Bird Photos and their Stories
Two lovely Canada Geese are peacefully swimming on the still waters of Lake Chillisquaque, when out of nowhere comes the Evil One who flies in, making his presence known with great squawks and tongue protruding. He is announcing to all that this is his territory and others are not welcome here. That show of offense didn’t dislodge […]
Snowy Owls are still in the news, with some being seen south of us in Lancaster, and other places, too. So, I decided to add one more post (at least) with photos of the “Dark One” that I described in my last post. It is so dark, that it is easily identified as a […]
Snowy Owls have been the most exciting thing to happen to our little farming community in years; bringing together curious neighbors, bird clubs, famous ornithologists, photographers, and the Old Order Mennonite farmers with their large families who have been hosting them for more than two months. At the peak of their appearances, at least 4 or […]
Hooded Mergansers: Identification Hooded Mergansers are my all-time favorite duck, and always a thrill to see during migration for ducks and geese in March. Such a dapper little duck in a tux, and a real attitude to go with it! Allaboutbirds.org describes them briefly as follows: “Hooded” is something of an understatement for this extravagantly […]
Red-necked Grebe Red-throated Loon, Ross’ Goose, many Red-necked Grebes, White-winged Scoters, various other ducks, as well as thousands of Snow Geese and Canada Geese were spotted by the members of a recent Pennsylvania Society of Ornithology (PSO) field trip. Because Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area above Lancaster, PA was frozen over, the trip became a Susquehanna river […]
Project Snowstorm According to the All About Birds blog by Cornell, The massive Snowy Owl irruption going on this year—the biggest in decades—is captivating birders and nonbirders alike with unexpected glimpses of an avian superstar with hypnotic golden eyes. But this winter’s phenomenon is also an opportunity for science to learn about the lifestyle […]
Identification of the Snowy Owl As the photos show, Snowy Owls can be very lightly barred or almost white if they are adult males, and more moderately or darkly barred if they are juveniles or adult females. In our area, we happen to have all three! Here is a great infographic put out by Nature | PBS. […]
Identification of the Red-Tailed Hawk Red-tails are easily seen from the highway, perched in trees, telephone poles or even wires, and sometimes soaring in the air with their rufous-colored tail shining brightly in the sun. When perched, their bright white breast glows, and a belly band of dark streaks is usually visible. Their […]
Identification of Rough-legged Hawk The Rough-legged Hawk is a buteo like the Red-tailed Hawk, but is a little larger. It has both a light and a dark morph, with much variability. The hawks pictured here are all light morph. They have dark “wrist” patches on the wings, and a dark belly. A U-shaped lighter […]
Identification American Kestrels are our smallest, and most beautiful falcon. Although they are declining most places, in our part of PA they are thriving! They are often seen on telephone wires on back roads or hovering over fields next to highways, searching for grasshoppers in the summer and voles in every season. If you look […]