Ruby Throated Hummingbird mother feeding baby allows us to see its beating heart.
You can not count as fast as this precious little Ruby-Throated Hummingbird fledgling's heart beats in 40 seconds of video. Watch the zoomed-in PIP of the birds heart area in full 1080 HD. Hummingbirds have the fastest heart rates of all birds. We rescued a prematurely fledged baby hummingbird that crashed and exhausted itself - more on that in later video blogs - but here it is re-united with its mother and in assuming the out of the nest feeding position so the mother can get food into its beak, the bird allows us to see its tiny heart beating incredibly fast under its pink breast flesh. The hummingbirds has one of the biggest hearts in proportion to its body in the animal world, but it is still smaller than a green pea!
More HD videos every week. Please Subscribe at: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=MyBackyardBirding
Video: Butterflies can't resist the "Butterfly Bush"
Butterflies can't resist the "Butterfly Bush"
Tiger Swallowtails, Pipevine Swallowtails and a few other butterfly species find this "Butterfly Bush" irresistible. Perhaps due to all the rain, we have a bumper crop of blossoms and the late summer butterflies that feed on them! The Tiger Swallowtail in the photo above is the State Butterfly of North Carolina!
Cute Elk Calf Enjoying Breakfast in the Great Smoky Mountains
We were fortunate to spend some quality time with a mother Elk and her three calves one morning earlier this week. I focused on one of three Elk calves enjoying breakfast. Remote roadside forage next to heavy forest cover is one of their favorite hangouts. Sequestration and the closure of the prime Elk area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has led to much less "people pressure" on the animal life, making for excellent viewing.
Crank up the volume! Close up video and audio of a female Ruby Throated Hummingbird at an isolated feeder above evergreen trees. The sun was just right to bring out the iridescent green feathers. It is interesting to see how the hummingbirds interact with small insects at this scale. You will also hear some loud calls of nearby Cardinals.
Relaxing! Only a solitary Milk Thistle blossom within a large area of many plants emerged a few days ago and it was quickly found by a large number of hungry Pipevine Swallowtail Butterflies and bees leading to a rare and beautiful feeding frenzy. All thistle is generally considered an invasive weed, but Milk Thistle is not unattractive due to its large colorful blossoms and is a choice food for butterflies. The extract of the dried seeds is purported to be good for the liver.
Beautiful Bull Elk, mother and calf near a closed area of the remote part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. "Sequestration", and few if any people has probably resulted in some unique viewing opportunities. Not sure if this is the full extent of his family. As big as he is he is still not the top dog in these parts! Filmed in a steady rain.
Five Second Video: Guilty Red Squirrel - Caught in the act of stealing a nut!
Guilty Red Squirrel - Caught in the Act.
A little fun! This Red Squirrel dropped in from above and completed the nut robbery in 5 seconds -Ninja-style! In an effort to avoid the camera trap this little Red Squirrel tries to quickly grab just one nut at a time - but he clearly realizes he is busted!
Swallowtail Butterfly Rule The Hummingbird Feeder!
No Room For Hummingbirds Here!
Aerial Battle For Nectar Feeder Dominance - Won By The Butterfly!
I'm not sure this phenomena has been well-documented before, but it is amazing on at least two counts - one the butterfly is hovering by rapidly flapping its wings like a hummingbird to drink nectar from a feeder, and two - the butterfly is totally dominating the nectar feeder and chasing away the hummingbirds with deliberate acts of aggression. I observed this odd behavior and fortunately it continued for some time - allowing me to get my camera set up nearby on a tripod without disturbing the actions. This Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly pushes around both male and female Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds at a small nectar feeder. Very surprising since the hummers spend the day violently fighting each other for dominance of the feeder. I know they are the smallest birds in the world, but they should remember they are indeed birds and not let insects push them around. Perhaps the amazing cheekiness of this Swallowtail has thrown them for a loop - they don't know what to do - it wont even share the feeder with them! It is also possible the butterfly it is under the influence of the high octane artificial nectar and acting out of character!
Video: Back Capped Or Hybrid Chickadee In Great Smoky Mountains
Back Capped Or Hybrid Chickadee In Great Smoky Mountains
This Chickadee is having a great time and there is a special guest appearance at the end you'll want to stick around for. Positively ID'ing this bird is a bit of a challenge - I am not an expert birder by any means. Here is a great resource on Chickadee identification. This bird is at 4000 feet elevation in the Great Smoky Mountains where the Black-Capped Chickadee is know to replace the Carolina Chickadee or to possibly coexist. This is a bit of a rough looking bird (in a nice way) with a large messy bib and is likely the Black-Capped Chickadee or perhaps a hybrid?
