Jun
17
2009
Atlantic Puffins at (Machias) Seal Island
You don’t need a fancy camera to take a puffin photo like this one–you just need to be in the right spot. I took the above shot with a compact, point & shoot stye camera. And you can, too, if you want. Or you can just enjoy one of North [...]
Tags: bayoffundy, fieldguides, puffins, tours, Travel
Jun
16
2009
Male Wilson’s Warbler, San Mateo County, CA
Here’s a shot I would describe as a likable miss. It’s not very sharp (light was incredibly low, requiring slow shutter speeds) and there’s too much obstructing vegetation. But that vegetation, especially the way its pink and green colors complement the yellow and black warbler, is also what makes [...]
Tags: alvarojaramillo, california, warblers
Jun
14
2009
Hello out there!
I’m checking in, as it has been 2+ weeks since my last post. In the meantime, I’ve been madly working away on a photography project that has taken me to four states, including Oregon–a lifer for me and the 49th U.S. state in which I have set foot.
On top of that, today is [...]
Tags: birthday, blackbirds, Oregon
May
04
2009
I’m just back from the New River Birding and Nature Festival, held each year near Fayetteville, West Virginia. It has become one of my favorite annual birding events, so much so that I was really bummed out when it appeared that scheduling conflicts were going to keep me from going this year. Fortunately, that issue [...]
Tags: bloggers, newriver, tanagers, warblers, westvirginia
Apr
28
2009
I spent much of the last several days leading trips and hanging out at various events associated with the Delmarva Birding Weekend. Though I had a great time, I took virtually no pictures. When you’re leading a big group of people it’s darned near impossible, in my experience, to take any time out even for scenic [...]
Tags: delaware, delmarvabirdingweekend, dlite, jimrapp, reddenstateforest, spring, warblers
Apr
23
2009
Ornate Flycatcher, Milpe, Ecuador
How often do you find the words cute and unmistakable in the same sentence with flycatcher? Bob Ridgeley combined them to capture much of what makes this bird special. My photo, unfortunately, only shows the ventral side of the bird. Add in the glowing yellow rump and rusty-based tail and you’ve got quite [...]
Tags: bobridgeley, ecuador, flycatchers, milpe
Apr
21
2009
I think it was Bill of the Birds who first introduced me to the concept of “proofreading the world,” the uncontrollable tendency some of us have to sift our environment for errors, typographic and otherwise. I realize nearly everyone does this at some level, but for some of us, it’s a compulsion. We can’t stop. [...]
Tags: billschmoker, billthompson, proofreading
Apr
09
2009
The view east as we were leaving Sacha Lodge, 30 March 2009.
For more sky photos from around the world, check out Skywatch Friday.
Tags: ecuador, sacha, skywatchfriday
Apr
07
2009
The morning of March 10, 2009 was my first in Ecuador and I was in a distinctly unusual and not entirely comfortable situation. In 5 short days, I would commence co-leading a 2 1/2 week birding tour around a country with one of the most complex avifaunas in the world, yet I’d never been there [...]
Tags: ecuador, flycatchers, furnariids, papallactapass, quito, seedsnipes
Apr
03
2009
Don’t get me wrong…sapsuckers are cute. But in the Amazonian forest surrounding Sacha Lodge, I made the acquaintance of a sap eater that frankly blows our nifty little woodpeckers right off the tree in the cuteness department. Say hello to my little friend:
Behold the Pygmy Marmoset–the world’s smallest monkey. How small? Well, according to Wikipedia, [...]
Tags: ecuador, forrestrowland, marmosets, monkeys, sacha