wildbird

Keep Calm And Swim On!

July 27, 2015 — 10 Comments

Common Loon Juvenile

F/6.3, 1/1000, ISO 560.

Common Loon ( Juvenile )

Day 208 /365

How do people swimming in the ocean say HI to each other?

They Wave!

Interesting Fact: Loons are well equipped for their submarine maneuvers to catch fish. Unlike most birds, loons have solid bones that make them less buoyant and better at diving. They can quickly blow air out of their lungs and flatten their feathers to expel air within their plumage, so they can dive quickly and swim fast underwater. Once below the surface, the loon’s heart slows down to conserve oxygen. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/common_loon/lifehistory )

Love Your Neighbor As Yourself But Don’t Take Down The Fence!

July 21, 2015 — 19 Comments

yellow warbler 1

F/6.3, 1/125, ISO 1400.

Yellow Warblers

Day 202 / 365

A man walked into the office of a talent agent on the 72nd floor of a skyscraper. “I’ve got a great act,” he tells the agent. “Just watch this.” The man opens the window, perches on the ledge and starts flapping his arms. Then he pushes off and flys around outside the window executing intricate aerobatic maneuvers. Having finished his demonstration, the man flaps in to a perfect landing on the window sill and steps back into the agent’s office. “What do you think of that?” he asked the agent. The talent agent yawned. That’s it? Bird imitations?”

Interesting Fact: Long distance migrant. Yellow Warblers breed across central and northern North America and spend winters in Central America and northern South America. They migrate earlier than most other warblers in both spring and fall. Like many other migrating songbirds, Yellow Warblers from eastern North America fly across the Gulf of Mexico in a single nonstop journey; some Yellow Warblers in fall take an overland route around the Gulf. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yellow_Warbler/lifehistory )

Kissing Burns 6.4 Calories A Minute Wanna Work Out!

July 17, 2015 — 22 Comments

Barn Swallow 1

F/6.3, 1/640, ISO 800.

 Barn Swallow

Day 198 / 365

If the bird of wisdom is an owl, and the bird of peace is the dove, what is the bird of TRUE love?

Interesting Fact: Barn Swallow parents sometimes get help from other birds to feed their young. These “helpers at the nest” are usually older siblings from previous clutches, but unrelated juveniles may help as well.  ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barn_Swallow/lifehistory )

Feeling A Little Blue!

July 16, 2015 — 8 Comments

Blue Grosbeak

F/6.3, 1/1250, ISO 400.

Blue Grosbeak

Day 197 / 365

A mother bird, a daddy bird and their baby bird were getting ready to migrate. The mother bird said, ” My instincts tell me to go north. ” The daddy bird said, ” My instincts tell me to go south. ” The baby bird said, ” My end stinks too, but it doesn’t tell me where to go! ”

Interesting Fact: Many Blue Grosbeaks migrate directly southward from their breeding areas to their wintering grounds. Western birds head over land and eastern birds cross the Gulf of Mexico. Migrating grosbeaks pass through the Caribbean Islands including Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Antilles, the Swan Islands, the Cayman Islands, and the Virgin Islands. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue_Grosbeak/lifehistory )

” Figaro! Figaro! Figaro! Figaro! Figaro! “!

July 14, 2015 — 20 Comments

Marsh Wren

F/6.3, 1/500, ISO 1000.

Marsh Wren

Day 195 / 365

Why did the bird get a ticket?

It broke the law of gravity!

Interesting Fact: The Marsh Wren is a secretive bird; even when singing the territorial male remains well hidden, briefly climbing a cattail for a look at an intruder. ( http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/137/_/Marsh_Wren.aspx )

“Hey I Was Yellow First, Now The Minions Get The Fame”!

July 13, 2015 — 27 Comments

American Goldfinch

F/6.3, 1/500, ISO 400.

The American Goldfinch

Day 194 / 365

What do you give a sick bird?
Tweetment.

Interesting Fact: They are one of the latest nesting birds, starting in late June or early July, when most other songbirds are finishing with breeding. Their late timing may be related to the availability of suitable nesting materials and seeds for feeding young. ( http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/91/overview/American_Goldfinch.aspx )

RUUUNNNNN!!!

July 12, 2015 — 10 Comments

wood duck Female

F/6.3, 1/800, ISO 800.

Wood Duck ( Female )

Day 193 /365

Why don`t ducks tell jokes when they fly?
Because they would quack up!

Interesting Fact: The Wood Duck nests in trees near water, sometimes directly over water, but other times over a mile away. After hatching, the ducklings jump down from the nest tree and make their way to water. The mother calls them to her, but does not help them in any way. The ducklings may jump from heights of over 50 feet without injury. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wood_Duck/lifehistory )

“Just Don’t Call Me Tweety Bird”!

July 11, 2015 — 8 Comments

Baltimore Oriole Female

F/6.3, 1/1000, ISO 500.

Baltimore Oriole ( Female )

Day 192 / 365

When should you buy a bird?

When it’s going cheep!

Interesting Fact: Baltimore Orioles sometimes use their slender beaks to feed in an unusual way, called “gaping”: they stab the closed bill into soft fruits, then open their mouths to cut a juicy swath from which they drink with their brushy-tipped tongues.  ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Baltimore_Oriole/lifehistory )

Everyday They’re Out There Making DuckTales! Woo-oo!

July 6, 2015 — 8 Comments

 

Ruddy Duck

F/6.3, 1/1000, ISO 800.

Juvenile Ruddy Ducks

Day 187 / 365

Three ducks are in a pond.
One went “Quack quack!”
And the other duck said “Thats funny I was just about to say that!”

Interesting Fact: Ruddy Ducks lay big, white, pebbly-textured eggs—the largest of all duck eggs relative to body size. Energetically expensive to produce, the eggs hatch into well-developed ducklings that require only a short period of care. ( http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruddy_Duck/lifehistory )

You’re As Sharp As A Marble.

June 23, 2015 — 20 Comments

marbles 01

F/ 9.0, 1/60, ISO 250.

Day 174 / 365

I didn’t lose all my marbles, but i definitely spill them.       🙂

Interesting Fact: Marbles were first mass-produced in Akron, Ohio in 1884 when the Akron Toy Company began producing clay marbles. The man behind the marbles, Samuel C. Dyke, founded The American Marble & Toy Manufacturing Company in 1891, which became the biggest American toy company of the 19th century. For the first time, marbles became cheap enough for children to buy them with their own money.  ( http://www.neatorama.com/2010/11/03/neatolicious-fun-facts-marbles/ )