New Birds

We went to GA for a visit this past weekend and made it out to Phinizy Swamp for some bird watching. We got a Cooper's Hawk while we were there. Between Phinizy and our stops in Columbia, SC, on the way home to WV, I got 6 'new to me' birds, including THREE different species of Hawk.

Red-tailed Hawk

We didn't get great pictures of the Cooper's Hawk or the Red-shouldered Hawks we saw, but here is a beautiful Great Blue Heron we saw on Fort Jackson, SC.


Charles got a great picture of an Anhinga pair at Phinizy.



We also went to Phinizy Swamp over Easter weekend. That weekend I got 15 'new to me' birds, including a Bald Eagle (taken while stopped for gas at Fort Jackson, SC)!!


Here is a great picture of a Great Egret, taken at Phinizy Easter weekend.

We also saw some beautiful Red-winged Blackbirds Easter weekend at Phinizy.

And a TON of Cattle Egrets.

Here is a Broad-winged Hawk we saw over Easter weekend.


As we were leaving Phinizy that weekend, the birding group we happened upon pointed out this Osprey to us.

What GREAT weekends of birding we've had lately!

So many new birds!

Yesterday we went to Lake Stephens and saw 8 (EIGHT!!!) new birds! It was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I didn't get great pictures of some of them. I saw 3 different kinds of swallows (Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, and Northern Rough-Winged Swallows) and tehy were hard to capture. They were flying all over the lake, swooping here and there. Cool birds. We also identified our first Hawk. We got a Broad Winged Hawk. And then there was a Greater Scaup ( a duck), an Eastern Phoebe, and a Spotted Sandpiper, and a Red Breasted Merganser (another duck). Fun day. And then today I saw another beautiful White-throated Sparrow pecking the ground beside a great looking Chipping Sparrow. Here they are:


Here is the Hawk


Greater Scaup


Tree Swallow


Some Rock Pigeons we saw on the way out of the neighborhood

Yay! A new Lifer! Purple Finch

I was photographing this guy today, even though I thought he was a House Finch, which I have many pictures of. I was taking his picture anyway because he was so bright. I thought it was just his mating plumage. Apparently, I was wrong though. This is a Purple Finch! This is the first time I have seen a Purple Finch. Isn't he pretty? I hope to get some better pictures soon.




And, for comparison, this is a picture of a House Finch from November.

White-throated Sparrow

I have had some BEAUTIFUL White-throated Sparrows outside this morning. I love this bird, mostly because I often don't know what it is until I look at the pictures and see the yellow spots behind its beak. This morning though, the yellow spots were nice and bright and I knew immediately that the White-throated Sparrows were back. They're cute, chubby little things and are fun to watch as they peck away on the ground.

Chipping sparrows

I have had lots of Chipping Sparrows at my feeders today. They're pretty little birds, with their chestnut crowns. I saw my first Chipping Sparrow at my sister's house in Georgia in early March. I had not seen one here in WV until earlier this week. Now they're everywhere. Skittish little things though. There were about 5 on my red feeder and when I went for the camera they all flew off. Here are some individual portraits I got though. ;)



And I've had several American Goldfinches lately also. Pretty birds, too.

Killdeer

I saw a 'new to me' bird today! Woo hoo. That's so much fun! We were at my youngest son's soccer practice and my husband pointed out some birds to me that were walking around in an empty field. I took pictures as I slowly walked towards them. Once I got home I was able to identify them as Killdeer. They're very cool birds. They're actually Shorebirds, but are often found in large fields or parking lots. Check out the pictures I took.

Dark-eyed Junco

The Dark-eyed Junco is a bird that, at first glance, seems kind of normal and maybe even boring. But the more I watch them, the more I like them. Their top half is a dark gray, almost black, and their bottoms are white. They're a cute little bird with light colored beaks. They have been coming to my yard in flocks lately, alongside the Mourning Doves and sparrows, pecking for seeds, or maybe insects, on the ground. The lighter colored, almost brown ones, are the females. Remember you can click on the pictures to see them bigger if you want.








Happy Birding!