Video: Mother Red Morph Eastern Screech Owl Guarding the Nest Box in Florida
Mother Red Morph Eastern Screech Owl Guarding the Nest Box in Florida
Watch this dedicated Red Morph Eastern Screech Owl mother display a range of facial expressions as she guards her nest box and hops to a new perch. The three owlets are getting big and it is too hot and crowded for her to spend the day in the box so she perches nearby - always ready to come to their aide.
Isolated Carolina Lily on a single stem on a remote trail hillside in the Great Smoky Mountains.
Large Many-Blossom Turk's Cap Lily along the Blue Ridge Parkway (see below)
Large Many-Blossom Turk's Cap Lily along the Blue Ridge Parkway
The Carolina Lily and Turk's Cap Lily are both spectacular mid-summer wildflowers. The kind of flowers that catch your eye as your going down a mountain road and cause you to stop and turn around. It's difficult to tell the blossoms apart, but the Turk's Cap has a green star formed where the petals come together and is generally a much larger plant with multiple blossoms in a moist area. If its along a roadside ditch or drainage its probably Turk's Cap. The singular Carolina Lily was found on a relatively dry steep forest hillside along a trail in a remote area. Regardless, they both make a big impression and are not that common in the mountains. More HD videos every week. Please Subscribe at: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=MyBackyardBirding
I tested this golden silk by lifting 7 ordinary household items. Lifting a pair of scissors and a Droid Smartphone were too easy so I gradually increased the weight the golden web supported:
Two Small Bananas
Canon Point and Shoot Camera
8 ounce soft drink (1/2 pound)
Pound of bananas - no problem!
Two pound hammer - you'll have to watch the video!
This is the second blog on the Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in our Florida Backyard. The first blog Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida (Part 1) discussed the spider. Part two is a test of the strength of the "golden silk". A sample of the golden web of the giant Golden Silk Orb Weaver that was captured and release in Florida (see Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RXyYzjzZvs ) was tested to demonstrate it's amazing strength. Some of the strongest biological material on earth. These big spiders share the backyard ecosystem with the birds and other creatures. They are not poisonous and rarely come into contact with humans unless we unwittingly walk into their huge and strong webs. This web was at least 8 feet wide and 4 to 8 feet off the ground!
Video: Butterflies and Hummingbirds Love Crimson Bee Balm
Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly on Crimson Bee Balm Wildflower
Its late summer wildflower and butterfly season and I found a nice colony of Crimson Bee Balm (Monarda didyma)in a mucky area along a mountain stream. Pipevine Swallowtails with the characteristic 7 orange spots on the underside of the wings and a few Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds were feasting on the nectar. Bee Balm is called many things including: crimson beebalm, scarlet beebalm, scarlet monarda, Oswego tea, or bergamot. It is in the mint family and has a long history of medicinal use - usually in tea form. To find a large wild natural colony of this striking wildflower is quite a treat. More HD videos every week. Please Subscribe at: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=MyBackyardBirding
Video: Small Mountain Stream Up Close - Cool and Greenl!
It's been unusually wet in the Great Smoky Mountains this summer. This is a close up video of a small, cool, fast running mountain stream surrounding by a sea of green plants that thrive in the wet environment. This stream is primarily spring fed year round but swells with runoff during rainy periods. Relax and enjoy this short meditation - especially nice after a hot summer day!
Cute and Curious - the eldest Eastern Screech Owlet this season was this male Gray Morph. He finds the world outside the box fascinating. Unlike last season we did not see a lot of fighting over who gets to sit in the nest box entrance. The 2nd egg did not hatch so there were 4 and 6 days difference in age between the eldest and the next two and he was way ahead in development - leaving the nest box 3 days before the youngest.
Video: Eastern Towhee Fledglings Learning to Scratch For Food
Eastern Towhee Fledgling
Towhee's are on of my favorite backyard birds they display a unique personality and sing their hearts out all day long. Two young Eastern Towhees recently fledged are learning to scratch for their food just like their parents. You can hear one of the parents calling continuously nearby - they have one of the more distinctive calls of eastern U.S. birds. The fledgling were still being fed by the parents at this time.
Video of their Dad making the classic "Drink your tea..." call.
Beautiful Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider In Her Amazing Golden Web (Florida)
The Business Side of a Large Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida. In part two I'll test the strength of this spider silk!
