Jump to content

Birding / nature / photography ~ Older Asexuals for light walking and hiking nature adventures ~


Recommended Posts

Hi Busrider and welcome. I can only speak for myself - photography started when I started kayaking 15 years ago and found that you could get closer to wildlife from the water, they just think you're a log floating by... I've also noticed that in the field they think I'm just a horse or animal if I wear dark clothing.... but if I speak or sneeze - then they freak out and leave the area. That being said I mostly shoot on land now with a Nikon D90 and a 300 mm. The pros and cons of getting more reach is weight and camera shake. I don't like using tripods or monopods since I mostly like birds in flight and you need quick movement. I have gone and tested the 600mm and you can hold them up and shoot so I may be buying one in the near future. But for easy packing and not worrying about hurting something so expensive you can pick up a used D90 for 300.- US, I would be afraid to hurt something nicer. I'm often with horses or in streams and mud..... What's nice about the D90 is it also has an internal motor so you can us more lenses - like the 300 AFS has it's own motor but the 300 AF needs a camera with an internal motor, but is cheaper :0) Happy shooting !!

We seem to have a lot more crows / Ravens this year - a lot of the Hawks and Vultures have tweaked tail feathers :0)

3apuoHJ.jpg

  • Like 7
Link to post
Share on other sites

Wow ElectricMongoose ! Those photo are Awesome ! I just got a Black-headed Grosbeak here for the first time ever last month ! And this was also my first year to see a Red-breasted Sapsucker ! And the Northern Flickers are some of my favorites - I love how their wings flash red when they fly. Wonderful !! Thanks for sharing !

Welcome blondie12 and kelico :) :cake:

Thank you Earthling! I've always been a nature lover, tree hugger, or whatever you want to call it. Back in college (a million years ago) one of the class assignments was to go outside early in the morning and identify different sounds from birds and other animals that were awake at that time. I remember listening to the sounds of several birds singing in the morning . It was so peaceful.....ahh those were the days.....

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites
ElectricMongoose

Wow, ElectricMongoose, those black oystercatchers... I mean, they're clearly oystercatchers, but they're black! How bizarre.

Really? I don't know them any other way. :P I know American Oystercatchers have the white underbellies, but we don't have them here.

Fantastic pictures, ElectricMongoose! I love the green heron - very different from the kinds we have around here. It looks smaller, with a shorter neck, and quite differently coloured - very pretty :)

Thanks so much! Really? Neat! I found that Great Blue Herons are so very different from Green Herons, even though they're closely related, the way they stalk about in the water is different.

Wow ElectricMongoose ! Those photo are Awesome ! I just got a Black-headed Grosbeak here for the first time ever last month ! And this was also my first year to see a Red-breasted Sapsucker ! And the Northern Flickers are some of my favorites - I love how their wings flash red when they fly. Wonderful !! Thanks for sharing !

Welcome blondie12 and kelico :) :cake:

Thanks so much! :D My pleasure! I love flickers too! I have always wanted to see a Yellow Shafted Northern Flicker, but I've yet to see any in this region or beyond where I have birded. Maybe someday I'll see birds beyond the Pacific Northwest.

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites
the bumbling rotifer

Wow, ElectricMongoose, those black oystercatchers... I mean, they're clearly oystercatchers, but they're black! How bizarre.

Really? I don't know them any other way. :P I know American Oystercatchers have the white underbellies, but we don't have them here.

These are our oystercatchers :D:

240px-Haematopus_ostralegus_Norway.jpg

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

I love oystercatchers to bits. I had no idea they came in black as well ! so elegant... :wub:

Have any of you read this book ? I was put off for ages by the hype, but I finally ended up reading a chunk of it this weekend, and the quality of the writing is stunning : the evocation of the landscapes and the hawk's moods and the author's memories of birdwatching is true and sharp and pure, it's rare I have read something so beautiful and genuine.

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

I've never seen an Oystercatcher - I sure would have remembered it ! We do have them and I've spent my life on the coast so now I have to go find them !!! :) I LOVE bucket listed birds, gives me a reason to adventure far :) Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos !!

vervain ! I am going to get that book ! I've even already told my book friends about it ! Thank YOU !!!

These guys had me laughing last night, two fledgling House Finches and their Dad :0) I want to change their name to " Cherry Bomb Finches " ! They are so pretty especially when the sun's light hits them. These two chased their Dad from seed pile to seed pile, they wanted him to pick one up and feed them - when they just could have eating them themselves, you could sense his frustration :)

HhbnXlb.jpg

  • Like 8
Link to post
Share on other sites

I love both birding and bird photography! Though, I may not be in the intended age range, I just wanted to say I love seeing the photos of birds other places.

