This is a Barred Owl that visited our yard yesterday. Based on ‘smaller’ size, a male, I think. In most species, males are larger than females . This is called ‘male-biased size dimorphism’. Owls & other raptors tend to be exceptions. Males tend to be the smaller of the pair.There are multiple theories of why […]
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It’s mid-September, the heat has finally broke, and Female and immature Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are putting on the last few grams to get them across the Gulf of Mexico. It seems that one criteria for deciding if it is time to go is they can’t see their feet 🙂 As a bonus, this is the time […]
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After the flurry of spring arrivals it may seem that Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have disappeared from our flowers and feeders and the wild. This is mostly an illusion. Females, who most years out number males, spend the summer doing all the parental duties (males leave after the fun part). Moms do all that is necessary to […]
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Cedar Waxwings are winter resident fruit specialists here in metro-Atlanta. But because they are late nesters & can be short-haul migrants, going only as far north as the high-elevations of the North GA mountains, they will hang around gorging on spring\early summer berry crops. Native serviceberries are a favorite. Waxwings will gather in small flocks […]
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Velociraptor, or at least one of their descendants a Hermit Thrush, visiting our yard. There is consensus among many scientists that today’s birds are dinosaurs. Fossil evidence points to the theropods, a family of three-toed predators that included Velociraptor mongoliensis and Tyrannosaurus rex as the evolutionary lineage. Theropods share hinged ankles, swivel-jointed wrists, wishbones, and […]
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In field guides, this species is listed as Swainson’s Thrush, with a note that they are often called Olive-backed. And a case can be made for Salmonberry Bird, at least for the population on the NW coast of the U.S. and the coast of Canada’s Inland Passage. I’m going with Olive-backed because it could be […]
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I will start by admitting that I’ve not always praised dead, fallen leaves ‘littering’ our lawn. I invested (heavily) in a wide range of tools, especially gas-powered, as well as yard crews, so that each Fall we could rid our little ecosystem of unsightly disorder of dead organic material on top of our lawn. Then […]
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Tufted Titmice. Their eyes are black as coal & large in proportion to their heads. This not only gives them a ‘cute’, expressive look, it is functional as well. The eyes placement and high degree of range of movement gives Titmice a relatively wide binocular field of vision. They can focus both eyes on one […]
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Things weren’t looking good for woodland hawks in the late 19th century and into the mid-20th century. The same old villains – habitat loss, hunting (killing), pesticides – were taking a heavy toll on hawk populations, as well as other birds of prey. In the 1960s and 70s state and federal legislation and regulation, such […]
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There are a lot of juveniles roaming our neighborhood yards. And, not just basketball & lacrosse pickup games. Birds too. Juvenile birds are individuals that have molted to their first real plumage, but not their adult plumage. Fledglings are juveniles. When they transition officially to juvenile status is, the best I can tell, a judgement call. […]
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