Sunday, October 11, 2020
Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Red-breasted Nuthatches and a Hairy Woodpecker!
Friday, September 25, 2020
Migrating Thrushes are in Town!
In Knoxville, in the east Tennessee Valley, fall brings migrating warblers, thrushes and other species into open wooded areas for food. That would be a good description of my yard--a wooded edge. And when you think a rainy day takes away your birding opportunities, think again!
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Gray-cheeked Thrush |
I've been hearing thrushy "pit" calls for the past week, but searching for the owners of these voices has been a challenge. Even when I caught a glimpse of bird movement, it was too brief to ID the bird. I have enjoyed a brief Swainson's Thrush song and a "vree" like call over the week but still no visual IDs until today!
I definitely feel charmed when I walk by my dining room window and spot a bird fluttering in the dogwood. This time, I was doubly lucky. My first bird was the elusive Gray-cheeked Thrush. Last May this thrush was an accidental find and a life-bird for me in addition to being a new bird ID for the yard. Once again I found a Gray-cheeked thrush in the same location. Two of them, and now I feel certain they are regular visitors to the yard during migration.
A Swainson's Thrush flew in next (above) and displaced the Gray-cheeked Thrush. The Swainson's showed a nice contrast in the eye and in body color. In these two individuals, the Swainson's Thrush was more brown in appearance, but more importantly, the eye ring was distinctive.
A great moment of in-door, rainy day birding!
Ocean Trail at Palos Verdes Nature Preserve, California--2015
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Bird-banding at Seven Islands State Birding Park--2014
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Photo courtesy of Jody Stone
Bird-banding at Seven Islands
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Photo courtesy of Karen Wilkenson
Enjoying Gray Jays in Churchill!--2014
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Photo courtesy of Blue Sky Expeditions
Smithsonian National Zoo with one of my Whooping Crane banners and son, John--2014
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The Incredible Muir Woods near Stinson Beach, CA--2014
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Photo courtesy of Wendy Pitts Reeves
Me and Denali--2012
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Photo courtesy of Bob King
For the Love of It...
Sendivogius (1750)
Your Uncapped Creativity...
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"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action; and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. If you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not have it. You must keep that channel open. It is not for you to determine how good it is, nor how valuable. Nor how it compares with other expressions. It is for you to keep it yours, clearly and directly." ----the great dancer, Martha Graham