Monthly Archives: July 2026

No color adjustments were made to this shot of an Eastern Bluebird. The blue just popped out due to the lighting.

This is a skilled fisherman…two fish at once.

This wading bird has a wide distribution in the Americas, Eurasia and Africa. It is a summer resident in my part of the world.

This is what happens when a Willet wanders too close to another’s nesting territory. These large shorebirds nest in our saltmarshes.

Young birds are appearing as we move into the summer. This is a juvenile Orchard Oriole. It already has a band on its left leg.

I took this photo of a Least Tern coming out of the water after a dive under unusual light conditions. Our skies have a large amount of smoke from large wildfires burning in the upper midwestern US and south-central Canada. This was shot when there was sun filtering through high thin clouds with a lotContinue reading “Snapshot: Smokey Least Tern”

This Snowy Egret is displaying some of the wispy feathers that they develop during breeding season. You can easily distinguish them from the larger Great Egret without having them together for a size comparison. Snowy Egrets have a black bill and legs with yellow feet. Great Egrets have a yellow-orange bill.

Great Black-backed Gulls are the largest gull in the world and are found in north-eastern North America and all along the northern part of Europe. They have a well-deserved reputation for bullying and stealing so they can easily rule the beach. The Least Terns are harassing this gull for a very good reason. Their nestingContinue reading “Feathered Action: Terns vs Gull”

Birds are careful to keep their feathers clean. These Catbirds headed straight for a big puddle after a much needed rainy day. It’s been a very dry spring and early summer. Dust baths have been the main option most of the time and are helpful for controlling parasites. But a water bath is much nicer.