[Owl?]

1 hour ago, HamRHead said:

Nobody else commented on which morph it was. I'll let you know if there's any conclusion there

According to my Sibley's, the color matches the "brown adult". Red adult is more saturated, and the grey is: well grey.

[Owl?]

Nice capture! And close, I'm down in Augusta County.

[Share Your Best Photo of the Day]

9 hours ago, G_kayaker said:

A berry in the beak is worth two in the bush!!

That's absolutely correct! Thanks!

[Landscapes]

Blackwater NWR in Maryland

[Share Your Best Photo of the Day]

I've been seeing Grey Catbirds around my property for years, but never got the chance to take decent pictures of them.

This year I set myself the challenge to do just that. I know there is a tree in my back yard that they like to nest in and I also noticed that they like to feed on those red berries, not sure what they're called.

So I set up a little twig from that bush fairly close to the tree in my back yard and waited with my camera.

While being out observing and waiting for the birds, I also noticed more catbirds in the bushes right behind my "trap". There must be a lot more catbirds around than I first anticipated.

Well, after a couple evenings, I finally got the shot:

Please feel free to comment!

[What Wren]

Cool, thanks guys!

This one has been breeding in one of my window flower trays and the young one came out for the first time yesterday!

[What Wren]

Not sure if this is a House Wren, or a Carolina Wren? Also what is the determining feature?

Seen 6/14/2019 in central VA.

 

[Different kind of ID]

10 hours ago, Melierax said:

I think catbird is correct. The bird is probably around 2-2.5 weeks old. I think that's normal... most young birds I've seen have practically no tail so I don't see why that would be different here. Not sure what's on its breast but it could be one of those larva that feed on baby birds and drop off once they're older. 

Thanks for that! Larva, interesting. If I keep seeing the bird, I'll try to pay attention to the breast to see if it comes off. If it 2-2.5 weeks old, I suspect it'll be gone soon though...

[Different kind of ID]

I believe this to be a young grey catbird that I found while weeding under a tree I've seen catbirds in and out for a while.

My questions:

Is it a catbird?

How old is it?

Is it normal not to have any tail feathers yet?

What's on his breast?

Thanks, Martin

[Orchard or Baltimore Oriole]

Thanks, everyone!

[Orchard or Baltimore Oriole]

Hi guys, are those Orchard or Baltimore Orioles?

Seen April 30th at Blackwater NWR, Maryland. Thx

[More Shorebirds]

I appreciate the confirmation and discussion going on, here are a couple more shots from the group in case that helps:

Especially the second picture looks really close to an adult breeding (April-August) Eastern Willet in my Sibleys guide.

[More Shorebirds]

Couple more I'm not sure about.

Last week at Chincoteague NWR in Virginia.

Whimbrels?

 

Willets?

Thanks for any feedback!

[Shorebird]

And would this be a Lesser Yellowleg?

[Shorebird]

Wow, that was quick. Thanks a lot, guys!

[Shorebird]

Seen this bird on 4/29 in Chincoteague NWR on the DelMarVa eastern shore.

Can't figure out what it is, maybe a sanderling? Would appreciate some help on the ID. Thanks, Martin

[American Kestrel?]

1 minute ago, The Bird Nuts said:

Yep, female American Kestrel.

Sweet! I told my wife a while ago, I've wanted to see a Kestrel for a some time.

Today I realized why I haven't seen one yet... They are just tiny and too similar to regular song birds at a quick glance.

This picture was taken less than half a mile from my house. I'm sure they are around all the time. Guess I need to spend more time actually paying attention, less working in the yard ?

 

[American Kestrel?]

Seen this bird today in central Virginia, hunting off a power line.

To me it looks like an American Kestrel?

 

 

[What Hawk]

Same area, this time I was even able to identify the bird ;)

 

[What Hawk]

20 hours ago, lonestranger said:

Red-tailed hawks are quite variable in their appearance, including the visibility and brightness/darkness of their belly band. Some jump right out at you and look solid brown on a white belly, some show just faint flecks that barely show up on the white belly, and then there's the dark morphs that are dark overall and the belly band matches the same colour as the rest of the bird making the belly band even harder to pick up on. That's just a few of the variables. Isn't IDing birds fun? 

Totally agree! At least spotting haws is an exciting experience. Unlike trying to ID sparrows or sandpipers... ?

[What Hawk]

5 hours ago, Kerri said:

If you snip it. copy and paste into a word document and enlarge it - you can see the belly band.

Belly band. Hmm, interesting. None of my field guides actually show that feature. But one at least mentions it in the text. 

Dark belly band. Even though on the picture it looks more like a lighter colored belly band to me...

[What Hawk]

10 hours ago, akiley said:

Red-tailed Hawk.

Thanks!

That's what I was leaning towards, based on what I'd recently seen in the area.

What was the giveaway though? The dark head?

[What Hawk]

Walking the dogs this afternoon in Central Virginia, we've seen this bird feeding on a squirrel. I believe it to be some hawk but not sure exactly. Can you guys help me out?

[What type of Sparrow]

Great pictures! Thanks for sharing.

[crow or raven]

I usually say: if you're not sure, it's most likely a crow. When you do see a raven, you'll know immediately.