Here are a few shots I've taken over the past two weeks that haven't made it on here yet.
Red-headed Woodpecker
American Goldfinch
White-crowned Sparrow
Red-headed Woodpecker
American Goldfinch
White-crowned Sparrow
Monday, December 20, 2010
Friday, December 17, 2010
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Of Larks, Longspurs, and Rough-legs
6:55 PM
Ryan Ankeny
The bashful Lapland Longspur that I failed to photograph yesterday was more than obliging today, and he brought some friends! A total of about six Lapland Longspurs were toiling away looking for bits of food only 10 feet from the truck. I sat and watched and photographed them all day. It's hard NOT to photograph these guys when they make it so easy to do.
This photo shows the long back toenail (hallux) that gives Lapland Longspurs their name.
Lapland Longspur
The usual Horned Larks were around again, there were more today than yesterday.
Horned Lark
The Rough-legged still continues to be seen. Today he was fond of perching on gas well heads and he also had a particular favorite tree in the wetlands.
Rough-legged Hawk
I was wondering where the American Pipits had gotten off to earlier in the day. I found the two from yesterday when I went to the compost area of the landfill and found them picking around a giant pile of discarded spoiled produce from local grocery stores. If you squint you can make him out at the bottom left hand side in the mud.
American Pipit
This photo shows the long back toenail (hallux) that gives Lapland Longspurs their name.
Lapland Longspur
The usual Horned Larks were around again, there were more today than yesterday.
Horned Lark
The Rough-legged still continues to be seen. Today he was fond of perching on gas well heads and he also had a particular favorite tree in the wetlands.
Rough-legged Hawk
I was wondering where the American Pipits had gotten off to earlier in the day. I found the two from yesterday when I went to the compost area of the landfill and found them picking around a giant pile of discarded spoiled produce from local grocery stores. If you squint you can make him out at the bottom left hand side in the mud.
American Pipit
Thursday, December 16, 2010
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Snow Birds
6:33 PM
Ryan Ankeny
When there is a lot of snow or ice on the ground, all the birds head up to the tipping floor where the garbage is being dumped. Everything else right now is covered in ice, so their only hope is to pick morsels of trash or stray seeds from the mud. Today I saw Mourning Doves, Eastern Meadowlarks, Horned Larks, two American Pipits and a single Lapland Longspur all at the active dumping area. The Rough-legged Hawk is still around as well. These shots aren't the best because the low light forced me to bump up the ISO and the birds are constantly moving picking food up off the ground so some are a little fuzzy.
Eastern Meadowlark
The most numerous birds were the Horned Larks with around 50 present. Most of the birds looked even paler than this bird below. There was a lot of variation in their color and no two birds looked the same.
Horned Lark
This Mourning Dove found some hay that was laying in the mud. It was frantically picking of all the small seeds from the grass.
The most accommodating by far was the American Pipit. The bird ventured close several times, sometimes as close as six feet from the truck. I counted two who were expertly dodging dump trucks while foraging for food.
American Pipit
Eastern Meadowlark
The most numerous birds were the Horned Larks with around 50 present. Most of the birds looked even paler than this bird below. There was a lot of variation in their color and no two birds looked the same.
Horned Lark
This Mourning Dove found some hay that was laying in the mud. It was frantically picking of all the small seeds from the grass.
Mourning Dove
The most accommodating by far was the American Pipit. The bird ventured close several times, sometimes as close as six feet from the truck. I counted two who were expertly dodging dump trucks while foraging for food.
American Pipit
The only bird I wasn't able to photograph was the Lapland Longspur. I saw it several times but it never came close enough for me to get a photo. Guess I'll have to try again tomorrow. I'm hoping for sunny skies instead of clouds, that way I can drop the ISO and open the aperture and avoid these fuzzy photos.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
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The Rough-legged Hawk Continues
7:00 PM
Ryan Ankeny
The Rough-legged Hawk is still flying around and was pretty conspicuous. He was fond of the telephone poles today but every time I go too close, he would fly off. The light was pretty poor as you can tell so the pictures aren't as sharp as they could be. I'm going to keep shooting because you never know when a bird is going to leave. He's probably not going anywhere tonight, the forecast is 2 inches of snow and 0.5 inches of ice. He may be stuck to a pole in the morning instead!
Monday, December 13, 2010
10
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Dark Phase Rough-legged Hawk
7:27 PM
Ryan Ankeny
Okay, so after thinking this was a Western Red-tailed Hawk (here is one from earlier this year), someone on Flickr promptly corrected my mistake and informed me that this is a dark phase Rough-legged Hawk! I'm certain there was a Western Red-tail at the landfill today because I saw the red, but it wasn't this guy. There are so many hawks out there it's getting hard to keep track. Anyway, I'm glad my mistake was corrected, looks like I still have some learning to do.
This bird is currently on the ebird home page. They have a ebird rarities flickr pool and the images from that pool show up on the home page. If you haven't tried ebird I would highly recommend it. It is a good way to see trends and keep track of lists, but more importantly, by contributing your sightings, you will be giving ornithologists hard data on bird populations. It is known as "citizen science" and it is a great tool for birders and scientists alike.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
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Sunset Sunday
10:00 AM
Ryan Ankeny
Since I'm usually at the landfill until dark, I get to see some pretty amazing sunsets. I'm going to be starting a new series today called Sunset Sundays, where I will post new pictures of the landfill at twilight each Sunday. Enjoy.
These are the methane flares that burn off the gas generated by the decomposing garbage. It is my understanding that more gas is collected and sent to nearby GE to power their factory, a smart example of how to turn waste into energy that is beginning to catch on here in the U.S.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
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Rough-legged Hawk Returns
1:37 PM
Ryan Ankeny
A Rough-legged Hawk has returned to the landfill. Just took these pics about 30 minutes ago. There was one here back on February 17th of this year. I found it in the same spot as the one that was here in February and the Red-tails quickly took note of it and started harassing the bird, which they did in February as well. They were dive bombing the Rough-legged and twice the birds interlocked talons. It was quite a sight.
Update: So I saw the bird again this evening around 4:30. Initially he buzzed by the truck at eye level about 10 feet away. He caught my attention and I followed him to the side of one of the units. I watched as he worked the field and hovered looking for mice. At one point he landed on the top of a unit and gave me an annoyed look. I let him be after he flew, but as I was driving to the parking lot I spotted him again, down on the ground beside the road. He was letting me approach pretty close and seemed to tolerate my presence well. Hopefully he will be around tomorrow, I will update if I see him again.
