Venerablemonk27 - Clayton Fitzgerald

I saw one of these at Sweetwater Wetlands a couple weeks ago! I'm so excited to have an ID, as I barely know anything about lizards!

[ID: A Stout Desert Spiny Lizard sits on a grey rock, apparently doing a territorial display which looks like it is doing a push up. It is a mostly white and grey spiny lizard with a black shoulder patch, blue throat scales, and various scales with red, orange, and yellow edges along its flanks and back. End ID]

The bodybuilder.

A stout desert spiny lizard (Sceloporus magister) performing his push up territorial display. At Tohono Chul, Tucson, Arizona.

I've been away for a bit! Turns out that it's harder to find time to take photos of birds, much less blog about it, when you have a second tiny child to care for. My baby was born in May, essentially right in the middle of peak migration for Wisconsin, so I've spent far less time gently cradling a camera this year and much more time with a wiggly kid slung over my shoulder. However, my partner is kind enough to carve out the odd hour for me to sit by myself and look up.

[ID: A Palm Warbler sits on a branch, wings folded, looking toward the sunlight. The bird is just a couple inches tall, and is sporting the mostly pale plumage that is typical of Warblers in the fall. Head in profile, the bird looks out with a dark brown eye from gray head feathers with a somewhat darker gray cap and eye stripe. The breast is a lightly streaked pale yellow, and only the under-tail coverts show a brighter yellow that would be expected of this species in spring. End ID]

I found this individual taking a small break in one of the trees in my backyard. Normally, Warblers like this one are constantly in motion, darting around in search of food to fuel their long southerly migration. But this one must have had their fill for the time being, content to sit still and take in the sights of our little patch in Madison. It was early afternoon, and the light was sifting beautifully through the leaves of the trees. I can understand why they would choose this place to rest for a moment.

[ID: The same Palm Warbler sits on a smaller branch, this time presenting their right flank to the camera. Their wings are showing the same light shade of gray as their head. From this angle, it's apparent how fluffed the little bird is, insulating themselves against the slight chill in the air. End ID]

I knew right away that this was a Palm Warbler from the way they pumped their tail up and down, up and down. Even when they were otherwise still, that tail was still going at times. What were they thinking about on this brief stop, looking south toward the lake and beyond to their destination? Did they have any children this spring? Would they take them to Cuba? Puerto Rico? Surely someone has to show the young ones the way to their winter home...

I'm thinking I should start to fill out this new blog. My main artistic expression these days is photography, and birds are my favorite subject. So let's take a look back in the archive together.

[ID: A female Black-and-white Warbler clinging to the side of a lichen-encrusted tree trunk. She's checking the underside of a brown mushroom on the tree for something to eat. She has a mostly white body, with a thin back eye line and black streaks on her side and wings. End ID]

This little creature is a Black-and-white Warbler. We found her while hiking the New Glarus Woods State Park this past September. Folks think of Warblers as a springtime bird in the Midwest, as that's when they're looking their brightest and boldest as they migrate north for mating season. I appreciate the Black-and-whites like this little lady for being just as striking on their way back south.

Not really a question, but I just wanted to say that your photos are awesome! You have a lot of talent, and I’m looking forward to seeing more of it in the future :)

That's really kind of you to say! You can be sure that I won't be quitting photography anytime soon.

I came home today after an afternoon of birding with my kid to find a Red-tailed Hawk surveying my yard from the top of the nearest utility pole. Very fortunate that I had the camera at the ready! It was mostly ignoring me, which allowed for many photos from different angles. Even so, I managed to capture just a few frames of it staring right down the lens.

I also stepped around to the front porch at a lower angle to take a couple of portraits. My sharpest pics of a Red-tailed Hawk to date!

[ID 1: A portrait of a Red-tailed Hawk staring down in my general direction. The picture shows just the head and shoulders, both light brown and streaked, as well and the upper part of the off-white chest.

ID 2: A portrait of a Red-tailed Hawk staring off the left of the frame. The picture shows just the head and shoulders, both light brown and streaked, as well and the upper part of the off-white chest.

ID 3: A Red-tailed Hawk sitting on top of a utility pole, looking straight into the camera. It appears to be a light morph, with mostly off-white feathers broken up by a band of brown speckles along the breast. It's head is mostly brown and streaked. The eyes are bright yellow and glinting in the hazy afternoon sunlight. It's standing on one large yellow foot, with long dark claws wrapped around the top of the pole. End ID]

Back in May of 2022, we were out at the UW Madison Arboretum looking for Warblers. We came across a couple of older folks with binoculars staring intently into the trees, so I thought for sure they found a good one. But no! Turns out they had spotted this little guy.

[ID: A juvenile Barred Owl sleeps in the shade of a tree. It's mostly brown and fuzzy, with grey marks throughout and a browner "mask" around the eyes and beak. It's sitting on a large branch with a pair of slanted tree trunks on either side, and a few young green leaves framing the scene. End ID]

This is a baby Barred Owl, having a little snooze in the shade. They woke up briefly to look around and check us out, but they seemed perfectly content to sit in full view from the path as people jogged by and stopped to peek at them.

I picked up a lifer, folks! We were canoeing along the Mississippi River a couple weeks ago, on a camping trip at Merrick State Park. I was keeping a bird list from the back of the canoe, likely doing less than my fair share of paddling, when I saw a shockingly yellow bird on the shore.

