WINGSCAPES

The Red Feather Dilemma

One of the great dilemmas of nature is why some bird species display vivid or bold colors. Take the Summer Tanager for example. While the female is a soft yellow (as shown here by the superb photo recently recorded by David from Cary, NC using his Wingscapes BirdCam), the male is a vivid red.

Ornithologists tell us that producing such red plumage is physically taxing on the birds. Not only does it require more energy to do so, it also makes the bird more visible to predators; however red also indicates the male's good health and thus likely attracts females.

Great Grackle Email

I just got a great email from a new BirdCam user (Sharon,...not sure where she's from). Her comments and killer Grackle shots are below. Getting emails like this with cool images from around the country is - without question - the best part of this job. Thanks Sharon.

"I just got my first set of photos back from my new BirdCam and am so impressed!  I also have a new appreciation for how beautiful grackles are-- I used to think they were rather plain, but the BirdCam really
showed how bright their iridescent colors are.  I've looked up grackles on the internet before, but none of the pictures I found look half as good as the ones I got from the BirdCam. Thank you for providing such a high-quality product to us birdwatchers! Please disregard the photo's dates, as I was so eager to use the camera that I didn't set the date before placing it outside."

 

Two Rubies and an Orange!

Mary & Susan from Wild Birds Unlimited in Tallahassee got some awesome video over Thanksgiving.

They captured footage of Baltimore Orioles, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and a female (likely Ruby-throated) hummingbird...three "lifers" for the BirdCam.*

Visit their site to see the video.

*BirdCam Life List...oh boy. This is an absurdly ambitious project for someone who has struggled to maintain a blog. Basically, the idea is to keep a record of all species photographed with a BirdCam (by any user). I am doing this partly to satisfy my own curiosity and partly to demonstrate the BirdCam's "range" beyond the backyard.

I have started a list on eBird. We'll see where it goes.