Birdwatching Thread
post yer recent sightings or pics or equipment
sticky says its allowed and /an/ is full of freaks

White-winged Dove

Anna's Hummingbird I think?

Vermillion Flycatcher

i think this is a western meadow lark? not sure.

>>2820115
I am thinking great-crested flycatcher or something related to it

had this chonky quail in my yard a about month ago.

>>2820106 (OP)
Hello, fellow Zonafag. This week I saw Harris's hawk, redtail, turkey vultures, and red wing blackbird.

Dutchie here, saw a Fuut (Grebe) in a lake where I was on a chill bike ride. Couldn't take a picture with my phone.

It was nice to see.

Hummingbirds showed up. I got like 1 pair this year, don't see them much just using feeders in the evening. Ruby throated.

Also a nice rose breasted grosbeak living in my back yard doing a lot of singing and using my bird feeders frequently. He's a nice guy.

>>2820203
go find a trogan

>>2820119
he is lovely
is he a scaled quail? I got my first quail in my yard a few days ago, Gambel’s

>>2820106 (OP)
Heard a bittern the other day, it was cool but impossible to see

>>2820453
That looks a lot like the Santa Cruz river in Arizona

Powerful Gould's Turkey

>>2820106 (OP)
Saw northern Gannets divebombing for fish from a ferry in north atlantic. Little buggers dive faaaast. They have air sacs in their face and chest to cushion the impact.

Merlin bird id app from Cornell University anybody? Good or bad?
Mostly robins, house sparrows, grackles, red wing blackbirds, cardinals, brown eyed junco, cooper's hawk (just the call), vultures riding thermals, and hummingbirds love rose of sharon.
Pic was in New York tho

>>2820622
Its good but its not perfect

>>2820622
It’s really receptive to some calls and not others; it won’t hear a bittern 20 feet away but will hear a blackbird 2km off
Just don’t take what it says as gospel and only install your most local bird back to prevent hearing blue tits everywhere on earth

>>2820622
I hit 100 sightings of house finches yesterday

I've got more black rail detections than any other anon keekeedoo churrt

>>2821082
doesnt ebird hide black rail sightings

>>2821093
Yes for good reason. A guy gave out a spot he heard one at and clumsy birders squished the veg flat actually trying to see one (you will not see one).

>>2821129
i feel blessed to see a virginia rail sprinting around the brush, a black rail is literally 1/6th the size, i dont think it would be possible to find one without hearing it first. plus i think with the way mbta works all rails are free game

Sniped 2 starlings this morning

Raven came and took both of them

>>2821178
make sure you dont use lead ammo for starlings so other stuff can eat them
raptors live long enough to get sick from lead poisoning

>>2821304
Also never have to clean my barrel

>>2821178
Are starlings causing trouble? Never heard of anyone shooting starlings but then again I live in a country where shooting any kind of bird is just uncommon (and would probably get you in some trouble with nature protection organisations), even if it's geese destroying fields.

>>2821357
They're invasive in the US and compete with native birds (mainly woodpeckers and other larger cavity nesters). They are also irritating, cocky birds and eat like pigs.

>>2821357
invasive species are not protected in the US and killing them is usually encouraged
Starlings are bad, they kill native birds and destroy their nests.

>>2821385
>>2821358
Ah ok I was not aware of the situation in the US. Makes sense.
They are native where I live and sometimes fly in huge swarms, it's quite beautiful.

>>2821398
ironically they are in decline in Europe

bump
no birders on 4chan??

>>2822327

>>2822327

>>2820106 (OP)
Was just at the lake in Prescott and spotted an Eagle! My dumbass left my binoculars in the truck because we were kayaking. I had never seen a wild eagle so it was pretty cool. My phone managed to still get a decent photo

>>2822472
Attempt 2 at posting the picture correctly

I wish I could take photos of wasp eaters but I can't get closer than like 50 meters and I'd have to take a pic with my phone through my shitty binoculars

>>2822473
theyshow,,,everyear around calving time andeathe after birth.

>>2822473

>>2822546
Fishing, it’s just a ss from the video I took. Coolest bird? Baby bars owl that hung out in my campsite all afternoon and night.

>>2822327
It involves going outside so...

>>2822488
have you ever seen them do the death spiral display?

Bronzed cowbird mating display I saw today

bin chicken (australian white ibis) sorry for terrible image quality

>>2822692
rainbow lorikeet in the distance

>>2822694

magpie

>>2820108
woah gorgeous photo, what a beautiful bird.

>>2820254
photo looks like a great crested grebe? i think their range is also in aus as nonbreeding population.

>>2820521
damn majestic.

>>2820621
gannet facts learned today, diving birds really are so cool.

>>2820622
is that a red tailed hawk? i like the thistles in the foreground.

>>2822691
I saw my first bronzed cowbird a week ago, they have an insane call

this is yaffle bird. bad image because he is very shy

>>2822692
Y'all just have these walking around?

>>2822781
We have ibises in the US too
They are very common in Florida and just walk around neighborhoods in big flocks

I have no knowledge of birding except for what my tism has made me curious about, but I hear the starlings at my work do this "weeoo-weeoo" siren-like call regularly and I constantly wonder whether it's a natural vocalization or mimicry of an old car-alarm/police siren. I learned about their mimicry when I saw one flawlessly imitating a red-tailed hawk's screech. Anyone else hear this starling call or are they mimicking manmade sounds specific to these birds habitat

>>2821356
>Also never have to clean my barrel
You still should. Airgun barrels foul worse than any rife I've ever owned.

One of my favorite things to do while traveling is searching for urban wildlife. Rome, London, Amsterdam, Paris, nyc, San Fran, all have some type of feral parakeet - these were in a park in Athens, Greece.

