This little one was watching me watch the osprey.
Song Sparrow
Tag: #BirdsOfTheHudsonValley
Fish Crow on the Pier
Merlin identifies this as a fish crow. It landed behind me on the pier. It grabbed something small from the deck of the pier. I am thinking it may have been part of a left over fish. Men have been catching stripers from that spot. Otherwise, it could have been a spot of food it cached. They are know to cache extra food in grass and crevices among other spots.
I was lucky enough to see this bird up close. Fish crows can be found along the east coast and up the Hudson River Valley all year in areas around beaches, marshes, estuaries, lakes, and rivers. We are in its year round range.
They are omnivores. They will eat eggs and young of other birds, water creatures such as crabs and turtle eggs that they dig up. They also harass and steal food from crows, gulls, ospreys, etc. I made a previous post about a crow chasing an osprey who was carrying a fish. Have a great Sunday!
Killdeer on the Hudson
I have seen these birds at Assateague Island, Maryland at the state park . They were amongst the vegetation of the dunes. They pop out and seem to be hyper there. It is hard to get images of them. These are killdeer and I saw two on the shore of the Hudson River in New York. They were not so hyper and actually walked on the shore right in front of us.
They have a unique call. I just love their big eyes outlined in orange. They eat earthworms, snails, crayfish, grasshoppers, beetles, among other things. They are skilled at doing the broken-wing display, which is an attempt to lure predators away from their nest .
My area of New York is in their breeding range. South of us is their year round range. They obviously go elsewhere for winter. Welcome back! Have a great weekend!
Downy Woodpecker in November
The Downy Woodpecker was another bird I saw in a park on the Hudson River in New York. New York is in the year round range of this bird, as is most of the U.S.
The park is mostly woods. However, these shots are at the edge of the woods close to an open area. They usually stick to woods, but can be found in parks and they say at your bird feeder. When I was allowed to feed birds, I would see them in the woods behind my apartment, but not at the feeder.
This Downy Woodpecker is a male as males have the red patch on the back of their head.
Have a great rest of your week! Enjoy the great outdoors!
Hummingbird Sticking Tongue Out
When I first saw this, I thought this hummingbird was spitting out water. Turns out it is sticking its tongue out. This is only a problem when they can not retract it. I took several pictures in a row and I believe this is the only one with its tongue out.
Thanks to a friend who has hummingbird plants and feeders and her very gracious invitation, I was able to photograph multiple birds visiting her plants and feeders. She finds this time of the year is the best time to see them. The best times to view is between 2-5 p.m. She usually sees them frequently in August after they babies fledge.
It is amazing what you can catch coming to a feeder! Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
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