H.J. Ruiz – Avian101 – Page 756 – "My Backyard Visitors" – All about birds

Family R and R

Dear friends,

I’ll be taking a vacation with my family starting tomorrow October 18th. Then I’ll be back in town on October 25th. to resume my blogging same as always.

Thank you for being such great friends! 🙂

H.J.

Tags: birds, important information, nature, photography, photos of birds

This bird has been one of the most difficult to photograph while being in my backyard. I’m referring to the Northern Flicker. It walks more than it flies, forages on the ground and seeks mostly for insects being its primary diet, loves ants mainly. Eats nuts, berries, seeds also includes in its diet, flies, butterflies, moths, beetles and snails.

They can walk very fast through the grassy areas and pick all their favorite meals. If the grass is tall you’ll miss them completely from sight.

The Northern Flicker is a medium-sized member of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. There are known under many names in parts of the Country.

The Yellow-shafted Flicker (Colaptes auratus auratus) resides in eastern North America. They are yellow under the tail and underwings and have yellow shafts on their primaries. They have a grey cap, a beige face and a red bar at the nape of their neck. Males have a black moustache. Colaptes comes from the Greek verb colapt, to peck. Auratus is from the Latin root aurat, meaning “gold” or “golden” and refers to the bird’s underwing.

Under the name “Yellowhammer” it is the state bird of Alabama.

Next, I got some pictures for you of these scurrying birds. Enjoy!

Text and photographs © HJ Ruiz – Avian101

Tags: birds, nature, Northern Flicker, photography, photos of birds

The Golden Girls

As I mentioned in previous posts I believe that I should also feature the female birds when they are from species that display sexual dimorphism. In a way, pointing out the differences between the male vs. female bird.

The American Goldfinch , also known as the Eastern Goldfinch, is a small North American bird in the finch family. It is migratory, ranging from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canadian border to Mexico during the winter.

The only finch in its subfamily that undergoes a complete molt, the American Goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration; the male is a vibrant yellow in the summer and an olive color during the winter months, while the female is a dull yellow-brown shade which brightens only slightly during the summer. The male displays brightly colored plumage during the breeding season to attract a mate.

The American Goldfinch is a granivore and adapted for the consumption of seedheads, with a conical beak to remove the seeds and agile feet to grip the stems of seedheads while feeding. It is a social bird, and will gather in large flocks while feeding and migrating. It may behave territorially during nest construction, but this aggression is short-lived. Its breeding season is tied to the peak of food supply, beginning in late July, which is relatively late in the year for a finch. This species is generally monogamous, and produces one brood each year.

I love it when these birds come to my backyard and brighten the place with their unmistakable color and high visibility.

Next, some photos of the golden girls for you. Enjoy!

Text and photographs © HJ Ruiz – Avian101

Tags: American Goldfinch, birds, nature, photography, photos of birds

Smart Heron

Now that I’m working hard to have all my birds photographs organized in folders and files, while going through these I’ve bumped into many photos that most likely were downloaded to the hard drive but never viewed for some reason. It happens all the time when I need to empty my camera’s memory cards. Later I forget about some files.

I pulled some pictures of some juvenile Green Herons. The photos were shot in Florida sometime ago. It was my first time to see a Green Heron’s nest!

Here are some fact about these smart and shy birds.

The Green Heron is relatively small; adult body length is about 17 in. The neck is often pulled in tight against the body. Adults have a glossy, greenish-black cap, a greenish back and wings that are grey-black grading into green or blue, a chestnut neck with a white line down the front, grey underparts and short yellow legs. The bill is dark with a long, sharp point. Female adults tend to be smaller than males, and have duller and lighter plumage, particularly in the breeding season. Juveniles are duller, with the head sides, neck and underparts streaked brown and white, tan-splotched back and wing coverts, and greenish-yellow legs and bill. Hatchlings are covered in down feathers, light grey above, and white on the belly.[

Green herons are one of the few species of animal known to use tools. In particular, they commonly use bread crusts, insects, or other items as bait. The bait is dropped onto the surface of a body of water in order to lure fish. When a fish takes the bait, the green heron will then grab and eat the fish.

Next, some of the pictures I shot on that occasion. Enjoy!