Thursday, October 15, 2020

Migration is in full swing

During the summer months I sometimes struggle to attain my Minimum Daily Requirement (MDR) of 20 bird species in our local Wounded Wetlands. This is so much easier during spring and autumn migration. 

This past week the highlights among the arriving birds have been--

Black-throated Blue Warbler, males...


...and rather dissimilar females which show the "trademark" white wing patches:


Yellow-billed Cuckoo:


Yellow-throated Warbler:


Common Yellowthroat male...


...and female:

Ovenbird:


Red-eyed Vireo:

Yellow-throated Vireo:

Northern Parula warbler:

Scarlet Tanager male in winter plumage:

For comparison, here is a male in breeding plumage I photographed in Illinois (May, 2017)

American Redstart:

Gray Catbird:

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher:

Prairie Warbler:

This fruiting fig (Ficus species) along the Levee Trail attracts many warblers:


Crepuscular rays from the sun emerge from the "civilized" side of the canal, about 20 minutes before sunrise:

On the opposite (western) horizon, anticrepuscular rays converge over the Everglades preserve as distant Coyotes sing to celebrate a kill:

This was the Miami, Florida Doppler radar velocity image at 4:30 AM on October 13.  Our home location is circled and the direction of the reflections from migrating birds is indicated by the arrows:    


The image from Key West at the same time gives some idea of the density of southbound migrant birds passing over the Florida Keys:


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Linking to:

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

Camera Critters

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing

Our World Tuesday

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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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40 comments:

  1. Hello,

    It is amazing to see the bird migrating showing up on the radar. Great collection of warbler photos. Love the sky captures. Take care and stay safe. Have a happy day!

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  2. Your pictures are incredible as is the variety..No MDR for me..Our variety can pretty much be counted on one hand unless one goes searching...ENjoy the rest of your week..

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  3. such a wonderful group of pretty birds and I love the bottom radar image of birds over the Keys

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  4. Wow. That is really interesting. I couldn't do 20 MDR!
    Great photos.

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  5. Fabulous photos. Talking about migrations, I saw the first cranes today flying South overhead. They make such a noise you cannot miss them. Stay safe Diane

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  6. You are amazing, 20 bird per day MDR. I am certainly impressed. And your photos are all superb.

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  7. Amazing that you can see reflections from migrating birds. I didn't know that was possible! Interesting how attaining your MDR changes with the seasons.

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  8. Birds are such an interesting subject to photograph. Very pretty set. I enjoyed looking, thanks very much. The one with the worm looks so cheeky :)

    Hazel
    https://hazelceej.com/king-keaw-road/

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  9. Such beautiful birds---most I have never seen but would like too.
    MB

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  10. I absolutely love your shots of all the adorable, beautiful, colourful birds! They're incredible, and I'm constantly going "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaw!"

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  11. What a great series of photos of the different birds.
    The sunset is also great.
    Greetings Irma

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  12. Hello Ken,
    Beautiful bird captures , it is hard to pick a favorite. I love them all.
    I think I heard some warblers were still around here, so more maybe on the way to you. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care and stay well. Have a great day, happy weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.

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  13. These are magnificent birds, one prettier than the other, and the radar images are interesting. The sky pictures are amazing
    Have a good weekend, Elke

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  14. We are seeing SO many Warblers now! Haven't seen a Blue Warbler but we'll be on the lookout. We did see the Ovenbird yesterday. It's a neat time to live in Florida! Enjoy this beautiful weekend!

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  15. Gorgeous bird photos. Wintering in Florida you sure do get to see some fabulous birds. all my winter ones are back at my feeders. Fun to see them again. Enjoy your weekend.

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  16. I see the most beautiful birds pass by here.
    In the Netherlands we also have birds, but not nearly as beautiful as I see here. Great to see. The horizon is also beautiful.

    Greetings, Helma

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  17. magnificent images. I didn't know that breeding and plumage can be so different.

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  18. I can't say anything but...simply gorgeous!!

    I thank you for your participation at I'd Rather B Birdin this week as always.

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  19. That red tanger is a thing of beauty, lovely photos Kenneth!

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  20. That's a lot of birds! I really enjoy seeing your posts.

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  21. You certainly have a lot of colorful birds in your count, Kenneth, and I appreciate that you share these great photos and the IDs as well. Each one looks like it could be in a bird identification book. As always, the skies and scenics are lovely too.

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  22. You have shown me all kinds of beautiful warblers my friend Kenneth, thank you so much for sharing such wonderful colors! I am also interested on the radar capture you shared. At first I was a bit scared because it was a cyclone or something but it shows birds which is so amazing!

    Thank you Kenneth for sharing this to Timeless Thursdays!

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  23. The warblers in the first two photos are so pretty - I wish we had them here!
    Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2020/10/at-aquarium.html

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  24. You live at the right place to watch the migrating birds, Ken. Keeping track of the bird migration must keep you grounded and not too much focused on the virus.
    About your comment, I have seen the sign Fredericksberg (or burg), so it is close to where I live. Pflugerville is also a German-related town - we have streets like Meister. A motel called Dietzel. It has been more than 3 decades I as in Dallas (boy, you have lived in several places!), so I don't know how different it is. Only know from hubby that the airport is huge (and we were used to Los Angeles, so it must really be big!!)

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    1. We lived in Dallas back in 1972 when Southwest Airlines had only three planes. At the far north of town, there were open fields. They constructed the Interstate loop (I-635) which ran to the eventual site of DFW airport-- we called it the road to nowhere! Austin airport was a rustic spot where passengers walked to the planes across the tarmac and the "club" was a little kitchen where we could pour our own drinks.

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  25. I always enjoy your photos. They are so beautiful.

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  26. Another delightful collection Ken. You sure are located in a perfect spot to capture all those migrating species. Thank you for sharing.

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  27. Great shots of these beautiful birds. I love the oven bird and the bright red bird. Such a treat to see them so close up.

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  28. You always have so many bird sighting and wonderful photos. The black-throated blue warbler is a beautiful bird, I've never seen before.

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  29. That's a wonderful list of warblers you have sighted Kenneth. The yellow billed cuckoo looks so pretty. In Delhi, the Black Redstart have started arriving (Oct-March) from the Himalayan region and I spotted the female on the GlobalBirdWeek. The sunrise photos are brilliant. I always enjoy checking the birds you have sighted :)

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  30. Outstanding series of photographs, Ken!

    I felt like I was reviewing a published Field Guide.

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  31. I didn't know the Scarlet Tanager made such an incredible colour change during the seasons. Amazing. Also amazing are these radar photos of the migrations underway. I've been quite captivated by them.

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  32. love the pictures beautiful I love catching birds when they are migrating

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  33. What a treat to see them on radar! As always, I enjoy your photos a lot! And the bits that you share with us about the birds are something to add to my bird knowledge :)

    Many thanks for your link at 'My Corner of the World' this week !!

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  34. Beautiful bird photos! Enjoy the rest of the week.

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  35. Your pictures are awesome.
    Nature is made cinematic and the Blue Warbler is so beautiful ...., great work.
    Greetings.

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  36. Gorgeous birds! And that sunset too. I feel like 20 birds is a lot to spot!

    With Love,
    Mandy

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