Bird Photos and their Stories
Lauren Shaffer wrote 146 posts
Elegant Trogons are supposed to be the highlight of any birding trip to southeast Arizona; that is, if you are lucky enough to see one! They seemed to be late arriving at Cave Creek Canyon near our group’s home base of Portal, AZ. Only one pair had been seen in various places the week we […]
A previous post about Orioles to check out from last year is Baltimore Oriole Nest.
According to an article on Black-tailed Rattlesnakes, this venomous snake packs a punch and “is capable of delivering large amounts of potent venom. If encountered, it should be left alone. A large percentage of envenomations occur when a snake is handled or abused.” While on a birding trip to Cave Creek Canyon in Arizona last […]
The Common Yellowthroat is one of the first birds that I noticed before birding became a passion. I’ll never forget disembarking from a canoe on the Beaver Creek in Ohio, walking around a shrub and coming face to face with this tiny masked bandit! I still call it the bandit bird! For such a […]
Scarlet Tanagers, with their sing-song Robin-like voice, are the eye candy of the woods. Their bright orange-red body and black wings and tail make for a startlingly beautiful sight! According to this website, the fact that they are larger and slower than the warblers also makes for one of the easier woodland birds to focus […]
Nashville Warbler is a handsome warbler with a prominent eye ring, gray head, yellow throat and belly, and an olive-green back and wings. In our part of Pennsylvania, the Nashville Warbler is only seen passing through in migration, and can be found by its two-part song, bitsee, bitsee, bitsee, bitsee, tititititi.
Red-headed Woodpeckers graced our back yard with their presence this spring. This was the first time in 30 years that I’ve seen a Red-headed in the yard! Our first one hung around for a few days, called for a mate, and explored all the possible nesting sites. This aroused the wrath of the locals, but […]
The Spotted Sandpiper is the most abundant sandpiper in North America, found wherever there is fresh water, and sometimes also near the sea. It is sparrow-sized (7-8 inches) with a wingspan of about 15 inches, and sports a spotted belly in breeding season, an orange bill and flesh colored legs. It teeters constantly as […]
Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a tiny, active bird, even smaller than a warbler. Its ruby crown is usually hidden, but this little guy was singing in the multi-flora rose and he was excited enough to show a red-orange stripe on top of his head. After I played his song only once, it became excited enough to […]
Recently a friend who owns a lodge near R.B. Winter State Park in Central PA, invited me to lead a bird walk and do a photo presentation at her beautiful place in Sugar Valley. Nineteen people showed up for the walk, and a few more for the brunch and presentation. Spring has been slow to […]