[ID: A pair of Prothonotary Warblers are perched on the same thin branch of a tree. The branch is running vertically across the frame with an adult male clinging to the upper part and a juvenile sitting just below him and looking upward. The male has an incredibly bright yellow head and body. His upper wings and back are green, and his wings change to grey-blue as they extend backward to the primary flight feathers. He has a sharp black beak and a shiny black eye. The juvenile is looking up at the male, mouth open and begging for something to eat. Their body is mostly pale grey, with a few patches of yellow on their throat and sides. They look a bit shaggier compared to the sleek feathers of the adult male. End ID]

I remember exclaiming to my partner, "It's a Warbler! Could that be a Prothonotary?", right before it disappeared into the trees. When she turned around to look, another Warbler appeared in the same spot, but this one was duller yellow. I quietly cursed my lack of a camera (the protection plan explicitly does not cover dropping it into a river), and pulled out my phone to try to pick up any songs. Sure enough, Merlin confirmed the quiet trilling as a Prothonotary! We steered the canoe back around to try for a better look, but they were gone.

[ID: A female Prothonotary Warbler clings to the end of a tiny branch with wispy silk strands on it. She's distinguished from the male by a somewhat duller yellow on her head and back, but otherwise looks very much like her mate. She's collecting what appears to be insect larvae with her bill, which look like tiny grains of white rice. End ID]

Needless to say, I was excited at seeing a new species and lamenting the addition of that same species to my "no pics" list. Later on we were relaxing at the campsite and reading our books when my partner says, "Clay, come here! Is this your bird?! They're chasing each other!" This time I could snatch up my camera before joining her at the edge of the site. And she was right! We had several little Prothonotaries flitting around and peeping at each other. After watching for a few minutes, I realized it was multiple juveniles being fed by their their parents. The kids must have just recently fledged, as they were sitting in very conspicuous places and yelling for food while mom and dad were shuttling tasty bits back and forth.

[ID: An adult male Prothonotary Warbler feeds a juvenile. The same male from the first image is perched on a branch in the sunlight, placing something directly into the mouth of his child. From this angle, the color differences between parent and child are very apparent, with the child looking almost entirely grey on their upper parts, aside from a few streaks of dull green along the back. End ID]

I was feeling incredibly fortunate to get a better look at these energetic birds, but it was tough to keep them in the frame. I found that the kids would generally pick a spot out in the open where they could make lots of noise and be sure their parents could find them. If I stayed on a child, I could be sure that a parent would be returning very soon. I also realized that it wasn't just the fledglings peeping frantically for food. Dad was staying mostly silent while foraging down in the understory, but he would give a few quick peeps after finding something to eat. It felt a lot like he was saying, "I found a bug! Where are you? Come and get it!"

[ID: A juvenile Prothonotary Warbler sits on a branch, waiting for their next bit of food. Their bill is open and wings are slightly extended, fluttering in what must be the universal dance for telling your parent that you're hungry. If you are a small bird, that is. End ID]

I must have spent an hour just following these babies down the little access road for driving up to the campsites, taking tons of photos and watching for brief glimpses of a parent. I moved slowly and calmly so as not to disturb them, but they seemed to go about their business as though I wasn't even there. The kids stuck mostly to the edges of the woods, at eye level or higher, but dad was up in the trees, down in the open grass, and just about anywhere you might find a spider or a gnat. He was often flying within a foot or two of me as he crossed the road in tireless pursuit of his goal.

[ID: A juvenile Prothonotary Warbler poses on a branch, patiently waiting for food this time. The bird is well-lit and sitting in front of a very dark patch of forest, which makes the background look almost black. This juvenile has more dull green on their face and flanks where the others were more grey and yellow, but they have the same shaggy appearance of being just recently fledged. End ID]

Thinking back, the experience was almost surreal. I knew I was walking down a paved road in a sold-out campsite, but I was in this little pocket of existence, watching these devoted parents do everything they could to make sure their children would grow up strong and healthy. For this little family, in the few weeks where this river bank has everything they need, the rest of the world might as well not be there.

[ID: A Red-headed Woodpecker clings to the top of a dead tree limb. They are mostly black, with bright bands of white on their wings and a dark red (almost burgundy) head. They are looking off to the left with an acorn in their bill, likely looking for a new place to hide it. End ID]

Here's another more recent bird from the archives that I'm particularly proud of. It was our last day visiting Yellowstone Lake State Park in Wisconsin this past October. My partner and kid got out ahead of me because I had heard a call I didn't immediately recognize. It was a pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers, collecting and caching fallen acorns. The adult above had stashed the acorn in their bill at the top of the dead tree, but they must have thought better of it when they noticed me spying on their hiding spot!

owls from animal crossing new horizons

-bella

My partner's aunt and uncle live in a little patch of forest in East Troy, WI. They have a beautiful garden that attracts many different animals, but every time we visit I have to see how the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are doing.

This past August I was especially excited to visit. I had only had my new camera for a couple weeks, and I knew I could get some lovely shots of the Hummingbirds that simply weren't possible before.

[ID: A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird hovers over a bright red flower. She's mostly shiny green, with white throat and breast, and white flecks near her dark eyes and tail feather tips. She has green leaves on either side, and seems to be hovering in a void on a nearly black background. End ID]

[ID: A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird sits on a wire plant frame. She's mostly shiny green, with white throat and breast, and white flecks near her dark eyes and tail feather tips. She's grasping the wire with tiny black feet. She's sticking out her long white tongue, perhaps cleaning up after drinking nectar from the nearby flowers. The background is mostly out of focus, showing green plants and one red flower in the lower left corner of the frame. End ID]

These photos are both possibly the same female Ruby, indentified by her white throat rather than the red iridescent gorget that's exclusive to mature males. I feel like the first picture is the more artistic one, but I am much more charmed by the second where she seems to be licking her chops with that incredible tongue!