Friday, January 24, 2014

Scaup It Out

 
Lesser Scaup are often found on our southern ponds, marshes, and secluded bays.  I must continually remind myself to look for out of the way ponds.  Many times when I do I am rewarded with some grand finds.  These were on the pond behind the Lakeside Professional Building off Hwy 71 in Bastrop, TX.


Scaup give many trouble identifying.  These are Lessers with peaked crowns, almost flattened in the back of the head.  Their bill is smaller and with less of a black tip.   All the males look dull—no black sheen to the front of their bodies. The male at the top of the first photograph has a head that is purplish in color.  The females all have brownish heads with some white about the base of their beaks. 

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Monday, January 20, 2014

Commemoration


In Memory of Bill Ravenscroft who died Friday, January 17, 2014.
A truly great friend, I will miss him.


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Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Well Grounded


Not very often do I get a chance to see these small doves.  I’ve heard their “woopf” call often.  However, their tendency to hang close to the ground in brushy cover makes them difficult to spy.  So, it was a pleasant surprise when these Common Ground Doves came in to gather small stones and seeds for their crops.  Lingering just enough time for me to get a few not so good pictures, off they went to who knows where.

These ground doves have been described as looking like small Mourning Doves.  Yet they have a scaly looking head and a stubby, black tail.  Legs are pink or yellowish.  When they fly, notice the round wings and rufous primaries.

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Thursday, January 9, 2014

Rigging for the New Year

 There are times and circumstances when only a good scope will do.  Resolve: getting rigged for the New Year!
Yes, a trip to the wetlands or when you are trying to get a glimpse of the Attwater Prairie Chickens--always a good time to have your scope.  And a good scope requires a good tripod.

Take a look at these:
Vortex Viper HD 20-60 x 80 Spotting Scope, Straight or Angled Configuration
Vortex Skyline Tripod

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Thursday, January 2, 2014

Of Sparrows

 
White-crowned Sparrow by Bill Ravenscroft
Any birder who knows their sparrows, in my humble opinion, is well on their way to being an expert birder, maybe even approaching a state of grace I’ve yet to achieve.  I struggle with sparrows even though I’ve endeavored over these last few years to learn their identifying field marks.  There are so many of them—55 in North America alone.
Lark Sparrow by Bill Ravenscroft

I have progressed beyond just pronouncing them “lbj’s”.  Some species I’ve come to know well as they have very distinctive characteristics.   White-throated Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrows look somewhat alike, yet are so distinctive to be distinguished easily from other sparrows.  A Harris’ Sparrows with its pink beak surrounded by an all-black “goatee equally is identifiable.  Again, the Lark Sparrow has such a distinctive face and tail feathers that it too is readily identified in the field.

Lincoln Sparrow by Roy Smallwood
 
One of my favorite sparrows is the Lincoln Sparrow.  I am surprised by how frequently I see it now that I know for what to look.  The Lincoln has a streaked breast that stops abruptly.  Couple that with a broad gray eyebrow and you know you have it clearly identified.  Its primaries are chestnut colored and its belly white.  It will raise its crest when agitated.  All this makes for a good identification.


Lincoln Sparrow by Roy Smallwood

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