Young Black Vultures

Saw these in NOVA, the parents were watching from afar from a tree. They were too far away to get a picture though. (and no, no projectile vomiting; probably too young)

Birds @ Duke Marine Lab trip

Over all there were many many laughing gulls and no vultures. Usually where evere I go in VA there are vultures gliding around but there weren't any in NC at the Duke Marine Lab. Also little dicky birds like mocking birds, cardinals, wrens and others weren't around at all or not as much through out the day as they would be in Newport News but in the early morning they were all out flying and singing.

We were out on the boat @ doing some tredging and trawling and as one of our trawling loads were coming up, laughing gull picked up a small fish. As I watched it swallowed the fish whole while it was flying behind the boat.

One bird that I wasn't expecting to see that Hillary pointed put was an Ibis; we saw one or two Ibises on a marshy, duney island. They were white shorebirds with a long curved down bill. We also saw hunting sandpipers.

Cygnets

Look closely and you can see some of the 5 - 6 cygnets (baby swans) i found in Yorktown

Red-Bellied Woodpecker

Noland Trail 3/28/09

On the Noland Trail starting from the North entrance I saw a male hooded merganzer, mallards sleeping on the same log as turtles.

There was a pie-billed grebe around a bridge I was crossing and despite me hanging around for about 5 minutes and other people crossing it stayed within the proximity of the bridge (pic). It kept diving which made me wonder if there was something yummy around and that's why it wasn't leaving.

After a while proceeding down the trail I heard laughing gulls; these and some I had heard Tuesday (3/24) during oceanography lab at Lion's Bridge were the first I've heard/ seen in person since learning about them in class. But as I was looking up, looking for the gulls I saw a bald eagle soaring around the trees and lake (pic).

On my way back heading towards the South Entrance I started seeing some ospreys flying around. And one was in a tree that was practically right on the trail, eating a fish (pics). I could hear it taring off the peices and see some of the pieces fall as it was eating. It looked like it was eating the fish head or gill first and the tail was hanging over the branch.

Newport News Park (Lab 3/23/09)

Here are a few birds of the many that we saw during lab on March 23rd at Newport News Park.
1) Brown-headed Nuthatch
2) Red-headed Woodpecker
3) Osprey
4) Dark-eyed Junco

Out West

I was able to spend my break at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada. Since spring is right around the corner the bird diversity at the refuge was amazing. I don't know if it is always like that or if I am just more aware of it now, but birds were every where! Some of the note worthy observations include:

Lesser black backed gull (only the second one ever seen in Nevada), Gambles quail, northern harrier, Great blue heron, Black-necked Stilt, American Coot, and a Greater Roadrunner.

Unfortunately, photographing most of these was difficult although I was able to snag a few shots.