Black Phoebe

I'm always excited when I 'discover' a new bird. I haven't  discovered anything really 'new,' it's just a new bird for me.

And finding a Black Phoebe isn't that easy.

A narrow band of California's Pacific Coast and the southwest's border region is the Black Phoebe's only presence in America. Even then, only in wet landscapes.

This Black Phoebe was either in a mid-morning stretch or showing off to another Black Phoebe nearby.

Black Phoebes look alike and these two were spending a lot of time together.  I'm guessing they were a pair.

Black Phoebes are monogamous. Pairs have been recorded staying together for five years while raising two, even three, broods a season.

Fly catching is in their nature and this Black Phoebe had snatched a dragonfly.

S/he struggled with it for quite a while since the struggle meant a substantial meal.

S/he flipped, tossed and whacked it around... softening resistance.

It went down slowly, wings and all, in a series of swallows.

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Then pair bonding resumed.

I'm not sure who was impressing whom here.

Hear their song at:

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black_Phoebe

Getting to see this 'new' species is special... noteworthy.  Only 9000 more to go.

Allan

Credits:
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, All About Birds
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black_Phoebe

https://www.amnh.org/explore/ology/earth/ask-a-scientist-about-our-environment/how-big-is-the-bird-population

Cooper's Hawk (may be disturbing)

Our resident Cooper's Hawk was having a difficult moment.

Coughing up a pellet isn't a pleasant experience, judging by this juvenile's contortions.

It's just necessary.

Twisting, bending and bowing all combined to make the petulant pellet appear, so it was all worth it.

(Click any picture to enlarge.)

This all happens seconds before a smaller unwitting bird lands right in front of him.

Wings collapsed, the young hawk drops to the ground, out of sight...

...only to rise with his next meal.

Allan

Roadrunner

The bird showed minimal interest in me as s/he trotted past at a modest Roadrunner speed. They can reach 20mph if the situation demands.

The path was wide and he took the center of it. I couldn't have been happier with his demeanor and lack of concern.

Roadrunners are meat eaters. Eating mostly small mammals, lizards and insects, they patrol the ground for their food. Ground-nesting birds are fair game for this carnivore.

Unlike most birds, it's uncommon to see a Roadrunner in a tree, but it happens.

Being weak fliers, they prefer to run down their prey and are quite adept at killing rattlesnakes.

Speckled in a random brown pattern, he dresses in sunshine this cool morning.

November nights are cold so allowing the sun inside his feathers warms his body faster.

The messy undercoat is there for warmth...

...while the blues, greens and gold are to impress the opposite sex.

Sufficiently warmed, he's off on a hunt. Two feet long and traveling on two feet, he must be aware of coyotes. As fleet as he is, coyotes are twice as fast...40mph.

And coyotes are in the area too.

(click any picture to enlarge)

Allan

Credit:
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, All About Birds

Yellow-headed Blackbirds

When the Yellow-headed Blackbirds flew into Sweetwater Wetlands, my latest nemesis bird issues were over. Every birder has a nemesis bird... a bird that maddeningly avoids you. Before this it was the Belted Kingfishers or any member of the kingfishers family who'd fly away one step before I stopped.

Dozens of Yellow-headed Blackbirds swirled into the cattail lagoons today.

Maybe being on-site when they arrived was the secret to capturing these elusive birds.

It's their nature to sleep in the safety of the reeds, but you might see them in large numbers in agricultural fields.

I watched them group-up, disband and regroup again and again for reasons unknown.

Having eluded me for years, I was unaware of their white wing patches that are so obvious now in flight.

They eventually left for the day and that was okay with me. So now they'll have to perturb a different birder.
(Click any picture to enlarge)
Allan

Credits: 
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, All About Birds
The Sibley's Guide to Birds

Three Harris's Hawks

When doves, quail and all else exploded from the bird feeder, I imagined the local Cooper's Hawk had made another surprise visit over our house.

Grabbing my camera, I went to capture the 'remains.'

No remains, no Cooper's Hawk, but three Harris's Hawks were perched at the gable end of our neighbor's house... empty handed.

I'm fairly sure they saw me standing below, but for the longest time they didn't mind my interest in them.

When one adult flew away, it was quickly followed by the other.

That left, I believe, a juvenile, judging by the crying and screaming.

S/he, too, was free to leave, but remained minutes more... leaving hungry.

They are welcome back any time, however dinner here is pot-luck.

Allan
(Click any picture to enlarge)

Red-bellied Woodpecker

It's widely reported and easily believed that birds get a substantial dietary benefit from the many, many backyard bird feeders people put out, especially the seed-eating birds.

The Red-bellied Woodpeckers in my observations are a good example of that.

Seeds and nuts are not a complete diet, but counting the number of trips made to the feeders daily, they are getting substantial nourishment from peanuts, raisins and tree nuts.

Insects and invertebrates discovered naturally should complete their diet.

As for the 'red belly' he supposedly sports, I've only seen one Red-bellied Woodpecker, (a few years ago now), that actually lived up to his name.

Even then the 'red' on his belly came nowhere near the red on his head and nape.

This female had her turn at the banquet table, so now rests to digest.

I've read that European Starlings bully Red-bellied Woodpeckers for their nesting sites. I've also seen Blue Jays squabbling with Red-bellied Woodpeckers for food at feeders, but the Red-bellieds are getting their share, too.

Allan

Credits: 
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, All About Birds
The Sibley's Guide to Birds

White-breasted Nuthatches Fighting

Two White-breasted Nuthatches had a 'go' at each other one early morning in Brown Deer Park.

It's unclear what the dispute was about, but it seemed immensely important to them.

They danced around a small tree with sincere intentions of doing harm to the other, if things weren't seen 'my' way.

The tree's resources had nothing to do with it. It was merely a launching platform for attacks on the supposed intruder.

 

Little was accomplished and less was gained in this 5-second spat.

I was the only to witness it, but now YOU know it, too.

Allan