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Photography

What started 150 million years ago — and is just as fascinating today?

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

Osprey

One of the most startling developments in all of nature occurred 150 million years ago, when a string of conditions came about that enabled a branch of the dinosaur family to lift off the ground and take flight. Scientists are still trying to explain exactly how this occurred. It remains a breathtaking sight to see a bird soar overhead as effortlessly as we walk down the street.

Brown Pelicans

This month, we’ve added a new feature to celebrate birds in flight, a series of our favorite photos from over the years. There’s no better way to appreciate the dynamics of flight than with a still photograph that captures a bird taking off, cruising through the air, or coming in for a landing. 

Mockingbird

The gallery will have a permanent home in the navigation bar of the website and include a select handful of  birds in flight photos. We’ll add more as we come up with worthy new  shots. Some of these are the result of hours waiting for a perched bird to make its move, while others are the lucky clicks that catch a moment almost impossible to anticipate.

We hope you’ll enjoy this gallery and share our fascination for a feat that will forever stand as one of nature’s most impressive.

 

Roseate Spoonbill

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BirdingPhotography

Getting a close-up view of some beautiful birds

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

The inherent contradiction of birding is that we want to get as close a look as possible of subjects who want to stay as far from us as they can. 

CloseUps, our new feature on Flying Lessons, seeks to answer that urging with a series of photos that help you see the silky sheen of feathers, the construction of beaks, even the expressions on the faces of these remarkable creatures.

Bird watching surely goes back  to the origin of the species. But today’s technology, especially the latest telephoto lenses and cameras with extraordinary light sensors, provide us steadily more compelling views, taken from a distance that doesn’t disturb our wary subjects.

CloseUps can be found on the third spot down the navigation bar, or with a click of this link.

We’ll replenish the gallery as fresh photos come along that work with this feature. You can click through the gallery using the thumbnails to the left, or simply wait every few seconds for the slider to advance. We hope you’ll enjoy the view. 

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Bird of the WeekBirdingMigrationPhotography

Great Egrets: Putting on a bird ballet

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

Our trip along the storied Montezuma wildlife drive in upstate New York had been all but devoid of birds the first hour. Then we turned the corner at the halfway mark and came upon a scene that instantly made up for the quiet start.

Two dozen Great Egrets stood clustered in a shallow pond as if in a ballet rehearsal. They moved along in groups of threes and fours in precise formation. With their long thin necks lining up one minute and crisscrossing the next, they seemed choreographed for elegance.

Great Egrets are such compelling birds to watch – and they don’t seem to mind an audience that keeps its distance. Much of the time, they prefer to forage alone, researchers say. But they will come together in small groups when there’s plenty of fish. From time to time, they’ll form big flocks like the one we came upon at Montezuma.

They aren’t hard to find all across the wetlands in the United States. Although hunted nearly to extinction during the feathered-hat craze of the late 1900s, migratory protection laws have helped Great Egrets become one of the strongest wading bird species today.

They’re flexible and adaptable, enabling them to adjust to the habitat loss that has undermined other species. The North American Waterbird Conservation survey estimates that there are 180,000 breeding Egrets in the U.S.

The egret’s green eyes in breeding season

They stand out in marshes and coastal areas — sheer white, with yellow beaks, long dark legs and a wingspan of almost 5 feet. During the spring breeding season, the area around their eyes turns lime-green, a striking accent that signals their readiness for mating.

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Bird of the WeekBirding BasicsMigrationPhotography

Nature’s jewels: Ruby-throated Hummingbirds on the move

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

The statistics for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are almost as stunning as a close-up look at their iridescent plumage.

Zeroing in on the male hummingbird

Their wings can flap up to 80 times a second. They weigh about 3 grams – a wisp of a bird at a tenth of an ounce. They can go from breakneck speed to a full stop in an instant.

And when they do hang suspended in midair, their wings a blur of motion, the sight is one of nature’s most precious moments.  It evaporates as suddenly as it appears, making the encounters all the more intriguing.

The Ruby-throated is one of 300 hummingbird species worldwide, only a few dozen of which are in the U.S. and Canada. The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is the dominant species in the Eastern United States. It’s plentiful and not particularly shy.  So these spectacular hummingbirds are not hard to spot, particularly this time of year.

In late summer, as the hummingbirds are preparing to migrate halfway across the hemisphere, they are in the midst of a feeding frenzy to bulk up for the journey. They consume their entire weight in nectar each day, which the Audubon Society calculated was the equivalent of a human drinking 18 gallons of milk.

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Bird of the WeekBirds storiesFledgingPhotography

Birds in training: A couple of young Sapsuckers learning the ropes

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

The Sapsucker mom trying to teach her fledglings

We were just finishing our morning coffee, dawdling at our campsite in update New York, when we looked up to see something precious: A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker feasting on the fluid of a birch tree not 15 feet away.

