Friday, March 13, 2015
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Look, Up in the Sky
While in general I prefer the views out my kitchen window to those out of my office window ...
Sometimes the view out of the office window can be pretty nice too.
Sometimes the view out of the office window can be pretty nice too.
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Snow Day
The last post mentioned that it was a snow day, and that I was working from home. There are several benefits to working at home, no commute (and no crazy drivers to deal with!), lack of casual interruptions meaning I get more work done, and coffee breaks in my own kitchen.
Which means I can look out my kitchen window, a much nicer view than an office complex parking lot.
And with the images below you can do so vicariously as well.
The Red-shouldered Hawk was even closer this time, it is in the tree behind the triple stump, in the upper right of the image. In the yard rather than on the edge.
The hawk sat in this tree for about three hours. As before, the other birds paid no attention to it. Had it been a coopers or a sharpie sitting there the birds would have been gone.
As noted in the previous post, we had between sixty and eighty Dark-eyed Juncos. Here's fifteen of them.
The turkeys on the other hand scared all the smaller birds away.
With seemingly all the Northern Cardinals heading for what we now call the "Cardinal Tree". I count sixteen, with a seventeenth possibly flying in from the lower left.
Curious looking birds, with ugly heads and pretty feather colors, odd looking horns before the eyes and feather "beards". Made all the more photogenic in with the snow.
This much more dapper looking Northern Flicker has become a regular yard bird.
As have the Fox Sparrows, Pine Siskins, and American Goldfich. The only concession made to the cold and snow seemed to be feather puffing when perched. Otherwise it was like any other day at the feeders. Just prettier with the snow.
And it is not just birds that enjoy the food at our feeders. Squirrels make themselves at home as well.
Although before the Red-shouldered Hawk took up his watch over the place we had seven of the gray furry beasts, and after just this one. We need the hawk to take up watch more often.
And given the territorial calls this bird seems to be making we may just get our wish.
I rather like working from home. The only thing better is not working from home. Alas, that only happens on weekends.
Which means I can look out my kitchen window, a much nicer view than an office complex parking lot.
And with the images below you can do so vicariously as well.
The Red-shouldered Hawk was even closer this time, it is in the tree behind the triple stump, in the upper right of the image. In the yard rather than on the edge.
The hawk sat in this tree for about three hours. As before, the other birds paid no attention to it. Had it been a coopers or a sharpie sitting there the birds would have been gone.
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| Hawk Food |
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| People Food |
With seemingly all the Northern Cardinals heading for what we now call the "Cardinal Tree". I count sixteen, with a seventeenth possibly flying in from the lower left.
Curious looking birds, with ugly heads and pretty feather colors, odd looking horns before the eyes and feather "beards". Made all the more photogenic in with the snow.
This much more dapper looking Northern Flicker has become a regular yard bird.
As have the Fox Sparrows, Pine Siskins, and American Goldfich. The only concession made to the cold and snow seemed to be feather puffing when perched. Otherwise it was like any other day at the feeders. Just prettier with the snow.
And it is not just birds that enjoy the food at our feeders. Squirrels make themselves at home as well.
Although before the Red-shouldered Hawk took up his watch over the place we had seven of the gray furry beasts, and after just this one. We need the hawk to take up watch more often.
I rather like working from home. The only thing better is not working from home. Alas, that only happens on weekends.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Death of a Junco
"It got a junco!" rang out from the kitchen. "Quick, you can get good shots from that window."
Today we were both home. Snow day. Schools closed for her and me working from home.
And lots of birds at the feeders. Lots. Including somewhere between sixty and eighty Dark-eyed Juncos, a type of sparrow that migrates south to New Jersey for the winter.
And one juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk.
This sharpie also frequents the feeders. But not for the food we put out. But rather for the food it attracts.
Sharpies, you see, eat birds. And there were plenty to choose from today.
Including one unlucky junco (if you bigafy the images you can see the poor thing's leg sticking up).
Eventually the hawk flew off into the woods with its prize. And all the other birds came back. Except the sharpie (and that junco).
Today we were both home. Snow day. Schools closed for her and me working from home.
And lots of birds at the feeders. Lots. Including somewhere between sixty and eighty Dark-eyed Juncos, a type of sparrow that migrates south to New Jersey for the winter.
And one juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk.
This sharpie also frequents the feeders. But not for the food we put out. But rather for the food it attracts.
Sharpies, you see, eat birds. And there were plenty to choose from today.
Including one unlucky junco (if you bigafy the images you can see the poor thing's leg sticking up).
Eventually the hawk flew off into the woods with its prize. And all the other birds came back. Except the sharpie (and that junco).
Monday, March 2, 2015
Predador and Prey?
What's wrong with this picture?
The birds are still there! That's what's wrong. Don't they see the hawk?
Don't you see the hawk?
See it now? A beautiful red-shouldered hawk. It certainly sees the birds. And it no doubt saw us.
But as we were inside looking out the window it wasn't alarmed.
And it seemed completely disinterested in the goings on down below its perch.
Usually, if there is a hawk around the birds at the feeders either flee or freeze. But not this time. They were just as active as ever. Surely they saw this bird. And while not its primary food source, red-shoulders will take birds. Fad this been a cooper or a sharpie perched there the place would have been deserted.
The hawk as right on the edge of the open area of our yard, as could be seen in the first image above. Or with a little help in the image below (as always, click to bigafy).
Curious.
It did scare up a bluejay when it flew away through the woods. But it wasn't clear if it was going after the jay or it just spooked the jay as it flew off. In either case the jay escaped unscathed.
The birds are still there! That's what's wrong. Don't they see the hawk?
Don't you see the hawk?
