Big Month IV Posting Thread - DPChallenge Forums

04/29/2015 11:33:38 AM · #176

An unexpected flyover yesterday that I almost missed...

37. Great Blue Heron:

KarenNfld

04/29/2015 06:22:49 PM · #177

36 - Bald Eagle

Almost missed this one. I was taking pictures of an eagle on a nest, but it's really far away so I knew my photos wouldn't be that great. A guy was walking the trail and told me there was an eagle in a tree at the nearby lake. I didn't think it would still be there by the time I drove and walked to the tree, but it was! I got a ton of pictures of it.

KMcC

Tamron 16-300mm Di II VC PZD MACRO w/Canon Nikon mount

04/29/2015 10:49:10 PM · #178

75-

European Starling
76-

Ruby Throated Hummingbird (not the best but happy she has returned!)
77-

Bald Eagle
78-

Pied Imperial Pigeon
79-

Green Winged Dove
80-

West African Crowned Crane
81-

African Olive Pigeon
82-

marbled Teal

Melethia

04/29/2015 11:06:38 PM · #179

Originally posted by twmax:

12 - Red-tailed hawk (Buteo Jamaicensis)

This is most likely my last posting of this side challenge. I'll be playing photographer for the Tour of the Gila bicycle race for the next five days, so will have little time for birds. It should be a lot of fun! Anyway, this has been great, and I really have seen some incredible photography on this bird side challenge. I've also learned a lot, and can now name many birds that I couldn't before. Thanks everyone.

Tom

I'll second the thanks! I've REALLY enjoyed seeing all the different birds, and I've definitely spent more time looking up and listening. Thanks also to

lunachicken - we met up yesterday and I have a few more I'll get to posting, hopefully before the month is actually over!

Some wonderful shots here - thanks so much to all who contributed! (And have fun at the bike race, Tom - I expect to see pictures, please!!)

Melethia

04/30/2015 01:33:53 AM · #180

10. Duck, Mallard (male)

10. (bonus) Duck, Donald (male)

04/30/2015 06:34:50 AM · #181

One more day to try and hit 40 birds from inside my 1/2 acre yard. C'mon migrants!!

38. Common Grackle:

KarenNfld

04/30/2015 10:10:47 AM · #182

Well, no more birds for me. We have had a very foggy, rainy, windy month which cut down on the number of birds I was able to see. But I had a good month! I saw 2 lifers and also photographed a bird I had only seen once before but never photographed. I also saw 2 that I did not photograph (a house sparrow inside Costco, LOL, and a black-headed gull). I've enjoyed seeing everyone else's bird shots, happy to have participated again this year!

04/30/2015 04:46:43 PM · #183

The sun is waning and unless that Gray Catbird we've been seeing elsewhere decides to show up in the next hour before my evening calls for work this is all I got. BUT, what I did manage to do, with the help of my wife's keen eye, was to hit 40 birds taken in my own 1/2 acre yard - 37 of which were taken from our back deck. Pretty good tally, though 5-10 short of my goal in the sign-up thread. Wrens (we get two types) were complete no-shows, as were the Mockingbird, Tree Swallow and warblers of any type. They'll all show up tomorrow. LOL

Here are the final two...

39. Blue-headed Vireo (being very shy):

40. Rose-breasted Grosbeak (showing up 7-10 days earlier than normal): Male

M&F

I also shot in a field 1/4 mile from my house, and wherever else I saw something I didn't have and had a camera with me. I'll post the "extras" tomorrow.

Message edited by author 2015-04-30 16:50:49.

Melethia

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS II USM Lens

04/30/2015 06:14:01 PM · #184

11. Black crowned night heron

12. Common tern

13. Grebe

14. Least Sandpiper

15. Mockingbird, female plus annoying young one.

16. Ring-billed gull, juvenile

17. Surf Scooter

18. Whimbrel

I have a few more to go - pictures are on the computer but haven't finished ID'ing/editing. Will get them up this weekend. FAR more than the four I expected!

hahn23

Canon EOS-5D Mark IV

04/30/2015 07:08:59 PM · #185

56-Common Merganser, Mergus merganser.

57 - Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula.

58 - Common Grackle, Quiscalus quiscula.

59 - American Dipper, Cinclus mexicanus.

And, this is my final post. Our best birding season is May. April in the mountains was a lot of winter this year. However, it was a good experience and I enjoyed everyone's birding efforts. Well done!

lunachicken

Nikon D90

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8

04/30/2015 10:18:05 PM · #186

Originally posted by Melethia:

I'll second the thanks! I've REALLY enjoyed seeing all the different birds, and I've definitely spent more time looking up and listening. Thanks also to lunachicken - we met up yesterday and I have a few more I'll get to posting, hopefully before the month is actually over!

