The elusive Black and White Warbler - a first time capture for me! Much like a nuthatch, the Black and White Warbler works rapidly up and down the bark of trees exclusively for its meals. Although the video is short and quality less than normal due to rapid motion of the warbler it does show its characteristic feeding behavior and its feet adapted just like a nuthatch for spending time on the trees. This is a bird in a hurry finding as many small bugs on the bark and branches of trees as it can in a short amount of time.
Tame White Winged Dove has no apparent fear of me standing just a few feet away - part of a group of about six that stopped by the Backyard. They are considered an introduced and exotic species in Florida and are common year round in some areas, but not the Backyard. They are rare visitors here. They are beautiful Doves with striking orange eyes surrounded by a light blue eye-shadow accents. Originally a bird of the desert their range is expanding.
Red Tailed Hawk perched over the Backyard - the first time presence of this big hawk may explain the recent loss of Mother Squirrel as these hawks primarily eat rodents. The hunting Cooper's Hawks seem to prefer Doves and other birds and the Red Shouldered Hawks seems to prefer birds, snakes and lizards. Interesting that a Red Tailed Hawk would suddenly appear in an area historically frequented by Cooper's and Red Shouldered Hawks. There must be an abundance of food this winter or these raptors are increasing in numbers and spreading out into new territory. These hawks are usually not migratory in this area although their numbers may temporarily increase from the north during winter. Magnificent birds that they are - it is not clear how three species of hawks are going to coexist in such close quarters.
The red-tailed hawk is one of the most widely scattered hawks in the Americas. It breeds from central Alaska, the Yukon, and the Northwest Territories east to southern Quebec and the Maritime Provinces of Canada, and south to Florida, the West Indies, and Central America. The winter range stretches from southern Canada south throughout the remainder of the breeding range.
Its preferred habitat is mixed forest and field, with high bluffs or trees that may be used as perch sites. It occupies a wide range of habitats and altitudes, including deserts, grasslands, coastal regions, mountains, foothills, coniferous and deciduous woodlands, tropical rainforests, agricultural fields and urban areas.
The red-tailed hawk is widespread in North America, partially due to historic settlement patterns, which have benefited it. The clearing of forests in the Northeast created hunting areas, while the preservation of woodlots left the species with viable nest sites. The increase in trees throughout the Great Plains during the past century due to fire suppression and tree planting facilitated the western range expansion of the red-tailed hawk as well as range expansions of many other species of birds. The construction of highways with utility poles alongside treeless medians provided perfect habitat for perch-hunting. Unlike some other raptors, the red-tailed hawk are seemingly unfazed by considerable human activity and can nest and live in close proximity to large numbers of humans. Thus, the species can also be found in cities, where common prey such as rock pigeons and brown rats may support their populations. One famous urban red-tailed hawk, known as "Pale Male", became the subject of a non-fiction book, Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park, and is the first known red-tail in decades to successfully nest and raise young in the crowded New York City borough of Manhattan.
The red-tailed hawk is carnivorous, and an opportunistic feeder. Its diet is mainly small mammals, but it also includes birds and reptiles. Prey varies with regional and seasonal availability, but usually centers on rodents, comprising up to 85% of a hawk's diet. Most commonly reported prey types include mice, including both native Peromyscus species and house mice; gophers, voles, chipmunks, ground squirrels and tree squirrels. Additional prey (listed by descending likelihood of predation) include lagomorphs, shrews, bats, pigeons, quail, corvids, waterfowl, other raptors, reptiles, fish, crustaceans, insects and earthworms. Where found in Caribbean islands, red-tailed hawks prey mostly on reptiles such as snakes and lizards, since these are perhaps the most predominant native land animals of that region. Prey specimens can range to as small a size as beetles and worms. However, they can also prey on marmots, white-tailed jackrabbits, or female wild turkey, all of which are at least easily double the weight of most red-tails. Although they prefer to feed on fresh prey they've killed themselves, these hawks are not above occasionally consuming carrion. During winter in captivity, an average red-tail will eat about 135 g (4.8 oz) daily.
The red-tailed hawk commonly employs one of two hunting techniques. Often, they scan for prey activity from an elevated perch site, swooping down from the perch to seize the prey. They also watch for prey while flying, either capturing a bird in flight or pursuing prey on the ground until they can pin them down in their talons. Red-tailed hawks, like some other raptors, have been observed to hunt in pairs. This may consist of stalking opposites sides of a tree, in order to surround a tree squirrel and almost inevitably drive the rodent to be captured by one after being flushed by the other hawk.They are opportunistically attracted to conspicuous meals, such as displaying male red-winged blackbirds.
Beautiful mating pair of Great Blue Herons building their nest in central Florida. The largest Heron in North America standing over 4 feet tall - they are always exciting to capture especially in their spectacular breeding/mating plumage. This early stage of nest building the male brings small sticks to the female to build the base and they spend a lot of time, as in this video, bonding!