See it now? A beautiful red-shouldered hawk. It certainly sees the birds. And it no doubt saw us.
But as we were inside looking out the window it wasn't alarmed.
And it seemed completely disinterested in the goings on down below its perch.
Usually, if there is a hawk around the birds at the feeders either flee or freeze. But not this time. They were just as active as ever. Surely they saw this bird. And while not its primary food source, red-shoulders will take birds. Fad this been a cooper or a sharpie perched there the place would have been deserted.
The hawk as right on the edge of the open area of our yard, as could be seen in the first image above. Or with a little help in the image below (as always, click to bigafy).
Curious.
It did scare up a bluejay when it flew away through the woods. But it wasn't clear if it was going after the jay or it just spooked the jay as it flew off. In either case the jay escaped unscathed.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Backyard Drama
Ok, it was actually in the side yard ...
Our protagonists meet.
On top of the stump, in all black, European Starling (the crowd boos!). And on the side, in the dapper orange cap, Red-bellied Woodpecker ("Yay!" "Woo Hoo!" "You show him!").
The red-bellied is not happy about this newcomer on his stump.
The starling calls for backup ...
Red-bellied's having none of that. He's got em both jumping!
A third starling joins the fray.
Red-bellied goes on the offensive.
He's really taking it to him.
The tide appears to turn ...
Standoff!
Retreat?
Victory!
Na-na-nana-na!
My hero!
European starlings are a non-native invasive species that were introduced in the United States in 1890 as part of a plan to bring all of the birds mentioned in Shakespeare's plays to the new world. It has been very successful here, with the population estimated at 200 million birds. And that's a problem as it is an aggressive bird that will evict native species from nest cavities.
Some number of years ago I watched a pair of starlings and a red-bellied woodpecker fight over a tree cavity in Colliers Mills WMA here in New Jersey. The starlings seemed to be getting the better of the flght that day. And I never understood that. I could see how starlings could oust most birds, but woodpeckers have a powerful weapon. A few pokes with that jackhammer bill and that starling will be quickly looking for new digs.
The red-bellied had no problem with any other birds being on the stump, with the exception of the bluejays. I wonder if they recognize starlings as competitors for next sites and thus the animosity?
Our protagonists meet.
On top of the stump, in all black, European Starling (the crowd boos!). And on the side, in the dapper orange cap, Red-bellied Woodpecker ("Yay!" "Woo Hoo!" "You show him!").
The red-bellied is not happy about this newcomer on his stump.
The starling calls for backup ...
Red-bellied's having none of that. He's got em both jumping!
A third starling joins the fray.
Red-bellied goes on the offensive.
He's really taking it to him.
The tide appears to turn ...
Standoff!
Retreat?
Victory!
Na-na-nana-na!
My hero!
~~~~~~~~~~
European starlings are a non-native invasive species that were introduced in the United States in 1890 as part of a plan to bring all of the birds mentioned in Shakespeare's plays to the new world. It has been very successful here, with the population estimated at 200 million birds. And that's a problem as it is an aggressive bird that will evict native species from nest cavities.
Some number of years ago I watched a pair of starlings and a red-bellied woodpecker fight over a tree cavity in Colliers Mills WMA here in New Jersey. The starlings seemed to be getting the better of the flght that day. And I never understood that. I could see how starlings could oust most birds, but woodpeckers have a powerful weapon. A few pokes with that jackhammer bill and that starling will be quickly looking for new digs.
The red-bellied had no problem with any other birds being on the stump, with the exception of the bluejays. I wonder if they recognize starlings as competitors for next sites and thus the animosity?
Look, Up In The Sky
Another in the continuing series of things I see out my office window ...
The appearance of the sky is always changing. The sun rises and sets, with the colors at dawn and dusk much different than midday. Clouds form and dissipate. Planes and birds and the occasional balloon fly by. The stars appear, move across the sky, and fade away as dawn breaks.
And other things happen too. Like colors in clouds.
Tricky to photograph, with the bright sun overwhelming the camera sensor. I used a camera without an optical viewfinder; looking at the sun can be dangerous to your vision. Even then it was so bright I didn't notice the aircraft until I processed the images. Each image has at least one. Try and find them all.
The best way to observe these phenomena of the daylight sky is to block the sun behind a building, tree, or other obstacle. But you have to look. So when you are out and about look up. Or even when you are stuck inside an office, in meeting after meeting after meeting ...
The changing geometry of the positions of the sun and clouds means that many such phenomena are short lived, so you'll need to look up often. And in this case we see the colors are already fading. They're still visible along the edges, but the vibrant colors throughout the cloud have disappeared.
And yes, that window still needs to be cleaned ...
The appearance of the sky is always changing. The sun rises and sets, with the colors at dawn and dusk much different than midday. Clouds form and dissipate. Planes and birds and the occasional balloon fly by. The stars appear, move across the sky, and fade away as dawn breaks.
And other things happen too. Like colors in clouds.
Tricky to photograph, with the bright sun overwhelming the camera sensor. I used a camera without an optical viewfinder; looking at the sun can be dangerous to your vision. Even then it was so bright I didn't notice the aircraft until I processed the images. Each image has at least one. Try and find them all.
The best way to observe these phenomena of the daylight sky is to block the sun behind a building, tree, or other obstacle. But you have to look. So when you are out and about look up. Or even when you are stuck inside an office, in meeting after meeting after meeting ...
The changing geometry of the positions of the sun and clouds means that many such phenomena are short lived, so you'll need to look up often. And in this case we see the colors are already fading. They're still visible along the edges, but the vibrant colors throughout the cloud have disappeared.
And yes, that window still needs to be cleaned ...
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