As we sat still and watched, we realized there were also two fledglings — one just down the branch from Mom and the second perched two feet in the other direction. It was a family outing that looked a lot like a training session.

Here’s how you find a meal, the mother seemed to be saying as her two uncertain offspring watched, albeit somewhat distractedly. 

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker that can be found all across the eastern U.S. and much of Canada. Its breeding and nesting is limited to the upper portion of its range, so we were able to witness this captivating gathering thanks to our swing through the northeast toward the end of July.

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BirdingBirding BasicsBirding guidancePhotography

Recruiting new birders at the Airstream Rally: Have I lost my mind?

by Beverly Mills Gyllenhaal
written by Beverly Mills Gyllenhaal

With only a few days to go until our “Beginner’s Guide to Birding” seminar at the 62nd International Airstream Rally, I still couldn’t figure out what to say. When Anders and I volunteered to do the talk months before, the mission seemed simple: Persuade our fellow campers to try their hand at birding.

We had just parked our trailer alongside 700 other Airstreams on a sweltering July afternoon at The Meadow Event Park in Doswell, Virginia. More than 1,000 members of local Airstream clubs had migrated from across the U.S. and Canada for this annual week-long gathering.

Some of the vintage Airstreams at the rally

Spread before us was a sea of silver: Iconic Airstreams, the oldest dating back to 1947, the largest at 34 feet and 5 tons, and all of them gleaming. American flags, state flags, and local chapter flags proudly flew from the bowsprits. Scattered flocks of plastic pink flamingos, the de facto Airstream mascot, greeted folks passing by.

The splendor of it all took my breath away. But then came a severe case of nerves about this upcoming talk. I truly believe people who spend so much time camping could enjoy life more – and perhaps live longer according to scientific studies – by simply tuning in to the birds all around them. So I soldiered on.

My assignment was to craft a short but helpful sales pitch. But what if nobody showed up? And if they did, how could I communicate the thrill of the hunt and the overwhelming dose of awe each time we track down a new species?

Baltimore Oriole

This stage fright was not without cause. Lots of people ask us how we came to be birders in the first place. We start to explain, and nearly always, by a couple of sentences in, their eyes glaze over. Or else it becomes obvious that what they really want to know is how on Earth we completely lost our minds.

Family and friends have watched us cram all manner of stuff into a 23-foot “mobile home” and buy a Ford F150 to haul it around for weeks on end. (Our daughter’s reaction: “But you’re not truck people!”)

It doesn’t help that what we tend to talk about is which species we saw during spring migration. We launch into anxious diatribes on habitat loss, plus detailed descriptions of which bird eats what and why it matters. I frequently lose my train of thought at the sound of any chirp, squawk or tweet I don’t recognize.

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Bird of the WeekBirdingFledgingFlightPhotography

One magical night: A chance encounter with three baby owls

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

Trying out an owlish stare.

They were just weeks from leaving the nest for the last time, still learning to fly, but the trio of fledgling Eastern Screech Owls seemed ready to conquer the woods. Every night at dusk, they’d materialize around our campsite in the hills of Virginia and put on a show.

They swooped from tree to tree and practiced hunting for insects on the ground. One of them even walked across the road. Every once in a while they’d land on the same branch for a dose of sibling togetherness. They swiveled their heads as only owls can do, and let out sweet little calls that were nothing like the eventual screeches that give them their name.

Three young owls perching together.

Though still unsteady at times, these fledglings were growing up fast. Matt Larson, a researcher with the Owl Research Institute in Charlo, Montana, told us these owls should be leaving their parents behind within two weeks. So it was pure luck that we got to experience them as a family.

A fledgling (left) with one of the parents.

We heard about the owls on our first afternoon at Sherando Lake, in a remote corner of the mid-Atlantic southwest of Charlottesville. A neighboring camper saw us returning from a birding walk draped in binoculars and cameras.

“Have you seen the baby owls?’’ she asked.

“Baby owls!?’’ we said in unison, probably a little too loud.

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Bird of the WeekBirding guidancePhotographySpecies

What’s this bird? How a drab little guy stumped the experts

by Beverly Mills Gyllenhaal
written by Beverly Mills Gyllenhaal

When you upload a bird photo to the terrific Facebook group called “What’s This Bird?” you tend to get an identification back in a matter of seconds.

A few nights ago, however, something was wrong.

I like to count how long it takes for my mystery bird to be pegged, and it’s rare that even five seconds tick by before several veteran birders on the Facebook site from the American Bird Association agree on the species.

Here’s the bird that kept everyone guessing.

But this time I had uploaded a photo of a small, greenish-gray bird – drab except for white bars on its wings. I knew from my guidebook that this bird was a type of Flycatcher, but which one?

