Great or Snowy Egret????

Even though this bird looks similiar to the Great or Snowy Egret, closer examination shows it to be the White Morph of the Reddish Egret. Even a closer look shows a pinkish bill with bluish legs, suggesting breeding plumage. This bird is restricted to the saltwaters of the Southeast and the uncommon white form is a treat to see. Also note, unlike the Little Blue Heron which is white as an immature bird, the white morph of the Reddish Egret will keep this white form for its' entire life.

Cooper's Hawk

Well, sometimes you go looking for birds and sometimes they come to you. As I was leaving my office for lunch yesterday, I spotted this hawk next to a large factory water tower who had already found his/her lunch. I carefully turned my truck around, readied my camera and headed back to hopefully snap a few pictures. I hurriedly fired off a couple of shots before the raptor retrieved the bird he was feeding on and flew away. I identified the hawk as a Cooper's Hawk because of its'size. It is very similiar to the smaller Sharp-shinned Hawk. I ID'd the dead bird as a pigeon. I am not 100% sure it was a pigeon but I am 100% sure it was dead.

Wood Ducks

Spring is an exciting time of year in the Midwest i.e. bird migration. The warblers haven't quite made it yet but the water fowl are here in full force. North of Charleston is a slough built some time ago with approx. 20 acres of water and in close proximity to Interstate 57. In the last two days, we have counted 15 species of ducks, 2 species of geese and 1 species of swan. The ducks are in their most magnificent of colors so, if possible, get your binoculars and head for a lake, a pond, or river. Pictured are Wood Ducks. So gorgeous! Actually taking these photos is a real experience. To see the ducks, geese and swans without disturbing them, you have to scramble up a huge embankment, lay down on your tummy before you reach the top and then crawl the rest of the way to the top of the hill. You can't let any of the waterfowl see you at all or they all take flight. Then, you have to just barely raise your head to view them. You have to photograph them through a lot of grasses and while not moving or lifting your head very far off the ground. Talk about a pain in the neck! The variety is so spectacular and the birds so beautiful, it is so worth it!

Great Horned Owl with baby

About three weeks ago, Charleston received a good 8" plus snow, so we put on our Carharts and went 4-wheeling. On a portion of the farmland that we own, there is a farm lane that runs along a ridge and looks down on a large amount of bottom ground that we farm. In the past few days, we noticed that as we drove up to the highest point on the little ridge, we had scared a bird from a tree in the same location several times. It didn't look like a hawk so we thought possibly it could be an owl. Diane soon located the nest high in a tree that was rooted at the base of the ridge at the edge of the farm field. The next day, we cautiosly approached and sure enough, a Great Horned Owl was sitting on a large bunch of sticks with snow hanging from the sides. Great Horned Owls usually don't build their own nest but use old hawk nests, cavities or other animal nests. In Coles County, these owls are the first birds to mate and have young. We were adviced by friends to not scare her from the nest by our presence too much, especially when it is cold. Today was my first chance to get a photo of one adult and one owlet. There are two owlets in the nest, but the other one was evidently taking a snooze. We are so pleased that the owl family is nesting on our farm and that we have habitat that is suitable. If you look at the lower left part of the nest, you can see the furry remains of a meal. Male owls will bring food to the nest as much as ten times a day. It will be so fun to watch them grow, but we are going to try and not be intrusive either. Stay tuned for more photos!!

Texas Birds

We found Texas to be a great place to bird. We added thirty-three new birds to our life list. The three that I have shown only live in the southern part of Texas or farther south.
Pictured from top to bottom is the Clay-colored Robin, Long-billed Thrasher, and Great Kiskadee.

Black-necked Stilts

We have been staying on South Padre Island and today is our last day. We hadn't done any birding here but had heard that the Convention Center had a nature trail, so we tried it. The elevated boardwalk that eventually led us to the Laguna Madre Bay wound through a very nicely preserved wetland. We were told as many as 5 different species of rails lived in the wetland. We heard several, but they never let us see them - very usual for rails. At the end of the boardwalk was a nice viewing platform looking out over the bay. Many different species of waders, gulls and shorebirds were visible from this location. The bay was very shallow for quite a distance and this provided wonderful feeding and resting opportunities for the birds. There were three Black-necked Stilts close to the viewing platform. We noticed some odd behavior from a particular pair that didn't resemble the usual feeding behavior that we had been witnessing. The male circled around the female as she kept her neck extended and bill pointed slightly downward. He would sometimes cross her bill and sometimes he appeared to get some water and put it on her. Finally after circling several times, they decided to play piggy back with the male on top. After the mating ritual was over, they decided to cross bills and rest, apparently they were in a no smoking zone.

Port Isabel Lighthouse

We are staying on South Padre Island and just before you cross the bridge that crosses the bay between the Texas mainland and the island is the Port Isabel Lighthouse. It was built of brick brought from New Orleans by schooner. The Beacon's 16 mile range guided ships into the harbor and to the Rio Grande bringing commerce to SW Texas. Darkened during the civil war, it was used as a lookout by both the union and confederate forces (I guess one was looking north and one south.Itwas also used as a lookout again during WW I.

Long-billed Curlew

The Long-billed Curlew is nicknamed the "Sickle-bill" because of its prodigious bill. In flight, its' wings show a cinnamon color. We witnessed this beautiful bird in flight as 20 or so flew right in front of the truck and landed in a nearby field. The Long-billed Curlew is uncommon but is seen in much of the west plus Florida and the east coast. It was fun to see so many as we were finishing our drive through the Atascosa NWR.

