Birding in Maine» Bird Photography Weekly

Photo of the Day: Broad-winged Hawk

John Briggs — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:34:40 +0000

Broad-winged Hawk – Buteo platypterus

Late Saturday afternoon, Sharon and I were driving along a decrepit logging road looking for wildlife. We saw two bull Moose on the other side of a large pond eating vegetation. I found it odd that these males were in such close proximity to each other because the annual “rut” begins in a week or two. While watching the Moose, we heard a Boreal Chickadee and several Gray Jays, but neither species were seen to our dismay.

We continued driving deeper into the woods, seeing the occasional Warbler, Raven, Chickadee, Spruce Grouse, etc. Just after rounding a sharp turn, I saw something in a tree along the road, but wasn’t sure what it was. I stopped, turned around in my seat and looked around. Just off the edge of the road, about eye level, was a Broad-winged Hawk perched on a branch.

Bird Photography: Broad-winged Hawk

The Hawk was preening and seemed completely oblivious to our presence. I took advantage of this and slowly got out of the car. Crouching down, I made my way to the front of the car and started taking photos of this beautiful raptor. To my amazement, the Hawk continued to ignore us. We watched it for several minutes, and then it took flight.

I haven’t had much experience with this Hawk, and actually didn’t know for sure which species it was. I want to say thanks to the folks in my circles at Google+ for help in ID’ing this Hawk.

Happy Birding!

World Bird Wednesday

Juvenile Ospreys – Ready to Face The World

John Briggs — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 17:28:59 +0000

This post will probably be the final update on the three juvenile Ospreys that I been watching all summer long. To refresh your memory, back in the spring, an adult pair of Osprey moved into the platform nest in the harbor just off Fort Road, on the campus of the Southern Maine Community College. Three eggs were laid and all successfully hatched.

Young Osprey grow very rapidly and are ready to fledge when they are about 50 days old. They continue to stay near the parents for another 50 days while they learn the hunting and flying skills that they will use for the rest of their lives. The family will go their separate ways just prior to fall migration. While Osprey nesting success is quite high, it’s after the young leave the nest when they will begin facing bigger problems. Major causes of post-fledgling mortality are electrocution, emaciation, gunshot wounds, and poisoning.

The Osprey migration is not due to the fact that these birds cannot survive Maine’s cold and snowy weather. They migrate because the cold winter weather freezes the rivers, creeks, lakes and ponds, making their food supply, fresh fish, inaccessible. Because these fish provide 98% of the Osprey’s diet, its unavailability would likely cause the Osprey to starve to death. To survive, the Osprey migrate south to Florida and South America.

The juvenile Ospreys that I have been watching leave their nest for short excursions around the harbor. I’ve spotted them on the rock jetty that leads to the Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse and on masts of sailboats at Spring Point Marina. The adult Ospreys still bring fish for the juveniles, as evident in one of the photos below. It seems that flounder is the food of choice for these growing birds.

It won’t be long until these birds leave the nest permanently. Some will migrate to Florida, where fish are abundant and the waters don’t freeze. Others will migrate to South America, a journey of over 4,000 miles. These young birds are ready to face the world and all of the dangers that lie in wait. If they survive, some of them may return to Maine in the spring, and possibly back to the nest they were raised in to raise a family of their own. I will miss them and wish them luck in their journey.

Bird Photography: Juvenile Ospreys

Enjoy these photos and an HD video of this Osprey family. They will soon be leaving for a warmer climate and all we will be left with is an empty nest and fond memories.

The following photos were taken with a Canon 7D and a Canon 400mm f/4 L IS lens. Simply click one of the thumbnails below for a full-sized view, and then use your arrow key to navigate through the rest of the photos. ©2011 John Briggs Photography | All Rights Reserved

Dimension: 560×480 | Video bit rate: 1000Kbps | length: 50 seconds
Playback: Click Play Button | Broadband Connection Recommended
Video: Juvenile Osprey eating Flounder | ©2011 John Briggs Photography

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZq1ka4G0As

Happy birding!

World Bird Wednesday

Photo of the Day: Hummingbird Elegance

John Briggs — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 13:10:15 +0000

The elegance of a hummingbird is amazing and wonderful to watch. These “flying jewels” are endlessly fascinating because of their iridescent beauty, gracefulness and unique physical qualities. I never tire from watching these gems. Occasionally, I get the opportunity to study our Ruby-throated Hummingbirds up close and personal.

Bird Photography: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

I watched this male Ruby-throated Hummingbird preen while on a branch near our feeding station. He seemed completely oblivious to my presence as I was only three or four feet away. Lucky enough to have my camera in hand, I captured this photo of the hummingbird preening and it’s gorget and head showing its beautiful iridescent colors.

Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird preening

Happy birding!

World Bird Wednesday

Nature’s Jewel: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

John Briggs — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 13:48:37 +0000

Winged Jewel

With wings spun of silver and hearts of gold,
These tiny creatures our hearts behold.
With angelic features and colors so bright,
Make even the heaviest heart seem light.
The magical way they flit through the sky,
They appear, then vanish in the blink of an eye.
They’re sending a message for us to retrieve,
Anything’s possible for those who believe!

Christopher Griffiths

Bird Photography: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

How can you not love them? Nature’s tiny jewels flitting here and there in the blink of an eye. Wing-beats so fast that it takes a high speed camera to record the amazing 53 beats per second! During the time of Columbus, the Taino Native Americans called them “a peaceful bird that will defend their territory with the heart of an Eagle.” The fragile beauty of nature, a beauty that we should not allow to fade.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird (male)

Happy birding!

World Bird Wednesday

Photo of the Day: Brown Thrasher

John Briggs — Mon, 16 May 2011 13:38:56 +0000

Brown Thrasher – Toxostoma rufum

This is the first Brown Thrasher to visit our yard in four years. I first noticed it Saturday afternoon on one of our suet feeders. I’ve never seen a Brown Thrasher at a feeder, let alone a suet feeder. Has anyone else ever seen this bird at a bird feeder? What surprised me was the other birds at the feeding station didn’t feel put out by the Thrasher’s presence. Birds included a Baltimore Oriole, Gray Catbird, Chipping Sparrow, Black-capped Chickadee and a Red-breasted Nuthatch.

Later in the afternoon, I saw the Thrasher carrying nesting material to the dense thicket at the bottom of our yard, near the edge of the cove. Sunday passed without a sighting and I began to think it left the area. Lo and behold I saw the Thrasher this morning, once again carrying small twigs to the thicket. It’s looking more and more likely that this bird will be nesting in our yard this year.

Brown Thrasher

Happy birding!