Male Great Blue Herons collect much of the nest material, gathering sticks from the ground and nearby shrubs and trees, and from unguarded and abandoned nests, and presenting them to the female. She weaves a platform and a saucer-shaped nest cup, lining it with pine needles, moss, reeds, dry grass, mangrove leaves, or small twigs. Nest building can take from 3 days up to 2 weeks; the finished nest can range from a simple platform measuring 20 inches across to more elaborate structures used over multiple years, reaching 4 feet across and nearly 3.5 feet deep. Ground-nesting herons use vegetation such as salt grass to form the nest.
Great Blue Herons nest mainly in trees, but will also nest on the ground, on bushes, in mangroves, and on structures such as duck blinds, channel markers, or artificial nest platforms. Males arrive at the colony and settle on nest sites; from there, they court passing females. Colonies can consist of 500 or more individual nests, with multiple nests per tree built 100 or more feet off the ground.
Nesting Facts
Clutch Size 2–6 eggs
Number of Broods 1-2 broods
Egg Length 2.4–3 in
Egg Width 1.8–2 in
Incubation Period 27–29 days
Nestling Period 49–81 days
Egg Description Pale blue, fading slightly with age.
Condition at Hatching Bluish eyes open, chick covered in pale gray down, able to vocalize.
Female Yellow Bellied Sapsucker woodpecker pecking rapidly on a tree for several minutes an a very windy day. This was a first time capture behind the backyard - I have never seen this colorful woodpecker around here before, although I've seen there many holes in some trees in area forests. On a walk through the forest you might spot rows of shallow holes in tree bark. In the Eastern U.S., this is the work of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, an enterprising woodpecker that laps up the leaking sap and any trapped insects with its specialized, brush-tipped tongue. Attired sharply in barred black-and-white, with a red cap and (in males) throat, they sit still on tree trunks for long intervals while feeding. To find one, listen for their loud mewing calls or stuttered drumming. Music with a wood-related them is provided by:
Northern Mockingbird calling from the top of the Backyard oak tree. Mockingbirds are common in many backyards but here they keep a lower profile owing to a large family of Blue Jays that run the backyard. Mockingbirds never come to feeders here, but love birdbaths and prefer fruit and insects they can pick from the trees. Morning is their time to sing from the highest tree, but alas the ever-growing noise pollution of civilization competes with their beautiful songs as you will hear in the middle of the recording.
It is becoming harder and harder to find true silence in Nature.
Eastern Phoebe rapidly singing their primary song "Fee-Bee" high in a treetop on a cloudy, windy day. In case you weren't sure how to pronounce "Phoebe" the little bird is telling you! Later you'll hear their "chip" call. Poor filming environment at long distance in poor light, but in this case the bird call was the goal. These birds are arriving on their winter roosting area and behave very differently that when they are up north in warmer months breeding. Down here they are quite elusive - typically staying high in the big trees like their equally elusive full-time resident cousin the Great Crested Flycatcher. I left this video unedited so you can get a sense of the challenges.
Blue Jay with the bald head look of late summer molting - but still a very handsome fellow and loud and proud as most Jays are as you will hear! This is when you can clearly see the birds ears which are at the bottom back of the skull. Although this is a known seasonal phenomena the fact that sometimes only one or a few of a dozen Blue Jays displays this characteristic and it is usually only the head is interesting. Last year's bald Blue Jay can be seen here:
Big Pileated Woodpecker aka "Woody Woodpecker" Part Two. The big "Woody" returns to the woods behind the backyard to show how a woodpecker really pecks wood! Actually quite amazing to see in this clip especially how they use their specially adapted neck and head like a hammer to put tremendous power to the wood!
Carolina Wren visits the Florida Backyard. A first-time species and capture! Not long, and shot through the glass window, but it shows the challenges of capturing a fast moving bird and at least succeeding and documenting this bird in the Backyard. I see Carolina Wrens often in North Carolina - they are said to be year round residents of Florida, but in over 20 years I have not seen one in the Backyard until now!
Blue Jay perfectly mimics the call of a Red Shouldered Hawk. Red Shouldered Hawk calls are common in the Backyard, but they are rarely made by real Hawks. Most are fake hawk calls made by impersonating Blue Jays, especially my hand fed Buddy Blue Jay.
