Tuesday, February 21, 2012

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

7 comments:

  1. Fantastic picture.I am sure you will find something of interest to photograph.

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  2. Beautiful and very nice close-up!

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  3. Thank you Ruth and Cynthia!

    -Tom

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  4. The composition is absolutely perfect. Several dynamic angles for feasting the eyes upon. How does it look with the solar flare cropped out? Of course, I expect the true ornithologists will be scandalized by the idea of loosing those lovely feathers.

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  5. Thanks Marie- Yeah, this image is way cropped already, actually. Like way cropped. What you're seeing is actually a reflection in the window of the nature center.

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  6. Beautiful shot! You're correct as far as I know - red-bellied woodpeckers were named when birds were dead in hand and ornithologists had a close-up view of the individual. Ring-neck ducks are another good example.

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  7. Travelling and photography really go hand...nice photo of Red-bellied woodpecker...keep up the good work!

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