Well, hello there!

Steve and I enjoyed spending time at Pickerington Ponds and Blacklick Metro parks yesterday morning. On the way back to our car at Blacklick, I spotted this starling up in a tree. It was scratching its head, but in the photo I made, it appears to be waving "hello." Very friendly, I thought.

Snow bunting

Snow bunting, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

These birds are pretty amazing. They're currently in their non-breeding plumage, which I actually find more attractive than their breeding outfit. Steve said they remind him of budgies - they do seem rather comical with those faces, I suppose. From watching them for a couple of hours, they seem to be quite intent on eating as many seeds as possible, and only in the safety of the flock. There were some Cooper's hawks in the area, so I suppose this safety in numbers thing probably is a good defense strategy.

Winter birds

Winter birds, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I would have used the title, "snow birds," but that has a different meaning around here. Yesterday, Steve and I joined some friends to visit a farm up in Delaware county that is owned by an enthusiastic nature lover and his wife. Each winter they feed the birds with corn from their fields. There are literally thousands of snow buntings, horned larks, and lapland longspurs in a mixed flock gleaning the fields and taking advantage of the kindness of these folks. I've never before seen so many of these birds in one flock.

The weather was very cold with a very strong wind. I was dressed in winter layers - smartwool and capilene for the long underwear, fleece and hiking pants for the next, down and snow pants for the outer. I had my winter boots on, my windstopper hat, and a scarf, plus gloves. I was actually quite comfortable except for my fingertips, which always get cold doing winter photography.

To make this photo, I was kneeling in the snow, just waiting for the flock to get spooked. I wish I could describe the sound that they make during take-off. It's a lovely winter serenade....

Click on the image to see a much larger view. These birds are very beautiful.

African darter in flight

African darter in flight, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Sitting on the rim of the vlei at DeHoop Nature Reserve in South Africa, I saw many of the local birds flying by. Our campsite was about 10 meters or so above the vlei, which was a perfect perch for watching darters, herons, cormorants, gulls, terns, ducks, hammerkops, and flamingos in flight.

African darters are rather elusive birds for a photographer - they are usually very aware of one trying to sneak up to make a photo. This was the best view I had of an African darter during my entire three week field season.

Grey heron

Grey heron, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another beautiful bird spotted at DeHoop Nature Reserve September 13, 2013. This species looks very similar to our North American blue heron.

Black-crowned night heron in flight

Black-crowned night heron in flight, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

South Africa: September 13, 2013.

I was sitting atop the rocks above the vlei at DeHoop Nature Reserve, watching the birds fly by in the early morning sunshine.

DeHoop is a magical place. The campsites are along the vlei, and the place is fantastic for birding - not only aquatic birds, but the typical assemblage one finds in fynbos and dune systems. The added bonus for me was finding a population of Hyobanche, which was the goal for this site.

Cape Weaver

Cape Weaver, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of my favorite groups of birds in South Africa are the weavers. There are several species, and each one produces an unique style of nests.

This past field season I learned a bit about the behavior of the weavers. The males make several nests to try to attract a female. She will inspect each nest, and if she rejects them all, the male will start the process again. He's very territorial and will do some interesting display behaviors to announce his territory. I don't think these mating pairs are monogamous, which is not surprising given the colonial nesting behavior. Trees are chock full of nests and, from a distance, look like Christmas ornaments adorning a tree. They don't look quite so tidy from up close.

Weaver colonies are noisy and busy places. I wouldn't spend a lot of time hanging out under the nests, unless you have an umbrella....

Bar-throated Apalis

Bar-throated Apalis, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

DeHoop Nature Reserve. Christmas in the southern hemisphere means summer time. Instead of snow, ice, and short days, my friends in South Africa have beautiful weather, many interesting birds to see, and beautiful flowers. I'm not sure which I'd prefer. I'm used to Christmas in the northern hemisphere....

As I reflect on what Christmas means to me, I admit to myself that I don't like what it's become in the USA. The commercial season starts in October. By the time Christmas arrives, I'm sick of all the corporate displays of "buy now, get a 50% discount on this-or-that, free shipping", etc. There has been so much media coverage on the alleged 'war on Christmas' that I think people have lost sight that the real war on Christmas is our emphasis on catering to corporate profits, and a loss of the spirit of helping those in need. When corporations such as Walmart and McDonalds have to coach their employees on how to manage their budgets in order to buy food and gifts, there's a message we're missing in this country. Income inequality and the lack of a living wages for the working poor are issues we really need to address. If we're going to return to the class system of the 1920's, then why can't we return to the way Christmas was celebrated in the last century - sans commercialism.

Christmas should be about celebrating a spirit of giving and kindness to others, a celebration of family and friends, and, for people who are still engaged in organized religion (i.e., Christianity), a time to celebrate the birth of Christ. It's not about making corporations' profit margins as wide as possible...

