Fun With Eye-boggling Buffleheads, Suave Sharpies, Sinking Pied-billed Grebes and Cavorting Coots! Plus Bonus Bewick's Wren and Ring-necked Duck! Santa Fe County 11/17/14

I went out birding at one of the local ponds here in Santa Fe County yesterday hoping something rare had blown in from the big winter blast that hit yesterday. 

There certainly weren't any rarities, but nonetheless I had a blast taking pics of some of the local gang. Highlights include stunning colors on the male bufflehead's face, cavorting coots, and sinking grebes! Enjoy!

Male Bufflehead showing stunning colors

Male Buffleheads

Male Buffleheads

Flock of Buffleheads

Flock of Buffleheads with American Wigeon in background

Male and female Buffleheads

Male and female Buffleheads

Flock of Buffleheads at one of the ponds at the Las Campanas Golf Course

Pied-billed Grebe - winter adult

Pied-billed Grebe - winter adult

Pied-billed Grebe - immature

About to dive

Bottom's Up!

Going

Going

Going

Gone!

Sharp-shinned Hawk - immature

Bewick's Wren

Ring-necked Duck - adult male

Yellow-headed Blackbird Flock Near Fort Sumner, NM March 2014

One of my favorite birds. The pass through in large numbers in spring and fall sometimes reaching multiple hundreds in a flock.

Can you pick out the Red-winged Blackbird and the handful of Brown-headed Cowbirds?

It's Time for the Season's First Rough-legged Hawk!

 A few Rough-legged Hawks have already been seen a bit further south, but with this latest blast of frigid air and snow about to hit nortnern New Mexico tomorrow I'm expecting a roughie to show up! In anticipation here is one that was hanging out in southern Santa Fe County this past February. I look upon roughies as one of the world's more spectacular birds of prey!

A Murder of Crows Attacking Hapless Red-tailed Hawk!

What does a bored Murder of Crows do for entertainment?

Flash Back Alert! 8/17/14 Roger finds his 300th species in Santa Fe County - a female American Three-toed Woodpecker!

I finally decided to make the hike up one of slopes at the Santa Fe Ski Basin and look for three-toed woodpeckers, which had recently been seen in the area. This was important because it would be my 300th species seen in the county - only the second person to achieve this lofty goal!

I made the hike up the rather steep slopes to around 11,000 feet and situated myself near several large stands of spruce with lots of dead snags. I heard some drumming hit a recording of three-toed for about 15 seconds.

I was amazed when this female flew in and happily started hunting on a nearby snag. It was really hard to get a shot because of the shadows and angles, but I persevered and here she is. I couldn't be happier with this species being number 300!

Glossy x White-faced Ibis Hybrid?

I'm not sure about this one. Some of my friends think it is a Glossy Ibis, but I'm not so sure. I sure don't think its a White-faced Ibis. So there you have it. Let's just call it a hybrid. This bird was seen at Bitterlake NWR on 8/24/14. What do you think?

Stilt Sandpiper at Bitterlake National Wildlife Refuge

Stopped by Bitterlake NWR in August on the way home from seeing the Parasitic Jaeger near Carlsbad, NM. It is ALWAYS worth a stop here at one of the southwest's premier refuges. The main goal was to catch up with some Snowy Plovers for the year. We ended up seeing five snowies and a bunch of other cool birds including this handsome Stilt Sandpiper.

Peregrine Falcon - Santa Fe County, NM

Recently I've been having fun taking pics of Prairie Falcons over in Torrance County, but just to remind us who is still king this stunning Peregrine hung out just long enough for me to get this pic. Uncommon migrants in spring and fall, I'd say that by mid-November, especially here in Santa Fe County, these guys can be considered rare.

Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Black Skimmers and much more at Huguenot in Jacksonville, FL 11-4-14

One more follow up to my trip to Jacksonville, FL and Huguenot Memorial Park back in early November. The birding was great with several Lesser Black-backed Gulls (including one very dark-mantled bird - see pics), Great Black-backed Gulls, Ring-billed Gulls, Herring Gulls, Sandwich Terns, Royal Terns, Caspian Terns, Forster's Terns, Brown Pelicans, Double-crested Cormorants, Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings, Short-billed Dowitchers, Dunlin, Western Sandpipers, Piping Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers, Ospreys, and much more!

Black Skimmer and Royal Terns

Black Skimmer and Royal Terns

Herring Gull - adult

Laughing Gulls

Group of five Lesser Black-backed Gulls including an immature

Four Lessers (plus very dark-mantled bird), Great Black-backed, and an immature Laughing and Ring-billed Gull

Two Lessers including the bird with "black" mantle

Eight Lesser Black-backed Gulls a (one immature in foreground) nd a Great Black-backed

Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Immature Ring-billed Gull

Sanderling

Bottle-nosed Dolphin