Blue Jays have a special alarm call and head bob when they are trying to alert others and frighten away a Hawk and they also dive bomb them as shown in this clip. There is history between them! There are a number of theories as to why Blue Jays do this, but in my backyard its all about food dominance by just a few Big Jays high on the pecking order - they know exactly what they are doing. Sometimes my trained Blue Jays makes the Hawk call while waiting for a peanut as in this clip and it may be sort of a possessive/territorial call that the guy with the peanut is off limits. They also seem to enjoy getting the squirrels upset by doing this - they clearly have a few steps on the furry mammals. Late in the clip you will see a Mourning Dove relaxing and preening while Blue Jays make Hawk Calls in the forest - Hawks eat Doves in the backyard so this Dove in the open somehow knows not to be alarmed as Hawks do not make any sound when hunting. Listen closely and you'll hear the squirrels making panicky alarm calls as the Jays have them upset. I have a sneaky suspicion my Blue Jays enjoy this. Hawks do not call when hunting, they call mainly to communicate to each other.
An American Robin hovers like a hummingbird? OK - maybe not "hummingbird-like", but this rather rotund Robin has developed a taste for suet and is determined to defy gravity to get it. First trying to hover its not-so-aerodynamic bird frame at great expense of energy and then gradually learning it is to better imitate a woodpecker by using its tail for a brace and flapping wings while holding on and then ultimately learning to properly grasp the suet feeder and consume massive amounts of greasy food almost like a professional woodpecker - which by the way - it has a habit of scaring off now! Rare for Robins to display such personality and pluck among the other birds that rule the trees!
Pair of Great Crested Flycatchers thinking of nesting in the Backyard. These birds, which are very rare visitors to the Backyard, excite me! They always announce their presence with a loud single whistle and I start looking for them. These two mated as I watched - I did not get that on video :-( But they hung around quite awhile after I got the camera. There is a vacancy in the Woodpecker nest box and they are looking hard. Notice how they use their tail as a brace just like a Woodpecker. I can only hope they move in.
Update: They have committed to making a nest in one of the owl boxes - more to come!
Lovely Cedar Waxwings feasting on Loquat fruit, not the best table manners, but they do love to eat! A flock of about 30 of them descended on the Backyard Loquat trees to feed on their way north for the summer. These birds do not stay in our area of Florida they just pass through. Always exciting when they do stop by as their migration coincides with Loquat ripening. A great backyard bird tree!
Cedar Waxwing pair take a short break high over the backyard on their way back north. Even at long range their unique color and profile sticks out! These birds have not been seen in the backyard for more than a few minutes - a chance sighting.
Northern Parula - a unique type of Warbler and a bird I confess I had never heard of nor seen before. However, I caught a glimpse of this very small over-active bird working dense brush in the Backyard - notable for its blue, yellow and greenish coloring - and managed to get some video and closeup photos. You get more of a sense of its winter habitat than seeing the bird itself. This bird was probably beginning to work it's way back north after spending the deep winter in south Florida and the tropical islands south of Florida. I'm sure its been around in years past, but the odds of being in the right place and time to see and capture them on video are pretty small!
20 or so Wild Parrots - I believe Blue Crowned Conures - feasted on the ripe fruit of our Loquat tree this afternoon. First time ever seen in our yard - they are native to South America, but are probably a feral colony established from escaped pets over the years. Unfortunately they attracted the attention of a big hawk who scared them away before I had time to video them at length. But we have a bumper crop of loquats this winter and I hope they will be back - it's easy to tell when they arrive because they make a tremendous racket, but grow quiet as the eat. They blended in with the dense green and yellow of the loquat tree and it wasn't until they all took off I realized how many there were. A new bird species documented in the "Backyard" and one of the most unique to date - beautiful birds!
Eastern Screech Owl Camouflage and Defensive Techniques - A Mini-Documentary. YouTube videos of a White-faced Scops-Owl "performing" by being frightened (i.e. abused) into changing it's appearance on a Japanese TV show for laughs led to names such as Transformer Owl, Evil Owl, Dracula Owl etc. In fact, many small owls use "Concealing Postures" or the German word "Tarnstellung" to survive in a very hostile world. Perhaps the very best small owl that does this and so much more is the relatively little observed or studied Eastern Screech Owl. Hours of footage over two years of one female Red-Morph Eastern Screech Owl guarding her nest box in Florida were combined into this short mini-documentary so that these amazing creatures can be appreciated for their tenacious survival instincts and dedication to raising their young in a natural environment.
The Real, Wild "Transformer Owl "! They have been called Transformer Owl, Shapeshifter Owl, Evil Owl, Dracula Owl etc. In fact, many small owls use "Concealing Postures" or the German word "Tarnstellung" to survive in a very hostile world. Far from evil or scary, they are amazing small creatures that have unusual adaptive ability to change their appearance. Perhaps the very best small owl that does this and so much more is the little observed or studied Eastern Screech Owl. Hours of footage over two years of one female Red-Morph Eastern Screech Owl guarding her nest box in Florida were combined into this short mini-documentary so that these amazing creatures can be appreciated for their tenacious survival instincts and dedication to raising their young in a natural environment.
More info at: http://screech-owls.blogspot.com/2012/09/transformer-screech-owls-taking.html and
