A bit of Spring with a Verdin

 

Spring was in the air in Tempe...meaning it was quite hot in the afternoon, but in the morning and evenings, after work, the weather was gorgeous. So was this Verdin, which posed for me in front of some purple flowers in the background. It was nice of it to come and visit. Verdins are everywhere in the Phoenix area. However, you don't see them much as they mostly stay deep in the trees. Anyway, this one popped out and I got a shot!!!

American White Pelicans in Flight + One

 

These American White Pelicans were doing a nice series of turns, flying in formation that was amazing to watch while out birding near Laredo, Texas this past week. Actually, if you look closely, there is one interloper in the shot. Hard to see, but there is a Crested Caracara up near the top right.  Did you find him?

On Top of the World

 

This shot takes my breath away. I meant that literally, as I could hardly breathe at the top of Breckinridge's Crystal Peak chair lift this past week. Why do we do these things to ourselves? Put on a ton of layers so you can barely move. Add in 30-pounds of ski boots and then remove most of the oxygen? Still, the view was worth it as was the fear of getting back down without killing yourself on a field of moguls that didn't look quite so frightening from the chair lift. LOL. Even so, had a great time. The weather was amazing and, while I would have liked some overnight snow, the conditions were just about perfect for a couple of days of skiing. I just wish that first day and a half didn't come with the mandatory headache from the lack of oxygen. Just climbing up a flight of stairs could cause vertigo. What fun!!! 

Joshua Tree National Park

 

I got to this park sort of late in the day, after landing in the afternoon in Palm Springs and stopping for some nice birding on the way. By the time I got to Joshua Tree for a quick drive through the park, I just had an hour of light left. It still was an amazing drive. This is one of my favorite parks. I want to get the chance to actually camp in the park one day. This is just 15 minutes after sunset and the light was amazing. Had to do a HDR shot, with three different settings to get light, medium and dark shots and have them combined in the software. Beautiful area. 

Hanging with my besties

 

Just a Snowy Egret hanging out with a bunch of Double-crested Cormorants. Love how the Snowy picked a spot in the middle of the scrum. At a lagoon north of San Diego this past week. 

Sleepy Snowy Owl

 

Got another lifer. The winter of 2024/2025 is turning out to be the year of the owl. This is a Snowy Owl, which I found by consulting Ebird, with a stake out set up at a park in Romeoville, just a half hour from home. The owl sat for a solid hour on top of a picnic patio roof not far from the parking lot. I wanted to get a flying shot but I was losing light and feelings in both my hands and feet...LOL. This shot is super zoomed in, making it look like we were close to the bird. Not the case at all. We stayed quite a ways away and the owl didn't seem to care, sleeping most of the time. I was at least 50 yards away, maybe more, with about 20 other birders. 

Frozen North

 

I didn't just go up north to the Sax-Zim bog just for birds. I figured I would get some amazing early morning shots and boy, did that pay off. Got a night of dew that froze to the trees and ground in an amazing display of winter cold. It was cold but it was a beautiful cold. 

First Bird of the Year

 

Last year I started out the year with a Cooper's Hawk on the fence and I finished their year at the Sax-Zim Bog with the amazing Great Gray Owl. Nice bookends for 2024. This year, my first first shot turns out to be a Great Horned Owl. I went out looking for short-eared owls, which are lifers for me and are supposed to be hanging around the model airplane field at Naperville Prairie near sunset. No luck on the short-eared (on this trip), but got a nice view of this beautiful Great Horned Owl. So that was fun and I look forward to another lucky year of birding. 

WInter is Here (or at least in Duluth)

 

Got up with the sun to get to the Sax-Zim Bog last weekend before the birds started moving around. As a result, got to see a world of frozen dew. Quite spectacular, I think.  Was lucky enough to get 4 new lifers (a Black-backed Woodpecker, Ruffed Grouse, White-winged Crossbill and the amazing Great Gray Owl). Long ride to about an hour north of Duluth, but a great trip.