lonestranger

Size can be very deceiving in photos like this. Birds can appear larger when they are closer than other birds they are being compared to. In this photo, I can't tell which bird is closest or which is furthest away. In a two dimensional photo it's hard to determine if one bird is bigger than the other birds or if it just looks bigger because it's closer than the others. A crow can appear the same size as a raven that's further away, or the crow could even appear larger than the raven if the raven was far enough away from the closer crow. Size matters but it's hard to judge, probably more so in photos than in the field.

When they said, "may the wind always be at your back", I didn't think they meant until my back feathers were out front.

I just realized I haven't contributed any of my critter photos to this thread. Here's a few of my favourites. After an afternoon of hiking the trails and hand feeding the birds 10 years ago, we spotted this young coyote on the drive home and realized it wasn't alone. My brother was kind enough to pull over and let me out of the truck to get a few shots of these white-tailed deer back in 2013. I don't think I have seen more than one deer at a time since them.

One more.

So just to be clear, BN#2 birds every single day for 5 years, and has a list count that is 2 less than BN#1's count???...That window must provide a pretty good view. *wonders if the nature channels on TV sometimes gets confused for a window...says nothing, and whistles innocently* ?

Spinning Woodpecker. Pileated woodpecker. Back-headed Woodpecker. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Red-bellied Woodpecker

Scarlet Tanager

There was a time when I would salute myself in the morning too.

It's been a while since I've I gotten a shot of Pine Siskins, and even longer since I've gotten a good shot. This one goes back to 2009.

Here's a prime example of how we sometimes read things differently than they were written. ?

Does this lipstick make my mouth look big?

What's this?...No photos of the house sparrows???? I don't usually point my camera at them either.

By shortening the time frame, I think you'd be short changing those people that might not have a photo of a particular bird and could otherwise use the whole week to try to get a photo of the desired bird, or get a better photo if they already have one. Just my thoughts.

I printed the ABA checklist and ticked off the birds I knew I had ID'd just to see what kind of count I might have in comparison to others that were talking about their life list numbers. I can't be certain of the number at the time, I think it was 172 but I didn't write it down or keep the checklist so I can't be certain. I did this once, and only once, and that was close to 10 years ago. I have no interest in using eBird to document a list for me. My interest in birds is in watching them, not counting them or listing them. I guess I am what most birders would call a bird watcher, which is a title that accurately describes how I enjoy the birds. To me, lists add a competitiveness to birding that takes away from my enjoyment. Just my spin, which I have said before, isn't always the popular view.

Perhaps, in the future, gradually showing a little bit more of the bird instead of revealing the ID all at once might be more helpful/educational, and more fun, for those eluding IDs. Just a thought.

If "our age group" is the one where you feel older than you are and always thought the aches and pains you're suffering were for older people, then yeah, I'm in that age group.

You crack me up @Charlie Spencer. I don't know what you put in your coffee this morning but it definitely made me laugh. Hmmm, maybe it was what I put in my coffee that made me laugh...ummm, *said in my best Rosanne Rosanna Danna voice*...Never Mind.

Not while you're birding I hope. That would be weird.

As you said, @Clip, things have changed. The membership has been asking @Administrator to improve the forums to what they once were ever since the site crashed but our repeated requests fall upon deaf ears. It is my opinion that Admin has dropped the ball and has no intention to pick it up again. You can still post different wildlife photos you just don't have separate forums or sub-forums to keep things organized. You'd be surprised how much falls under the umbrella of birding in the photo sharing and discussion section. People see, hear, talk and think about all kinds of things while birding, which opens the door for EVERYTHING to be posted in the Photo Sharing and Discussion forum. Like others here, I am disappointed in the new forums but try to make the best of it.

I think some newer birders might be more inclined to jump to the hybrid conclusion, not sure if that can be related to the west or east though. I think some newer members struggle to separate certain species at times and use the hybrid suggestion when they can't make the tricky IDs. I also think that once the idea of hybrids gets into some people minds, which appears to have happened recently, well, they start looking to ID hybrids before they look for the basic IDs. That's just an opinion, and we all know about opinions.

That's my experience too. I've often followed Kestrels down the back roads with the car window open hoping I can stop and get the camera up before the bird takes off again. I can apply that to most any bird that perches on the power lines though, they just don't seem to like being stalked by car anymore than they do by foot. Go figure. ?

Your link took me to Google's search page, @Charlie Spencer. Is this the link you were looking to share? https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/like-chasing-tornadoes-the-fun-and-challenge-of-mixed-species-flocks/

I'd say you're good right up until the next species is posted. Besides, I don't think anyone is going to complain if someone's timing is off a bit.

While the rear view is probably not our favourite view, sometimes it makes for interesting photos.