ornithology
grrlscientist | March 29, 2009tags: Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Tyrannus forficatus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Tyrannus forficatus, photographed near Brookings, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 18 October 2008 [larger view].
Photo taken with Canon 40D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
My usual admonition to start at the rear seems just a bit too obvious with this bird: the combination of a long, forficate…
grrlscientist | March 28, 2009tags: Blue-winged Teal, Anas dicors, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Blue-winged Teal, Anas discors, photographed in Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 10 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/400s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
The white "fender" patch, bright brown sides, and gray head and neck quickly identify this shy…
grrlscientist | March 27, 2009Gambel's Quail, Callipepla gambelii, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Gambel's Quail, Callipepla gambelii, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 2005 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2005:11:25 09:28:46
Exposure Time: 1/249
F-Number: 8.00
ISO: 200
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
A plump, somewhat long-tailed chicken-like bird on a desert substrate can only be a quail. Distinguishing some of the New World…
grrlscientist | March 26, 2009tags: Townsend's Warbler, Dendroica townsendi, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Townsend's Warbler, Dendroica townsendi, photographed in San Francisco, California. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 18 December 2008 [larger view].
Photo taken with Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
A diminutive, brightly colored bird makes us think of a wood warbler, and the black throat and crown point us in the direction of the "…
grrlscientist | March 25, 2009tags: Red-legged Thrush, Turdus plumbeus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Red-legged Thrush, Turdus plumbeus, photographed near Ceiba, Puerto Rico [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Dennis Paulson, 11 March 2009 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
This is a pretty bird, and one quickly identifiable to genus for anyone who knows, say, American Robin or Song Thrush. The Turdus thrushes are large, alert-looking birds with long and…
grrlscientist | March 24, 2009tags: American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus, photographed in Brazoria Wildlife Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 10 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
How much of a bird do you need to see to identify it? Depends: on the…
grrlscientist | March 23, 2009tags: Anna's Hummingbird, Calypte anna, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Anna's Hummingbird, Calypte anna, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 7 July 2005 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2005:07:07 07:19:59
Exposure Time: 1/319
F-Number: 11.00
ISO: 200
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
We're usually so distracted by the bright colors of a hummingbird's head that we forget to start at the rear. In this…
grrlscientist | March 23, 2009tags: migratory birds, BirdLife, conservation, streaming video
Wow, this inspiring and moving video shows us some of the world's many migratory bird species and pleads with us to make their journey safe again. The music and footage is glorious, so sit back and turn your speakers up [5:23]
grrlscientist | March 22, 2009tags: evolutionary biology, mate choice, sex determination, genetic compatibility, behavioral ecology, Gouldian Finch, Erythrura gouldiae, peer-reviewed paper
The three color morphs of Gouldian finches, Erythrura gouldiae.
Image: Sarah Pryke, Macquarie University.
Gouldian finches, Erythrura gouldiae, are small cavity-nesting passerines that are endemic to open savannahs adjacent to mangrove swamps in northern Australia. These finches eat a variety of native grass seeds, but to meet the increased energetic and nutritional demands of rearing chicks, they primarily eat insects when…
grrlscientist | March 22, 2009tags: Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans, photographed on Pacific Coast in San Francisco, California. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 18 December 2008 [larger view].
Photo taken with a Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
A plain gray bird with a neatly set-off white belly and some white in the wings. White-winged Junco, right? Here's a great exercise…
grrlscientist | March 21, 2009tags: Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Melanerpes aurifrons, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Melanerpes aurifrons, photographed in Allen Williams Yard, Pharr, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 2 April 2008 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/800s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide, writes:
I haven't had a chance to test it, but my hunch is that even…
grrlscientist | March 20, 2009tags: The State of the Birds 2009, ornithology, birds, endangered species, conservation, global warming, climate change, environment, invasive species, habitat loss
Streaming video [6:31]
According to the most comprehensive report ever published in the USA, nearly one third of America's 800 native bird species are endangered, threatened, or in significant decline, thanks to habitat loss, pollution, climate change, competition from invasive species and other threats.
The shocking report, published by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, reveals that of the more than 800 bird species that…
grrlscientist | March 20, 2009tags: Lawrence's Goldfinch, Carduelis lawrencei, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Lawrence's Goldfinch, Carduelis lawrencei, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 10 April 2005 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2005:04:10 09:16:02
Exposure Time: 1/249
F-Number: 11.00
ISO: 200
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 19, 2009tags: Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Long-eared Owl, Asio otus, photographed at Big Sioux Recreation Area near Brandon, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 12 November 2007.
Photo taken with a Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 18, 2009tags: Northern Pintail, Anas acuta, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Northern Pintail, Anas acuta, photographed in San Bernard Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 2 March 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 17, 2009tags: Lesser Yellowlegs, Tringa flavipes, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Lesser Yellowlegs, Tringa flavipes, photographed at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge near Titusville, Florida. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Steve Dolan, 29 February 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D90 with the 55-200 zoom set to 200mm (auto exposure).
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
I asked my former Master Birder teacher, Dr. Dennis Paulson, about this bird's ID. Dennis is the Director Emeritus of the Slater Museum of Natural…
grrlscientist | March 16, 2009tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
Wren (known as the "Winter Wren" in the United States), Troglodytes troglodytes, photographed near the Bridge of Orchy, Scotland.
Image: Dave Rintoul, Summer 2008. [larger view].
Birds in Science and Technology
What happens when the demand for suitable nesting sites exceeds the availability? The law of demand and supply also applies in nature, and the consequences of enhanced competition for limited nesting sites can have far-reaching effects. Which individuals will prevail? And what happens to the unsuccessful…
grrlscientist | March 16, 2009tags: Cave Swallow, Petrochelidon fulva, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Cave Swallow, Petrochelidon fulva, photographed at the Water Ranch in Gilbert, Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 18 February 2008 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 15, 2009tags: Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Snowy Owl, Nyctea scandiaca, photographed on the Fort Pierre National Grasslands in South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 4 January 2009 [larger view].
Photo taken with Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | March 14, 2009tags: fledgling Purple Finch, Carpodacus purpureus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Fledgling Purple Finch, Carpodacus purpureus, photographed near a small Olympic Peninsula lake in Shelton, Washington State. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Lee Rentz, 19 February 2009.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Adult male Purple Finch, Carpodacus purpureus, photographed near a small Olympic Peninsula lake in Washington State.
Image: Lee Rentz, 19 February 2009.
Rick Wright, Managing Director of WINGS Birding Tours…