A few weeks ago there was a group of 90 pelicans in a park near me. They've split up a bit since then but there are still few groups over a dozen.

There's an injured sandhill crane hanging out in a park on the other end of the city I've been meaning to go watch. They never stop in the city and that one has been hanging out with the geese.

>>2822911
They are migratory, they are probably hanging out there for the season. You can see they are breeding or about to begin breeding because some of them grown "horns" on their bill. Their face changes color to pink and yellow during the height of breeding season too and they sometimes grow a little plume on top of their head.
I thought I had a picture but I guess not, here is one from Cornell.

Pelicans are funny

>>2822694
very cool

>>2823593
riparian areas in the desert are one of the coolest environments
they always have a ton of animals

>>2823604
Same with wetlands that can't be (easily) developed on in cities. Right between my local Walmart and the mall there's a few acres of bog with a thin wall of trees around it, makes a good bird watching spot especially if you show up before 7am or so. Tons of litter though, nobody cleans it up.

The crane hanging out with the geese seems pretty chill and not nervous around people. I should have brought a real camera instead of just my phone.

Kestrel from December

Kill starlings.
Behead starlings.
Roundhouse kick a starling into the concrete.
Slam dunk a starling baby into the trashcan.
Defecate in a starlings food.
Launch starlings into the sun.
Stir fry starlings in a wok.
Toss starlings into active volcanoes.
Urinate into a starlings nest.
Judo throw starlings into a wood chipper.
Twist starlings heads off.
Report starlings to the USDA.
Karate chop starlings in half.
Curb stomp pregnant starlings.
Trap starlings in quicksand.
Crush starlings in the trash compactor.
Liquefy starlings in a vat of acid.
Eat starlings.
Dissect starlings.
Exterminate starlings in the gas chamber.
Stomp starling skulls with steel toed boots.
Cremate starlings in the oven.
Lobotomize starlings.
Mandatory abortions for starlings.
Grind starling fetuses in the garbage disposal.
Drown starlings in fried chicken grease.
Vaporize starlings with a ray gun.
Kick old starlings down the stairs.
Feed starlings to alligators.
Slice starlings with a katana.

>>2823986
falcons are badass
I teared up a little the first time i saw a wild peregrine.
felt so cool to find the fastest animal on earth in its natural environment all by myself

Here's a Baltimore Oriole I spotted a few weeks ago. I'd love to have a nice camera setup to take nice bird pics but until then I shove my phone into the lens of my little monocular.

>>2820622
I really like Merlin. It was big on helping me get in to birdwatching.
>>2822913
I saw one of these the other day. I was wondering why some of them don't have that horn on their bill.

>>2824465
I don't put out anything particular to attract orioles, the other day saw a female one eating suet. I guess they are nesting nearby because it's past migration season.

Saw this one swimming in a lake a few months back, but haven't been able to identify it. Sorry for the potato quality, I had to max out the zoom on my phone camera. I'll get a real one someday.

>>2824465
Those are lovely birds. I live just hair too far south to see them in the summer. They (supposedly) migrate through my area, but I haven't been able to spot one yet.

>>2824527
They can be found in most of the eastern US during migration, but it's a short window. In some spots like Florida you can only really find them for about three weeks. Check fruit trees during migration, like mulberries.

I recently saw a kingfisher catch a fish on a kayak trip. I was never in one place long enough to observe them till now I guess. I heard the call and looked over just as he was diving into the water and he came up with something. Pretty neat.

>>2824526
A Muscovy duck.

>>2826365
I've got one that is visiting my suet feeder and really unafraid of me. Came while I was putting out refills so I just stood still and watched her eat.

>>2826943
Try using a hummingbird feeder. The hooded orioles near me go crazy for them.

White tailed hawk

>>2826982
I have one almost right next to the orange suet but this oriole seems pretty focused on that suet. She was hanging around a lot today and kept getting pissed at the starlings that would eat from it, making unhappy chattering noises at them. No male in sight, maybe he got taken by a hawk or something but I assume they already did one nest this season so she could be just chilling for a while.

>>2820106 (OP)
Hello. Newfag here. Also a poorfag. I currently do not have much money to spend on a mirrorless camera with a telescope lens but I like watching birds and uploading them sights on my inaturalist profile.
I was thinking in buying one of these cheap telescope eyepiece cameras and a field monocular from aliexpress.
Any experiences with similar set ups or any advice?

fledgeling redtails,,noisyass teens chase parents all dayelling for food?,
,,get yourown!,
,,,,SSSSQEEEEE,,,SQUEEE!

SHUTUP!!

>>2827645
Eh, fuck it. Just ordered the eyepiece + Svbony sv28

>>2827645
if you just want photos for proof that you saw the bird or for your life list or whatever then it’s perfectly fine. I have used binoculars to take photos before with a phone and they turn out surprisingly legible. Don’t expect anything cinematic or impressive thought lol
A dslr and a supertelephoto lens was the best investment I have ever made though so keep saving

A couple days ago I was fishing and saw a bald eagle dive down and try to grab a fish out of the water. I didn't get it but it was cool to watch

>>2827757
*It didn't get it

>>2822773
why do they call green woodpecker yaffle

Magpie mating season soon

>>2827645
I have very few and shitty bird photos. I mostly bird by ear and take recordings, or just use my memory to look up what I saw. I mean sometimes I could be wrong or there's more than one bird that seems like a match but who cares. Certainly not the bird.

fuck I want to go outside but turkey vultures are working on a raccoon and they are so scared of me they don't return for hours and it'll just turn to jelly and maggots if I don't let them finish

>>2827005
Aura

Also best camera for birdwatching

found this hawk in the grass. Think he was trying to fledge cuz he wouldnt fly away

>>2828662
yup pale eyes means its a fledgling