We have a cool 71 degrees, overcast and alternately drizzly east Tennessee Saturday.
Ruby-throated hummers are still visiting my feeder frequently, though I haven’t seen a male since our resident male departed on September 15.
Our
Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Tennessee, by Charles P. Nicholson, is non-specific about when the last ruby-throated hummers depart TN, saying, “The hummingbird…usually arrives by mid-April and departs by early October.” The former agrees with my observations this spring. And though I didn’t record my last sighting in 2007, my last photograph of a hummer was taken on the 29th of September. I’ll be observing more carefully this year.
Some twittering in the branches also caught my attention while outside and though there was no flutey song to confirm his identity, this migrating
Swainson's thrush settled quietly in the hemlock that stands outside my window.
It is so hushed right now while I am writing this. Even the robins, chickadees and blue jays are silently listening to the drizzle. A very wet and fall-ish feeling day.
This post has been linked to
Bird Photography Weekly #4 at the
Birdfreak blog. It's a new idea to help promote the beauty of birds. Check it out and post your favorite bird photos there!
Another beautiful set of photos - do you have a hide where you wait or do you just find the birds randomly? I have a tree outside my picture window where a succession of birds come and rest but it just isn't a good place to take photos!
ReplyDeleteVery much appreciated :-)
Thank you, Mountain girl. I'm glad you enjoyed the photos. I love taking them and then I fall in love with the birds all over again when I see them on the computer screen.
ReplyDeleteI am in the open when I take these photos, sometimes in a chair or sometimes just standing under a tree as I was with the wood thrush. The wood thrush is usually very skiddish and I have more success when they fly to a perch near me, rather than the other way around.
Today was one of those lucky moments and I relished it. I'm using a 75-300 zoom lens.
Vickie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your last comment above. Reviewing the birds on your computer screen is the best, isn't it?
Surprisingly, when I thought they'd be gone, I still have a few - two today. Last year, I saw the last hummer on Oct. 6 after more than a week of none.
Thanks for visiting! You have a great blog here.
Mary
Hi Vickie--
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying your blog.
I have good news or bad news, depending on how you look at it. The thrush depicted in this post is, in my judgement, a Swainson's Thrush.
The Wood Thrush post linked to within it, however, does indeed show a Wood Thrush. If you want more detail, I'm happy to oblige.
Keep up the good work,
Jeff
Hi Mary,
ReplyDeleteIts one of the things I love about photography. It gives you another intimate experience of what you are already enjoying in nature.
Thanks for visiting.
Hi Jeff,
ReplyDeleteThanks. I laughed when I read your comment because I failed to look at my Peterson's, even though I thought about it. My photo certainly matches the Swainson's in the book. So with both your comment and Peterson, I've changed my label in the post.
We have resident wood thrushes here and Swainson's migrate through, so I'm delighted to have stumbled upon this one. Since I don't have any field experience at telling them apart, yes, please give more detail.
Thanks for the info - and the inspiration. Now if I could find a day off I think I will go and sit in the garden and see what leands nearby :-)
ReplyDeleteHope you find some time off soon, Mountain girl, and enjoy the birds with that camera. Seems like I recall you have a new one.
ReplyDelete