Because they are hill areas.
Interesting Fact: Most males pair up with one female each for the duration of the breeding season, but some take multiple mates. Their eggs are proportionally the largest of all waterfowl. The ducklings hatch well-developed and active, receiving minimal care from the mother and none from the father. Ducklings are preyed upon by Black-crowned Night-Herons, Ring-billed Gulls, California Gulls, mink, and raccoons. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruddy_Duck/lifehistory )
Through Open Lens 