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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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I'm intrigued Ron! I hope you can get a photo of one so we can see it!
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Cute little guys! Thanks Ron.
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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Thanks again Crimpie,, im not often stumped here in my own neck o da woods, and wasnt thinkin early nesters.
Ron, I can assure you they're not newly-hatched birds. They're second-year birds that haven't yet swapped out last year's headdress. These crown feathers are replaced, gradually, from January through May, and by the end of this month most birds will look fairly "adult." But there are always a few stragglers. The first pre-alternate molt in this species usually wraps up by the end May maybe pushing into early June for a few, but this time of year it's common to see mixed-up birds (with equal parts black and brown crown stripes). If you're seeing pure brown with no black feathers at all, then maybe they're just a little behind schedule.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Willoughby - is there an official definition of "juvenile"? Or is juvenile not a technical ornithology term? Sort of a giveaway regarding the speaker - like when one says "look! a sea gull!"
And what is that term used to describe the feathering of particular molts? Juvenal?
Any more word on the earlier talk of a bird watching trip in that direction? We are happily filling up our calendar with adventures.
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BrassNuts
Trad climber
Save your a_s, reach for the brass...
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Some good backyard activity today, the birdbath was a popular spot! Now, a few more Spring birds before heading back to cubeland tomorrow morning...
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Awesome shots, Dave!!!!
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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woooooo pretty pics guys!
I need help with a couple of these-
Made it to #145 over spring break.
Hoping to maybe get to 200 by the end of the year.
So far I still haven't birded outside of my own county of SLO!
I figured I'd learn the locals first!
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Slater - those birds are "Peep" and "Gull" in my world. :) Heh heh!
Nice shots!!
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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Willoughby - is there an official definition of "juvenile"? Or is juvenile not a technical ornithology term? Sort of a giveaway regarding the speaker - like when one says "look! a sea gull!"
And what is that term used to describe the feathering of particular molts? Juvenal?
I suppose, but really it has lots of different meanings depending on usage and context. For example, for many passerines it best applies to a bird in juvenal plumage, but in many others, that plumage is almost never seen since it's swapped out almost immediately. But then other folks will refer to a 3 or 4 year old Bald Eagle as a juvie 'cause it doesn't look like a pure adult. And there's a wide swath of usage in-between those examples. I wouldn't worry too much about it, but realize that in most cases it's about as vague as saying "young."
Here's an example of a White-crowned Sparrow in actual juvenal plumage:
All soft and fuzzy and dingy and streaky. They don't look like this for long, and this bird was probably only a day or two out of the nest (late July, mind you, not early April). It had almost no tail to speak of, and you can also see the fleshy gape at the corner of it's mouth. Note also the dark lores indicating the oriantha or "Mountain" subspecies, which is what breed in the Sierra and Colorado as well. Your photo looked like a Gambel's, with that pale lore. They're from way up north. I guess it's worth mentioning that eastern birds have a dark lore too, but I have no idea if they ever get to Colorado.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Adorable! Nothing makes me as warm and fuzzy as the "rubbery bill" of a baby bird (as we call it). Just want to kiss it!
Hey, check out this juvenile in his juvenal plummage. He's since molted into his adult feathering which everyone here is more familiar with.
This juvenile (and nearly naked) BN was found in the early 1990s on Wunsch's Dihedral in the South Platte (top of first pitch). These are young Peregrine getting banded. They sought out BrassNuts so he could guide the people to the birds. Aren't they cute too!?!?!
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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Slater,
That gull looks pretty intriguing with the white primary tips. Could it be a first-cycle Iceland Gull? Glaucous Gulls have a two-toned bill. An Iceland Gull would be a pretty big deal around here (SF Bay) and I imagine where you are. I imagine local gull aficionados might be interested.
As for the sandpipers, the droopy bills make me think Western. Some of them seem to have a breast band like Least, but the feet are black. If this is current, there is a lot of variation in plumage. Semipalmated are pretty uncommon in CA
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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Dr. F,
Thanks for that info. I'll definitely check that area out the next time I'm down that way. I've been to that area, but was mainly looking at the shorebirds.
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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Headed to Costa Rica in a few hours, with a camera and a mission to see everything from Acanthidops to Zeledonia. Check back in a couple of weeks to see if I got any worthy pics...
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Have fun Willoughby!!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Willoughby, if one tells an actor to 'break a leg' what do we wish you, 'get bit'?
Bon voyage!
I hope we don't bug you too much...
Not very good - I didn't have my macro with. Also, the little bugger flat refuses to pose!
"Their common name velvet ant refers to their dense pile of hair which most often is bright scarlet or orange but may also be black, white, silver, or gold. Their bright colours serve as aposematic signals. They are known for their extremely painful sting, facetiously said to be strong enough to kill a cow, hence the common name cow killer or cow ant is applied to some species. Unlike a real ant, they do not have drones, workers, and queens. However, velvet ants do exhibit haplodiploid sex determination similar to other members of Vespoidea (JH Hunt 1999).
Behavior
Mature mutillids feed on nectar. Although some species are strictly nocturnal, female mutillids are often active during the day. Females of Tricholabiodes thisbe are sometimes active up to two hours before sunset. Guido Nonveiller (1963) hypothesized that Mutillidae are generally stenothermic and thermophilic; they may not avoid light but rather are active during temperatures which usually occur only after sunset.
Life cycle
The male locates a female on the wing and mates. The female then enters an insect nest, typically a ground-nesting bee such as a bumblebee or wasp nest, and deposits one egg near each larva or pupa. Her young then develop as idiobiont ectoparasitoids, eventually killing their immobile larval/ pupal hosts within a matter of days."
 Wiki
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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Ron,
Perhaps these are the same ones we saw on the Eastside last night. We saw about 200 soaring and gliding that eventually set down on Tinemaha Reservoir a little after 6 PM.
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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Tony - thanks! An Iceland Gull would be a pretty big deal around here (SF Bay) and I imagine where you are.
I was thinking maybe a Thayer's? but gulls are difficult. I was hoping for an expert opinion from some of you on this site. So, Icelandic would be a stretch?? or just early?
Size wise it was slightly smaller than the typical Western gulls.
Thanks!
Costa Rica! fun! I'm going next summer! I'll be a better birder by then I hope!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Icelandic would be a stretch??
It would be a 'stretch' for Gumby! BwaHaHaHa! Not sayin' it ain't possible. ;-)
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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No offense, bra, but yer pic suks. I'm gonna forward it to my homie, Stevie Wonder. :-)
I'll take a stab - Aztec Thrush - BwaHaHaHa!
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ATTENTION!!! PHOTO TIP
Even on most point-and-shoots these days you can change your metering
preferences. The default meters most of what you see in the viewfinder.
This doesn't work so hot for boids. Check and see if you can change it to
'Point' or 'Center Weighted'. 'Center Weighted' usually implies the inner
25% or so and is OK if you are close but most of the time you aren't so you
want the tightest area or 'point' to be metered. This will really help when
that little dear is silhouetted against a 'high sky' or bright background.
On many cameras you can also change your focus preference in a similar manner.
Check it out!
ps
This tip will help with yer climbing shots too unless you really do want
only a silhouette of the rock denizen you are climbing with in case their
parole officer is surfing the net.
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