WINGSCAPES

Catbirds in Orlando

Marcus from Orlando just sent in these great shots of Grey Catbirds taken in his backyard. We are covered up in Mockingbirds here in Birmingham, but I rarely ever see Catbirds. Thanks Marcus...

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."

 

BirdCam Week at The Zen Birdfeeder

I'm working through a backlog of items I want to post about. In early December, our friend Nancy Castillo posted some great BirdCam images on her blog The Zen Birdfeeder.  Nancy runs a Wild Birds Unlimited store and was one of our first dealers to catch-on to a great benefit of the BirdCam...it can be used to showcase other products.

On Monday, Nancy posted some great images of Woodpeckers and Nuthatches, including this one in which she captured a Downy and Hairy woodpecker together. This two are nearly identical except for their size. (Hairy is similar size to Red bellied or Red headed Woodpeckers,...Downy is smaller.)

...the Tuesday, Nancy showcased the WBU Eliminator feeder...
 

...on Wednesday, Nancy posted some cool shots of various Rodentia...

...on Thursday, it was a smattering of different birds. I was surprised recently to learn that many backyard birders have an aversion to Blue Jays. I love them. They take great photos...

...on Friday, Nancy posted some great video. Click here to check it out.

Wingscapes loves Nancy. She is a BirdCammer of the first order.

Nesting Pair of Redtail Hawks

Saturday morning brought a cool surprise...a pair of Redtail Hawks were building a nest in a pine in our back yard. We've watched the hawks behind our house for years, but they rarely lingered in our yard, perhaps because bluejays and other residents would mob them. Hopefully, they can get comfortable enough with the nesting location to stick around. If anyone has any advice for how I can feed them (using pet store feed mice?), please email me.

I wish I could claim that this image was taken with the BirdCam. I took this with my Nikon SLR and 200mm lens (effective 300mm on digital N70s)...

Crows are Cool...

The Bird Man sent me this amazing video of a crow that befriended a kitten. Evidence that the internet is an endless source of miscellanea and that crows are cool.

apologies....and BirdWatchRadio!

I do not know what it is about the holidays and Bird Watch America, but they always seem to precede a serious lull in blogging. This happened last year.

However, I am shortening my winter blogging lulls with each passing year. We are back, and have a folder filled with interesting things to blog about. We are getting great images from BirdCam users.
Things are happening faster than we can write about them. Stay tuned.

Speaking of tuning, check out this cool new PodCast (internet radio show) from our friend Steve Moore. As with blogging, regular podcasting is a real challenge. Some of the best birding podcasts have been sporadic over the past few years. We fully expect Steve will buck this trend and develop a great listenership.

Steve's show - "Bird Watch Radio" - is accessible directly at www.BirdWatchRadio.com or by going to www.Podcastalley.com or searching for it at the iTunes Store. This first episode features me discussing the Wingscapes BirdCam...this made we nervous as a cat. I tried to speak quickly to fight my natural inclination towards a....slow...dry...monotone.  Thanks Steve. Bon Appetit.