East of the Mississippi River this time of year, the guidebook showed eight very similar possibilities: The Yellow-bellied, Acadian, Willow, Alder and Least Flycatchers, all in the Empidonax species group called “Empids;” or else the Olive-sided Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe or Eastern Wood-pewee.

Although my Flycatcher was on a branch close to the ground obscured by green leaves in low light, I had no doubt Facebook’s crackerjack birders would solve the riddle.

And so I began to count – 10, 20, 30 seconds – then a whole minute. That’s odd, I thought. Was everybody on vacation?

After about five very slow minutes, I saw the Facebook signal that someone started typing. And it turns out that identifying Flycatchers is so difficult that the ensuing deliberation sounded like a bunch of scientists judging a dog show.

“My gut says Eastern Wood-Pewee,” the first person wrote. “Any Empidonax would have a cleaner chest, but this bird has a smudgy gray “vest.” Definitely not a Phoebe — a Phoebe would have a black face contrasting the paler grey back, also a brighter white lower belly.”

Hooray, I thought. Mystery solved. And then someone else started typing:

“The relatively short primaries suggest otherwise. A Pewee would have very long primaries. Also a Pewee would have a much less pronounced eye ring. Empids can have a smudgy vest. This is an Acadian Flycatcher.”

The back and forth went on for a couple of days, and even some of the best birders in Washington, D.C., got involved.

EasternPeeweeEasternPeewee

Here are three views of the bird that turned out to be an Acadian Flycatcher.

EasternPeewee-2EasternPeewee-2

The front view doesn't give you much information.

DSC_2177DSC_2177

The light colored beak, brown head coloring and whitish breast were all clues.

 

With the next comment, we generally settled on the Acadian:

“I will add my vote for Acadian Flycatcher,” wrote one of the most respected and thorough contributors. “The yellow underside of the bill, the moderately long primary extensions and the location all point to Acadian Flycatcher. Right now in southern Maryland, Acadians and their little two-note calls are everywhere!”

For me, one of the most compelling parts of birding is the detective work that goes into figuring out what we’ve seen. These days, we’re armed with dozens of books, apps, websites and laminated pamphlets to help with identifications.

Acadian Flycatcher view of pronounced wing bars.

In my early days of birding, anything beyond the most common species presented a challenge. Anders took photos of almost every bird, and we’d collect the mystery birds at the end of the day. Then we, too, would eagerly compare tail feathers, eye rings and beaks – just like the experts — to try and figure out the IDs. Oftentimes it’s a lot harder than you’d think.

My Flycatcher adventure was a reminder that the complexity of the avian world is enormous. There’s always more to learn. It turns out that the best way to figure out which Flycatcher you’re looking at is to catch their song. Without it, you may never be sure. If I’d known that the two-note call of the Acadian Flycatcher sounds like pizza (piz-ZAH), I wouldn’t have needed Facebook.

A bird’s “vocalizations” are definitive — way more reliable than its smudgy vest or belly color. (However, the process of learning hundreds of combinations of peeps, buzzes, squawks and trills is daunting. A story for another day.)

So what did I learn from my first Acadian Flycatcher? Sometimes, even the best birders get stumped.

One friend had some advice when it came to Flycatchers. “If it doesn’t vocalize, then just move along,’’ he said. “Pretend you didn’t see it.’’

Be sure to try out “What’s this Bird? when you’re stumped. It’s usually fast and easy. Meanwhile, here’s a gallery of various Flycatchers. Scroll over the phots for IDs.

DSC_0261DSC_0261

Great Crested Flycatcher

DSC_4522DSC_4522

Eastern Wood-Pewee

DSC_0350DSC_0350

Vermillion Flycatcher

DSC_6150DSC_6150

Eastern Kingbird, in the Flycatcher family

DSC_2177DSC_2177

Acadian Flycatcher, star of our post

 

 

 

 

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Birding guidancePhotography

Audubon honors magnificent bird photography worthy of a museum

by Anders Gyllenhaal
written by Anders Gyllenhaal

The grand prize winner was taken by Kathrin Swoboda of Vienna, Va. See the gallery below for photo details.

The grand prize winner of the 2019 Audubon Photography Awards captures a Red-winged Blackbird in a scene that would be at home on the wall of an art museum.

The most dramatic winning photo shows a Bald Eagle and a Red Fox fighting over a fish in a mid-air struggle.

For birders, the photos from the annual contest, held in conjunction with Nature’s Best Photography, is a tour of the beauty and power of birds in action. Some are so artful it takes a moment to decipher what you’re seeing. Others are magnificent angles of birds in flight. Two of the winning photos are closeups that give an entirely different perspective of their subjects.

The professional honorable mention went to Kevin Ebi, from Lynwood, Washington.

When the Audubon Society asked if we’d be interested in publishing these photos, we were delighted to share work that will appeal to photographers of every caliber and birders of every level. For those of us who spend hours upon hours following birds, it’s a pleasure to see what the very best photos can achieve. 

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