Red-bellied Woodpecker

Female Red-bellied woodpecker, showing a hint of her Red Belly

I think I learned from good buddy Jim McCormac that the red-bellied woodpecker was named back in the day when Ornithologists used guns, not binoculars, to get a closer look at birds.  The red belly of this species isn't obvious.  Here's a female red-bellied from Deer Haven Preserve.  You can just get a hint of the reddish feathers on her belly.  With the bird in the hand though, this feature might stand out fairly easily.

This concludes my bird series from Deer Haven Preserve.  I need some new pictures- I'll have to be creative and bring my camera to work, perhaps-  How about a week of mosses?

-Tom

Lean & Mean

Dark-eyed Junco, Deer Haven Preserve, Delaware County

So normally, we're used to seeing dark-eyed juncos sitting on top a snow pack of about eight inches with their feathers all puffed up to keep them warm, right?  Not this virtually snowless winter- They're looking lean and mean.  Well, maybe not mean.  Perhaps cute is a better word.

-Tom

Who Are You & Why Are You Taking My Picture?

I downloaded a few more pictures of my photo session of Deer Haven Preserve.  I was hoping to share with you an image of a female hairy woodpecker, but I wasn't happy with any of the shots that I got.  I was shooting with a low shutter speed.  I couldn't get my timing down to photograph her when she wasn't moving.  Oh well!

But I did find this gem- A male northern cardinal "caught in the act".

-Tom

Cooper's Hawk

Immature Cooper's Hawk- Deer Haven Preserve, Delaware County, Ohio

Our State Bird

The Northern Cardinal, Ohio's state bird.  But did you know six other states claim the Northern Cardinal as their state bird as well?  I'm not sure when the Northern Cardinal became Ohio's state bird, but it's hard to think of any other species that would be a better choice. 

-Tom

White-breasted Nuthatch

I'm alive!  Megan was just saying the other day that we just haven't been able to catch a break recently.  I suppose that's life with two little kids.  In the past month, we've all been sick.  Megan had a sinus infection for about a month, and I had one for two weeks.  The boys had colds, and Weston eventually developed an ear infection.  Fortunately, now that he has tubes, the infection is easily treated with drops.

I spent last Sunday afternoon at the Delaware Preservation Parks Deer Haven Preserve photographing birds and staffing the nature center.  There's a small stump about two feet away from the window glass that makes a wonderful way to see small birds close-up. Up until the Cooper's hawk made an appearance, this white-breasted nuthatch kept coming for more sunflower seeds.  If you haven't visited Deer Haven Preserve, it's a great place to watch and photograph feeder birds.

-Tom