I have a number of bird photos... far too many to share so I will just quickly share one of my favourite shots of what may not be an 'exciting' bird, but is still one of the most cute and charismatic I find (though I may be somewhat biased as I currently study them..)

Chickadee2_zpswbs33fdc.jpg

  • Like 7
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Zai !! Welcome :) :cake:

No age limit here - I was just looking for birders in my area (Sac USA) but all birders are welcome on this thread ! ! ! This a a Chickadee - yes :) ! Wow ! ! ! Awesome photo ! It's just wonderful <3

Please share away !! Everyone please share photos if you can - I LOVE to see them !!!!!

:)

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites
ElectricMongoose

Wow, ElectricMongoose, those black oystercatchers... I mean, they're clearly oystercatchers, but they're black! How bizarre.

Really? I don't know them any other way. :P I know American Oystercatchers have the white underbellies, but we don't have them here.

These are our oystercatchers :D:

240px-Haematopus_ostralegus_Norway.jpg

Aww so cute! I love oystercatchers! I wonder if they make similar calls to the black ones. I love their pip pip pipping calls from the rocks.

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

I am glad you like the photo!

Here are a few more exotic (for me at any rate) ones I saw while visiting Hawai'i

(in order: Hawaiian Noddy, 'Apapane and Saffron finch)

Hawaiian%20Noody2_zpsha55vohj.jpg
Apapane2_zpsxqpo8iqp.jpg
Saffron%20Finches2_zpsneen5byn.jpg

  • Like 8
Link to post
Share on other sites
Autumn Sunrise

Welcome, Zai :cake::cake::cake: Those birds are so beautiful, especially the saffron finches :) - thanks for the pictures!

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites
ElectricMongoose

Wow beautiful birds Zai! Great shots! :D

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

Have never seen all 3 of those ! You sent me to google each one, the "Apapane has a white rump - so cute !! Saffron Finches - Wow ! Is the Noody a type of gull ? I am amazed at how many different birds our planet has <3

Just love it !! Thank you :)

Went back to dig, this is a Yellow Billed Magpie - they are only found in Central California on the planet ! A yellow bill, black and white feathers and blue feathers on their backs. We almost lost them to the West Nile bird virus but they are making a comeback - I just stop and am amazed when I see them. The are quiet comical like crows. :)

spoiler]GLlbMVW.jpg

  • Like 7
Link to post
Share on other sites
Butterfly Belle

All the photos here are just gorgeous, and they all look so professional.

I decided to upload a couple of my photos.

Here's some Corella's on our local creek

GiswQPx.jpg

And pelicans at the creek, they are my favourite bird.

4F1eRyz.jpg

  • Like 8
Link to post
Share on other sites

Have never seen all 3 of those ! You sent me to google each one, the "Apapane has a white rump - so cute !! Saffron Finches - Wow ! Is the Noody a type of gull ? I am amazed at how many different birds our planet has <3

Yes it is simply amazing isn't it? Ever since I have started birding my decision about vacation and what to do on vacation have started to depend a lot more on birds.

The noddy* (sorry for the typo in my post, my bad :blush: ) are a type of seabird, I believe related to terns?

I would absolutely love to see a magpie! I believe that they are quite fascinating birds behaviour wise :) (and gorgeous too!)

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

Butterfly Belle those are wonderful pictures !! I've never seen a Corella ! Wow - cool, I went and googled - they are a cockatoo and you have them where you live ! Wow ! Are they able to speak or mimic ? And I LOVE White Pelicans - they look so awesome in flight - so graceful.

Zai, we are birds of a feather (we all are in here : ) I am thinking of places to adventure where birds on my bucket list might be - this coming winter I want to see the Yellow-headed Crows that winter here and down the California Coast they have been successful introducing the California Condor back into the wild ! The Thunderbird it is called <3

Oh ! And Owls ! Have worked in rehab with them but never seen one in the wild ... and I have chased a lot of hooting :0)

Everyone - what birds are on your bucket lists ? :)

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

Not much of a birder but I hike all over the SF bay area. I do like to take photos on my hikes. On my walk to work each day I often see Egrets and Ducks. Every so often I'll see a Great Blue Heron.

I'm not often in the Sacramento area but if I ever am it would be fun to go on a stroll with you. I'll be at Point Reyes this coming weekend. I'm sure to take lots of photos there and see lots of birds. I'll probably see some Tule Elk and maybe some sea lions on my planned hike at Tomales Point.

