Underwater with Humpbacks in the Silver Bank: 2-5-18

Truly majestic creatures.

North Shore Beach: 1-5-18

Dunlin

Their diet varies with season and location, eating mostly insects on the tundra where they breed and small invertebrates on the coast.

On the coast they eat a wide variety of small creatures fond in the intertidal zone, including marine worms, snails and other mollusks, sometimes small fish, and even occasionally seeds and leaves.

They are much easier to identify when they’re in their breeding plumage and have that diagnostic black belly.  This shot was taken in SE Alaska in July.

 Marbled Godwits

Winter visitor

Ring-billed Gull, preening

Aptly named, Ring-billed

Our 2nd most common gull though it doesn’t breed in the state

Brown Pelicans on Bird Island

Coming in for a landing

Immature birds with a brown head

Sleeping

Humpback Cartwheel sequence on the Silver Bank: 2-4-18

This cartwheel maneuver (aka Tail lunge or Tail breach) can have several meanings: excitement; annoyance; part of a fight between two males after the same female; a female alerting others of her presence; and many others

And a breach in front of our home while in the Silver Bank Marine Sanctuary

Deck shots

Male Purple Martin

One of eight martins here so far

Blue Jays

The bluest of blues!

Osprey shaking after an unsuccessful dive for a fish

Images from the Dominican Republic: 2-3-18

Our state bird has a presence on the island

Brown, aka Cuban, Anole

Handsome male Hispaniolan Woodpecker

Endemic to Hispaniola

A local, Red Junglefowl

Palmchat, the National Bird of the Dominican Republic

Dulus dominicus, the only member of its family