Some wonderful shots here - thanks so much to all who contributed! (And have fun at the bike race, Tom - I expect to see pictures, please!!)

Had a good time! Let my bird nerdiness out a little bit... Just now getting to editing three weeks worth of shooting in the brief spots I could. No chance in getting them all up tonight but I will get them up!

Message edited by author 2015-04-30 22:18:26.

Dennisheckman

04/30/2015 10:23:26 PM · #187

40- Mountain Chickadee

41- White-breasted Nuthatch

42- Williamson's Sapsucker male and female

43- Steller's Jay

44- Western Bluebird, male and female

An this is my final post of the month as well. It's been great! Richard is right, May is the best month for birds in Colorado. So, April has been a real great warm up. Thanks to everyone who commented on my images, very much appreciated and I really loved seeing everyone's images and the great variety of birds! Cheers!

jgirl57

04/30/2015 10:33:38 PM · #188

24.

Male Cardinal

I have soo skunked out.. Whenever I went out I kept seeing the same birds LOL

If we waited another month, I would have been able to get a photo of our oriole birds that come through when they migrate, they are pretty cool looking

The hummingbirds are coming around more often now, but still harder than heck to capture.. the other issue is I have more ants than the humming birds LOL!

Thanks for putting this on,it was so much fun to do and hope to do it again soon

I learned a lot

Message edited by author 2015-04-30 22:36:16.

undieyatch

Olympus E-10

Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM

05/01/2015 01:01:20 AM · #189

mourning dove (Zenaida macroura)

43

black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

44

wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)

45

yellow-headed blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus)

46

blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

47

American crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)

05/01/2015 08:06:51 AM · #190

As I mentioned above, my posts thus far have been birds from my yard as that was the goal. These are the birds I caught elsewhere - most of them in the woodland less than a 1/4 mile from my driveway, still just outside my backdoor, though one was caught on a photowalk about an hour away and another in a parking lot. April is just a touch early here in NJ to get everything, but I will say that we had some migrants come through a week or two earlier than normal (my wife tracks them), which is something I've heard occurring with all sorts of nature this year (read about bears coming out of hibernation very early in Utah this morning).

I really enjoyed this exercise. I'm thinking a "Big Month - Near Misses" thread would be great for those of us who were a little on the early side for all our migrants. :)

41. Pileated Woodpecker:

(we usually get a fly-in once a month, but not this month)

42. Ring-billed Gull:

(parking lot find)

43. Snow Goose:

(most of its friends left late March, but I saw this one with some Canadians)

44. Tree Swallow:

(another MIA from the yard)

45. Northern Mockingbird:

(another MIA)

46. Fish Crow:

Discernible from a regular crow by its call

47. Ovenbird:

A new one for me

48. Gray Catbird:

(a yard regular that is in abundance 1/4 mile away but didn't drop by)

49. Wood Ducks:

(had a couple flyovers that I never caught)

50. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher:

Thrilled to find this pair nesting. Will be revisiting.

51. House Wren:

Wrens make for constant chatter in our yard, both House and Carolina, but they've been completely MIA and I've seen/heard to few elsewhere. Snagged this one on the 30th!!

52. Ruby-crowned Kinglet:

53. Palm Warbler:

(only Warbler I've seen so far, and I've seen a lot of these)

54. Northern Rough-winged Swallow:

Snagged this one on a fly-over yesterday. First timer for me.

55. Swamp Sparrow:

Went to a tough spot to get to hoping one would be there. It was.

56. Green Heron:

This one flew in as I was about to leave.

Message edited by author 2015-05-01 08:08:38.

davidw

Canon EOS R6

05/01/2015 08:41:31 AM · #191

Another shot of the Ospreys

19. Yellow-rumped Warbler

20. American Goldfinch

21. Pair of Mallards

22. Tree Swallow

23. Great Blue Heron

24. American Coot

25. Canada Goose

From April 20 - 24 we visited by wife's parents in Silver City, New Mexico. During this week we took a day and drove over to Cave Creek Canyon, AZ. where we saw some unique birds for us northerners...
26. Canyon Wren

27. Gambel's Quail

28. Black Headed Grosbeak

29. Dusky-capped Flycatcher

30. Western Tanager

31. Acorn Woodpeckers

32. Elegant Trogon Male

and Female

KMcC