Much to my surprise a giant Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider took up residence in our Florida backyard while we were on vacation. This 4 inch long amazing specimen is a female. The male, which I did not see, is a fraction of her size. I almost walked right into her as she perched about 5 feet off the ground in a web that was on the order of 8 feet by 4 feet, and characteristically from what I've read the web was tilted at an angle. Of course my first thought was get a video of her. As she was so docile and unconcerned by my presences that was not a problem. In the video the giant spider proceeds to do what can only be described as grooming, stretching and scratching. I guess even huge spiders get an itch now and then. She is basically just chillin' out in her amazing golden web - a spider this big has a personality!
Just as in the case of beneficial snakes these big spiders should not be killed, despite their intimidating manner they are not poisonous. I grabbed a dead tree branch and started to roll up the web kind of like cotton candy and surprisingly the big spider gathered within the web on the branch and made no attempt to run - they are not built for "running" by the way and do not like to be on solid ground where they move very slowly compared to say a wolf spider or black widow.
In the second photo above of the underside you can see the spider hanging on a large "rope" of her golden web. She stayed absolutely still and made no attempt to flee, but gave an awesome display of bio-luminescence in red, green and yellow as her only defense as "running" would be useless. After getting to know it a bit and having fleeting thoughts of keeping it as a pet - I let her go in the heavy brush behind the house where she will rebuild a golden web away from people and continue to consume large insects. Four inches long, pretty colors, bio-luminescent displays of red, yellow and green, a head that looks just like a human skull, and soft beautiful golden silk that is some of the strongest biological material on the planet - what's not to like. I kept a piece of the silk web "rope" as it was very much just like thread and in part two of this blog I give the golden silk a strength test!
Video: Red Squirrel Smashes Finger Gets Really Upset!
Red Squirrel Smashes Paw on Nut Box and Throws a fit - What would you do?
Poor little Red Squirrel - he smashes his right front paw trying to open the squirrel nut box and then throws a futile fit at the box, shouts some bad squirrel words and licks his wounds. I have seen many people do similar working on a frustrating DIY task. I felt bad for the little guy - he is fine - he's just too small to lift the lid on a box meant for bigger squirrels so I removed the front cover for him and he got his nuts. A happy ending.
Transformer Screech Owl 2013 is patiently guarding her nest box with three owlets when a pesky and curious squirrel decides to check her out. She puffs herself up and extends her wings to look big and scary as the squirrel is right on top of her. Mrs. Owl holds her patience for quite awhile and then sends the squirrel on his way with a somewhat disgusted look. This is the same mother Transformer Screech Owl that has displayed her prodigious talent in the past by shrinking to look like a tree branch from a Red-Shouldered Hawk on the exact same spot in 2012. The only real wild transformer owl on the web!
The companion YouTube site to this blog: Backyard Birding ....and Beyond ! has been updated with a new look and a new channel description -
The home of wild Eastern Screech Owls...this is Backyard Birding ....and Beyond! We love to share original HD videos of birds and Nature in general observed in our backyard and in our travels. Our goal is to capture the unique moments when creatures interact naturally or reveal something unusual. There is much going on in the backyard ecosystem and you'll find it covered here. Sometimes funny and cute, beautiful, or surprising and shocking, but always real, wild, and original. New HD videos are uploaded each week and Screech Owls are live each spring. Also free bird-call ringtones! If you find the channel entertaining please subscribe, comment and share to help support our work. A companion blog to Backyard Birding ...and Beyond is at: http://screech-owls.blogspot.com . Adventure is as near as your Backyard. Thanks so much for visiting!
"Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much the larger and better in every way." John Muir
.............................................
The new YouTube format is easier to program and easier to navigate. Any comments are appreciated. Next up a channel trailer!
Two Eastern Screech Owlets in our nest box. A female Red-Morph on the left and her younger brother who really wants to see the world - on the right. A third owlet is in the nest box. These are the talented offspring of their amazing mother, the only wild and natural Transformer Owl on the web at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFJe6SMEHFA and the star of many other videos on this channel. More HD videos every week. Please Subscribe at: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=MyBackyardBirding
This great photo of an Eastern Screech Owl in the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia was a Merit Winner in the Outdoor Scenes category of the National Geographic Traveler 2013 photo contest. It looks like its part of the tree. In our area there are very few such big trees in which to hide. This Gray Eastern Screech Owl looks a lot like the mascot from our backyard used as my blog's signature background image.
