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Photography by Richard L. Bowman
Birds & Other Animals
Birds & Other Animals
October 20, 2016
October 8, 2016
More of the Usual and Some Unusual
In the past two weeks, I have seen some interesting poses from the regular birds at our feeders and three birds I have not seen for a long time. I think I have them correctly identified, but I welcome any corrections that others can send me.
A Black-capped Chickadee Flits to Our One Feeders (7-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Visits Our Other Feeder (14-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
American Robin Stands on a Rock Seam in Our Lawn (15-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
As to the antics of some birds, here are four photos of a female Cardinal.
A Female Cardinal Looks Over Her Surroundings from the Feeder (14-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Pose #1 of a Female Cardinal on the Ground (15-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Pose #2 of a Female Cardinal on the Ground (15-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Pose #3 of a Female Cardinal on the Ground (15-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Now here are photos of the most common of our feeding birds--House Sparrows and House Finches.
A Female House Finch Seems Ready to Fly Off with Her Loot (7-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Another Female House Finch on the Other Side of the Same Feeder (7-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Male and Female House Sparrows on the Other Feeder (11-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Male House Finch Uses the Upright Feeder, Too (11-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Several House Sparrows Work on the Seeds Spilled on the Ground (11-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Stately Female House Finch at the Feeder (17-Oct-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
The usual and the unusual are all fun to watch when it comes to birds at our feeders. They spike my days with some fun views when I work with them on my computer. My bad vision does not let me really observe them in the raw. I thank God for digital cameras and computers.
October 8, 2016
More Sparrows, Mourning Doves, Cardinals, Etc.
Around our bird feeders in Harrisonburg, Virginia, USA, we see many different animals. Lots of them are regular visitors--squirrels, house sparrows and mourning doves.
A Gray Squirrel Scrounging for Seeds (29-Aug-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
The Very Prolific Import--House Sparrows (31-Aug-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
And here are three mourning dove photos. They are quiet and calm, but they can also defend their opportunity to dig around in the seeds that were spilled from the bird feeders by other birds.
Morning Dove Photo #1 (31-Aug-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Morning Dove Photo #2 (31-Aug-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Mourning Dove with Its Neck Stretched as It Looks Around (5-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
There are always the fighting Blue Jays to brighten the colors around the feeders. The last few weeks I have not seen many. I wonder why.
A Blue Jay Viewing Its Territory (5-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Sometimes it is hard for me to discern if I am seeing a male House Sparrows (non-breeding, with small black bib) or a female House Sparrow. But there are all non-breeding males, I believe.
One Male House Sparrow (8-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Two Male House Sparrows (8-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A nicely balanced feeder made a fun photo--a female Cardinal and a female House Finch.
A Female Cardinal and a Female House Finch Balance Each Other at the Feeder (9-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Here are several other interesting photos of some usual visitors to our feeders.
A Scrunched-Together Mourning Dove (21-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Two Mourning Dove Search Side-by-side for Seeds (23-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Female House Sparrow in the Shadow of a Feeder (23-Sep-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Back in the middle of June (as we go back several months in time) while we were still in Lezhë, Albania, I captured these two House Sparrows in the throes of breeding.
Pair of House Sparrows Breeding (15-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Male House Sparrow Flies Away Momentarily (15-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
And the Male Comes Back Again for a Visit (15-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Several days later when we had come back to Harrisonburg, VA, USA, I found these birds in the yard of Elsie's sister, Alice, and her husband Dennis.
Two Presumed Female House Sparrows (25-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Male Cardinal Hunts at the Edge of the Bark Mulch (25-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Female Cardinal Hunts in the Bark Mulch (25-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Male House Sparrow Flaunts His Plummage (25-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Starling Checks for Bugs in the Grass (25-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
At the end of June, I also found this Red Admiral butterfly on some coneflower blooms in Harrisonburg. Wikipedia says, "The Red Admiral has a 45–50 mm (1.8–2.0 in) wing span." And that fits these photos were well. According to Wikipedia in winters in south Texas and migrates to the upper parts of the US for summer.
Erect Wings of a Red Admiral Butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) on a Cone Flower (28-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Spread-out Wings of a Red Admiral Butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) on a Cone Flower (28-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
From June 28 through July 1, I was able to catch photos of a variety of birds at the feeders in our relative's yard. Non were real unusual, but it was fun to see the variety of types of births I had captured with my camera.
A Downy Woodpecker on the Vertical Feeder (28-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Female House Sparrow on the Same Feeder (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Downy Woodpecker after a "Hair-raising" Experience? (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Male House Sparrow in Breeding Plumage (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Beautiful Red Head of a Male House Finch (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Female House Finch Checks Out the Scene Below (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Red-bellied Woodpecker Found a Sunflower Seed (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Male House Finch Looks Over the Scene Around Him (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Male House Finch Looks at the Scene Below Him (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A Female House Finch Checks Out Me and My Camera (29-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Northern Mockingbird on the Ground (30-Jun-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Northern Mockingbird on an Electrical Wire (1-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
A week and a half later, I again try my hand at photographing some birds on an electrical wire strung across the street by the apartment we were staying in.
Another Imported Species: European Starling (11-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Mourning Dove Up on an Electrical Wire (13-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Northern Mockingbird on an Electrical Wire #1 (13-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Northern Mockingbird on an Electrical Wire #2 (13-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Northern Mockingbird on an Electrical Wire #3 (13-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
Backing up to July 4, my Dad. our sons and some grandchildren visited Grub Lake near Landisville, Pennsylvania, USA. In addition to fishing (which did not net us any fish!), we also observed a Black Rat snake.
Coiled-up Black Rat Snake (4-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
The Head of the Black Rat Snake (4-Jul-16; © Richard L. Bowman)
I thank God for the variety of wildlife that he has made sure to inhabit our daily living spaces. It is thrilling to see all the different designs of birds (colors, size and structure) and the many shapes and weights of animals, too. So keep you eyes open, and I will keep mine open, too. In awe and wonder we can observe the natural world around us.
--©2014-16, Richard L. Bowman
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