Altamira Oriole

Well, I read in one of my guides that the Altamira Oriole is rare with a very limited range in southern Texas. Let tell you how I got this shot. It was during our birding day at Laguna Atascosa. When I went in the visitors center just to look around, I overheard one of the staff say to another visitor, "That is an Altamira Oriole." I turned around and through the big viewing window was this first year bird, eating an orange that had been hung on a big tree branch. What a beautiful bird! I still had my camera hanging from my shoulder so I turned and fired off a couple of shots.

Tropical Kingbird

We stopped late one evening at Aransas NWR. It is the home of America's tallest bird, the Whooping Crane. Before we could get away from the visitor center Diane noticed this Tropical Kingbird perched in a nearby tree. I was getting ready to take his picture when he swooped out and grabbed supper. Aransas NWR, located close to Rockport, Texas, is 59,000 acres ringed by tidal marshes and broken by long, narrow sloughs. It has grasslands,live oaks, and redbay thickets in which 390 different species of birds have been seen. Again, the Tropical Kingbird can only be seen in the USA in southern Texas.

Crested Caracara

Crested Caracara are carrion-eating birds with long legs and naked faces. It is sometimes refered to as the "Mexican Eagle".It can be seen on fence posts or feeding with vultures. This bird is mostly seen in southern Texas. This bird was photographed in a beautiful area north of Corpus Christi called Rockport/Fulton.

Texas Birds

We have been traveling down the east coast of Texas looking for birds and we are happy to report we have found some. Pictured are two found only in the southern part of Texas and we saw these at the Laguna Atascosa NWR. Atascosa is 88,000 acres of barrier island, salt and freshwater marshes, coastal prairie, savannah and thorn brushes attracting over 400 species of birds. If you are in the area be sure and check it out. The two birds shown are the Green Jay and the Plain Chachalaca. An interesting note to the Green Jay is we saw a mutation form which was blue. He was missing all of his yellow pigmentation. In other words, we saw a Blue-Green Jay.

Prairie on Ice

Several days ago, we had an unusual storm. The weatherman termed it a "wintry mix". Boy, was it ever!! As a result of a slushy, icy rain everything was encased in a layer of ice. As I walked our sheltie around our prairie, I was struck by the beauty of the prairie plant stalks embedded in ice. Every little stem and seedhead was covered. I went home and got my camera to record this extraordinary weather event. The photos are of Indian Grass, one of my favorite prairie species. It is one of the dominant grasses in a tallgrass ecosystem along with Big Bluestem. The flowers of Indian Grass are borne on a beautiful golden plume, similar to the shape of a feather. One photo shows the dangling seed head looking like a string of beads. The curled leaf also belongs to a stalk of Indian Grass. Winter can bring out the beauty in an overwintering prairie. You just have to look. All of the stalks, stems and seeds of last year's plants provide food and shelter for many species of mammals and birds. I hope you enjoy this unusual look at a prairie in winter. Text and photos by Diane Cole.

Red-Tailed Hawk

Red-Tailed Hawks prefer a high perch from which they can swoop down and catch their prey. Highways provide good hunting along the shoulders and the median strip. Power lines and poles provide excellent perches. Yesterday, my wife Diane and I went on a Sunday drive looking for Red-Tailed Hawks. We didn't have to go far since a 4-lane highway is only 1/2 mile from our house. We saw at least 4 of them in the first 3 miles. Now you can drive by a perched Red-Tailed Hawk and he/she will never move. Well, just try stopping and snapping their photo. They sense danger and they swoop off to the next pole. So my wife would drive and spot and pull over on the shoulder and I would try and get a shot. We weren't having much luck until we were near the local airport and we discovered that one the birds was a pretty good sport. He would let me get a picture, fly a short distance to another perch, then let me get another shot. He even treated us by jumping off his perch and grabbing a meadow vole for Sunday dinner. Because his turf is the county airport, my wife named him Sky King (Pale Male was already taken.)

Brown Creeper

Well we are back in Illinois and it sure is cold, but then again it's winter and it probably should be cold. I was looking at our bird feeders when I noticed a bird climbing up one of the trees. At first I thought it was a Nuthatch but when it climbed up so far then dropped back down to the base of another tree I knew it was a Brown Creeper. They are fun to watch as they circle up the tree looking for food in the bark. Apparently, a few do overwinter in central Illinois and seeing one just outside the window was a treat. The Brown Creeper has a slender decurved bill and a stiff tail which it uses as a brace when it's climbing and probing the bark of the tree for insects.

Great Blue Herons

Venice is 2 hours north of Sanibel and in a small pond in, a very busy part of town, is a rookery. The rookery itself is made of Brazilian Pepper plants, an exotic, unwanted, invasive plant. However, in this place it makes a nice home for several pairs of Great Blue Herons. Pictured here is a pair sitting close to their nest atop of the rookery.

Pileated Woodpecker

The crow-sized bird pictured is the female Pileated Woodpecker. They like feeding low on dead trees or fallen branches looking for one of its favorite foods carpenter ants. I caught this girl with her tongue out.

Young Eagle

We were recently at Bunche Beach looking for shorebirds when we noticed a large group of vultures soaring above. However, there were a couple that looked different so we immediately pulled up our Stokes Birding Binoculars and sure enough something different - immature eagles.

The one pictured is a 4 year old and should be maturely dressed by this time next year.

Cardinal

The State Bird of Illinois is the Cardinal. The bird pictured is living down by the Sanibel Lighthouse and more than likely followed me down to escape the cold Midwest winter. There is a football team in Arizona named the Cardinals and some minor league baseball team in Missouri.