Don't get me wrong here, I enjoy shopping for gifts to give to loved ones. However, I do resent being bombarded with advertisements for 2+ months, and with piped-in Christmas music from Halloween to New Years. I'd like to return to my childhood years when the Christmas season started after Thanksgiving. The anticipation for those short weeks made Christmas a very special holiday, rather than an extended buying season.

OK, rant off for now. I hope all my readers enjoy the holidays, whatever the season means to you, and that you find peace and joy in the new year.

Female Northern Cardinal

Female Northern Cardinal, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The state bird of Ohio is the Northern Cardinal. The males are a beautiful red while the females are subtle shades of brown, gray, and red. I enjoy watching these birds year round, but in winter, they stand out against the stark backdrop of snow and ice to cheer me up.

This photo was taken last spring at Blendon Woods Metro Park. There is a bird blind near a small lake. There's always a lot of activity in the brush and on the ground near the blind - probably due to the several feeders that are located near the blind.

Flickr members are very angry about the changes...

Flickr members are very angry about the changes..., a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Bar-throated apalis. I do believe that "Angry Birds" was designed from this little guy.

Given the "black sunday" protests for today, there are obviously a lot of Flickr members who do not want to see the beta version implemented. Some of the concerns are that features we like to use are not yet available. From what I've read, it's just a matter of time for some, or all, of those to be added back into the mix. The bigger concern is the change in layout. There was quite a negative response when the current version was rolled out. I actually like the current version better than the old one, but I'm not crazy about what I've seen for the beta version that is being developed. I hope all my Flickr friends who are posting the black images are also contacting Flickr to let them know what features the want to make sure are rolled out with the new version, and to be specific in their feedback about what is not desirable...

Bar-throated Apalis

Bar-throated Apalis, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

DeHoop Nature Reserve, South Africa.

I'm wondering if the Angry Birds characters were modeled after this diminutive bird. The eyes and beak configuration sure reminds me of the angry birds logo....

I enjoyed photographing this bird - it was so active and fun to watch.

Northern Cardinal

Northern Cardinal, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The bright plumage of our northern cardinals always brings a smile to my face during the advent of winter. I love watching these birds in my yard and in the metro parks around Columbus, Ohio.

Bar-throated Apalis

Bar-throated Apalis, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

This is a bird with attitude. As Jessica Rabbit (Who framed Roger Rabbit) would say, "I can't help it, I was made this way...." The markings and intense stare of this bird really give it a huge personality - especially for such a diminutive bird.

Photographed 13 Sep 2013 - DeHoop Nature Reserve, South Africa.

Bokmakierie

Bokmakierie, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I love the diversity of birds in South Africa, and I'm very lucky to be able to combine my interest in birding with my field seasons focused on Hyobanche.

The first time I was introduced to this species was in 2004 - a solo field season where I had traveled to the Eastern Cape to work with Hyobanche robusta. On the way back to Cape Town, I stopped at Andrew's Field, near Cape Agulhas. At the time, there was guest accommodation at Tsaba-Tsaba - small self-catering cottages.

The first morning I was there I heard a lovely song just outside the window, just after dawn. I saw a bokmakierie, but didn't know what it was. I bought a bird book in Cape Town and figured it out. Its markings are so striking. I didn't expect this to be in amongst the shrikes and butcher birds based on that lovely song.

This photo is from September 13, 2013 - DeHoop Nature Reserve, the last bit of camping from the 2013 field season. DeHoop is a magical place for plant and animal diversity, and I really enjoyed the early morning birding opportunities.

Cape Shovelers in flight

Cape Shovelers in flight, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

DeHoop Nature Reserve, just east of Cape Agulhas in South Africa, is a wonderful place to camp and to see a wide variety of birds. The place is magical for animal and plant diversity, in general, but especially great for birders.

You can camp right along the vlei, which is sometimes very calm in the early morning. This pair of Cape Shovelers flew low across the water, right below our campsite. The calm water made a mirror reflection, allowing all of the details of the wings to be seen.

Catching some rays

Catching some rays, a photo by andiwolfe (I'm back!) on Flickr.

The Cape Sugarbird is a nectar feeder, usually seen foraging on various species of Leucospermum or other members of the Protea family. I photographed this one in 2010.

Carolina chickadee

Carolina chickadee, a photo by andiwolfe (I'm back!) on Flickr.

Actually, this may be a black-capped chickadee since it was nesting at Magee Marsh.

White-faced heron

White-faced heron, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Back to Australia for today's picture. This one was from Lake Merimbula during the early morning. There is a lot of wildlife that hangs out around the shores of this huge lagoon, and it was a real treat to see the white-faced heron fishing for breakfast.

Rainbow Lorikeet

Rainbow Lorikeet, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of my favorite birds from the eastern coast of Australia is the rainbow lorikeet. Not only are they beautiful, but they are fun to watch as they forage for seeds by hanging upside down in the trees.

Kirtland's Warbler!

Kirtland's Warbler!, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One from the archives. Last May we had a visit of a very rare bird on west campus at Ohio State University.