Hooded Oriole

The last few days there has been a young and very vocal male Hooded Oriole hanging around the house.  Lucky for me he was not terribly camera shy.



Hoot Hoot Again

I had just mentionoed to my wife that it had been awhile since I had heard our local owls hooting.  She came back inside and said "well, thay're out there now."  So I grabbed the scope and managed a few shots in the fading light.



Prairie Dog

Recently took a trip to Arizona and New Mexico.  Took the scope, but the focus was not on birding.  I did manage to capture some Prairie Dogs, however.

Ducklings!

While on a recent outing to Lake Los Carneros, I was lucky to come across some cute and very cooperative Mallard ducklings.

Canyon Wren

Canyon Wrens are one of my all-time favorite birds.  I just love their song and curious nature as they probe around rock faces and other hidden areas.  They are also a bit funny-looking.  Luckily we have some that live around our house, and I hear and see them frequently.  They are, however, very difficult to photograph as they rarely sit still!  I was very lucky the other day as one alit for a short time as I was standing with the scope at ready.



Kites At Lake Los Carneros

After having such a good time watching a White-Tailed Kite eat its lunch here last week, I decided to return for a repeat performance.  It was even better this time, although the light was not quite as good so it was tougher to get crisp photos.  The youngters were out of the nest and about, at least 3 or 4 of them.  They can be told from the  adults as they have brown around their necks, where the adults have white.  They are about the size of the adults, but not yet hunting.  An adult will return with a rodent typically a vole) in its talons.  A youngster will fly up to meet the parent, who then makes a midair rodent transfer - very cool.  After one such transfer, the juvenile with the rodent joined two siblings in a tree and had breakfast.  A good outing!

Lake Los Carneros

Went on an outing to one of the interesting birding sites in our area, Lake Los Carneros in Goleta.  It did not disappoint, there was plenty of things to watch.  So much so that I only made it halfway around the lake before it was time to go.

This American Kestrel was nice and cooperative, sitting still and posing nicely for me.

Out on the lake the Ruddy Ducks were showing their breeding colors to nice effect.

 There are usually a few California Thrashers to be seen and heard, today was no exception.

The real highlight of the day was the White-tailed Kite.  Although generally scarce, these birds live and breed here so they are usually present.  I was lucky enough to see this one arriving with a rodent (vole, probably) held firmly in talons.  It landed nearby and proceeded to have a feast!