Cathy

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Cathy ! I LOVE Pt. Reyes - have spent a lot of time there. Oh yes !! If you're ever near Sac please let's go for a nature hike :) !! Enjoy the coast !!

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites
Butterfly Belle

I'm not sure if Corella's can talk, I've never heard of someone having one as a pet. Some people have Sulphur Crested Cockatoos and Major Mitchells as pets and they will talk and mimic. The Corella's are very noisy, especially these ones as they were in a flock of maybe 40 or 50 birds.

Tl3IEzl.jpg

Magpies aren't so gorgeous when they are trying to swoop you. They are very territorial during nesting season and you have to be careful as they can injure you in the head or eyes if you are unlucky.

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

What a beautiful sight to see all those flying over you !! Wow ! I found this video on youtube - they can talk ! So cool ! https://youtu.be/Lv5f43FTlCI

And yes, very important to stay clear of nesting sights Always !! I would swoop too :0)

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Everyone - what birds are on your bucket lists ? :)

Oh I have so many birds I would love to see I can't even make a list!!

But for sure if I ever go back to central america, I would love to see a Magnificent Quetzal, something I have searched for but never seen.

But basically any bird in an area I am not from is something I would love to see. As I currently work with Chickadees I would love to see any of the related species from Europe (ie blue tit/great tits).

On a more realistic (ie something I am aiming to see this summer on my next vacation) I am hoping to find Atlantic Puffins (and basically any other seabirds I can) when I take a trip out to the Canadian Maritimes. And I will stop here for now, or I will just start listing basically all birds I have not seen :)

  • Like 6
Link to post
Share on other sites

Wow the Quetzal is gorgeous ! That tail ! To see one in flight would be amazing :)

All this talk reminds me of "The Big Year" a funny movie with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson - It was a gift I got for this last year. If you haven't seen it - it's very fun :0)

I would love to travel more ~

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Yes it certainly would be something to see!

That movie is pretty hilarious, (the book is awesome too, has a few differences from to movie, so I enjoyed both,) I actually know a few birders who are pretty scarily good/intense though not quite to that extreme xp (though several of them have done big years/big days!)

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites
Autumn Sunrise

I was terrified of magpies as a child, because one swooped on me and pecked my head when I was about five. However, I've since found that they are most aggressive when they are nesting.

We have heaps of magpies here, and they often come quite close to the house. I've seen females going round with their young, and finding food for them, and it's very funny to see them when they start to get sick of doing that and ignore the loud complaints of their offspring.

A few years back, when we lived in the Blue Mountains, we had magpies that liked to eat our food. There was one that would take a piece of ham as long as I threw it a short distance from me, and another that learned to take the ham from my hand and would quite boldly come up to me and demand a handout :P

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites
Autumn Sunrise

That was soooo cute - thanks, Earthling :D

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

loving the beautiful pictures :)

I thought birding was what vacation was for, no ? :redface: am just booking to try and find a white ptarmigan on a snowy mountain...

At the moment I really really want to go to Iceland for harlequin ducks

Back-profile-of-harlequin-duck-.jpg

  • Like 8
Link to post
Share on other sites
Autumn Sunrise

Today has been cold and showery, and I don't quite know why, but there've been lots of birds around here - large numbers of King parrots (they were at my Granny Smith apple tree again this morning, so I picked the remaining fruit and just left the ones they'd attacked for them to finish off :P ), magpies, the odd crested pigeon, a pair of eastern rosellas, lots of noisy miners, a female satin bower bird (the males are prettier I think - glossy black with an iridescent greenish sheen, but you don't see them nearly as often), wild ducks on the dam, and . . . the Pacific heron is back! It's a big, black bird with a white neck, quite majestic in flight, and it likes hanging aground our dam and fishing for - what, I'm not quite sure, but obviously there are things in that dam that he likes to eat :P

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

I am rather partial to the beautiful Nicobar Pigeon. :) Saw one in London Zoo a few years ago but to see one in the wild would be something else...

tumblr_nf29t1nguI1s1vn29o1_500.png

I also lived in the Falkland Islands for a few years - wild Gentoo penguins (often with chicks) :wub: and Upland (aka Magellanic) Geese roam happily among humans (in fact, I've even 'shaken flippers' with a few penguins). :) I'd love to be able to return there one day - one of the few remaining truly unspoilt nature spots in the world...

Upland-Goose-male-tierradelfuegonp_0031.

HI_292876WHYMatter1.jpg?1345547525

Anyway, sorry for bombarding the thread. :blink:

  • Like 10
Link to post
Share on other sites
Autumn Sunrise

Wow, Salmacis - I've heard of the Nicobar pigeon, but I had no idea it was so colourful!

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...