Bird of the Week 23

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvYRbyoSw70&feature=youtu.be

Hello again, we have been cruising around the deserts of the Southwest for almost two months now and this bird is often present.  His call is unique and in fact movie producers love his sound and you will find his call in the background of many movies that have nothing to do with the desert. 

A prolific breeder, they often have three clutches a year and many were busy building nests at Seminole Canyon State Park where we stayed about a week ago.  I found a pair hard at work on a nest in a bush near our campsite.  Here's an extra point situation, in one of the clips, a sparrow flies in and lands right next to our bird of the week.  This sparrow is wide spread across North America and winters in most of the states but breeds in the north.  They can be found in Deschutes County year around. Do you know what he is?

Good luck with this great bird and happy birding.

Bird of the Week, 22

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Gk36oFYpRA

Howdy students, we are winding our way across Texas and will be heading north and west to New Mexico in the next couple days.  We can't leave Texas without sharing this wonderfully gregarious bird.  He is a tropical flycatcher that is found throughout the Rio Grande Valley and if he is present, you will know it.  And they are usually present as they are pretty common.  The video is a bit long but I just wanted to share his antics.  At least one clip has him saying his name his name.

Although he is classified as a flycatcher, I have seen them eating berries, lizards, and diving for fish in the water like a kingfisher.  I even saw a picture of one with a snake in his mouth.  So have fun with this guy and Happy birding. 

Bird of the Week 21

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sghg07Ohqtw&feature=youtu.be

I think you will agree that the bird IDs up to now have been fairly easy.  I am hoping you have learned to look for the field marks that help distinguish one bird from another.  This week we have a sparrow.  These birds present a challenge to birders because, as we discussed in a previous post, they are ground feeders and most of their time is spent on or near the ground. Many of them nest on the ground.  So they all have that camoflague plain brown look that causes some bird watchers to throw up their hands and just say, "I really don't care about the little brown jobbies."

So let's review the things we look for to separate one bird from another.

Does it have a distinctive crown marking such as a solid cap or stripes
Does it have an eye-ring
Does it have lines above, through, or below the eye
What color is the throat
What color is the chest or does it have distinctive markings
What color is the belly
What color are the wings and do they have wing bars.
What is the shape and color of the tail, is it round, flat or notched on the end.

These are the most helpful thing so look for to begin to separate all birds but when it comes to plainly colored birds it is really important to go through the check list.

This bird  barely makes into the US on the Texas border and can be commonly found in most of Central America.  It is a very plain bird and many of the markings you will look for on the above list will not be present.  The other way that you can easily tell sparrows apart is if they are singing because each has a distinctive song and this guy is no exception.  Good luck and happy birding.

Bird of the Week 20

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBcdMoiH5m8&feature=youtu.be 

Our next Bird of the Week is a really interesting seabird similar to a Tern. This bird lives in North and South America and in winter is found along the gulf coast and most of Florida. I went out to South Padre Island last week and filmed a series of clips that show its behavior, hanging out with the Laughing Gulls,  you can hear them calling in the background. There are also clips of it bathing and preening and you get brief glimpses of a pair of American Wigeon ducks and an immature White Ibis preening and in the last clip the bird flies in and you get a glimpse of some Least Sandpipers. The last few clips show the bird feeding which is where it gets its name. Have fun with this weeks bird and happy birding.